Rating: 
Summary: Lindsey For The Holidays!
Review: After reading the book, I decided to see what other readers had to say in their reviews. I was a surprised to see that a greater majority of the reviews were against the book....that is, saying it was not up to "Lindsey standard". The book was short but very entertaining. The story line was a little obvious, as others have mentioned, but its a great read for those who want to just sit back, relax and enjoy a good book. I am a great fan of Johanna Lindsey. Only one or two of her books have been unentertaining to me, but the rest were absolutely fantastic!
Rating:
Summary: A tale of redemption through love
Review: Baron Vincent Everett vows to revenge the unnecessary death of his brother Albert. After blaming George Ascot for the failure of a business venture that left him financially ruined, Albert committed suicide. With George conducting business in the colonies, Vincent goes about destroying his enemy. He starts by spreading innuendoes about George and financial ruin. He follows that up with buying George's home. Finally, he sets in motion the end game of tossing George's two children into the street. However, he revises his plan upon meeting George's daughter Larisa. He invites her and her ailing brother into his home where he plans to seduce and ruin Larisa. Instead Vincent cannot reconcile his need of closure through vengeance with falling in love with his guest. HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS is an entertaining historical romance that has all the trademarks of a Johanna Lindsey bestseller. The story line is fast-paced and filled with Christmas magic. As expected from a Ms. Lindsey novel, the lead couple is a delightful duo who find their attraction to one another a worse fate than death is. Ms. Lindsey has provided a Yuletide PRESENT for her myriad of fans. Harriet Klausner
Rating: 
Summary: A Romantic Dud
Review: Christmas-themed "Home for the Holidays" is pretty trite. It's not JL's worst romance ("Captive Bride" and "Paradise Wild" tie for most awful ever), but "Home" severely lacks in the passion and character departments. Neither Vincent nor Larissa have interesting or compelling personalities. All we really know about them is Vincent has no feelings and Larissa is so innocent and compassionate she spends most of the book crying. Worse, Larissa is a spineless boor of a heroine; she has no interesting dialogue, no background whatsoever to speak of, and no real reason to fall in love with Vincent. She doesn't even really get mad, when her situation begs for a spirited tantrum or two. As for Vincent, he had potential to be interesting, but the brevity of this novel (it's a novella, really) and JL's awful tell-don't-show narration kept him from blossoming into a full-blown hero. Unfortunately, the only reasons he falls for her are 1) she's gorgeous and 2) he's lonely. Shallow in the extreme. I'd advise skipping "Home for the Holidays" and settling down with a marvelous JL romance instead. Those who enjoy westerns should read "Savage Thunder"; for medieval, read "Defy Not the Heart"; for sci-fi romance, read "Warrior's Woman"; for Regency, begin the Malory Family series with "Love Only Once"; for a good rags-to-riches JL, read "Once A Princess;" or for something a little shocking, try "Secret Fire" (risqué) or "Prisoner of My Desire" (a true jaw-dropper).
Rating: 
Summary: A Light, Fun Read
Review: Compared to Ms. Lindsey's other works, I can see where this one is receiveing its poor votes. However, I understood that this story is a short story, more like a novella than a novel, perhaps something the other readers might have missed. True, this book is marketed as a novel, and even has a deceptively large page count, however, upon opening the book, you'll notice the large double spaced print and blank Chapter pages. While this might seem like an unfair marketing ploy, I do not fault Ms. Lindsey for this. Otherwise, if this story were printed in the same type face as her other novels, I doubt this one would exceed more than 200 to 250 pages. Having written and read many short stories myself, I can identify with this story well and understand where the author was going. You don't have "time" to outline an intricate plot and character development must be swift to get to the meat of the story. The characters are great, however as a writer, I immediately saw one thing I would have done differently in this story. Larissa had a HUGE heart, and always felt tears spring up at the stories of Vincent's hardships as a child and the fact that he never celebrated Christmas. Why, then, would this sensitive woman *not* get him a Christmas present? I realize they had a falling out on Christmas Eve, but I thought that would have been one more great way to show how good she was and how horrible he would have felt at the knowledge that she had made/bought him a gift. Other than that one little peeve of mine, this book was worth reading.
Rating:
Summary: A Light, Fun Read
Review: Compared to Ms. Lindsey's other works, I can see where this one is receiveing its poor votes. However, I understood that this story is a short story, more like a novella than a novel, perhaps something the other readers might have missed. True, this book is marketed as a novel, and even has a deceptively large page count, however, upon opening the book, you'll notice the large double spaced print and blank Chapter pages. While this might seem like an unfair marketing ploy, I do not fault Ms. Lindsey for this. Otherwise, if this story were printed in the same type face as her other novels, I doubt this one would exceed more than 200 to 250 pages. Having written and read many short stories myself, I can identify with this story well and understand where the author was going. You don't have "time" to outline an intricate plot and character development must be swift to get to the meat of the story. The characters are great, however as a writer, I immediately saw one thing I would have done differently in this story. Larissa had a HUGE heart, and always felt tears spring up at the stories of Vincent's hardships as a child and the fact that he never celebrated Christmas. Why, then, would this sensitive woman *not* get him a Christmas present? I realize they had a falling out on Christmas Eve, but I thought that would have been one more great way to show how good she was and how horrible he would have felt at the knowledge that she had made/bought him a gift. Other than that one little peeve of mine, this book was worth reading.
Rating: 
Summary: Lindsey still sliding?
Review: I began my love of romance novels with Johanna Lindsey and have read all of her novels. For those of you who have, like me, been disappointed with her recent works, I am proud to say that this (to me) is much better than the ones in the most recent years. This one is considerably shorter, but I found that better. In her most recent works I found myself getting very bored in the middle waiting for something interesting to happen only to feel that I almost wasted my time reading for days. With this one, I read it from start to finish and didn't get bored once. Please don't get me wrong, it is not nearly the J.L. I was hoping for but it was better. Bottom line: If you want a book that is a cute, christmas story that will be a short read between christmas shopping, go for it. However, borrow it if you can b/c it really is not worth the amount that you have to pay for the hardcover book.
Rating:
Summary: A Story with Heart!
Review: I bought this book as soon as it hit the shelves. I read it in two days. It was an easy read. I like that in a book. You know what is going on from the start and you understand it without having to say to your self... "Now, who was he again?" There were only a few charactors, so you got to know them well. Vincent had an unhappy childhood. He didn't know the meaning of love, or happiness. He had never had a Christmas tree before! He wanted revenge on a man that he felt had caused his brother's death. That man was Larissa's Father, George Ascot. Knowing her Father was away on business he came up with a plan that ruining his credit would be part of his sweet revenge. Spreading fear that George may not be coming home, Vincent had creditors at her door step. Buying the deed to their house himself, he had Larissa kicked out of her home. But once his couriosity got the better of him, he went to met Larissa. Soon, he had a new idea of revenge. She was so beautiful. So innocent. He was going to seduce and ruin her. Instead, he fell in love with her and she made him see the meaning of love and happiness and the joy of having a Christmas tree. I felt that it was a great story. It was a short though. Johnna Lindsey can't write fast enough for me at any rate! Not unless she can put one book out a week.
Rating: 
Summary: Not Lindsey's Best
Review: I bought this book at a discounted price and still regretted the money I spent. I've read all of her other books and loved them, but this one was very disappointing. Next time I will wait for the paperback, or the library....
Rating:
Summary: Worth Reading
Review: I can understand the reviews for Home for the Holidays is either a book you like or you don't. It's somewhat dark, but ends happily so. Reminds me of a scrooge tale.
Rating:
Summary: Worth Reading
Review: I can understand the reviews for Home for the Holidays is either a book you like or you don't. It's somewhat dark, but ends happily so. Reminds me of a scrooge tale.
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