A Riverwalk Christmas: Four-In-One-Collection

Authors: 
Elizabeth Goddard, Martha Rogers, Lynette Sowell, Kathleen Y’Barbo
ISBN: 978-1-60260-967-9
Publisher: Barbour Publishing, Inc.

*To purchase click the image to the left*




It’s Christmas in San Antonio and the river walk is the perfect spot for romance. This wonderland is festive and full of hot spots for locals and tourist, but does it have enough magic to put the love spell into four couple’s lives? I think it does! In this novel you will read four different short romance stories about four women living around the San Antonio river walk. Each relationship has its own past, present and future to delight the reader.

In the first story, Riverside Serenade, you meet Ecko Lewis and Joshua Sheppard. Ecko and Joshua are strangers connected in more ways than they realize at first. Their story is a whirlwind, love at first sight romance. It is a little corny but satisfying to the reader. In the second story, Key to Her Heart, Valerie and Colt’s story weaves the past of former love, old hurt and mistakes with the present, a homecoming, a reunion, understanding and the possibility of love if they can forgive. The third mini-novel, Lights of Love, chronicles lost trust, past mistakes, and the attraction that used to exist between Gabriela Hernadez and Miguel Rivera. The story addresses the subjects of forgiveness, new deeper love, hopes and dreams. The question is will love prevail? In this story on page 181 the title “The Hearts Harbor” appears at the top of the page. I assume this was an editing mishap as there is no such title anywhere else in this compilation. The final mini-novel, "Remember the Alamo", gives the reader the chance to meet Sienna Montalvo and Joe Ramirez. These two lovers relationship failed when they put their jobs ahead of one another. Now they are re-united by fate and the failed relationship, and its love not lost is re-kindled with forgiveness and understanding. It is a story of love to last a lifetime.

I enjoyed each of these short stories. As with all short romance stories, they can be a little corny and predictable at times, however they are completely satisfying, uplifting and comforting. The back drop of the river walk at Christmas time was perfect for these stories. Most all of the mini-novels centered on the river walk with the exception of “Remember the Alamo”. The authors even interweaved the stories with the others, giving the reader the impression of one town, one river walk and four simultaneous stories. If you love a good sappy romance this book is for you.

In the back of this book is a letter to the reader that asks for a quick moment of your time to help the authors better contribute to your reading enjoyment. I have included my answers to these questions for this review. First, I did enjoy “A Riverwalk Christmas” and would like to see more like it; however I would prefer two stories to a book in order to make them a little more realistic. Second, I did not purchase this book because I was given a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review. However, the decision to choose this book above the others for review had to do with the cover, both front and back sides, the title, and the fact that it was four stories in one, which sparked my interest. The third question deals with the price of the book. I personally think the book is wonderfully priced with a great amount of entertainment and pages for the price. I would not hesitate to pay $7.99 for any 342 page book. Fourth is a question about my favorite of the stories. My favorite story was “Key to Her Heart” with “Riverside Serenade” as a close second. My least favorite was “Remember the Alamo”, I had a hard time getting through this story as it was so much different from the others. Lastly, I probably spend about 25 -30 hours a week reading. It is my passion and my nose is in a book as often as it can be. I usually like a book if I can give it 3 stars (average) or higher.

 
Reviewed for Reader Views