Fans of inspirational, faith-based fiction will find plenty of options for getting into the spirit of Christmas with new and forthcoming releases this year.
For quilters: A Quilt for Christmas by Melody Carlson (Revell, out now). Carlson, whose past Christmas novels have sold over seven million copies, according to the publisher, blends romance, holiday giving, and forgiveness in her latest title. Vera Swanson, widowed and recently relocated, isn’t looking forward to a lonely Christmas. When young Fiona Albrights knocks on her door requesting a special quilt for her mother, Vera realizes she needs help. She calls on a ragtag group of quilters and discovers the gift of friendship along the way.
For romantics: Merry Ex-Mas: A Sweet Christmas Romance by Courtney Walsh (Sweethaven Press, Oct. 25). An ex boyfriend and girlfriend turn into reluctant allies who must work together as broadcasters, with a lot of fake-flirting, as co-hosts on Good Day Denver. But whose heart will be won in this battle for ratings?
For fans of small town nostalgia: O Little Town: A Romance Christmas Collection by Amanda Wen, Janyre Tromp, Deborah Raney (Kregel, out now) features three generations of Mapleview, Mich., residents longing for love—and finding it—on the most wonderful night of the year. In the first short story in the collection, Hopes and Fears by Wen, Emma Trowbridge is planning an elaborate Christmas pageant for her students, but her plans are threatened by her childhood rival who wants no part of holiday cheer. Tromp’s While Mortals Sleep follows WWII news reporter Eleanor Sweers after a bomb lands in the middle of the U.S. The Wondrous Gift by Raney follows a high school football coach and a music teacher, both of whom have lost their jobs, figuring out their futures together as their plans threaten to pull them apart.
For time-travel fans: Home for Christmas by Courtney Cole (Avon, out now). Piper McCaulley wants to reevaluate her life far away from home in Alaska and memories of her beloved Gran, but before she can leave she’s caught in a blizzard and wakes up in 1945 in the original home her ancestors built. During one magical holiday season, Piper learns the meaning of real love, home, and family legacy.
For history buffs: Five & Dime Christmas: Four Historical Novellas by Susanne Dietze, Patty Smith Hall, Cynthia Hickey, Christina Lorenzen (Barbour, out now). Each story is set at Woolworth’s Five & Dime during Christmas in 1881 and follows four young women. Maggie Larson works the lunch counter where she befriends a girl whose lonely father delivers milk each Friday. Hattie Scott learns her favorite customer is Englishman Timothy Branson and a threat to her brother's job. Essie Hensley doesn't need money but welcomes the challenges of working a job where she meets a minister and six little boys who inspire Christmas wishes. A job is the only thing independent orphan Lizzie Miller needs, but she can't pass up an invite to a bookkeeper's family’s Christmas.
For fans of Amish fiction: A Match Made at Christmas by Patricia Davids (HQN, out now) Karl Grabers wants no part of matchmaker Rose Yoder’s plans, and new schoolteacher Sophie Eicher, a breast cancer survivor, doesn’t want to burden a man with her uncertain future. But when Karl’s children help make the Christmas play a success, perhaps two unlikely people will discover healing at Christmas.
For fans of clean, wholesome romance: The Second Christmas (An Amish Holiday Novel) by Marta Perry (Berkley, Nov.), When Leah Beiler returns to Promise Glen to open a teashop, she didn’t expect Josiah Burkhalter to insist on helping. But can she trust the man who broke her heart? Leah looks forward to spending the holiday season with her family, especially Second Christmas on December 26, a day spent with family and friends like the Burkhalters.
For fans of A Christmas Carol: A Little Christmas Spirit: A Novel by Sheila Roberts (MIRA, out now). Single mom Lexie Bell wants to make Christmas special for her young son, including sharing holiday cheer with her grumpy neighbor. Stanley Mann’s wife shows up in his dreams and threatens to haunt him until he rediscovers the joy of the season. And he starts by being neighborly to Lexie.
