Stealing Kisses in the Snow

The first holiday-set contemporary of McNally’s Rendezvous Falls series (after Slow Dancing at Sunrise) steers refreshingly clear of holiday clichés. Widow Piper Montgomery becomes the de facto manager of the Taggart Inn in Rendezvous Falls, N.Y., after her elderly boss, Iris, suffers a fall. Between wrangling guests, fixing plumbing problems, and getting her two kids to school, Piper doesn’t have the time or inclination to train Iris’s grandson, Logan, when he rides into town on his motorcycle offering assistance. A mechanical engineer, Logan doesn’t plan to work at the inn long-term, but he’s eager to pitch in to help his grandma. Instantly impressed by Piper’s energy and spunk, Logan is also surprised by his immediate connection with Piper’s cheerful four-year-old, Lily, and her guarded 13-year-old, Ethan. As the holiday season picks up, Piper and Logan grow closer, nudged along by the series-staple Rendezvous Falls Book Club, comprising Iris’s meddling but well-meaning friends. Readers will be charmed by this sweet, no-nonsense Christmas romance full of genuine emotion. (Nov.)