[ I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Hallmark Publishing in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]
Summary
Sam owns Singleton’s Jewelers. He’s something of a workaholic. First in, last out. He has great ideas for holiday promotions that have crowds at the shop door. He teaches his employees the ABCs of salesmanship – assertiveness, buying opportunities, and closing the deal – and keeps his expectations for himself and others high.
Angie is a single mom who lives in an apartment with her mom and grandmother. It’s the perfect set up for their family. She works for Sam as the shop’s accountant and sales person, a salaried position. Which means when Sam needs her to put in extra hours, or if reports need to be run, there’s no extra pay for her extra time. Angie likes her job, and even likes working for Sam. But he can be uptight, and he doesn’t always recognize how his choices impact his employees, especially an employee with a family.
But everything changes when Sam falls on some ice and cracks his head on the ground. Angie’s there and takes him to the hospital. Sam is essentially fine – but he has no memory of his life. He’s a little ashamed to realize he has no one to help him as he recovers – his father isn’t in good enough health, and he doesn’t seem to have any close friends or a girlfriend. So Angie says Sam can come home with her. While he hopes to get his memory back soon, this arrangement gives Sam a chance to see what a treasure Angie has been all this time.
Review
I was so excited to see Hallmark Publishing releasing books this fall – original stories and novelizations of their movies. Unfortunately, this book didn’t live up to my hopes.
The story is fine. It holds together and fits the pattern fans have come to expect from Hallmark. I rated this 3 stars because the story is solid, but that is a generous rating for my personal enjoyment of the story. I am sure other readers will find this to be a delightful and sweet holiday story. But for me, it had no spark and felt predictable.
Angie and her family were sweet. Sam was uptight – but that was it. He went from uptight to warm. It wasn’t a big shift. His relationship with his dad and his old friend lent some more weight to the idea that there’s a personality change, but it was still too low key for me. And I felt no chemistry between Sam and Angie.
I would say Hallmark fans who are intrigued by the premise should try this one out. Many other reviewers have loved this. YMMV.*
Rating: ♥♥♥
*Your mileage may vary