3 steamy Christmas novellas....very fun! ( )

The first story Hot Toy by Jennifer Crusie is a hilarious if most improbable Christmas Eve romp, and only those who have read it may wonder why I find the most improbable thing about it is that Trudy, with her knowledge of untrustworthy men, hadn't secured Leroy's toy well before Thanksgiving. ★★★★

Christmas Bonus by Lori Foster &
Naughty Under the Mistletoe by Carly Phillips Are pornomances of no particular note.

Read the first and skip the rest. ( )

5 stars for the Crusie novella by itself! "Hot Toy" is one of the funniest Christmas stories ever. Crusie's dialog is, as usual, sharp and witty and keeps the story moving along... and only Crusie can bring the Magic of Christmas together with gin, a shootout, international spies, the desperate search for this year's hot toy- which is disgusting- for a beloved nephew who's had a horrible year- AND make it laugh-out-loud funny! This story alone makes the book worthwhile, especially since one can buy it for a penny plus postage.

Unfortunately, the other 2 stories were not as good.

Foster's "Christmas Bonus" was unreadable for me; maybe 2 stars. I suppose it'd be worth reading if you need insight into how a Nice GuyTM thinks the world works, but Eric is a loathsome creature and we spend way too much time in his putrid head. He is resentful that his crush has become his boss, and is determined to act professionally- but his definition of "professional" includes calling his boss "sweetheart" and "honey" etc. on a regular basis, while ogling her. Because this is fiction, she is smitten rather than repulsed.

Phillips's "Naughty Under the Mistletoe" was decent- 3-4 stars. Toni is a workaholic who has decided she needs a fling- and her almost-ex-boss is the guy she picks, because he's pretty much the only bachelor she knows. At the Christmas party, though, she mistakenly puts the moves on his twin brother, and they are mutually smitten. Love at first sight has a deservedly bad rep, but I think it worked OK here. The one bit that i could not get my head around is how Toni fled Max's place after a misunderstanding, when he drove her there and it was at least 40 min away from her home...! Anyway, it was cute and I liked the characters.

HIGHLY recommended just for the Crusie story, if you like crime capers, excellent banter, and/or holiday humor! ( )

Hot Toy - 2 3/4 Stars - Not the whitty, keep me glued to the page Crusie story I'm used to but it was decent, although under developed and I really do worry that Courtney is an alcholic.

Christmas Bonus - 3 Stars - A Christmas Bonus indeed, wink wink.

Naughty Under the Mistletoe - 3 Stars - Short simple and sweet. ( )

Three fun holiday stories. I liked Jennifer Crusie story best with its intrigue and romance all wrapped in humor. Lori Foster's story was about having sex or thinking about it and didn't have much plot. Carly Phillips' story was a nice love at first sight.
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