Nice Christmas tale that somehow I connect mentally with Naive Art., ( )

The Working Elf Blues is the story of Garnet Evergreen, one of Santa’s elves, who takes it upon himself to spend Christmas with Wes, a human, who’s he’s been watching since they were both children. This is told in third person from both Garnet, and Wes’, pov.



This is a sweet and charming Christmas story. It’s the kind of story I’ve been wanting to read for the holidays. It’s magical, with little conflict and a satisfying HEA for both Garnet and Wes.

I loved the first paragraph of the story, it drew me right in. Garnet is in a dire predicament and will need Wes’ help to get out of it. Garnet is a toymaker for Santa, and has left the North Pole to sneak off and spend the holidays with Wes.

Following is a quick run-down of the plot: Ever since Garnet met Wes during a sad time in Wes’ life, Garnet has wanted to be with, and to care for Wes. He’s appeared to Wes at important and sad times of his life to help him through the events. In a way, Garnet reminds me of a guardian angel in this story, and Santa reminds me of ‘God.’ You’ll see what I mean at the end of the story when Santa works his magic. Garnet’s heart is full of love and caring, and he wants to give all of that to Wes.

Wes, on the other hand, has had a sad life. He’s been orphaned, lived in many foster homes, then his foster parents died and he went to live with the foster mother’s uncle. That uncle also soon died. Luckily for Wes, he was adopted by the uncle and was the sole heir to all his property and belongings. The uncle also taught Wes many skills for his vocation and Wes makes a good living for himself. The only thing is he’s very alone. He doesn’t realize how much he wants company until Garnet drops into his life. The author did a great job of conveying Wes’ sadness. It seemed like a shroud that blanketed Wes. He just went through the motions of living without happiness.

The one part that was hard to believe was Wes’ easy acceptance of who, and what, Garnet was. That could be because he did remember Garnet from their past encounters, so he wasn’t a stranger. The progression of their relationship moved quite quickly with a brief rundown of what happened over a week and how they grew closer.

There were some things I didn’t like about the writing. One was the monologue, there was a lot of it. And because of it, the story was told instead of shown. However, because this is such a cute story, it’s easier to accept the telling. Another thing I didn’t like, was the rushed feel of the plot. I think this book would’ve been better if it was longer. Instead, the relationship growth is glossed over by telling what happened. And for those readers who like descriptive sex, there isn’t any. It’s just told that they had a wonderful time.

Despite the things I didn’t like, the story was very Christmassy with a lovely HEA. I would read further books if the author decided to make this into a series. Maybe a story with Poplar, Garnet’s BFF, and maybe even Garnet’s father. It’d be wonderful if they visited during the holidays, and met Wes in person rather than just watching them from the North Pole *hint, hint*

I enjoyed this story and would recommend The Working Elf Blues to anyone looking for a magical holiday read. I give this book 4 Stars.




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Cute elf pines for human story. Throughly charming. ( )

Cute elf pines for human story. Throughly charming. ( )