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Holly

Ladies of Garfield, Book 17

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About this listen

She’s finally living her best life.

Holly Hoffman hasn’t had an easy life. Thanks to parents who were more concerned with their drug habits than their daughters, she’s been making her own way for as long as she can remember. At 24, she finally has her life as close to perfect as she can make it. Work is fulfilling, she has a new set of crafting friends, and the home she shares with her sister is more stable than any she had as a child. Perfect disintegrates when the nativity set she’s painting for a client comes to life in her hands. Delusion or the act of a God she’s never believed in?

He never believed in love at first sight until he fell.

Riley Soeurs returns to Garfield to manage the local food bank with great expectations and more than a little naivety. When God places the gorgeous and jaded Holly Hoffman in his path, complete with all the bitter baggage of her youth, he realizes that there’s more to his return than the food bank. There’s just one problem. How can Riley offer Holly the help God is urging him to give without further endangering his already smitten heart?

Relentless pursuit.

Between the nativity set and Riley, Holly is getting a crash course in love and forgiveness. Can she accept the healing that’s being offered, or will her stubborn heart keep her mired in the past?

©2021 Sharon L Srock (P)2022 Sharon L Srock Christian Fiction Contemporary Contemporary Romance Fiction Genre Fiction Romance Heartfelt Banking
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Holly by Sharon Srock was a really interesting read. Holly and Sage are sisters, and they're the pair of characters that got my attention from Ember's story when they were introduced, so I was actually looking forward to their story. I'm not sure if I ever thought what their background would entail (it's heartbreaking), but my heart definitely went out to Holly. Her story definitely portrays the lengths to which God will go to reach anyone. Now, going in, I knew the elements of the Nativity set would come to life, so I was kinda wary about that aspect, but still decided to give it a go. I was pleasantly surprised that I enjoyed most of their appearances, and that it was pretty accurate biblically speaking, though not completely perfect (the names of the Magi, Gabriel visiting Mary but not being the one sent "six months prior to someone else", etc). Still, God's love shines through all of it, and it was intriguing getting to experience the Christmas message in this way. As for Riley, the only "but" (that is on me) was that I'm used to hearing this name for a woman, so it was hard for me to reconcile it to a male throughout the story. Still, I really liked his relationship with the Lord and how he was willing to serve others and care for the people God placed in his path. Yes, there are also valuable lessons he gets to learn, and I also enjoyed how his relationship with Holly developed. Of course, with his being a minister and her being an unbeliever, it made for some really deep, no-easy-answers conversations.

As for the narrator, I think she was good at bringing most of the characters to life (from little kids to older people, from Riley's smooth tone to Holly's kinda snarky one, and everything in between). There may be some room for improvement since there were some parts of Riley and Holly's conversations where their voices sounded similar, but as for nuances of emotions, I think she nailed all of them (especially the tremors when scared, or the tearful voices both from sorrow or joy).

Overall, a unique Christmas story and a great addition to the series (though it can be read on its own). Perfect for fans of the author, the series, and/or the Christian Contemporary Romance genre. Looking forward to the next! ~ 4.5 stars

Sweet & unique Christmas story, but...

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