Once they were lovers. Isabella was a fledgling actress, struggling to survive. Jack Frazer was a youth as innocent as he was handsome, consumed by love for this girl he could never make his wife.Their year together was bliss; their parting bitter with jealousy and anger. But that had been long ago. Now Isabella is the premier star of the London stage. And Jack is the city's supreme rake, a jaded libertine currently courting an exquisite if inexperienced young lady on orders from his titled grandmother. Both Isabella and Jack are utterly changed -- so what danger can there be if they meet again? But as they soon discover, there are painful wounds that never heal -- and burning passions that refuse to die...
This is a book I have read a few years ago. I noticed
I hadn't written a proper review of it and since I read book nº1 in this duet a
few weeks ago I thought this might be a good read for Christmas Eve. I do love
Christmas house parties and Balogh does them so well that I couldn't resist it.
Belle
and Jack were once lovers. They meet again nine years later during Jack's
grandparents’ traditional Christmas house party. Belle is the guest of honor of
what would otherwise be a just a family reunion.
I really enjoyed seeing the characters I had met
earlier in The First Snowdrop. They all seem like such a warm and close knit
family, I would have loved to see Freddie and Ruby get their own book or to
read about the Duke and the Duchess's courtship and wedding.
On
a second read Christmas Belle is even better than I remembered. I don't usually
go for the big misundertanding plot but here I felt that more than the effects
of a “big mis” situation we see the characters grow and acknowledge their own
errors and behaviours. We see how the years of separation and their new
situation in life makes them experience things differently and how they take
into account other people that are also important to them.
My
complaint about this story continues to be the same, though. The HEA is left in
the hands of fate and if I understand Belle and Jack's behaviour I would also
would like to have seen them more actively pursuing their happiness. I'm sure
it would give us some wonderful angst ridden moments that they would eventually
have overcome to celebrate their happiness.
Despite this I think Christmas Belle is a really good
Christmas novel and I wish Balogh will keep writing this type of story. I am
well on my way to read all her books and I can’t imagine the day when I won’t
have one to look forward to.
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