Maria Davis is a true romantic, her choice of reading material is romance novels, so when Jodi Thomas decided to make Maria the star in A CHRISTMAS AFFAIR, it was no real surprise. There is no obstacle too large or impossible that can come between two people that find themselves truly smitten. Wes Whitman, the quiet, unassuming grocery store owner is no match for this spirited yet quiet, lovely young lady. Her blindness is practically overlooked so unimportant in the scheme of things.

We had met these two in prior Ransom Canyon books but never really thought about what Jodi Thomas had in store for them. Maria has been stocking her homemade jams and jellies in Wes' store for a while now. Wes, it seems had it all down to a pretty perfect system so that Maria could do it her way by herself. All part of making her feel self-sufficient. In truth, this lovely man made sure all and any obstacles were removed when Maria did her restocking. Wes just stayed out of reach and watched. With time Maria had become important to Wes -- he just hadn't figured that out yet. Maria was just too beautiful to be attracted to Wes. But Maria had come to a rather shocking decision. First, she wanted a Christmas affair resplendent with scenes right out of her romance novels. And second, she wanted Wes. We met Maria Davis, her sister Dakota and grandmother in Indigo River. Dakota is now engaged to Blade and their story was truly marvelous.

Travis Fuller at fifteen is heading to Crossroads Texas to live with three bachelor great-uncles. Tough young guy with an attitude that is well earned. Travis is a rather strange teenager with a great appreciation for all the surrounding elements which gives him a special vision of this little town he has just moved to. And to be quite candid Travis has no idea how wonderful this little town and its inhabitants are. Travis' three uncles have rearranged their home and lives to take care of their teenage charge. There is a lot of love in that household and albeit a slightly odd family.

If nothing else we have come to expect a great deal of eclectic characters in most of Jodi Thomas' works and so A CHRISTMAS AFFAIR is such a welcome addition. Crossroads is a town filled with good people. Travis has to take a long breath to get accustomed to the amount of generosity that went his way -- a stranger in town. What better homage to the holiday season than watching a town work their own type of miracle for some very special people. Jodi Thomas packs in quite a lot of story in A CHRISTMAS AFFAIR which is a novella for this holiday season.

Book Summary

A shy soul and an adventurous heart. As the holidays approach, can they find happiness together?

Maria Anne Davis was on her way to an exciting career as a chef in Dallas, until a terrible car accident left her blind. Ever resilient, Maria has reinvented her life on her own terms, starting a business out of her home kitchen, selling her jams and jellies to the local grocery.

Maria loves romance novels, and despite her bold spirit, she fears she’ll never have a big love affair like ones her heroines experience. That is, until she realizes how much she cares about the quiet Wes Whitman, the owner of the grocery.

Wes can’t keep Maria’s wildly popular jam on his shelves—just like he can’t keep the fierce, beautiful Maria out of his thoughts. But how could a firecracker like Maria come to love a shy, nervous man like him? Maybe all they need is a grand affair. Wes needs to convince Maria that some affairs last forever, though—just in time for Christmas.