Winter Magic by Elizabeth Sinclair

During our cold spell, I had the pleasure of reading Elizabeth Sinclair's new novel, Winter Magic.  The fourth book in her popular Hawk's Mountain series, it was an engrossing read.  Like her other Hawk's Mountain novels, I read it during the course of one evening.

It is the story of Jonathan Prince, the wealthy son of a prominent family.  His father and his aunt want him to settle down and have children of his own.  At 34, he has no illusions about why women seek him.  He knows he is attractive, but it's his money they all want.  How could he possibly trust any woman after his experiences?  His elders persuade him to hire a new party planner, named Miranda Cameron, for their annual charity Christmas gala.  He has seen Ms. Cameron before.  She is an ambitious business woman who drives a red Ferrari.  Jonathan is on to his father and his aunt.  He knows they hope Miranda will turn out to be Ms. Right.  Wrong!! She is just the type he abhors and tries to avoid.

Enter Miranda's twin sister, Andrea, known as Andi.  She is a kindergarten teacher who loves her job.  She dresses simply and sensibly.  Andi treasures her "Teacher of the Year" necklace that she always wears, not designer clothes. Her car is an old battle-scarred orange Volkswagen Beetle. Though identical twins, they are two distinctly different individuals.

When Miranda has a medical emergency, she begs Andi to impersonate her and meet with the formidable Mr. Prince.  Andi agrees with great reluctance.  The action from that point gets very interesting.  Jonathan is drawn to Andi when they meet.  He is puzzled about the changes he senses in "Miranda" from their inital meeting.  He finally decides that this is a ploy to ingratiate herself and win him.

The longer he works with Andi ("Please call me Andi.  All my friends do...") the more drawn to her he becomes.

Winter Magic is a warm, inviting story, filled with the gentle humor indicative of Ms. Sinclair's writing.  The love story does not run smoothly, as you can imagine.  The reader is drawn along the roller coaster relationship between Jonathan and Andi.  Each character harbors their own secrets and doubts about why their courtship will never work.

As always, the characters are superbly drawn.  You will care about these people, laugh with them, and root for them.

Winter Magic is narrated by Granny Jo, the matriarch of the series.  She is involved in the story's action as well.  And for the fans, like me, who wanted to know her story, Ms. Sinclair has obliged us with an epilogue that tells the story of Granny Jo and her beloved husband Earl. 

This lovely novel will leave you warm and smiling.  The rich story will touch your heart.

Another fine novel, Ms. Sinclair!

BLURB:

 

He’s naughty. She’s nice. Will he believe her reasons for masquerading as her twin sister, the high-society party planner he hired to organize his charity fundraising gala? Or will he decide that this kindergarten teacher is just another beautiful woman who’s willing to lie, cheat, and seduce her way into his bank account?

Christmas on Hawks Mountain is about to go from “apple cider sweet” to “somebody put moonshine in the eggnog.”

 

Links to purchase:

Amazon.com

Barnes and Noble