The Christmas Wishing Tree (Eternity Springs, #15)

by Emily March

[chymerra]

When I first saw The Christmas Wishing Tree, I thought it was going to be one of those feel-good books. One of those books where the male and female main characters knew from day 1 that they were meant for each other. Where Instalove rules and a relationship of 3 days is enough to know that he/she is the one. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy reading those types of books. I also enjoy reviewing them. But, I have become bored with Instalove romances. I was happy when I started reading The Christmas Wishing Tree.

The Christmas Wishing Tree is the story of Devin, Jenna, and Reilly. Devin is an Aussie on vacation in Eternity Springs visiting his adoptive parents. Jenna is a busy OBGYN who is stressed out by the Christmas time rush and a stalker. Reilly is Jenna’s 6-year-old adopted son who believes in Santa. Devin and Jenna meet when Reilly somehow gets the phone number of the burner phone that Devin was given. Reilly was told that the phone was a line to Santa. Devin and Jenna finally talk and they both agree to let Devin keep up the charade. Things change when Jenna’s stalker becomes dangerous. Desperate to provide a safe and stable environment for her son, Jenna goes off the grid and ends up in Eternity Springs. There she meets Devin. It is there where she has a stand down with her stalker. It is there where she realizes that Devin is more than Santa to her. After being on the run and afraid, can she trust enough to put down roots? Will, she let Devin and the people of Eternity Springs help her? Can she get Reilly the help he needs? More importantly, can she love?

For being the 15th (yes 15th!!!) book in the series, The Christmas Wishing Tree can be read as a stand-alone. I have some very strong feelings about picking up a book mid-series. The short version, it annoys me. I hate reading a book, having past books come up and having no idea what is going on. So yes, I was happy with this book. I was able to get into Devin and Jenna’s story without having to worry about the past books being a major issue.

I liked how true to life the author made Jenna’s stalker storyline. Unfortunately, in real life, most stalking cases are not addressed by the police because of the reasons stated in the book. Most stalking victims (male and female) have had to take drastic measures like Jenna took to escape their stalkers. While Jenna’s case did get resolved (because someone took her serious), most don’t. Like I said at the beginning of the paragraph, I enjoyed it. As for Jenna’s stalker, I thought knew who it was. So when her stalker’s identity was revealed, I was surprised.

I felt awful for Reilly during the book. He endured 2 traumatic experiences that scarred him. I know that Jenna was doing what she thought was right but I didn’t think that traveling the country in an RV, under an assumed name was the right thing for him. That poor boy needed therapy as soon as the second traumatic event happened. Not almost a year later. Not faulting Jenna, because she was in flight or fight mode, but still. I was glad when Jenna relented and got Sinatra for Reilly. I also was glad when she allowed him to go to the ranch, where there were people qualified to help him.

I thought Devin was awesome the entire book. He went along playing Santa when he could have been a Grinch about it. He started the ball rolling when he found out about Jenna’s stalker. He was a devoted brother, uncle, and son. He also had a jealous streak a mile wide. I called when he had a fist fight with Boone. The glares he kept giving him before that cracked me up.

Devin and Jenna’s romance was delicious. It was a slow burn. I loved it. I loved that the chemistry between them built up over time. It wasn’t instantaneous. It was 2 years in the making. What I also liked was that the sex scenes were not explicit. The author put enough in there so you knew what was going on. Loved it!!

The end of The Christmas Wishing Tree was cute. I liked how the author wrapped up the storylines. They were all ended in ways that satisfied me as a reader. I am looking forward to book 16. Hopefully, it will be Boone.

What I liked about The Christmas Wishing Tree:

Loved that it could be read as a stand-alone
Devin and Jenna’s relationship
The storyline
What I disliked about The Christmas Wishing Tree:

Jenna’s stalker
How Reilly was affected by everything that was going on
How Jenna was affected by her stalker
I gave The Christmas Wishing Tree a 4-star rating. This was an enjoyable read. The characters were relatable and the plotline was engaging. My only complaint had no bearing on my rating. That complaint was about the stalking plotline. It made me sad to see how one person could ruin someone’s life.

I will reread The Christmas Wishing Tree. I also would recommend this book to family and friends.

I would like to thank St. Martin’s Press, St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review The Christmas Wishing Tree

All opinions stated in this review of The Christmas Wishing Tree are mine.

**I chose to leave this review after reading an advance reader copy**