The Christmas Promise

By: Sue Moorcroft / Narrated By: Laura Kirman

Length: 9 hrs and 43 mins

Loved it, just one tiiiiiiny thing that kinda sorta disturbed the beJESus outta me, but I got over it…

But I’ll get to that later. First, lemme just tell you what the story’s about: Ava Bliss is a struggling Milliner (bespoke hat maker) who haaaates Christmas as her grandmother, whom she loved and who basically raised her, died around Christmas, and her parents were too career-driven to offer comfort at the time, or give any real cheer to the Season afterwards.

She meets Sam Jermyn, rich dude who runs a public relations firm and who right off the bat steps in as a knight in shining armor for Ava when her ex-boyfriend assaults her. She doesn’t tell Sam that her ex has also threatened her: Get back with me, or else all these fun, nudie pictures of you wearing nothing but hats, of you doing the even more explicit things? Well, they’ll be splashed all over the internet. This is a secret she’ll carry with her throughout the book, and it’s a testament to Sue Moorcroft’s writing that it’s easily understandable how Ava plays things close to the chest after this.

Anyway! Sam also has another interest in Ava. Will she make his mother a hat as the poor woman has cancer, is very, very ill, will lose her hair soon, and would just dearly love something made well, and made with care, just for her. Ava is totally onboard for this as she’s struggling financially.

After the fitting for Sam’s mom, however, Sam’s mom sees how Sam’s eyes light up when he looks at Ava and deduces that the two are an item. Sam, unwilling to disappoint his mother, asks Ava to enter into a faux-relationship with him, she says uhm, rats, well, okaaay. Complicating this, however, is that Ava’s best friend and roommate has a crush on Sam, so even tho’ sparks galore are flying, nothing can happen.

All this sounds like your typical chick-lit fare, but it’s actually well-written, and there were parts in there where Ava is so devastated by shame and fear that I felt a tear or two come to my eyes. And when things start getting addressed, those tears actually slid down my face. I totally didn’t expect that when I plowed into this book, thinking I was just gonna get some Christmas romance ya-yas out.

Okay, here’s the thing that upset the HECK outta me: The solution they come up with seems logical to them, and I can see the smarts in it -BUT- it objectifies the hell outta women and their bodies. I mean, they are indeed addressing nude photos, a woman’s naked body, but still. If you think too much, this might turn ya off the whole book. Which would be sad cuz it’s really, really good.

I didn’t wanna write off the hours I’d listened, and I certainly did NOT wanna write off Laura Kirman’s awesome narration, especially as she delivered everything in such ways that I grew to like (most of) the characters immensely, and I could feel the shame, fear, desperation, the clouding out of all that is rational in a fit of panic that Ava went through, and like I said: Kirman made me cry, gosh dang it!

So it took me some time, and I had to pull myself back from dropping my phone in shock several times, but I’m glad I did because I was soooo looking forward to Christmas chick-lit.

Am I recommending it? Oh yes, most definitely.

Just for heaven’s sake: You’ve been warned. If you’re sensitive, stay away—cuz Ava will do what it takes to get her life back.