BITTERSWEET CHRISTMAS (The Order 3.5) by Nina Croft-a review

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date November 27, 2017

Orphan Liam Ryan isn’t asking for much this Christmas–just his Uncle John. And he’s counting on Father Christmas to find a way to make that happen.

But when Father Christmas tosses Liam’s letter, claiming that the kid is asking the impossible, his daughter, Winter, takes over. Half-pixie, Winter, longs to do something important with her life, starting with getting a job at the Order of the Shadow Accords, the organization that polices the supernatural world. When she discovers Liam’s uncle works for the Order, it seems like fate.

Savaged by werewolves and bitten by a vampire, no one knows what to expect of John Ryan, but it won’t be anything good. So there’s no way he’s getting involved with his nephew…or anyone else. Worse, he’s getting a babysitter over the holidays. But when he meets irrepressible Winter, all that matters is whether she likes her guys to be naughty or nice.

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REVIEW: BITTERSWEET CHRISTMAS is instalment 3.5 in Nina Croft’s contemporary, adult THE ORDER paranormal/ fantasy romance series focusing on the men and women who work for The Order of the Shadow Accords- an organization that polices the supernaturals of the world. This is half-pixie Winter, and former human, now a vampire/werewolf John Ryan ‘s story line. BITTERSWEET CHRISTMAS can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story lines is revealed where necessary.

Told from dual third person perspectives (Winter and John) BITTERSWEET CHRISTMAS finds our heroine tasked with ‘babysitting’ the recently turned John Ryan, a man who struggles with the beast within; a vampire/werewolf hybrid whose wolf has yet to come to the surface. Hoping to gain a position within the Order, Winter offers herself up as bodyguard and protector of the one-time human cop, a position she abuses, as she battles between her heart and what she is tasked to do.

One year earlier John Ryan killed the wolf-pack alpha, and in the ensuing time a price has been placed on our hero’s head. In hiding for his own protection, and the protection of others, John has all but abandoned his fifteen year old nephew Liam, a young man he took guardianship of upon the teen’s mother’s death. A letter to Santa finds Liam Ryan asking for the return of the uncle he hasn’t seen in months-a letter that finds it way to Winter and her father who happens to be Father Christmas, among other names. What ensues is the building relationship between Winter and John Ryan, and the potential fall out when John’s whereabouts are revealed to those hunting him down as Winter ensures Liam’s Christmas wish is answered.

BITTERSWEET CHRISTMAS is a sexy paranormal Christmas tale; a quick read; a story of insta-lust with limited sex scenes due in part to the nature of a novella. The premise is sweet and edgy; the characters are colorful and spirited; the romance is intimate without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text. For fans of the series, it has been approximately three years since the author last released a title in The Order series but many will recognize John Ryan from his previous involvement as well as the return of Piers Lamont, vampire and head of the Order of the Shadow Accords.

Reading Order and Previous Reviews
Bittersweet Blood
Bittersweet Magic
Bittersweet Darkness
Bittersweet Christmas

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy