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Summary
Summary
Alexis Fletcher hasn't had a merry Christmas in five years-not since her mother passed away. Every December she remembers the joy her mother brought to everyone during the holiday season and feels the pain of her absence, even more so now that she and her sister are barely speaking. More than anything, Alexis wishes her family could be whole again.
However, with her wedding fast approaching, Alexis might just be ready to make some holiday memories with a family of her own. Alexis's fiance, Chase Dupont, is everything she ever dreamed of. He's kind, handsome, fully supportive of Alexis's career, and the CEO of a large company. But outside forces threaten to derail this happy couple from ever reaching the altar.
As tensions rise, a dramatic event causes Alexis to question everything. Will fate give her what she needs to finally embrace the season that has brought her so much pain? Will Alexis get her wish for a happy holiday? Or will her Christmas prayer go unanswered?
Author Notes
Kimberla Lawson Roby has published about 15 novels. Her debut title, Behind Closed Doors, was originally self-published through her company, Lenox Press. Her other works include The Best of Everything, One in a Million, Sin No More, Love and Lies, Changing Faces, The Best-Kept Secret, A Taste of Reality, It's a Thin Line, and A Deep, Dark Secret. She received the Blackboard Fiction Book of the Year Award in 2001 for Casting the First Stone and the 2004 Patron Choice Award from the Central Mississippi Regional Library System for Too Much of a Good Thing. She is also the 2006 and 2007 recipient of the Author of the Year, Female award presented by the African-American Literary Award Show in New York. In 2013 she made The New York Times Best Seller List with her title A House Divided. The Prodigal Son made The New York Times Best Seller List in 2014. She also made the list in 2015 with her title, The Ultimate Betrayal.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (2)
Kirkus Review
Five years after her mother passed away, Alexis Fletcher is still plunged into grief every Christmas season. Alexis would much rather take a few sleeping pills and fall into oblivion than decorate a tree. Despite her depression, she does as Rev. Black asks and writes a Christmas prayer pleading for happiness. It's hard to muster much sympathy for Alexis, who practices a rather self-centered version of Christianity. Prayer becomes simply a series of "requests to God," who apparently wants nothing more than for his children to be happy and financially stable. Indeed, Alexis suffers in the lap of luxury. She has a ridiculously high-paying job as a motivational speaker, which allows her to make her own hours, to travel, to take care of those she loves without batting an eye. Saddled with an emotionally abusive slacker of a husband, her sister, Sabrina, is loath to ask for Alexis' help. Alexis certainly has the financial means to pay their bills, but will her Christian faith be strong enough to turn the other cheek, letting bygones be bygones? Alexis' fiance, Chase Dupont III, is a gorgeous and wealthy Prince Charming whom Rev. Black hand-selected for her. Chase's mother, Geneva, hates Alexis, however, and plots to sabotage their engagement. Alexis spots Geneva's tricks, but Chase is blind to them. How long before he will have to choose between his idyllic past and his future happiness? Roby's (The Prodigal Son, 2014, etc.) latest romance in the best-selling Reverend Curtis Black series is unfortunately marred by stilted, clunky phrasing ("She would feel sorry for Alexis for having to live in such a paltry manner"). The tale itself resembles "Cinderella" wandering into A Christmas Carol. Fans will be happy to read Rev. Black's further adventures, but this latest installment won't win him any new ones. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Library Journal Review
As Christmas approaches, Alexis Fletcher is feeling depressed about celebrating another holiday without her mother, who died five years earlier. A successful motivational speaker and engaged to the wealthy, gorgeous Chase Dupont, to whom she was introduced to by their pastor, the Reverend Curtis Black, Alexis should be filled with joy; instead, she just wants to sleep the season away. To make matters worse, her future mother-in-law, Geneva, couldn't be more different from her beloved mother. Geneva doesn't feel that Alexis is good enough for Chase and will go to shocking lengths to drive Alexis away. Then there's the drama with Alexis's broke, irresponsible sister. Our protagonist will need a lot of faith to survive this Christmas. VERDICT Faith and drama collide as two families learn to drop their facades and open up their hearts to each other. A sure draw for African American fiction fans. [See Prepub Alert, 5/12/14.] (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.