A Christmas Bride/Christmas Beau

If, like me, you want your holiday characters to go through an It’s a Wonderful Life-style existential crisis and really earn that toast to the richest man in town, Mary Balogh’s double-novel set may be just the Christmas read you’re looking for. A Christmas Bride is engrossingly dark and sexy, and while I didn’t find Christmas Beau’s plot to my taste, I can’t fault the execution. Plus, with two novels for the price of one, it’s a great buy.