Marie Bourgery
This was an emotional Christian Christmas romance that discussed loss, forgiveness, healing, and love. I felt for young Cole who recently lost his parents to senseless violence and has to find a new way forward with his bachelor uncle Jake. His preschool teacher Emma was warm, welcoming, kind, creative, dealing with her own loss of her family, and worried about what the townspeople will say about her association with Jake. She takes care of Cole after school so Jake can continue working and helps both of them to heal, forgive, and love. I got teary eyed at several points in this book. There are intense moments that made me hold my breath and feel some of the pain the characters are experiencing. I loved the live nativity, which made me smile and laugh at the antics of the animals and the sweet children who tell it like it is.