Sisters Jade and Amber King co-own the Jingle Bell Reindeer Ranch, and Amber in proactive PR mode has hired a STUDMUFFIN SANTA for the season, which does not enthrall Jade in the least. Amber has a valid reason for her sexy Santa; Marine Brandon Brown is in town for a while, and there have been some small, but worrying, disruptions on the ranch. Amber has not told Jade the reason for her choice of Saint Nick because she does not want her sister to worry needlessly. Brandon is more of a studmuffin Grinch, but his cousins' ranch is nearby, so why not make himself useful. Brandon doesn't remember Jade from high school, he was two grades above her, and not exactly in the same league, but Jade has not forgotten him, and this is where Tawna Fenske demonstrates why she writes such wonderful contemporary romances.

Ms. Fenske is slowly but surely becoming a go-to author when it comes to intelligent contemporary romance because of her ability to strike a perfect balance between the elements of her story, and keeping everything fresh and genuine. STUDMUFFIN SANTA has just enough sweet and sexy to satisfy this discriminate reader: a credible story, likable and relatable characters, flawless writing, and clever dialogues. I loved the playful flirtiness between Brandon and Jade, and that the romance unfolded seamlessly. The reason Brandon did not like Christmas was not a whim on the author's part, but a real distressing situation from his past, one that some of us can, unfortunately, identify with, which was one of the reasons why Brandon was in the area. And I had sworn I would not cry, but there you go; that's what happens when an author knows how to tell a story.

I was ever so grateful that Ms. Fenske did not let some lack of communication fester so that our rational characters remained so until the end. Ms. Fenske also writes terrific secondary characters, such as Amber, Bree -- one of Brandon's cousins -- and Tammy. Ms. Fenske showed her incomparable wit in two occasions concerning cookies, in the case of a protective and helpful reindeer, and the very clever use of Brandon's football playing skills, the last two leading to the apprehension of the bad guy, which was at the same time somewhat dangerous and hilarious. I think it was a brilliant move that STUDMUFFIN SANTA was not released earlier in the year, as were many other Christmas books because Christmas is not incidental to STUDMUFFIN SANTA, it is essential to the plot, and another plus is that there are none of the predictable holiday tropes. You don't read a Tawny Fenske book, you snuggle with it!

Book Summary

Brandon Brown is the unlikeliest Santa ever to don a red velvet suit.

His abs are more cheese grater than bowl full of jelly, and deploying to Syria is the closest he's come to the North Pole. But family drama sends the jaded Marine home for the holidays, and lands him an unexpected gig as a part-time Santa.

Jade King is hustling to get Jingle Bell Reindeer Ranch off the ground, and she's not thrilled her sister hired a Santa with sex-appeal. The last thing Jade wants is a beefcake circus, and guys like Brandon bring sleigh-loads of trouble. But Studmuffin Santa proves more popular than anyone dreamed, drawing hordes of happy kids, lusty moms, and a mystery foe hell-bent on wrecking it all.

The threat has Brandon playing protector for the reindeer and their sexy keeper, which is risky for a guy who's sworn off happy endings and the whole Christmas mess. But as Jade and Brandon bond over Santa suit malfunctions and risqué Christmas cookies, they learn they have more in common than a craving for gingerbread. Can they find a way to mesh their wish lists, or will ghosts of Christmas past bring things crashing down like a fat man in a cast iron sleigh?

Read an Excerpt