Digital audiobook read by C J Critt.

From the book jacket: There’s a legend in Twilight, Texas. It says that if on Christmas you sleep with kismet cookies under your pillow and dream of your one true love, he will be your destiny. Carrie, Raylene, Christine, and Flynn are all members of the Christmas Cookie Club. Eash has a story to tell, and each discovers the miracles of the season the power of love.

My reactions
I knew going into it that this collection of novellas (originally published separately) would be a schmaltzy romance. I’ve read another work by Wilde previously and liked it; I found this one charming for its genre, though unremarkable. Despite the book jacket blurb, I found the chief refrain to be the legend of the town fountain – throw a penny into the fountain and you’ll be reunited with your high school sweetheart. Whatever.

It was a fast read and satisfied my need for a little Christmas in July, but I’ve basically forgotten the characters and their stories already.

C J Critt does a good job of reading the audiobook. She set a good pace, and had clear diction. ( )

I loved this Collection!! four great stories about the great folks in Twilight Texas. A town that loves Christmas!!

Carrie - a past love returns. Can the passion and love still be there??

Raylene - a stranger comes to town and starts working for Raylene. Earl's no where around. What does this all mean?

Christine - a long ago friend returns to Twilight. Could they have been more if Eli hadn't moved away so suddenly. Can they now??

Grace - Jessie & Flynn have finally found happiness until......

You really need to grab this book and find all the answers. You won't regret it. It's a fabulous read I recommend for everyone. ( )

The Christmas Cookie Collection is an anthology of four brief novellas featuring characters from the Twilight, Texas series. Each novella is a "Christmas Cookie Chronicle" with the name of the featured character in the title. All of the stories are occurring in the holiday season a year after the events in The First Love Cookie Club

The stories, in order, are titled Carrie, Raylene, Christine, and Grace, and that was also the order in which I liked them. For me, Carrie was a new character, introduced in the first book in the Twilight Texas series, The Sweethearts' Knitting Club, which I have not read. Carrie owns the town's yarn shop, and her ex-husband Mark (they married when she was 17 and he 19; it was quickly annulled) is back in town. He's the host of a reality show trying to disprove Twilight's legend about high school sweethearts. While the story is somewhat predictable, the ending still brought tears to my eyes. At 101 pages, the story is long enough to feel complete.

Raylene's story is really more about her long-lost daughter, Shannon, and Nate, a regular at Raylene's bar. This story, the longest of the four at 135 pages, and also rather predictable, does answer some questions raised in The First Love Cookie Club, which I have read. On the other hand, had I NOT read that book first, I don't think I would have appreciated this story as much.

Christine's story, at only 89 pages, needed to be fleshed out more. Christine, the owner of the Twilight Bakery, was a minor character in The First Love Cookie Club (and apparently barely mentioned in the first two books in the series), and while I appreciated learning more about her, I felt her romance with Eli moved WAY too fast, especially as he was a widower with four children and concerned about how they'd accept a new woman in his life. The story was also rather straightforward (no real interesting plot twists), and therefore somewhat boring.

With only 46 pages, the last story, Grace, felt very abbreviated. The two main characters in this story, Flynn and her husband Jesse, are also the main characters in The Sweethearts' Knitting Club, which I haven't read. If I had read it first, perhaps I would have liked this sweet little tale more. As it was: too predictable, and way too thin.

In the case of this book, I think it would be helpful to have read at least the first and third books in the regular series (The Sweethearts' Knitting Club, and The First Love Cookie Club) before reading this book. I did enjoy the references to places in and near the "real" Twilight (Granbury), Texas, such as the (now defunct) Rinky-Tink's Ice Cream Parlor, Rio Brazos Music Hall (Brazos River Music Review in the book, although it's near Glen Rose and not Jubilee/Weatherford), and the Highway 51 bridge. Still annoyed that the sheriff is named Hondo Crouch, though.

© Amanda Pape - 2014

[This e-book was borrowed from and returned to the library. This review also appears on Bookin' It.] ( )

There's a legend in Twilight, Texas. It says that if on Christmas you sleep with kismet cookies under your pillow and dream of your one true love, he will be your destiny. — Carrie, Raylene, Christine, and Flynn are all members of the Christmas Cookie Club. Each has a story to tell, and each discovers the miracles of the season and the power of love.

Carrie: Reconnects with her high school sweetheart . . .the only man she's ever loved.

The town myth is that if you throw a penny in the fountain you'll be reunited with your high school sweetheart. Carrie and her sweetheart Mark eloped to Vegas, but annulled the marriage right after they got home. Mark went off to college, promising that he'd come back for her and never spoke to her again. Carrie stayed in Twilight and runs the local yarn store. She hates Christmas because that's when her mother died and also when Mark left. Now he's a big Hollywood celebrity hosting a reality show. He's on his way to Twilight to do a segment on the town myth. Seeing him again makes Carrie realize that she had never stopped loving him, but she isn't so sure about risking her heart again. I liked the way that she pushed back against his Hollywood charm and pointed out that he wasn't following the dreams that he'd had. Mark had never been back to Twilight but seeing Carrie again reminds him of all the good things about his hometown. He realizes that he wants another chance with Carrie if she'll just trust him this time. I ended up really liking Mark. In spite of the director wanting to totally trash the myth, Mark stood up for the town and for Carrie. I liked the way that he went after what he wanted.

Raylene: Discovers that the daughter she gave away at birth is living right in Twilight . . .

Raylene own the local bar and ran it with her husband Earl until he walked out on her the year before. He found out that she had had a child that she gave up for adoption when her previous in-laws paid her to go away. He wasn't mad about the baby, he was angry that she had kept it secret from him. Now she just doesn't seem to care about anything except wondering if Earl will ever come back. She has also thought about that baby girl every day since she gave her up. Then a young woman comes to the bar looking for a job. Raylene gives her a job as a waitress and lets her stay in the upstairs apartment. She gets the feeling the young woman is hiding something, but she doesn't push. There's something about her that calls to Raylene. I loved seeing her connect with Shannon. Raylene got a couple of Christmas wishes granted by the end.

Shannon had found out the truth about her adoption earlier in the year, but she was recovering from her divorce. The man she had married was a con artist who stole almost everything Shannon had. Now she wants to confront her mother and find out the truth of what happened. She decides to take the job at the bar to get to know Raylene first. She connects pretty quickly with Raylene and finds that there are many similarities between them. She also discovers that she feels far more at home in Twilight than she ever did in New York. Shannon also encounters Nate, a former Navy SEAL with issues of his own. He's immediately smitten with Shannon and works hard to court her. He knows she has trust issues because of what her ex did, but he has the patience to wait her out. I really liked all the sweet dates he took her on.

Christine: Has given up on love . . . until the man of her dreams walks through her shop door.

My favorite of the stories. Christine owns the Twilight Bakery and makes wonderful cakes and cookies. Her love of baking gave her something to focus on after she was in a car accident that ended her Olympic dreams. That accident also took away her ability to have children, ending her dreams of having a family of her own. Then a blast from her past comes through the bakery door. Eli was her crush when they were in high school. Now he is a widower with four kids and he needs a birthday cake for his oldest daughter. Even though they haven't seen each other in sixteen years their connection is immediate. I loved the way that Eli didn't waste any time asking her out. Their date was really sweet and I loved seeing how compatible they were. There was also some pretty good heat between them, though they worried that their relationship was moving too quickly. I loved how quickly three of Eli's kids took to Christine. The oldest daughter was a pill, but completely believable in her attitude. It was great to see Eli and Christine talk out their expectations and move on in a realistic way.

Grace: It's Christmas Eve and Flynn and Jesse Calloway are thrilled to be expecting a new baby. Then Flynn's car hits a patch of ice, and Jesse must move earth . . . and heaven . . .to save her and their unborn child.

Flynn and Jesse are preparing for their first Christmas and the arrival of their baby. Things haven't been easy for them since Jesse was released from a prison sentence for a crime he didn't commit. Finances are really tight as Flynn is going to college and Jesse is trying to get his business back up after a fire. But they know that they can handle anything as long as they're together. When they go out delivering Christmas to a poor family, Jesse gets caught up in some trouble. He sends Flynn on home while he straightens things out, but she isn't there when he arrives home. An ice storm had hit earlier than expected and she slid off the road. To top it all off she went into labor, alone in the fog. With the help of a dog who appeared at his house, Jesse goes off in search of Flynn, arriving in the nick of time. It was so sweet to see how nervous he was about being a father and how happy he was when the baby arrived. ( )

Oh My where do I start with this one? The Christmas Cookie Collection contains so many of my favorite things I'm not sure which one to tell you about first.

First of all if you have read a lot of my reviews you know that I love Christmas stories. I'll read a good Christmas story in the middle of July given the chance. However when it gets to be this time of year and I am given the chance to read a Christmas story, I am beyond ecstatic. Ireally enjoy Lori Wilde's work. She has a wonderful talent of creating fun charismatic characters that I just can't help but adore. Then she has set these wonderful characters in a small town! Yet another one of my favorite types of stories! So we have a WONDERFUL Christmas theme, we have Lori Wilde whom I am a huge fan of, and a couple of small town romance stories all in one book. I think to say I loved this book it putting it mildly. OK now I'll tell you a little bit about each story in the FABULOUS book.

Carrie The Christmas Cookie Chronicles #1: When Carrie's first love Mark Leland returns to twilight, it throws Carrie's world into chaos. Mark is in town to film a Myth Busters reality show. I loved that the town has so many sweethearts that have been together since high school. However the show is in town to disprove this theory of high school sweethearts staying together due to a wish in a fountain. I really liked Carrie she is just trying to get through the holiday season and not end up spending time with Mark when he is in town. However when these two are together there is no doubt they still have feeling for each other. There is a lot of drama over the TV Show and a really nice reunion romance story with Carrie and Mark.

Raylene The Christmas Cookie Chronicles #2: Raylene Pringle and her husband Earl are separated due to the secret that Raylene kept all these years. She had a baby girl that she gave up at birth. Earl doesn't take the news well and disappears. Raylene is having a tough holiday season. When Shannon shows up to answer the help wanted sign Raylene hires her and offers her a place to live. There's a little more to Shannon's story then she reveals right away. I loved the romance between Shannon and Nate Deavers. Nate really is just an all around good guy. He is exactly the type of guy Shannon needs after what her ex put her through. I don't want to tell you too much here. I'm just going to say that I love this story and I adored the end. This was one of those feel good Christmas stories for me.

Christine The Christmas Cookie Chronicles #3: Christine receives some disappointing news and she is just not in the HO HO HO holiday spirit this year. That is until an old friend from high school, Eli Borden, walks in the door. He is in need of a birthday cake for his daughter. However after meeting Christine again he finds he wants more then just a birthday cake. These two have a wonderful chemistry together. Eli has his hands full with 4 children at home. When Christine first meets Eli's children, things do not go well. Can Christine and the Eli find a way to blend their lives together to get that that happily ever after that all Twilight residents are finding with their high school loves?

Grace The Christmas Cookie Chronicles #4: I have to admit that Grace was probably my favorite story in this book. Flynn and Jesse Calloway have both had sad things happen in their past. However now they are expecting a brand new bundle of joy. I have to admit that once I started this story there was no putting it down. Once the snow storm started I knew major drama was on the way. Flynn is stranded in the car and very much in labor. Jesse has to find his wife in the middle of a major snow storm with heavy fog. There is plenty of drama in this story and it kept me completely enthralled. I don't want to give anything away but this is another one of those fabulous endings that I just LOVED.

On the whole I loved Carrie, Raylene, Christine, and Grace. As I said I think Grace was probably my favorite story, but they are all wonderful. I love Christmas stories, I love small town romances, and Lori Wilde has yet again created several wonderful stories that kept turning the pages quickly.

If you are like me and enjoy Christmas stories and small town romances or either one, I think you should check this one out. I think you will really enjoy all 4 stories contained in this collection. So what are you waiting for click the link and get your copy ordered!

I was given the opportunity to read this book to share my thoughts with you. As always it has been my pleasure to share my thoughts with you on the wonderful Christmas story. ( )