Digital audiobook read by Therese Plummer
1*

From the book jacket: The Riordan brothers may have a reputation for being rough and tumble, but Patrick has always been the gentle, sweet-natured one. These days, his easygoing manner is being tested by his career as a navy pilot. But for the Riordan brothers, when the going gets tough … the tough find the love of a good woman. Except the woman who has caught Patrick’s attention is Jack Sheridan’s very attractive niece, Angie LeCroix. Patrick and Angie thought they wanted to be left alone this Christmas – until they meet each other. Then they want to be left alone together.

My reactions:
Just dreadful.

Okay, in Carr’s defense I have not read any of the previous books in this series (and this one is # 18). So, I had no background on the residents of Virgin River or their previous interactions / relationships. That made me feel a little lost … like I had started watching that great TV series everyone is talking about after the first couple of seasons had ended and had no clue why the lead characters seemed to hate (or love) each other. But whatever …

Focusing just on this nascent relationship between Patrick and Angie, I didn’t think any of it made sense. She’s suffered a traumatic brain injury, he’s “in love” with his dead partner’s wife. But they are going to have great sex anyway. Puh-leeze.

Oh, and there’s virtually NO actual holiday cheer either. But, in the spirit of the holiday I’ll gift it 1 star.

Therese Plummer does a respectable job of performing the audio. Too bad she didn’t have better material to work with. ( )

Both Angie and Patrick have gone through a traumatic event. They meet in Virgin River, and it is pretty much love, and lust, at first sight. They are each working through some problems, and despite a significant age difference, seem to be able to relate to each other and help with the tough problems. The characters seemed underdeveloped to me, not quite genuine. Both characters come with many quirky and overbearing relatives who all happen to show up at Virgin River, also wanting to be supportive. It’s an okay romance, a bit steamy in a few parts, and a bit predictable in most. This series gets really good ratings, and I’m glad for those of you who love reading about it. This is only the second one I’ve read in the series, but it just doesn’t impress me enough to continue on with the series at this time. ( )

My Kind of Christmas is the eighteenth novel in Robyn Carr’s Virgin River series. At the time it was first released in 2012, readers thought this was to be the final book of the series, but last year (2020), following the success of the Virgin River television series, Ms. Carr published another holiday-themed book, taking readers back to our favorite little town in Northern California. That now makes My Kind of Christmas the penultimate book—unless, of course, that changes at some point in the future—and this one features Patrick, the youngest and final, unmarried Riordan brother paired with Jack’s niece, Angie, who I don’t think we’ve met before. Both have decided to take a weeks-long sojourn in Virgin River leading up to the holidays to do a bit of soul searching and make major decisions about the rest of their lives. They hook up almost as soon as they both hit town and are inseparable throughout the weeks to come. But both believe it’s just a temporary, holiday fling that will end as soon as Christmas arrives, because each of them have plans that don’t involve a permanent relationship. So, it’s a matter of figuring out if they can both get on the same page in time to share, not only the perfect Christmas together, but maybe a lifetime.

I honestly can’t remember if we’ve seen Patrick in any of the previous books or not. He likely was in one or more of his four brothers’ books, but even if he was, we probably didn’t get a good sense of who he was as a character. Like all his brothers, he’s in the military, a Navy flyer who just recently lost his best friend and wingman, Jake, who was shot down during a combat mission. Still struggling with his grief and feeling responsible, he was given six weeks leave to get his head on straight. He chose to hang out in Virgin River, knowing that his entire family was planning on going to San Diego for the holiday, so he’d be alone to think about whether he wants to take the reassignment that he knows is coming or get out of the military altogether. Patrick also promised Jake that if anything ever happened to him, he’d look out for his wife and son, and he’s planning to ask Marie to marry him, thinking that’s the best way to honor his promise. But then a beautiful, vivacious, young woman, ten years his junior, shows up in town, catching his eye. Patrick thinks she’s too young for him. He also knows he can’t offer anything more than a holiday fling and that he shouldn’t get involved, but he just can’t seem to help himself whenever she’s around. They bond over their shared pain and struggles and Angie proves to be far more mature than her years, making Patrick want more, but he can’t break his word of honor to the friend who meant everything to him. Patrick is described in the cover blurb as the gentle, sweet-natured Riordan brother, and I think on some level that’s true. However, I usually associate those words with beta heroes, while Patrick is kind of a mix of alpha and beta. He has a stubborn, clueless alpha streak going where Marie is concerned, making plans to marry her and create a future together without really asking her what she thinks about it. But when it comes to Angie, his beta side comes through most of the time. I like how he wants to help out with her project and with the Christmas preparations around town. It’s also easy to tell that he’s rapidly developing feelings for her even though he says he’s sticking to his stubborn path. Eventually he figures it all out, though, and makes a grand, romantic gesture to solidify it, which was sweet.

Angie has just recovered from a near-fatal car accident. Prior to that, she’d been a med student at USC, but her near-death experience has left her uncertain if this is the path she still wants to take. Add in a pushy mother who’s insisting that there must be something medically wrong for her to want to make such a drastic change, and Angie desperately needs a break from life. She decides to visit her Uncle Jack and Aunt Brie in Virgin River to get a little space and think about what to do next with her life. Minutes after arriving in town, she spots the scrumptious Patrick at Jack’s bar and boldly starts talking to him. They hit it off and can’t seem to get enough of each other. Patrick is up front with Angie from the start that it can’t be anything other than a temporary relationship, but she’s crazy enough about him to want to keep going in spite of knowing it will hurt to say goodbye. While sharing her nights with Patrick, Angie spends her days helping Mel in the clinic where she meets a little girl with a disfiguring facial scar that inspires her to step out of her comfort zone, moving heaven and earth to make sure the girl gets the plastic surgery she needs but that her parent’s can’t afford. The only small issue I had with Angie is Robyn Carr’s tendency to tell her readers that a characters is shy or introverted, but then little or nothing about them shows that they are. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. From the beginning, Angie exhibits a bubbly, energetic personality that I connected with. I like that when she saw Patrick, she went after what she wanted, and that when she saw little Megan’s need, she likewise tackled the problem with gusto. I also like that she wants to make a difference in the world and explores different ways in which she might be able to do that. I additionally appreciated her maturity when it came to her relationship with Patrick and not having unrealistic expectations, even though it was obvious that she’d seriously fallen for him.

My Kind of Christmas is a great addition to the Virgin River series. Some of the more recent books of the series have been good but not spectacular for me, but this one broke out of that mold a little bit, reminding me of the heartwarming nature of the town and it’s inhabitants that we saw more of early on. It once again showcases the town pulling together, not only to welcome visitors coming from far and wide to visit their beautiful Christmas tree, but also to provide much-needed assistance to families in need within the community. Angie’s mission to make sure Megan received the needed surgery added a more personal touch to the community outreach that gave me warm fuzzies. Patrick and Angie as a couple are great together. Their relationship exhibits a warmth and familiarity that one might expect with a couple who’ve known each other longer that really made it romantic even though they insist it isn’t a long-term thing. Their stark honesty with one another was refreshing, allowing trust to build, and the way they support each other was sweet and heartfelt, leaving me with no doubt that they would make it work in spite of the potential obstacles. The Riordan and Sheridan clans, along with several other townspeople, some of whom we haven't seen much of lately, made for a great supporting cast and a real treat for long-time fans. Aside from my already cited minor critiques, the only reasons I didn’t give the book the full five stars is that the conflict wasn’t my favorite type and also there’s a certain sameness in Robyn Carr’s characters and stories with many being about that soul-searching journey. Admittedly it can sometimes be a winning formula, but other times, I’d like to mix it up a little more. Otherwise, though, My Kind of Christmas was a cheerful, uplifting story that was a charming entry into my holiday-themed reading and one from this series that will go on my keeper shelf. ( )

It was cute and Christmas-y in that frothy romance novel way, but I kept getting distracted trying to imagine people *actually* talking like the people in this book. Even by romance novel standards, the dialogue was unfortunately trite. ( )

Terrific story about two people who are at crossroads in their lives. Each of them comes to Virgin River for the peace and quiet to consider options and make decisions. Neither Angie nor Paddy is looking for love, but Virgin River works its magic on both of them.

Angie is a 23-year-old med school student. She has been focused on her studies all her life, with becoming a doctor her only goal. She has ignored a social life in favor of her education. That all came to an end when she was involved in a devastating accident that nearly killed her. After months of rehab, Angie now wants to take a break from medical school and take some time to live the life that she has been ignoring. Unfortunately, her mother is not cool with that idea, and she and Angie have been butting heads over Angie's plans. Angie knows that the only way she'll get the peace she needs is to put some distance between herself and her mother. So she heads up to Virgin River to stay with her Uncle Jack.

Paddy faces a similar dilemma. He is grieving the loss of his best friend, who died in a mission in Afghanistan. Paddy saw it happen and feels responsible for Jake's death. The Navy has insisted that he take mandatory leave to recover from the trauma. Paddy is at a point where he has to decide if he is going to continue his career in the Navy, or get out and do something else. Complicating matters is his promise to Jake that he would watch out for Jake's wife and son if something happened to Jake. Paddy has a big, loving family, but he sometimes feels smothered by their attention. So while most of the family is off to San Diego to celebrate the holidays, Paddy will stay in Virgin River and contemplate his options.

I loved the first meeting between Angie and Paddy. She's in Jack's bar when she spots Paddy and is immediately drawn to him. She steps outside her comfort zone and actually goes over and talks to the man. It's fun to watch her ask questions and draw him out. Paddy tries to stay aloof, but he's just bowled over by her. She's young, but she seems to know what she wants, which he envies. Between that meeting, and seeing each other again the next day at the tree-raising, Paddy is intrigued and they end up making a date to meet for chili at his place. They spend a lot of time talking about their childhoods and getting to know each other. The sparks are hot between them, but Paddy knows it can't go anywhere. I loved their honest conversation about expectations, and that they could agree to enjoy each other's company for the time they are together.

Of course, it isn't all smooth sailing at the beginning. Everyone seems to have an opinion to share, and none of them are that Paddy and Angie should be together. I had to laugh at Jack, as the uber-protective uncle ran up against the determined young woman. I loved seeing her lecture him on the fact that she was an adult, not a little girl, and that he had to let go. Jack does express his worry about Paddy's state of mind, as he understands what Paddy is going through. It was fun to see Jack's struggles throughout the book, and Mel's attempts to keep him under control. Angie's Aunt Brie also has something to say, but she seems to be better able to let Angie live her own life, simply expressing that she's there if Angie needs her. On Paddy's side, he has to deal with his brothers' horrified reaction to him fooling around with JACK'S NIECE! They waste no time in letting him know what a bad idea it is and how much trouble he could bring down on himself. As the youngest in the family, he's used to being ragged on by them, but this time he fights back. He's not going to let anything come between him and Angie spending time together however they want to do so.

I enjoyed the development of their relationship. Angie is young, but very smart, while Paddy is older and more experienced, but they connect very easily. I love how easy they found it to share their thoughts and feelings, their fears and their plans. The more time that they spent together, the closer they grew. I loved how Angie's determination to live her life to the fullest helped to lighten the darkness that haunted Patrick. Just being with her helped ease his grief, making it easier for him to talk about Jake and his memories of their time together. Angie also made a great sounding board, as Patrick tried to work out what he was going to do. At the same time, Patrick's steadiness and support gave Angie the confidence to step outside her comfort zone and consider alternatives to medical school. He never tried to tell her what to do or convince her of one path or another. I really enjoyed the way that Patrick found satisfaction in taking care of Angie, from cooking for her to being her support crew on her project. It wasn't long before Angie realized that she was falling hard for Paddy, even though she knew there was no future in it. Not only would he return to Charleston and the Navy, there was also the issue of his need to take care of Jake's widow. There were quite a few times I wanted to hit Paddy over the head with a shovel. His connection with Angie was incredible, and he often thought about what it would be like to have more than those few weeks. But he was so focused on his misguided interpretation of his promise to Jake, that he was willing to throw away true love for a pale imitation. It took a stern talking to from Marie for him to see the truth. I loved the ending and the fun of Paddy and his "baggage" showing up at Jack's. His heartfelt declaration to Angie was fantastic and bodes well for their future.

Family is always a huge part of a Virgin River book. First, we have the Sheridans. There's Angie's mom, Donna, a woman who is strong willed and doesn't back down from making her wishes known. There is no doubt that she loves Angie, but she also doesn't deal well with change. Angie's somewhat drastic change of plans had her quite freaked out, and she kept trying to shove Angie back in the box she had been in before. Angie felt as though she was beating her head against a wall whenever she tried to talk to her mother. Then there is our beloved Jack, the heart of Virgin River. He is protective of family and friends alike. I loved his understanding of why Angie had to get away from home, and how happy he was to have her there. It was fun to see his frustration at his inability to "protect" Angie from Paddy. I also appreciated his decision to keep quiet about it when he talked to Donna - discretion being the better part of valor. Brie fell into the space between Donna and Jack. She's happy to let Angie be in charge of her own life, but she's also there to support her in anything she needs.

Then there are the Riordans. We've seen plenty of them in earlier books, with each brother coming to Virgin River and finding true love. They are a close family, but one with strong personalities. Paddy was the one who had the most laid-back and charming personality, and in earlier books had been the one to help each brother through their individual crises. He also knows his family well, and wants to avoid the smothering attention he knows would come his way if they knew what a hard time he was having. It was great fun to see all the brothers jerking Paddy's chain as they realized just how much he cared about Angie (even if he wouldn't admit it). There was a hilarious scene towards the end as all the men ganged up on Paddy, taking bets on whether he would be able to leave Angie behind.

A large part of the story was devoted to Angie's search for her new reality. She was no longer sure that she wanted to be a doctor, but she wanted to do something to contribute to the world. I loved seeing her consider her options while helping Mel at the clinic. Her big heart came into play when she came into contact with Megan, the little girl with the scar on her face. I loved Angie's determination to do something to help. That determination gave her the incentive to do things she had never done before. I loved how it was so hard for her to talk to strangers, and that she forced herself to do whatever she needed to do. I loved the progression of the steps, and how her efforts to help Megan also helped Angie work through her options and desires. ( )