Reviews for The Santa Sleuth

The average rating for The Santa Sleuth based on 2 reviews is 3 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2010-12-27 00:00:00 Raymond Meredith Sweet family-themed story. This was my first try of this author, and I was quite impressed. She's pulled together so many elements to make a lovely, heartwarming story, including an adorable motherless child, a Scrooge-like character (the heroine), and a handsome single father. I really liked the character of Virginia, the daughter. She wasn't a caricature like so many kids are depicted in romance. Usually, you'll find that the characters of children are very one dimensional, and they'll either be brats or angels. Virginia was neither--she was a really person with ups and downs just like the rest of us. I felt that the author did a really good job of portraying Virginia, and I just loved her. The characters of the hero and heroine were also well done. You felt like you knew them by the end of the book. I also liked that they had real-life issues to deal with, instead of silly misunderstandings being what kept them apart. These two really communicated, once they got past their stage of mutual antagonism (which luckily didn't last too long). They felt like real people--flawed, but not so flawed as to be unlikeable. That's a difficult balance to find, so I applaud the author on a job well done. I just loved watching Amanda learn how to be a mother. She wasn't one of these miracle woman who just magically know how--kids actually made her uncomfortable. But of course, Virginia changed that, and I loved watching it happen. And Kirk had to make some changes, too. If you like stories where the characters grow over the course of the book, then you'll enjoy this one. Also, this was a completely tame book. If it were a movie, it would probably get a G rating. There's no sex (shown or implied), just some kissing, so this is a story you could let your young daughter read without censorship. And if you want a holiday romance, THE SANTA SLEUTH also delivers in that area. The Christmas aspect felt like an integral part of the story, not something just tacked on to boost sales.

Review # 2 was written on 2020-10-19 00:00:00 Cal Larcombe Amanda Donnelly just wants to move to the next level of reporting (the hard stuff! Isn't it always?) but is relegated to fluff. For example, her current assignment of picking a child who will rate the Santas around Houston. She wants a bright child with all their teeth but ends up with Virginia who is missing a tooth and who seems to bedevil her teachers/principal though that was very much a case of Show, not Tell since she doesn't seem unusual except for being fairly precocious and creating a lot of the pivot points for the plot. Of course, (this is a romance novel, after all) Virginia has a single father, Kirk, who relies on his coterie of assistants to help take care of his daughter but seems to deny it. He also demonstrates questionable decision making when he sends Virginia out on location with Amanda after having met her once (maybe it was twice, but still.) I did finish the story and if you're looking for something sweet and easy to read, this book will be it. It was just a little too sweet for me.