A charming Regency romance novella with an extremely likable heroine, Dawn Brower draws us deep into her characters’ world from the very first scene of A Wallflower's Christmas Kiss. Gideon and Juliette are an adorable couple even as children; their separation is clearly devastating, though more so for Juliette, when she is left behind as Gideon is sent off to Eton. Fast forward fifteen years and a grown-up Juliette turns up on Gideon’s doorstep asking him to honour the promise he once made, that he would help her if she ever needed him. Promised in marriage by her distant father and a stepmother who wants her gone to a lord with a reputation for cruelty, the only way Gideon can possibly protect Juliette is to make her his bride. A hasty dash for Gretna Green ensues before Juliette’s disappearance is discovered.
I thoroughly enjoyed this story and I only wish it was longer! I’d have liked to know why Gideon’s father was so set against Juliette’s family, and I’d have liked to see her stepmother forced to grovel for the new Duchess’s forgiveness (wicked stepmothers should always have at least one grovelling scene, in my humble opinion!) The one major issue I had with the book was that a Christmastide wedding + nine months of pregnancy does not equal “you will be a father in the early summer”; this is a math and biology fail that rather threw me at the very end of the book.
Still, Juliette and Gideon made a charming and believable couple; Juliette’s feistiness was wonderful and she would definitely spend their marriage leading him around by the nose. While this novella is part of a series it stands very nicely on its own and you do not have to have read the rest of the series to thoroughly enjoy it. I'll be looking forward to reading more of Dawn Brower's books.
Four stars.
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book for review through Reader’s Favorite.