Seeking the Star / Traci Borum

Reviewed by: ?wazithinkin

Genre: Literary Fiction/Inspirational/Christian Fiction

Approximate word count: 50-55,000 words

Availability

Kindle US: YES UK: YES Nook: YES Smashwords: NO Paper: YES

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Author:

“Traci Borum is a writing teacher and native Texan. She's also an avid reader of women's fiction, most especially Elin Hilderbrand and Rosamunde Pilcher novels. Since the age of 12, she's written poetry, short stories, magazine articles, and novels.

Traci also adores all things British. She even owns a British dog (Corgi) and is completely addicted to Masterpiece Theater--must be all those dreamy accents! Aside from having big dreams of getting a book published, it's the little things that make her the happiest: deep talks with friends, a strong cup of hot chocolate, a hearty game of fetch with her Corgi, and puffy white Texas clouds always reminding her to ‘look up, slow down, enjoy your life.’"

To learn more about her check out her website or stalk her on Facebook.

Description:

“One December night, in the sleepy Cotswold village of Chilton Crosse, a drifter named Ben collapses on George and Mary Cartwright’s snow-covered doorstep. As Christmas cheer spreads throughout the village with a Dickens-themed festival, Mary nurses Ben back to health, but she becomes curious about the secrets he seems to carry.

On Christmas Eve, one of Ben’s secrets accidentally comes to light, forcing him to confront the darkness of his past and to rediscover the faith he once knew.”

Appraisal:

Chilton Crosse is such a unique little town. If a scrooge actually ended up anywhere near this town he would be transformed in short order. Ben is not a scrooge, he is a broken man. Luckily his path ends in front of the Cartwright’s house in the middle of a snowy December night, where he collapsed from exhaustion. Mary had been working on her needlepoint when she heard a thud from outside. Waking her husband, George, from his slumber was no easy matter. Neither was bringing in the tall vagabond-looking man, who had been more or less dropped at their doorstep suffering dehydration and hypothermia.

Revisiting this picturesque village and its colorful characters was enjoyable. It’s like catching up with old friends. So was watching the hustle and bustle of the whole town getting ready for Christmas and their Dickens Festival the last week of December. Of course there is no way to hide the fact that Mary and George have a strange man staying at their house. When questioned at choir practice for the Christmas church program, Mary tells a lie! Perhaps the only lie she has ever told in her life… She says Ben is her nephew who has come for a visit.

So, who is Ben and what is he running from is the focus of this novel. To get to the bottom of his story Mary must be careful to not scare him away by prodding. She can tell by the look in his eyes that he could take off any time and that his pain is soul deep. But she feels in her heart he was brought to her for a reason and she must bide her time and be there for him when the time is right. George and Mary invite Ben to stay through the Christmas holidays as he gains back his strength. Needing something to occupy himself with Ben starts working with Ned the local handyman. In Ned, Ben finds someone he trusts and confesses he is not Mary’s nephew. Ben is a quick learner with carpentry skills as the two men build a crèche for a nativity scene to be erected in front of the local church. This is the shortest of the three stories so far, but no less inspiring. This is a wonderful Christmas story with fitting quotes from Charles Dickens at the beginning of each chapter.

FYI:

Seeking the Star is the third book in the Chilton Crosse Series. I believe this story could be read as a stand-alone. Each book so far has not relied too heavily on the other stories.

Format/Typo Issues:

Nothing to speak of.

Rating: **** Four stars