Book Reviews

Book Blurb

Being rich has its advantages, but it is also rife with suffocating pressures and family telling Chandler Buckingham how to live his life. When his assistant offers to help him escape the mounting obligations of the holiday season by running away to Hawaii, Chandler jumps at the chance. Only to find nothing is quite as he’d expected.

Micah Keolu has lived in Hawaii all his life. He has to work two jobs and has little time for a social life, but his loving family and the island beauty around him have given him a heart as big as the ocean. And then one day he rescues a man trapped in an elevator in the building where Micah lives and works maintenance.

The unexpected happens as they find themselves drawn together, only to learn there is more to each other than meets the eye. Can two men from very different worlds find a way to enrich each other’s lives? Maybe the magic of the holidays just might bring them lasting joy!

A story from the Dreamspinner Press 2016 Advent Calendar "Bah Humbug."

Book Review

Ah – Christmas in Hawaii! Not that it starts out that way since the beginning of the story focuses on Chandler (who lives in Kansas) and the issues he has with his mother trying to force him into behaving like a “proper Buckingham”, come out of his “gay phase”, and take over responsibility for the family company and fortune, now that his father is deceased. Chandler is fed up enough with her manipulation to decide running and hiding is the better option – hence his escape to Hawaii.

Micah is a great guy and no matter how hard he has to work, his heart is big enough to take care of those who have less than he does. He also dreams of exploring the world, and since he has lived in Hawaii his whole life, he can only try to imagine what it might be like to visit. He has two jobs so he can make ends meet, and it is in his capacity as a maintenance worker for the building where he lives that leads to his first meeting with Chandler.

Chandler is “the heir” to the Buckingham wealth, but with his mother still around who insists on him getting ready to take over (rather than his sister who might be more interested), he does not have control. Chandler is not exactly used to “slumming it” – he has never even flown economy class before. It’s not that he is conceited or a snob, he has just never had the need to do anything other than what is considered healthy in his super-rich family. His thoughts about the seating arrangements and food in coach class were hilarious, and when he enters his rented apartment? So funny!

When Chandler, whose assistant rented said apartment for him, and Micah, who is called when the elevator gets stuck, meet in less than favorable circumstances, Micah gets to rescue Chandler. Once they have laid eyes on each other, both men keep hoping and looking for reasons to keep spending time together and what follows is an incredibly cute courtship, a somewhat rude awakening (for both men) when Chandler’s “time out” ends, and a totally sweet happy ending.

If you like your Christmas stories with a few twists and turns, if you enjoy watching “poor little rich boys” slumming it and learning a valuable life lesson while they’re at it, and if you’re looking for a read that makes more than one dream come true, then you will probably like this novella as much as I do. It’s got super cute main characters, a deviously clever - or should that be cleverly devious? - best friend, and some wonderfully funny scenes on top of the perfect ending.

 

 

 

 

DISCLAIMER: Books reviewed on this site were usually provided at no cost by the publisher or author. This book has been provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review.

Additional Information

Format	ebook
Length	Novella, 95 pages/28306 words
Heat Level
Publication Date	01-December-2016
Price	$3.99 ebook
Buy Link	https://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/books/mele-kalikimaka-by-noah-willoughby-and-bg-thomas-7979-b