Vintage Romance: Christmas Carol by Flora Speer
“In all the world, in any time, love was all that mattered.”
The Basics
Title: Christmas Carol (Timeswept)
Author: Flora Speer
Published: 1994
Publisher: Lovespell — Dorchester Publishing Co.
Pages: 439
Format: Paperback, mass market
Genres: Fiction — Holiday, Historical fiction, Regency fiction, Romance, Historical romance, Regency romance, Holiday romance, Vintage romance, Time travel, Dystopian
This book is part of my Vintage Romance Series, in which I review romance books from the 1960s to early 2000s.
Book Synopsis
In this reimagining of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, miserly Carol Simmons finds herself swept back and forward in time to visit Christmas past, present, and future. As she progresses through the ages, her frosty heart begins to thaw as she opens herself up to love, friendship, and the Christmas spirit.
My Review & Overall Thoughts
TLDR: An imperfect yet still enjoyable Christmas tale filled with love, warmth, and hope.
Christmas Carol surprised me. Given its cheery cover with the Timeswept heart emblem, I had assumed it would be a fluff read heavy on the romance with some time traveling thrown in. While romance and time traveling do feature prominently in the plot, the book is not what I would call a fluff read. A good chunk of the story takes place in a bleak, dystopian future, and even the parts set in the lush, romantic past, have a somber note to them. Namely, the protagonist, Carol, opens up about her past sexual trauma and begins the process of healing and moving forward. In short, the book has depth and substance to it; it is not sappy drivel.
The book is also noteworthy for its unique spin on the classic tale of A Christmas Carol. Instead of Scrooge, the story is told from the perspective of Carol, a young, miserly woman, and the ghost of Christmas past, present, and future is Lady Augusta, Carol’s recently deceased employer and fellow miser. The plot includes a hefty dose of romance, including a number of steamy scenes (something that is definitely not in Dickens’ version), and the story is imbued with a sense of hope, making it an ideal read for the holiday season. The ending is also unequivocally happy, a quality which I appreciate in books of the holiday genre.
The not so good
As is often the case with holiday books, Christmas Carol can feel cheesy at times. Additionally, the love story is a bit of an insta-romance; Carol falls in love with Nicholas shortly after meeting him. Some of their sex scenes are also rather cringeworthy due to the author’s use of such phrases as “his proud flesh” (p. 258) and “his throbbing, eager heat” (p. 424). I mean, who could read those descriptions and not tee-hee, even just a wee bit?
Lastly, the protagonist’s name, Carol Noelle Simmons, feels rather heavy-handed. Lest you forget that this is a Christmas story, the main character has a not-so-subtly festive name.
Overall
Christmas Carol is an enjoyable holiday read that has more meat to it than one might assume based on its cover. It is not without its flaws, but all things considered, I would still recommend it. That said, I am unsure if this book is still in print, so it might not be the easiest book to attain. I, for one, was unable to find a new copy and had to buy a secondhand copy online.
Have you read Christmas Carol? If so, let me know what you thought of the book in the comments section below!
