Reviewed by Donna
TITLE: An Angel in Eyeliner
SERIES: Boughs of Evergreen: A Holiday Anthology (single stories available separately)
AUTHOR: Hunter Frost
PUBLISHER: Beaten Track Publishing
LENGTH: 23 Pages
BLURB:
All Mitch wants for Christmas is a quiet holiday free from grief. Patching up the face of the target of a mugging in the back alley of his bar seems to throw that wish right out into the cold Chicago night. But the tatted, pierced, and skinny-jean wearing Keller Graham is fearless and proves to be more than a pair of icy blue eyes lined in black. Keller may be a thief, but Mitch never expected him to steal his lonely heart.
REVIEW:
“Everything is right with the world on Christmas. I give myself permission to forget all the bad – the loss, the pain, the grief – when these decorations go up. It gives me hope for a future that is as happy as I am during the holidays.”
Mitch Stirling is a lonely bar owner who throws himself into Christmas with all the spirit he can muster. Ever since he lost the love of his life and was discharged from the military he has simply existed each year, eyes focused on the next Christmas and the feeling of hope the holiday brings him.
It’s Christmas Eve and Mitch is alone as always when he hears the sound of his trash cans being knocked around in the alley behind the bar. He grabs his shotgun and charges out into the snow to chase off what he assumes is a group of drunks but instead breaks up an attempted mugging and beating. The would-be thieves scatter leaving behind a cold and dirty young man laid out on the frozen ground so Mitch hustles him inside to tend to his wounds.
Keller Graham has never had a real home and has never really celebrated Christmas. As far as he’s concerned it’s just another day. When he finds himself being patched up and fed in a bar that is decorated to look like Santa’s village he can’t help but to say “yes” to Mitch’s proposition. No, not that kind of proposition you dirty minded people, this proposition…
“I’m going to show you how a real Christmas is celebrated.”
Considering this story is only twenty-three pages long, I’ll admit, I wasn’t expecting too much. However from the very first sentence the story leaps straight into action and although there isn’t many words I felt as though each one was important. There was no drawing out scenes just to increase the word count but at the same time there was no rush to cram a HEA into so few pages. I think I would have preferred the off page sex to just be left out altogether but I think something like that is a personal preference.
The author succeeded in injecting just the right amount of emotion into the story. The joy that Mitch is feeling because his Christmastime hope might be justified this year was balanced well with flashes of sorrow to turn this short story into more than just fluff. When Mitch breaks down crying and Keller starts singing him a Christmas carol, it was just too perfect for words and was my absolute favourite part of the story.
Obviously this is the time of year when a lot of these Christmas shorts pop up but this one has been a stand out for me so far.
RATING:
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