Reviewed by Taylin
TITLE: Mr. Winterbourne’s Christmas 
SERIES: Winterbourne #2
AUTHOR: Joanna Chambers
PUBLISHER: Self Published
LENGTH: 108 pages
RELEASE DATE: November 19, 2018
BLURB:
Lysander Winterbourne has been living happily at Edgeley Park for the last eighteen months. By day he is Adam Freeman’s estate manager, by night, his lover…but Adam never speaks of his feelings and Lysander has no idea whether their relationship is any more than a convenient arrangement for Adam.
When the two men are invited to Winterbourne Abbey for a family Christmas, matters quickly come to a head. Snowed in at the Abbey with a house full of guests, Lysander has to face up to shocking revelations, long-held secrets and a choice he never expected to have to make…
REVIEW:
Lysander Winterbourne is of noble birth. He is also estate manager and lover to Adam Freeman. When both men are invited to Lysander’s childhood home for a family Christmas, the men have several reasons for questioning the reasoning. Firstly, Lysander’s father hates Adam, who, because his wealth is earned and not inherited, the Lord considers him of inferior birth. He also hates him because Adam financially rescued the man. One thing they both dread is not being able to demonstrate their feelings for each other. In 1823 a person could be jailed for lying with another man and etiquette overrides want and need.
Mr Winterbourne’s Christmas is the second in the Winterbourne series. While I enjoyed it, and the majority can be read without reference to book one, I believe I was at a bit of a disadvantage for having not read the first in the series. It is something I may have to rectify, because there were quite a few people at the family gathering, who I suspect may have been in book one. They were all introduced at the same time. Thus, it took me a while to get the who’s who straight in my head. And given the story is only 29k in length, I didn’t have long. Also, the story is told in the third person, with alternating chapters from Lysander and Adam’s POV’s. Hence, the guests are referred to by their first names by Lysander and more formally by Adam. I believe the book would have had more impact had I known more of their history as their characters would have been more established. After all the first book is called Introducing Mr Winterbourne.
Adam and Lysander are delicious, individually and as a couple. Adam is the gentleman of Edgeley Park and is obscenely wealthy. At the Park, Adam and Lysander can be themselves and love each other accordingly – a comfort they sorely miss at Winterbourne Abbey.
Lysander has the heirs and graces of a gentleman, but the body of a chap who isn’t afraid of hard work. Mentally, he is strong, too. He can stand up to whoever he needs or be diplomatic as the necessary. Both men enjoy each other’s company, but neither knows how deep feelings run. Neither has said they love the other, and it is these emotions that are forced to be examined during their stay at Winterbourne Abbey.
Back at his family home Lysander is amiable and sought after. Whenever the men try to have a few words or private time, they are intercepted or diverted to other tasks. The situation makes it nigh impossible for Adam and Lysander to spend any time together. Their lack of personal time causes Adam to question what Lysander sees in him and whether he will return home. Especially since jealousy rears its ugly – Perry, Lysanders childhood friend monopolises him.
The wider cast is interesting, especially Jonny, who is a darling. Aunt Maud is his female counterpart. Both people have sex on the brain and no accompanying filter.
Throughout, the dialogue reminded me of Pride and Prejudice and was a joy to read. Added to this were the intricacies of well-to-do flirting without it seeming like flirting, and secrets that people were trying and sometimes failing to hide. Plus a father who has his pride. The man is trying to orchestrate family futures while not wishing to explain how he diverted the funds supplied by Adam into areas of the Winterbourne lifestyle it wasn’t meant for. All this made for some entertaining reading. I was also pleased to see that, although there were sex scenes, they were pretty much, fade out which ensured they added a little titillation but didn’t overwhelm or take over the story.
Overall, as already said, I think I missed an element by not reading the first in the series. The drama left me wanting to turn the page yet didn’t leave my heart needing a jump start. Some readers will love this aspect. Nevertheless, I was entertained, and the story left me wanting to read more about Adam and Lysander.
RATING: 
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