Reviewed by Sadonna
TITLE: The Scent of Pine
AUTHOR: Holly Day
PUBLISHER: JMS Books
LENGTH: 70 pages
RELEASE DATE: December 4, 2021
BLURB:
Ashton Cross was stupid enough to fall out a window while trying to catch a criminal. Now he’s on sick leave and has been for weeks, and has nothing to do but watch his neighbors go about their day. It’s driving him insane. When he gets a Christmas card not meant for him, he doesn’t think much of it, but then there is another and another, all with the same motif.
For two years, Rafael Vidal has been hiding from his ex. He almost believed he’d gotten away when his neighbor knocks on his door to hand over a stack of Christmas cards. One look at the writing, and Rafael suspects he has been found.
When Ashton understands the situation, he’s set on catching Rafael’s ex. He might not be ready to get back to active duty at the police station, but finally, he has something to do, and he doesn’t mind keeping Rafael close. Rafael is trying to distract himself by helping Ashton put up Christmas decorations, but will they be able to enjoy Christmas with his stalker ex lurking around the corner?
REVIEW:
Rafael has been hiding from Blake, his abusive ex for over two years. His neighbor, an injured cop named Ashton, who lives across the street has been receiving Christmas cards to the wrong address. When he goes to deliver them to Rafael, he knows immediately that something is wrong. When Rafael realizes that his ex has found him, he’s ready to run. But Ashton is ready when he does run and convinces him to stay with him. Even though Blake is threatening, Rafael is feeling a bit better about a Christmas with Ashton who has not been in the mood for the holidays for a few years. Having Rafael around brings Ash out of his doldrums and he really likes him too. They move from friends to lovers pretty quickly. Ash feels like maybe he’s gotten lucky in helping Rafael and Rafael feels like he might finally get his life back 🙂
This is my first story from this author who seems to be somewhat new – only published this year. I enjoyed the style of writing and the characters. I had a few niggles about someone who had been so paranoid and on the run just accepting help so easily. I really like Ashton – he’s a good guy and very observant realizing that Rafael is in trouble. Rafael is happy to get his life back and feels a little guilty getting Ashton involved. This is a quick holiday read with a little bit of angst. If you’ve got a short window of time, you might enjoy this. I’ll be interested to see what’s next from this author since I think there is promise in the writing.
RATING: 
BUY LINKS:
JMS