Reviewed by Sadonna
TITLE: Unwrapping Christmas
SERIES: Rebel Sky Ranch
AUTHOR: Kelly Fox
PUBLISHER: Self-published
LENGTH: 129 pages
RELEASE DATE: November 23 , 2022
BLURB:
College isn’t working out, and I’m still trying to figure out what comes next.
I suppose volunteering for the local Christmas Cleanup is better than staring at the four walls of my house all day long, even if I don’t know what the heck I’m doing. Here’s hoping the locals don’t mind my gothy Christmas elf attire.
While I was hoping the volunteer work would help me to discover something about myself, I wasn’t expecting to unwrap a whole new…dynamic. At least not until Junior, a tall-strapping cowboy, shows me what I’ve been missing.
Unwrapping Christmas is a 33k-word novella set in the Rebel Sky Ranch series. It includes a gothy femme boy, a sweet, commanding cowboy, and enough Christmas cheer to make you smile.
REVIEW:
Note: This story takes place in the universe of Rebel Sky Ranch. There are is part of a series and contains some spoilers for previous books. This can, however, be read as a standalone, although I do recommend reading the series in order – particularly Goodnight, Navarro and The Sherriff’s Troublemaker for backstories on this group 🙂
Tanner Buchanan is a character we were introduced to in The Sherriff’s Troublemaker, a story in the Rebel Sky Ranch universe. Tanner’s obnoxious, abusive and homophobic father ran for sherriff, but thankfully he lost – not by much though. Tanner stopped him from outing the current sherriff but threatening to go public with his own sexuality and telling all about what his father has done to his family. The result was Tanner being kicked out of his home. He’s living with his Uncle Richard, brother of said abusive father. He can’t really see or talk to his mother and his younger twin siblings. He’s attended community college but that hasn’t gone well. He’s feeling about as low as can be.
Junior Underwood is another local guy who has finished college and is working for the Goodnight’s at their ranch. He’s leading a group of folks in a Christmas Cleanup project – helping local seniors and others get ready for the holidays who might not otherwise have the ability to decorate and cleanup their own properties. In addition, the crews will be helping to decorate the downtown as well. Junior isn’t too excited about Tanner being on the team, but he soon learns the error of his ways. When he finds out what Tanner has been through and who he sacrificed to stand up for himself and his family and the rest of the LGBTQ folks in their county, he sees Tanner in a new light. Also, he really likes Tanner’s new look. He describes it as Dark Christmas Elf/Goth kitten 🙂 Whatever it is, he thinks it’s pretty adorable.
Turns out that Tanner is looking for direction – in more ways than one 😉 As Tanner and Junior work on the tasks for the Christmas Cleanup for various folks in the community, it seems like their attraction that is simmering just below the surface sparks to life. The chemistry between them is scorching. And with Tanner’s Uncle Richard out of town on the weekends, they find they have plenty of time to explore what this is between them. Pretty quickly it seems like their needs mesh really well. Tanner likes being told what to do and Junior is more than happy to have his directions followed 😀 He just wants to make Tanner happy and satisfied. Both of them are a bit new to this dynamic and Junior gets some more reliable advice that Dr. Google 😉 Even though it seems fast, Tanner and Junior have found their rhythm and are making beautiful music together.
This is a sweet and sexy story of two young guys who get thrown together on a project and find out that they are a perfect fit. While from the outside they seem like opposites, their desires are very much in synch. Junior apologizes for underestimating Tanner and he finds that he’s happiest when he can make Tanner happy. He’s possessive – but not in a creepy way – and he’s also protective. He’s not about to let anyone rain on their parade, including Tanner’s asshat dad. There were definitely some darker issues that were touched on here, such as Tanner’s father controlling and isolating his mother and threatening to separate her from her children. Luckily there are good people too who help with actual solutions. Tanner embracing himself and his desires was fun to see especially since he was so lost and unhappy. I love that he has the opportunity to find out what he really likes and can make a go of a business that both can be profitable and rewarding. Junior is a really good guy and it was just adorable to see them grow in their relationship. If you are looking for a sweet and spicy story of opposites coming together with some heat, holidays and happy endings 😉 then I think you will enjoy this one! Recommended.
RATING: 
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