Reviewed by: Sue Eaton
TITLE: A Holiday to Sustain Us
SERIES: The Magi Accounts Companion Stories
AUTHOR: Michele Notaro
PUBLISHER: Self Published
LENGTH: 248 pages
RELEASE DATE: November 28, 2022
BLURB:
One kiss under the mistletoe and now I’m hooked. I can’t get him out of my head… and I think I might like it.
Convincing my pride to have a holiday celebration was supposed to be a fun way to bring everyone together. But my plan went awry when my younger pride mate convinced everyone I needed a kiss. I hadn’t expected Ash to volunteer. And I certainly hadn’t expected him to kiss me on the lips and… linger.
Now, all I can think about is feeling his lips on mine again. Instead of planning gift giving and parties, I’m planning how to win Ash over. And what better way to convince him to spend time with me than to have him help me with my holiday plans?
The holidays are coming to the Ono-Nai house, and I only have one thing I’m wishing for this year—Ash.
REVIEW:
I enjoyed this novella featuring Charlie and Ash’s romance. Charlie, a lion shifter, has appeared in all the previous books in this series, he is Cosmo’s brother and lives in the pack. Ash is a Magi who has only recently joined the pack, after suffering abuse at the Magi compound.
Charlie appears to be happy go lucky, but he has his challenges, mostly around wearing makeup, skirts and dresses. His past boyfriends whilst saying they accepted him, then went around trying to change his choices and being embarrassed by him in public. The acceptance by his pack and the support they all give him has helped him, since his breakup with his previous boyfriend.
Ash suffered heartbreak when his best friend and love Maisy was killed at the stadium fighting the witches. He is in awe of Mads and Jude but little by little they strike up a friendship When the abuse at the Magi compound gets too violent, he goes to stay at the pack house and eventually joins the pack.
I loved watching Charlie and Ash orbit each other, both liking each other, both wanting more, but unable to put into words exactly what they want. The shopping trips to get Christmas decorations and presents were lovely. Charlie literally bought out the store, the sullen angsty teenagers who came with them and every little thing that Charlie took for granted but was the first experience for Ash and the other Magi. The anger at all they had suffered, and that other Magi continue to suffer, the very small things like never having had presents before.
The best bit for me was the trips to the animal sanctuary, to get Mads a cat and Cosmo a dog was simply beautiful. The gorgeous little dog, that is deaf, the scene where he arrives at the pack house moved me to tears, being accepted by the dog despite being a lion shifter, the joy of little Eli signing to the dog, it was wonderful and very much in the spirit of Christmas.
Little by little Charlie and Ash get closer to each other, supporting each other through nightmares and finally going on a date and progressing their relationship. The unconditional love for each other and Ash getting Charlie makeup as a Christmas gift cemented that acceptance. It is a beautiful thing to be accepted for who you are.
The novellas give an insight into the other characters within the pack and I loved getting to know them better.
RATING: 
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