Cuffing Season by Monica McCallan is a sweet romance about being open to what life has to offer and having the courage to grab hold of love when it’s standing right in front of you.
The last thing Maeve Murphy expected was to be spending Christmas in the small town where she grew up. She left Kingsford a decade ago with dreams of making a name for herself in New York City. Her mother’s unexpected death wasn’t part of those dreams. She’s home to help her father keep the family business operational. Bartending at Murph’s isn’t that bad. It’s a temporary situation. There will be no establishing ties, no becoming part of the community, and no creating new friendships.
Bianca Rossi recently returned to the charming little town of Kingsford after spending four years in New York. Her priorities have changed and working as a runway model no longer interests her. She’s happy with her job at the local veterinary clinic, and she works Friday nights at Murph’s where her father is the chef. She loves small town living. The only thing missing is the right someone to share it with.
Maeve is steering clear of Bianca. Her exuberance and positive outlook slightly irk Maeve. Bianca isn’t so easily put off. With a bit of holiday magic helping them along, Bianca and Maeve strike up a tentative friendship. Before long they’re cuddling on Bianca’s sofa watching saccharine Christmas movies over popcorn and hot cocoa. It’s cuffing season, and they’re just two friends passing time on cold winter nights.
When it’s time for Maeve to move back to New York, everything she once thought she wanted seems to have lost its shine. It’s Bianca’s sparkling green eyes she sees when she pictures her future. Could Kingsford have everything Maeve has been looking for?
Pros And My Favourite Parts
At the center of this inviting romance are two characters who captured my heart. Bianca is by far one of the most beautiful main characters I’ve stumbled upon in a while. She’s much more than supermodel gorgeous. Her inner beauty carries this story. She’s steadfast, genuine, and loyal. Everyone in Kingsford is better off with Bianca in their lives. On the other hand, Maeve is a cute, yet grouchy curmudgeon. She’s far too young to be so weighed down by life’s disappointments. Like gaining the trust of a feral kitten, Bianca slowly shows Maeve what family, friendship, and community have to offer. There are enough touching moments in this story to warrant having a box of tissues at the ready.
Cons And Heads Up
Not a one.
The Conclusion
I was captivated by Cuffing Season from beginning to end. I rarely read low-angst romances, but Cuffing Season caught my attention. To say the story is sweet would be selling it short. Yes, sweet comes to mind, but so does, heartwarming and inviting. This book is all about the characters. Bianca and Maeve could’ve been trapped in a deserted mine shaft, and I still think I’d have been enchanted watching them take such cautious and tentative steps toward finding their happily-ever-after. This romance added a little joy to my holiday season.
Excerpt from Cuffing Season by Monica McCallan
It was one thing Bianca prided herself on. Sometimes she was maybe a little evasive when the situation called for it, but always in service of not hurting someone. Whenever possible, she tried to be honest.
Like, she’d never tell a patient’s owner something that would hurt them to know, but she would focus on relaying all the positive attributes of their pet’s health and making the conversation as comforting as she could.
Even if she knew that it was a horrible situation, like in cases where an illness or injury was unexpected. Someone could ask her directly in those cases, and she’d still talk around it.
Other than that, she was always honest, and on top of that, she tried to always be positive. It made her feel better about the life she was leading, and there was almost always something good to say, even if that meant leaving the bad things unsaid.
So she’d never tell someone like Maeve that she’d been a little bitchy her first months in town because there was so much going on in Maeve’s life and it wouldn’t have been helpful. And more than that, there was no right way to respond to grief.
Instead, Bianca had finally, when the chance had presented itself, offered a tenuous olive branch of friendship.
She was more than a little bit surprised that Maeve had finally taken it. Did that mean she was staying in town? Or just that she was so burnt-out with loneliness that she was finally willing to accept someone as her friend?
Maybe one day they’d get to the point that Bianca could ask, but she wasn’t going to hold her breath.
And yeah, so maybe Maeve was more than a little attractive, and she’d be the perfect type of person to spend a cuffing season with. But that wasn’t what Bianca wanted. And it wasn’t what Maeve needed.
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Bits and Bobs
ISBN number: 9798779719261
Publisher: Indie Author
Monica McCallan Online
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