A Regency Christmas Eve

by Nancy Butler, Barbara Metzger, Diane Farr, et al.

'Tis the season to give the greatest gift of all...Here, in one special volume, are five Christmas love stories set in Regency England -- high-spirited, humorous, heart-warming, deeply romantic, and full of the flavor of the holiday season.The theme of this brand-new collection is simple.It's Christmas Eve... Time to fall in love...

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0451201671
• ISBN13: 9780451201676
• Release Date: October 2000
• Publisher: Signet Book
• Length: 345 Pages
• Weight: 0.41 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 4.2" x 6.8"

Customer Reviews

For any time at all . . .

A Regency Christmas Eve features stories from two new-comers, two veterans and one in-between. To begin with, Barbara Metzger's tale of treasure hidden in a little country church and uncovered by the Merry Christmouse (and family) will have you holding your sides, laughing as you read. A rakish viscount is reformed, and made to recognize his true love, while the vicar receives the lady of his choice, as well. The humans may not realize it, but they owe it all to the industrious little Churchmouse dynasty. The weakest story (for me, at least) was The Marriage Stakes by Allison Lane. Dreary and bleak, with a bit of preposterous thrown in, I couldn't like the characters and the setting wasn't much better. In fact, I nearly didn't finish it at all, but other readers may find this style to be enjoyable and should form their own opinion. Nancy Butler (who won the RITA award for best Regency this year) shows yet another facet of her talent with a story that blends fantasy into romance for one enjoyable result. When Kit Herne goes into the forest looking for the wise-woman who lives there, he wants her to find a cure for his son's ailment. Instead, he finds her daughter, Pippa, who uses her own variety of magic to cure not only the son, but also his father. Diane Farr serves up the lightest and happiest confection with The Reckless Miss Ripley and her hapless target, Fred Bates. A mere three minutes too late for the mail coach, Miss Ripley is forced to find another way to travel to Bath where she expects to meet up with her long-time (possibly imaginary) fiancé. She badgers the not-quite unwilling Mr. Bates into accompanying her, with all the travails, humorous and otherwise, that can befall such ill-prepared travelers. And then, to close the book, Edith Layton tells a wonderful, heart-warming story with a twist. (Be sure to have the tissues handy--you'll need them.) On his way back from the wars to his home in England, Max Evers reads in the newspaper that his financial agent has been the victim of an embezzler and all is lost! When he sees his townhouse surrounded by clamoring bailiffs, that sad fact is made all too clear to him, so he turns away from all he'd been anticipating this Christmas season, taking great pains not to be found by anyone from his past life. Especially he turns from his fiancée who's been waiting patiently for him for five long years. However, all is made delightfully right again, however, on the most wondrous night of the year--Christmas Eve!

Absolutely delightful!

What a treat for the holidays, or if you cannot wait (like me) for right now. One expects the very best from Barbara Metzger and Edith Layton, and that is exactly what these two favorite authors deliver in this endearing collection of stories. A charming book sure to please any romance fan. Happy holidays!

Christmas cheered

Every year I look forward to the Signet Christmas regency anthology, and so far I've never been disappointed. This year's is no exception. The Barbara Metzger story about the mice is truly charming, and the Edith Layton story is a classic I know I will reread again and again. The Diane Farr, Allison Lane and Nancy Butler stories are all very enjoyable as well. I won't go into detail about them because a previous reviewer did it so thoroughly -- I will just say that this collection got me out of a really bad mood and into a really good one, and I surely got my money's worth! (I don't know what book "a reader from Rochester NY" read, but it can't have been the same one I read!) Hey, Merry Christmas, everybody!!!

Wonderful book!

As someone else wrote the stories in anthologies are usually uneven, with a couple of good ones and some that are only fair. Not in this case! I thought all the stories were excellent. I have a penchant for humour so the Metzger and Farr stories were probably my favourite. Nancy Butler's story is (as usual) a wonderfully heart warming one (just what you want at Christmas), as are the stories by Lane and Layton. A book that has something for everyone.

All Five Keepers

One rarely encounters an anthology such as this where all the novellas are equally appealing, though this should be no surprise considering the five Signet stars represented here. Nothing more need be added to the abundance of warmth, love, humor and poignancy found between the covers of A REGENCY CHRISTMAS EVE.LITTLE MIRACLES, Barbara Metzger On the night before Christmas, the creatures were stirring--stirring up a bit of trouble. Well, actually, on two successive Christmas Eves they fail in communicating a secret to man; a secret only the resident rodents remember. Once again, their intent for the approaching season is to bring prosperity to themselves, to the Village of Lower Winfrey and to the Church of St. Cecelia's in the Trees. If they are instrumental in bringing lovers together as well, that is surely in the spirit of the season.Beware of Barbara Metzger; she'll put smile lines on your face. Her way with words is as delightful as the meanings they convey. THE MARRIAGE STAKES, Allison Lane After Miss Sophie Landiss rescues her very young, widowed and nearly to term half-sister Caroline from a possessive aunt-in-law, a broken carriage wheel halts their long flight home to Cumberland. Their chance rescuer seeks a temporary respite from Westlake Abbey and a large houseparty that includes all his relations, two dozen eligible young ladies and their hopeful papas and mamas. All await Christmas Eve, when Damon must name his intended bride, the next Countess of Westlake. While suspense builds, a moving friendship develops between Sophie and Damon, two intelligent, decent and mature individuals. Read this endearing story to find out if Damon will recognize the treasure under his nose when Allison Lane treats readers to a lively expose of a 'marriage mart' taken to extremes.THE GIFT OF THE SPOONS, Nancy Butler Desperate to help his son recover from a wasting disease, Christopher Herne's last hope sends him to a cottage in Chatham Wood to find the wisewoman healer, Pippa Spoon. Expecting a crone, he finds a young woman instead. Pippa hasn't the healing powers of her mother, but what power she has may well prove sufficient to heal both wounded spirits, Christopher's and his son's. THE GIFT OF THE SPOONS will warm your hearts as the magic of Christmas joins forces with older mysteries under Nancy Butler's masterful touch.THE RECKLESS MISS RIPLEY, Diane Farr Glad of the warmth and the passable accommodations to be had at the Coaches and Horses Inn on such a nasty night, Fred Bates takes his ease before continuing down the coaching road to Bath on his journey home for Christmas. At least, that's his plan before a lone female stumbles in from the snow and the cold--before Miss Claudia Ripley turns her beguiling smile his way.With a lovable hoyden for a heroine, a thoroughly nice hero, and all the humorous banter that Diane Farr does so well, THE RECKLESS MISS RIPLEY becomes a delightful road romance.THE CHRISTMAS THIEF, Edith Layton When his brother di