daydreams and night reads

Title: Miracle on 5th Avenue (From Manhattan with Love, #3)

Author: Sarah Morgan

Publisher: HQN Books (Harlequin)

Release Date: November 29, 2016

Synopsis:

Hopeless romantic Eva Jordan loves everything about Christmas. She might be spending the holidays alone this year, but when she’s given an opportunity to house-sit a spectacular penthouse on Fifth Avenue, she leaps at the chance. What better place to celebrate than in snow-kissed Manhattan? What she didn’t expect was to find the penthouse still occupied by its gorgeous—and mysterious—owner.

Bestselling crime writer Lucas Blade is having the nightmare before Christmas. With a deadline and the anniversary of his wife’s death looming, he’s isolated himself in his penthouse with only his grief for company. He wants no interruptions, no decorations and he certainly doesn’t appreciate being distracted by his beautiful, bubbly new housekeeper. But when the blizzard of the century leaves Eva snowbound in his apartment, Lucas starts to open up to the magic she brings…This Christmas, is Lucas finally ready to trust that happily-ever-afters do exist?

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I received a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  

Within the past week there have been three things that have made me incredibly happy: curling up with a cup of hot cocoa on a chilly day, sleeping in (even though I should be being productive), and this book.

OH MY GOSH, THIS BOOK. It was exactly what I look for in a romance novel. Quirky, compelling, and adorable. Plus, it only fell into a few of those clichés that must haunt romance writers (but really there are only so many of the cheesy clichés that romances can avoid, I mean, it’s ROMANCE! It’s supposed to be cheerful and the tiniest bit predictable.)

Prior to Miracle on 5th Avenue, I hadn’t read any of Sarah Morgan’s books but after reading Eva and Lucas’ beautiful story, I want to read them all.

From the start, this book captivated me. Eva, who is sparkly and full of joy, is thrust into a more-than-awkward first encounter with mysterious crime writer, Lucas. Following this, she ends up snowed in with him during a horrific blizzard in Manhattan (convenient, right?) and things proceed from there.

Eva and Lucas as characters are so distinctly different than one another but create such intriguing chemistry together. Their back-and-forth conversations are witty, humorous, but also tend to touch on some difficult topics, which twist the story into something darker and deeper. Morgan did this extremely well–her characters seamlessly transition from strangers into a pair with a strong, uncontrollable fascination with one another. I couldn’t put this book down. Eva the Optimist vs. Lucas the Realist was too interesting to pass up.

It’s not often that a romance novel captivates me so entirely–don’t get me wrong, I love the genre, but Morgan’s novel provided me with the unpredictability that most romances are missing.

Majority of this fascination was with the character of Lucas; he’s pessimistic, confusing, secretive, and altogether frustrating. But I loved him. I was so curious about him. He completely embodied the mystery of the crime novels he writes for a living.

Morgan’s character development in both Eva and Lucas produces a lot of thought-provoking questions–how do you come to terms with and cope with loss? What is love like after heartbreak? How do you fully extend your heart to someone when you’ve been left feeling empty and broken for so long?

Plus, the Christmassy vibes this book gave off were flawless. It was definitely the perfect holiday read (even though I read it in October, I was left longing for freshly fallen snow and the smell of a crisp fir tree filling the air.) I would definitely read this book on a cold weekend while snuggled up by a toasty fireplace. Perfection. 

I tore through Miracle on 5th Avenue and I would definitely classify it as one of the better romances that I’ve read. If I were you, I’d definitely cue the Michael Bublé Christmas tunes and sit down with Sarah Morgan’s latest masterpiece.

Miracle on 5th Avenue: 5/5 stars. Hooray!

Miracle on 5th Avenue can be found on Amazon and on the Harlequin website.