Christmas in Good Hope is the 1st book in the Good Hope Series by Cindy Kirk.
Book Details
Christmas in Good Hope is the first book in a 21-book series. This book was first published in 2015.
The main genre for this story is contemporary romance, but I would also add in a Christmas or holiday romance or even a small town romance.
I would even add, love at first sight romance too! Once Ami and Beck meet, they seem to only have eyes for each other!!
I would also add it’s a story about life, and dealing with the troubles and struggles of life!
This is full length story with 302 pages.
There are no other book covers for this story.
There was one sex scene with a few details, not crude words, with a couple others with not details, just mentioned.
There are no crude language or violence in this story.
This charming contemporary romance is set in the small community of Good Hope, Wisconsin.
While this series is wrapped around the community of people that live and work in Good Hope, the first 4 books are about the Bloom sisters.
This is Amaryllis “Ami” and Beckett’s story. This story is told from their point of view in 3rd person POV.
Book Summary
Ami the owner, manager of Blooms Bake Shop in Good Hope. She’s also the oldest of the 4 girls.
She’s also the nurturer and a mother figure to her sisters, especially since their mother passed away. But it was after the car accident that she caused, that things took a turn for the worst.
She was in the car with her friend Lindsay and yes, they were drinking. Lindsay was badly hurt and Ami feels an enormous amount of shame and guilt from not only drinking and driving but especially because Lindsay got so hurt.
This story happens several years after the accident and her and Lindsay haven’t really been friends. As this story continues, tho, Lindsay pulls her aside and they talk things out. Lindsay doesn’t fault her for the accident, it was an accident.
But because of this accident, Ami has a few issues, like the fact that she can’t drive. She has so much anxiety about the accident that she can’t get in front of the wheel of a car. She’s also really worried over how Beck will react when he finds out about the accident.
Beckett is a newcomer to Good Hope. As an attorney turned café owner, Beck has come to Good Hope to find a different pace of life.
Reeling from the loss of his wife and unborn son, and tired of getting the bad guys off, Beck randomly picked Good Hope as a place to start fresh.
Because Ami worries over Beck finding out about this as his pregnant wife was killed by a drunk driver. She doesn’t think he’ll love her after he finds out. So for the majority of the story, Ami spends a ton of time mentally thinking that if he finds out he’ll break things off with her.
In the end, Beck does find out. With the help of Eliza, Lindsay’s sister, who’s still bitter about the accident, blurts it out at a very public party. Beck, frozen with the news, doesn’t know what to do. As he’s be harboring the memory of his dead wife, and not responding to the letters of the person who actually killed his wife, he doesn’t know if he can move forward.
With the news of the accident, Beck takes a hard look at his own life and decides that he needs to forgive this person and accept that a person can grow and change. And he decides that he wants to propose to Ami and even asks her father for her hand in marriage. And he says no!! That a man doesn’t walk out on the one that he loves when things get tough, they stay and figure it out.
Conclusion
It’s an enjoyable story of second chances, of learning how to forgive a really hard thing and looking forward to the future with a new heart.
I really enjoyed the small town feel of the story and of the feeling of community that this story gives. It’s definitely worth a read.
Check out the other books in the Good Hope Series:
