REVIEW: Twelve Days of Christmas by Debbie Macomber

In Twelve Days of Christmas by Debbie Macomber, Christmas is Julia Padden’s favorite time of the year. The music, the decorations, the feeling of goodwill. It all adds up to a joyful season. This year, though, she won’t be able to make it home to be with her family so her focus is on her volunteer work and hopefully snagging the job of her dreams in social media. But to do so, Julia has to somehow create a successful blog. Her answer is in the form of her grouchy next door neighbor, Cain Maddox. The idea to “kill him with kindness” starts off as a way to increase views on her website but soon turns into a much deeper, more emotional involvement than she could ever realize.

“Almost overnight, I find that you’ve invaded every corner of my well-protected world,” he continued. “I don’t like it. I don’t want to need you and I find that I do and it unsettles me.”
“I’m unsettled, too,” she told him. “I never thought I’d feel this way, either.” Especially about him. Only a few days earlier she’d barely been able to tolerate being in the same elevator with him.

Cain likes his orderly world and his routines but lately his perky neighbor Julia, cute as she may be, is starting to really annoy him. She’s there at every turn, whether it be the elevator, by his mailbox, or even at the local Starbucks. It’s even more disconcerting when Julia starts being nice to Cain while he’s doing everything in his power to push her away. He never thought he’d let another woman in close to his heart after being burned before in love. But if anyone can make him take a chance, it will be Julia.

‘For the first time in memory, he was looking forward to Christmas because he had Julia to share the holiday with, and having her in his life made all the difference in the world. Oh yes, he was falling for her.’

Lighthearted and full of holiday joy, Twelve Days of Christmas was a pleasure to read. I love knowing that whenever I pick up a book by Debbie Macomber, especially if it’s holiday-themed, I’ll have fun and will be filled with the warm and fuzzies over the (guaranteed) HEA.

‘If kindness can alter two people’s attitudes toward each other, just imagine what it could do to change our world, one relationship at a time.’

There are several authors who I wait for each year to release a holiday book, and Debbie Macomber is definitely on that list. I look forward to the touching romance and the sense of family and community spirit that she always adds to every story. And Twelve Days of Christmas carried on that tradition. The premise behind it was a fun one, with a Scrooge-like guy unwilling to admit a certain cheerful and chatty neighbor caught his eye, and said neighbor deciding to “kill him with kindness” and post the results on her blog. It was a comical but still heartfelt setup that had me chuckling more than once. (Why can I see this being made into a charming Hallmark movie? 😉 )

Out of all honesty, I can see readers equally liking and disliking the main characters. They were on different ends of the spectrum, with Cain being so grouchy and Julia a bit over the top in terms of bubbliness. I personally don’t mind a grumbly hero but I had to get used to our heroine’s super perkiness a bit. Julia had such a genuine, huge heart, though, that she won me over quickly. Their connection as they grew to know each other was wonderful and felt sincere. I loved watching how Julia’s little acts of kindness warmed Cain’s heart and how he in turn began to open up emotionally and let her in. And the inclusion of his sweet grandpa Bernie in several scenes was just icing on the cake for me.

If you’re looking for a quick but meaningful holiday romance that will be sure to spark a need inside you to show others kindness, look no further than Twelve Day of Christmas.

Book Info:

 Published October 4th 2016 | by Ballantine Books |

In a festive annual tradition, #1 New York Times bestselling author Debbie Macomber returns with another original holiday novel full of romance and cheer. This time around, a plucky young woman clashes with a real-life Scrooge—her grouchy, arrogant, annoyingly handsome neighbor—and tries to get even the only way she knows how: by killing him with kindness.