A Little Christmas Spirit by Sheila Connolly is a heartwarming Christmas tale. I was drawn into the story from the very beginning. This is a cute holiday tale that will put a smile on your face. The book is well-written with realistic dialogue and characters. Stanley Mann is still mourning the loss of his wife, Carol. He has become something of a hermit and curmudgeon. Then his deceased wife, Carol makes an appearance. She is tired of Stanley moping about the house and has come to give him a big nudge. Lexie and her son, Brock have moved in next door. They are new to town and could use a father/grandfather figure in their lives. Stanley begins by doing little things and then he starts spending more time in their company until he says the wrong thing. It looks like he will end up spending Christmas alone despite Carol’s best efforts. Is there a way to get them all back together again? Stanley may seem gruff but there is a softie in there somewhere. We get to know more about Stanley and Carol’s life together through the reminisces. We get to see the special life the couple had together as Stanley travels down memory lane. Lexie is a teacher raising her son on her own. She is grieving the loss of her father. Lexie wishes her mother would visit her, but her mother is grieving as well. Lexie would like to find a man to be a part of her and Brock’s life, but she wants to make sure that he is nothing like her ex-boyfriend. Brock was your typical little boy. He really took a shine to Stanley and helped bring the man out of his shell. Brock’s behavior could be an example to adults especially his ability to forgive. There is a cute Westie in the story too. I have a feeling Carol helped the dog find Stanley. A Little Christmas Spirit is just what I needed to put me in the mood for the holidays. I knew I could count on Sheila Connolly to provide a touching Christmas tale. A Little Christmas Spirit is a tender holiday story with a cute canine, a bubbly boy, a calamitous matchmaking attempt, a grouchy grandpa, an inconvenient injury, and a tenderhearted teacher.

Straight up holiday cheer featuring a single mom and a cranky curmudgeon. The characters were charming and I loved seeing Lexie chip away at his cranky exterior. Add an adorable little boy and a cute dog and you have all the makings of a great Christmas book! I loved this one and it definitely got me in the Christmas spirit while reminding me to look around at my neighbors and see how I can spread some Christmas cheer of my own. My thanks to the publisher for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review!

Boy, oh boy, can I ever relate to Stanley Mann. This is my second Christmas without my husband, and Stanley's story really resonated with me. If not for my grown children keeping me busy, I would very likely be the grumpy old widow hiding away from life. Needless to say, A Little Christmas Spirit has its share of emotion and heartbreak. But it's not all about that. Nope, Sheila ROberts tempers that raw emotions with some well timed wit and a found family that is exactly what Stanley needs - even if the ghost of his late wife has to push him in the right direction. So, yes, this one is emotional. It's also funny and heartwarming. It's a story of healing and moving on, and if you're not feeling warm and fuzzy Christmas feels when you've turned the last page, you may just need a Christmas ghost of your own.

The Review

This was an emotional and heartwarming read. The author found the perfect chord to balance out the romance elements of some characters with the themes of loss and opening ourselves up to new possibilities in the face of loss. The setting of the novel was so realistic and did a great job of reflecting the emotional shifts in the characters themselves.

The character growth and pacing of the narrative were crafted so eloquently here. The way the author delved into the backstory and history of Stanley and his late wife and the subtle yet crucial integration of the haunting of the older “scrooge-like” character by meaningful ghosts of his past was a refreshing way of integrating this classic Dickens style holiday trope while also honing in on the personal relationships and bonds these characters form with one another.

The Verdict

Balanced, heartfelt, and engaging, author Sheila Robert’s “A Little Christmas Spirit” is a must-read holiday novel of 2021. The perfect winter and holiday read, the personal character development and emotional notes the narrative hits with loss and how to overcome that loss is so captivating to read

Lexi and her son Brock are settling into their neighborhood despite Stanley the grumpy old guy next door. Stanley has been grieving his wife by avoiding everyone. He gets help to begin to live again in an unexpected way. Events happen where Lexi and her son need Stanley's help. He beings to open up to new things. When his help goes a bit too far and causes Lexi some pain, will their tentative friendship end? A new family in the neighborhood could also be a new beginning for Lexi, will she take a chance? A fun, heartwarming holiday story.

This book was so sweet! And the title really speaks for itself because this book was definitely full of Christmas Spirit!

The story mainly revolves around Stanley, an older man who lost his wife Carol three years earlier in a car accident and his new neighbour Lexie. Stanley had been devastated by the loss of his wife and preferred to spend his days alone. But then one night he got a mysterious visitor in his dreams. Carol was there, encouraging him to start living his life again and she kept popping in throughout the story. Naturally though, he resists. But when Lexie fractures her foot and needs some help getting around, Stanley decides to listen to Carol and help her out. Soon he becomes "Grandpa Stanley" to Lexie's young son, but he still had trouble socializing and saying the right thing. Watching the bond develop between these three was such a joy!

I loved Stanley's character. While he was understandably grumpy, he had so much heart and was the sweetest man. I love that we got to know his wife Carol through his memories. Lexie and her son Brock were also very sweet. Brock was adorable and I love how he took a shine to Stanley straight away. There were other secondary characters as well and a small bit of romance but I feel like the main focus of the story was on Stanley and how he learned to embrace life again after his heartache. The book dealt with the passing of loved ones and the way we experience grief and I thought it was handled tastefully.

This is definitely one to add to your reading list this holiday season. I would like to check out the author's other books as well!

When I started reading the book I admit I didn't much like Stanley. He was grumpy, anti-social, and just plain mean. Then in popped Carol and I thought oh wait it's going to be an updated version of Charles Dickson's A Christmas Carol but nope.

Instead, I go a story of two people who needed each other and yet did not want to be around each other. It was a story of growth and connection. As we learned about each character things got better.

I loved that the author gave us more backstory on Stanley because it helped to soften him and allowed me to understand him better.

This book was a nice change and gave me a little hope that even grumpy people still hold a little Christmas spirit deep down.

Lexie and Stanley are neighbours.
A single mom and a Scrooge.
It’s a cute read.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an arc in exchange for my honest review.

Go ahead and hate my Scrooge vibe. I didn’t love this book. It’s one of those I could’ve put down halfway through and never picked up again.

All the pieces for a beautiful story are here. I felt for Stanley, and I loved the way Brock pulled him from his funk.

But…

We’re overloaded with detail about Stanley and Carol’s relationship, taking us all the way back to the beginning, when they met as teenagers, with unnecessary minutiae. I didn’t need to relive every moment in order to understand the depth of their love. Instead of adding emotional depth, these long and frequent blasts from the past took away from the emotion of the present.

Lexi’s story and eventual romance took a long time to go anywhere, and for me mostly served as a distraction from the depth of Stanley’s story.

Clearly I’m not a good fit for this book. Lots of people have loved it, though. If you like feel-good, light, holiday reads, give this one a try.

Gee wiz, I need more tissue. I've cried several times & I'm not a pretty crier. This take on A Christmas Carol is darn good and touching. Being haunted by his late wife is the best thing that ever happened to Stanley. As with Ebenezer he changes and becomes an even better man. I understood him from page one and on the last page cried for the umteenth time. I've given it a rare 5 stars. Do your self a Christmas favor and read this book.

I am voluntarily posting an honest review after reading an advance reader copy of this story..

#SheliaRoberts #ALittleChristmasSpirit #Netgalley #HarlequinBooks #MIRA

Adorable, lovely and needs to be a Hallmark movie ASAP! I just loved it. The audio is incredible and I need more holiday books like this!

This was the most delightful, heartwarming, chuckle worthy Christmas story ever! It reminds me a bit of the book A Man Called Ove, but mixed with A Christmas Carol. It was hopeful, endearing and full of cheer and spirit. While a bit corny, that is to be expected in a Christmas book. I loved the small town setting, and that the main character was a single mom with her life together in the most normal sense. I would absolutely have been her friend in real life! The characters were very relatable and so well thought out, including Grandpa Stanley.

3.5 stars--A LITTLE CHRISTMAS SPIRIT by Sheila Roberts is a contemporary, adult, stand alone, slightly paranormal, story of women’s fiction focusing on kindergarten teacher/single mother Lexie Bell, and her elderly neighbour / widower Stanley Mann.

Told from third person perspective A LITTLE CHRISTMAS SPIRIT follows two intersecting pathways in the days and weeks before the Christmas holidays. Single mom Lexie Bell is new to town and doesn’t know many of her neighbors. A slip and fall at the local hardware store finds Lexie unable to navigate the wintery streets on her own, and finds herself dependant upon her reclusive and elderly but reluctant neighbor Stan, a gentleman who has struggled in the three years since the death of his wife. Lexie’s six year old Brock, whose only grandfather passed away one year before, is pulled towards the neighbor, bestowing Stan with the moniker of Grandpa Stan. When a single father moves in across the road, Lexis and Brock’s attention is pulled from Stan, and placed on the man with whom Lexie will fall in love.

Meanwhile, Stanley continues to grieve the loss of his wife but late night visits by the spirit of his beloved, push Stan out of his comfort zone, and in the proverbial arms of a potential new family. But Stan commits a Christmas faux pas, and Lexie must do battle with her son in the aftermath, pushing Stanley out of their lives until a potential tragedy strikes at the small Bell family.

A LITTLE CHRISTMAS SPIRIT is a slow building, sweet and impassioned Christmas story line somewhere in the tone between A Christmas Carol and The Grinch Who Stole Christmas. Stanley Mann and his wife never had children, and in this, Stan struggles with the social graces towards family and kids. When the spirit of his dead wife continues to make nightly visits in an effort to push Stan our of his ‘funk’, Stan’s only desire is to reunite with his wife, keeping to himself, shutting out the world around. The premise is heart warming; the characters are animated; the romance is virtually non-existent and only implied.



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One of the best parts of the holidays is all the seasonal reading! My first book of the year is A Little Christmas Spirit by the incredible writer @sheilarobertswriter!

This book got me with all the feels! Lexie Belle and her son Brock are new to the PNW and they are trying to fit in around the Christmas season. Brock’s dad has never been in the picture and it’s always been the two of them. Their new next door neighbor, Stanley, has been heartbroken since the love of his life, Carol, passed away suddenly 3 years ago. He has kept to himself alone in his house in this time. One night, Stanley thinks he smells peppermint and it reminds him of Carol. He begins to see and hear Carol giving him tips for moving on from her and restarting his life. She encourages him to decorate their house for Christmas when Brock wanders over and strikes up a conversation. Brock takes a liking to the lovable grump and asks for help decorating their house and helping them with a Christmas tree after Lexie takes a fall and breaks her foot. Suddenly Brock is calling him Grandpa Stanley and he has a lot more friends to help celebrate the season with!

This was such a sweet story and I just loved how Carol knew exactly how to get grumpy Stanley to embrace the Belle family. Especially at the end when he’s at Brock’s concert and he’s proudly telling everyone “that’s my grandson!”

It's November but we all need #ALittleChristmasSpirit. Lexi and Stanley's story provides a heartfelt account of loss, love and second chances. The past two years have been challenging but like Stanley's heart, the pandemic is thawing.

Life is starting to resume again and it's up to us to determine what that means. We can remain stuck in the past, upset about the things we lost or embrace a new normal. There will still be difficult days ahead but there's a lot of living left to do.

In homage to 'A Christmas Carol' this account flips the story to embrace the future rather than the past. By moving forward, Stanley is honoring Carol by living in the present.

Thank you to #NetGalley and the publisher for the early edition of #ALittleChristmasSpirit in exchange for an honest review. I'm a fan of Sheila Roberts' writing and this book was the perfect gift for the starting to celebrate the season.

A sweet, heartwarming and poignant Christmas story. Sheila Roberts never disappoints and this story made me smile and moved.
The characters are fleshed out and relatable, the plot kept me reading.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

A Little Christmas Spirit
by Sheila Roberts
Pub Date: Sept. 28, 2021
Mira

Single mom Lexie Bell hopes to make this first Christmas in their new home special for her six-year-old son, Brock. Festive lights and homemade fudge, check. Friendly neighbors? Uh, no. The reclusive widower next door is more grinchy than nice. But maybe he just needs a reminder of what matters most. At least sharing some holiday cheer with him will distract her from her own lack of romance…
I enjoyed this Christmas romance thanks to the ARC provided by Mira and NetGalley.
What a great way to get into the spirit!!
5stars

My first book by this author and thrilled to find that there are lots more books to read. A sweet Christmas tale. A Christmas story about finding the Christmas spirit, finding love, finding a new beginning. I enjoyed it.

I love stories with a Christmas story, and this was no exception! I really enjoyed both main characters (Stanley and Lexie) and how their lives impacted each other. I appreciated that the romance angle wasn't overwhelming. The interactions between Stanley and Lexie's son Brock were heartwarming. If you're looking for a sweet holiday read, this is definitely one to check out!

A Christmas Carol / The Grinch / Up Mashup. If you go into this book expecting a romance - how it was marketed to me - ... ummmm.... yeah, this isn't really that. The "romance" here is fully tacked on in the last 20% of the book, with the guy barely mentioned at all before that point (and even in the "romance" here, the rest of the plot of the book is still truly the driver). But if you go into this as more of a women's fiction / Christmas type book, it works quite a bit better. The focus is largely on Stanley, who is an amalgamation of the memorable parts of Scrooge (from A Christmas Carol, including a Christmas Ghost in the form of his dead wife), The Grinch (and his too-small-due-to-pain heart), and Carl from Pixar's Up (grump old widower who doesn't really like kids... at first). Then we're introduced to Lexie and her son Brock, and from that point on Stanley's life will never be the same again. But the majority of the book really is spent on Stanley, Lexie, and Brock, with the edge to Stanley and his memories of his wife (and interactions with her ghost). Here, it really does work to be a heartwarming tale (or heartworming, for those adverse to stories that get a bit saccharine at times, and in nod to the word I originally wrote there :D) again in line with A Christmas Carol and The Grinch. A fun tale that could have gotten a lot more depressing than it ever did, this is a solid Christmas tale... just not a Christmas Romance. Very much recommended.