Trusting a lying source and losing her reputation as a journalist, Addie Hutton returns to her hometown of Pine Crossing, Colorado to rebuild her life. She is welcomed to her childhood home by the current owner/longtime friend/chief of police/widower Frank Raynor. Addie doesn't have time to get on her feet when her idiot former husband sends his son Henry to stay with her while he goes on a honeymoon for a couple months. Frank and his daughter welcome Henry and Addie to Pine Crossing, and the four of them start their mornings with the traditional opening of an aged advent calendar. They soon operate as a family unit showing the love and support Linda Lael Miller skillfully develops in her romances. This is an enjoyable read and a perfect length for the busy Christmas season.

Thanks to Kensington Books, Linda Lael Miller and NetGalley for this ARC.

I love Christmas stories and I reread this one by Ms Miller. It is a short but sweet novella about second chances. Frank and Addie were high school sweethearts who traveled different paths, but now they have come full circle for the HEA that they deserve. A warm hearted holiday read.

An enjoyable holiday romance read by one of the best in her genre!

The 24 Days of Christmas, by Linda Lael Miller, is a reprint of an earlier published work. It is a wonderful l holiday romance and family drama. It is a novella set in Pine Crossing, Colorado during the month of December.

As December begins, Addie Hutton returns home to begin a new life after a career disgrace. She contacts childhood best friend, later boyfriend and fiancée, Frank Raynor, to see if his above garage apartment is available. The home Frank lives in was Addie's childhood home. The apartment is available and her offers it to Addie. In the time since Addie and Frank broke their engagement, both married, Frank's wife died from cancer and he was now a single parent of a lovely young girl Lissie. Addie's marriage ended in divorce with now children, but she loved her step-son Henry as if he were her own. Only problem was that Addie had never adopted him, so she has no legal rights where he is concerned.

Frank is police chief of the small town. Addie is a journalist fresh off a scandal that could have landed her in prison. With nothing left but her skills and memories of her life during happier times, Addie is seeking a fresh start and is very willing to take a menial job as receptionist and classified ad salesperson at the town paper, the Copper Nickel. Soon after Addie's arrival, she receives a message from her ex to meet the four o'clock bus from Denver. Unable to get a hold of Toby, she meets the bus and off steps Henry, sad, alone and a bit bedraggled. Addie, Frank, Lissie, and Henry, plus obese beagle Floyd, make an unlikely group. Each morning they meet to open the next box on the old Advent Calendar made by Frank's Aunt Lizzie when he was a boy. Over the next 24 days, Christmas comes alive for this little family unit. This is a wonderful, feel good Christmas story. It shows how the magic of Christmas brought together this group of lonely people all looking to fill a spot in their lives and hearts. I definitely recommend this novella to those who love Christmas magic, romances and happy endings.