Well, this novella didn't blow me out of the water but neither did it make me cringe on behalf of the author. While there are some romantic and thrilling parts, there are also some very dull moments, so even though it was quite short, it was almost too long.

Violet starts out as the timid wallflower, who seems to be unchanged from when she first arrived at Spindle Cove. For a place that's supposed to rehabilitate young ladies and headed by the formidable Susanna Finch, this place is remarkably ineffectual. Violet can't dance or even look at a man and is petrified of the idea of getting married. Why? Because she's been jilted once. A year ago. And it wasn't even that bad. The so called "Disappointment" left her rather suddenly and, for some reason, rendered her incapable of speaking to anyone. It makes no sense.

That said, she matures quite rapidly in the span of a single night. When the stranger washes up on shore, she proves she's good at negotiation, languages, and is rather astute. The inquisition scene is the best out of the whole story. Ironically, for someone who was supposed to forget about a man, she only grows in the presence of a man.

The hero is, of course, interesting and brooding and complex and all the things male leads are allowed to be. I didn't really have any qualms with him except he wasn't nearly as macho as he could have been. I'm sorry, but hearing a guy say he could have disarmed me already if he wanted to is just not sexy. It sounds like he's posturing.

Mostly what was off with this story was the pacing. I get the drama is supposed to take place over a single night, but it was very drawn out. Violet and her hero run around the village for what seems like hours, and it feels disjointed. The ending was satisfying, though.

Cute story, but not one I'd want to revisit. I think it could've been more interesting if it was more thought-out, but c'est la vie. ( )

Once Upon a Winter’s Eve - Tessa Dare
Audio performance by Mary Jane Wells
2.5 stars

An injured mysterious stranger collapses at a Christmas Ball. He is speaking a language that no one understands. No one except Violet Winterbottom, who just happens to be a foreign language scholar. And she just happens to be nursing her broken heart with the other spinsters in Spindle Cove. There are a lot of ‘just happens to be’ coincidences in this short story.

I’ve enjoyed the Tessa Dare’s Girl Meets Duke series. Her characters are quirky and the books have a lot of humor to balance abundant sex scenes. This book is a novella of her Spindle Cove series which I thought I might read. (Actually, I’d listen. I like Mary Jane Wells.) I think some of the humor is lost in the shortened format of this book. Romances of this type are always artificially contrived, but it was harder to believe the fantasy in this short form. Maybe, I was just disappointed that there was very little Christmas atmosphere despite the setting. ( )

Spindle Cove is a haven for women. A haven which is led by Susanna Finch with the goal of providing a safe place for those with delicate constitutions, overbearing family members, scandalous secrets or outlandish hobbies. There are few year round residents and even fewer male ones. Until Bram and his men turn up and are tasked with starting a militia. Although these books could be read by themselves, the plot makes much more sense having read the first book.

Violet Winterbottom has spent the past year in Spindle Cove, hiding from heartbreak and betrayal. Unfortunately her family have had enough and have demanded she return to Town at once. The night before she is to go, she is busy hiding in the corner of Spindle Cove's ballroom when she is interrupted by an injured and familiar man who bursts into the room and collapses at her feet.

I enjoyed this novella a lot more on the second read. The first one, I had read some of the other Spindle Cove books but not the first one and I was a bit lost on the plot. The second time round, the plot was a bit stronger and there were a lot of in jokes to be discovered. But my biggest complaint still stands - the ridiculousness that was trying to escape on a time limit but stopping every thirty seconds to kiss, make out and sleep together. Honestly, have some restraint.

I really liked Violet - she was all gun toting and ass kicking and that was awesome - although I wished there was more of it. Christian was a mixed bag. His grovelling kind of sucked. I mean he had some good romantic lines but he also waffled a bit too much. I wanted him to just sit down and explain to Violet what the hell was going on. The longer he stalled or whatever it is he was doing, the more annoyed I got. The romance was eased by the fact they had a history - it made it easier to swallow the instalove that was going on. There were some pretty swoon worthy parts but it was let down by the ridiculousness.

The plot was pretty thin but about what you expect of a novella. It was strengthened by it's relationship with the first book in the series and the appearance of some familiar characters. Overall it was an alright read - it made me smile and it made me laugh. 2.5 stars, rounded down to 2. ( )

Da série: Era livro erótico e eu só percebi tarde demais.....

A princípio eu estava gostando do livro, mas tiveram algumas partes que me fizeram ficar desconfortável e a não apreciar tanto a leitura. Foi aí que eu percebi que não era apenas romance de época hahaha
Erro meu, quem sabe você goste.
Mas eu ainda pretendo dar mais uma chance para a autora [a:Tessa Dare|2752928|Tessa Dare|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1242150259p2/2752928.jpg], pois gostei da escrita dela e acho que ela descreve muito bem a época em que a estória se passa. ( )

I wasn’t quite ready to leave Spindle Cove after reading book one, and reading this was the perfect way to spend a gloomy cold Christmas Eve afternoon. Violet and Christian’s story was a long lost love scenario rather than instant chemistry, and it worked nicely in the novella format. Violet was a wonderful character, and I adored Christian. I’m glad she didn’t just swoon into his arms once he started making the moves on her. The scene in the ballroom when she pulled the gun was pretty bad ass. I loved the spirit of adventure and intrigue in this story, and I’m glad I bought it, as I’ll probably want to read it again. ( )