Book picks similar to
Of Smoke And Cinnamon: A Christmas Story by Ace Gray


christmas
second-chance
contemporary-romance
holiday

Killian


Tarin Lex - 2020
    No cliffhangers, no cheats! Guaranteed HEA. :) This is a standalone short story part of the Fit to Love MMA fighter romance series.**

Recovery


L.B. Simmons - 2013
    I’ve finally found my happy ending. I fought through the loss of one husband, lucky enough to be given a second chance at a lifetime of happiness. Settling into our new lives, however, may not be as easy as it seems. What really happens after the fairytale ending? What happens after the prince rescues the princess? After he sweeps her off her feet and carries her off into the sunset? Do they truly live happily ever after?Well…This is our story.

Show Me What You Got


Weston Parker - 2020
    Oh, and stupidly rich.Just my kind of alpha a-hole. Not!Never in a million years did I expect to find a devious mixture of love and lust overseas. I’m an American girl, living in Australia to help my sick momma. And she’s not getting any better. If nothing else, Mister McHottie is a great distraction. He’s a single father, which is beyond scorching, seeing that he’s a dream with his little girl. Who wouldn’t be? Even I’m falling in love with her. All I’ve ever wanted is a family, but it comes at a cost. His mother’s holding the coin purse, which is always fun. Yay me!And I have one real shot at wooing him. I’m running his big New Year’s Eve event and it’s time to put on the ritz. This guy has no clue what’s headed his way. I’m pulling out all the stops. Time to show him what I’ve got…

Christmas In Love (Greenbank Holiday Romances #1)


Karen Thornell - 2020
    Not since the Christmas he planned to propose to Natalie... before she dumped him. This year's Christmas gift? Having to see her again. Surprise!Natalie is finally settling into a new town. Her bed and breakfast is up and running, she's in charge of the Christmas parade, and she has absolutely zero plans of cozying up to someone special this holiday season. They wouldn't want her anyway. Not with her baggage.But when Cade shows up at Natalie's B&B, needing a place to stay, the pain of their past begs to be dealt with. Can her secret stay secret? And, more importantly, can her heart stay under lock and key?Probably not.

The Christmas Cadeau


K.D. Elizabeth - 2019
    The MEN'S bathroom.No stalls were available in mine. I'd be in and out before anyone noticed.Except someone walked in.And, oh, he was so gorgeous.Four months later we moved in together.Two years later I can't imagine living without him.He's the love of my life, to the absolute bottom of my heart.So why are we breaking up?The Christmas Cadeau has NO cheating and a happily ever after!

One & Only


Viv Daniels - 2013
    Tess McMann lives her life according to the secrets she's sworn to keep: the father who won't acknowledge her, the sister who doesn't know she exists, and the mother who's content playing mistress to a prominent businessman. When she meets the distractingly cute Dylan Kingsley at a prestigious summer program and falls in love, Tess allows herself to imagine a life beyond these secrets. But when summer ends, so does their relationship -- Dylan heads off to Canton College while Tess enrolls at the state university. One love they can't ignore... Two years later, a scholarship brings Tess to Canton and back into Dylan's life. Their attraction is as strong as ever, but Dylan has a girlfriend…who also happens to be Tess's legitimate half-sister. Tess refuses to follow in her mother's footsteps, which leaves her only one choice: break the rules she’s always followed, or allow Dylan to slip away for a second time. ...And only one chance to get things right.

Meet Me Under the Mistletoe


M. RobinsonAlta Hensley - 2021
    The notorious Morelli family hosts their annual Christmas ball. And you are invited to experience the sensual feast.MEET ME UNDER THE MISTLETOE is an exclusive anthology of scorching hot NEW holiday stories. Download your copy and tell a book-loving friend, because it won't last long.HOLIDAY STORIES INCLUDE:O Holy Night by Pam GodwinSanta Baby by Claire ContrerasAll I Want for Christmas Is You by M. RobinsonLast Christmas by Katee RobertCarol of the Bells by Maria LuisSilver Bells by Alta HensleyO Come All Ye Faithful by Amelia WildeSilent Night by Sienna SnowIt Came Upon a Midnight Clear by Jenika SnowAll I Want For Christmas Is You by Sam MarianoLittle Drummer Boy by M. O'KeefeBaby, It's Cold Outside by Giana DarlingAway in a Manger by Jade WestThis Christmas by Theodora TaylorHallelujah by Skye Warren

25 Days 'Til Christmas


Poppy Alexander - 2019
    A few years ago, she would have been wrapping her presents in September and baking mince pies on Halloween, counting down the days and hours to Christmas. But that was before Kate’s husband left for the army and never came home. Now she can hardly stand December at all.Kate can’t deny she’s lonely, yet she doesn’t think she’s ready for romance. She knows that her son, Jack, needs a Christmas to remember—just like Kate needs a miracle to help her finally move forward with her life. So she’s decided if there isn’t a miracle on its way, she’ll just have to make her own.As Kate’s advent countdown to the best Christmas ever begins, she soon realizes that even with the best laid plans, you can’t plan for the unexpected. For when the path of the loneliest woman in town crosses with that of the loneliest man, these two destined hearts might find a way to save the holiday for both of them.

Rule Breaker By Accident


Ali Parker - 2019
     One rule. Easy enough, or so I thought. Until this hot surgeon that I’ve been dating off and on becomes a client. It was a casual fling, a fun summer love affair. Until it wasn’t. My heart wasn’t ready to fall so hard for this bad boy in scrubs. The secrets he has hidden in his past stop me dead in my tracks. But he isn’t giving up on us. Not for anything. And I have to decide where I stand. Break the rules or walk away from the best thing I’ve ever had.

Waiting for Midnight


Samantha Chase - 2016
     For the last year, Maddie's been trying to get Noah's attention, but to no avail. Until a busted light bulb, a broken ladder and a concussion lend a hand. Now with the holidays right around the corner, she's hopeful that she'll finally get her wish to kiss her sexy neighbor as way to kick off the new year. **This is a Christmas holiday short story that was originally part of the Christmas in the City Anthology. It is a standalone story of 20K words.**

Calico


Callie Hart - 2016
     Port Royal, South Carolina, was my home. I was born there. I fell in love there. And I nearly died there. I never thought I’d go back. Now, after so many years, I have to return to bury the man who made my life a living hell. Some nights, I used to cry myself to sleep, praying my father would die. Other nights were different. Other nights, there was him. Callan Cross. My first confidante. My first kiss. My first love. My first everything: Callan was the glue that held me together when everything else was falling apart. He was my savior. He was there for me whenever I needed him… Until he wasn’t. Every night, I’ve seen the love of my life in my sleep. I just never thought I’d have to face him again. Callan Twelve years ago, I f*#@ed up big time. Living life through a camera lens is sometimes easier than dealing with it head on. Scratch that. It’s always easier. For over a decade, I’ve been a master of my art, taking photographs all over the world. Yet despite all of the countries I’ve visited, the amazing things I’ve seen, the beautiful women I’ve screwed, my heart has remained in pieces. Coralie’s the only woman I’ve ever loved, will ever love. And I’m determined to show her that we’re meant to be together. Even if it means unearthing the bones of the past in the process. A lifetime and a thousand miles have stood between us. Now, there’s no length of time I won’t wait, no distance I won’t travel, in order to make her mine.

Let It Snow


Macie St. James - 2020
    The handsome stranger who owns that ditch has no idea that his offer to help will lead to a holiday stranded together in the snow.Paul McKellar has retreated to a rental cabin to finish his book. While he’s on a tight deadline, he’s also trying to forget about the holiday. His mother’s surprised death happened just a year earlier, and the holidays will never be the same.But the more time he spends with Garland, the more he realizes there’s plenty left to celebrate. Once the holidays are over, though, they’ll be separated by hundreds of miles. Can their feelings for each other overcome the distance?Let It Snow is a sweet, clean contemporary standalone Christmas romance in a small-town setting.

Christmas by the Coast


Mandy Baggot - 2021
    Now she has a dependable boyfriend, a great job and a decent flatshare. But when her beloved grandmother passes away, Harriet drops everything to fly out to the Hamptons to comfort her grieving grandpa.Christmas is coming and as she arrives on the sandy beaches of her childhood in Montauk, Long Island, Harriet spots someone she never expected to see again – her 'one that got away', ex-soldier Mack Wyatt. Now, Mack is determined to win Harriet back and show her that the life she's been living might be the wrong happily-ever-after.This Christmas, find out if love letters from the past can pave the way to a brand-new future...

The Holiday Swap


Maggie Knox - 2021
    All they want for Christmas is a different life. When chef Charlie Goodwin gets hit on the head on the L.A. set of her reality baking show, she loses a lot more than consciousness; she also loses her ability to taste and smell--both critical to her success as show judge. Meanwhile, Charlie's identical twin, Cass, is frantically trying to hold her own life together back in their quaint mountain hometown while running the family's bustling bakery and dealing with her ex, who won't get the memo that they're over. With only days until Christmas, a desperate Charlie asks Cass to do something they haven't done since they were kids: switch places. Looking for her own escape from reality, Cass agrees. But temporarily trading lives proves more complicated than they imagined, especially when rugged firefighter Jake Greenman and gorgeous physician's assistant Miguel Rodriguez are thrown into the mix. Will the twins' identity swap be a recipe for disaster, or does it have all the right ingredients for getting their lives back on track?

The Mistletoe Motive


Chloe Liese - 2021
    She loves them. She’s full of festive cheer. He’s brimming with Bah, Humbugs. Besides unreasonably seasonable names, the only thing Jonathan Frost and Gabriella Di Natale have in common is a healthy dose of mutual contempt. Well, that and the same place of employment at the city’s most beloved independent bookstore, Bailey’s Bookshop. But when the store’s owners confess its dire financial state, Jonathan and Gabby discover another unfortunate commonality: the imminent threat of unemployment.With the Baileys’ requests to minimize expenses, win new customers, and make record sales dancing in their heads, Jonathan and Gabby conclude—barring a financial Christmas miracle—one of them will soon be cut from the payroll. Neither are willing to step down from their position, so they strike a bargain: whoever has more sales in December gets to stay on in the new year; the loser will resign. With a lifetime's worth of festive tricks up her sleeve, Gabby should easily outsell her nemesis, except the unreadable Mr. Frost’s every move seems purely designed to throw her off her game.As if that wasn’t bad enough, Gabby's deceptive ex won't quit pursuing her, and her anonymous online friend suggests they take a break. Worst of all, as the pressure mounts to save the bookshop and her job, Gabby meets a new, tender side of Jonathan. Is this the same man she's called her cold-hearted enemy?Maybe he’s got a motive she just can’t figure out—or maybe Jonathan Frost isn’t as chilly as she once thought. Maybe Jonathan and Gabby already know—and love—each other in ways they never thought possible.This is an #OwnVoices story for its portrayal of autism by an autistic author.