The Christmas Secret by Wanda E. Brunstetter Review

Good Morning Sweet Friends :)

I pray today finds you all doing well, and I'm so thankful you've taken the time to drop on by The Preppy Book Princess today for another book review.

I'm going to be continuing on with sharing Christmas book reviews this week as part of celebrating Christmas in July.

Join me down below for another fun review.

The Christmas Secret by Wanda E. Brunstetter:

Source: Bought for Myself at the Used Bookstore

Publisher: Shiloh Run Press

Publication Date: October 1st, 2016

Genre: Christian Fiction/Historical Fiction/Novella/Christmas Reaed

Synopsis:

A Family Secret May Destroy a Couple’s Hope for Marriage

Beloved, bestselling author of Amish fiction, Wanda E. Brunstetter tells a heartrending story from 1880 Pennsylvania. Elizabeth Canning discovers an awful secret in her deceased mother’s diary. Believing her chances for a happy marriage are spoiled, she leaves her fiancé a letter and flees town thinking all hope of a marriage to David is lost. Praying that distance will heal her broken heart, she takes refuge in her grandparents’ Pennsylvania home.

Anticipating a Christmas Eve wedding with Elizabeth, David Stinner is confused by her letter and desperate to find her. Can David root out the truth about the past and bring back his bride? Or is the truth destined to bring an ultimate end to their romance?

(synopsis from goodreads)

My Review:

I know I can always count on a heartwarming story whenever I pick up a title from Wanda E. Brunstetter, and as someone who enjoys stories where family secrets come to light, I was especially looking forward to reading this one.

I have to say this ended up being pretty much nothing like what I was expecting, and it's definitely not the author's best work. That being said, it's still an enjoyable, heartwarming tale, and since it's incredibly short, it's also not that much of a time investment.

The story was sweet, but I felt it was too short and didn't build up to what I was expecting or hoping for. The plot tensions seemed pretty implausible, and I didn't think the fall out was handled in a way that was truly believable to the reader. The characters were a little flat, and didn't inspire me to feel too invested into their story.

Overall, it was an okay read, but this author has written much better books, and I'd definitely recommend those over this one.

However, I can't conclude my review without mentioning the fact that the paperback edition of this story is gorgeous! Each of the pages has a beautiful evergreen branch illustration at the bottom, and I honestly wish publishers would do this with more Christmas stories, as it certainly adds a lovely element.

Final Rating; 3/5.

Thanks so much for reading guys! Have a great rest of your day :)

This is not a sponsored post. All thoughts and opinions are my own. The photo does not belong to me, and all rights to the respective owners.

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