An O'Brien Family Christmas by Sherryl Woods

An O'Brien Family Christmas (Chesapeake Shores #8)
by Sherryl Woods
Publisher: Mira
Published September 27th 2011
ISBN: 0778312704 (ISBN13: 9780778312703)

Dating Matthew O’Brien-a playboy and a younger man-cost Laila Riley her career and her parents’ respect. A high price, even for love-and when Laila decides it was just a fling, she breaks it off, despite Matthew’s objections.

It’s a great time to get away from it all, but Laila has reservations about joining the O’Briens for a Dublin holiday. Matthew’s bound to be there, and she’s far from immune. What if she can’t resist temptation?

Meanwhile, the O’Briens are in an uproar over matriarch Nell’s unexpected romance with an old flame. Will she follow her heart despite the risks? And will Laila discover that some risks are actually once-in-a-lifetime opportunities?

My Thoughts:

Sherryl Woods brings back the O'Brien Family just in time for Christmas. What’s better than spending Christmas with the O’Brien’s? Taking the entire family and spending it in Ireland. Well, if you have been a fan of the Chesapeake Shores series, you know that love is always in the air. It’s a family known for meddling and matchmaking.

In the last book, Beach Lane, Laila Riley kept her relationship with Matthew O’Brien hidden; she was worried how society and especially her father would react to the age difference between the two of them, Laila being older than Matt. She doubted that Matt had changed his playboy ways and in the end she broke things off. I didn’t like Laila in the last book. If she had truly loved him, no obstacle or prejudice should have stood in the way. When the going gets tough, she bailed.

In this tale, the family is trying to work their magic to rekindle the romance between Matt and Laila. Prior to the breakup, Matt had planned to propose to Laila in Ireland and he is still determined to convince Laila that they have something special. With a little help from the family, Matt puts his plan to action. The last time they were together it was all about the sex, this time Matt plans to court Laila, but there is one rule: no sexual interaction. She is one who made the “hands off rule” and the first to fume when he sticks to it.

I enjoyed the romance between Nell and Dillon. While visiting Ireland as a young woman, Nell and Dillon had a summer filled of friendship and romance, but due to family obligations, their love could never be. After seeing each other after all these years, you can feel their love had never died. Very touching!!

Being a loyal fan of the O’Brien’s, Sherryl Wood's didn't let me down, this was a great heartwarming story. For those who have not read any prior book in this series, it will be confusing trying to figure out who is who as you will meet all the characters of the prior stories. One thing that was left unanswered was the actual age difference between Matt and Laila, I could not find any mention of their ages.


The next book to come is Falling, we got a snippet of a blossoming relationship, ok, maybe not love at first site, between Luke O'Brien and Moira, Dillon's granddaughter.


My Rating:

              

Author:

To learn more about this wonderful author, visit her website. With two other careers to her credit before becoming a novelist and four states in which she's lived for extended periods of time, Sherryl Woods has collected friends and memories, along with way too much unnecessary junk.

Author of more than 100 romance and mystery novels, Sherryl Woods grew up in Virginia. Over the years she had lived in Ohio and Florida, as well as California. Currently she divides her time between Key Biscayne, Florida and Colonial Beach, Virginia, the small, river-front town where she spent her childhood summers.