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The Light of Winter
Dr. Gareth Evans and his medical doctor partner, Warun Jones, are having trouble making time for each other between end of term craziness for Gareth and holiday-related injuries pouring into the hospital for Warun. Gareth has planned what he hopes will be the perfect recipe for relieving the tension and bringing them back together. While Warun wants Gareth to partake in Plygain, a traditional dawn service of hymn singing for Christmas, Gareth plans to take Warun to Bryn Celli Ddu and introduce him to the Druid ritual of Alban Arthan, the celebration of the winter solstice.
A story from the Dreamspinner Press 2014 Advent Calendar package "Celebrate!".
25 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 30, 2014
19 people want to read
About the author
Jana Denardo
38 books37 followersJana Denardo's career choices and wanderlust take her all over the United States and beyond. Much of her travels make their way into her stories. Fantasy, science fiction, and mystery have been her favorite genres since she started reading, and they often flavor her works. In her secret identity, she works with the science of life and gives college students nightmares. When she’s not chained to her computer writing, she functions as stray cat magnet. She’s also learning that the road to enlightenment is filled with boulders she keeps falling over and that the words gardening and Zen don’t go together no matter what anyone says.
Visit Jana's blog at http://jana-denardo.livejournal.com/.
Visit Jana's blog at http://jana-denardo.livejournal.com/.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
December 22, 2014
Sweet and romantic short about yet another established couple, both of them doctors, who share their Christmas traditions with each other and thus learn a bit more about each other. This short appears to be set in Wales.
December 8, 2014
Personally, I find different versions of celebrating Christmas fascinating. I love seeing how various cultures and countries have developed their own traditions over hundreds of years. But add in some non-Christian beliefs around the “winter holidays”, and you have me hooked. This story, with one main character a Druid and the other a half-Pakistani/half-Welsh Christian, sounded right up my alley. And it was as fascinating as the blurb promised.
Gareth comes from a long line of Druids, and is a quiet follower of a belief that is still steeped in mystery. With no written records, much of the origins will remain hidden by the mists of time, but what is left is a quiet appreciation of nature and its forces, as well as a few fascinating legends. Gareth is very hesitant about sharing the traditions, yet at the same time they are such a big part of how he lives his life as an ecologist that he can’t help but want his partner to see at least some of what has Gareth so fascinated. The Druid ritual of Alban Arthan, the celebration of the winter solstice, seems to be just right, so Gareth organizes a trip for Warun and himself to hopefully reconnect while sharing the moment.
Warun is an extremely busy doctor, and he loves his family traditions around the celebration of Christmas, but he is very curious about Gareth’s beliefs. He has always been hesitant to ask, feeling as though he is intruding, so he is relieved and excited when Gareth reveals his plans. I loved how he asked questions, kept an open mind, and truly took part in the celebration with his partner. I found all the details and some of the stories Gareth shared fascinating and would love to read more.
If you like diverse kinds of winter holidays and traditions and want to find out what the winter solstice means to Druids, if two men reconnecting over their different faiths sound interesting, and if you’re looking for a wonderful winter-y read with some great information and gentle loving, then you will probably enjoy this short story.
NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
Gareth comes from a long line of Druids, and is a quiet follower of a belief that is still steeped in mystery. With no written records, much of the origins will remain hidden by the mists of time, but what is left is a quiet appreciation of nature and its forces, as well as a few fascinating legends. Gareth is very hesitant about sharing the traditions, yet at the same time they are such a big part of how he lives his life as an ecologist that he can’t help but want his partner to see at least some of what has Gareth so fascinated. The Druid ritual of Alban Arthan, the celebration of the winter solstice, seems to be just right, so Gareth organizes a trip for Warun and himself to hopefully reconnect while sharing the moment.
Warun is an extremely busy doctor, and he loves his family traditions around the celebration of Christmas, but he is very curious about Gareth’s beliefs. He has always been hesitant to ask, feeling as though he is intruding, so he is relieved and excited when Gareth reveals his plans. I loved how he asked questions, kept an open mind, and truly took part in the celebration with his partner. I found all the details and some of the stories Gareth shared fascinating and would love to read more.
If you like diverse kinds of winter holidays and traditions and want to find out what the winter solstice means to Druids, if two men reconnecting over their different faiths sound interesting, and if you’re looking for a wonderful winter-y read with some great information and gentle loving, then you will probably enjoy this short story.
NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
December 22, 2014
Was there a romance somewhere in this?
read 12-2014
read 12-2014
December 10, 2016
Lovely little story! Beautifully peaceful. Nice to read about Welsh druids for the first time -- now I wish she'd write a story about how Gareth did at Warun's Plygain service!
January 2, 2015
3 star review by Kimberley
This is another short from the Dreamspinner Holiday advent collection, the author giving us the story of two doctors who are so caught up with work that they are neglecting each other. This holiday one of them is determined to try and change that to bring them closer together. The story, although interesting, could’ve been more… just more. I left with the feeling of wanting more, like being denied a full meal after nibbling hors d’oeuvres. But on the other hand it may be difficult with the book being only 26 pages long. The story was adorable, it’s told about the holiday tradition of Alban Arthan also known as The Light of Winter or Yule. We were able to get a few special moments with the couple, but I felt that the story concentrated more on the actual tradition than their story. I would’ve loved to have read more of the family and even more of the couple themselves. All in all, this is a very nice little Christmas novella. It was fun and lighthearted, just what is needed during the holiday season.
A copy of this book was provided in exchange for an honest review. Please visit www.lovebytesreviews.com to see this and many more reviews, author interviews, guestposts and giveaways!
This is another short from the Dreamspinner Holiday advent collection, the author giving us the story of two doctors who are so caught up with work that they are neglecting each other. This holiday one of them is determined to try and change that to bring them closer together. The story, although interesting, could’ve been more… just more. I left with the feeling of wanting more, like being denied a full meal after nibbling hors d’oeuvres. But on the other hand it may be difficult with the book being only 26 pages long. The story was adorable, it’s told about the holiday tradition of Alban Arthan also known as The Light of Winter or Yule. We were able to get a few special moments with the couple, but I felt that the story concentrated more on the actual tradition than their story. I would’ve loved to have read more of the family and even more of the couple themselves. All in all, this is a very nice little Christmas novella. It was fun and lighthearted, just what is needed during the holiday season.
A copy of this book was provided in exchange for an honest review. Please visit www.lovebytesreviews.com to see this and many more reviews, author interviews, guestposts and giveaways!
February 28, 2015
****Reviewed for Prism Book Alliance****
It was interesting learning about Alban Arthan, the Light of Winter or Yule, as it is also called. This story definitely focused more on the holiday traditions and how they differed between the couple rather than the couple themselves. We did get some intimate moments but I didn’t feel a deep connection to the characters. I would have liked to have seen more with Warun’s family to balance things out.
It was interesting learning about Alban Arthan, the Light of Winter or Yule, as it is also called. This story definitely focused more on the holiday traditions and how they differed between the couple rather than the couple themselves. We did get some intimate moments but I didn’t feel a deep connection to the characters. I would have liked to have seen more with Warun’s family to balance things out.
December 20, 2016
This was an educational read, and I learned about something I knew nothing about: the Druid ritual of Alban Arthan. I loved the intellectual characters, and the setting was perfect. The author's research shone through in those regards. I would've liked a bit more emotion - not necessarily between Gareth and Warun; there are some brief sexy times (which I could've done without), and Gareth and Warun are effectively portrayed as an established couple working together to better their relationship, so there's no need to for superficial angsty stuff, and the author didn't go there. What I was looking for was more about how Gareth felt sharing his traditions and the spiritual aspect of Alban Arthan with Warun. Still, it made a change from all that Christmas.
December 6, 2014
Interesting story that I had absolutely no background for so everything was new to me about this holiday celebration. I did have some trouble with the Welsh (I assume they were Welsh) words - kinda felt like I needed a dictionary. I'm a huge fan of lots of Welsh actors and comedians (Rob Bryden, Rhod Gilbert, Ruth Jones to name a few) but I'm afraid that's about my knowledge of the Welsh people of today. I don't have much information in the realm of the druids but this made me want to learn more. My people come from these islands, so maybe that should spur me on :)
December 9, 2014
Really like the mix of Welsh and Druidic traditions in this one. No magic in this one, but I enjoyed reading about the way these two guys celebrated their holidays in two different ways.
(Even if I get weepy anytime anyone brings up Ianto. By far the most horrible thing they ever did on that show.)
(Even if I get weepy anytime anyone brings up Ianto. By far the most horrible thing they ever did on that show.)
December 5, 2014
I'm glad I had access to Google while reading. I was able to look up all the locations and ceremonies. Very interesting.
December 9, 2014
This one explores an established couple finding the way to reconnect with each other's winter holidays.
December 8, 2014
Genereally I liked the story. It was an interesting setup all in all but sadly too short to realy connect with the characters or the way the holiday was celebrated.
December 8, 2014
A lot of druidism and very little romance story.
December 14, 2014
Short and interesting telling of a pagan tradition - I would have liked a little more but Gareth and Warun are right for each other.
February 26, 2017
Too short.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews