Second Chance Christmas: A Small Town Romance

Little Sky Romance #4.5

by Alexa Rivers

Will a flighty free spirit and a rugged Irish bartender have their second chance at love this festive season?

Evie Parata’s luck has run out. Her supposedly new car just broke down outside her gorgeous ex’s bar on Christmas Eve. It’s raining, the car leaks, and she has nowhere to go.

When Davy knocks on her window and invites her in, she wants to say no, but with none of the local mechanics available to fix her vehicle, she doesn’t have many options. The problem is, their attraction is still strong, and neither of them seems able to keep their hands to themselves.

With the old flame reignited and feelings blossoming between them, can they overcome their painful past to take a second chance at love?

Genres: Romance, Christmas, Small Town Romance, Novella, Contemporary

120 pages, Paperback

Published October 27, 2020

About the author

Alexa Rivers writes about genuine characters living messy, imperfect lives and earning hard-won happily ever afters. Most of her books are set in small towns, and she lives in one of these herself. She shares a house with a neurotic dog and a husband who thinks he’s hilarious.

When she’s not writing, she enjoys traveling, baking, eating too much chocolate, cuddling fluffy animals, drinking excessive amounts of tea, and absorbing herself in fictional worlds.

Reviews

[TheBookPlatypus]

These characters were god awful. I felt like I was reading about two 10 year olds. Not adults.

Nope. Authors writing not for me.

[Danique van Dijk]

2.5 stars

This was a very short and easy read! Although I really liked Davies and his Irish accent, I did not like Evelyn/Evie very much. It made no sense for her to lie to her friends, which just annoyed me. She didn't seem like a great person either, and it was hard for me to like her. The story was a bit confusing as well. At first, it was definitely implied that they grew up together and dated for a loooong time, but she didn't even know about his dyslexia, nor did she meet his parents. That was confusing, and it was odd that they apparently just dated for a little while. I mean, was Davies really that broken by her then? A bit dramatic, don't you think?

I did laugh out loud a few times, such as when he didn't want to turn around when he walked into the kitchen naked, because he'd blind her with his white ass. Loved that. The ending was cute, although an epilogue would've been a great addition here. The characters didn't have a lot of depth because of the shortness, but it was a nice read!

[Korkoi]

Coming Back To Love -
In a twist of fate, Evelyn’s car broke down right outside her ex-boyfriend’s bar, which was the last place she wanted to be. Davy was shocked and happy, but apprehensive to see that the damsel in distress outside his bar was Evelyn. Just think about what would happen when you put two people who didn’t really have closure, but are afraid to express their feelings together and then include meddling of family and friends. This is a really sweet, feel-good holiday romance, that will definitely put you in a great mood.

I received an ARC of this book from Booksprout and I am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Suze Prescot]

New old romance

Evie and Davey dated as teens, but she wanted to travel and broke his heart. It broke hers a little,too. Now, when she needs a place to spend Christmas, she ends up with Davey
A short but sweet romance set in New Zealand at Christmas. Quite enjoyable, if a warm Christmas is not too off putting lol.

[Liberty]

I’ll try to keep this one short since there wasn’t a lot I enjoyed in this novella. This is a Christmas novella that’s set in New Zealand. The romance is between two exes who are “forced” together over a few days surrounding Christmas thanks to a car breaking down in front of a bar. I say forced with quotation marks because the premise of this story itself is flimsy at best. The main female character has plenty of other options than shacking up with her ex, but a few muttered excuses and that’s the situation we’re in. I found all of the characters to be lack luster. I did buy into the pain from the past and that being a hurdle they needed to overcome, but there wasn’t a lot to root for outside of that.

Overall, I rate this story 2 stars, the romance itself 2.5 stars, and the Christmasiness 0.5 poinsettias. I know that this one is set in New Zealand so their Christmas is during their summer months. But even the Christmas spirit while they’re having Christmas dinner and decorating feels pretty weak. I hope that the entire anthology of Christmas novellas that I purchased isn’t as substandard as the first two have been.

[Jamoz23]

This just didn’t work at all for me.
There was no reveal of when they broke up, just a few words of explanation.
I just couldn’t like Evelyn. She seemed stubborn, dysfunctional and just plain sloppy about her life. Yes, she’s had lots of jobs and done different things but she seems unreliable. Being a nomad felt like an excuse.
Had she been home over the years to see the mother she had just lost, see her friends?
No apology to Davy at all for just running away as she did.
Davy deserves better. But it seems he’s had no life over the past 9 years. Has he had relationships, even been serious about anyone?
Read in the anthology LOVE IS COMING TO TOWN.

[Emily Pennington]

Evie Parata was one of those “free spirits” who wanted to get out of her small town and experience life and the world. So she eagerly left as soon as high school was behind her. Davy O’Connor was left with a broken heart.

When Evie decides to finally come home, her car breaks down outside of Davy’s bar. Although he is willing to help her, he is not sure he wants to risk his heart again when he is sure she will take off after a new adventure after the holidays. But Evie has matured over the years and looks at things differently now. The two of them still have feelings for each other. Can Davy take a chance and see where a relationship might lead them? Will Evie be ready to give up her wandering ways and settle down with the man she loves?

This was a really good story about two people who had to examine their old feelings and the new ones that they both were feeling. Is love enough to encourage them to try again?

[KL Cassanello]

Evelyn's car breaks down in front of Davy's bar on Christmas Eve. With no where open to get her car fixed, and next to no money, she's going to sleep in her car, until Davy invites her to stay at his home above the bar. She begins to help him out with the financial records for his business - he includes her in his family's holiday dinner. It was fun to watch their walls crumble. Nope, they're not gonna get back together, but little by little, they both begin to give just a bit. I can't say who or what without giving away much, but sometimes a nosy and meddling friend is the best kind of friend to have. Ditto for a pushy parent. I haven't read the entire Little Sky series, but this book was just as enjoyable as the two others that I have read. I'm really looking forward to reading more from this author.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Marie Bourgery]

Evie has a wandering spirit and on her way to her next job she ends up stuck outside her ex-boyfriend's bar. I don't know why the place she bought the car from didn't offer any warranty. It was clearly a lemon and they should have paid for repairs or refunded her. She did hurt Davy running away nine years ago, but he's kind of a jerk at times in this book. They sleep together and he's ready to shove her out the door. But then he did seem immature at times in previous books in this series. At least he admitted to Evie that he has trouble with numbers. She seems to be intelligent and gets bored easily with things that don't stretch her abilities. I liked his noisy Irish family who loved Evie and were hoping she was going to stick around. This was a steamy, funny, second chance Christmas romance novella.

[Judy Gittleson Hendrickson]

Evie has been a vagabond, traveling all over New Zealand and working any job that came about, but after nine years she has come back through the town she grew up in, on her way to a friends house to work picking berries. Her recently purchased car dies just in front of her exes bar and it is raining.. Merry Christmas Eve to her. Davy sees her and gets her inside so she can warm up and get dry. The characters are strong, stubborn and family oriented, although Evie only had her mom up until she passed last Christmas. The re-romance is slowly taking hold and she is so conflicted in her feelings and emotions, but eventually comes around to understanding how she feels. The ending was the best, starting with the picnic. Loved that part.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Fleur]

Evie has been through a lot and is a bit lost in life, she tries to be be strong and independent but things change in life and I totally got how she felt about Christmas as this is my first without both parents. Fate has decided to intervein for Evie with a crap car, closed garages, pouring rain and one person from her past that she wants to dodge more than her friends. I loved Davy he is so sweet and funny as well as wants nothing else but to help Evie whether she likes it or not and this leads to heartbreaking moments, laughs, families, friends and learning to listen to your heart.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Anita Fuhrmann]

I love visiting the characters in the Little Sky Romance series and therefore was really happy to get the full story of Evie and Davy! They are both such genuine characters and I loved the meddling family too! You know that it all comes from the heart and that they just want the two of them to get together for good! A great small town holiday romance that is sure to give the reader a warm fuzzy feel-good sensation long after the last page has been read!!

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Sheila]

Always love a second chance romance and this one was a hit for me. Evie returns to her small town after traveling the world and her car breaks down of all places right in front of her ex's bar. Davy is surprised to see Evie after all this time but he will help her but he has been burned once and does not want to get involved with her again because he thinks she will never settle down but what he does not know is she has changed. Will Davy and Evie get that second chance to see if they can make a romance?

[Brenda Moser]

This is a sweet holiday romance with strong characters in Evelyn and Davy. It's a second chance romance with each dealing with past and present feelings for one another. Their characters are strong and the supporting cast of characters help to bring the story around. It's well written with descriptive scenes , moves quickly and smoothly and is a feel good Christmas romance.

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book. All opinions in this review are my own and freely given.

[Melissa B]

A wonderful second chance holiday romance with well-developed characters, plot, perfectly paced, and scenery that makes you want to take a flight as soon as you can.
Can Evie and Davy overcome their painful past to take a second chance at love? Or are they destined to go their separate ways when Christmas ends?

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Holly]

I like this second chance romance. It’s a little reverse story, she is free spirited girl and hungry for life full of new experiences .
So, Evie left.
Davy has a hard time to move forward, he was heart broken.
Now she is back, more mature with different perspectives on life.
Are they ready to try again? Is Davy ready to forgive ?
Enjoy reading.

I received a free copy of this book and I’am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Sharon]

I think that everyone is looking forward to the holidays and the end of 2020. One of my favorite parts of the holidays is the holiday romance books.
Evie and Davy are brought back together. They had a painful break up and nine years apart.
Will time show that they are meant to be with fate playing a hand.
I love second chance romance and this was a winner with a great setting, story and characters

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Sarah Nielsen]

This was a great second chance romance, this is one of my favorite tropes so I’m always excited to read a story with that trope and this definitely lived up to my expectations. Evie and Davy dated in high school but she ended up breaking his heart and leaving town. Now she’s back. I loved the chemistry between them and their banter. I think that I have to go back and read the other stories in the series as I enjoyed this so much.

[Yvonne Cruz]

I have both read and listened to this novella and enjoyed it both times.In this story we meet Evie Parata and Davy O'Connor. The were a couple in their youth but Evie hurt Davy deeply , leaving him and the town she grew up behind. But now that Evie’s mom has passed away, she is out of sorts, out of money, and much to her demise, her car breaks down in from of Davy’s bar. Is that a curse or the opportunity to find love once again with that special person?

[Tess]

Sorry, but this novella was terrible. In a novella, you’ve got to make stuff happen or pack in info pretty quickly.

In this one, by 2/3 of the way through, we still have no idea about their previous relationship other than it was when they were teens and Davy was heartbroken.

And in 60+ pages what we have gotten has just been very repetitive—Evie is sad about her mom, Davy is not over Evie. There has been nothing to move this story forward or keep my interest. DNF

[Nancy D]

When Evie left Davy after high school, he was heart broken. 9 years later the free spirit, Evie, is back and her car is broken down outside his bar.
Can they rekindle their love? Will they have a second Chance at love or will her free spirit drive her away?
Beautifully written story.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Tina Layner]

I really enjoyed this book. It was entertaining all the way through. Evie and Davy dated in high school and she broke his heart. Now she has ended back to his town because her car broke down in front of his bar. Will Davy let her break his heart a second time?

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Kristi]

I love a good second chance romance, holiday romance and small town romance stories. This one gives you all that and more! Amazing characters you fall in love with and the story flows smoothly from cover to cover. This is a perfect read for the upcoming holiday season.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Melissa]

Too short of a read! I really wanted to get to know these two more and spend more time with them. I have no doubt Evie had interesting tales to tell of her time away.

Is there anything better than a second chance at true love? Even though I felt the story was too short i know that it was down to good writing that had me hooked!

[Michelle The Outgoing Bookworm]

Actually received a request to listen to an audible version from the author. First time listening to a book ever and will say a whole different experience.

Evie and Davy have some history and in the case of him, bitterness as well. But date has other plans when she breaks down outside his place.

Adorable and angsty as expected.

I enjoyed listening to this book but will download a physical copy to reread.

[TELA666]

Davy & Evie

As a random standalone Christmas book this would be ok but I'm used to great characters from Alexa Rivers and they didn't appeal to me unfortunately. Evie was my least liked part of the book. I felt it was a bit slow & repetitive, the slow build was too slow without enough anticipation building.
Its not bad, I'm just used to more from this author.

[Kimberly]

The book is a good small town holiday romance read. The story has a good story line. The characters are good, and they have good chemistry.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Kathy Mccalmon]

This is the second book in little sky romance. It is a second chance romance. A little older and wiser will davy and evie forget the past?

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Cali Jewel]

Highly entertaining, heartwarming and fun holiday adventure filled with witty and engaging charters, heart racing twists and undeniable passion. This journey was so emotionally thrilling and so hard to put down. Great reading

[Barbara]

The second book in the Little Sky Romance Novella series a well written short, second chance story that kept me turning pages. I enjoyed seeing Evie Parata and Davy O’Connor's story come together. I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.