One Imperfect Christmas

by Myra Johnson

Graphic designer Natalie Pearce faces the most difficult Christmas of her life. For almost a year, her mother has lain in a nursing home, the victim of a massive stroke, and Natalie blames herself for not being there when it happened. Worse, she's allowed the monstrous load of guilt to drive a wedge between her and everyone she loves--most of all her husband Daniel. Her marriage is on the verge of dissolving, her prayer life is suffering, and she's one Christmas away from hitting rock bottom

Junior-high basketball coach Daniel Pearce is at his wit's end. Nothing he's done has been able to break through the wall Natalie has erected between them. And their daughter Lissa's adolescent rebellion isn't helping matters. As Daniel's hope reaches its lowest ebb, he wonders if this Christmas will spell the end of his marriage and the loss of everything he holds dear

Genres: Christmas, Christian Fiction, Fiction, Christian, Holiday, Romance, Ebooks

274 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2009

About the author

Native Texan Myra Johnson writes emotionally gripping stories about love, life, and faith. Myra is a three-time Maggie Awards finalist, two-time finalist for the prestigious ACFW Carol Awards, winner of Christian Retailing’s Best for historical fiction, and winner in the Inspirational category of the National Excellence in Romance Fiction Awards.

After living five years in Oklahoma, then eight years in the beautiful Carolinas, Myra and her husband are thrilled to be back in the Lone Star State enjoying wildflowers, Tex-Mex, and real Texas barbecue! The Johnsons share their home with a very pampered rescue dog and a cat with attitude.

Follow Myra on BookBub, https://www.bookbub.com/profile/myra-..., for deals and new releases.

Awards of note: When the Clouds Roll By, Till We Meet Again, Book 1 (Abingdon Press 2013), won the historical fiction category of the 2014 Christian Retailing's Best Award. Autumn Rains (Heartsong Presents 2009), won the 2005 RWA Golden Heart for Best Inspirational Romance Manuscript.

Myra’s writing career was launched in 1985 when she sold her first short story while taking a course through the Institute of Children’s Literature. Myra later joined the ICL staff as a magazine writing instructor, teaching hundreds of students the fundamentals of story and article structure, plotting, character development, and market analysis. She now writes full-time and is active in her church as well as local and national writers groups.

Myra and her husband have been married for 50+ years. The Johnsons have two married daughters, seven grandchildren, and one great-granddaughter.

Reviews

[C. · Rating 1 out of 5]

The main characters spend most of this book indulging in selfish, stupid behavior, especially the female "lead" character who nearly destroys her life through her egocentric wallowing in guilt.

I know people behave like this in reality, but they are downright toxic to be around. I can not imagine any reason why I would care to read a novel—especially a moralistic, preachy novel—which spends nearly its entire length dwelling on this behavior.

The other characters spend too much time trying to manipulate each other, with foolish plots that would almost certainly have been discovered in reality far sooner than in the novel.

I had to force myself to finish this book, and the "resolution" was contrived, unbelievable, and a let-down.

[LadyCalico · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a difficult book to review because, technically, I would say it was a well-written novel with realistic characters and an original storyline. However, did I enjoy reading it--no--and it took me forever to force my way through it. I am giving it a relatively high rating because I recognize that it was a well-written book that I just didn't enjoy, although you might love it and I might enjoy some other book written by this author. I found all the female characters, although well-drawn and realistic, so unlikable and unsympathetic that I just couldn't force myself to spend any length of time reading their story. I kept hoping against all hope for a tragic, karmic ending in which they reap their just deserts and stew in their own rancid juices--that for me would have made the rest of the story worthwhile and possibly could have made this a good book. I know hide-bound, self-preoccupied, manipulative control-freaks like Natalie, Lissa, and witchy, whiney martyr Belinda in real life and carefully avoid them, so I don't like spending any amount of time with them in a book. I really liked the brother, however, who was given such memorable lines as, "get over it," "can it," and "I'm not listening to this garbage." My sentiments exactly. Warning: This book contains martyrdom, self-pity, selfish manipulative behavior, and control issues.

[Penny Watson]

Didn't I say I was going to take a break from reading Christmas romance? Didn't I? Huh? Huh?

Well, I didn't. As I was perusing my Kindle, I found out I had down-loaded this freebie (One Imperfect Christmas by Myra Johnson), and I couldn't resist.

That'll teach me.

It started out okay....for about 1/2 page. Then it got bad. And worse. And more depressing. And filled with despair. It's about a crumbling marriage. And a woman filled with guilt. And a daughter filled with anger. Everyone's life is going down the toilet. Down deeper....and deeper...and deeper....

I didn't like any of the characters. They were irritating, self-absorbed, and some were downright duplicitous. The husband was okay. I didn't like the daughter. Or the daughter's friend. Especially the wife. I didn't even like the brother. The business partner. Or the delivery guy.

At 12% I thought, things will get better soon, right? At 38%....how about now? At 54%....how about now? At 79%....please, now! Please, I'm begging you! At 85%....now...pretty please? At 99%....too late.

Why did I keep reading? Because I kept thinking it would get better.

So, about half-way through I finally realized this was a Christian Inspirational romance. (The references to God/Jesus and prayer time finally registered in my thick skull.) I have no problem with that at all. In fact, the only bright, hopeful spots in this book for about 99% of the story were when the characters prayed.

Prayer: Dear God, I love Daniel. Please let our marriage survive.
Dialogue: Daniel, you are a horrible father. You neglected our marriage. You never tried to understand me.

What the hell is that? I have never seen such a big disconnect between deep POV and/or internal prayer time and the actions/dialogue of a character. Natalie keeps thinking she loves her husband, and then she turns around and acts like a snotty selfish ding-a-ling. O-kay.

At one point, I actually wished Natalie would file for divorce so her poor husband could find a new woman who would be nice to him.

I cried at the end. Three times. I'm not sure if this was from sheer emotional exhaustion, or if I was moved by the Christmas spirit.

See, this is why I need to avoid contemporary romance at all costs. Because I don't want an "imperfect" Christmas with real-life problems. Selfish wives, run-away hubbies, conniving daughters, conniving daughter's friends, interfering family members, ineffective therapists, depressing subject matter. Who needs it?

There were a few sweet moments in this book....all of them had to do with the mother who was incapacitated by a stroke, and her long-suffering husband desperately trying to hold it together. But after all that angst, what I really wanted was a wonderful reunion between Natalie and Daniel. And it just didn't happen. Two sentences on the last page do NOT make a HEA.

Sigh.

This book was not poorly written, and as far as standard contemporaries go, I'm sure it was okay. I just found it depressing as hell. I was sort of wishing for a spanky elf to show up at the end and lighten the mood.

Grade: C? For...Crushing My Soul? D? For...Darkening My Day? F? For...Forcing Me To Take Lexapro?

I have no clue how to grade this book. I give up.

Anyhow, as God is my witness, I am taking a hiatus from holiday romance. *signed in blood and sealed with a shot of egg nog*

Going to read the comics,
Penny

[Loraine · Rating 5 out of 5]

SUMMARY: Graphic designer Natalie Pearce faces the most difficult Christmas of her life. For almost a year, her mother has lain in a nursing home, the victim of a massive stroke, and Natalie blames herself for not being there when it happened. Worse, she’s allowed the monstrous load of guilt to drive a wedge between her and everyone she loves—most of all her husband Daniel. Her marriage is on the verge of dissolving, her prayer life is suffering, and she’s one Christmas away from hitting rock bottom.

Junior-high basketball coach Daniel Pearce is at his wit’s end. Nothing he’s done has been able to break through the wall Natalie has erected between them. And their daughter Lissa’s adolescent rebellion isn’t helping matters. As Daniel’s hope reaches its lowest ebb, he wonders if this Christmas will spell the end of his marriage and the loss of everything he holds dear.


REVIEW: This perhaps may be my favorite Christmas book of this season. With a depth of character and emotion, this story sums up the truth of how each of us sometimes loses our way but with love and forgiveness can find our way back to our center, Jesus Christ and family. It points out that we all are imperfect but can find our way towards perfection through the grace and birth of our Savior. It gives us a glimpse into life's imperfections - dishonesty, loss, guilt, self-doubt, self-pity, suffering, anger, unforgiveness; yet it also shows us the answer is love, forgiveness, and faith. Yes this book is not an easy read. I often got disgusted with Natalie's hard-headed, self-centered, "woe is me" attitude. Her husband Daniel seemed to have a "tunnel vision" attitude. And daughter Lissa's sight was set on putting her parents back together no matter how conniving she had to be to do it. But, to me, this was a thought-provoking read. I have a feeling this is a book that readers will either love or hate without much in between.

FAVORITE QUOTES: "I didn't believe I deserved to be loved, so I pulled away from everyone I cared about the most."

"Family should mean we don't have to wonder if we're good enough or if we're forgiven. Our family loves us no matter what." (Reminds me of the line from Love Story - "Love means never saying your sorry."

"Our Heavenly Father always manages to coax us into doing exactly what's best for us, or places us right where we need to be, even if it doesn't make any sense at all at the time."

"Nothing about life is easy, ..., but the good Lord never promised us it would be. All we can do is keep trying and trusting and hoping."

[Debra · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was long and drawn out. I just really wanted to slap the main character and tell her to snap out of it. Then it just ended suddenly. I didn't feel inspired at all. The only reason I finished it was because I have a hard time leaving a book unfinished.

[Laronda · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF @ 17%

This book was taking the long road to nowhere. For Christmas story nothing about it was joyful.or uplifting. Not my idea of a warm Christmas story.

[Resa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I actually like the very beginning, but as the story progresses I start to like the main character, Natalie, less and less. While at first she seems to be handling her mother’s stroke in a normal way, not necessarily the right way, but in a way many people can see resorting to themselves, her depression starts to cross a line. Natalie even manages to forget about her own daughter in her self-serving slump, and her ever-loving, separated husband never calls her out on it (until close to the end of the book). Yes, the love of husband and wife (well, husband to wife) was touching, but it’s hard to cheer for such a one sided romance. Until the last chapter I’d actually started to hope Natalie would just end things and let her husband and daughter get on with their lives. This is not a likable heroine (if you can even call her that).

The plot itself is very depressing, and does not have quite the heart-warming ending you would expect, although it is realistic and I have to give Johnson points for that. Even with the religious element of the book, she does not make impossible miracles happen. It might not end the way you’d like it to, but it ends at least for the most part, the way things actually end in real life. I loved Natalie’s mother, even though her character is suffering from a stroke for most of the book, the way Johnson develops her character through the memories of her two children, husband, and granddaughter is really excellent. She is the reason I read this book all the way to the end. She is also proof that Johnson is capable of created a lovable character and doing so in a rather phenomenal way, I just wish she would have done the same thing for Natalie.

Natalie does have some redeeming qualities, and I was able to feel for her struggles to some extent, but the way she goes about dealing with stress and grief just left me wanting to slap some sense into her. The story seems to wrap up her emotional problems a little sloppily as well. Her realization that leads to her change of heart just doesn’t seem characteristic with the rest of her actions throughout the book. It made for a bittersweet and somewhat touching ending, but I couldn’t bring myself to be happy for her.

Other than the flaws of the main character, Johnson does a good job of creating her story. Every other character in the book I found to be likable and I felt for them much more than for Natalie. Her writing style is also very easy to follow, and her transitions from points of view were smooth and well done. There was, however, a page missing from the kindle version. I tried reloading the book to see if it was just a loading error, but the page still did not appear. It was the only formatting error I found in the book, but missing an entire page is a fairly large mistake.

As a whole I don’t think I’d recommend this book. It was bittersweet and emotional once you find your way into the story, but the unlikability of the main character makes it very hard to dive into this book. There also wasn’t much religion involved in the story considering this is an ‘inspiration’ fiction book. God is only mentioned in passing and close to the very end except for a few mentions of going to Church. It’s almost as though the religion aspect was thrown in as an afterthought. The writing style was good enough for me to think about trying a different one of Myra Johnson’s books, but this one was not for me and I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone else.

[Kathleen (Kat) Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Belinda and Bram Morgan have been married for almost 50 years and have set the example for all their children to follow in what makes love work in a marriage. They celebrate Christmas the same way now that their children have grown beginning with the celebration of Natalie's birthday and then trimming the tree. But for Natalie, those are high expectations to have even within your own home. She is far from the perfectionist her mother is and often procrastinates more than she should. That's why her husband Daniel asked her to take down the decorations before his own parents arrived later that afternoon. So when Natalie's mom called enlisting her help to take down their decorations she had the perfect excuse. Her mother wanted to help since Bram and their oldest son were on a trip leaving her alone to begin the task if she didn't want to wait.

So when Natalie told her she couldn't help today due to the visit from Daniel's parents she told her mom to simply leave all the boxes in the guest room downstairs and she would over later this week to put them in storage for her. She often worried that her mom did too much now that she was older and suffering from the effects of arthritis. What Natalie didn't expect when she hung up with her mother, was to receive a phone call later that evening that would forever change her life. Her mother had suffered from a massive stroke and since she had been alone at the time, the damage was far too great for her mother to return to her former self.

Now plagued with guilt for simply being glad that she didn't have to join her mother that afternoon and instead had a day for herself, Natalie pours herself into her free lance job trying to earn money she knows her father will need to pay for her mom's medical expenses. This drives a wedge between her and Daniel as he tries to fix things between them, and Natalie avoids dealing with their own marriage issues trying to make up for not being there for her mother. She feels if she had only been there, this would have never happened. Will Natalie find a way to restore her own marriage or will this be the first imperfect Christmas to rock her family?

I received One Imperfect Christmas by Myra Johnson compliments of Abingdon Press as part of the Christmas Blog Tour for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation for a favorable review and the opinions expressed here are strictly my own. I absolutely LOVED this novel based in part to being able to relate to Natalie's character so much. Often times when the holidays are upon us, we feel like we are expected to do our best and meet all family obligations despite having to manage our own. I could relate to the guilt that Natalie felt upon hearing of her mother's stroke and understood the need to do everything to make amends to her what she felt was her mistake. The resolution that evidently comes is believable and everything doesn't come wrapped up in a pretty bow like you would expect. This is real in my opinion and thus why I would rate this a 5 out of 5 stars.

[Debbie · Rating 2 out of 5]

"One Imperfect Christmas" is Christian general fiction that spanned about a year of time. Natalie was her own worst enemy. I didn't like her attitude of "life is all about me! Why can't everyone else see that?!" She didn't care about what other people were going through. However, I could always understand where she and the other characters were coming from even if I would have reacted differently. I think I was willing to put up with Natalie's self-pitying guilt because she could see that she was messing things up but didn't know how to fix it. She often didn't like herself or her behavior but she couldn't seem to stop it.

So this should have been a book I liked: actions had consequences and a Christian character realized she couldn't fix her own behavior. I was expecting the characters to realize something new (to them) about God as the solution to the problem and to draw closer to God, but that didn't happen.

For most of the book, you could hardly tell it was a Christian novel. There were a few, brief prayers that were mainly of the "God give me strength" sort. The characters seemed to feel that God was a genie: they'd ask God to fix their big mess and make everything okay again. When God didn't snap His fingers and grant their wish, they felt they needed to help Him out by fixing things themselves (though their efforts never worked).

(Vague Spoiler paragraph): Then, in the last few pages, Natalie finally heard some words that comforted her about her mother so she no longer felt guilty about the stroke. Suddenly Natalie had a complete personality change...at least for the day.

A lot of things in the story were never wrapped up, and I was left feeling like more bad arguments were just waiting to happen. I didn't trust that Natalie wouldn't act exactly the same the next time something happened that she "just couldn't deal with" since her enlightenment moment seemed pretty vague yet situation-specific.

The ending didn't leave me feeling like the underlying problem had actually be resolved which was a problem with so many unresolved problems left for the characters to sort through. There was no sex. There was a minor amount of "he cursed" style of bad language.

[Jan Crow · Rating 5 out of 5]

One Imperfect Christmas is a book that will grab your heart and not let go. Natalie Pearce loves Christmas. She believes that Christmas is a holiday that should be celebrated all year long. She has a wonderful life, full of friends, traditions, hobbies and the love of a close knit family. But when tragedy strikes the family, Natalie gets mad -- at herself, her family and God. Her anger with herself and her refusal to accept lifes dealings nearly cost her the family and her job. However, a trip to riding therapist shows her that everyone can improve. But can Christmas and her new found interests fix everything in Natalie's life?

I loved the story. This book deals with our aging parents and their issues, job security and career progression and dealing with teenagers in the family. It's a very well written character driven book. I loved all the characters and the writing style made me feel like I was with them every step of the way crying at their falls and cheering on their triumphs.

Congratulations Myra. I look forward to your next book.

[Myra Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well of course I'm giving my own book 5 stars!

Only Love Makes a Christmas Perfect . . .

Christmas is the season of miracles, but when blame and
guilt keep people apart, a miracle needs a helping hand.
Natalie Pearce loves Christmas so much she’d gladly make
it a year-round celebration—until her mother suffers a massive
stroke while taking down the decorations. Natalie’s guilt over
not being there to help her mom soon builds a wall that sepa-
rates her from the rest of her family, including her husband,
Daniel, and their teenage daughter. As the next December
approaches, the last thing Natalie wants to be reminded of is
another Christmas season.

But will her family’s tenacious love and an unexpected
Christmas gift from her mother help Natalie mend the broken
pieces of their lives?

A warm, inspirational story of faith, hope, and love for the
holiday season!

ISBN 9781426700705
ON SALE SEPTEMBER 2009

[Lori Henrich · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a beautiful story of faith, love and the power of forgiveness.

Natalie Pearce is pretty content with her life. She and Daniel are happily married and have a wonderful daughter, Lissa. One morning her mom calls to ask for help taking down the Christmas decorations. Natalie is expecting Daniel's parents later that day and just doesn't feel like helping her mom. Using her impending company as an excuse she tells her mom she can't possibly help her, and after getting her mom to promise she wouldn't over do it, she goes on about her day.

Then comes the phone call that would change her life forever. That phone call will affect every aspect of her life. Will her family survive? Only time will tell.

One Imperfect Christmas is a beautiful woven story. It will grab your heart and take you along for a bumpy ride that is worth hanging in there for.

[Jackie's Bookbytes · Rating 1 out of 5]

Natalie Pearce is a middle aged woman who is headed for a mid-life crisis when her mother suffers a stroke . She feels responsible and blames herself for not being there (boohoo) but the guilt almost costs her marriage. I have no sympathy for her.

Although she seems hardworking she lacks the ability to make good decisions and doesn't think about anyone but herself and she ends up putting her daughter and husband through hell . Her guilt ridden conscience would get the best of her had she persisted in her aridity. She had to learn to listen to the voice of her mother and those who loved her.

I identified with her stubborness and making a mess out of life. It is apparent had she not overcome her stubborn pathetic ways she would have lost her family.

It was a boring and sad book. I don't recommend it to anyone

[Wilani Wahl · Rating 5 out of 5]

A tear jerker story especially the last couple of chapters. I'll admit I got frustrated with Natalie at times, but don't want to spoil the ending. I love the way the Lord is present in this story even though the family is struggling to believe, yet the Lord never left them. The ending was so emotional and wonderful. I listened to this on an audible version and I will want to listen to this again.

[Jenn · Rating 1 out of 5]

tedious, couldn't get into it. the main character is very "woe is me" the entire time - and although her personal battle is tough, her mother is there and she can visit her...and she acts like she's dead and gone. Everyone else acted appropriately, and she keeps blaming herself and acting like the victim in the situation. Wont read this again.

[Mooks Reads Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had a hard time finding a star rating to give this. Where I recognize that this book was really well written I really hated how the author wrote its attitude towards Daniel. Despite the fault of the marriage crumbling being on Natalie, every character seemed to push Daniel to “try harder” and even accuse him of not trying at all. Daniel was the only one trying and I rolled my eyes too many times at Natalie’s whining about her troubles, putting off fixing her marriage hoping Daniel will wait forever for her, and even at one point throwing their wedding vows in his face because she wasn’t getting her way despite being the one to abandon her family.

This didn’t really give me the Christmas feel goods that I was hoping to get out of this. It wasn’t a bad book but it wasn’t a great book either.

[Nicole Marie Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

So, I really liked the storyline and what the author was trying to portray in this but I really struggled understanding the female lead Natalie. Guilt and grievance over her mother can be very normal and I get how she felt the way she felt. I know it can be easy to take stuff out on your spouse but I had a hard time understanding how she could be so cruel to her husband and why he put up with it. He seemed like a good guy and I also think he should have tried harder with her and not let her do some of the things she did. The daughter seemed like a normal 13 year old going through a hard time and not understanding her parents. I wish there was more to the ending too... I feel like making us suffer the whole book and then ending it with still so many questions was not what I wanted.

[Melanie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am so disappointed in this book. 90% of the book is Natalie acting like a complete narcissist telling everyone that loves and cares for her that they can't possibly understand what she is going through even though their going through her mother's illness with her. I just don't like her or care about what happens to her. Read if you enjoy chapter after chapter of a woman having a complete meltdown. For everyone else skip this one. There are so many really good Christmas stories out there.

[Cmking14 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not What was Expected

While this book has an overall good message it took a long time to get to that message. Sadly, I did not connect to the characters as much as I would like to in a novel. Natalie, the main character, was hard to like because she whines almost the whole book about her needs and wants.

[Niki · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is the story of Natalie Pearce who's mother has a stroke and she blames herself. From here the story just goes in a downward spiral. Her marriage goes from bad to worse and her relationship with her daughter the same. I am not sure why anybody would read this book and what you would gain from it.

[Carolyn S. Balderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

too wordy

I don’t know if I meant to wordy but what I meant was there was a long part of book was self pity. It had a good ending, but you had to really get interested in it to make it to the ending without skipping through not a book. I would recommend however if you’re dealing with lengthy guilt, it might be a perfect book for you..

[Victoria Wier · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely Imperfect

It isn’t a warm, cozy Christmas read. It’s sad and the main character Natalie is frustrating at times. But the story is honest and heartfelt that it’s worth a read.

[Kat · Rating 2 out of 5]

I almost bailed on this one and I probably should have. I could not relate to the main character at all. She was so selfish and self centered, and it was extremely difficult to feel any sympathy for her. I generally enjoy books with “unlikable” characters, but this was just too much.

[Katy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Utterly depressing. I almost put it down after 3 hours, but then there was a glimmer of home for the mother, so I figured it would pick up. I listened for another 2 hours and things weren’t really looking up for Natalie. I figured life is too short to listen to this kind of stuff at Christmas.

[Jeanne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too much...too much dialogue...things drug on and on for too much time... finally just stopped reading

[Teresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

A touching Christian story of love, hope, family, and forgiveness. This book will tug at your heartstrings.

While Natalie got on my nerves with her self-centeredness, she struggles with forgiving herself for decisions she's made and dealing with the pain of having a marriage that is falling apart and a mother who has a major medical crisis.

What an amazing look at how a person handles one tragedy and the effect it has on every area of their life.

[Janet Friesner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really good read. Love Christian fiction.

[Amber Dawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

DNF

A well written tale but its to depressing for me. Maybe if it wasn't advertised as a Christmas story I would have finished but I want something much more upbeat.

[Missy · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5 Stars (Outstanding)

[Lorraine · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a bit slow moving with a good message. It was just ok.