One Scandalous Christmas Eve

The Acostas! #8

by Susan Stephens

All the billionaire wants for Christmas… Is her, in his bed!

Smoldering Dante Acosta has got to be physiotherapist Jess’s sexiest client yet. Even injured, the playboy polo champion exudes a raw power that makes Jess giddy…until she discovers he’s bought her parents’ farm out from under her!

Jess’s indignation only adds fuel to the fire raging between them as they try—and fail—to resist each other. Dante is prepared to fight for their chemistry this Christmas—is he prepared to fight for Jess’s heart?

USA TODAY Bestselling Author

Genres: Harlequin, Romance, Christmas

256 pages, Mass Market Paperback

Published September 29, 2020

About the author

USA TODAY best-selling author Susan Stephens' books have captivated readers worldwide with over 11 million copies sold. Her work crosses cultures and continents, having been translated into 26 languages and reaching readers in 109 countries. This year marks a milestone as Susan's 100th book is slated for publication.

NEW SERIES!

ACOSTAS RAW Ranchers, rodeo and passion

1. BEAU
2. COLT
3. BLAKE
4. CHRISTMAS WITH ANGEL


BLOOD AND THUNDER

1. ALEXEI
2. DANTE
3. DIEGO
4. CESAR
5. CONNOR .

- BOX SET books. 1-4

6. ELIJAH Coming soon

Reviews

[Ann · Rating 1 out of 5]

Meh. The story had potential, but the writing was disjointed and choppy, almost like the author didn’t bother proofreading and neither did her editors. I mean, the hero sounded sexy as hell, but I was never really sure why the heroine kept launching herself at him. And what a set up — she’s giving this naked hotty daily massages and ... NOTHING happens? I feel I spent a couple hours reading this one that I can never get back.
Pass.

[Susan in Perthshire · Rating 2 out of 5]

I normally enjoy this writer’s books but this was like ploughing through treacle. I kept waiting for something to happen. There seemed to be so much padding and not a lot of character or plot development.

I am clearly out of sync with the readers who have given this 5 stars, but I really didn’t think it matched up to SS usual skill and I found it choppy and meandering.

Jess was such a boring, whiny, miserable heroine. Telling me how everyone loved her, didn’t convince me at all. As for her prissy indecision about whether to have sex with Dante, I was utterly bewildered and bored by it. She wasn’t a 17 year old but she behaved like one. Dante was underwritten: we never really got to know him properly and his motivation was as much a mystery to me by the end as it was at the beginning.

Her responses to Dante were always so antagonistic and aggressive right to the point when he told her about the farm. As he pointed out, it was her father’s farm and his right to decide what to do. Why she was so angry with Dante was a mystery. The sex scenes were disappointing. Repetitive, mechanical and almost biological. I mean ‘it took 2 hands for her to encompass his girth’. - yuck!

[Dottie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jess Slatehome is trying to help her father out with getting his wonderful pony farm solvent again. She is a physiotherapist and getting the opportunity to help get Danta Acosta back into the polo world should help. Jess knows Dante from years ago when he visited and she kissed him as a young girl on impulse. Impulse but till this day she can't get him out of her mind and heart. Ms. Stephens gloriously brings back the Acosta family and what a wonderful reunion. A story full of fun and a young girl finding that her love for Dante is still alive. The intensity of Jess trying to help Dante walk again and his reluctance adds that challenge that I love to see when the heroine is just as strong as him. Wonderful HEA and another great book by Ms. Stephens

[Lynn Brooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Captivating and delicious! With a return to her heated Acosta's! series Susan Stephens brings Dante to the forefront as he deals with an attraction he can't resist. The storyline was interesting and though the relationship was a bit rushed I enjoyed their connection quite a bit. I missed a reconnection with the Acosta's however since Dante's family was not well developed and only slightly mention in this story. Overall a solid read.

Jess is a sweetheart of a character. She has been a great daughter to his father as he fell apart during his grief over her mother's death several years ago and she's trying everything in her power to pull the pieces of his once thriving horse farm back together. Seeing her once teen crush show up unexpectedly takes her breath away a bit.

Dante is rich and powerful but very down to earth and easy to like. He's fighting the therapy he needs to recover from an injury, but once Jess is onboard as his physiotherapist things begin to move forward quickly in many aspects of his life.

I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys an unlikely connection with a rich storyline.

[Janie · Rating 5 out of 5]

"One Scandalous Christmas Eve" by Susan Stephens is book 1 of 2 in "The Acosta's" series. We meet a very sweet young woman named Jess Slatehome who is trying to save her family's pony farm and Dante Acosta who is trying to recover from an injury. When Jess was a teenager she kissed Dante. She is finding it hard to let go of those teenage crush feelings. She is finding that being his physiotherapist is much harder than she thought because those feelings still exist.

[Nas Dean · Rating 5 out of 5]

ONE SCANDALOUS CHRISTMAS EVE (The Acostas! Book 8) by author Susan Stephens is a September 2020 release by Harlequin Presents series.
Dante Acosta had no idea his new physiotherapist is Jess. He was injured and his siblings had stepped in to get the best person available to make him better.
Jess had a massive crush on him ten years back and yet here they were. He was still gorgeous and the chemistry between them was still scorching hot.
ONE SCANDALOUS CHRISTMAS EVE is a sizzling romance with mesmerising emotions. Author Susan Stephens brought this sensational story to the pages and readers would love it.
Highly recommended for all readers of romance.

[AJReads · Rating 4 out of 5]

One Scandalous Christmas Eve by Susan Stephens. Jess is a physical therapist and trying to save her family farm. Dante is recovering from injury turns up at the farm to buy horses. They have a past and she doesn’t tell Dante that his family has hired her to be his physical therapist. Can she put the past behind her and keep their relationship purely professional. A great read.

[Mattie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn't like it, there was too much going on plotwise (with horses, his injured leg, meeting each other 10 years before and the Skylar altar ego) that I didn't care about the characters or plot at all.

I didn't feel there was that much chemistry between them throughout the story. For her being obsessed with him for 10 years it was pretty easy for her to resist him and walk away so easily.

[Harlequin Books]

Categories
Contemporary Romance, Romance, Holiday Romance
Miniseries
The Acostas! (Book #8)

[Harlequin Books]

Categories
Contemporary Romance, Romance, Holiday Romance
Miniseries
The Acostas! (Book #8)

[Pamela Rabon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good romance.

[Patty Duplechin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Physiotherapist Jess Slatehome is helping her father out with his horse farm, trying to make it profitable again. He fell apart during his grief over the loss of his wife, Jess’s mother. It’s been several years and he hasn’t moved forward, so she’s trying to put the pieces back together again. He father was a horse trainer. One of the best. Dante Acosta is injured while playing polo. He needs to heal to get back to his team to win. Jess is helping him with his therapy. She’s the best. Jess could use the money. His family hires her. So they spend more time together. Their chemistry is red hot. Will Jess help him with therapy? Will Jess get her father back on track with his farm and his life? Will she walk away from Dante? This is a wonderful love story. Well worth the read.