Starry Night: A Christmas Novel

Love the writer

While I found Starry Night to be sweet Christmas romance, it did not blow me away like I wanted it too. It revolves around Chicago based columnist Carrie Slayton who is about to quit her job because she can’t see herself getting ahead with no serious assignments only gossip column stuff. Her boss tells her that if she can find and interview mysterious author Finn Dalton then she will have more serious assignments moving forward and be able to advance her career. Finn wrote a book about living in the wilderness that became an international bestseller and he has gone into hiding ever since. With the holidays around the corner Carrie decides to use her vacation time to find the mysterious Finn.Slight spoiler alert but not quite, she locates him. He lives in the middle of the Alaskan wilderness in a cabin with his dog Hennessy. Hennessy is so cute by the way, he looks like a wolf but is a big ol’ softy.When Carrie arrives at his doorstep in the middle of a snowstorm, Finn begrudgingly takes her in for the next 48 hours until the storm passes and she can get a flight back out. At first Finn was a jerk and rude to Carrie and I didn’t like that. He has issues with being lied to by a woman in his past, plus his mom left him when he was young and this has left him rough around the edges. He eventually softens up and the two fall for each other during these 48 hours. Carrie gets a few interview questions answered and intends on writing the article but right before she leaves Finn asks her not to write it. The two begin to communicate via email and phone and continue falling in love.Without giving too much away, the silly conflict over writing the article commences now. Carrie struggles between wanting to write the article to advance in her career or not writing it and trying to have a relationship with Finn. Then a few games of the heart begin between these two I will leave it at that.I found it confusing and just odd and I don’t like games like that especially over a dumb article. I would have preferred a love triangle or an illness or an earthquake giving these two a reason to fight for their love, give me something I can believe in Debbie Macomber.He lives in Alaska and she in Chicago, that is conflict enough. Also, I thought it was selfish of Finn to ask her not to write the article and dumb of Carrie to consider not writing it.But this one has a happily ever after, the beautiful Northern Lights in Alaska, a hero with a sweet dog named Hennessy and long distance romance. Also in the mix is Finn’s estranged mom and Carrie is trying to mend this broken relationship.This was G-romance and although the conflict was silly the writing itself flowed nicely and there was plenty of romantic and lines that make you sigh. There was a nice surprise moment set during Christmas morning which I enjoyed immensely as well. So, if you like super sweet G-rated holiday romance, give this one a try, but don’t expect too much of a believable conflict.

I live in the midwest and as Christmas approaches the air is crisp and clean and there may be fresh snow on the ground to further add to the spirit of the season. A good number of people have decorated their houses and lawns in anticipation of neighborhood association contests and for the pleasure of the community. Stores and malls all beg for the highest possible attendance as do churches who long to spread the Good News! And if you are lucky enough, you may be invited to bake an assortment of cookies and pies and other tasty treats, warming the kitchen with delicious fragrances.It is one of my favorite times of year. I remember long ago shopping with my mother and my aunt (from California). My aunt was just as petite and gorgeous as they come, always smelling of awesome perfumes and wearing the tiniest spiked heals and the most fashionable makeup. We drove into the city and did some shopping til late in the afternoon and when we hit the streets afterwards it was gently snowing and I though it was the most beautiful day I had ever spent with my mom and my aunt.That's what a Debbie Macomber Christmas story feels like to me. All the beautiful sights and sounds of Christmas, the warm and fuzzy feelings---all exist in the pages of her writings. In Starry Night, we met Carrie Slayton, a social event columnist for the Chicago Herald. Carrie grew up in a family that was loving and celebrated the holidays with all the traditions and riches available at that special time of year. In order to take advantage of a promotion, she took her Thanksgiving Holiday to track down and attempted to interview the elusive best selling author Finn Dalton. But once she arrived and met the unhappy author, she agreed not to print her interview. Sparks flew when the two beheld the beautiful Alaskan star filled sky and the magical northern lights. Both felt the attraction but had serious doubts about the success of having a relationship.Debbie wrote her Christmas romance with a lot of heart. Her characters seemed real to me up to and including Finn's dog Hennessey. I love a story with pets in it! And the storyline was interesting and kept me turning the pages. Could they make it work with all their differences? Well you know, a Macomber story/romance has to have a happy ending if it is related at all to Christmas, grab a copy this winter and enjoy a very sweet and romantic read. I think you'll be glad you did! I am.

I don't really like romance stories but I have enjoyed some of this author's Christmas books and I have a yearning to visit Alaska, so I decided to give it a go. The story is short and simple, a quick and easy read. The storyline didn't progress quite as I expected, but the ending was predictable. Overall, it lacked depth, there was insufficient detail and description, and not enough follow through e.g. What happened to Hennessey when Finn was away, did Cassie sing in the choir concert, what were the bathroom facilities at the cabin? Maybe I skimmed read it too quickly and missed these things - I don't feel compelled to re-read to check. I kept expecting something bad to happen, but nothing did. There were no horrid characters to inject some conflict. The description of the night sky was ok but I wanted to read more about Alaska.

Each to their own of course, but also to thine own self be true. So my truthful opinion of this book is that despite a truly magnificent setting, and a wonderful premise... this is not an enjoyable read.I always wonder how books of this calibre get published, and how they climb so high on the bestsellers list. Not that this was very prominent. I read it purely to give my brain a break after some tough interviews, but it still wasn't satisfactory. Yes, it was a nice romance, but the characters were utterly one-dimensional. I will say though that I was drawn to it by the fact that the heroine was a journalist and it was set in Alaska… I desperately want to visit Alaska, to hike through the snow, to run with huskies, to bask in the glow of the Northern Lights, to stargaze for hours, to explore the sprawling forests… but I'm afraid those are the only redeeming qualities I can truthfully list.I hope the author doesn't see this as I'm sure she's lovely and has written some stellar books, but if you're a reader considering buying this I would really caution you. And may I recommend a far more heart-warming and truly wonderful book: What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty.

I've never rated any of Debbie's books less than 4 stars. But this Starry Night didn't radiate quite as much light as her other books have, not for me, anyway.Debbie is an outstanding storyteller. No argument that her storytelling here was very romantic. The characters were compelling and very, very attractive, inside and out.But where was the knitting?!? Lol. Where was the community of townsfolk who supported each other and pulled real Divine miracles out of their knitting bags? In some places it felt too much like a fairytale. Finn' s reconciliation with his mom didn't seem believable. As if there were elements left out of the story that would have made it seem more plausible after all those years. It was too hurried.I love this woman's writing. She feels like a friend. I doubt Debbie would actually write a bad book. This one is just not one I would recommend for the best sample of Debbies outstanding bibliography. Not particularly Christmasy for her annual Christmas book. For newcomers to Debbie Macomber, I would say start somewhere on Blossom Street.

I was a bit surprised that I didn't enjoy this book as clearly the author has loads of fans and has written lots of books that people love.I found the plot and the characters a bit unlikely, which was peculiar as I didn't think that when I read the plot synopsis on here and on the back of the book. Everything seemed to happen too easily and too quickly; so many secondary characters seemed to trust Carrie with incredibly important things even though they didn't know anything about her other than that she was a journalist.In any other genre, I'd have said that the writing was suitable for middle-grade readers. I don't have any issue at all with simple language - in fact in can be very powerful if done well - but the tendency for characters to tell us exactly what they're thinking, several times per thought, to my mind isn't brilliant in a book for adults, even if it's supposed to be a light, sweet read. It lacked emotional resonance for me, but then perhaps I'm just a Nora Roberts junkie.

This was a good easy read that was well paced and enjoyable but personally it was very 'stereotypical' of a female reporter who falls in love. I wish she had been harder, ruthless! I am a man and I wanted her to be a tough 'real reporter' which she wanted to be. She wanted the big break and had to threaten her boss to get it, too prove herself but having read the book I think her boss was right, fashion was the right place for her. The end was predictable and a bit to easy. There was very little 'conflict' and I wish the author had delved a little deeper into the characters. I also felt Finn was too soft for a man who has spend his life in the middle of nowhere. I felt in the big city he would have felt claustrophobic and frightened almost, but it seemed to bother him very little which I found a little odd but on the whole a generally average read which passes the time.