Christmas Comes To Little Hickman Creek

By Sharlene MacLaren

Description:

Sadie Bennett, a 26-year-old widow, lost her husband to a tragic accident at Grady's Sawmill in Little Hickman, Kentucky after only a month of marriage. Determined to carve out a life for herself despite her deep sense of loss, she takes a job as a waitress at Grace's Tea Room, Hickman's only restaurant owned and operated by the lovely middle-aged Grace Giles, and moves into a tiny dwelling above Borden's Bakery situated in the center of town.   It's the Christmas season and also the two-year anniversary of Sadie's husband Tom's sudden passing, and the last thing she wants to do is enter into any holiday festivities. Once her favorite day of the year, Christmas has lost its shimmer, and all she wants is to find a place to hibernate and wait for it to pass. Unfortunately, her boss ropes her into joining a committee whose job it is to find a suitable Christmas tree for the town. It won't be a big deal, she tells herself. She will do her part to help select the perfect tree and afterward return to her job by day and then retreat to her little apartment by night--away from the holiday hustle and bustle. Someone else will erect the tree, and the citizens of Little Hickman will donate the ornaments for which to decorate it. No one can force her to participate in any of that.   Reed Harris, the personable, handsome new owner of Sam's Livery, now Reed's Livery, has invited Sadie on two previous occasions to attend social functions, but afraid of ever committing to another relationship, she hastily turns him down. After all, there are great risks involved in ever again giving her heart away. What is to say she won't experience yet another deep loss? Thus, it both surprises and perplexes her to find herself serving on the same tree-search committee with him, he having donated one of his livery wagons for which to haul the tree back to town. With everything in her, she attempts to remain aloof to his kindnesses, but it is while serving on this committee and then his continued attempts afterward to woo her that she first notices a renewed desire for male companionship. Could God possibly be paving the way for her to love again--and if so--is she even willing to walk down that treacherous path?   Thirty-year-old Reed Harris assumes ownership of his grandfather Sam Livingston's livery. Having lived in Little Hickman for a year now, he is settling in quite nicely, enjoying his newfound responsibilities, acquainting himself with Hickman's fine citizens, and turning the little house he bought from Irwin Waggoner into a cozy home. He's happy and contented--for the most part--but he'd be happier if he could win the affections of the lovely, dark-haired beauty, Sadie Bennett. Yes, she's widowed and bent on ignoring his advances, but he's just as determined to break through that thick wall of resistance she's built around her and prove that love can heal a heart shredded by grief. What better time than Christmas, the ultimate season of love and hope, to make that happen?   Christmas Comes to Little Hickman is a story of faith, hope, and healing and of course renewed love--and Little Hickman Creek is just the place to discover the joys that Christmas brings! With the return of Liza and Ben, Sarah and Rocky, Emma and Jon, and a myriad of other colorful characters, readers will delight in a sense of the familiar as they revisit the quaint yet rustic little community known as Little Hickman Creek.

Book Takeaway:

Time heals, and new love plays an important part.

Why the author wrote this book:

I love Christmas books, and it seemed perfect to write a novella to go with my beloved Little Hickman Creek Series.