Title:  Winter Wonderland
Series:
Author:  Elizabeth Mansfield
Genre:  regency Romance, Christmas Romance
Published:  October 4, 2016
Publisher:  Open Road Media Romance
My Rating:  4 stars
Source:  NetGalley
Cover Description:

For inexperienced, painfully shy Barnaby Traherne, the glittering society ball is akin to a battlefield . . . that is, until his attention is captured by an auburn-haired beauty. Scandalous rumors swirl around Miranda Pardew and now she has set her cap for a renowned rake. Ignoring the gossip, the already-smitten Barnaby gathers his courage and asks Miranda for a dance. When she rejects him—in a very public humiliation—he vows that when he reenters the fray, he will be better prepared. Eleven years later, he gets his chance, along with the opportunity to deliver to a certain haughty beauty her long-overdue comeuppance.
 
Once the belle of the ball, Miranda is now an impecunious widow. A stroke of luck lands her a governess position in Norfolk. Before she arrives, her stagecoach is ambushed by highwaymen, and Miranda finds herself stranded with an attractive stranger. She has no idea he’s the nobleman she rebuffed years earlier. But Barnaby has not forgotten her—and is shocked to discover that Miranda has been employed to look after his nephews. At his brother’s estate for Christmas, Barnaby tries in vain to conceal his still-wild attraction to Miranda, but a capricious fate conspires to throw Barnaby and Miranda together at every turn.

Stand Alone Title

The prelude for Winter Wonderland sets up the background for this romance between Barnaby and Miranda quite nicely.  It’s definitely a reminder to be careful what you sow, and that first impression and memories do indeed matter.  Just remember – karma is a witch with a very long memory.

While I felt quite badly for Miranda”s circumstances, there is also a part of me that wasn’t surprised that life had treated her so unfairly.  Now she’s working for her living tending to young boys as a governess for the brother of the man she’d so rudely and thoughtlessly cut down eleven years ago.  She’s learned some difficult life lessons in the past decade, and this Miranda is not the same cold beauty of the season Barnaby had been slighted by.  That doesn’t temper his need for a severe set down for this lady – except he’s finding that the attraction is still quite alive in his heart… now what does he do.

Winter Wonderland was a delight to read once again.  It’s been years since I visited with this couple and they were as delightful as I remembered.  This is a reissue of one of Elizabeth Mansfield’s charming Regency romances.  She was such an amazing writer and she will be missed.

I am a true believer in karma but of fate as well.  Miranda and Barnaby fought their attraction but in the end, love overlooked flaws.  I believe you will find this a delightful Christmas tale of love, redemption and making a wrong into a very right choice.  I would recommend Winter Wonderland to any reader who enjoys the more traditional Regency Romances, and as simply a lovely Christmas Romance for the season.

*I received an e-ARC of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley. That does not change what I think of this novel. It is my choice to leave a review giving my personal opinion about this story.*

Available for the Kindle