Thursday 5 December 2013

The Ultimate Christmas Countdown: By Proxy



Stubbornly small-town Jenny Lindstrom has misgivings when she promises to stand proxy in her best friend’s wedding—misgivings that are fulfilled when tall, handsome Sam Kelley walks into the courthouse an hour late. In order to keep her promise, an afternoon favor turns into a weekend of startling but undeniable attraction, threatening the well-ordered world that keeps her heart at arm’s length from any more pain.

Sam’s plan is to fly to Livingston, Montana, take vows for his favorite cousin, and return to Chicago as quickly as possible. But his plan is turned upside-down when he must spend a weekend with Jenny in Gardiner in order to keep his word. He doesn’t want to fall for the prim, proper schoolteacher whose small-town life seems to him like selling out, but the more time he spends with her, the harder it is to say good-bye.

When city and country come together for Christmas, the unexpected gift is true love.
I'm a massive fan of well-developed settings. and the tiny town in which this is set is so well-drawn that I fell head over heels in love with it.  It's the sort of place I'd love to go to on holiday, which is exactly how Sam Kelley feels.  And then he meets Jenny Lindstrom, for whom this is home.

By Proxy is an adorably sweet story, filled with heat, passion and charm.  Katy Regnery's first published book, it's an absolute find for the Christmas season.

Perhaps, however, what I found most interesting about it, was the fact that in the end the hero and heroine compromise.  Not on their love, but on different aspects of their lives.  When you consider how very different their lives are (though their childhoods don't seem too different), it seems inevitable that there are going to be issues.

No matter when you meet someone, or how much you love them, there are always going to compromises that you are going to have to make if your relationship is going to last.  This is often portrayed in the media as 'second best' and by no means am I suggesting that you should compromise your happiness or safety, but sometimes there are little sacrifices that have to be made - on both parts.

This is a real strength of Regnery's book; as well as being the most adorable love story (and I can't wait for Jenny's brother Erik's story, out soon!), but it also makes you consider how we view the perfect romance.

As well as that, though, there are some of the sweetest scenes including the proxy wedding, a Christmas walk and the attempted intimidation of Sam by Jenny's brothers.

Utterly charming.

2 comments:

  1. I love this review so much, Alicia - I can't even tell you! I am so glad you liked my book. :) Thank you.

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    1. I'm so so pleased. I absolutely loved it! And was really impressed with the way you managed to balance Jenny's beliefs with the fact that she's strongly attracted to Sam!!

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