A Wish for Winter: A Christmas Romance Novel

by Viola Shipman

Overview

“I love this book—funny, perfect and wonderfully good. A not-to-be-missed delight.” —New York Times bestselling author Susan Mallery

With echoes of classic Hollywood love stories like Serendipity and An Affair to Remember, Viola Shipman’s latest winter charmer following the USA TODAY bestseller The Secret of Snow is sure to tug on heartstrings and delight readers who love books about books, missed connections and the magic of Christmas.

Despite losing her parents in a tragic accident just before her fourteenth Christmas, Susan Norcross has had it better than most, with loving grandparents to raise her and a gang of quirky, devoted friends to support her. Now a successful bookstore owner in a tight-knit Michigan lakeside community, Susan is facing down forty—the same age as her mother when she died—and she can’t help but see everything she hasn’t achieved, including finding a love match of her own. To add to the pressure, everyone in her small town believes it’s Susan’s destiny to meet and marry a man dressed as Santa, just like her mother and grandmother before her. So it seems cosmically unfair that the man she makes an instant connection with at an annual Santa Run is lost in the crowd before she can get his name.

What follows is Susan and her friends’ hilarious and heartwarming search for the mystery Santa—covering twelve months of social media snafus, authors behaving badly and dating fails—as well as a poignant look at family, friendship and what defines a well-lived and well-loved life.

“Viola Shipman has written a captivating story for anyone whose memories run deep… This book keeps faith and hope alive!” —New York Times bestselling author Sherryl Woods

A Country Living Magazine Best Christmas Book to Read This Holiday Season!

Don't miss bestselling author Viola Shipman's charming new novel, THE WISHING BRIDGE—where an ambitious executive rediscovers the magic of family, friendship, home...and Christmas!

Other books by Viola Shipman:

• Famous in a Small Town
• The Secret of Snow
• The Edge of Summer
• The Summer Cottage
• The Heirloom Garden
• The Clover Girls

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781525804847
Publisher:	Graydon House Books
Publication date:	11/15/2022
Edition description:	Original
Pages:	416
Sales rank:	105,883
Product dimensions:	5.30(w) x 8.00(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Wade Rouse is a popular award-winning memoirist and internationally bestselling author of twelve books, which have been translated into twenty languages and selected as Today show Must-Reads, Indie Next Picks and Michigan Notable Books. Rouse writes fiction under his grandma’s name, Viola Shipman, to honor the woman whose heirlooms inspire his writing. He lives in Michigan and California, and hosts Wine & Words with Wade, A Literary Happy Hour, every Thursday.

Editorial Reviews

09/12/2022

Shipman (The Secret of Snow) delivers a leisurely holiday romance about a woman who’s convinced her soulmate is Santa—or at least dresses like him. Both Susan Norcross’s late mother and living grandmother met their husbands while the men were in Santa costumes, and Susan is sure that she’ll meet her perfect match under similar circumstances. Though she’s happy with her life running a small-town Michigan bookstore and helping her grandparents prepare for Christmas, she still feels lonely. After a push from her best friend, Holly, she signs up to participate in Chicago’s Santa Run, reasoning that there will surely be some eligible bachelors among the costumed runners. Indeed, she connects with one such Santa, but loses him in the crowd as the race starts. Holly turns to social media to try to track down the mystery man, creating a list of three possible candidates and cajoling Susan to go on dates with all three—with unexpected results. There’s just as much soul-searching as there is romance, and the focus on Susan’s relationships with friends and family occasionally crowd out the love story, which doesn’t pick up until the end. Still, there’s plenty of charm to this cozy small-town tale. Shipman’s fans will be pleased. Agent: Wendy Sherman, Wendy Sherman Assoc. (Nov.)

Publishers Weekly

Once again, Viola Shipman has written a captivating story for anyone whose memories of the past run deep and whose dreams for holiday magic seem just out of reach. This book keeps faith and hope alive!” —New York Times bestselling author Sherryl Woods


“The perfect winter warmer!” —USA TODAY bestselling author Sarah Morgan

From the Publisher

The perfect winter warmer!”

USA Today bestselling author Saraj Morgan

Viola Shipman has written a captivating story for anyone whose memories run deep…This book keeps faith and hope alive!”

New York Times bestselling author Sherry; Woods

Funny, perfect and wonderfully good! I love this book.”

New York Times bestselling author Susan Mallery