The best of regency lies at the hands of Victoria Alexander. From her quirky characters to her enchanting tales, she knows what it means to captivate readers. From humor to heart, Same Time, Next Christmas piles on the charm. From beginning to end, the most endearing of moments is the ones that surprise us all. Fletcher and Portia bring sentiment to life and take romance to heart in this flighty and flirty tale. ( )

Portia 'had not expected [her] adventure to include a naked man swimming in the waters off the beach!'

A rather startling opening leads to a fascinating life's journey with a young widow in Victorian times. When Portia, Lady Redwell, decides to continue on with her Italian Christmas holiday despite her aunt and companion having to leave to return to London, she little guesses that an adventure would open up that would span Christmases to come. She little realizes that she will change forever. Portia is about to experience "What happens when we step out of the boxes we have always lived our lives in. When we dare to take a chance. To select the road untraveled. To accept, even embrace, the new, the unknown." A heady idea! Is Portia up to it?
When Portia finds a stranger swimming naked at her villa's private beach she is angry. Her holiday place is not for sharing! Fletcher Jamison must look elsewhere!
Ultimately Portia has to decide whether merely being content in any future relationship is enough. Or does she want the 'magic' that her two friends have. Will she settle for the type of relationship she had with her dead husband or does she want more?
Rarely impulsive, Portia finds herself being exactly that. I liked watching Portia struggle with that side of herself. A side that Aunt Helena comments, much to Portia's puzzlement, as being so much like Portia's mother!

A NetGalley ARC ( )