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Overall, I don't think the tone of the first two stories matched the tone of the final two. I also didn't care for the first two all that much, as they didn't really fit into what I thought I was getting (romantic suspense) when I began the book. Also, I totally only got this to read Midnight in Death. And this collection, in my opinion, is worth it for that one story.
Here's a few brief thoughts on the four stories (or basically just me collecting the mini-reviews I posted as I was reading in one place):
Story: A Berry Merry Christmas
Author: Claire Cross
Rating: 2.5 stars
Review: Yikes...this was so heavy-handed and syrupy sweet that I was pretty much rolling my eyes through the whole thing, but I'll be damned if the end didn't end up tugging at my heart strings after all. I actually got a little teary eyed. So, the 1.5 stars that I was planning on rating it ended up getting bumped up a star.
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Story: The Unexpected Gift
Author: Dee Holmes
Rating: 3.0 stars
Review: I ended up liking this one about the same as the first story in the book (as in, not all that much), but in the spirt of the season, it gets an extra half star because I didn't feel like I was in danger of getting a cavity while reading it. Basically, the MC's ex-boyfriend shows up passed out in her front yard. This somehow makes her realize she still loves him. He takes awhile longer to come to the same realization. Asshole ex-husband shows up briefly to try to win her back, and there's a cute kid. This was a super short story, and I didn't feel like I had a handle on any of the characters, so it was really hard to connect to them.
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Author: Susan Plunkett
Rating: 3.5 stars
Review: This story is more in line with what I thought I was going to be reading when I started this collection. It fits firmly in the 'romantic suspense' category. It's also quite a bit darker than the first two, and despite the limited pages, the author created two lead characters who I cared about wanted to see end up together.
It could also be triggering for some, and I'll put the reasons why under a spoiler cut...
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Story: Midnight in Death
Author: J.D. Robb
Rating: 4.5 stars
Review: This was the one I'd been waiting to read since I began the book. And it did not disappoint. This story was so head and shoulders above the other three, it's not even funny. And despite it being a novella, it felt like a full length story.
