My True Love Gave to Me by Karen Witemeyer

Book description: 

The Twelve Days of Christmas get a romantic Texas twist!

Anna King has pledged her heart to Simeon Shepherd, but her father refuses to grant her hand to the young farmer. Simeon determines to be patient and earn David King's respect over time with hard work and evidence of his ability to provide. However, when a wealthy new suitor arrives in Bethlehem, Texas to woo Anna with her father's support, patience is no longer an option. Simeon has twelve days before Christmas to best his rival and prove once and for all that he is Anna's true love.

A fun, quirky read that is short enough to squeeze into even the busiest holiday schedule.

My review:
  First off, this is not really a book, but a short story coming in at around 43 pages. But man, what a story. And if a guy can use the word here: a very cute story.

  I loved in the story how Simeon's family all rallied together to help him come up with a plan to convince the father of his true love to allow her to marry Simeon, instead of the wealthy Harold. In fact, his family came up with the plan.

 And the plan...I have got to hand it to the author for her ingenuity of coming up with a twist on the gifts in the Twelve Days of Christmas song that a young man of not many means could afford. I won't give them all away, but will name one: On the first day of Christmas, Simeon delivered to Anna a cactus with a bullet tied to it. It was a cartridge in a prickly pear cactus. And she came up with some pretty cool and funny ideas for the rest of the song. :)

She also worked in a lot of references to the Christmas story. Anna's last name is King, and she lives with her parents - the three Kings. Simeon's last name is Shepherd, etc.

 I loved the characters, the humor, and the support Simeon got from not just his family, but the whole town. This was a short fun, entertaining, and amusing story that is a must read for this Christmas season.

I was provided a copy of this book for review purposes. All opinions in this review are my own.

About the author:

For those who love to smile as they read, bestselling author Karen Witemeyer offers warmhearted historical romance with a flair for humor, feisty heroines, and swoon-worthy Texas heroes. Voted #1 Readers' Favorite Christian Historical Author in 2023 by Family Fiction Magazine, Karen is a multiple award-winning author and a firm believer in the power of happy endings. She is an avid cross-stitcher, tea drinker, and gospel hymn singer who makes her home in Abilene, TX with her heroic husband who vanquishes laundry dragons and dirty dish villains whenever she's on deadline.

Check out her website. 

My True Love is available only in e-book, and can be purchased on Amazon.