Book Review-I’ll Be Home For Christmas by Jessica Scott

I'll Be Home For Christmas by Jessica Scott
Series: Coming Home (Scott) #0.5
Published by Thirty One Fox Books on January 1, 2013
Genres: Contemporary Romance, Military Romance
Pages: 158
Format: eBook
Source: Library

He’s always got a joke…
Army Sergeant Vic Carponti always has a joke — no matter how bleak the situation might be. He’s the guy who can make jokes in the middle of a firefight in Baghdad or when he’s getting sewn back up after getting blown up. But his sense of humor hides a fierce loyalty to the men he serves with and a devotion to his wife who he loves more than life itself.
But there’s nothing funny about war…
But as he prepares to leave on his latest deployment into the violent throes of the Surge in Iraq, his jokes don’t seem as funny to his wife. Nicole forces herself to laugh at his redeployment antics but behind her laughter hides the darkest fear of every Army wife — that the knock on the door may be the news that destroys her world.
They both try to make the best of the deployment but when the phone doesn’t ring for a few days, Nicole starts to worry. And when the dreaded call comes telling her he’s been hurt, she’ll move heaven and earth to be there when her husband wakes up.
"I won’t spoil it, but it will give you hope, laughter and tears!” ~ Romancing Rakes
"Buy it. Read it. Have lots of Kleenex on hand. Scott's stories are always powerful and emotional but they're honest, she doesn't jerk you around or manipulate you. The power of the stories and of the characters emotions gets into you and sweeps you away." - Bea's Book Nook
“One of the things I love so much about the Coming Home series from Jessica Scott are the characters themselves. They are unflinchingly real, raw and flawed people – ordinary folk dealing with extraordinary circumstances in the only way they know how to.” - My Written Romance

I’ll Be Home For Christmas is the first book that I have read from this author here, and I have heard so many amazing things about her work, especially in her talent in crafting such beautiful military romance novels. And I have to say after just reading this novella, I can definitely see why she is raved about so often because there is such a intense emotional vibe that is portrayed and a sense of realistic love that vibrant and real and I honestly couldn’t believe that I had taken so long in reading this one because Jessica Scott crafted such a powerful story within this short read, and its not very often I am impressed by a novella but I definitely was with I’ll Be Home For Christmas.

In this story we have a married couple, Vic and Nicole. In this story we see what a deployment does to a marriage and how it tests the bounds of resilience. Nicole knows that this deployment is very different from the others, the danger has escalated to terrifying levels and she doesn’t know if her husband will survive this time. Vic on his end, is trying to keep the morale of his men and trying to keep his wife from worrying by making her life and playing his role as the “jokester” but as they are separated and the heat in the “sandbox” is increasing, he also knows he must do everything he can do get his R&R so he can be home for Christmas…

I found this journey of this marital couple through the military struggles to be so enriching and packed with so much raw emotion. You can just sense the edge that they are both on and that the future for them is so uncertain. I loved seeing the strength and courage of these wives that stay at home and have to continue living despite the dangers to the men that they love. We also get some teasers for some other couples that I am really curious about, and I just want to jump into book 2 because this book really showed them in a light that you need to have their story. As for Vic and Nicole, they were such a fun pair. I rarely see a hero like this though, he is so sarcastic and playful and doesn’t take too much seriously. He is much more lighthearted and his wife takes it all in stride and really balances him out. I do like how he isn’t naive to emotion or the depth of love his wife has for him. This pair definitely gets pushed to the limits here but I admired seeing them confront it and move forward with courage.

Overall I found I’ll Be Home For Christmas to be the perfect holiday read that was quick, deep, and riveting and won my heart completely.

The darkness never forgets…
Caleb Gregory has spent ten years hiding in the dark, refusing to speak about the night his young life was destroyed. In his anger and his rage, he drank and fought until he drove everyone away until he had no one left.

The light casts a long shadow…

Nalini King has devoted her post army life to her passion: using yoga to heal her fellow soldiers. In doing so, she’s worked to forget the night her life burned down around her.

An unexpected storm…
When a storm forces them into the darkness together, these two wounded souls must face the demons of their past.

Because it is only in the darkest night that we can truly see the light. — The darkness never forgets… Caleb Gregory has spent ten years hiding in the dark, refusing to speak about the night his young life was destroyed. In his anger and his rage, he drank and fought until he drove everyone away until he had no one left. The light casts a long shadow… Nalini King has devoted her post army life to her passion: using yoga to heal her fellow soldiers. In doing so, she’s worked to forget the night her life burned down around her. An unexpected storm… When a storm forces them into the darkness together, these two wounded souls must face the demons of their past. Because it is only in the darkest night that we can truly see the light.

"Jessica Scott should be on every reader's list."
~Brenda Novak | New York Times Bestselling Author

He left her for the war…

Ever since the day Army captain Trent Davila lost his life, he’s been fighting the demons that haunt him from that terrible day. Time and again, he’s left his wife and their two children behind as he’s volunteered to put himself in harm’s way until his wife had enough.
 Laura Davila commits the ultimate sin for an Army wife - sending her husband divorce papers while he’s deployed. But she can’t take the pain of knowing he’s betrayed her by volunteering for multiple deployments instead of spending much needed time with her and their two small children.

He needs her now more than ever…

Sent home facing a court martial on trumped up charges, Trent begs Laura to stand by him this one last time. But being close to him reignites the spark between them that had almost been extinguished. And as the fight of his career threatens to destroy them both, their renewed love will be tested like never before. — "Jessica Scott should be on every reader's list." ~Brenda Novak | New York Times Bestselling Author He left her for the war… Ever since the day Army captain Trent Davila lost his life, he’s been fighting the demons that haunt him from that terrible day. Time and again, he’s left his wife and their two children behind as he’s volunteered to put himself in harm’s way until his wife had enough.  Laura Davila commits the ultimate sin for an Army wife - sending her husband divorce papers while he’s deployed. But she can’t take the pain of knowing he’s betrayed her by volunteering for multiple deployments instead of spending much needed time with her and their two small children. He needs her now more than ever… Sent home facing a court martial on trumped up charges, Trent begs Laura to stand by him this one last time. But being close to him reignites the spark between them that had almost been extinguished. And as the fight of his career threatens to destroy them both, their renewed love will be tested like never before.

"Jessica Scott should be on every reader's list."
~Brenda Novak | New York Times Bestselling Author

The rivalry between Captain Claire Montoya and Captain Evan Loehr has been building for far too long. Brought together to help a mutual friend, their rivalry is coming to a head - and nothing has prepared them for the fallout.

Claire Montoya has never met a rule that wasn’t meant to be broken. Working her way through the ranks, she’s a passionate and driven leader who knows how to do one thing and one thing only - train soldiers for war. And she’ll do whatever it takes to bring them home again.

Evan is a man full of dark secrets and a thousand regrets. He finds solace in the rules and someone like Claire who doesn’t know how to spell the word grates on his last nerve. He must have been out of his mind the night he thought he was attracted to her.

They’ve both avoided mention of that night but now, thrown together to help prepare a close friend for her upcoming deployment, their forced to confront their past.

A past neither of them is prepared to face. — "Jessica Scott should be on every reader's list." ~Brenda Novak | New York Times Bestselling Author The rivalry between Captain Claire Montoya and Captain Evan Loehr has been building for far too long. Brought together to help a mutual friend, their rivalry is coming to a head - and nothing has prepared them for the fallout. Claire Montoya has never met a rule that wasn’t meant to be broken. Working her way through the ranks, she’s a passionate and driven leader who knows how to do one thing and one thing only - train soldiers for war. And she’ll do whatever it takes to bring them home again. Evan is a man full of dark secrets and a thousand regrets. He finds solace in the rules and someone like Claire who doesn’t know how to spell the word grates on his last nerve. He must have been out of his mind the night he thought he was attracted to her. They’ve both avoided mention of that night but now, thrown together to help prepare a close friend for her upcoming deployment, their forced to confront their past. A past neither of them is prepared to face.

Bringing his men home from war…
The only thing Sergeant First Class Reza Iaconelli cares about is taking care of his men and making sure they’re ready for the next combat deployment. Nothing will stand in the way of him taking care of his soldiers — especially not some direct commission captain who doesn’t even know how to put on her body armor. He has no idea what she’s even doing in the Army, other than getting under his skin.
She’ll fight for his men…
Army Captain Emily Lindberg knows one thing about the Army and that is it is terrible about taking care of its Soldiers. She may not know much about the Army but when Sergeant Iaconelli attempts to tell her how to do her job, she’ll stand up to her toughest challenge yet. Behind the angry exterior, she sees a man who’s hiding — using war as a means to escape the demons from his past.
As his efforts to remain sober start to fail, he’ll need to find the strength to ask her for the one thing she alone can give him — and it may be more than he’s capable of. — Bringing his men home from war… The only thing Sergeant First Class Reza Iaconelli cares about is taking care of his men and making sure they’re ready for the next combat deployment. Nothing will stand in the way of him taking care of his soldiers — especially not some direct commission captain who doesn’t even know how to put on her body armor. He has no idea what she’s even doing in the Army, other than getting under his skin. She’ll fight for his men… Army Captain Emily Lindberg knows one thing about the Army and that is it is terrible about taking care of its Soldiers. She may not know much about the Army but when Sergeant Iaconelli attempts to tell her how to do her job, she’ll stand up to her toughest challenge yet. Behind the angry exterior, she sees a man who’s hiding — using war as a means to escape the demons from his past. As his efforts to remain sober start to fail, he’ll need to find the strength to ask her for the one thing she alone can give him — and it may be more than he’s capable of.

"Jessica Scott should be on every reader's list."
~Brenda Novak | New York Times Bestselling Author

She plays by the rules . . .

Army Major Olivia Hale believes in following the process for one simple reason — the rules are simple and clear. And she’ll fight to the death to bring those who break those rules to justice. But when she runs straight into Army captain Ben Teague, she finds herself tempted, for the first time in her life, to break those rules.

. . . and he's about to break every one of them…

Company Commander Ben Teague has a way of getting under people’s skin — he’s a smart ass but no one cares more about taking care of his troops than he does. He’s got a low tolerance for the bureaucratic rules that keep him from doing his job. When a trusted friend is brought up on charges, Ben is ready to risk his reputation and his career in his defense.

When everything Ben believes in is exposed to be a lie, he’ll turn to the one person he last expected. And the rules she believes in just may save them both — or damn them both to hell. — "Jessica Scott should be on every reader's list." ~Brenda Novak | New York Times Bestselling Author She plays by the rules . . . Army Major Olivia Hale believes in following the process for one simple reason — the rules are simple and clear. And she’ll fight to the death to bring those who break those rules to justice. But when she runs straight into Army captain Ben Teague, she finds herself tempted, for the first time in her life, to break those rules. . . . and he's about to break every one of them… Company Commander Ben Teague has a way of getting under people’s skin — he’s a smart ass but no one cares more about taking care of his troops than he does. He’s got a low tolerance for the bureaucratic rules that keep him from doing his job. When a trusted friend is brought up on charges, Ben is ready to risk his reputation and his career in his defense. When everything Ben believes in is exposed to be a lie, he’ll turn to the one person he last expected. And the rules she believes in just may save them both — or damn them both to hell.

He plays by the rules.
She breaks them all.
Now, First Sergeant Holly Washington will challenge everything that Captain Sal Bello holds sacred.

A warrior focused on battle...
Captain Sal Bello wants nothing more than to train his men for their upcoming deployment. But life at home is far more complicated for many of his men and Sal doesn't know how to stop the unraveling within his formation.

A warrior tested by combat...
First Sergeant Holly Washington has been baptized by fire and come out steel. She knows how to lead soldiers in combat and bring them safely home. But she's not prepared for the strain she finds in her soldiers and the weight carried by the one man she's not supposed to fall for.

A trial by fire...
When a young sergeant is faced with the choice between her career and her life, Holly comes face to face with her past and the life she's tried to forget. When Sal refuses to let her face those demons alone, they'll cross the line between officer and enlisted. — He plays by the rules. She breaks them all. Now, First Sergeant Holly Washington will challenge everything that Captain Sal Bello holds sacred. A warrior focused on battle... Captain Sal Bello wants nothing more than to train his men for their upcoming deployment. But life at home is far more complicated for many of his men and Sal doesn't know how to stop the unraveling within his formation. A warrior tested by combat... First Sergeant Holly Washington has been baptized by fire and come out steel. She knows how to lead soldiers in combat and bring them safely home. But she's not prepared for the strain she finds in her soldiers and the weight carried by the one man she's not supposed to fall for. A trial by fire... When a young sergeant is faced with the choice between her career and her life, Holly comes face to face with her past and the life she's tried to forget. When Sal refuses to let her face those demons alone, they'll cross the line between officer and enlisted.

About Jessica Scott

Jessica Scott is the USA Today bestselling author of novels set in the heart of America’s Army. She is an active duty army officer, a veteran of the Iraq war, is the mother of two daughters, a small zoo consisting of too many cats, dogs and the occasional domesticated rodent, and wife to a retired NCO.

Website | Goodreads