Studmuffin Santa

Written by Tawna Fenske

Narrated by Nelson Hobbs and Teri Schnaubelt

Brandon Brown is the unlikeliest Santa ever to don a red velvet suit.

His abs are more cheese grater than bowl full of jelly, and deploying to Syria is the closest he's come to the North Pole. But family drama sends the jaded Marine home for the holidays, and lands him an unexpected gig as a part-time Santa.

Jade King is hustling to get Jingle Bell Reindeer Ranch off the ground, and she's not thrilled her sister hired a Santa with sex-appeal. The last thing Jade wants is a beefcake circus, and guys like Brandon bring sleigh-loads of trouble. But Studmuffin Santa proves more popular than anyone dreamed, drawing hordes of happy kids, lusty moms, and a mystery foe hell-bent on wrecking it all.

The threat has Brandon playing protector for the reindeer and their sexy keeper, which is risky for a guy who's sworn off happy endings and the whole Christmas mess. But as Jade and Brandon bond over Santa suit malfunctions and risque Christmas cookies, they find they have more in common than a craving for gingerbread. Can they find a way to mesh their wish lists, or will ghosts of Christmas past bring things crashing down like a fat man in a cast iron sleigh?

Contains mature themes.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc
• Release date: Dec 24, 2019
• ISBN: 9781541416901

Tawna Fenske

When Tawna Fenske finished her English lit degree at twenty-two, she celebrated by filling a giant trash bag full of romance novels and dragging it everywhere until she’d read them all. Now she’s a USA Today bestselling author who writes humorous fiction, risqué romance, and heartwarming love stories with a quirky twist. Publishers Weekly has praised Tawna’s offbeat romances with multiple starred reviews and noted, “There’s something wonderfully relaxing about being immersed in a story filled with over-the-top characters in undeniably relatable situations. Heartache and humor go hand in hand.” Tawna lives in Bend, Oregon, with her husband, stepkids, and a menagerie of ill-behaved pets. She loves hiking, snowshoeing, stand-up paddleboarding, and inventing excuses to sip wine on her back porch. She can peel a banana with her toes and loses an average of twenty pairs of eyeglasses per year. To find out more about Tawna and her books, visit www.tawnafenske.com.

Reviews for Studmuffin Santa

[scoutmomskf · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Good story of love, family, and letting go of the past. Jade and her sister Amber own a reindeer farm where they are currently gearing up for the Christmas season. The biggest thing they need is someone to play Santa for all the kiddies. Instead of a nice, jolly old man, Amber hires Brandon, ex-high school jock and current Marine, home on leave. Jade isn't too thrilled, but beggars can't be choosers.Brandon is home on leave as he deals with some family issues. Not one to sit around, he agrees to the job of Santa, even though he seriously lacks in Christmas spirit. But an unknown foe is creating problems for the sisters and Brandon is determined to keep them safe.I loved the first meeting between Jade and Brandon. He overhears her telling Amber that they don't need the hassles of a "studmuffin Santa" and is highly amused by it. Jade's a little embarrassed but forges forward with information about the job. From the very start, there is honesty between them, with Jade admitting her misgivings about having him as Santa, and Brandon admitting that his high school reputation doesn't do him any favors, but that he hopes he's grown up since then. Underneath the exchange is a simmering attraction that neither wants to admit.I liked both Brandon and Jade. Brandon is a good guy at heart. He has written off love and relationships for himself, thanks to witnessing the disintegration of his parents' marriage. But family is important to him. He spends his spare time helping his cousins build their resort. There are some terrific scenes with Brandon and several of those cousins that show the depth of caring among them. I loved the way that he visits his dad in the nursing home and tries to connect with him, and ached for his feelings of helplessness.Jade was great. She is a strong and resourceful woman who has overcome a lot in pursuit of her dreams. Her high school years were a nightmare and she still has the emotional scars. Because of that time she has developed a core of independence. I loved watching her with the various reindeer, where her softer side tends to emerge.I enjoyed the development of the relationship between Brandon and Jade. The chemistry between them is undeniable, though both try to resist. Brandon reminds Jade of her time in school, even though he wasn't one of the problem kids. She has a hard time believing that he could be interested in her and she is wary of risking her heart. Brandon is convinced that he knows nothing of love and relationships and doesn't want to do anything to hurt Jade. I loved seeing them go from slightly hostile to bonding over x-rated cookies and the challenges that Santa has to face. As the heat between them built, it became harder for them to keep their hands off each other. Once they gave in to their passion, it opened them up to feelings that neither one was sure they wanted to deal with. It was sweet to see how much they started to care for each other, and frustrating to see them sometimes pull back. Brandon goes a little overboard in the protectiveness he feels for Jade, creating a rift between them. It takes a straightforward talk from his cousin Bree for him to see where he went wrong. I loved his realization that he needed to settle his past before he could move on to his future, and how he did it was a heartwarming and heart-wrenching scene. His big moment with Jade was fantastic, and the epilogue was great.There was a nice bit of suspense dealing with the trouble that Jade and Amber were having at the ranch. There were odd things happening that Jade wrote off to coincidence or carelessness. Amber wasn't so sure, and one of the reasons she hired Brandon was also as Security Santa. Though the problems were just nuisances at the beginning, they began to escalate until even Jade couldn't deny that something was wrong. I loved the resolution of the problem and laughed out loud at how it happened. The culprit was not who I expected.The book was full of quirky characters and fun situations, as well as deeply emotional ones. I loved some of Jade's conversations with her reindeer as she tried to work out her feelings for Brandon. I ached for Jade as I read about her high school years, and for Brandon when he talked about his mother and father. It was fun to see Brandon deal with the moms who brought kids to see him as Santa. I loved how Jade and Amber supported each other as sisters and friends and laughed as Amber tried to push Jade and Brandon together.