The Wish Book Christmas

Austin’s follow-up to If I Were You picks up where the historical romance left off with Audrey and Eve, British expats in the United States. The two women met at the age of 12 in their native England, when Eve’s mother was hired as a lady’s maid for Audrey’s mother; it was the beginning of a lifelong friendship. During the Second World War, the friends had worked as ambulance drivers in London and ended up with sons. Now we find them in the States in winter 1951; Audrey’s American husband is dead, and she and Eve are sharing a home in Connecticut and raising their five-year-olds together. Their sons are selected to play Wise Men in the school’s nativity production, and suddenly the boys (who had been desperate for Santa to bring them every toy in the Sears Wish Book) are working hard to make dreams come true for others. Austin’s latest novel has endearing characters with flaws that allow growth. The story’s Christian aspects are important but don’t overshadow the relationship dynamics.