A Carpenter Christmas Romance

Andrea walks into her aunt's house she is borrowing and hears something. She grabs a fry pan as a weapon. Then she sees the rugged shirtless Seth in the kitchen. So many other movies would have some sort of antagonistic blow up, but in this one this is where it starts simmering a quiet and almost modest sensuality. The dialogue is subdued containing subtext between the two former high school sweethearts.

While the idea of a writer looking for solitude to do some editing or writing is common, the reason she is hiding is unusual. I've heard of uproar over political things, but this much uproar over killing off a character seems too much.

Another unusual element is the town disaster - a fire that took out a popular inn and several homes. The writer, Sarah Drew, takes this, Andrea's novel, and a couple of other things to tie them all together for a climax. Drew is so multi-talented.

The acting is good. I alluded to the chemistry. The dialogue, like so much else, is understated perfectly. The simmering turns into sizzling. Not so much witty sizzling as a quiet sensual sizzling.

When I saw the synopsis, I expected more of the usual unexciting stuff, but what I found caught my attention and kept it.