The bestselling Evans is back with another earnest tale set around a certain holiday in December, but this time he's got something up his sleeve. Beth has everything, a loving husband, an adorable daughter ("a joyful combination of lunacy and grace"), and a great job where she works with friends. But when her daughter becomes mysteriously ill, and she discovers that her husband is dying, her perfect life falls apart. She is soon impoverished and embittered, and still can't discern the source of her daughter's illness. Then she meets a handsome stranger, who diagnoses the illness and convinces the wary Beth to trust again, only to disappear with the home equity loan he pushed her into getting. Devastated once again, Beth's resolve is tested when he returns with a truly unbelievable story. Believing him means altering the entire course of her life. Evans combines his usual holiday themes with a bizarre twist lifted straight from science fiction. Readers will undoubtedly feel attached to Beth, even as they struggle to understand the bizarre relationship she finds herself entering into. (Oct.) Copyright 2010 Reed Business Information.

Popular Evans offers up another magical novel, this one set in the 1980s, in time for the holidays. Beth Cardall's life seems charmed until she finds out that her perfect husband, Marc, has been unfaithful to her and that their beautiful daughter Charlotte is sick with a mysterious illness that baffles every doctor. Then Marc's unexpected and swift death from pancreatic cancer leaves Beth in financial straits. So she's in no mood for romance when she meets an enigmatic, handsome stranger on Christmas day, but the man, who tells her his name is Matthew, is both persistent and charming in his pursuit of her. He tells her he's a widower still grieving over the loss of his beloved wife, whose identity will shock Beth--and readers--to the core. The unexpected twist propels the novel forward, making the book impossible to put down. Though the ending ties everything up a bit too neatly, Evans' many fans will enjoy this inventive, heartwarming tale.--Huntley, Kristine Copyright 2010 Booklist