Tag: ADHD

Liam doesn’t need to change or conform. He shouldn’t have to mask who is he to be accepted, and those who love him shouldn’t try to ‘fix’ him.

Book Review | Kiss Me on Christmas by Sarah Monzon

Kaitlyn Stafford is the solo mother of ten-year-old Liam. Liam has been diagnosed with General Anxiety Disorder, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, and Autism Spectrum Disorder (GAD, ADHD, and ASD). Kaitlyn’s sister announces she’s getting married at Christmas, which is going to be a big and possibly difficult disruption to Liam’s Christmas routines.

What could have been a difficult trip is made easier when Liam recognises his favourite YouTuber, Beckett Walsh, as they are about to board the plane. Beckett turns out to be the best man at the wedding they are about to plan.

Yes, that’s totally the setup for every Hallmark Christmas movie ever: an unlikely couple thrown together in a small town for a white Christmas.

The romance between Kaitlyn and Beckett develops quickly (well, this is a novella so it kind of has to), but it never feels rushed. That’s quite an achievement. It’s also based on an attraction to the inner person, which is something I like in romance. The developing relationship was perfectly paced and had all the feels.

What sets this story apart is Liam. Stories with sole parents (usually mothers) aren’t unusual, but stories with characters with ADHD or ASD are rare to non-existent. (If you can think of any, let me know.) It wasn’t just that Liam was a neurodiverse chararacter. It was that he was such an endearing and likeable character and was portrayed so realistically.

Kaitlyn and Beckett were inspiringly patient with Liam and their willingness to engage with him on his terms. They also taught him how to engage with other people. Kaitlyn’s interactions with her mother were particularly touching in this area.

Sarah Monzon has partly based Liam on her son, Elijah (with his permission). This is why Liam comes across as such a believable and well-rounded character. However, Monzon also points out in her Author’s Note that Liam is unique:

“If you’ve met one person with autism, you’ve met exactly one person with autism.”

It’s been a long time since I’ve read a novel (or novella) I want to re-read, but this is definitely on the list.

Recommended for fans of Christmas romance, or those looking for Christian fiction with neurodiverse characters.

About Sarah Monzon

Sarah MonzonA Carol award finalist and Selah award winner, Sarah Monzon is a stay-at-home mom who makes up imaginary friends to have adult conversations with (otherwise known as writing novels). As a navy chaplain’s wife, she resides wherever the military happens to station her family and enjoys exploring the beauty of the world around her.

Find Sarah online at:

Website | Facebook | Instagram  | Pinterest | Twitter

About Kiss Me on Christmas

Single mom Kaitlyn Stafford has never considered Christmas a balancing act, but when her sister calls with the news that she’s getting married in less than two weeks—on Christmas Day—that’s exactly what the holiday looks like becoming. Helping with the out-of-state wedding will be fun. The challenge will be doing so while accommodating her neurodivergent son’s need to keep every single one of their Christmas traditions while they’re away from home. It’ll be tricky, but she can do it.

At least, that’s what she thinks before her son’s favorite YouTuber, Beckett Walsh, shows up on the scene, knocking her world off-kilter with his speaking glances and knowing smiles. How on earth is she supposed to pull off her balancing act when her world’s just tilted on its axis?

Kiss Me on Christmas was published as part of the multi-author Destination Christmas novella collection.

Find Kiss Me on Christmas online at:

Amazon (Novella) | Amazon (Collection) | BookBub

No one was bad at math. Many people didn't respond well to the way math was taught in school.

Book Review | Let It Be Me (Misty River Romance #2) by Becky Wade

Leah Montgomery is a child prodigy who gave up a full-ride scholarship to Princeton to complete her PhD so she could stay home and raise her seven-year-old brother after her mother decides she needs to explore the Amazon (or something. Their mother was an off-stage character, and that’s probably for the best). Anyway, Leah is 100% logical–for better or worse.

Pediatric heart surgeon Sebastian Grant meets Leah at a local farmer’s market, and recognises her as the angel who came to his rescue six months ago when his car crashed. Unfortunately, he finds Leah is the teacher his best friend, Ben, has been in love with for the best part of a year. Not that Ben’s ever asked her out, but still … man-code means she’s off limits.

When a mail-in DNA test shows Leah isn’t the biological child of either of her parents, she knows she must have been switched at birth with another baby (as her unmaternal mother would have grieved a stillborn baby, but certainly wouldn’t have adopted one). Logic says she needs to find the answer, and Sebastian – who works in the hospital where she was born.

What intrigued me most about Let It Be Me were the quirky but likeable characters.

Leah is almost certainly somewhere on the autistic spectrum: she’s brilliant at math, responsible, and hard-working. But she’s not good with relationships, especially romantic relationships. In fact, she’s made it to twenty-eight without having any romantic feelings. The result was that I really liked her character voice, which pulled me through the story.

Sebastian is also an overachiever with his own personality quirks. As a medical doctor, he also understands math and physics and other logical, scientific disciplines. He’s loyal, a good friend, and willing to put his own feelings for Leah aside. He also helps Leah to discover the mystery behind her birth.

As such, this was an unusual yet compelling romance with unique characters and plenty of quirky humour—another winner from Becky Wade.

Let It Be Me is the second book in Becky Wade’s Misty River Romance series.

The stories feature members of the “Miracle Five”, who survived an earthquake as teens, an experience that has brought them together and shaped their lives. Each book is the romance of one of the Five (although one was already married when the series started). While the books are each standalone novels, they feature the same setting and many of the same characters – my idea of a perfect series.

Thanks to Bethany House and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.

About Becky Wade

Author Photo Becky WadeBecky is the Carol and Christy award winning author of heartwarming, humorous, and swoon-worthy contemporary inspirational romances.

During her childhood in California, Becky frequently produced homemade plays starring her sisters, friends, and cousins. These plays almost always featured a heroine, a prince, and a love story with a happy ending. She’s been a fan of all things romantic ever since.

These days, you’ll find Becky in Dallas, Texas failing to keep up with her housework, trying her best in yoga class, carting her three kids around town, watching TV with her Cavalier spaniel on her lap, hunched over her computer writing, or eating chocolate.

You can find Becky Wade online at:

Website | Facebook | Instagram | Pinterest | Twitter

About Let It Be Me

The one woman he wants is the one he cannot have.

Former foster kid Sebastian Grant has leveraged his intelligence and hard work to become a pediatric heart surgeon. But not even his career success can erase the void he’s tried so hard to fill. Then he meets high school teacher Leah Montgomery and his fast-spinning world comes to a sudden stop. He falls hard, only to make a devastating discovery–Leah is the woman his best friend set his heart on months before.

Leah’s a math prodigy who’s only ever had one big dream–to earn her PhD. Raising her little brother put that dream on hold. Now that her brother will soon be college bound, she’s not going to let anything stand in her way. Especially romance . . . which is far less dependable than algebra.

When Leah receives surprising results from the DNA test she submitted to a genealogy site, she solicits Sebastian’s help. Together, they comb through hospital records to uncover the secrets of her history. The more powerfully they’re drawn to each other, the more strongly Sebastian must resist, and the more Leah must admit that some things in life–like love–can’t be explained with numbers.

You can find Let It Be Me online at

Amazon | BookBub | ChristianBook | Goodreads | Koorong