A Mother’s Promise: A Heart-warming Christmas Novella by Aidan Lucid is a brief but heartfelt holiday story that explores the quiet courage and compassion that define the season’s true spirit.
About the Book: A Mother’s Promise
Dylan Sanchez used to love Christmas. But for the last three years, the holidays have been anything but festive. His mother’s partner, Greg, can’t seem to make it through a season without the shadow of alcohol turning joy into tension. When things unravel yet again, Dylan walks out into the cold, only to stumble into a moment that will test his courage and compassion in ways he could never imagine. What follows is a chain of events that reveals the power of kindness and the possibility of miracles, even when they come from the most unexpected places.
BookHookup Review: A Mother’s Promise
A Mother’s Promise is a tender, introspective Christmas tale that takes a more grounded approach to holiday magic. Rather than focusing on cozy lights and cheerful reunions, Aidan Lucid explores the messy, emotional reality of a struggling family and a young boy trying to make sense of it all. The result is a story that’s both sobering and uplifting, reminding readers that sometimes the smallest acts of bravery shine the brightest.
Lucid’s writing is clear and expressive, capturing both the tension of Dylan’s home life and the warmth that emerges from compassion in the face of cruelty. It’s a compact read, and while I appreciated its sincerity, I was surprised to find that nearly half of the 64-page book is an excerpt from the author’s YA horror novella The Scavenger (Second Edition). This makes the main story a novelette, and shorter than expected.
Still, what’s there is heartfelt and well told—a brief, emotional reflection on forgiveness, hope, and the meaning of Christmas when the world feels cold.
BookHookup Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3 out of 5 stars)
A poignant, if too brief, holiday novella with a different kind of Christmas
magic.
BookHookup Note
I focus on YA and clean fiction. A Mother’s Promise is clean in both language and tone, though it includes realistic depictions of family conflict, alcoholism, and emotional distress that may be difficult for younger readers. Best suited for older teens and adults who appreciate meaningful, character-driven Christmas stories.
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I focus on clean fiction across genres—historical romance, suspense, crime, children’s, and more. When books include content that may not be suitable for all readers, I provide clear disclaimers so you can choose wisely.
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