Eugene and the Box of Nails

I love the way that not only Cullen but also the men he works worth are all part of helping Eugene out. It goes to show what a great and carry person he is. He doesn't feel that great about himself but other see him as so much more. I also love how Cullen really honors Eugene's wishes in created his wonderful put together home. The message home is what you build with your dreams and the pieces of your life.

I envied Eugene in one big way right from the start. He might have been poor and having to resort to scavenging the supplies thrown away by the construction crew next door, but he has a postage stamp lot above a lake and he’s building his own cozy home. It didn’t take me long to fall head over heels for him, either. Not that surprising since I tend to have that reaction to a lot of this author’s characters. Regardless, Eugene might just be the sweetest, nicest man I’ve met in a very long time.

I wish I were a handy person able to build things and repair broken items. I really enjoyed learning some interesting new facts by watching Eugene work, though I have to admit that I’d rather win the lottery and pay someone to build a home for me. *grins* Eugene has gotten somewhat friendly with the construction crew working on the house below him but, nevertheless, he’s still pretty nervous when the foreman joins him for coffee one morning. Expecting to get reprimanded for taking supplies out of the dumpster, Eugene is confused when Cullen just chats with him about his building plans and then goes on his way.

A broad smile spread over Cullen’s face. “It’s like nothing fazes you. You just go on and do the next thing on the list. No hesitation.”....
“Sure,” Eugene said, and it wasn’t a reflex response this time. “Because what else would you do? The things don’t get done if you don’t do them. I’m always behind, but—” He shrugged. “That’s just life.”

When Cullen asks Eugene to lunch the whole rotten-luck story of Eugene’s past seven years comes pouring forth at Cullen’s gentle queries. I’ve got to say that my respect and admiration for Eugene went up a whole lot more after learning everything he’d endured, partially at the hands of his own bigoted brother! The “construction elf” as Eugene refers to him continues to assist in building his home and Cullen is confused as to why Eugene gets upset instead of being grateful. It all stems from Eugene’s upbringing and what he has had to deal with. Instead of viewing the assistance as someone wanting to help him out of the goodness of his heart, Eugene views it as charity, or the idea that he can’t do it by himself. It takes a bit of pain, healing, and Christmas magic to show Eugene the error of his thoughts.

Whenever things started going right for him was usually when it all went wrong. He didn’t want to take that chance with Cullen.

I truly love this author’s way with words. Everything about this story worked for me. The characters were wonderful, the plot showcased the good in people, and the romance was a lovely slow to melting burn. This is definitely going on my reread holiday list.

NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews

Eugene and the Box of Nails is a sweet, heartwarming romance perfect for the holiday season. I enjoyed both characters and really liked getting to know Eugene. I found his ingenuity for turning scrapped materials into the makings of a home quite interesting. Cullen was a bit harder to get to know, but I did like what we gleaned of him from his interactions and quiet support of Eugene. I also liked how the author slowly revealed Eugene’s past to explain his ambitions and reasoning for doing things the way he did. This style of character development kept the focus on how Eugene always made the best of his situation, rather than encouraging the reader to feel sorry for the bad luck and setbacks he faced.

The romance between Eugene and Cullen was sweet and steady. Though their feelings developed quickly, I was really happy this felt like a solid relationship rather than a case of insta-love. The ending was filled to the brim with those warm fuzzy feelings, making a lovely cap to a really sweet holiday story. Eugene and the Box of Nails is definitely a short I’ll turn to next year when I’m in need of a simple story that delivers happiness.

*Reviewed for Alpha Book Club*

I received a free copy of this book to read and review for Wicked Reads.

Eugene and the Box of Nails is one of the longer stories in this year’s advent calendar that I’ve read. It’s also only one of two I’ve read twice this year because I loved Eugene’s hard-luck story and how, despite some pretty terrible incidents, he remains determined to achieve his goal and stays pretty positive most of the time. Eugene’s past reads as an example of the saying, “If it weren’t for bad luck, he wouldn’t have any luck at all.” Eugene is the underdog you want to root for because he doesn’t give up and throw in the towel when things get tough; no, he moves forward because he doesn’t see any other way to be.

While his limited finances had an impact on his choices, I loved the way Eugene was building his house – recycling building materials, doing the majority of the labor on his own, and using the land’s terrain in the design of the house rather than destroying the landscape. In fact, the whole tiny house movement fascinates me, so I loved that aspect of the story. That Eugene managed to attract some construction elves illustrated how nice of a guy he is and how more people in his life care about him than he realized. While I understand his motive behind wanting to do it all by himself, worrying about how his bad luck might ruin the good things he’s got, Eugene’s failure to communicate with Cullen nearly causes him to torpedo their fledgling relationship before his bad luck can do it. But for once, Eugene’s bad luck works in his favor and not only does he get his guy, he gets his home finished just how he wanted. Eugene and the Box of Nails was a heartwarming holiday story that I look forward to reading again next year.

Please note: My review is of an unedited, pre-release copy of this book and assumes that any errors were corrected prior to publication.