Book Title: A SEA VIEW CHRISTMAS
Character Name: Sarah Summers
How would you describe your family or your childhood?
My childhood with my four sisters was idyllic—until one of my sisters ran off with a scoundrel and my father died, leading to financial ruin and the loss of our home.
What was your greatest talent?
I am what is sometimes called (and not always kindly) a “managing woman.” I am the capable, practical, responsible sister who tries to hold what is left of our family together.
Significant other?
I was engaged once, but the man died before we could wed. Now, I consider myself a spinster, although I can’t seem to stop thinking about a certain handsome Scotsman….
Biggest challenge in relationships?
I used to say, “I have had one great love in my life and don’t expect to have another.” Now I regret saying that so often, and I regret discouraging the attentions of another worthy man.
Where do you live?
After losing our family home, we moved into our only remaining property—a house called Sea View in Sidmouth, on the south Devonshire coast. To make ends meet, we opened it as a guest house. I have been doing everything in my power to assure the venture succeeds to provide a livelihood for our family.
Do you have any enemies?
No, though my guilt over what I consider my part in our family’s downfall is a constant enemy to my peace.
How do you feel about the place where you are now? Is there something you are particularly attached to, or particularly repelled by, in this place?
I have become quite fond of Sidmouth and of our neighbors. I no longer pine for our former home, though I secretly pine for love and a home of my own.
Do you have children, pets, both, or neither?
Neither, though I long to have children one day.
What do you do for a living?
I manage our family’s guest house and have also taken up baking to save money.
Greatest disappointment?
My sister’s long estrangement and the deaths of my father and my betrothed.
Greatest source of joy?
My sisters!
What do you do to entertain yourself or have fun?
I enjoy baking, needlework, and gardening.
What is your greatest personal failing, in your view?
My desire to try to control things that are beyond my control.
What keeps you awake at night?
Thoughts of the handsome Scotsman and this internal debate: Would it be worth it to leave my family, to risk the success and security of the guest house for a husband and potential children—children who would rarely see their grandmother and aunts in Devonshire? Or should I stay and keep managing things here?
What is the most pressing problem you have at the moment?
I have promised to create an unforgettable Christmas at Sea View for my younger sister Georgiana, but my plans are complicated by the return of Callum Henshall, the dashing Scottish widower whose previous attentions I discouraged.
Is there something that you need or want that you don’t have? For yourself or for someone important to you?
I need a solution to my dilemma: how do I choose between duty to my family, and a second chance at love?
Why don’t you have it? What is in the way?
What’s in my way is my own desire to try to control everything. I am not in control. Never have been. I need to give up the reins and learn to trust God and other people. And to realize that I truly am free to love again.
A SEA VIEW CHRISTMAS by Julie Klassen
An On Devonshire Shores Novella
With a promise to her youngest sister, Sarah Summers declares that this year’s Christmas at Sea View will exceed all expectations. But the arrival of Callum Henshall–dashing Scottish widower and returning guest–blows a flurry of doubts into her mind. Sarah had discouraged his attentions before and is once again torn between attraction and duty. Yet even while she’s busy managing the family’s guest house, alluring thoughts of a second chance at love weave their way into her practical heart.
Meanwhile, seventeen-year-old Georgiana eagerly anticipates the exciting Christmas of her dreams after last year’s dull, disappointing holiday filled with endless chores. She enjoys all the promised parties, music, and dancing, but is taken by surprise when young love comes knocking. Does the festive romance of a Sea View Christmas hold the key to a happily-ever-after for both sisters?
Return to Sidmouth for this highly anticipated holiday companion novella to the Summers sisters’ lives and loves on the charming Devonshire shore.
Audiobook narrated by Elizabeth Jasicki.
Romance Historical | Christian | Romance Holiday [Bethany House Publishers, On Sale: September 2, 2025, Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 9780764242441 / eISBN: 9781493451258]
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About Julie Klassen
Julie Klassen loves all things Jane–Jane Eyre and Jane Austen. She worked in publishing for sixteen years and now writes full time. Three of her novels have won the Christy Award for Historical Romance. Her book, THE SILENT GOVERNESS, was also a finalist in the Minnesota Book Awards, ForeWord Reviews Book of the Year Awards, and Romance Writers of America’s RITA Awards. Julie is a graduate of the University of Illinois. She and her husband have two sons and live near St. Paul, Minnesota.
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