Tag: holiday romance

Book Review: One Small Secret (Gift-Wrapped Romance) by Esther Hatch

GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★
Genre: Contemporary Holiday Romance
Length: 214 pages
Author: Esther Hatch
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: November 13th, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Ruben Palmer is on every woman’s Christmas wish list. Except mine.

I grew up with him and bested him in practically everything we did together–debate, grades, mini-golf, you name it. So I’ve built an immunity to his boy-next-door charm. Sure, sometimes I might accidentally type his name into my search engine, but his dimples, hotel empire and thirst-trap photos don’t tempt me. I’ve got my sights set on earning my way to the top of the Palmer Hotel empire, and nothing is going to get in my way.

Until my step-sister leaves her secret toddler with me before skipping town for three months. Now suddenly everyone thinks he’s mine, and instead of powering my way to the top, I’m struggling to not get fired. And instead of Ruben staying on the executive floor where he belongs, he’s invading my apartment, breaking dates with starlets, and looking disappointed that I decided to settle down with anyone except him.

But I know Ruben, and Ruben doesn’t settle down. So there’s no way I’m giving him my heart. Not even for Christmas.

WELL.

This wasn’t all bad, truly. I just feel like there was a whole lot going on for 200 pages and I think I got off on the wrong foot with the way the entire plot was set-up. It left me with more questions than answers.

There were a lot of good swoony moments and the kissing scenes were fantastic. I did like the second half more and I adored Ruben the most. He really did roll with the punches and had some of my favorite love confession scenes. I liked all of the holiday content and office place romance. There’s good banter and it’s witty. While things didn’t fully click for me, I look forward to more contemporaries from this author.

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary Holiday Romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: parental abandonment

Instagram || Goodreads || The StoryGraph

Book Review: A Sugar Creek Christmas (Sugar Creek #1) by Jenny B. Jones

GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★
Audience: Contemporary Holiday Romance
Length: 196 pages
Author: Jenny B. Jones
Publisher: Sweet Pea Productions
Release Date: December 1st, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Sometimes all love needs is a second chance.


Morning television show darling Emma Sutton has just been fired. The only way to get her job back is to find a holiday story to warm the coldest heart. So when her hometown of Sugar Creek, Arkansas, needs a Christmas event planner, Emma moves back, sure her story lies in the town’s desire to become a tourist’s holiday wonderland. The plan is perfect—until Emma meets her new boss.

Charming, handsome Noah Kincaid isn’t just Sugar Creek’s newest mayor. He’s also Emma’s ex-fiancé. Ten years ago Emma left Noah her ring and a goodbye note, but it’s haunted her ever since. The last thing Noah wants to do is work with the woman who broke his heart, but Emma’s desperate to prove to him that her bah-humbug ways won’t interfere with her work.

Emma finds it’s more than the mistletoe drawing her back to Noah. Whatever they had is clearly not over, but Noah’s kisses can’t protect Emma from a past that won’t leave her alone. As the snow falls and the trees glisten, love will come to Sugar Creek. But will it come in time to make all of Emma’s Christmas dreams come true?

TOO FAST.

I know this was a short book, but things can still be well paced. And this one left me reeling with how quickly things were moving. I don’t feel like the relationship had the necessary communication it needed before they got back together. Emma LEFT and Noah welcomed her back so dang quickly.

There’s lots of holiday cheer and a few quirky grandma’s to boot. If you’re looking for something quick, that has a light faith vein and a second chance romance, maaaybe this is for you!

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary Holiday Romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: mentions of losing a mother to cancer

Instagram || Goodreads || The StoryGraph

Book Review: Lord Farleigh and Miss Frost (Clairvoir Castle Romance #4) by Sally Britton

GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Historical Holiday Romance
Length: 253 pages
Author: Sally Britton
Publisher: Pink Citrus Books
Release Date: November 21st, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

An Irish miss and a duke’s son have little in common, but Christmas at the castle has a way of bringing the most unlikely people together.

Isleen Frost wishes her family had stayed in Dublin for Christmas but understands it would have been folly to decline an invitation to the Duke of Montfort’s Christmastide house party. Isleen refuses to allow the opulent castle and powerful duke to impress her. But the duke’s eldest son, Lord Farleigh, is another matter entirely.

Raised as the heir to a duke, Simon Dinard, Lord Farleigh, has learned to project a calm self-assurance despite an inner fear he will never be as confident a leader as his father. When a friendly wager and a spirited Irish lady challenge all his unspoken thoughts, he determines to prove her wrong—and ignore the growing attraction between them.

Christmas celebrations at the castle are always full of surprises, but Isleen and Simon are not at all prepared for the feelings the season inspires between them. An Irish miss and a duke’s son have no business falling in love. But the magic of sleigh rides, snow-covered hills, and mistletoe might change their minds…

This novel is a sweet Regency romance and can be read as a stand-alone, though readers of the previous books will enjoy seeing old friends again.

SWEET FOR THE SEASON.

Another enjoyable read in this series. I’ve been saving this book for the holiday’s and it did not disappoint! I like how easy these books feel and give off the cozy historical romance vibe that will make you smile.

I adore this whole family and love all of the castle adventures. There’s cute moments between the main couple, Isleen and Simon. I liked their banter and their willingness to admit wrongs and how entirely cute they were together.

It’s a sweet and quick read that if you’ve liked the rest of the series you’ll love this one too.

Overall audience notes:

  • Historical Holiday Romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: low

Instagram || Goodreads || The StoryGraph

Book Review: The Rules of Mistletoe by Taylor Epperson

GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★
Audience: Contemporary Holiday Romance
Length: 203 pages
Author: Taylor Epperson
Publisher: Self published
Release Date: October 5th, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

She’s got a list of rules and he’s about to break them all.

Rules for my future boyfriend (husband):

3. He always opens doors for me
6. He has to lean (like in While You Were Sleeping)
8. He has a good relationship with his mother
11. He loves watching romcoms and thrillers (because I have excellent taste in movies across a variety of genres)

I, Holly Nelson, have been dreaming about the perfect romance my entire life. You know the kind: guy and girl have an adorable meet cute and slowly, over the course of the movie, fall madly in love. I have spent hours of my life watching romcoms and I now have a list of qualities and rules for my perfect man.

I finally found him, but I haven’t figured out how to get him to notice me. Instead, I’m stuck with Drew Rossi.

Andrew (Drew) Rossi doesn’t fit a single item on my list and yet he’s coming home with me for Christmas, posing as my boyfriend. He breaks every single one of my rules, well, except for maybe #5, because he does have an arm full of tattoos. But Drew is not my perfect guy, and we both know it.

This fake relationship started because of a misunderstanding, but when Drew agrees to help me land my dream man & he agrees to follow my rules, I reluctantly agree. We don’t actually like each other, so what could go wrong?

FLOUNDERED.

I wanted to love this, instead I really struggled with multiple aspects and unexplained plot points that were never resolved. Why the list? Why did we never get more true details about it? Those are the beginning of the questions I have.

There’s plenty of holiday cheer and I like seeing big families come together for the holidays. I will say there were a few cute moments between the main couple and it is dual POV which is always a nice bonus in a romance.

The third act aspects also didn’t quite make sense. I felt like there was an imbalance of “heavy” topics and the “light Christmas rom-com” vibes that I thought this book was going for.

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary Holiday Romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: low
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: recounting loss of a mother, mentions of cheating (in the past)

Instagram || Goodreads || The StoryGraph