Tag Archives: Christmas

Maybe This Christmas? by Jill Steeples

Book Review, , ,
Overview

Title: Maybe This Christmas?
Author: Jill Steeples
Rating Out of 5: 3.5 (Liked this)
My Bookshelves: Christmas, Contemporary, Contemporary romance
Pace: Slow
Format: eBook, Novel
Year: 2018

Thoughts

I did find Beth a little bit whiney in this story. In fact, at the beginning, I found her a little bit difficult to deal with. But, as the story unfolded, she kind of grew on me. Slowly but surely. And then, once I started to actually enjoy her as a character, it became a whole lot easier to enjoy this novel. Probably because once she grew on me she was also a little bit less whiney and a lot more relatable. Which for me is always important in a character.

I was expecting this to be a sunshine-grump trope romance. Beth was obviously the sunshine for all of her whininess – after all, she is still incredibly optimistic throughout the entire tale. Rocco on the other hand wasn’t quite the grump I expected him to be. He was still a total grump and not even remotely positive. But I kind of liked this really obvious vein of sweetness throughout his interactions with Beth. It made me enjoy reading this novel a lot more than I thought I would, like I said, it took me a while to respond to Beth, but I found it pretty easy to respond to Rocco.

Although this story is listed as a Christmas romance. I really didn’t find anything Christmassy about it at all. Other than the fact that it is based at Christmas time. Beyond that, there were no feelings of Christmas or the festive season throughout the story. Honestly, this tale could have taken place at any point in the year, and it still would’ve worked. An enjoyable romance, but not one that I would reread to get me into the festive spirit.

This might not have been one of my favourite novels, but it was very enjoyable. And I particularly liked how it all ended with all of the weddings and happiness and new beginnings in the air.

<- More contemporaryMore contemporary romance ->

Image source: Booktopia

Just Date and See by Portia MacIntosh

Book Review, , , ,
Overview

Title: Just Date and See
Author: Portia MacIntosh
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Chic lit, Christmas, Contemporary, Contemporary romance
Pace: Medium
Format: eBook, Novel
Year: 2022

Thoughts

This is an incredibly cute and laugh out loud kind of romcom story. It is filled with many, many moments of misunderstandings and confusions. Ones that I enjoyed ridiculously and have made me add a whole lot of MacIntosh to my TBR. The fact that this was a festive, Christmas story filled with family mayhem and stupidity just added to my enjoyment. It’s a silly, funny, and sweet tale that isn’t just about falling in love and romance. But also accepting your family and all of their chaos – particularly when some of that chaos stems from misunderstandings.

Rocco and Billie work incredibly well as a couple together. I love all of their shenanigans and high jinks throughout the group dating adventures that they go on. Actually, I love all of the shenanigans and high jinks that Billie manages to get herself into without Rocco. When he’s added to the mix, it’s even more hilarious. In particular, I loved the scone scene and how they were able to constantly orchestrate chaos. Both meaningfully and unintentionally. Add into the group dynamic Billie’s misunderstanding with Leila… and it was honestly comedy gold. I was smiling and grinning throughout this couple’s slow graduation to their happily ever after.

I can’t imagine my whole family showing up uninvited to stay over Christmas. I mean, I love them dearly, but I need to mentally prepare myself for extended periods of time with, well, anyone. The chaos of family where all boundaries are essentially removed? That’s a whole other level of emotional overstimulation. Billie just seems to fling herself from chaotic moment to chaotic moment throughout this. First with her mother, then her sister, then her father and stepmother… and then into the world of Rocco and Leila. I was actually expecting Billie to completely lose her mind and have a huge argument with her whole family, but it didn’t actually end up like that. It was far fuzzier and sweeter. Completely opposite to what I thought I wanted, but apparently EXACTLY what I needed for the happily ever after.

Again, most of the chaos and shenanigans in this story are kind of caused by Billie not thinking things through and the misconceptions that she has about other people. Some of these are boundaries, but other moments are just pure jumping to conclusions. And, as I mentioned before, I jumped to a few conclusions of my own as I thought I knew how this story would unfold. Which made the two twists with both Rocco and Kenny towards the end of the story even more brilliant. I didn’t see them coming, but I definitely enjoyed them, and it’s made me even more obsessed with MacIntosh.

<- It’s Not You, It’s ThemLife’s a Beach ->

Image source: Goodreads

Feliz Chanukah! by Meg Bellamy

Book Review, , , ,
Overview

Title: Feliz Chanukah!
Author: Meg Bellamy
In: Worst Holiday Ever (Miscellaneous)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Christmas, Contemporary, Contemporary romance
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Year: 2018

Thoughts

Ana Maria’s family is fun, fantastic and truly quirky. I love the idea of a big family and all of the shenanigans that follows. The fact that there’s a petulant cousin, drunk uncle, petty aunt… it is just wonderfully brilliant. And gives a wonderful feeling of family, with all of the silly nonsense that that can entail. Although I loved this storyline and the insanity of family, Ana Maria’s cousin is more than just petulant… she’s severely unhinged. As in painfully so. The way that others stand up to her though was kind of fun.

This is truly a festivus story. A story about the ways that family gatherings can be intense. Without actually focusing on the religious and political connotations of this time of year. I kind of like the idea of having a celebration in the festive season that pulls in all of the different faiths and practices. Even if I know nothing beyond my Australian version of Christmas…

This wasn’t one of those stories that was high octane or driven in any way – rather it was an enjoyable story about bringing a guy home to meet your family. Knowing that there will be chaos and riding the waves of it anyway.

<- Thankful in PerditionWorst Holiday Ever ->

Image source: Fantastic Fiction

Holiday Swap by Maggie Knox

Book Review, , ,
Overview

Title: The Holiday Swap
Author: Maggie Knox
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Christmas, Contemporary, Contemporary romance
Pace: Slow
Format: eBook, Novel
Year: 2021

Thoughts

This is an incredibly cute and easy novel to read. It’s one of those fun Christmas adventures that leaves you smiling and laughing, feeling incredibly happy and at ease with the world. Not only is it a cute romance, but it’s also a sister story which I always think is amazing. There are high jinks and shenanigans abound. Also, the fact that both sisters manage to find their happily ever after and balance in a space they just weren’t expecting.

I love how both Cass and Claire are able to find their own, better versions of happiness. Life is all about balance, and these two are able to find that again in their sister swap moment. Alright, as siblings are wont to do, they also harshly judge each other’s decisions and find a way to make things go completely hectic and haywire. But, still, they are able to really stop and think about their own lives and figure out what it is that’s making them so unhappy. I think that Christmas is a time of year that these self-reflections are a lot more poignant, at least they always have been for me.

This is a very Hallmarkesque feeling of a story. It has high jinks and everyone falling happily ever after. It also left me smiling and laughing quite a bit throughout and was an incredibly cute way to spend a few hours. The fact that you have the big city sister and the country town sister both realising that they’ve made some pretty big assumptions just made it all that much better. Christmas, snow, and fairy tale romances just tie off the bow in the Hallmark feels.

Although the romance and the shenanigans are wonderful in this book, it’s the sisters that I love the most. Both Cass and Claire manage to stand up for the other one in a way that is a little bit brutal, but also kind of brilliant. They completely shut down those who they see as being detrimental to their twins’ happiness. Which, even after I finished this book, are the moments that truly stick with me.

<- All I Want for ChristmasMore Maggie Knox ->

Image source: Amazon

Worst Holiday Ever by Miscellaneous

Book Review, , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Overview

Title: Worst Holiday Ever: A Family Drama Romance Anthology
Author: Eva Moore, Adrienne Bell, Kilby Blades, Kari Lemor, Preslaysa Williams, Marie Booth, R.L. Merrill, Erin St. Charles & Meg Bellamy
In: Worst Holiday Ever (Miscellaneous)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Christmas, Contemporary, Contemporary romance, Short story collections
Pace: Medium
Format: Anthology
Year: 2018

Thoughts

This was one of the best holiday collections that I’ve read in a while. It included a whole lot of humour and romance, shenanigans, and high jinks. What I loved most about it though is that it really helped to capture the whole holiday feeling. The way that the holiday season is always chaotic and goes a little bit awry. But there’s always a silver lining if you look hard enough.

I only knew one author in this collection when I added it to my ereader – Kilby Blades. Now I have an absolutely stacked TBR in my ereader from all of the fantastic new authors I got to discover throughout this collection. I always love a good collection of stories that starts with an author that I know and love, and then just… expands my horizons. I don’t think I’ll ever get through all of the lovely books on my shelves. But there is so much wonderous potential…

Every story in this collection is chaotic and kind of humorous, poking fun at the challenges of the holiday season. But they all have very different themes. Everyone does highlight that the worst of the holiday season comes from the chaos of family. For some the love also comes from there, for others, it comes from elsewhere… the range within this collection is brilliant and made me love it just that much more.

This was a fantastic collection of short stories set around the chaos of family in the holiday season. Definitely a collection I’ll read again and again at that time of year. If only to remind myself that maybe my own family isn’t so bad after all…

<- Feliz Chanukah!Decked Out ->

Image source: Fantastic Fiction

Santa in a Kilt by Donna Kauffman

Book Review, , , , ,
Overview

Title: Santa in a Kilt
Author: Donna Kauffman
Series: Hot Scot Trilogy #3
In: Unwrapped (Erin McCarthy, Donna Kauffman & Kate Angell)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Christmas, Contemporary, Contemporary romance, Scottish romance
Pace: Fast
Format: eBook, Novella
Year: 2011

Thoughts

The title of this novella is incredibly misleading, since there’s absolutely no Santa. In fact, there’s barely a mention of Christmas. It’s the time of year, but there is really no other relevance to the storyline there. The kilt part though? That’s definitely a BIG part of this story. And quite a yummy part if I’m being honest…

I thought Shay would be a lot more resilient to his eventual succumbing to the relationship with Kira. I mean, he had all sorts of resistance and well meaning intentions at the beginning. And I honestly thought that he would stuff up their burgeoning romance before the eventual happily ever after. In fact, everything about Shay was yummy, and since he didn’t epically stuff up, there wasn’t much to NOT like about him.

Kira was kind of what I’ve always wanted to be in a relationship… accepting. She was happy to take what she could and just, accept who and what Shay is. I try to do this in all my relationships, but must admit I’m not always successful. This was a beautiful way to round out the Hot Scot Trilogy, even if I haven’t actually read the first two books yet… something I’ll try to remedy soon.

<- Blue ChristmasSnow Angel ->

Image source: Amazon

Snow Angel by Kate Angell

Book Review, , , ,
Overview

Title: Snow Angel
Author: Kate Angell
In: Unwrapped (Erin McCarthy, Donna Kauffman & Kate Angell)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Christmas, Contemporary, Contemporary romance
Pace: Medium
Format: eBook, Novella
Year: 2011

Thoughts

Considering this novella started with a “three years ago” prologue, I knew this was going to be a reunion story of some kind. And I knew that it was going to be incredibly cute and adorable. Because these stories always are. And it was in a collection with two other completely adorable Christmas romance novellas. But I was kind of surprised by just how cute this story was.

I’m not sure why, but there is something that is just ridiculously cute about snow. And Christmas. And snow when you’re inside by the fire and candlelight… having such a gorgeous backdrop to this novella heightened the romance of the moment. And, it rounded out the Unwrapped collection beautifully. Snow Angel was a very sweet and classically romantic story that left me smiling and feeling all warm and gooey inside.

Allied and Aiden are a fantastic couple. They’re both so damn sweet and accepting of each other. And I like that there is a bit of build up to getting to know one another. The instant attraction is there, but it’s the more they get to know each other, the more they fall for each other.

<- Santa in a KiltUnwrapped ->

Image source: Amazon

Blue Christmas by Erin McCarthy

Book Review, , , ,
Overview

Title: Blue Christmas
Author: Erin McCarthy
In: Unwrapped (Erin McCarthy, Donna Kauffman & Kate Angell)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Christmas, Contemporary, Contemporary romance
Pace: Medium
Format: eBook, Novella
Year: 2011

Thoughts

I always love a good romance by Erin McCarthy. They’re always light, cute and just an incredibly easy read. This novella was no different. But with a lovely Christmas twist. I do love that the female was the grouchy, Christmas hater too. With a very happy and cheerful male lead instead.

I don’t always love the idea of a grouchy grinch lead. But something about Blue’s sass won me over from the very beginning. She was just pessimistic enough to be interesting, but not so much that I found her overbearing stereotypical and painful. Likewise, Christian was incredibly and almost painfully cheerful, but not quite over that line that made you want to smack him one. After all, pretty much no one is that damn happy.

Although I totally guessed how this novella would end, it still took a few extra twists that I didn’t quite expect. Plus, I loved that although this was a bit of an insta-love tale, it didn’t end with a declaration of love. Rather it was a declaration of intent and trying to make their relationship work. Far more tenable and realistic in my view.

<- UnwrappedSanta in a Kilt ->

Image source: Amazon

Unwrapped by Erin McCarthy, Donna Kauffman & Kate Angell

Book Review, , , , , , ,
Overview

Title: Unwrapped
Author: Erin McCarthy, Donna Kauffman & Kate Angell
In: Unwrapped (Erin McCarthy, Donna Kauffman & Kate Angell)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect
My Bookshelves: Christmas, Contemporary, Contemporary romance, Short story collections
Pace: Medium
Format: Anthology, eBook
Year: 2011

Thoughts

This was a fantastic anthology of cutsie Christmas romances. All three novellas were fun and adorable, incredibly fun and ridiculously yummy. I loved the winter feeling of each of the stories and the imagery of snow falling around.

Each of these novellas were fun and light, with just enough drama to make them interesting. Plus, each and every one had a great little happy ending. One that left me with a happy smile on my face.

What a great collection of authors, old and new. I love a good Christmas romance, and the length of these novellas made it perfect to read just before bed without keeping me up too late.

<- Snow AngelBlue Christmas ->

Image source: Amazon

Once Upon a Duke by Erica Ridley

Book Review, , , ,
Overview

Title: Once Upon a Duke
Author: Erica Ridley
Series: 12 Dukes of Christmas #1
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Christmas, Historical romance, Regency romance
Pace: Medium
Format: eBook, Novel
Year: 2018

Thoughts

I was a bit tentative to read this at first – I mean, a story set around Christmas. And dukes and… yeah, it just sounded kind of kitschy. But, whilst it was fairly predictable and stereotypical, it was epically fun and special. The whole idea of the spirit of Christmas was woven throughout the storyline beautifully. And, it was incredibly fun to find some of those little easter eggs of Christmas tales that Ridley managed to weave through the storyline.

One of my favourite easter eggs was most definitely the partridge in a pear tree… I can only assume that the other 12 days of Christmas presents will find their way into the rest of the books about the 12 dukes. It may not be Christmas time at the moment – but that carol has definitely been echoing in my head since I read the name of the series…

I like that Noelle (and I JUST got that Christmas name), is focused on community and love. She is such a sweet lead, and if I find that a bit of an unrealistic characterization, it is still just beautiful. After all, she is the one who falls in love with a humbug and decides to spend the rest of her life with him… not a choice for the faint of heart.

This is a great second chance love story. The fact that it is set in a village lovingly called Christmas and features a humbug and woman named Noelle… well, it just makes it all that much cuter. I might have found it a little bit too sickly cute at times. But, overall, I think that this was incredibly enjoyable and a nice, fun and light read.

<- Making MerryKiss of a Duke ->

Image source: Goodreads