I picked up this book for a couple of reasons. One, I was looking for all the holiday romances I could get my hands on, two I say that RaeAnne Thayne recommended this book, and third it had an adorable dog on the cover. I was super excited to check it out.
I love enemies to lovers troupes and this one sounded like it had a little bit of a You’ve Got Mail vibe going on so I was obviously looking forward to something like this to help get me in the Christmas spirit.
I noticed that it was part of a series but I also know that often in books like these, series mostly means reappearances of other characters from previous books rather than having the previous been play a larger part in the overall story. So I dove right into the holiday cheer and romance!
Summary
Fans of RaeAnne Thayne and Debbie Macomber will love this USA Today bestselling author’s latest holiday romance about enemies-to-lovers who fall for each other in a small Massachusetts coastal town.
Evangeline Christmas will do anything to save her year-round Christmas store, Holiday House, when high-powered real-estate developer Caine Elliot uses his money and influence to push through his competing property next door. When her last desperate attempt to stop him fails, she gambles everything on a proposition she prays the handsome, blue-eyed player can’t refuse.
Caine agrees to Evie’s bargain because how hard can it be to fulfill three wishes on the Angel Tree at Holiday House? The wishes have him reliving the Christmases of his past and taking part in the holiday festivities of Christmas present. But just when he begins to believe Evie might be his Christmas future, dark secrets from his past are revealed.
Will the last wish on the Angel Tree be enough to give Caine and Evie the happy ending they deserve? (summary from Goodreads)
Review
I don’t know that I loved this one as much as I have loved RaeAnne Thayne’s holiday romances but it wasn’t too bad! I will say though, that I did feel a little lost in the larger plot. I think there was a lot of backstory that I was missing out on especially when it came to the Gallagher family. I felt like I was missing a big chunk of important things when it came to how the family was related to the Elliots and what the long standing feud was all about. But I tried to mostly skip over all of those and focus instead on the romance.
I thought Evie and Caine had get chemistry and there was just the right amount of steam. It wasn’t at all trashy and it didn’t become the focus of the book at all, but I loved the sexual tension between both of them. I thought it made the story believable and they felt like a real life couple. It was a wonderful enemies to lovers story/romance.
One of the things I had a hard time with though was the ghosts element. I don’t know that I loved the supernatural elements of the story and frankly I didn’t think they added anything to the story. It felt distracting for me and it kept reminding me that I didn’t really know the full story of the Harmony Harbor series so I just had a hard time getting through those parts.
I also felt the story took a darker turn a little too late in the story. It suddenly went from a fluffy fun holiday romance to something darker and unexpected with stalking and attacks. I just think the story could have stood on its own without that part. I had a hard time with that part of the story. But overall it was fun read and I would recommend it to fans of RaeAnne Thayne, it was good but not great in my opinion.
Book Info and Rating
Mass Market Paperback, 477 pages
Published October 1st 2019 by Forever
ISBN1538731711 (ISBN13: 9781538731710)
Review copy provided by personal collection. All opinions are my own and in no way influenced.
Rating: 3 stars
Genre: romance, holiday romance
The Lit Bitch 