sblyon's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 ** I love Christmas and novellas are quick reads to enjoy a fun story. While none of the three stories included were bad, they were not overly exciting or amazing either.
allingoodtime's review against another edition
5.0
Oops, I did it again. So, I happen to love Kate Pearce and Marina Adair. I remembered that I didn’t have the best relationship with Diana Palmer’s books, but just couldn’t pass this compilation up when 2/3 of the stories would be by favorites of mine. After reading the first story in this book, Mistletoe Cowboy by Diana Palmer, I decided to do the same thing as last time I read a compilation in which she was involved…save the review of her story for last.
Blame it on the Mistletoe
(Sweet Plains novella)
by Marina Adair
I’ve actually had this author’s Tucker’s Crossing on my TBR for about 6 years. Then, more than a year ago I bought the book. It was on sale, she’s a favorite author of mine, I’ve been wanting to read it forever, etc. Still haven’t read the darn thing! After reading this short story, which I guess would be a book #2 in the Sweet Plains series, I want to read that story even more. I was hooked from the beginning and rooting for Faith and Noah to find their way to one another. They are both amazingly kind characters, Noah with some added swagger. Both with much added baggage. I felt as though the author packed a lot into this story without bogging things down. The chemistry between Noah and Faith was off the charts, whether they were flirting or telling each other their secrets. The perfect Christmas story.
~ 5 stars
Mistletoe Detour
(Morgan Valley novella)
by Kate Pearce
This author always pulls me in and holds me tight. On top of my love of her writing, this story starts off with some awesome forced proximity and continues with a bit of fake relationship. I was in heaven! Ted and Veronica are so sweet together in the beginning, their chemistry simmering under the surface while they’re both unsure if they should admit what they’re feeling. That chemistry flames up once they realize their feelings aren’t one-sided. Even with the passion, the sweetness is still there. Both Veronica and Ted are such good people who deserve the best. I love that Veronica grew up in Morgan Valley and had many connections to the town, as well as her and Ted having gone to school together, so the story felt natural even when it was moving quickly. I didn’t want this one to end.
~ 5 stars
Mistletoe Cowboy
by Diana Palmer
As I’ve mentioned, I am not a fan of this author. I gave some of her full-length books a try years back and just had too many issues with her writing. Trying to keep an open mind going into this story, I was pleasantly surprised for the first little bit. There was something to her writing style I still found quite plodding and simple without a good flow, but issues I’ve had with her story content in the past (misogyny, racisim, etc.) weren’t so prevalent. In fact, it almost seemed as though the author was overcompensating to almost a preachy degree about some hot-button issues.
Don’t you hate when you are reading and can pinpoint the exact moment a character you found to be smart and kind turns into an unthinking and selfish idiot? And then doubles down on their stupidity as the story progresses. Seriously, I went from liking Katy to flat out hating the woman. I didn’t see how the author could redeem her (in my eyes she never did) or how her daughter or Parker could ever look at her the same. On top of it all, there was a lot of repetition (especially for a short story) and inconsistencies. Please guys, remind me to skip her stories if I ever get another compilation with her involved. I just can’t read her stuff without getting mad.
~1 star
What I usually do when rating a compilation is take the average rating of all of the stories and use that. I feel that is unfair to Marina Adair and Kate Pearce to do that since I loved their stories so much. So, instead, I’m giving this 5 stars and pretending the Diana Palmer story wasn’t included.
**I received an ARC of this book courtesy of Net Galley and the publisher. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and given freely**
You can find more of my reviews on my blog, All In Good Time.
Blame it on the Mistletoe
(Sweet Plains novella)
by Marina Adair
I’ve actually had this author’s Tucker’s Crossing on my TBR for about 6 years. Then, more than a year ago I bought the book. It was on sale, she’s a favorite author of mine, I’ve been wanting to read it forever, etc. Still haven’t read the darn thing! After reading this short story, which I guess would be a book #2 in the Sweet Plains series, I want to read that story even more. I was hooked from the beginning and rooting for Faith and Noah to find their way to one another. They are both amazingly kind characters, Noah with some added swagger. Both with much added baggage. I felt as though the author packed a lot into this story without bogging things down. The chemistry between Noah and Faith was off the charts, whether they were flirting or telling each other their secrets. The perfect Christmas story.
~ 5 stars
Mistletoe Detour
(Morgan Valley novella)
by Kate Pearce
This author always pulls me in and holds me tight. On top of my love of her writing, this story starts off with some awesome forced proximity and continues with a bit of fake relationship. I was in heaven! Ted and Veronica are so sweet together in the beginning, their chemistry simmering under the surface while they’re both unsure if they should admit what they’re feeling. That chemistry flames up once they realize their feelings aren’t one-sided. Even with the passion, the sweetness is still there. Both Veronica and Ted are such good people who deserve the best. I love that Veronica grew up in Morgan Valley and had many connections to the town, as well as her and Ted having gone to school together, so the story felt natural even when it was moving quickly. I didn’t want this one to end.
~ 5 stars
Mistletoe Cowboy
by Diana Palmer
As I’ve mentioned, I am not a fan of this author. I gave some of her full-length books a try years back and just had too many issues with her writing. Trying to keep an open mind going into this story, I was pleasantly surprised for the first little bit. There was something to her writing style I still found quite plodding and simple without a good flow, but issues I’ve had with her story content in the past (misogyny, racisim, etc.) weren’t so prevalent. In fact, it almost seemed as though the author was overcompensating to almost a preachy degree about some hot-button issues.
Don’t you hate when you are reading and can pinpoint the exact moment a character you found to be smart and kind turns into an unthinking and selfish idiot? And then doubles down on their stupidity as the story progresses. Seriously, I went from liking Katy to flat out hating the woman. I didn’t see how the author could redeem her (in my eyes she never did) or how her daughter or Parker could ever look at her the same. On top of it all, there was a lot of repetition (especially for a short story) and inconsistencies. Please guys, remind me to skip her stories if I ever get another compilation with her involved. I just can’t read her stuff without getting mad.
~1 star
What I usually do when rating a compilation is take the average rating of all of the stories and use that. I feel that is unfair to Marina Adair and Kate Pearce to do that since I loved their stories so much. So, instead, I’m giving this 5 stars and pretending the Diana Palmer story wasn’t included.
**I received an ARC of this book courtesy of Net Galley and the publisher. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and given freely**
You can find more of my reviews on my blog, All In Good Time.
jennie_reads's review against another edition
3.0
What a great festive collection to get readers in the spirit of the season!
Mistletoe Cowboy
This one was, unfortunately, my least favorite of the novellas in this collection. Parker, a horse whisperer, and Katy, a single mother and widow, find a connection with each other. I enjoyed reading about Parker and Katy's daughter Teddy. I liked their relationship with each other. Katy, however, just kind of rubbed me the wrong way. I just didn't connect with her. I also found that there was a lot of repetition. I feel like information was repeated several times and it just got annoying. I've enjoyed other things I've read from Diana Palmer, so I was surprised that I wasn't a fan of this novella.
Blame it on the Mistletoe
I liked this novella in the collection! Noah is back home for Christmas at the request of his brother. Faith is has been trying to make up for her parents' mistakes by being a secret elf around town. When her power goes out, she calls a friend for help and Noah is the one who comes to rescue her! I liked Noah and Faith so much. I liked them together and I liked their relationships with the other characters in the story. I really liked both of their relationships with Faith's brother. I just wanted this to be longer. I wanted more of the story to make it feel more rewarding!
Mistletoe Detour
I think this one was my favorite of the collection! Veronica and her pig Bacon are on the run from her ex-husband. When her car breaks down on her way to her uncle's farm, she is picked up by a former classmate. When Ted and Veronica reconnect, will there be more than friendship in their future? This novella felt like a complete story. I didn't need more and I didn't feel like it was just repeating a bunch of the same information. I loved both Ted and Veronica and I really wanted to know more about all the other characters mentioned. I need to read more from Kate Pearce to get to know her writing more.
*eARC provided in exchange for an honest review*
Mistletoe Cowboy
This one was, unfortunately, my least favorite of the novellas in this collection. Parker, a horse whisperer, and Katy, a single mother and widow, find a connection with each other. I enjoyed reading about Parker and Katy's daughter Teddy. I liked their relationship with each other. Katy, however, just kind of rubbed me the wrong way. I just didn't connect with her. I also found that there was a lot of repetition. I feel like information was repeated several times and it just got annoying. I've enjoyed other things I've read from Diana Palmer, so I was surprised that I wasn't a fan of this novella.
Blame it on the Mistletoe
I liked this novella in the collection! Noah is back home for Christmas at the request of his brother. Faith is has been trying to make up for her parents' mistakes by being a secret elf around town. When her power goes out, she calls a friend for help and Noah is the one who comes to rescue her! I liked Noah and Faith so much. I liked them together and I liked their relationships with the other characters in the story. I really liked both of their relationships with Faith's brother. I just wanted this to be longer. I wanted more of the story to make it feel more rewarding!
Mistletoe Detour
I think this one was my favorite of the collection! Veronica and her pig Bacon are on the run from her ex-husband. When her car breaks down on her way to her uncle's farm, she is picked up by a former classmate. When Ted and Veronica reconnect, will there be more than friendship in their future? This novella felt like a complete story. I didn't need more and I didn't feel like it was just repeating a bunch of the same information. I loved both Ted and Veronica and I really wanted to know more about all the other characters mentioned. I need to read more from Kate Pearce to get to know her writing more.
*eARC provided in exchange for an honest review*
storysara's review against another edition
4.0
This book contains 3 Christmas themed romances all set in small towns. The Diana Palmer novella is Western themed, but the other two are set in California (ie - no cowboys!). My favourite by a mile was Marina Adair’s novella, which has everything you could wish for in a holiday romance as well as her trademark quirky humour, which made it a delight to read. This is one I’ll definitely reread several times! I have to say that I did struggle a bit to feel an emotional connection with the characters in the other two novellas, so probably won’t be looking for more from those authors. Having said that, they were still enjoyable enough to stick with and finish.
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