Shawna
3.5 rounded up.
I really enjoy the town of mistletoe and I'm glad there.is a new trilogy about some of the characters that were loveable in the first three books.
I enjoy Codi Hall's writing, and I liked the banter and the storyline here. Both MCs were likeable, and I enjoyed that the FMC was plus sized, however I didn't love how.often it was brought up. Some mentions were important to the plot, but it got really repetitive. Also, the MMC although sweet, thoughtful and ambitious has a streak of toxic masculinity that if outside of the pages of a book, wouldn't be attractive.
3.5 rounded down
There are things I really liked about this book and other things that really bothered me.
The main thing that annoyed me was it was running parallel to Book 1. So there was a lot of overlap and I knew how certain things were going to unfold. This really took me out of the story.
I loved the main FMC. I found her very likeable. She has a quick wit and there was really good banter between her and the MMC.
3.5 rounded up.
I really enjoyed Sam and Wren's story. High school sweethearts, second chance romance. No huge miscommunication as a misunderstanding.
I don't love tropes that deal with pregnancy, planned/surprise/trap, but the love story between these two was sweet.
It was the best spice in any of the mistletoe series in my opinion.
It also ran in a parallel timeline to books one and two, but because they weren't main side characters in those books, the overlap wasn't as bothersome as it was in book two.
I don't know if this is poetry, quotes or a mix of the two. All I know for sure was that it was a beautiful read.
3.75 rounded up.
This was a nice, quick guide that went over what the Finnish do to rank amongst the happiest people in the world.
I like how the word happiness doesn't exactly match the vibe they have, it seems more like authenticity and contentment.
It really helped enforce why certain things I do bring more contentment than others and that happiness doesn't need to manifest as smiles and laughing, but more with trust and peace.
It was fun to get a look into another culture and take a few pieces with me to be mindful of going forward.
3.75 rounded up.
I loved the premise of the book, and the couple was a lot more likeable than last year's The Christmas Wager.
It was nice that it was a romance, but there was a focus and growth and relearning to be yourself after a big life change.
I liked how it was obvious the characters were being themselves when with each other.
A sweet story for the holidays.
Super cute affirmation book. I loved it.
The affirmations were great and everything is better with cats.
I liked this book for ideas with themes, and to really see different ways to experience yoga nidra, however I didn't love all the scripts. I think it will be a very good tool to help me with my own script writing, as it really helped me understand what parts of the nidras I enjoy the most.
Nice paired down version of the Sutras. Explained very well and great references to day to day life. I really appreciate the journalling cues at the end of each section. Really helps put things in perspective.
It wasn't what I expected, although I am not sure I know exactly what I expected. Basically, when I asked for it for Christmas, I didn't know it was a quote a day book. I love Andy Cohen, he is my absolute favorite, so I appreciate some of his little stories. But I think I wanted more. For what it was. It was good. Good enough, I've read ahead for the whole year. Lol. I could do it at a page a day.
1.5 rounded up.
I am embarrassed this is on my Goodreads. I've never seen so many fetishes put into one book. It wasn't a contemporary romance, it was erotica.
The story would have been sort of good, if there was more of it, but we didn't get enough of that, because we were too busy trying to see how many sex acts we could get in the book.
The corny puns/plays on words were too much. We had sexy acts like “White Christmas” and a “Dirty Santa”. There was pregnancy kinks, group sex... Cringey nicknames. (Some were good, most were cringe)
That said, I didn't DNF and read in one day, but I wouldn't recommend. Lol
This book seemed like a good base for learning some of the basics of reiki and it is making me feel more comfortable going into my Level I reiki training.
I listened to this book on audible and it is definitely one that would be better in print.
There was a lot of good information but I found it slightly repetitive, saying the same thing in some chapters as it did in others.
Overall a helpful read for anyone interested in Reiki healing.
Good quick guide
Good, quick guide with do's and don'ts for pregnant yogis, as well as helpful descriptions of safe poses. The meditation and affirmations were a nice inclusion
This was sadly a DNF for me. I paused it at like 10% my first attempt, and then tried again from the beginning, using both written and audio, but I just could not get into it. DNF at 20%
3.75 rounded up.
I found this Kane brother much less likable than the Rowan from book one.
I also found this story to drag out a little too long. With too much drama in the 3rd act. But even with all that said. It was an engaging story that kept me interested.
So, this book didn't make me warm and fuzzy like I wanted.
I didn't love the big religious theme, and I found the spice a little uncomfortable and unrealistic. A finger in the ass the first time.... Seems like a big much.
I found the MMC likeable, but the FMC was less so. I get that it was her awakening and everything, but I felt it was done in a way that made her come off as unlikeable.
2.75 stars rounded up.
If you loved the 90s classic While You Were Sleeping this might be for you, because it's almost the same storyline.
I didn't think this was done as well. I found a lot of the characters a little flat, and the “bad” guy was forgiven so fast even though he seemed to be a real dick. There was no spice and little humor. It was a traditional holiday romance.
3.5 Rounded Down.
The premise of this book was fine, but I definitely didn't love the FMC as much as I think I was supposed to. Her growth was small and slow, so I felt like I still viewed her as pretty selfish in the end.
Also, although dual timelines is fine, I was hoping for more witchiness and less of a one time spell.
I did not love this one quite as much as the first one. But it was still a great story. We got more background to certain things and expanded our world.
I can't wait to move on to Onyx Storm.
Side note. Still in love with xaden.
I read this in one day, I was hooked from the beginning. I loved the FMC and MMC and the connection they had. The slow burn and banter was great and so was the story.
Can't wait to read the next one.
I enjoyed the fake dating, best friend's brother theme of this book.
Like book one, got a lot of great side characters, and the main characters were really likeable.
Slow burn with good spice and banter.
2.75 stars rounded up.
Personally, I did not enjoy this book.
I think it is overhyped on booktok. I found it was a lot of repetition. The buildup was too long, and the ending was rushed.
If horror/paranormal/suspense is your main genre, this might be for you, but for someone that only casually reads those types of books, it wasn't one that I enjoyed or that would inspire me to pick up another horror next.
I wanted to love this book, and although there was so decent banter and cuteness at moments, overall it seemed more serious than what I was looking for in a contemporary holiday romance.
Themes of Narcissistic Partners, trust issues, therapy, and what I would call borderline emotional parental abuse seemed out of place.