Such a sweet, feel-good romcom! All the Christmas feels of a Hallmark movie, but in book form.

Supportive family (for her) and friends (for both), which I always love in a book. Would like to see a sequel focusing on a specific character… but can’t name names or it might spoil a plot line.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review. Watch for Wrapped with a Beau to come out September 26, 2023.

If you are looking for a sweet and spicy small town romance set at Christmas then this is the book for you. I thought Elisha and Ves had fun banter and were a good match. I did think this was going to have a little more of an enemies-to-love trope but I still enjoyed it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Hallmark Vibes but with some well placed spice. This book is a great addition to the Holiday TBR pile.
Tropes: Small Town, Meet-Cute, Opposites Attract, Found Family, Girl Next Door, Grumpy/Sunshine

This wintry holiday book gave me the warm fuzzies. Found the characters to be likable and I enjoyed the two main characters chemistry. There were a few parts that were a bit slow for me but overall just an enjoyable read. I *almost* wished it was snowy outside with my stockings hung on the fireplace... well *almost*

3.8 stars - rounded up

Thank you to NetGalley, Putnam Books, and Lillie Vale for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. Grab your copy when it is released in September!

This was so good! The perfect Christmas Romance. I absolutely loved yhis and could so see this as a hallmark Christmas movie. Loved this!!!
I just reviewed Wrapped with a Beau by Lillie Vale. #WrappedwithaBeau #NetGalley
[NetGalley URL]

Wrapped with a Beau is a very cute, slow burn holiday romance. This one will keep you warm in December!

Ugh, I hate to rate books so low, but even more than that, I hate not finishing a book…but not as much as I absolutely hated the dialogue in this book. I was seriously annoyed in the first chapter, but by the fourth I could have screamed. Even Elisha’s inner voice was cringey and obnoxious to me. It’s such a shame because this had so much potential - a Christmas classic movie gets a sequel in the same hometown, with romance and old houses and CHRISTMAS! This book should be right up my alley but unfortunately I couldn’t get into it and had to give it up. Also, there were a whole lot of not-so-jolly F-bombs flying. I’m not completely opposed to curse words in books, but it felt super out of place for a holiday book. Maybe I’m just used to Hallmark and more wholesome reads, but it was too much for me. I think this style of writing just isn’t for me and I think a lot of readers will really enjoy this book, so don’t take it from me, give it a chance. As for me, I probably won’t read from Lillie Vale again.

I'm not sure what it was but I was expecting more enemies to lovers and while this wasn't that it was a sweet and easy to read Christmas romance.

Elisha has returned home to Piney peaks, and she is determined to get her small Christmas town back on the map. She enlists her neighbors help, but she unfortunately passes away and now it's on her Grumpy great nephew Ves. Ves Hollins wants to get in and out of Piney peaks as quick as he can, but he's not expecting to ambushed by Elisha Rowe, and he's definitely not expecting to get involved with her plan to save the town.

I wanted to love this one, and while I did enjoy it, it just wasn't what I was expecting.

I’m not a Christmas person. To me, Christmas means anxiety and overstimulation and disappointment. Christmas is one long panic attack followed by seasonal depression and gray blah.

But this book?

It made me see why people love Christmas.

It’s charming and welcoming and reading it was like putting on a really comfortable pair of pajamas after a long day, except those pajamas are also the kind that make your partner think you might be feeling some kind of way. Elisha and Ves have chemistry that leaps off the page, and thankfully it culminates in a joyful amount of open door spice.

Lillie Vale always makes me laugh out loud, but Wrapped With a Beau also made my Grinchy little black heart grow a couple of sizes, too.

Elisha Rowe is facing the first Christmas without her neighbor and elderly friend Maeve Hollins, the woman who owned Piney Peak's "Christmas House" (as featured in a classic Christmas movie). So when she looks out the window one morning and sees someone moving around in the supposedly empty house. she heads across the street to confront the guy... only to discover that he's Ves Hollins, Maeve's great-nephew and the man who inherited the house. Not a good meet-cute, especially since Elisha serves as the town's film liaison and needs Ves's signature on a release form to use the house in the 50th anniversary sequel to the classic movie!

Ves, an author of middle-grade fantasy books, just wants to get the house cleaned up and put it on the market so he can get back to his life. He's not at all impressed with Piney Peaks or Elisha the chaos magnet, even if she IS attractive and funny and surprisingly honest and helpful. So when she offers to help him clean up the house, is it so surprising that he starts feeling more friendly toward her? And maybe a little more?

This delightful holiday romance features a heroine whose sunny idealism and mishap-prone encounters with the hero are grounded in an inner strength that even surprises Elisha herself. It's clear that she is well loved by her friends and community, though they see her -- and her attraction to Ves -- more clearly than she does. Ves first appears stiff and haughty on the page, though we quickly discover that he uses that standoffishness to hide a vulnerable, lonely self. Their romance feels believable, though the side plot with Elisha's ex-fiance Bentley doesn't really do them any favors, provoking moments of jealousy and possessiveness that bordered on red flag territory.

Enjoyable, with the holiday sweetness tempered by a bit of sexiness. 3.5 stars rounded up.

Thank you, G. P. Putnam's Sons and NetGalley, for providing an eARC of this book. Opinions expressed here are solely my own.

Even though I read this book in May, I was feeling all of the holiday vibes. I love winter, and this book made me wish it was winter right now! There are so many things to like about this book:
- Elisha is an amazing character. I loved that she was so confident in herself, and she was surrounded by an amazing family and great group of friends. I like that she was kind of quirky, and she was very well established. She had an amazing career, and she was very determined.

- Ves was a great compliment to Elisha. He is a writer, and he was back in town to settle his great aunt's estate. He had only visited the town when he was young, but he was quickly swept up by all that Piney Peaks has to over. His family was not really there for him, but he has a found family in Elisha's family and friends.

- Sleighbells and the town of Piney Peaks created a fun setting. The movie Sleighbells was filmed there 50 years ago, and now, the sequel is going to be filmed there. The townspeople were so friendly and welcoming, and I would love to live in a place like that.

-The romance and the spice- It was a slow burn, but then, it picked up and it brought the spice and the steam! Elisha and Ves had chemistry for days! I loved their text messages and their banter. They were so much fun to root for.

Things that I didn't like:
-Bentley- I didn't think it was necessary for Elisha's ex to be a part of the story. I think that it was a waste to focus on him because it didn't really go anywhere. If it was to set up a love triangle, it would have been better, but it seemed like a plot point that didn't have an ending.


Overall, this is a fun slow burn romance with spice and steam. The chemistry between Ves and Elisha leaps off of the page. I love stories with found family, and this one really delivers.

Thanks to NetGalley and Putnam Books for an ARC of "Wrapped With A Beau" which publishes on September 26.

This was cute and the Hallmark watcher in your life will enjoy it. However, I have read and liked some of Lillie Vale's other books better. I'm not sure why I didn't connect to this one as much but it was still a cute holiday read.

3.5 stars, rounded up.

Kindly received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Wrapped with a Beau by Lillie Vale is a heartwarming holiday romance that will leave readers with a smile on their face.

Vale's writing is charming and witty, capturing the holiday spirit with descriptions of cozy snowfalls, twinkling lights, and delicious treats. The characters are well-drawn and endearing, especially Elisha with her infectious enthusiasm and Ves with his brooding but ultimately kind-hearted demeanor. The slow burn romance between them is sweet and satisfying, and readers will find themselves rooting for them every step of the way.

Wrapped with a Beau is a delightful holiday read that will warm your heart and leave you feeling merry and bright.

Sweet and cute and funny and very Christmassy, but I didn’t feel a thing. D*mn, I wanted to like this book so much!

It might be the overkill of sugar and honey, literarily with spiced crumb cake, blueberry muffins, and bebinca while I’m on a diet right now. And I hate to read about sweets when I’m on a diet!

It might be because the story felt like so many others. A constantly present ex, two hot MCs, adorable and meddling family members, etc., etc. Okay, but nothing special, a bit too Hallmark Christmassy for me.

Or it might just be me. Or the third person, present tense writing (not my favorite). Or the time of the year. Maybe I shouldn’t have started reading this book when I longed for sun instead of snow, and spring finally announced itself here.

So, please check out other reviews of this book and ignore mine!

I absolutely loved this one! I found it so easy to read and I enjoyed it. Thank you for the opportunity to read it.

derivative and uninspiring - sorry but i just could not get invested in this at all. flat characters and the romance was dull. not for me.

Adorable! I was smitten with this couple. There are some deep issues in the story, but they are handled very well. I am looking forward to rereading next winter.

This was whimsical, magical, and cozy. This is what romcoms are made of. I enjoyed our love interests and I had so much fun reading their romance. The holiday vibes made it that much better!