So cute. Loved this one. It was the perfect length and I loved the characters. Perfect hallmark-esque book.

Wrapped With a Beau was a quick, fun little read. It has some of my favorite tropes: grumpy/sunshine, dating with a deadline, and small town romance with the added bonus of some spice. Great Christmas romance to pick up for your holiday reading list!

Absolutely adorable! This was an amazing small town Christmas romcom! Everything was perfect and I loved how quirky all the characters were!!

This story felt very scattered and like the author watched every Hallmark Christmas movie and combined everything that ever happened in them into this one book. I wasn't really rooting for the couple and felt annoyed most of the time when reading this one, unfortunately.

WRAPPED WITH A BEAU by Lillie Vale
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the advanced digital copy.

MY RATING: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

This book was definitely cute! I liked that Piney Peaks was the “perfect holiday small town” in the book too- it made it a little less cliche. I’d love to visit! The characters were mediocre… I didn’t feel the chemistry and just didn’t connect with them. Plus the names were weird- Elisha, Ves, and some more I can’t remember. This book was longer than I wanted… I might have been more into it if I were reading it at a different time. BUT a cute cover- I feel like a blonde man on a cover is unusual?!

The first half of the book the MCs spent time getting to know each other before they kiss at around 50% of the book. After their kiss and agreeing to a friends with benefits that they don’t act on until 75% into the book.
The first half could have been cut in half to make room for the second half. The ending was a bit scattered in trying to close the storylines. The MCs agree to be in a real relationship on the last page of the last chapter. Was a bit unfulfilling for me.

A quick grumpy/sunshine holiday read! When Elisha wants to put her small town back on the map, it requires her to enlist the help of Ves *cue meet cute*. They are so good together and I loved how Christmassy it was! It’s very Hallmark movie reminiscent so if you love Hallmark movies, you’ll love this book!

** thanks to NetGalley and Putnam for the ARC and chance to read and review **

Every Hallmark movie wrapped up in a package with a new beau (see what I did there?). Grumpy x sunshine is the trope, but the grump really isn’t a grump! He’s just… a guy! This book is a perfect Christmas book for those who love it, as it’s decked out in holiday decor and a love of Christmas all throughout. Not so much for those who don’t want to overdo the holiday. Me - I love Christmas, so I loved this! But, it was hard to keep loving the story and the characters and the ideas presented. It was almost just too much for one story, but still a cute one nonetheless. Thanks for the opportunity to read!

This was so sweet! Loved the bubbly stylish mc with her painted nails. She is trying to revive the town by shooting a classic in the same house, which was owned by her neighbor who passed away. But her great nephew who owns the last l house now is a little surly.
Loved their progression towards each other and the small town vibe. Her ex was a piece of work and probably helped them get together faster also the close proximity didn't hurt.

Wrapped with a Beau is an adorable, cute and fun holiday read. Lillie Vale does a wonderful job making you feel all cozy and warm with this romance.

Elisha is set on helping her hometown back on the map and making them a filming destination. I loved how much she loves her town and her dedication to making things work, even when she could have chosen a different path for herself.

Ves inherits his great aunts house and just wants to sell it and go back to the city. While he's not anti-christmas he isn't all about it either. Him and Elisha find themselves getting closer and closer until they can't deny their chemistry. I love how this one worked out in the end, everyone was happy!

This was an absolutely adorable book. Truly, there's nothing like a small town Christmas romance. It just has a special charm, and this book a thousand procent has that. Especially because this small town's whole brand is Christmas. It just made for such a lovely setting for this book.
On top of that the couple is incredibly cute. At first sight it seems like a hate to love, but that hate fades away like snow in the sun. I did really like the back and forth between our two main characters. They just had great chemistry, and they genuinely had me giddy at parts because they were just so cute together. The focus on Elisha's ex was a bit weird though. I know she's completely over him, but then why include him this much at all. It was odd.
I was having such a blast reading this book for the most part, but in the second half it kind of fell flat for me. We are constantly told about all these Christmas activities the town does every year, but like we don't get to see any of them. There's so many instances like this in the second half of the book, where we get told about all these amazing things they did together, but we don't get to see them. It got kind of annoying, and it made the second half kind of boring to read as well because nothing really happened. So yeah, that's why I ended up docking a star. However, overall this is just a delightful Christmas romance.

Lillie Vale is an auto-buy author for me. I am always on the lookout for her stuff. She's an extremely skilled and talented author and I've been a fan for years. This book didn't disappoint. As a long time Vale fan, this book gave me everything I was looking for and expected from Vale in a holiday romance. So, snaps for Lillie!

Elisha is a film liaison for her small town that has a history of being the setting of a Christmas movie years ago. When that movie gets a sequel and commits to filming at the historic Christmas house,, she knows it is her chance to get her Piney Peaks back on the map. There’s only one catch - the house has a new owner and he wants nothing to do with the movie or even the town. After inheriting the house from his great-aunt, Ves plans on being in town only long enough to do what he needs to do and get the house sold, there’s no room in that plan for a movie. But Elisha is determined to change his mind.

I’ve been into this trend of setting holiday romance books against holiday movies being filmed. The behind the scenes look into the movies makes for such a fun read! I loved Elisha’s love of holiday movies and how she was determined to bring some of that magic back to her town. This slow burn grumpy/sunshine romance was what holiday dreams are made of. I loved how Elisha and Ves really balanced each other out. And their friends/family were everything. They made the best side characters and added so much fun to the story. Especially when it came to trivia night!

Thank you to Putnam books and NetGalley for the advance copy.

A cute holiday story full of Christmas cheer! The writing was witty and fun. I love the small town aspect of this one and the traditions of the town. I enjoyed this feel good holiday read! 3.5 ⭐️

Wrapped with a Beau was a festive Christmas book. While the storyline was predictable, I thought it was a light read great for this busy time of year.
Piney Peaks, home of the Sleighbells under Starlight, a beloved holiday movie and the festive holiday house it was filmed at. The home's owner has passed away and neighbor Elisha has been the self-appointed home carer.
Early one morning when she sees what she thinks is a break in at the house she knows she needs to investigate. Dressed in her pajamas and wielding a huge plastic candy cane she is ready to take care of that burglar.
A meet cute, it turns out that the owner's great nephew is in town to quickly fix up the holiday house and sell it after the festive season. In this grumpy to sunshine story, Ves Hollins, city boy from New York may find Elisha Rowe attractive but he's here to sell his great aunt's home and can't wait to leave. He has no plans on helping Elisha with the Christmas movie sequel and certainly no interest in staying any longer than possible.
It was heartwarming seeing how Elisha's family took to Ves, welcoming him and even joking around like he was one of the family.
With personalities so different can she sway him to her way of thinking, that life can be shiny and bright in this small town? Wonderful, light holiday read.

Pub Date 26 Sep 2023
I was given a complimentary copy of this book.
All opinions expressed are my own.

thank you to netgalley for the advanced reading copy. I really enjoyed this and will be getting copies for my shop.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for my copy of Wrapped with a Beau by Lillie Vale in exchange for an honest review. It published September 26, 2023.
Unfortunately, this was a loss for me. I could not finish it, I found it to be really boring, and after reading reviews and skipping ahead, I found that it was way too "spicy" for my taste. It had great potential, but way too sexually-charged.

This one was a bit hard to get into! It just didn't keep my attention throughout the book. I don't know if it was my taste.

I received this book for free for an honest unbiased review from Netgalley.

I wish more books were this well written. Characters were witty and the setting fantastic.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of “Wrapped with a Beau” by Lillie Vale. All opinions are my own.

This is the perfect christmas romcom!! I enjoyed the story and the character development. Would definitely recommend and I will be checking out other books by the author asap!