Portia Bishop’s story is one I have been interested in. In all of the other books, there were glimpses of what was happening in her life but no real explanation or insight. Sweet Dreams, Baby by CJ Carmichael gives the whole story. There are some surprises, many regrets and one big happily ever after, making this a great story.

I first wanted to judge Portia harshly for running to Marietta, then not contacting the father of her baby but as I read more, I thought of people who had had similar situations. Fiction is not so far off from reality especially in Portis’s case. Looking back, I remember my son’s friend who begin having major panic attacks in college, he too dropped out. It took him years to find his place in the world. Then I thought of a former co-worker who shared how she was devastated when in college her parents divorced much in the same way that Portia’s did. Again, it took years to mend the relationship with her father. It also affected her view of men in general. I think I thought at the time, that’s sad, now get over it. Perspective is everything.

I am giving Sweet Dreams, Baby 5 stars, not because the characters were perfect or always made the right decisions. It gets this rating because the book kept me reading, made me think and gave me a perspective into the way others could find situations overwhelming, which then causes me to have empathy for them.

An ARC of the book was given to me by the publisher through Net Galley.

Loved this story. I have always been a fan of Portia Bishop in all of the Love at the Chocolate Shop stories and now we finally get to know who the father of Xavi is. We have all fallen in love with Xavi. Portia sends the father of Xavi a letter, Austin, about the baby, Austin shows up in Marietta hurt and bewildered on why Portia left him a year ago. Loved how Austin immediately fell in love with his baby. I enjoyed how they were able to overcome their obstacles to make their relationship work.

A side story in the book is that The Chocolate Shop is going to loose their lease, and now they must convince the landlord to renew.

So many questions were answered in this book that I have been wondering about. This is a book that I could not put down. Love my Carringan family, I'm not ready to say good bye. A great epilogue to put a finale on the Chocolate Shop stories. I highly recommend.

I received this book "Sweet Dreams Baby" from Netgalley for my honest review.

Love at the Chocolate Shop is a series of books. I have not read any of the other books. Portia kept her baby a secret from the father, Austin. He finally finds out and he not happy about the fact that he missed the pregnancy and 3 months of his sons life. It was a good story and an easy fun read. I may end up reading others in the series if I have the time.

Generally, I hate reading a series out of order because that is just the type of person I am. I hate the feeling that I should know characters as they are introduced and I wonder what I am missing.

I'm glad I unclenched long enough to read Sweet Dreams Baby because this it is such a fun and sweet book. I did not feel like I was lost in the storyline or the bigger picture at any point. It is truly a standalone book and can be enjoyed without reading the first 11 in the series. (I will make sure to start reading the series at book 1 sometime soon.)

I liked the relationship journey that Portia and Austen were on. I liked that it was messy and complex without ever falling into melodrama or bouts of childishness. They were a very young couple who hit a few big bumps in the road and while this defiantly derailed their relationship it didn't kill it. I understood where their relationship issues came from and I understood why they belonged together as well, even if their life together was not always smooth sailing. (I really like transportation metaphors).

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys contemporary small town romances.

Sweet Dreams, Baby is the last book in the Love at the Chocolate Shop series. For the first 11 books we get to see part of Portia Bishop's story from an unplanned pregnancy to secrets about the father of her child. She didn't expect it to take 3 weeks for the father to come to Montana for a talk. When Austin Bradshaw gets the letter from the woman he loves weeks after she sent it he heads to Montana determined to find out why she left him. He is hit with anger when he finds out she hid her pregnancy from him and kept him from the first 3 months of his son's life. When Portia see's how Austin is with there son she realizes she made a huge mistake but has no clue how to fix it and can Austin overcome his anger?
I absolutely loved this book! I started it with so may questions and was happy to see them and more answered. I would highly recommend reading the series from start to finish you won't be disappointed.

So excited to finally have Portia's story and it was fantastic!! After returning to Marietta a year ago, scared and pregnant, Portia has been working hard and determined to give her son Xavi a good life. Everyone in town has been great but she knows she needs to let Xavi's father know about his son. That brings Austin Bradshaw to town. Portia left him a year ago without a real explanation and now he finds out he's a father. He's angry, hurt, and confused but he wants to know his son so he will stick around in Marietta whether Portia wants him there or not. These two have a lot to work out. Don't miss their journey. It's a fun one. I highly recommend this book.

When I pick up a book by CJ Carmichael I know I’m going to entertained, there’s going to developed characters and story, and I’m going to be left feeling that I know these characters. Sweet Dreams Baby, is the latest and the last book in the Love at the Chocolate Shop series. It gives us the answers to Portia’s mysterious return to Marietta. It’s a secret baby, second chance romance with a lot of small-town support as well as a few other surprises that I won’t spoil for you. I have to say there was a twist that had me saying out loud “No Way!” but in a good way. I never saw it coming and that is the magic that is author CJ Carmichael. Throughout the series, we been given glimpses into Portia’s life from her sudden appearance then through her pregnancy with her giving very little away as to why she left college or who the baby daddy was. Austin arrives after receiving a letter from Portia and I just loved him. He is loyal, strong, full of compassion, and ready and eager to pitch in where needed. In true Love at the Chocolate shop book fashion, Portia and Austin are involved in a fundraiser for the small town as they find themselves working to overcome their mixture of feelings ranging from anger, hurt, confusion, and anxiety. They both had things to work on and grow up a bit. CJ Carmichael has done a wonderful job of completing the series. Her enjoyment of writing about Marietta and its people comes through. Through her writing you feel like the characters are real as well as the town. There’s a wonderful epilogue for fans of the series and it showcases how the Chocolate Shop was at the center of so many romances and Happily Ever Afters the past 12 months. This series has truly given me 12 months of comfort read and happiness! Definitely recommend this series to any fan of clean romance full of small town charm.

It's hard to believe this is the last book in the Love at the Chocolate Shop series. If you have read any of the books, you will recognize the name Portia Bishop throughout the series. We finally learn Portia's story and what happened between her and the father of her son, Zavy.

After a year, Portia finally decided to write a letter to Austin Bradshaw saying they needed to talk. When they got together, Portia confessed her concerns about Austin being in the rodeo and how she didn't want to raise a child the way she was raised. Her father was a rodeo cowboy and always on the road leaving her mother to raise their children on her own. Once Austin found out he was a father, he wanted to be there for his son. Besides, he already planned on leaving the rodeo and pursuing a job in Seattle. As he spends time in Marietta getting to know his Zavy, he realizes what a special place Marietta really is and why Portia returned there. Austin has mixed emotions about Portia and how she left him keeping her pregnancy a secret. As Portia and Austin work together on a fundraiser, they rediscover the reasons they fell in love and just might have a second chance after all.

This was a wonderful story and the perfect ending for the series. There is also a short epilogue at the end of this book that catches up on the rest of the characters in the series. It's sad to see this series end, but I know we will be seeing more of the characters in future books.

If you haven't read any of Tule Publishing's Love at the Chocolate Shop series books, you have missed out on some fun reading. Sweet Dreams Baby brings the story of Portia and Austin to the pages. Portia has played a background character in the other books and I was happy to finally read her tale.
A single mother, Portia has been torn by her decision to leave Austin in Seattle before she knew she was pregnant. His rodeo life and her anxiety drove her back to Marietta, Montana, never divulging to anyone who the father is.
Whenever Austin came searching for Portia, he came up empty by her design until she gathers the nerve to contact him. Her letter just says it's time to talk. finding out about his son ruins all hope of Austin to reunite with Portia, his only love. He and she have many bridges to cross before they can resolve anger, resentment and distrust.

Writing the finale for a fantastic series must be a daunting task for any author but I have to say CJ Carmichael has done it brilliantly! Throughout the earlier eleven novels there has been the thread of wonder concerning Portia, the niece of the Chocolate Shop owner, Sage. Portia left college unexpectedly, moving to stay in Marietta and work in her aunt’s shop. Not long after that she discovered she was pregnant, but she refused to say who the father was or to contact him. This story is where she contacts him but doesn’t say why. When he arrives he discovers he’s a father and the baby is three months old . . . . Austin can’t believe Portia didn’t contact him earlier to let him be part of his son’s life.

This is a story of young love, misunderstandings, how the past affects reactions and anxieties and so much more for this young couple. Their story and eventual reconciliation after lots of drama, is the main focus for this story but there are plenty of secondary stories, too. The Chocolate Shop is in danger as the lease is nearing its expiry date and the landlord is holding a grudge against Sage’s family and being recalcitrant. There’s a mystery regarding family jewellery to be solved and all those earlier relationships to be brought up to date on, too - and, to top it all, the town needs to raise money for a new rodeo ground -wow!

This is a packed story with plenty of angst, turmoil, mystery, community and so much more, ensuring it is a real page turner. There’s also an ‘extra’ in the form of a “Series Epilogue” which tidies up any lose ends and brings the series to a superb finale. I have enjoyed all the books in this series, including this one, and have no hesitation in highly recommending them all to anyone who enjoys escaping into cleverly interwoven into a delightful series. Each book may be read as a standalone but I think they work brilliantly as a series and are so enjoyable it would be a shame to miss any of them!

I requested and was given a copy of this book via NetGalley and this is my honest opinion after choosing to read it.

I loved, loved, loved Sweet Dreams Baby by CJ Carmichael, book twelve, and the final entry in Love at the Chocolate Shop series. We finally get Portia Bishop’s story and find out who is the father of her baby, Austin Bradshaw. I do not want to give anything away so all I’ll say is this is an amazing story and was the perfect one to end the series with. This story entertains with all the twists and turns and mysteries solved, as well as the number of people who changed their views and thoughts towards others. Some things even brought happy tears to my eyes. All I know is that I wish I lived in the town of Marietta, Montana with all of these amazing fictional people.

I loved, loved, loved reading this book and had trouble putting this book down, reading it in one day. Ms. Carmichael is such a wonderful story teller, drawing me into the story and not letting go until I read the last page. I highly, highly, highly recommend this book to other readers.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.

3.5 Young Love, Is It Strong Enough Stars
* * * 1/2 Spoiler Free
The title of this review really is the crux of this tale, Sweet Dreams Baby (Love at the Chocolate Shop #12) by C.J. Carmichael. For those who have been following this enjoyable series revolving around the infamous Copper Mountain Chocolate Shop, we have had the continuing thread of Portia Bishop, her mysterious reasons and actions for dropping out of college, coming back to family and Marietta, Montana to hide from it all.

Doing the last installment for a well liked series can be daunting. There is so much that has been set in stone. Circumstances have been laid out. Characters have had their arcs and it is a huge responsibility to tie up all of the loose threads for a satisfying end for the readers.

Oh, and then add in the final coupling the readers have been teased about for the entire 11 installments...Yup, a lot to have on an author's plate. In C. J. Carmichael's capable hands most of it goes off with out a hitch. She does a solid job of weaving in much of the past characters, story hints and other details to create a backdrop for Portia's story.

The only task which was something that could not be overcome was the actual two characters she had to work with, Portia and Austin. They were decent people but the undeniable issue was their own youth and sometimes stubborn immaturity...And let's face it...Youth is wasted on the young...

Portia comes from a home where her examples of marriage was not the best...Her father was a huge Rodeo/Bull Rider Star. He traveled, left his wife at home and in the end...left her for a younger woman. It killed Portia as her father was this Mystical man... he would come home, just wrap his arms around her and make her feel everything was going to be alright.

Unfortunately, when her father divorced her mother, it felt like he divorced her and her sister too...he stopped communicating with her even to the point where the only way they talked was through the voice messages they left one another.

Austin Bradshaw fell hard for Portia the minute he met her in college. He was a few years older than Portia's 18. Austin was an Oxymoron - a Business Major who did Saddle Bronc Riding during the off time from school. He learned through Riding Camps, not from being on the ranch...but in his heart, being on the back of a bronc was an exhilaration like no other. He just loved the sport and used it to win his tuition for college.

Portia and Austin loved each other as the young do.... and then did something very impulsive.... Austin thought everything was on track... but for Portia...she became overwhelmed and ran....all the way back to Marietta....And it was there in Marietta, she discovered she was expecting a baby.

Throughout this series, Portia has never revealed the name of the father...She has had at times a difficult and emotional pregnancy...and all of it has been the concern of her family and friends while she has worked at the chocolate shop.

Portia gave birth and now her baby is 3 months old. He is adorable and the entire town feels a bit of ownership for him. As with very small towns, the gossip mill has either been supportive of Portia or the couple of Holier Than Thou mongers have given her harsh cutting remarks.

This last entry opens up with Portia on high alert. She finally did the right thing and sent a note to the baby's father telling him "They Needed to Talk". She keeps looking out the window of the shop thinking she has seen Austin or someone who looks just like him on the street. It makes her nervous because she hasn't a clue what the first conversation with him will be.

Portia knows she should have reached out sooner... but at first she had no idea what she was going to do... Then when she decided to carry the baby... time ran away from her She knows this final meeting with Austin is not going to be easy...it has been over a year.

When Austin came back from the two rodeo events he had scheduled, he was stunned to find Portia gone from their home. She had closed all forms of communication down and Austin was lost...Where was she and what did he do wrong....He loved her and had no idea what caused Portia to up and leave like she did. Austin tried everything looking for Portia to no avail. Austin was on the road and when he came back he saw the note from Portia after all this time. He dropped everything and came running. Now he just needs to see her and try to understand what caused this separation.

When these two finally cross paths...Austin has more to take in then just Portia... He has a baby...
a beautiful little boy he and Portia made... and he wasn't allowed to be part of anything...he missed so much... these feelings he has are overwhelming...

So here we have two people who need to figure out how the next part of their relationship is going to go...There are so many emotions, hurts and still feelings for each other...It will be a rocky road.

Portia's and Austin's story is the main event but there is so much more...The Chocolate Shop is at a turning point needing to expand but the landlord has old family grudges he is holding against Sage, the owner. There is still the rumored mystery of jewelry made back in the day never found.

As I said, C.J. Carmichael had her tasks cut out for her...she had to touch all the bases while making sure she followed the game plan in play. Overall she did a fine job. My only frustration was the way both these young people didn't talk plainly to each other... and just start from a different mental place...BUT as I said...Youth is sometimes wasted on the young...and it may have taken them awhile but eventually, they figured it all out and we had a strong ending...

With a possible off shoot for something more...

Melt My Heart, Cowboy (Love at the Chocolate Shop, #1) by C.J. Carmichael Melt My Heart, Cowboy (Love at the Chocolate Shop, #1)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
A Thankful Heart (Love at the Chocolate Shop #2) by Melissa McClone A Thankful Heart (Love at the Chocolate Shop, #2)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Montana Secret Santa (Love at the Chocolate Shop, #3) by Debra Salonen Montana Secret Santa (Love at the Chocolate Shop, #3)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
The Chocolate Cure (Love at the Chocolate Shop, #4) by Roxanne Snopek The Chocolate Cure (Love at the Chocolate Shop, #4)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
The Valentine Quest (Love at the Chocolate Shop #5) by Melissa McClone The Valentine Quest (Love at the Chocolate Shop, #5)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Charmed by Chocolate (Love at the Chocolate Shop, #6) by Steena Holmes Charmed by Chocolate (Love at the Chocolate Shop #6)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
The Chocolate Comeback (Love at the Chocolate Shop #7) by Roxanne SnopekThe Chocolate Comeback (Love at the Chocolate Shop #7) https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
The Chocolate Touch (Love at the Chocolate Shop, #8) by Melissa McClone The Chocolate Touch (Love at the Chocolate Shop #8)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Sweet Home Cowboy (Love at the Chocolate Shop, #9) by Marin Thomas Sweet Home Cowboy (Love at the Chocolate Shop #9)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Sweet Summer's Kiss (Love at the Chocolate Shop Book 10) by Debra Salonen Sweet Summer's Kiss (Love at the Chocolate Shop #10)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Captured by Chocolate (Love at the Chocolate Shop #11) by Steena Holmes Captured by Chocolate (Love at the Chocolate Shop #11)

~~~~~ Before Reading ~~~~~
This is it!
We finally get to learn all about Portia,
Who the Baby Daddy is
And if he is man enough to make it all better!

There will be lots of chocolate involved...

Sweet Dreams Baby (Love at the Chocolate Shop #12)

A gifted copy was provided by Tule Publishing via NetGalley for an honest review.

At last! The book I've been waiting for all series long. Portia and her baby Zavy finally get their happily ever after. And what a story it is too!

I've liked Portia since reading the other Carrigan family members' books. Of the twins (Portia and Wren), she has always been my favorite. Sweet and gentle as opposed to Wren's driven aggressiveness, Portia made an outsized impression on me. But here, we see how young Portia really is. She's just starting out in life, messing up, confused, scared. And those emotions really impact her choices and actions.

Because she's also in love with a boy named Austin. A boy who loves her very much. But those darn fears keep getting in the way. Once Austin knows about their baby and comes running to Portia's side, things pick up, not always in a good way but in a realistic and difficult way.

Both Austin and Portia find themselves confused and afraid, making snap judgments, and struggling to find their footing. I liked how it wasn't an easy HEA but both had to work at things, discover more about themselves and each other, and start growing up.

In the end, I see a bright future for this little family and more books about those Carrigan girls. I can't wait.

Portia's book is the one I've been waiting for since the beginning. I did think she was being stubborn by not talking about her situation at the beginning of the series but with further books, I thought maybe she had gone through something traumatic like sexual assault and didn't want to burden her boyfriend with the resulting baby.

Come book 12 and it turns out she was just running scared from her relationship because of her own parents' failed relationship. That ticked me off so I was team Austin all the way. But man, isn't he just such a great guy! If you ask me I think he let her off too easy.

The Love in the Chocolate Shop series has a full dozen books. I really missed the boat, jumping in at #11 with Steena Holmes (Captured by Chocolate). And honestly I wasn't real happy with that story, but the characters obviously grew on me.

I saw this on NetGalley and I kept going back, thinking about it. Finally I caved. And she might also be right that I'll have to read them all.

I felt like this was a far sweeter story. It's about Portia (who I remember from Steena's book) and her baby, Zavy. That's what drew me in, I was so curious to learn her story. Plus it let us see a little more of the story behind her Aunt Sage - who owns the chocolate shop that is center to all these stories.

Portia is a young single mother. She knows she needs to get her life figured out, and that's all I need to say.

I love that these authors came together to fill in this town with the little love stories. You end up feeling at home and knowing many characters. And if you dive in and learn about the town of Marietta, you will be excited to know that this story ends with a special Epilogue!!!

I usually really enjoy second-chance, secret baby romances, but they always have the problem of giving a good explanation of why the mother hid the baby from the father. The author has to have a reasonable explanation that doesn’t make the reader dislike the hero or heroine.

In this novel, the decision took place before the book began and it’s pretty lame. Portia and Austin were in college and got married, but she got panic attacks that they’d made a big mistake. He rides in the rodeo to get the money for his college and she has unresolved feelings about rodeo riders because her father was one and treated her mother poorly.

So she up and fled her marriage, dropped out of school and moved in with family in the sweet, little town of Marietta, Montana.

Now the baby is three months old and she’s just gotten around to letting the father know. He’s ticked that he hasn’t seen her for a year without any explanation or contact and missed the birth of his son. All she can do is apologize and give her excuses and then offer him a divorce. We know that that isn’t going to happen because it’s a romance novel, but I had no patience with Portia. What she did was immature and inexcusable.

Add in that the town has to come together to raise money for the fairgrounds that burned down and the worries about saving the gourmet chocolate shop where Portia works and that’s about the plot of the book. I kept wondering how this small Montana town could support a gourmet chocolate shop. That is the type of detail that irritates me in a book. Maybe if she had an online business, but not if all she had was the customer base of townspeople.

My verdict was that Austin was way too good for Portia and the baby was just too cute and well-behaved to be believed. But it’s sweet and there’s chocolate and pseudo cowboys so maybe that’s enough.

I was given a free ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this sweet story set in my most beloved state, Montana. I loved knowing the area it took place and found the characters relatable and enjoyable. I love the bit of mystery to relationships and family histories and look forward to reading the other books in the series.

Portia Bishop had returned home to Marietta, MT about a year ago having dropped out of college and obviously running from something upsetting in her life. Shortly after arriving in Marietta Portia finds out that she is pregnant but refuses to talk to any of her friends or family about who the father is or just why she returned home. Taking a job in Sage’s Copper Mountain Chocolate shop Portia kept her secrets to herself and gave birth to a beautiful baby.

Now Portia has realized that she needs to make contact with the baby’s father so she decides to send him a letter letting him know where she is and that she is ready to talk. Austin Bradshaw has since graduated from college but is still riding in the rodeo circuit not having decided on a career just yet when he receives the letter from Portia. Austin is still very much in love with Portia but is in for quite a shock when he arrives and finds that she hasn’t told him about his baby.

Sweet Dreams Baby by C.J. Carmichael is the twelfth and final book to the Love at the Chocolate Shop series written by various authors. Each book in the series has featured a separate couple and can be read as a standalone although for readers that have followed the series there is always little updates of previous characters from the stories and the charm of the small town of Marietta can be found throughout the series.

Finally after following this series since the very beginning I was awarded with the answers to the biggest mystery in Marietta, just what Portia’s story was when she returned to town. All I can say now that her story has finally been told is that is was well worth the wait and a beautiful ending to a wonderful series. Portia and Austin made an awesome couple to round out the series being that they had a history and can now build and grow together.

This particular edition also had a ton of wonderful updates all throughout of previous characters and Sage was featured quite a bit with what is going on with the chocolate shop I’d grown to love over the past twelve reads. Portia and Austin also got involved in another Marietta event that brings out the small town charm and shows just how this town pulls together. And for the fans of the entire series there is an epilogue to finish off this twelfth book that just made such a wonderful end. Definitely recommend this series to any fan of more clean romance reads full of small town charm.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.