The Jingle Bell Bride by Scarlet Wilson

The Jingle Bell Bride is a super cute Christmas romance, which is also a Hallmark movie. You know it'll be good if Hallmark jumped on it. Anyway, while this is the second book in the series it's fine as a standalone. The romance is quick, spanning only 5 days, but that's Christmas magic for you! I really enjoyed the romance, regardless (and I loved that it's closed-door). I enjoyed both characters, and found them very easy to like. The town is really cute, too. All in all, Jingle Bell Bride is a short, sweet romance perfect for curling up by the fire!

This sweet little book felt like reading a Hallmark Christmas movie in the best way!

It was a sweet, easy romance between a man recovering from a broken heart and a woman who was too busy to even think about dating. The setting in a magical, small Alaska town in the weeks leading to a Christmas was perfect. Add in snowstorms, reindeer, snow angels, Christmas trees and traditions, and you have the setting for a cozy afternoon read beside your Christmas tree.

I would recommend reading this while snow swirls outside, lights twinkle and cocoa steams beside you - they're the perfect compliment to this fun story!

This romance was a little far-fetched, but was still cute.

This is a sweet novella perfect to read in an afternoon during the holiday season. Jessica is a harried New York wedding planner who finds herself stranded in Alaska days before her demanding bridezilla's wedding in London. Matt is not the most congenial guy at first, but she must deal with him because he has the rare "jingle bell" flower that the bride wanted. Readers will swoon when they see Matt open his generous heart again after he and Jessica begin to care for each other, but will Jessica stop to smell the flowers and follow her heart? The story is takes place during a short period of time, so just sit back and enjoy the romance set in a charming town at Christmastime.

3 stars -- I received a free copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest and unbiased review/opinion.

Hmmm...well, this one started off pretty good.  I was intrigued, I thought the premise seemed interesting.  But at some point my interest waned.  And I never really got it back.  It wasn't a bad book, but it was very very meh.  If I wasn't reading towards a challenge and this wasn't a NetGalley ARC, I probably would have just abandoned it in favour of something that would better keep my attention.

In the end I think I just wasn't that enamoured with our characters.  Maybe I just didn't quite understand what made them tick.  I just wasn't able to fall in love with either of them.  Jessica was SOOOOO high strung, and I couldn't understand the disconnect between her celebrity wedding planner life and her supposed dream of a bookstore.  Like they were pretty far apart, so she kind of felt like 2 different people.  I did like when she was sweet, and how understanding she could be with Matt.  And she felt very child-like at times.  I just don't get how that child-likeness remained in the life she led.  *shrugs*

And Matt had his own good moments, but he was also kind of dismissive of certain things about Jessica, poo-pooing her job and certain aspects of her personality.  I get that that wasn't necessarily the "real" her, but then again, it has to be somewhat her.  Just seemed kind of dick-ish.

And their chemistry was only OK for me.  It was slow slow slow, and then all of a sudden it kind of turned really fast.  And while they acknowledged that the love was fast, that just felt like lampshading...saying it was fast doesn't discount that it was honestly unbelievably fast.

I liked the magic of Alaska though, and that atmosphere.  I enjoyed the reindeer, though I can always stand for more reindeer...as my husband said, could use more ungulates.

So yeah.  Not a terrible book by any means, just didn't capture my attention.

I truly enjoyed The Jingle Bell Bride by Scarlett Wilson, book two in the Christmas Brides series. Wedding Planner to the stars, Jessica Christie is a city girl through and through but a job is a job. Jessica ends up stranded in Alaska by a snowstorm when she goes there to pick up the Jingle Bell flower for her latest demanding celebrity bride. Matt Holden took the job with the Botany department to escape the memories back in Montana of losing his fiancé. He never planned on housing a stranded guest or becoming attracted to her. Jessica is in awe of the beauty in her surroundings and the people living there. Maybe there is more to life than being a wedding planner, like following your original dreams. Can country boy and city girl compromise or find common ground to pursue their dreams and attraction?

I really enjoyed reading this book and had trouble putting this book down. Ms. Wilson drew me in and did not let go until I read the last page, reading this book in one day. I recommend this book to other readers and cannot wait for the next book in this amazing series.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.

Jessica Christie is a wedding in New York City and is planning a wedding for a reality star and she is driving her crazy with all of the changes. The wedding is not even taking place in New York but at a castle. On her way to the airport with the fourth wedding dress she receives a call from the bride saying she would like a flower for her bouquet called the jingle bell flower. By the way it is grown in Alaska. She change her flight to the directions that were given to her and she finds herself in a small town names Corona Creek. She also meets the Botanist named Matt Holden who has been living there for three years after something happened in his life. Now after meeting him and thinking she will get the plant and leave. The town is hit with a massive snow storm and she is stuck for a couple of weeks. Together with Matt they work out a plan to make things work or so it seems. A lot of good scenes with the town people and the older couple that Matt works for that own a reindeer farm. A very good story about two people finding themselves.

This is the cutest story of finding unexpected love over the course of four days in remote Alaska. The sheltered and sequestered heart of a man, Matt Horton, is reached by a delightful but list driven wedding planner, Jessica. She is on a last minute mission to obtain a high-maintenance client bride's request for a particular flower only obtainable in remotest Alaska. As happens in Alaska in the winter, snow storms have closed the tiny airport of Corona Creek where Matt lives and works as a botanist who has the Jingle Bell flower-the client's request.
Jessica is stranded with no hotel or place to stay when Matt offers her a place at his home. He is an absolute gentleman-more than Jessica is prepared for and his personality, manner and just self work a way into her heart. Her life is in New York, his in Alaska. Is there an in between spot to meet?

The Jingle Bell Bride is a sweet, funny and utterly endearing Christmas romance. Set in the tiny town of Corona Creek Alaska this story brings together New York wedding planner Jessica Christie and botanist Matt Holden.
Jess is frazzled and stressed to the max by her celebrity client, who has sent her to Alaska to source some extremely rare flowers for her bouquet. Arriving in stiletto heels in the middle of a snow storm, she is very much a fish out of water. Matt has been in Corona Creek for three years having moved there to escape the memories of his dead fiancée Deb.
I loved these two! They’re chalk and cheese and it seems as though the6 have nothing in common. While they only have a few days together, author Scarlet Wilson has done a good job of adding plausibility to their rapidly developing relationship. Throw in a handful of reindeer with attitude, a lovely old couple with a striking similarity to Santa and Mrs Claus, and all the trappings of a white Christmas and you have a lovely story in the making. This one meets all those criteria.

It’s off to Corona Creek, Alaska in The Jingle Bell Bride by Scarlet Wilson. This First book in Tule Publishing’s Christmas Bride Series is a real treat. The main characters are seemingly opposites who learn to appreciate their differences even if it is a bumpy snowy journey. I liked the characters, including the supporting ones except for the bridezilla, and the locale with the contrast from New York City to small-town Alaska.

The Jingle Bell Bride is a sweet story that shows getting stuck may be the only way to find your way to move forward. Compete with a darling Christmas flower, reindeer with attitudes and Santa’s sled, this is a fun read. I would love to see more stories take place in this Alaskan small-town.

The Jingle Bell Bride is such a cute Christmas romance and features some great characters! I wish we could've spend more time with Matt and Jessica. It did feel a little rushed to have them fall in love, as quickly as they did. Understandably the story was hinged around the fact that Jessica is stuck in Alaska due to the weather and that dictated the amount of time they were allocated to fall in love with each other. Overall it was a solid Christmas romance; one worth picking up!

Planning a wedding for a demanding reality star can be a challenge on its own. But when the star decides she wants a rare jingle bell flower, and the only place one can be found is in Alaska, Jessica Christie sets off to get it before heading to the wedding in London. Only, Jessica didn't anticipate being stranded in Corona Creek, Alaska when a snow storm shuts down the airports.

Matt Holden moved to Corona Creek three years ago after losing his fiance. It was the perfect place to start his life over again. He was happy with his life as a botanist, studying plants and flowers at the university, and helping his neighbors Mary and David on their reindeer farm.

When Matt met Jessica at the airport and found out no planes would be leaving until the snow storm passed, he decided to let Jessica stay with him until the airport opened again. He didn’t expect to find himself interested in the workaholic New Yorker. And she seemed to be interested in him too until he took matters in his own hands after finding a secret project that she was working on. Will Jessica be able to forgive Matt for wheat he did, or will she leave on the next plane and never look back?

This book whisked me away to a magical place. All of the details really brought the story to life. Jessica and Matt were the perfect couple in this sweet romance. I was cheering them on as I read the book.

When you deal with the fantasy of reality stars weddings then you know to expect anything and be prepared for the bridezilla of epic size to emerge. Well, maybe Christie expected the bridezilla part, after all she’s made a successful business catering to the every whim of some of the most famous brides around – but this one was over the top. Detour from everything else to head to Alaska for one elusive flower for the bride’s bouquet? Really? Completely unprepared for what was ahead of her Christie mumbles a few choice words and set out to cater to every stupid whim of this crazy bridezilla. She didn’t expect to be caught in a blizzard, she certainly didn’t expect the man who held access to that flower to be so handsome or tug at her own heart. No, she was not prepared… to fall in love.

On the surface Matt and Christie seem so totally different, but the surface is only the beginning. It’s what lies beneath that truly matters. I enjoyed The Jingle Bell Bride very much. It has chuckle out loud moments, a few emotional tears moments and the magic of the season wrapped up in the raw beauty of Alaska. When the woman Matt had loved and planned a life with died, he believed everything important in his life died with her. To watch him come alive again, to realize that we can get more than one chance at happiness was such an emotional journey.

This one was a fun experience, and I’d definitely recommend it for any Romance reader who enjoys holiday romances, and seeing two people who deserve happiness… find it.

*I received an e-ARC of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley. That does not change what I think of this story. It is my choice to leave a review giving my personal opinion about this book.*

Scarlet Wilson brings us a charming series to entice our holiday spirit to get ready for the Christmas season. The Jingle Bell Bride is the second in the series but she uses different characters and settings so they feel almost more like standalone stories.

In this second book Wilson provides a plot where the relationship moves very quickly so for those of you who like the slow burn be prepared but if you’ll allow yourself to get invested in the characters you might find the pace of their relationship doesn’t matter so much. We have these two distinct personalities, Jessica and Matt, who meet in a really cute way that you can see being one of those great ‘meet-cute’ stories that gets told every year.

Her evolution of Matt as someone who is going through the grieving process only to find healing in falling in love again felt very quick as if she compressed the normal healing period but I didn't feel as if it took away from the overall enjoyment of the novel. It gives you the feel of one of those Hallmark Holiday movies.

It’s a sweet, funny, PG kind of romance story which is perfect for the season to give you something to escape into and get you in the Christmas mood.

Thank you to Netgalley and Tule Publishing for allowing me to review this!

I liked this book. Both main characters had changes to make and they did it together. Of course anything with reindeer and Christmas has to be great.

Super organized list maker Jessica is a wedding planner to ‘stars.’ Currently, she is on mission to pick exclusive flowers grown in Alaska for a wedding taking place in a few days in London. New York native Jessica has the dress, the wedding essentials and is just staying in town long enough to get the jingle bell flowers for her demanding bride.

Unexpectedly, a winter storm blows in leaving Jessica stranded in Alaska. Matt Holden, the university botanist who grows and studies the flowers, offers Jessica a place to stay and smoothly takes her shopping for clothing appropriate for an Alaskan winter storm. He even hands her his phone to call anyone in his call list to prove he is a good guy and she is safe with him. Unknown to Jessica, three years earlier, Matt moved to the Alaskan wilderness to get away from the memories of his former fiance who was killed in a biking accident before they could marry. Matt’s heart begins to thaw as the snow continues to fall.

Jessica ends up loving the little community and its inhabitants, including the reindeer Matt has in his barn. Neither Jessica or handsome Matt were looking for a relationship. The connections was not what I would call immediate, but it was steadily growing. Matt did not hide that he had been engaged before, it just did not seem to be something you tell a relative stranger.

The book is fairly short, but is very descriptive, especially in regards to the winter setting and the northern lights. Everything you need for Christmas is there, homemade cookies, hot chocolate, a Santa and Mrs. Clause look alike, and don’t forget the reindeer and sleigh. This is a great afternoon read of a sweet, charming couple during the Christmas holidays.

I really enjoyed this fun cute read. Set in Alaska, I could picture all the winter beauty from the authors very descriptive writing. When wedding planner Jessica Christie finds herself stranded in an Alaskan cabin with a virtual stranger rather than on her way to London and the wedding she's been working on she has a moment or ten of panic. Stopping to pick up the Jingle Bell flowers for the bride's bouquet should have been easy but Mother Nature has different plans. Matt Holden has been in Alaska for the last three years, licking the wounds the death of his fiance caused. He's content with his work as a botanist at the local college and his work at the reindeer farm. He doesn't need some big city girl crashing into his world, igniting unwelcome feelings and tempting him. The sooner he can get her out of here the better!

A great holiday read that I highly recommend.

New York wedding planner Jessica Christie always goes above and beyond for her clients. So, stopping in Alaska to pick up the famed Jingle Bell flower for her famous client's bouquet doesn't seem too outrageous–until she ends up stranded there.

Matt Holden has spent the last five years since his fiancée died, living in a virtual bubble in Alaska. His research work as a botanist and assistant at the local reindeer farm keep him busy during the holidays.

But when Jessica Christie bursts into his life, all bets are off. Her stay is definitely temporary, but the feelings she ignites aren't. Could Ms. Oh-So-Wrong actually be Mrs. Right?

Jessica is a New York wedding planner and does a lot of celebrity weddings. She has an amazing attention to detail and likes what she does. She doesn’t absolutely love it though, and her true dream is to open a bookstore, maybe multiple bookstores, that are focused on literacy for both children and adults. She’s never told anyone about her dream and she’s not sure it will ever come true.

Jessica is currently working for an incredibly demanding pop star, Renee, and will head over to England right before Christmas to make sure that the wedding goes off without a hitch. Six days before the wedding Jessica is set to leave for the UK when Renee calls and says that she’s heard that there is a flower called the Jingle Bell Flower and she wants it in her wedding bouquet. (Insert whining and foot stomping.) Jessica doesn’t have a problem with that news until Renee tells her that the flower is only available in Alaska and that Jessica must go personally get it. What????

Being the great wedding planner she is, Jessica heads to Corona Creek, Alaska to get the flower. Unfortunately for her she flies in right before a snow storm hits and she has no way of flying back out. The botanist who is to give her the flower reluctantly lets her stay at his house until she can leave.

Matt has been in Alaska for three years…hiding. He was engaged and his fiancé died. The place he was living in Montana had too many memories so he took a job in Alaska and has been hiding from his previous life and feelings ever since. When Jessica arrives he has no plans to break the ice around his heart but she ends up getting to him in ways he didn’t think possible. He soon finds himself in love but how can he make it work when he’s in Alaska and she’s from New York?

The Jingle Bell Bride was a cute story. Jessica was a great character and I liked her devotion to her clients. She was a strong woman for the most part and that played well with Matt and his equally strong personality.

Matt could have easily been dismissed as meek in the story because of his emotionally charged state of mind due to the death of his fiancé. Despite that he didn’t let the past dictate his future and when he found himself in love with Jessica he went for it. I loved that! Good for him. He did do something a bit sneaky that I didn’t agree with and of course Jessica hated. It was done from a place of love, however, and I hated that Jessica blew it out of proportion. Despite that the two got their HEA and I had a smile on my face by the end of the book.

Oh, and this book is clean. When I say clean I mean that they only kissed and that’s it. They didn’t ever even kiss in a bedroom. No clothing came off but fit the story and timeline so it was all good.

This is a cute, sweet romance that was a fun holiday read.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

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Jessica Christie is a wedding planner in New York that usually has those celebrity clients that need to have everything just perfect for their special day and of course better than the last big wedding in town. Jessica prides herself on staying organized and on top of every last wish that any bride could possibly make and making their dreams come to life. Her latest client has been especially demanding so when she gets a last minute call that the bride wants to use special flowers only grown in Alaska for her bouquet she’s not surprised until she learns that she’s the one expected to fly to Alaska to pick up those flowers.

Matt Holden has spent the last five years living in Alaska somewhat hiding from life since his fiancee died. Matt enjoys the peace of the small town isolated life that Alaska brings while he works in a greenhouse studying a wide variety of plant life but also running a reindeer farm as a second income. When Matt received the phone call from a frantic bride he tried explaining coming to Alaska for flowers wasn’t a good idea but next he knows he’s getting a phone call to meet Jessica at their small airport. Unfortunately for Jessica she’s landed right as an Alaskan blizzard is hitting and flights will be grounded for a few days so Matt offers to give her a place to stay at his lodge until the weather clears.

The Jingle Bell Bride by Scarlet Wilson is the second book of the Christmas Brides series. The opening book of the series had completely different main characters and also the setting has changed so each book is definitely find to be read as a standalone. I would warn readers that the plot in this one is very fast paced as the relationship forms over just five days so those that prefer a more slow growing courtship would probably not enjoy the instant connection in here.

For me I really enjoyed these two characters and their distinct personalities so I didn’t mind the quick setting of the story. Jessica was a rather cute frazzled type of lead with her lists and charts trying to stay on top of her job but she had big dreams of owning a library which sounded rather nice. Matt is getting over the loss of the love of his life and just coming to terms with it may be time to move on so even with the quick timing of the story it still felt slower as the two came together. In the end I thought it was a beautiful clean romance with a lovely couple and would definitely recommend this holiday romance.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

3.5 stars
Another enjoyable read written by talented author Scarlet Wilson. The surprising romantic couple is made up of a deeply sad hero living in Alaska and still mourning a traumatic loss, and a stressed and busy celebrities wedding planner living in New York.
The story is about how they meet, fall in love in a few days and engage in the magic setting of Corona Creek, Alaska, where you even experience a beautiful aurora borealis.
It’s a good, romantic story, with well-rounded and layered characters.