A sweet, romantic Christmas story. This was my first book by Megan Crane an I liked it.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley to read in exchange for a fair review. This book is the 5th book in Megan Crane’s The Greys of Montana series. It can be read as a stand alone, however many of the characters from the other books appear so you will probably get hooked and have to read them all. This book is perfect for a rainy afternoon ... curl up with some hot chocolate, a fire or in my case fireplace tv, have some Christmas music playing softly in the background and dive in. One very sexy hero and a smart, funny bit of a control freak heroine who meet up again when her mom decides to invite all of her exes for Christmas and to celebrate her 50th birthday. The thing I loved most about this story is that he gets her... and isn’t looking to change her. Lots of family fun at Christmas, in a perfect winter setting will get you in just the right mood for the holiday season.

How could something that should be so wrong feel so right?

Devyn Voss arrived in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, for her mother's crazy Christmas/50th birthday celebration where she invited all of her exes (who does that?), family and friends. Devyn considered herself a good girl and refused to be like her mother who always drifted from one man to the next. But when Devyn runs into her almost-stepbrother, Vaughn Taylor, after not seeing him in ten years, her mind went somewhere she knew it shouldn’t have. And, Devyn really shouldn't have gone with Vaughn up to his hotel room. That night changed Devyn in ways she never thought possible.

Vaughn was in town with his father who had hopes of hooking up again with Melody, Devyn’s mother, again. He needed to keep an eye on his father to make sure he didn’t fall for Melody’s charm. But Vaughn didn’t expect he would be the one falling under the spell of a woman too. One night with Devyn and Vaughn couldn’t get her out of his head. He will do anything to have her in his life.

I really enjoyed this book. It was a fun and totally unexpected story line. The writing was fantastic and not detail was missed.

Have Yourself a Crazy Little Christmas by Megan Crane
The Greys of Montana Romance #5

Devyn Voss and Vaughn Taylor almost became stepsiblings when their parents lived together for a couple of years. Their time together was fraught with more fights than fun so no worries when they parted. Well, fast forward a number of years and Devyn’s mother has decided to celebrate her fiftieth birthday in a big way and that means Devyn will need to step in to save the day…I mean…what kind of nutty woman would want to bring the MANY men she has spent time with together for her birthday? That would be Devyn’s mom. Vaughn’s father wants to attend but who will keep Frederick out of the clutches of Melody and prevent heartbreak a second time if not that devoted son?

When Vaughn picks Devyn up from the airport I wrote of the author, “She can write” and then “sucked me right in” – Vaughn was a hunk and a half with a bit of baggage but definitely book boyfriend material. Devyn has issues from her past but with revolving doors and multiple men in her mother’s life it is not surprising she believes stability should take priority over chaos.

I will say I kind of skimmed some of the references to previous books in the series as the only one I had read was “Cody” but otherwise the story gave plenty of background, had holiday events aplenty and was definitely entertaining with two romances and a HEA ending for the couple. I enjoy this author’s books and knew I would enjoy this one, too, though I might like the darker books she writes a wee bit better.

Thank you to NetGalley and Tule Publishing for the ARC – This is my honest review.

3-4 Stars

I liked this book. All the main characters had a story and they all flowed together. It was fun seeing Devyn loosen up and finally live her life. Christmas can really bring the magic.

While this book is basically sweet and romantic, I found it boring.

I liked the characters, Devyn and Vaughn and felt that they were well written and likable. The secondary characters are also well written and entertaining.

I generally enjoy Crane's books, so I am not sure exactly what made this book drag for me. There was a lot of overthinking on Devyn's part and she seemed to go over the same issues over and over again. Also, there was a lot of descriptive telling, which I found clunky.

I did feel like Vaughn and Devyn belonged together and I did enjoy the ending of the book.

Have Yourself a Crazy Little Christmas by Megan Crane is a glimpse in a dysfunctional family up close and personal. It all stems from the certifiable man crazy mother, though the Greys are a unique family altogether, too. I could relate to “good girl” Devyn Voss, with her mother she would want the stability that comes from making the right choices. Vaughn Taylor is stable even if his father seemed more like Devyn’s mother.

This crazy Christmas story would seem to be about Devyn and Vaughn going a little crazy over each other. However, it is also about accepting family as they are, not necessarily how they should be. I did think Devyn’s Mom’s Christmas/Birthday celebration over the top. For that matter why would all the ex-men in her life show up, didn’t they have better things to do? That part of the story sounded like a country music song just begging to be written. Fun read in the way watching reality shows are.

“I like my life the way it is. Clean. Controlled. Absolutely devoid of messes.”

Devyn's used to her daughterly duty of flying in, cleaning up her mother's messes, and then returning back to her neatly organized life in Chicago.  Except this Christmas, her mother has arranged what Devyn calls "an episode of the Melody Grey Bachelorette" and has invited all of her ex-boyfriends, including Devyn and Vaughn's respective dads, along with her family, for a crazy amalgamation of a Christmas and birthday party.  Ten years ago, Devyn and Vaughn lived together for a few years while their parents were dating, and though both seemed to feel something for each other, they hid it behind teen snarking.  When they meet again at holiday getaway, it's obvious their attraction is still there, and even harder to deny.  Is it just a guilty holiday pleasure, or will it turn out to be a Christmas miracle?

Devyn has always lived a life as far opposite of her flighty mother's as she can manage.  I liked how, as the book progresses, Devyn finally admitted that while she loves her controlled everyday life, she also loved being the ringleader at her mother's circus, as Vaughn put it.  I liked how Devyn and Vaughn interacted with each other - still slightly snarky but with an underlying vulnerability that was simply charming.

Overall, though, the book is an ode to family.  There are several lovely scenes of Devyn reminiscing about her childhood while surrounded by a gaggle of cousins, aunts, and uncles, and they were very sweet.  In a lot of books that deal with family relationships and parental baggage, it often feels like the family members are there solely to be the bad guys.  I liked how in this one, while the not particularly pleasant quirks of the family members were explored, there was still a general fondness and love for them.  To me, family is really the heart of the holidays, no matter how much they drive you crazy, so this really gave it that special holiday feel for me.

“What if you could be anything you wanted to be—a little bit crazy and a little bit controlled and anything else your heart desired? What would you be then?”

As for cons, I disliked that Vaughn seemed perfectly fine keeping Devyn in the dark about his career.  While I wouldn't say he intentionally misled her, it did seem like it wouldn't have been that big of a deal to just tell her.  As I picked this up without reading the previous Greys of Montana book, I did have problems keeping the minor Grey family members straight, though it didn't affect the main plot of the story or my enjoyment of the book.

Overall, this was an enjoyable and lovely family-oriented holiday novel!

I loved this crazy wild ride of a story. The Grey's are definitely a different type of family and the craziest of all is Devyn Voss's mother. She simply loves men and she's had plenty in her life. Now she is celebrating her 50th birthday with a big bash which includes family and quite a few past loves. Once again it's up to Devyn to do her mother's bidding and clean up behind her. The only good thing to come from this craziness is that she reconnects with Vaughn Taylor. He was once almost her stepbrother although she never looked at him quite that way. He's attending the celebration to keep an eye on his dad and make sure he doesn't suffer another heartbreak at the hands of Devyn's mom. Turns out it isn't his dad's heart he should have been keeping an eye on!!

Great read and one you don't want to miss. I highly recommend it.

I'm gearing up for the Christmas season and this was a great book to get me started. It almost felt nostalgic reading about the Grey's and all the crazy this family represents. I think most people can relate to them.

Like Devyn, you love your family even when they are being irritating. You can be annoyed with your mom, sister or cousin but you're the first one to stand up and defend them. You want to be in the heart of the craziness even when you want some peace and quiet. I almost felt I could be Devyn in this book.

While this was all about family, it was also just as much about Devyn and Vaughn. Seeing them fall for each other in the mist of all that crazy was a beautiful thing to see unfold. And that ending! It just gives me the warm and fuzzies! If you're ready to get yourself in the mood for Christmas, I recommend Devyn and Vaugn's story! ARC provided by NetGalley.

I love the dynamic between Devyn and Vaughn. And I love Vaughn, period. I love his sexy Cowboy-ness, his honey whiskey voice with its southern drawl that I can practically hear as I read the pages, his casual throwin' around of southern slang and the word darlin'… Yum. Him being 6'4" seems a little excessively tall though. I have a brother-in-law who is about that tall and he's TALL. And I suppose I relate to Devyn as well, as someone who was always a "good girl" and never really did anything wild (though thankfully my Mom is NOT like Melody AT ALL! Dad is a tattooed biker dude though… Hmm…)

Partway through the book Devyn meets up with her cousins and there is way too much of what I assume is recap from the first four books in the series. I found myself skimming through this waiting to get back to what I thought of as the "real" storyline. I suppose there are spoilers there for the first four books, but it's all thrown at you in such a big blob of word-vomit that I honestly couldn't tell you what the other storylines are, other than that they seem to have little to no bearing on the storyline for this book. So while this is the 5th book in a series, it can be read as a stand-alone with possible spoilers for the earlier books, but you're not missing anything by not reading them.

Aside from the little chapter and a half where Devyn is catching up with her cousins and the author feels the need to bash the reader over the head with the history of all the Grey Cousins, Have Yourself A Crazy Little Christmas is really well written, in a style that's fun and flirty. It's a quick read with lots of holiday family craziness against the festive backdrop of a Montana ski town at Christmas. It also has several poignant moments, several beautiful ones, and several the glisten like snowflakes falling in the twinkling Christmas lights. I originally deducted two stars for all the Grey Family Saga stuff that cluttered up the story, but gave one back for all the beautiful moments that followed and tugged at something deep in my chest. (See what this book did to me? It got me waxing all poetic. Dang.)

I had read the first book in this series ages ago and loved it so I was hoping to feel the same way about this one but sadly did not. I love books about big families and I did not feel like I lost anything have missed the three books in the middle. I think anyone can jump into the series with this book should they choose to. The premise sounded interesting but ultimately did not deliver. I am tired of reading about characters whose sole romantic obstacle is the emotional baggage they receive from their parents (and who then snap out of it after a pep talk). I did not see a lot of growth or communication in the book not only with the main characters but also Devyn's parents (especially her mother with her largely unexplained crazy birthday celebration that brought them together).

I haven't read any of the Greys of Montana series before (although I have read Cody, when it was billed as being part of the Extreme Bull Riders of America series) but I didn't find this a barrier to enjoying this book.

Devyn Voss' flightly man-crazy mother has decided to celebrate Christmas and her 50th birthday with a difference this year. Instead of the extended Grey family descending upon Devyn's grandparents they are all coming to Jackson Hole, Wyoming for a week of festivities. Oh, and she has also invited all of her numerous ex-boyfriends!

Devyns' sister was supposed to be helping (by which we mean doing everything) their mother organise the festivities but, as usual, she has ducked out at the last minute citing pressure from her super secret job in Washington (note to self, musty read THAT book). Devyn is the dependable daughter, the one who clears up her mother's messes and sorts out the practicalities of sleigh rides and clearing up after parties.

Arriving at the airport Devyn is greeted by Vaughn Taylor, her almost step-brother when she was 17/18 years old. His father lived with her mother for two years before they broke up. As teenagers Vaughn and Devyn were always needling each other, although both were also attracted to the other. Now Vaughn has grown up and is looking mighty fine!

Vaughn is a successful songwriter in Nashville but he has come to this ridiculous gathering to stop his father making the same mistake he made a decade ago, falling for the disaster magnet that is Melody Voss. He has no intention of tangling with Devyn but her complete lack of knowledge about his job and success piques his attention, her piercing blue eyes and jet black hair also grab his attention.

Is Devyn and Vaughn's secret affair just for the holidays or could it be the real thing?

I love Megan Crane's dystopian novels and I enjoyed her bull-riding foray but this is my first straight-out romance. As usual she brings her own twist to a holiday romance, full of insights into the characters' psyches and quirky characters.

Thoroughly enjoyable holiday novella.

Easy going read with Devyn Voss traveling to Wyoming to help throw her mother a 50th birthday party which includes all of Mom's old boyfriends. A disaster planned to happen! Having a mother who has had a history of a long trail of hook ups Devyn has not wanted to carry on the family curse. The unexpected meeting with the almost step-brother Vaughn Taylor has Devyn traveling down a detour path. Did not feel like I missed anything not reading the prior Grey's of Montana books. This was not my first Crane meeting and she always fills her pages with interesting characters destined to overcome personal issues. "A copy of this book was provided by Tule Publishing via NetGalley with no requirement for a review. The comments here are my honest opinion."