This is a voluntary review of an advanced copy.

What a fun book with two very competitive "enemies" that start to realize that they were made for each other, after a long while! At first, I did not see how Emery and Carter were even going to have anything in common when she was such a junk food lover and he was kind of a snooty foodie.

It was great to watch as they both battled their past issues and worked to get past those struggles. You could see that Emery needed to stand on her own and be able to stand up to her parents. Carter needed to get past his bad memories of his father and only later found there were some good memories.

I loved that while Carter kept struggling with his new restaurant, when the right solution showed up, he was ready for it and knew that it was right.

Loved the HEA, and their gift exchange!

Received an ARC from NetGalley for an honest review.

Well that was just adorable. It wasn't overly Christmas-y, but it had just enough holiday spirit to have me start wishing for warmer weather. Carter and Emery have been thorns in each other's sides since they were in school and when they end up working together after a pretty huge PR scandal caused by her fiance, it isn't long before they realize that the animosity they feel towards one another might actually be attraction.

To be honest, reading this book made me think about food...a lot. Carter describing and making meals for Emery was clearly a way of sharing his passion with her, while also providing for her. And I loved it. I'm glad I was able to read Carter's book right after Christian's. It really provided a context for the childhood/adolescence these two had. Chase wrote another great book!

These Montgomerys. They hit me straight in the heart every time. Carter and Emery's story had me going from the first page. I fell for them right away. There is such a strong sense of family and you feel like you are a honorary Montgomery. Definitely a perfect ending to the series.

What a great finish to the Montgomery Brothers series. We started in book one with the brothers and ended in this book with the last of the cousin. This can be read as a stand alone but reading them in order will really make you enjoy it more.
This is a perfect ending Carter did not follow in the family business instead becoming a famous chef and opening three restaurant with another one coming soon. Emery was always challenging him, yet now with her life in shambles she is going day day.
They both have struggles to deal with at the moment and now they are working on them together. The dynamic of their relationship is changing.

I am going to miss this family I feel like I know all the details of their lives as I have been reading about them for a long time. Thank you for an incredible series.


** I received a copy of this book in exchange for a honest review**

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Ruthie – ☆☆☆☆
This is the ninth in the series and I have read and enjoyed them all; this is no exception. Fun and flirty, it mixes the usual blatant matchmaking with family and ultimately, love.

Emery is, to say the least, in a bind and so grateful when she is offered a safe place to hide, and just as importantly, a task to take her mind off her philandering, public figure of an ex-fiancé. That this means she will be spending time with her childhood nemesis, Carter Montgomery, is still preferable to being at home with the paparazzi at the door, and parents who think she should support the philanderer!

As she and Carter come to terms with the Christmas cookery book project and Carter has to acknowledge, at least to himself, that Emery is getting under his skin, we see the potential relationship becoming ever more likely. I loved how she managed to get from him a true view of what should be in the cookery book, that she took him back to a time when he was more positive about his life choices. She helps him realise the good, and consider how he puts to rest some of the issues arising from his relationship with his father.

It is all good stuff, and plenty of heat and passion spill over from their improving friendship and, well, Eliza may just have a success on her hands that she can crow about too!

I am sorry to say goodbye to this series.

Emma and Carter are very fitting as closers to this series. They've known each other since the fifth grade and they haven't exactly been friends but when Emma is recovering from a broken relationship and Carter seems to be suffering from burn out, Carter's mother is determined to throw them together as a perfect match.

They certainly don't start off as a perfect anything but Carter is guilted into giving Emma a chance only to find that her palate certainly does not match what he would consider food. Fortunately he's adaptable and finds a way to create the foods that Emma likes blended in with the fancy ingredients he enjoys creating with.

Not only is Carter and Emma's slow road to friendship and love very heartwarming, the journey is enhanced by food and recipes. Getting the entire family together for the mock Christmas is nostalgic and at the end it's nice to leave every one happy with their growing families.

An awesome ending to the Montgomery series. Carter and Emory's story was great. I hate to see the Montgomery series end. I love Samantha's books, every single one.
Carter and Emory were childhood adversaries of sorts always trying to one-up each other.. Thrown together by Carter's mother to work on a cookbook they find as grown-ups they can play nice. Even fall in love. I loved the Mock Christmas celebration. It was sort of like a farewell to the family.

Finally, Carter Montgomery! This has been a long time coming and made us wonder who was going to be his forever girl. It had to be someone special, with a love for a big family and able to love his cooking.

So here comes Emery!!! Who loves his family but is hiding out from hers, doesn’t want the spotlight at all and doesn’t like his pretentious cooking. It’s love at first sight.

Except first sight was 20+ years ago and she is more like family, the tomboy girl he watched grow up and was his biggest pain for most of his life.

This is the final story of the incredible Montgomery family. If you haven’t read them all, you can easily read this as a stand alone but you will want to go back to the beginning and catch up on all of the Montgomery’s. Watch them fall in love, suffer loss and stick together. It is truly an incredible series and Carter and Emery are an awesome way to end it. Thank you Samantha Chase for sharing them with us. Now back to Magnolia Sound…..

I love Emery and Carter. They’ve known each other forever, they’ve tested each other their entire lives, and they ended up being the next couple to be set up by Carter’s family. Yet, their story was different. This was not a long-time love affair or a second chance at love. Emery and Carter didn’t like each other growing up. They were not nice to each other, their families were not friends, and they didn’t really keep in touch. Then they were thrown together, not knowing that they were even going to be living in the same apartment, and things changed.

I know this is fiction but I still felt like the story was rushed. Emery was just out of a horrible relationship and jumped right into Carter’s life. Carter didn’t necessarily push her but he didn’t help her get past the wrongdoings that were done to her. I don’t feel like he understood that she had to move past her last relationship to be able to be with him. I didn’t feel that heat or the spark right off the bat between these two. They pushed each other’s buttons all the time but there was very little true communication.

I love the Montgomery Brother’s series and have read them all. It was fun to see what some of the other characters were up to and how their lives had continued.

What a great story, just enough to get you in the mood for Christmas, and fall in love with the main characters at the same time! 5 stars for this one!
Meet Carter Montgomery, hot chef! When his mother asks him to help do a cook book for a worthy cause, he tries to get out of it, then decides how bad could it be, throw some recipes together and boom she gets her book. But his mom has other intentions, throwing in Emery, who's going through a rough time publicly in the media due to her fiance's wandering hands and eyes.
Emery & Carter used to be very competitive since the fifth grade, can these two work together to get the project done or will they fight at every turn.
This story was so good, I could not put it down. Grab this it's available NOW!!

I was approved for this book and then it was archived a few days later before I could download it. I guess books are archived on the very last day of the month and I was not aware of that until now. I'm sorry for my mistake. I would have loved to read this title.

4 1/2 STARS!

A DASH OF CHRISTMAS is the next book in Samantha Chase's beloved Montgomery Brothers series and brings us the story of restaurateur Carter and childhood nemesis Emery in a really adorable take on an enemies to lovers story.

Carter comes across as a bit cold and moody in the beginning, but it doesn't take him long to warm a reader's heart to his plight. He went against the family grain to become a chef and successful restaurant owner, so he is struggling with the right move when he wants to expand into something different.

Emery feels a bit beaten down when she comes into the first scene, but a few days in Carter's company has the sassy spitfire he used to deal with coming back to life and challenging him tooth and nail. His mom might think she's being smooth trying to fix them up together, but there's no way they can stop hating each other long enough to consider the dating potential ... right?

I recommend this book to anyone loving a good enemies to lovers story with a strong, sassy dialogue between the characters. This entire series has been delightful, so you can't go wrong picking up any book featuring a Montgomery.

A DASH OF CHRISTMAS by Samantha Chase is the ninth and final instalment in the author’s contemporary, adult THE MONTGOMERY BROTHERS romance series focusing on the Montgomery siblings and cousins. This is chef and restaurateur Carter Montgomery, and Emery Monaghan’s story line. A DASH OF CHRISTMAS can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story lines is revealed where necessary.

Told from dual third person perspectives (Carter and Emery) with an introductory chapter from sisters-in-law Eliza and Monica Montgomery A DASH OF CHRISTMAS focuses on Eliza and Monica’s attempts to find a love interest for Eliza’s son Carter Montgomery. When her fiancé with political aspirations is caught, on numerous occasions, with his proverbial pants down, Emery Monaghan’s finds herself seeking shelter, far away, for the paparazzi and unsupportive family who are defending her obnoxious ex. With an offer to help write and edit a Montgomery cookbook for the upcoming holiday season, Emery will come face to face with her childhood nemesis, in the guise of chef and restaurateur Carter Montgomery. What ensues is the building romance and relationship between Carter and Emery as they are forced to live together while they work on the book, and the potential fall-out as their time together comes to a close.

Emery Monaghan was all but forced into the relationship with Congressman Derek Whitman, a relationship that her parents supported and adored but Emery knew Derek had been unfaithful, and the sh*t was about to hit the fan. A formerly independent woman, Emery found herself floundering in a world of embarrassment and heart break when the news broke about Derek’s affairs. When Eliza Montgomery offered Emery a chance to ‘hide away’ from prying eyes, Emery jumped at the chance but was caught unaware when Carter Montgomery was pulled back into her life. Carter Montgomery had no idea he would be working with Emery Monoghan, the young woman who saw Carter as nothing more than the antagonizing boy who upset her life but Carter hid his affections for our story line heroine, affections he was hoping to bring to into the present.

The relationship between Carter and Emery is an enemies to lovers; an opposites attract, acrimonious childhood friendship that disguised Carter’s attraction to the little girl he would grow to love. The $ex scenes are passionate but mostly implied.

There is a large ensemble cast of secondary and supporting characters including many of the previous story line couples. We are briefly introduced to Emery’s ex fiancé Derek Whitman, and her social climbing parents who are willing to turn a blind eye to Derek’s behavior.

A DASH OF CHRISTMAS is a story of family, friendship, second chances, and love; an enjoyable and sweet tale of one man’s professional struggle, and one woman’s spirited attempts to make it on her own. The premise is spirited and emotional; the romance is tender; the characters are energetic and inspiring.

Copy supplied by Netgalley

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By and large holiday love stories are not my go to genre, with that said, give me a Samantha Chase holiday story and all of a sudden I am ready for lights, trees, carols, eggnog...the whole shebang! Carter and Em have a great dynamic and I thoroughly enjoyed their history of tension. The way they learned about each other and their backgrounds was heartwarming and at times very poignant. The visualization of the Christmas decor and recipes had me reminiscing of my family holidays and thinking of what meals or events stand out.

Their conversations were full of sass and zest which I am always here for! This was the first story to see all the dynamics at play since the big loss in the previous book. Many scenes had me smiling with tears in my eyes over this family and the love and humor they bring to so many scenes. Maylene was star of the show (as it should be) and how Carter tied their conversations and observation around Maylene into a beautiful moment in present had me cheering!

As with all SC stories the writing grabbed my attention and emotions. Even after finishing the story I love thinking about this family and how sneaky the parents were finding the kids love and how many life lessons all Montgomery’s shared with us over this series.

Thank for the chance to read this story and share my opinion!

A Dash of Christmas by Samantha Chase is the ninth book in the Montgomery series.
This close knit family of the three Montgomery brothers has brought us so many heartfelt stories and this newest addition doesn't disappoint.
Emery Monaghan needs to escape the media circus her life has become. When her fiance is charged with a slew of sexual harassment claims she's finally ready to take back her own life. Only problem, her family is zero help. The saving grace comes in an unexpected form of the mother of her arch nemesis growing up. Emery never expected the sparks that fly when she is forced into close quarters with Carter Montgomery.

He simply wants some down time before tackling the next issue in his newest restaurant build. Carter expected the pit stop in NY to be a chance to unwind, not a trip down memory lane with Emery. And he's never one to turn down a challenge which taking her on with a pet project for his mother will certainly end up that way. Or will the sparks catch fire and uncover that maybe the animosity was really hiding the true feelings they have for each other.

This was my first Christmas book and I must say it was a very enjoyable read. I really like reading Samantha's stories and this was no exception. The food in this book made me like it even more! The fact that Emery is such a foodie added to the fun of this book. This love/hate relationship between the characters was fun to see turn around. I love that this was not Insta-love and that it took time to figure things out. Great read!

What a wonderful love story! This book is about returning to your roots and finding love where you least expect it. Carter Emery fought all through school. A pain to each other from the beginning. That all changed when Carter’s family needed help with a cookbook and Emery need to get away from the disaster that her life had become. They find love and a future by giving in to their desires for a happy forever.

Carter & Emery's story has all the elements that you expect from a Samantha Chase book. It is hard to put into words the connections that a reader feels when they dive into one of her books, but if you love heartfelt romance stories, "A Dash of Christmas" is a page turner that leaves the reader in such a good place after finishing Carter and Emery's story. Having read many of the their stories, I find it a bit sad that this is the last of the Montgomery books. Each is a standalone read, but once you read one of them, you will fall in love with the whole Montgomery family. A beautiful read for all ages, I would like to thank NetGalley & Sourcebooks for gifting me "A Dash of Christmas". My review is based on my opinion of my reading. 5 Stars!

A Dash of Christmas!!

This book was a fun-filled story about Emery and Carter. Emery had gone along with her parents’ wishes and she was engaged to marry a man “suitable” for her stature and would help her parents be seen where they belong in the world. As it turned out, that’s exactly what happened when Emery left her cheating fiancé and her parents wanted her to support the louse.

With Carter’s mother and aunt’s help, Emery is hidden away and given a job helping to pull together a charity cookbook featuring Carter’s recipes. Carter doesn’t want to be involved in this project! And then he learns the girl he’d sparred with all through school is working to help his mother! And she’s staying at his apartment! Who knew their sparks were from attraction, not hatred!

I loved how Emery realized her family was not her support system, and how she refused to go back to an untenable situation despite the pressure to do so. I loved the slow burn between Emery and Carter, and how Carter too grew and understood what he wanted in his future all with gentle pushes from Emery. These two were made for each other. The Montgomery family looks to be growing exponentially!

Fabulous book! Highly recommend you 1 click this one!

I received an ARC of this book courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and given freely.

A Dash of Christmas is the last book in the Montgomery Brothers Series and what a perfect way to end the series. I absolutely fell in love with Emery and Carter and their chemistry. I really enjoyed reading the journey of these two characters on the road to their happily ever after. The characters are well developed and fleshed out. The story is multilayered and complex. I LOVED the ending and I felt like this final book brought the whole series full circle reading about the other family members newsletters before wrapping it up. Kudos to Samantha Chase for a fantastic book.