A lovely well written book including animals which are a great love of mine! Nice to see more of this author. Well done.

Lila is considered the stern, too perfect older Vasquez sister who runs and operates Puppy Promise. They are working with an organization that recommends and supports service dogs for children who have issues with their hearing. She is going to be the trainer for their newest client, a young girl who is receiving a service dog due to her degenerative hearing loss. They are at a fundraiser, and Lila, who doesn't get out much, is dressed in a pink bridesmaid gown. Mistaken by a lost girl as a princess, they strike up a friendship. It just so happens, this is the child, Emily, she will be working with and when she meets her father, handsome, flirty, always-ready-with-a-smile Ford she knows she is in trouble. Ford is happy taking care of Emily and does not have time for relationships, even though he has lots of opportunity, but something clicks when he meets Princess Lila and sees how she treats his daughter.

This story is a sweet and fun romance that is set during the Christmas holidays. It is not what I would consider a Christmas story, but it was enjoyable. I had such a fun time reading this book and getting to know Lila and Ford and cute as a button Emily. Emily picks out her puppy to work with and names him Jeeves von Hinklebottom the Third, too cute, just like the puppy. There were so many heartwarming moments in this book. The meeting of Lila, Ford and Emma is so amazing. Imagine going to a fundraiser in a bubblegum pink dress and being mistaken for a real princess, as well as meeting a swoon worthy dad who is a big flirt, but loves his daughter to pieces. That sets the tone for this story. Lila works hard to train Jeeves and set up her business, but along the way, becomes friends with Emily and falls in love with her as well as her dad. A sweet story, but with one scene that took me by surprise. There is an episode of graphic phone sex, that I did fast forward through. I don't think it was necessary in this story, but it knocked it down a star for me. If you enjoy a story about cute puppies, cute kids, sweet romance and building up self-confidence, then pick this one up.

I will be honest and admit that it was the cover of the book that initially drew me to the book. The song didn’t sound bad either, so I decided to read it.

There was something that happened that is a little bitter for me and it had to do with the puppy Emily got. I didn’t like what happened to it. Don’t worry, the puppy is well and there was no harm done to it, safe and sound. I just didn’t like how the story was involved even though it was realistic.

A lot of things were going in our characters’ lives Ford is a father first and foremost. Being Lila’s love interest kinda is a secondary characteristic. Lila has her shelter and the puppies. They made it work though. They didn’t have the best start but they grew on each other and on me.

I did like the book. It was (mostly) enjoyable and Emily was a very cute child and my heart hurt for her. She, Lila and Ford were a cute family. The Christmas feeling is not very present and the story could have been set at any time of the year.

Ford’s last name is Ford, which is a little ridiculous, but I will go with it. Who can resist a book with a child and a dog? I couldn’t and I would suggest to give it a try.

Don't let the title fool you, this isn't your typical holiday romance and a perfect feel good read for July. There's a ton of feels, cute little kids and adorable puppies, and a couple that you just can't help but pull for.

Ford does his best to use humor and innocent flirting to keep people at arms length. But while his lightheartedness and fun-loving attitude doesn't let anyone too close, underneath he's hoping to find someone that can see past it to the loneliness underneath. It's all fun & games, and a lot of laughter, until he meets Lila.

Lila is normally considered the serious and staid one but there's something about Ford & his daughter that brings out a more playful side. And every bit of her coming out of her shell is adorable and fun. I really liked how much she started to see herself differently and found a way to mesh well with the Ford family.

Full of humor and feels, Puppy Christmas is just the happy, funny escape you are looking for.

Ms. Gilmore's voice is one of my favorites of all authors. I read her under all her pen-names just because her prose and dialogue is such a pleasure. So, of course, I couldn't resist a book by her that also had puppies and feisty heroines. This book is such a delight with fun quirky dialogue, internal and external, and great three-dimensional characters that makes you want to read the whole series just to get to visit with them again.

Another great read from Lucy Gilmore's Forever Home series.

I really enjoyed this charming story. Lila and Ford were perfect for each other and Ford's daughter Emily stole the show more than once.

I like the author's writing style, too. The plot doesn't feel rushed or too stretched out, and the characters are interesting, entertaining, and realistic.

I am really looking forward to seeing what the author writes next!

Puppy Christmas

**received an ARC in exchange for an honest review**

4⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A heartwarming story about a father who will do anything for his daughter, especially getting and training a service dog. Ford meets Lila and the sparks will fly when they first meet. Their relationship grows as Lila is there to help Emily get use to her service dog. Ford can tell that the love and care that Lila puts into her work is something special and hoping that maybe he can get her to focus those on him and his daughter as well. But as they begin to start a relationship will he be able to be everything that Lila and Emily needs?

Charming and entertaining with some laugh out loud moments! Very enjoyable characters. Highly recommend for animal lovers and fans of Christmas stories alike.

I anticipated Lucy Gilmore’s second Forever Home romance, Puppy Christmas, from the moment I turned the last page on the first, Puppy Love. I’m sorry it took me this long to read the former. Equally laugh-out-loud funny, heart-wrenching, and rawr-sexy, it would have made a hellacious work month so much better. Lesson learned: I’ve settled into my romance reading (thirteen years since I picked up a copy of Garwood’s Shadow Music at the local Costco and reignited my love for the genre) with the knowledge that romance is the best respite from daily stress, an oasis of happy in a desert of demands. Gilmore’s series, including this latest (as I anticipate the third, Puppy Kisses!), deserves a spot in the happy-reader Hall of Fame. Continuing with her initial premise, three sisters running a service-dog non-profit, “Puppy Promise,” Puppy Christmas focusses on the eldest, 31-year-old Lila Vasquez, as she works to build the confidence of six-year-old, hearing-impaired Emily Ford with the help of cockapoo Jeeves, while falling in love with Emily’s father, ridiculously-named Ford Ford. Gilmore’s second Forever Home romance is plot-light, but character-deep and chock full of lovely anecdotes, including a funny meet-cute, first date set in a snow maze, Elsa-allusions, cocked-puppy-head adorableness, and hot phone sex.

Gilmore does here what romance does best: starts the narrative with diminished protagonists and builds them up to self-actualization, love, and commitment. I loved Lila’s and Ford’s personalities, potential, and their initial place of less-thans. Lila is emerging from a break-up (I’m glad Gilmore, with several ex cameos, makes him a decent guy in the end) where her ex accused her of being a cold fish, or as Ford calls himself in regards to his daughter, a “fun sponge”. Lila is the organizer, the keeper of spreadsheets, the driving force of Puppy Promise, but she isn’t the cute and cuddly. She takes on the task of training Emily and Jeeves with the hang-dog notion that she’s not good with children, with people, definitely not as good as her sisters with puppies. In Ford’s eyes, she is everything caring (dressing as a princess for weeks to ensure Emily is comfortable, safe, and happy) and beautiful. Ford, in turn, is a harried, devoted, minivan-bucket-driving single dad with a work-from-home job as an instruction-manual illustrator who hasn’t had s-e-x in years (it was a hoot how Ford and Lila constantly spell out inappropriate language in Emily’s presence). Ford is charming, funny, good-looking, and exhausted, but keeps everyone at bay with his humour and don’t-take-me-seriously ‘tude. Except Lila can see what a wonderful man he is, a dedicated, loving father and neighbour, caring, affectionate. He’s the real deal, true-blue.

At first, Gilmore plays on the opposites-attract trope, as Lila thinks she ” … was the cold one. Ford was everything attractive and happy and warm.” And, given her writing talent, and humor-skills, she could have gone with this for the duration. Instead, we have a more engaging, complex narrative than the cutesy cover implies. Gilmore shows us how Ford’s and Lila’s flaws are sometimes ways with which they can hide their vulnerabilities. She also shows us how “opposites-attract”, if there is friendship, affection and, in time, love, will make for a compatible, complementary couple. Never once, however, does she take her foot off the light-hearted, but no less heart-felt pedal.

Lastly, I loved Gilmore’s gender-stereotype role reversal and her desire to make a feminist point about single parents and how social gender expectations can weigh people down. Again, nothing is heavy-handed; all is funny and poignant. To start, there’s a wonderful scene of Ford falling asleep when he sits on his living-room floor with Lila. Usually, the exhausted single mum finds peaceful, secure slumber with capable alpha-man. In this case, exhausted single-dad finds rest with alpha-woman. It’s endearing and fun. There’s also Ford’s celibacy to Lila’s sexual experience; Lila asking and organizing their first date; Ford’s request for flex-time from his employer to care for this daughter; Lila’s aspirations to Ford’s lackadaisical approach to work, his contentment with being a dad and homebody. Ford suffers, wondering if he has enough to offer Lila and Lila, in turn, yearns to be a part of Ford and Emily’s modest home and life. While the surface of Gilmore’s sure hand is feather-light and comedic, her deeper purposes strike touching notes. I adored Puppy Christmas with equal affection to Puppy Love. With Miss Austen, we say in it, you’ll find “a mind lively and at ease,” Emma.

Lucy Gilmore’s Puppy Christmas is published by Sourcebooks Casablanca. It was released in September 2019 and may be found at your preferred vendor. I receive an e-galley from Sourcebooks Casablanca, via Netgalley.

***3.5 Stars***

Overall, this was a sweet read, but not one that I fell absolutely in love with, more I fell in “Like” with it. Lila and Ford were interesting in that they appear to be absolute opposites, and they are on the surface, but beneath it all they are quite insecure and their ways of dealing were interesting to say the least. I will say that I liked Ford and Lila together because they ended up balancing each other out and helping the other to see that they were good exactly as they were ~ faults, insecurities and all.

What made this read fun for me was Emily, Jeeves and watching as the pup helped Emily branch out. The moments with them were adorable and had me grinning like a fool more often than not.

Also, I actually liked that there were no absolute baddies here, something that could have been with a couple of characters, but didn’t happen. These are all down to earth people making mistakes, working through them and living their lives.

I really loved the first book in this series that I read earlier in the year so I was excited to get to the second one.

Lila is one of my favorites of the sisters because she is so straight laced and practical and so it was nice to see her in a different element and how it brought out her fun side.

She is the oldest and for some reason she went from fun loving to serious the minute she because a big sister and that is just how she grew up. Then with her youngest sister sick as a child it probably made her even more serious. The last man that she dated told her she was to perfect and to straight laced, so pretty much no fun.

Lila works with her sisters and they have a service puppy company where they pair up puppies to those who need them. It's Christmas time and they are giving away a puppy and training time for a charity event. Lila shows up in a fluffy princess looking dress and wants to shoot her sisters when everyone else is not dressed the same away. She does gain the attention of a young girl who is crying and thinks she is a princess. She also has a very handsome and charming father who caters to his daughters every whim even dancing with a princess.

When she finds out that the winner of the dog is the young girl she knows she is in for some trouble. The father is to charming for his own good but he also uses it as a way to keep all the single ladies at bay, but he really seems to like Lila. The thing is when you have been building up a barrier of charm and flirty wit, it's hard to shut off and show your true self. Lila doesn't take him serious but he has also helped her see her fun side, a side she didn't think she had.

I thought this was a very sweet and charming romance with lots of flirty sexual tension but not a lot of actual heat. There is some sexy time but not till close to the end, so definitely one that is kind of a flirty slow burn. I really liked all the MC's in this story as it was fun watching Lila find her fun side being a princess for a young girl. Ford was so sweet with his young daughter and concentrated so much on her and her needs that he put his own on the back burner. A little afraid to let his guard down so it was great seeing him get closer and closer to Lila and of course the young girl Emily was so cute! Also the dog was adorable and she gave it a really long name and I can't remember what it was but it was very funny. 

This is a great read whether read during the holiday season or not and if you're looking for a make you laugh, sweet fluffy romance then this would be it. I also highly recommend the first book as well.

To reach their HEA, Lila and Ford must remove the masks they show to the world and let someone else in. Though it takes a strong push from her sister’s and Ford’s daughter Emily, both realize letting go of perceptions only makes things better.

Ford is a charmer and a single dad of a hearing impaired daughter. When his daughter needs a service dog he meets Lila, the dog trainer. The two become smitten with each other almost immediately but both are pretty reluctant to put their hearts on the line not wanting to get hurt nor hurt the little girl they both love.

Firstly, this book had virtually nothing to do with Christmas other than the fact that the timeframe of the story was loosely around November/December. Winter and celebrating the holidays had nothing whatsoever to do with the plot. So, if you're hoping for the holiday feels, look elsewhere. What I did like was the male lead, Ford. He was charming and the way he flirted with and seduced Lila was adorable and yet endearing because despite being an incorrigible flirt he was actually pretty rusty in the romance department. What seemed a little incongruous to me was the high level of sexiness in a story that also contains puppies and sick children and the holidays. Given the title and description, I was expecting sweet romance but the heat level was several degrees above that. I have nothing against that, it just was a little surprising and might be a surprise to other readers who pick up this book. Overall, it was a quick, fun, easy read..

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this book. It was such a cute one, with a handsome single dad, a woman nursing a broken heart, adorable kid and PUPPIES. I highly recommend it, this one is so heartwarming and perfect for this time of year.

Lila Vasquez might not be the "fun one" at Puppy Promise—the service puppy training school she runs with her sisters—but she can always be counted on to gets things done. So when her latest client shows an interest in princess gowns over power suits, Lila puts aside her scruples, straps on the glittery heels, and gets to work. If only the adorable six-year-old's father wasn't such an appealing Prince Charming. Ford's whole life revolves around his daughter...until he meets Lila. Smart, capable, and amazing at helping Emily gain confidence with her new service puppy at her side, Lila is everything he ever wanted—but she's way out of his league. Good thing Emily and her new pup are up to the matchmaking task. This Christmas, it's all hands (and paws) on deck!
This was simply a cute holiday read! It was an adorable story that puts you right in the holiday spirit. I recommend.
**I voluntarily read and reviewed this book

Complementary copy given for honest review.
Puppies, romance and Christmas, what a wonderful combination! Such a cute little romance that warms the heart and soul.

Gilmore is a pen name for Tamara Morgan. Morgan has a series called Getting Physical that I remember really enjoying, including one called The Derby Girl. The heroine in that book is UNLIKEABLE. Amazon tells me I bought that in 2013, so that is quite some time ago.

Anyway, back on track to the present. Puppy Christmas is the first holiday book I’ve read this year. I don’t read a ton of Christmas typically but I thought I would give this a try. Mostly I found this book boring. As of this writing I have the book in limbo and I probably won’t pick it back up. Lila, our heroine, trains service dogs. She is currently training a dog for a little girl, Emily, whos father is single and VERY attractive. They hit it off. Some sillyness ensues.

The hero Ford Ford, I’m at the 80% mark and I don’t know why he has two first names. If you’ve read this and know the answer, please comment below or DM me. Anyway, Ford is super flirty and Lila never knows if what he is saying is true. It is possible I know someone like this in my real life and trying to parse out the truth is exhausting.

Lila’s previous boyfriend described her as “cold” and I really, really hate this theme. So throughout the book she’s wrongly concerned that she is uncaring and why would Ford want to be with her. This bores me.

I have to mention that Lila might be coded as Latinx. Her last name is Vasquez. She is described as having brown hair and brown eyes. At one point she mentions she speaks two languages, but never says which ones. Perhaps that is just her last name and I read it for something she isn’t. Who knows.

Lastly, the word princess is used 99 times in this book. Lila dresses like a princess in the first scene and that them never goes away.

As I am writing this, I am pretty certain I am declaring this a DNF and moving on with my life.

What can be better then a Christmas romance and puppies everyone who loves a romance and dogs the setting is cute the romance is awesome and the dogs are even cuter

THE DELIGHT

I didn't really know what I was getting into when I started this story, but when I came out of it, my heart was so much happier. Seeing a guy so into the care of his daughter and not one for greatness. A woman who thinks she is cold and unlovable. I just was a story to melt my heart for Christmas

[divider top="no"]

REVIEW

Lila Vasquez runs Puppy Promise, a service puppy training, with her two sisters, but she isn't considered the "fun" one of the group.  She's is organized and gets things done, but at the end of the day, she lays down and lets the puppies crawl over her and that makes her not as cold as people may think. When she is given the opportunity to help a non-profit auditory foundation with a free puppy and training services, she see this as a way for her company to move forward. What she didn't plan was for her sisters to put her in a glittery, pink princess dress that would steal a young girls heart or even that of her father. When they turn out to be the clients, Lila learns that she isn't as cold as her ex-boyfriend says she is and she owes some of that revelation to Ford. That's Ford Ford.

Yep, Ford Ford is his first and last name. Ford's life revolves around his six-year old, Emily. With a cochlear implant, Emily often isn't very social or confident. When Lila enters all dressed up as a princess, both Emily and Ford truly believe they have royalty in their mists. With Lila's gentle but firm guidance, Emily starts to flourish with her trusty puppy, Jeeves. Ford though is harder to crack as he keeps everyone at an arms distance with his flirting. These at times were very laugh out loud moments, but they also show you that he has forsaken any happiness in the quest to provide everything he can for his daughter.

Ford teaches Lila she isn't cold and that she can have fun. Just be who she is. Lila teaches Ford he doesn't have to give up everything for his daughter, but still provide everything he wants to provide for her. This was a beautifully written story about ordinary people finding that person that makes their inner beauty and personality shine.

This could be a sweet romance, a RomCom romance but it also plays well as a Contemporary Romance that happens at Christmas time. It falls into so many categories, but it also falls into one of my favorite books of 2019.

Sweet, fun and super cute cute Christmas love story. I enjoyed it very much. Thank you netgalley and publisher for this arc in exchange for an honest review.