I enjoyed this book because it made me fall in love with the characters. The story line kept me so interested I didn't want to stop reading. It was a feel good romance that touches the heart and the emotions.

If I had to sum this book up in one sentence, I’d say it’s a small-town Hallmark movie holiday sweet romance in a book. It’s a cute story with all the coincidences, colorful characters, and close-knit relationships you’d expect in a Hallmark movie. Though some heavier topics like grief are introduced, it’s cozy, comfort holiday reading, and I enjoyed reading it snuggled up with my dogs, a blanket, and a cup of tea. If you’re a fan of cozy holiday movie marathons, you’ll probably like this one too.

This is the second in a series based in the fictional Somerset Lake town, but it can definitely be read as a standalone. I haven’t yet read the first book in the series, and I had no problem picking up the series here as it seems like the book characters are connected but the stories follow different characters more closely in each one. I’d say the author has set the stage for a third book as well, which I’ll be happy to read.

After Christmas 2020 I told myself I would do Much Better when it came to reviewing Christmas 2021 books. I would be on top of it and get the reviews up in a timely manner. Reader, that did not happen. No, I simply couldn’t keep up with full time work and full time school and reading and reviewing All of the Books. So, here we are, over a month after the Big Day and I am still reviewing Christmas romances. Woohoo! The Christmas Village by Annie Rains was a sweet romance read that was, unfortunately, completely forgettable. Seriously. I couldn’t remember a thing about it when I sat down to write this review. *cringes*

Here’s the book’s description (which did, thankfully, remind me what the book was about):
Lucy Hannigan has inherited her mother's bulldog, Bella, and her childhood home, the only pink house on Gingerbread Lane. With the holidays coming up, the pressure is on to decorate the house for the annual lights competition and maintain her parent's winning streak. But Lucy already has her hands full as a midwife and a new landlord-to her ex-fiance.
When Miles Bruno is suddenly asked to move out of his rental home, he's grateful to Lucy for taking him on as a tenant. But their broken-off engagement doesn't make it easy to live next door. Sparks still fly between them, and he'd give anything to get back in Lucy's good graces. But to do that will take much more than just tree trimming and house decorating and contest winning. Will one wildly grand romantic gesture on Christmas Eve finally soften her heart?
Once again, the small town + second chance got me. With a bonus Christmas storyline! How could I turn it down? I didn’t and maybe I should have. I’m finding I’m totally over the whole “we were so in love but were torn apart by Circumstances and now we’ve been thrown back together and we remember why we were in love and we’ll live happily ever after” storylines when they were So In Love when they were, like, children (or, you know, eighteen). I love romances. I love the predictability and warmth and loveliness of the stories. I don’t love when I don’t care one iota for either of the leads and have a hard time understanding why they broke up in the first place. And don’t seem to actually work through the “issue” in the end anyway. That’s what happened with Lucy and *checks description again* ah yes, Miles. The reason they broke up was valid enough but there was SO much happening with it that just got brushed aside when they really should have had more conversations about it. It blew my mind a little, to be honest. You can’t just start over, friends!

I also admit I wasn’t expecting such a chaste storyline. I’m fine with all sorts of steam levels but considering what had happened in the couple’s past, I kind of expected more than just handholding (I think there were kisses too but please see: “Kaley doesn’t remember anything about this book” as discussed above). And, for some reason, it irked me a lot and my poor little romance reading mind was a bit boggled.

Now, the Christmas element was lovely. There’s Christmas in the title and there’s Christmas in the story. Most notably, the light decorating competition. I LOVE Christmas lights so it was really fun to read as the pair decorated the house. Christmas spirit was also found in the storyline about family and how sometimes your found family is just as important as your blood relatives.

So…no. I didn’t like The Christmas Village. I’m sure there are fans of Annie Rains out there and I do really wish I had become one of them but I will never again think of this novel once I press publish on this post. I know you can’t win ‘em all but it really does make me sad!

*An egalley of this novel was provided by the publisher, Forever, via NetGalley in exchange for review consideration. All opinions are honest and my own.*

This is a quick, cute, holiday romance read. If you love small town second chance romances I would recommend grabbing this one. I loved the main characters, and small town romances are always great reads because of all the secondary characters making there appearances and their shenanigans. If you are a hallmark movie fan, you will not be disappointed with this read!

Another winner from Annie! She knows how to draw me in with great and lovable characters and I honestly don't feel like my holiday season is complete unless I'm reading an Annie Rains book!

I love Annie Rains! This was a magical book of disappointment, love, and family. Exceptionally written with amazing characters and a fabulous addition to the series.

I received an ebook ARC from Netgalley and won a paperback copy from Goodreads and this is my voluntary, honest review.

I loved this adorable second-chance romance! Somerset Lake is such a charming small town, and Lucy and Miles’ story is so sweet. It was Christmas-y and festive, without being obnoxiously so.

This book was a great addition to my seasonal reading - Annie Rains never disappoints. I love that these books can be read as a standalone, because I don't always have time to keep up with the series. Super good!

This is an absolutely delightful book and it's such a joy to be back in charming Somerset Lake. It is a small town that is very competitive with it's decorating contest each year.
The book is sweet and really drew me in because I remembered reading about the characters in previous books in this series. Lucy wants to get into the town's festivities but a few things are holding her back, her mother's death and a broken heart. Can kindness and be surrounded by the spirit of Christmas help to heal a broken heart?
Very warm and likable book. Recommended!

Pub Date 12 Oct 2021
I was given a complimentary copy of this book.
All opinions expressed are my own.

Lucy Hannigan returns to Somerset Lake after the death of her mother. She hopes to live in her mother’s house but finds out that her mother had incurred lots of debt fixing up the house and not paying the neighborhood fees. She decides to get a tenant to raise some money. The only one applying is her ex-fiancé Miles so she decides to rent to him. They begin a journey to become friends again and Miles is hoping they can find what they lost years ago!


Thanks to Annie Rains and Forever(Grand Central Publishing)

4.5 stars

I just adore living in Annie Rains’ world. She seamlessly took us from Sweetwater Springs and brought us to Somerset Lakes with all the same feels. She creates this beautiful and idyllic small-town charm that I’m just obsessed with. I’m so invested in this friend group and can’t wait to see all the ladies get their HEA.

The Christmas Village is a second chance romance between high school sweethearts. This book tore at my heartstrings for sure as they had so much unresolved pain and heartbreak between them. Add to that all that Lucy is struggling with and she just had a lot of mountains to climb in order to make room in her life for happiness. I just loved Miles so much, he’s so sweet and genuinely kind to everyone and I adored him and couldn’t wait to see him be happy.

This book was something that I could just dive in little by little and it would bring a spot of warmth to my day. I’m so sad it’s over but I cannot wait for more Somerset Lakes adventures.

I was completely swept away by this sweet Christmas tale. Annie Rains you've done it again! This book follows the love story of Miles and Lucy and will give you all the feel-good holiday romance you could ask for. Thank you to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for a copy of this book for an honest review.

I finished reading The Christmas Village by Annie Rains, and I am in love with Somerset Lake! Annie Rains does small towns and all their quirks so well. When you finish the book you just wish you could move there. I would have liked to devour this book in one sitting, and I definitely could have, had it not been for the business of the holiday season. So instead, I savoured it, and it was the only holiday story I read this year. I am a sucker for second chance romances anyway, but I loved Lucy and Miles, and I thought their characters were well developed and their conflict was believable. The rest of the characters are all very likeable and I enjoyed the set-up for more books. This is the first book I've read in the Somerset Lake series, but I can't wait to go back and read Book 1, The Summer Cottage, as well as the Sweetwater Springs / Somerset Lake crossover novella, A Forever Home.

I really enjoyed this book. A second chance romance and a mystery that in the end was solved. The characters were enjoyable and the Christmas setting fun and festive. Perfect book to put a smile on your face. I was provided a copy by Netgalley but it did not influence my review.

DNF at 24%
Last December, I read Season of Joy by Annie Rains and I really enjoyed it! I wanted to try another one of her Christmas books. At first, I loved that this story is a second chance romance set in a small town, but it struggled to hold my attention. I really wanted to know more about Lucy and Miles’ history, but I did not feel any chemistry or connection between them which was a little disappointing. I also picked this up on Christmas Eve and the first part of the book is set at Thanksgiving so it was really lacking in the Christmas vibes that I was in the mood for at the moment. I’m sure there is a bigger focus on Christmas later in the book. As someone who enjoys reading seasonally, I think I would have enjoyed this one a little more if I had read it earlier in the holiday season.

Thank you to Forever Pub and Netgalley for the gifted copy! All opinions are my own.

I have a deep love of Cozy Christmas and found Annie Rains’s lovely stories last year during my holiday reads (thanks Kindle recommendations!). I was so excited to find out I had an advanced copy of this darling novel, The Christmas Village waiting on my Kindle and I couldn’t wait to get started!

The storyline follows Lucy in the wake of the loss of her mother trying to carry on Christmas in a home her parents loved to decorate. Miles throws many kinks in her plans, as he finds himself renting Lucy’s garage apartment…as her ex-fiance.

As they work to decorate for the town’s contest to save Lucy’s home, we watch Miles work hard to be the man his father wasn’t, while Lucy keeps walls up longer than we all want her to do so!

Cute, holiday read- I recommend you add it to you list and read it!

Thanks to @readforeverpub for my #gifted copy in exchange for my honest review.

Lucy Hannigan inherited her mother’s dog and her childhood home after her mother’s death. With the holidays approaching, she finds she’s not in the usual Christmas spirit. When her ex-finance Miles is looking for a place to live, she rents out the apartment above the garage to him, and the sparks fly from there.

The Christmas Village was a perfect Christmas read this year. If you enjoy Hallmark-style Christmas novels, this is the perfect read to pick up at any time of year, but particularly at Christmas. I will say that I haven’t read the previous book in the Somerset Lake series, but I didn’t feel that I was missing anything reading this as a standalone. It seemed like relevant details from the previous book were sprinkled through this one as topics became relevant.

This is a second-chance romance, and I enjoyed watching the relationship change between Lucy and Miles, as it starts out (understandably) uncomfortable and grows as the book continues. I loved the small town feel of the setting, and overall, I enjoyed so many of the characters from the book. Some of the pacing was inconsistent for me, but overall it was an enjoyable book.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the digital copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

An enjoyable second-chance romance told in 2 POV. The story references grief. Both the main characters experience self-awareness during the story. I enjoyed this read and the characters created by Annie Rains. This was a perfect read for the Holiday season and left me with a smile on my face.

A second chance romance and a fun plot. I enjoyed the side plots in this one and found they added to the story in a delightful way. The characters were enjoyable and the Christmas setting fun and festive! 4⭐️

Thank you to Forever and NetGalley for a free digital book.
The Christmas Village is a sweet Hallmark-like story. Unfortunately it didn’t really make a big impression for me this holiday season.