Surprisingly Cute!

I typically don’t like holiday themed books. It makes me think too much of Hallmark movies and my moms love for forcing them upon me. Not my thing. However, this book is not in your face Christmassy. It is just a story that happens to take place over the holiday. Perfect.

My ONE gripe with the book is the same one I have with several of its kind. Stop looking into the camera. Leave us (the reader) out of it so we can enjoy the story without getting involved. This invisible forth wall is broken every time the author talks about romance books and movies. Something like: “That’s not how life works outside of the movies” or “Oh, and not expect this to be one of those awful fake relationships that turns into real life coupledome, a la that movie with Sandra Bullock [ . . .]” you get the idea. It’s very distracting. First, I am willing to bet a LOT of people (myself included) love fake relationship books . . . I mean, we are reading one! So it is a little of a slap in the face and brakes our attention from the story.

BUUUUUUT, that being said. I really loved the story. The addition of Faith was everything. It gave me all the feels. I love when a story makes me feel to the point of tears, and I got it with this one! Thank you, Whitney Dineen!

If you have read all of her books, or if this is the first one, I know it wont be the last. I am hooked!!!

Holly is focusing on making both ends meet for herself and Faith, her niece that she raises like her own daughter since the little girl's parents died.
Archie refuses to engage into a serious relationship as he believes he's like his late father : a workaholic who would mess things up.
Thanks to Archie's assistant (who happens to be Holly's best friend) those two will meet and fall in love (i guess that's not a huge spoiler ;)

Whitney Dineen and Melanie Summers are such a great duo to create characters (i've read three other installments of the series). This is a nice Christmas read, even if the end is maybe too quick and easy.
Holly, Archie and Faith are so sweet. They deserve good things to happen to them and wealth isn't the key to find balance and happiness.
A really good-spirited book for the Holidays.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing an eARC in exchange of an honest review.

This was a cute enemies to lovers, boss to lovers trope. Perfect for the holiday season!
Holly Snow is the guardian for her niece,
sweet 5 yr old Faith. It’s Christmastime and money is tight. When her best friend Toni has the idea that Holly could work for her boss as a personal shopper for a great salary, she can’t pass it up.
Holly doesnt expect Archie Harrington to be a drop dead hunk. Or to have such a great rapport with Faith.
When he gets in a bind and asks Holly to fill in as his pretend girlfriend, they find that they enjoy spending time together, but it is enough that their worlds are so different?

This book was darling! I typically avoid the predictable romcoms, but this was recommended to me by one of my favorite bookstagrammers, so I couldn't resist requesting it on NetGalley!

Set in NYC, this is the typical modern day prince charming love story, but with a twist! Was this book still predictable? Yes it was. Does that mean I didn't enjoy it? No! I enjoyed every single minute of reading this book, from the holiday details to Faith's charming wit and the gruff rich families drama. This book made me wish it was snowing outside and I was curled up next to a fire with hot chocolate while reading!

I highly recommend this book to everyone as their next holiday read!

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review

Omg omg omg Thank you Netgalley and Xpressotours for the ARC. This was such a fun read!!! Literally the cutest holiday romance book I have ever read!! This book has my whole heart because of the little girl Faith!!! This book will make a really good Christmas movie!!! Such a fun read!!! Loved loved loved it. So wholesome!!

I love these books so very much. Fun light reads with enough steam to keep me entertained and of course a HEA for all. I just cannot wait to read more.

Hooked on these authors and thier books. What can I say. I liked this book. Must read. Do it. If you do anything else. Read this book today. Great read and enjoyable.

A cute fun read that I didn't want to put down. Beneath the silliness and the HEA, comes great life lessons on what's really important in life, being true to who you really are, and not judging other people before you get to know them. Can't wait for the next book in the series!

Rating edit: 2.5 stars.

Three reasons why I requested this book:
1. I really liked previous book in this series.
2. This book carries texts exchanges, which I find very entertaining. I almost like all the books that carries texts.
3. The blurb: grumpy hero (who is too busy to even for Christmas shopping), which meant 'no insta connection'

But, I am a bit disappointed. No, the story starts well and I liked the writing style. I liked protagonists and enjoyed the texts but again, three reasons I am a bit disappointed:

1. The hero is not at all grumpy, he is too nice, I think, which means there's no tension or repartee or witty dialogues. He has been projected as too busy to even shop but in reality he's too available.
2. The texts are interesting but not that interesting to be featured as a main mode of communication because they meet right after the first text communication and connection felt instant, which I am not very fond of.
3. Faith. She's just 5 but the author has created this character like she's 10 or 12. No matter how many times Holly says 'the kid is terrifyingly insightful', the kid's reaction/'insight'/dialogues seemed terrifying at times.
For example: “You know how Aunt Toni’s sister likes girls more than boys?” She (Faith, the 5 yo) nods her head. “Because she’s a lesbian.”
“Exactly. Well, Archie likes boys more than girls.” The look of shock on Faith’s face is almost funny. “You mean he’s a lesbian too?”

I mean seriously!? This kind of conversation really annoyed me. Faith's dialogues are too smart for a 5 yo, which I didn't like.

Overall, an easy, quick read but for me, not very enjoyable. You might like it if enjoy reading love stories.

5 *stars*
Definitely a 5 star read. It was just perfect!

My thoughts:
The story was so easy to read, for a change. Faith is so cute and very smart for a 5 year old. I was in love with every character and every bit of the story. I laughed a lot. I don't have words to really describe this book. It was the perfect Christmas read!
Brief synopsis: The story is set around Christmas. Holly Snow has to be a mother to her five-year-old niece . Her parents died 3 years ago in a car accident. Holly has put her life aside for Faith and she is trying hard to give her the best she can. They are short on money and it's hard to find a job. Her best friend Toni set up her for a job to be a professional shopper. His boss Archie needs someone who can buy a lot of gifts this Christmas and Holly is the best for this job. The romance is up in the air and this is the cutest Christmas book I have read.

The best things happen to those who need them!

Thank you!!!
#MistleTextTwastheTextBeforeChristmas #NetGalley

4 / 5 stars
Tropes:
- Grumpy / sunshine
- Single mom
- Fake dating
This was such a fun and easy read! Archie and Holly were A-M-A-Z-I-N-G. I really loved how the story evolved throughout the book, another thing I liked was little Faith, she was hilarious.
Overall, I recommend this book for getting in Christas mood. The ending was perfect!!

Thank you NetGalley and Whitney Dineen & Melanie Summer for giving an ARC of this book in exchange of an honest review.

Ahhhhhh love this series. This one was perfection.. So sweet, romantic and kinda had a few giggling fits. Highly recommend thus whole series and all Ms Whitney's books.

I really enjoyed this book and binge read it in one day. While the book was focused on Archie and Holly, my favorite character in the story was Faith. She has such sass. Her character added so much to the story and was written with such comedic timing; was perfect. This was a fun take on the boss/employee troupe.

Another fake dating/holiday-centered book? Yes. Sign me up.

This book was a lot of fun and a solid 4 stars. I am only taking away one star because the ending was messy and left too many loose ends (like how did his family respond? And what happened when they went home? And how can we forget about Toni, the BFF?).

But when you want a quick little Hallmark movie-worthy Christmas romance, this is an excellent pick!

I enjoyed this book, it was a quick read and well set up for the holidays without being overtly in your face Christmas. It was campy, at times it felt a bit like reading a Hallmark movie come to life. But it was still a sweet love story and got me right in the feels.

Fake dating is one of my favorites and this book did not disappoint! The main characters were great, but her niece stole my heart. If you're looking for a feel good holiday book, this is the one for you. Holly has been through so much in her life and the whole time I was reading this, I just wanted the best for her. This book is easily a 4.5/5 and I can't wait to reread it around the holidays!

Holly is barely making ends meet while being the guardian of Faith, her adorable niece, and her mother who is suffering from dementia. When her best friend’s boss needs a personal shopper for the holidays, she suggests Holly for the job. As Holly and Archie get to know each other, both fight the attraction. I loved the secondary characters in this book as much as the protagonists. Faith is absolutely unforgettable and Holly’s best friend, Toni, is amazing. This is the first book I’ve read by these authors, but it definitely won’t be the last!

Fake dating is one of my favourite plot lines and this book had that plus Christmas thrown in to the mix as well.

I really enjoyed it. I really liked the dual POV between Holly and Archie, and I rooted for them to end up together, even if the chemistry wasn't 100% there, but I still loved them nevertheless. I loved the character of Holly's niece, Faith, most though. She was observant and honest and made me laugh out loud at a few parts.

I'd definitely recommend this to others and would describe it as feel-good and heartwarming with a HEA.

4⭐

Thank you to NetGalley, Xpresso Book Tours and the authors for the review copy, provided in exchange for an honest opinion.

I will say i didnt think i would finish this as it started out a tad cheesy.. but then i was like hey this is one of your favorite authors give it a real chance.
i couldnt put the book down and then i was sobbing in pure happiness and i feel this is so much more than a simple christmas love story.. it was perfection

This book is dual, first person POV. It's cute. It's sweet. But it just missed the mark for me. The overall plot is great and works really well: Billionaire needs a personal shopper for Christmas. Girl needs money. Billionaire then learns he needs to have a serious girlfriend to take over his company so fake dates the personal shopper. I wanted a little bit more in almost every area: chemistry between the two, tension, flirting... I didn't like the epilogue. It was very info dumpy, first off, but I also hated how much the authors were trying to fit into it. This book was just okay for me. I skipped ahead at one point and probably won't be going back to read through what I missed.