Rating: 4.5 Stars

The Highland Lodge Getaway is the latest wonderfully escapist festive treat from Julie Shackman.

Lottie Grant loves Christmas so much, she’s made it her job. Working at the hugely successful shop Christmas Crackers means that Lottie’s days are surrounded by jingle bells, candy cane and sparkling lights and she cannot imagine ever doing anything else – until the rug is well and truly pulled out from under her feet when the shop is sold and she is left pondering her future and wondering what she is going to be doing next with her life. Can Lottie find a job that will allow her to continue indulging in all things festive? Or should she be a realist and look for something that will help her pay the bills and keep a roof over her head?

Just when Lottie had been about to give up, Lady Luck smiles down on her when she gets a job managing a set of luxury wooden cabins that are going to be open just in time for Christmas. Lottie can hardly believe her good fortune, however, she shouldn’t crack open the eggnog just yet because she has to contend with tricky customer Blake Dempster who is threatening to bring down her festive joy. However, Blake hadn’t counted on Lottie, who is determined to do whatever it takes to bring him round.

When things take an unexpected turn, will Lottie and Blake find the courage to go after what they really want? Or will it be a disappointing Christmas for them all?

Julie Shackman’s The Highland Lodge Getaway is a fun, emotional and feel-good contemporary romance that made me laugh out loud on plenty of occasions and is perfect for a lazy afternoon curled up with a huge mug of cocoa. An enjoyable, fast-paced and dreamy page-turner about life’s unexpected surprises, falling in love when you least expect it and the magic of the festive season, sit back, cancel all your plans and get ready to lose yourself in this excellent romance by Julie Shackman.

The Highland Lodge Getaway by Julie Shackman is a delightful holiday read that captures the magic of Christmas and the charm of a snowy Scottish village. With its cozy setting, lovable characters, and heart-warming romance, this book is a perfect escape for the festive season.

Lottie Grant is a relatable and spirited protagonist whose love for Christmas shines on every page. Her new venture managing luxury cabins in the scenic Highlands feels like a dream come true—until the brooding Blake Dempster enters the scene. Their dynamic, filled with witty banter and simmering tension, is a joy to watch unfold as Lottie attempts to thaw Blake’s frosty attitude toward all things festive.

Shackman’s vivid descriptions bring the Scottish countryside to life, immersing readers in the beauty of Craig Brae and the cozy charm of the cabins. The story balances light-hearted moments with deeper themes of second chances and finding joy in unexpected places.

While the plot is somewhat predictable—typical of the holiday romance genre—it’s executed with warmth and sincerity, making it a comforting and satisfying read. Fans of feel-good Christmas stories will adore the journey Lottie and Blake take toward finding love and embracing the season’s magic.

A charming and uplifting tale, The Highland Lodge Getaway is the perfect book to curl up with under a blanket and fairy lights. A must-read for anyone looking to add a sprinkle of festive joy to their reading list!

This was my first Scottish Escapes book and it was the perfect Christmas read. I loved cosying up by the fire with this festive treat. Lottie and Blake and their grumpy x sunshine, slow burn romance was an absolute delight to read. Thank you One More Chapter for an e arc of this fantastic, feel good christmas romance.

The cutest Christmas story you will find. Lottie is Crimbo daft and this book follows her on the run up to Christmas - she goes from heartache to true love. Tis the season after all 🎄🥰

This was a wonderful festive read. I really loved the setting as well as the characters. I would love to stay in one of the cabins:)

A wonderful festive read. I loved both the characters and the setting. I was easily able to picture the Craig Brae and the beautiful cabins, which I wished were real. My only disappointment was the internal monologue of Lottie, it was a little too much at times. However, overall, I really enjoyed this festive opposites attract/enemies to friends read.

I wanted to love this book, I really did. I love Christmas, I love Scotland, I love the idea of having seasonal accommodation that changes, and decorating cabins, and I would love to do that job … like, a lot.

However! There were things in this book that were just meh, and I found myself getting quite bored at times. Thank you for the opportunity to read it, though!

Thank you NetGalley, Julie Shackman, and One More Chapter publishing for the e-arc of The Highland Lodge Getaway (published as The Christmas Highland Lodge). This book is a closed-door, Christmas romance book.

We meet our FMC, Lottie Grant, when she is working at Christmas Crackers, the festive holiday boutique shop located in her small Scottish town Craig Brae. Lottie loves all things Christmas, a trait she received from her late father, and can't wait to run the shop once the owner retires to America. But, lo and behold, the leased space is going to a chain Italian restaurant, crushing any dreams Lottie has of owning a Christmas boutique. Soon, she is hired by a local couple to redesign and promote four luxury cabins, starting with getting them Christmas-time ready.
All is smooth going until she meets our MMC, Blake Dempster, a professional hiking guide that is also hired by the same couple. Due to traumatic past experiences, Blake abhors Christmas and the romance of it all. At every turn Blake shoots down all of Lottie's cheerful holiday ideas. Lottie knows that even the biggest Scrooge needs someone with a patient heart and she works to melt his icy heart.

I love a good Scottish setting. And I love Hallmark Christmas vibes in books. And I love spicy holiday books. With The Highland Lodge Getaway, I knew I was getting the Scottish setting, and I guessed there wouldn't be any spice, but this book felt very messy and there were no cheesy hallmark vibes to be found. I found Lottie to be annoying a lot of the time, and Blake's growth felt really forced. I think this book could have benefited from Blake's POV, because the last 10% of the book was all of his trauma coming out, him and Lottie making out, and then him being okay to go on all of a sudden. The "chemistry" between Blake and Lottie felt really forced, we didn't even meet Blake until 25% into the book!!! and although they didn't straight up hate each other around 50 or 60% into the book, they seemed more like friends??? (Besides Lottie having an obsession with wondering how Blake would look without a beard). There was all this build up (or trying to have buildup) all for one paragraph of making out, where all was written was "we kissed over and over" -- I didn't squeal or get any butterflies.

I tried to like it, but I couldn't
2.5 stars rounded down to 2
green pepper spice?? Or like a budding green pepper plant because there was like nothing.

I had not read any of the other books in this "series" but I was able to jump right into this one and enjoy! It has a cozy setting and overall nostalgic holiday feeling to it. I did have a hard time believing in the popularity of a small town, Christmas specific store, but what are holiday books if not a little unbelievable? I did not like the MMC at first as he felt overtly mean towards the FMC, but I did grow to like him further into the story. I would recommend this book as an easy, comfy, holiday read!

Enjoyable, loveable and romantic read. Really felt connected to the characters, and the Christmas spirit of this Scottish escape.
Defiantly a good read to cuddle down and enjoy a good Christmas feel good story.

I really liked this book. Lottie has dreams of running The Christmas Crackers, a Christmas themed shop, but the shop is sold leaving her without a job. She finds a job managing some luxury cabins and meets the new to town Blake. He owns an adventure/hiking business offering their services to the luxury cabins guests. He is cranky and doesn't like Christmas. It takes some time but Lottie begins to wear him down.

This book is so good.
I felt so bad for Lottie in the beginning with Christmas crackers going to close but I'm glad she took the job that was offered to her. The cabins sound magical and so pretty that I want to stay in them all. I love Christmas decorations and having a theme so the cabins are just perfect for me.
I'm glad it had a brilliantly happy ending and that everything was good all around.
I can't wait to read it again.

Thanks to Netgalley and the author for the opportunity to read and review. Unfortunately I was quite biased against this book from the start. Lottie is crushed to find her dreams of taking over quaint year-round holiday shop Christmas Crackers are dashed when the owner reveals the landlord is not renewing the lease and an Italian restaurant will be taking over the premises. Somehow, it occurs to not one character in this book that Lottie could simply reopen the shop in another location? I understand that overlooking this glaringly obvious solution helps to further the plot, but I found it hard to get past and thus didn’t enjoy this book as much as other Shackmans I have read.

A brilliant read and one I really enjoyed. The characters are loveable. The plot is one that is engaging and I found myself completely drawn into the story and enjoyed the writing style.

I read this book in April and it got me feeling all those happy, charming Christmas feels! This book is the fifth in a series but I didn’t feel lost at all. The characters were lovely, the romance was sweet and the book was honestly just a joy to read! I can’t wait for Christmas so I can read it in the chair beside our tree!

I really enjoyed reading this one, it was easy-to-read, quick and just what I needed right now. I could just sit back and relax with this one and go with the flow. I really loved the vibe of this book.

If you are looking for a festive read, there is much to enjoy in this winter read. Lottie has a huge disappointment to get over at the start, but you soon see her courage and determination in trying new things. Christmas Crackers, the shop she manages, provides lots of opportunities for some humour. In the shop unit next door, we meet Blake who is the polar opposite of Lottie as far as Christmas goes. He hates it. Cue more moments which make you smile.

Lottie's family background turns out to be complicated and at times, surprising. Lottie has quite a lot on her plate but she is a likeable and entertaining character. There are lots of festive flavours to savour and a lovely romance at its centre.

In short: entertaining festive read

Another wonderfully told story by Julie, I had some moments that made me chuckle, the characters and their interacti0ns made it a great and easy to follow weekend read.

I love this series so was very excited to get this book. It was the perfect snowy romance novel to read in the lead up to Christmas. It made me smile at times which is just what I have come to love and expect from this author's writing. I am very much looking forward to the next book in the series.

This is a new author for me, and is book 5 in the series. I did not like the forced change from the shop to looking after cabins. Such a change would normal people do this ? So many Christmas stories now, I get the idea that a few authors read the books of others then write there book for next Christmas. Sorry could not finish it