A Holly Jolly Ever After is the second book of the A Christmas Notch series of interconnected standalones. It isn’t necessary to read the first book but I highly recommend! This was a fun and super spicy holiday read and I loved being back in this world. Child star, Winnie, is trying to get back on her feet after leaving her ex husband when she is hired for a spicy Christmas movie. Only problem one problem…she is from a very religious background and has very little experience in the bedroom. Kallum is an ex rockstar and agrees to help Winnie with her little problem. I loved Winnie and Kallum together. Their chemistry and relationship growth were everything I was hoping for. It was beautiful to watch Winnie’s personal growth and to see her learn to love herself. Kallum was such a golden retriever and so sweet and I loved that he had a “dad bod” and isn’t the typical “muscle man” you typically read about in romance books. The only draw back I found with this book was that the ending felt a little rushed. But, overall, it was a great story and I highly recommend!

I did not read the first book in this series and didn't feel like I had missed much except how steamy this book was going to be. I go back and forth between enjoying so much sex on the page and this was a little bit more than I could enjoy at this point in my life but this was still a really interesting story.
Winnie Baker was a shining star of the Hope Channel. She married young, kept Hollywood thin, was a beloved TV character but her marriage still failed. Her husband has convince her that it was all her fault (of course.) Now, having gained a little wait and a very little courage, Winnie is ready to star in a slightly naughty movie for the Hope Channel's steamier side.
Kallum Lieberman was part of a boy band growing up. He was the only one who didn't get a solo deal with the group split up and has settled into a life running a number of pizza parlors and having sex with any number of bridesmaids. He is all in on starring in this movie. Too bad Winnie seems so hesitant. When she asks for help with some homework so that she can convincingly have an orgasm on screen, Kallum is all in.

Four stars
This book comes out October 10, 2023
Follows A Merry Little Meet Cute
ARC kindly provided by Avon and Harper Voyager, and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

3.5 stars

This was on track to be my favorite book of the series so far… and then the (accidental) pregnancy trope was thrown in. Part One and Part Two felt like separate books. Part One was amazing! Part Two not so much. The book kind of went downhill at the halfway point, though I did enjoy the last few chapters.

Winnie and Kallum had amazing chemistry! I loved the interactions between them. And I’m glad we got cameos from Bee, Nolan, Sunny, etc…

I think someone who doesn’t mind (or even enjoys) the pregnancy trope will love this book! I’m just not one of those people 🥲

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an arc of this book.

Fresh off of "Merry Little Meet Cute", the reader is reintroduced to Kallum and Winnie, who are now starring in their own holiday after dark movie. Winnie is a fall from grace child actor, who has decided to finally take the reigns of her own life. Kallum is the friendly "boy next door", who was also a teen pop idol...and he instantly falls for Winnie...again.
Winnie was his childhood crush and he can't believe his luck when he is finally able to be in a movie with her. Then, Winnie asks him to help her do research for certain scenes of the movie, and let's just say that things get spicier between them.
Now, both are caught in their feelings, and don't know if things will crumble or succeed.
The storyline for this second book in the series is what catches the reader's eye, and you fall in love with the main characters, and watch them try to figure out a way in their lives to have it all.

A Holly Jolly Ever After is the sequel to A Merry Little Meet Cute, which was one of my favorite books from last year. The return to Christmas Notch is cozy familiar from the first book, same setting and supporting characters, but definitely a different lead character vibe. I wasn't in love with Winnie; I couldn't identify with her as her issues were so foreign to me. I hate that she let assumptions derail her relationship w/Kallum, but what would a contemporary romance novel be without assumptions to drive the drama. I did appreciate her growth and change and how she gained the confidence to stand up for herself. I liked Kallum, and I appreciated how the authors wrote him to realize that his actions needed to match his true desires, and that his casual attitude wasn't really what he wanted to portray. Such great themes of found family and loyal friendships. Loved Kallum and Nolan's relationship - friends since middle school. This story also comes with a lot of raunchy, funny scenes. Just funny enough without going into absurd territory.
I feel this book is more enjoyable having read the first one, as not that much explanation is given on supporting character backgrounds and relationships. I hope these authors will continue their writing partnership and write more in this series.

Thank you to Avon via Netgalley for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions in this review are my own.

Hope After Dark is back to its unintentional match making antics! Winnie Baker is costarring in a steamy Christmas film with former pop star troublemaker Kallum Lieberman in an attempted rebrand. She no longer wants to be seen as the purity culture poster child from her childhood acting career. And then she realizes she can't just fake *certain things* due to her lack of experience... and who better to help her than her hunky costar.


I feel so torn with this one because of my conflicting opinions on the two halves. I was obsessed with the first half/part one. It was sexy and funny. The second half/part two, the pacing just felt a little off for me. I still enjoyed it! But I am just bummed that it didn't keep up with part one because I was livingggg for that. Overall, I definitely still recommend this one.

I didn’t read A Merry Little Meet. Cute before reading A Holly Jolly Ever After and I was able to dive right into this book. It was a bit chaotic, a lot Christmasy, and pretty spicy.

Winnie is ex childhood star who ends up filming a sexy Christmas movie with Kallum, an ex boy band member. She grew up religious and is trying to cope with the messages engrained in her from growing up in purity culture. She’s a good girl gone bad and is struggling filming this sexy movie when she asks Kallum for spicy lessons. And get this- Kallum has had a crush on Winnie for years. How could he ever resist?

A funny, spicy intro to the holiday season! Reading the first book will give you some context, but it's not necessary. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I absolutely loved this! Both authors have such unique voices. So fun and definitely hot, wink wink. Another hit for the holiday season.

I liked this a lot. Great second for the series. Steamy and also honest and sweet. I look forward to the final one

An incredibly fun (and very sexy) follow up to A Merry Little Meet Cute. You don't have to have read that one to enjoy this book though. Basically, the book takes us back to Christmas Notch -- the Christmas town created to film hallmark-like movies. But this time the Hope channel is branching out to make sexier holiday films. The male lead is the pizza-making, former boy band star Kallum who always felt like the goofy one in his group not the heartthrob. The female lead is Winnie, an all grown up child star who had purity and Christian values as her brand but is now divorced and wanting to chart a path of her own and get her career back. What starts with "lessons" to show Winnie how to act convincingly during the film's sex scenes turns into a whole lot more. But Winnie isn't sure she can trust Kallum. And Kallum isn't sure he wants to do the growing up needed to be in an adult relationship, even though he's head over heals for Winnie. A lot of this book deals with Winnie's family trauma and the ways she hasn't been allowed to take care of herself or her narcolepsy, because she's been working since she's a child and is a chronic people pleaser. But through the ups and downs of their relationship, both characters experience so much growth. And there is the same over the top humor that you'd expect from the authors!

I decided to pick this up after hearing Julie Murphy speak at Steamy Lit Con 2023, and I was surprised and delighted at how much fun it was to read. I finished it in an afternoon and immediately placed a hold on the first book (which you do not need to have read in order to enjoy this one). Winnie and Kallum were genuinely delightful protagonists and I was very invested in their growth as individuals and as a couple. Could this have been about 50 or 75 pages shorter? Certainly, but I also wasn't sad to have all that time in Christmas Notch. This would make a great Christmas in July book club pick -- it's got a lot of kitschy Christmas fun but doesn't actually revolve around the holiday itself.

Many thanks for the opportunity to read and review!

Love these two authors and hope they continue to write together! As with the first book they did, this cover is adorable - as is the story. So charming and sex positive. Will reread during the holidays for sure.

WOW how are these not Netflix movies? Seriously, if someone from Netflix is somehow improbably reading this, it's like Bridgerton meets those Vanessa Hudgens Christmas movies where she plays all the parts. IT IS DELIGHTFUL AND SEXY AND ALSO THERE IS CHRISTMAS. And there's body diversity! And sexual orientation diversity! And some ethnic/racial diversity but not in the main characters so much but the authors are white, so! Anyway, what more do you want? If you like a happy, sexy, christmas-y, tale look no further. I will read these as long as they come out. D E L I G H T F U L. 5 stars, no notes.

This was another sex-positive romantic comedy from Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone set in the Christmas Notch universe. If you liked a Merry Little Meet Cute, you'll enjoy this, too. Just like the first entry in the series, this one has multi-dimensional main characters with interesting back stories, a full cast of quirky side characters (including several we know from A Merry Little Meet Cute), a good bit of steam, a lot of humor, and plenty of behind the scenes movie magic. In this one, Winnie Baker, who features briefly as a plot point in the first novel in the series, is trying to shed her pristine image as the wholesome Hope Channel actress and former teen Christian purity icon now that she's divorced and got some dings on her reputation for being hospitalized after a Burning Man meets Coachella style festival in the desert. She's signed on for the first film in the first movie in a new "Hope Channel After Dark" series, starting opposite Kallum Lieberman. Kallum was in boy band INK (along with Nolan from the first book and Isaac from what I very much hope will be a third book in this series), but now runs a successful chain of pizza restaurants in Kansas City. He's trying to capitalize on the release of a sex tape and will be playing a sexy young Santa in the new Hope After Dark film (it seems like it would be hilarious, I kind of wish it was a real movie). He and Winnie crossed paths as teen stars (in a not so great way), but now Winnie asks Kallum for help doing research so that she can be more realistic during the sex scenes. They become friends with research benefits and of course it gets complicated, but they're a very cute pairing and I enjoyed their sort of opposites attract kind of deal. Overall a very enjoyable read, though I had two minor issues: 1) I wish there had more exploration of Winnie's chronic illness, which has such an impact on her life and 2) it was maybe a smidge too long? I didn't get bored at all, but I thought there might have been a few scenes that could have been cut without sacrificing much.

A Holly Jolly Ever After
Pub Date: Oct, 10
Avon
Thanks to Julie Murphy, Sierra Simone, Avon and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
#2 A Christmas Notch
This is the first book I’ve read in this series and I will tell you it’s a very steamy journey,
Read this for:
Sex Lessons, forced proximity, narcolepsy, and Dad Bod,
Part two went in a way some people might not like, however there was more plot than in Part one. I felt it ended abruptly. Not the book for me but others have enjoyed it.
4 stars

This book was four stars for me! I loved that the author made the male lead more "human". There were references to his figure all throughout the book, which made him more likeable in my opinion. The female lead was relatable, always feeling as if she was drowning in her family's expectations of her. I liked the family dynamics that were portrayed in the book, as well as the romance between the characters.

A Holly Jolly Ever After is a fabulous and steamy return to Christmas Notch. Is it possible that Kallum Lieberman is actually the hottest former INK band member? Yes.

Winnie is the absolute rule follower and good girl. She tried to do everything right and still got burned. She's a past Hope Channel star who has fallen from grace. But Hope After Dark is courting her hard. She could get her career back and her life on track, but she has to be brave enough to be a new and fearless Winnie.

Kallum is the funny dad-bod INK alum who is a pizza place mogul. Hope After Dark knows from a leaked sex tape how steamy he is.

The two come together to film a sexy Santa movie.

A Holly Jolly Ever after is so playful, so steamy, and so hilarious. I'd expect nothing less from Julie and Sierra.

Thank you NetGalley and Avon for the ARC! A Holly Jolly Ever After is the second book in the Christmas Notch series by Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone. In this book, we follow the second member of the boy band, INK, the "funny one," Kallum Lieberman as he seeks to relaunch and legitimize his career (as well as capitalize) after the success of his sex tape. His Christmas themed movie will co-star his teen crush and good girl with a now struggling rep., Winnie Baker. Winnie is also trying to relaunch and rebrand after her divorse, but could this steamy holiday romp be too much for her? This book has a lot of the heart (and maybe more of the steam) from the first book. A Holly Jolly Ever After may be just the right holiday book for those seeking a little spice for the season.

The MMC is one of the bandmates of the MMC from A Merry Little Meet Cute, so there's room for one more novel after this.

The FMC is very different from the heroine in book 1. She was raised in purity culture, which was portrayed pretty realistically, based on my own experience. While her turnaround (or recovery?) is so quick as to be little unbelievable, we do see a bit of the processing she works through. Probably all female readers (and probably plenty of male readers, too) will be able to identify to some degree with the internalized shame and other messaging.

I also really liked the MMC. He's very much a man-child to start, out for a good time but not really responsible. He's aware enough to know that he's "the one before The One," that romantic partners don't see him as a potential permanent option, but he doesn't really interrogate that until circumstances in the book-- and the honesty of the FMC-- force him to examine his priorities. He doesn't end up perfect at the end, but realistically more mature.

Unlike Snow Place Like LA, there's enough in this book that readers could jump in here, but established characters are carried over from book 1 and the novella, so best to start with A Merry Little Meet Cute if at all possible.

eARC from NetGalley.