Amanda has had a few difficult Christmas’ so it isn’t her favorite holiday, but she owns a local soap/gift store and runs the towns Holiday Market so she has to be somewhat cheery. Her grandmother, Birdie, lives in a retirement community and has started dating a new resident there who happens to be the grandfather of Rafe Arredondo. Safe is interested in Amanda and his son is equally as in love with Amanda. They keep getting thrown together this holiday season and they both start to wonder if they could make something work between the two of them.

I love a small town, Christmas romance and this was perfect to get me in the holiday spirit. It is a clean romance and Rafe’s son, Issac, brings a sweet innocence to this story. Amanda has been through so much with her dad being an addict and her previous fiancé becoming as addict as well, that she deserves some happiness in her life. Rafe is in a similar boat with his ex leaving him and overdosing so these two are truly perfect for each other.

Amanda has a hard time with Christmas. It brings back some painful memories. But thanks to her grandmother, she has family to be with during Christmas. And she is the owner of the local soap shop and the director of the Christmas market, so Christmas cannot be ignored. When Amanda realizes her grandmother has a suitor, she is not happy.

Enter Rafe. Rafe is a single father and paramedic. His grandfather is the one that is squiring Amanda’s grandmother around. And he totally disagrees with trying to keep them apart.

It is nice when you have characters that you admire. I admire Amanda and Rafe. Amanda is such a hard worker and then there is Rafe who is a great dad. And believe me, when these two get together, sparks fly in more ways than one.

This is a wonderful tale to get you into the Christmas spirit. I enjoyed all Christmassy stuff and the family drama. And of course the happy ending!

Need a Christmas tale with a side of romance…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today.

I received this novel for a honest review.

A sweet Christmas romance after heartbreak for our main characters Amanda and Rafe. I don't think I would have come through the trauma they both went through in their lives with such grace and positivity. Amanda is admittedly constantly trying to go above and beyond for their entire community, including running the December Market. An annual market where locals can sell their wares and support a good cause in the process. Rafe is one of two paramedics in their small community and is always happy to help a person in need.
These two tried hard to resist the pull, but when fate throws them together at the market, they give into the inevitable. The romance was light with a few steamy kisses, the supporting cast was wonderful and helped to build the story nicely.
I enjoyed this one. Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher, and author for the opportunity to read this in exchange for my honest review.

This book foucuses on a small town .. Love the close net feel .. How the whole town works together to help one another.. With a budding romance developing with every page that turns… Leaving the reader to wonder will or won’’t they connect..Will love preview the second time around …? Great read with the Holidays approaching !!!Will definitely seek out more book by this author…

‘Tis the Season! I look forward annually to visiting Shelter Springs, the village featured in RaeAnne Thayne’s The December Market, and its many good townspeople to whom Thayne has introduced us through the years. This year’s novel centers around a holiday market, and is festive and snowy and otherwise offers all the merry feels of the season, together with romance between likable characters. This book is in some senses much like others in this series. But just like watching Hallmark Channel’s Countdown to Christmas movies, for me at least, that very familiarity enhances the tale’s appeal.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Canary Street Press for the privilege of a complimentary ARC. Opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed the first book in this series last year and I found this one to be just as delightful. You can read this on its own but I so enjoyed catching up with the previous characters. Shelter Springs is the sweetest little town and I was once again charmed by the town and its residents. While this is plenty light and sweet there are also some dark moments to add depth as well. The market itself sounded adorable and there was so much holiday cheer and cuteness

I’m ready for hot cocoa, cozy blankets, and holiday gift shopping after reading this novel. It’s the quintessential holiday story, full of romance, friends and family, and a little dash of that extra holiday magic in which two characters who’ve sworn off of love fall for each other with the assistance of a cute kid.

I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a feel-good, Hallmark Christmas Movie in book form.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley.

Get out the marshmallows and cocoa and start the fire ( ok, it still may be a tad warm here for that 😂) …but this sweet book just turns Christmas cozy to another level! 🎄

Amanda Taylor lost her fiancée a decade ago, and after being hurt again she has pretty much closed her heart off. Rafe Arredondo, is the assistant fire chief and a paramedic for Shelter Springs. He lost his wife to the ravages of addiction years prior. He knows all too well the feeling of loss, so he is concentrating solely on raising his son Isaac.

Amanda has a giving spirit and is always helping the community. One day while on a rescue mission, Rafe falls and breaks his arm. She decides to bring Rafe and his son some meals since Amanda lives right down the street. This is when everything starts to slowly change between them. It also helps that Amanda owns the local store called the Lucky Goat and runs the Holiday Giving Market every year. It just so happens that Rafe is in charge of overseeing the safety at the market. They start spending a lot of time together. Sparks fly, but will they be able to let go of past hurts to let happiness fully in?

A great cast of characters that round the story out to make you feel the town is not just a community, but family. This book will make you heavily consider putting up a tree and watching Hallmark holiday movies. Just a delight! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I really had a hard time finishing this book. It was not very enjoyable and the writing style is not for me.
I wanted to like the main characters, but I wasnt able to connect with them.

I love Christmas books any time of the year. I loved reading how Christmas changed for both Amanda and Rafe. For Amanda, Christmas does not hold the best of memories. She has been hiding her pain, and delving into Christmas by organizing the Shelter Springs Giving Market. This year, Amanda branched out, and took part of the market outside. Rafe has been existing since the death of his wife, but he tries to make the best of it for his son. Amanda brings a little extra light into their Christmas. As they make their way through Christmas, can they all find something they were not looking for, but it found them. Thanks to RaeAnne Thayne, Canary Street Press, and NetGalley, for the opportunity to read and review this book.

The excitement and joy of a young boy and the gentleness of his father draw Amanda to Isaac and Rafe. Her life holds deep sorrow as does Rafe’s. Can they overcome fear and let love capture their hearts? Only the magic of Christmas will determine.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This was such a lovely Christmas book. It was just what you were looking for in a cozy romance for seasonal reading! I enjoyed it so very much. I would definitely suggest it to a friend looking for a cozy seasonal read. Thank you, NetGalley for allowing me to preview this book.

This was such a nice sweet love story. I really enjoyed reading it. RaeAnne Thayne always writes enjoyable books.

Classic RaeAnne Thayne!!! This was a feel good Christmas story full of charm and Christmas magic. I love how RaeAnne weaves together the characters and setting in the Shelter Springs series. The characters were adorable. I was rooting for them the whole time. Although, I do feel that their romance storyline was a little too quick to be believable, it was a classic Christmas romance.

The December Market by RaeAnne Thayne is a sweet romantic Christmas story that takes place in Shelter Springs. We meet Amanda Taylor, who owns the local soap shop, in the town of Shelter Springs, Idaho. Amanda wasn’t always a fan of Christmas, due to the past in her childhood, especially with her bad father. She runs her store, The Lucky Goat, as well as being the head of the Shelter Springs Holiday Giving Market during the Christmas holidays. Amanda keeps tabs on her grandmother Birdie, and goes out of her way to help the community of Shelter Springs. Amanda worries when she notices her grandmother has been hanging around a new resident in the Shelter Inn retirement village.

Rafe Arredondo, is the grandson of Birdie’s suitor, as he is somewhat concerned, though not as much as Amanda is worried. Rafe has an adorable young son, Issac; as well as being the assistant fire chief and being a paramedic. After an accident on the job, Rafe is told to take a month off, with his broken arm; which finds himself becoming friends with Amanda; and young Isaac is so adorable, with Amanda totally loving him. Both Rafe and Amanda have had heartaches in their past lives; Rafe having lost his wife due to a drug overdose, and Amanda losing a boyfriend due to a tragedy.

In a short time, Rafe has strong feelings for Amanda, as they spent a lot of time at the Christmas market together; but Amanda refuses to admit that she is attracted to Rafe. Both Amanda and Rafe have hard times with emotional issues in their lives, but their attraction continues to keep their paths intertwining. Isaac was so cute, and he always invited Amanda to come to events, which brings Rafe too. 😊
The December Market was a wonderful, heartwarming romantic Christmas story. I really like both Amanda and Rafe, and hoped that they would finally give into their love for each other. The December Market was so very well written by RaeAnne Thayne.

RaeAnne Thayne is a master at creating such complex and wonderful characters. I love how each of her books in a series connect to each other, yet explain bits of the past in case you haven’t read those that came before. As the second book in her Shelter Springs series, this story follows Amanda Taylor and Rafe Arredondo. Amanda is a single shop owner with a heart breaking past that she seems to attempt to make up for by overextending herself for every event in town and making a success out of her shop. In her routine visits to her grandmother, she begins to see more of Rafe and his adorable son. Rafe is a single dad who frequently visits his grandfather at the same complex where Amanda’s grandmother lives. This book keeps you on the edge of your seat through the trials and tribulations of the past and present in Amanda and Rafe’s lives. Will Amanda open herself up to love again? Will Rafe be open to moving on from the pain of the past? Which of them will be more stubborn? More importantly, will Rafe’s son get his Christmas wish? *Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Amanda runs the town Christmas market despite not loving the holiday season. It reminds her of the death of her fiance years prior. So instead of celebrating, she throws herself into making the market successful. Meanwhile, firefighter Rafe is the paramedic assigned to work the fair after a broken arm relieves him of other duties.

Rafe is a single dad, not looking for romance, whose grandfather is now dating Amanda’s grandmother – which does not please Amanda one bit. Can they get along at the holiday market?

Why Kirsten loves it
This story reminded me of Virgin River and Sweet Magnolias with all it’s small-town charm, large cast of characters, and deep history linking it to other books in the series (and previous Thayne series.) It works as a standalone – speaking as someone who has never read another Thayne book – but I did find all the stories from previous books very compelling too! It was festive and fun and made me want to look into the backstories.

Ms. Thayer strikes again! She writes the best Christmas romances. I loved this book. My only regret is that I didn’t wait until Christmas season to read this book.

The December Market is book two in the charming Shelter Springs Series by RaeAnne Thayne.
I devoured book one Christmas at the Shelter Inn.
And was jumping up and down when I seen I was approved for the second title.

This was such an enchanting holiday tale.
RaeAnne Thayne has created another heartwarming story that will melt your heart. I loved every minute and hated to see it end.
A perfect book that will give you all the Christmas hallmark movie vibes.

Thank You NetGalley and Canary Street Press for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Amanda vive marcada por las acciones de su padre, quien conducía en estado de ebriedad y causó la muerte de cuatro personas. A pesar de ser una buena persona y esforzarse por el bienestar del pueblo, no todos la tratan como deberían, lo que la ha llevado a convencerse de que es mejor estar sola para no salir lastimada.

Rafe es un viudo y padre soltero que no tiene intención de volver a enamorarse, ya que lo único que ha traído eso es dolor.

El romance se desarrolla lentamente, lo cual me gustó, y además no hay escenas sexuales, lo cual también es un punto a favor. Sin embargo, lo que no me gustó fueron las numerosas referencias a libros de otras series; eran excesivas y, en lugar de motivarme a leer sus historias, me causaron rechazo.

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.