Ok this was SUCH a cute story. This is the third installment of The Dream Harbor Series by Laurie Gilmore. I think I connected most with Bennet and Kira, the two kind of outcasts in some sense, and reformed in their ways. Kira coming from money, and Benner from just needing to be needed. I truly loved this with the Christmas vibes. I think between this book and book 2, they are competing for the best of the series! My rank so far is 2,3,1 I think. You can tell Laurie is upping her writing game with each story. These characters felt more well developed. The spice was spicing as well! This Christmas book is Chefs Kiss! Add it to your TBR now!

I LOVED this one!! This is the third book in the Dream Harbor series! It is written so you can read them as stand alone books but I recommend reading them in order as you get so much background info on each couple and its so fun to see them pop back up in the other books!!

Kira and Bennett are the main characters in this book. Kira who just bought a Christmas tree farm (even though she hates Christmas) and Bennett who is in dream harbor on vacation while escaping a bad dating life back in California. This book was funny, full of banter and love. it is a guaranteed HEA which I love.

Tropes:
- Grumpy x sunshine
- one bed
- small town
- forced proximity

A totally unrealistic but totally fun festive lovefest. The Dream Harbor series has quickly become a fun fluffy guilty pleasure and I’m not mad about it. I’ll read as many as Laurie Gilmore wants to write. Love the focus on seasonal vibes and characters who love to read (they’re just like us!), with character growth (Kira’s and Ben’s grumpy/sunshine personalities and Mr fix-it/no-I’m-Miss-Independent issues fit together so nicely!). The mysteries are completely Hallmark cheesy and unnecessary, but the point is the love story, so I don’t even care.

Thank you to One More Chapter for the opportunity to read this ARC!

***ARC Review***

4.5/5 ⭐️
2.5/5 🌶️

Tropes:
Grumpy x Sunshine
Small Town
Forced Proximity
One Bed

This is the third book in the Dream Harbor series featuring Kira North and Bennett Ellis with some familiar appearances.

Kira North is the grumpy sunshine who decided she needed a fresh new start after her twin sister got married. After some influencing from her doom scrolling, she bought a farm. And not just any farm, A Christmas Tree Farm. Kira North hates Christmas.

Bennett Ellis is a software engineer from California visiting his sister Jeanie, owner of the Pumpkin Spice Cafe, for the holidays. In tow with him are his three cuter than ever pups.

The story between Ben and Kira is super cute! This small town romance between the pair delivers the perfect amount of playfulness, tease and spice. I absolutely gobble the One Bed trope!

Everyone should definitely add this to their winter holidays TBR!

Welcome back to Dream Harbor!

I thought Logan and Jeanie were my favorite Dream Harbor couple, but I think Bennett and Kira are my new favorites!

On a whim, Kira decides to purchase an abandoned Christmas tree farm and move to Dream Harbor for a fresh start. Bennett is in town for the holidays visiting his sister when he runs into Kira while walking his dogs on her property, which he thought was still vacant. While the two have a bumpy first meeting, Bennett is a fixer and offers his help to Kira. The more they hangout, the more they enjoy each other’s company and eventually can’t resist the chemistry.

I loved the banter between Kira and Bennett! And the small town hallmark movie vibe. I enjoyed the grumpy/sunshine trope, Kira being the grumpy one and Bennett the sunshine-y cinnamon roll. Usually the grumpy/sunshine tropes I read, it’s the opposite.

The third book in the Dream Harbor series is interconnected and can be read as a standalone but I definitely recommend reading in order to get a better background of the other couples and characters.

I can’t wait for more Dream Harbor books!

EXCELLENT during times of stress, love the happy, simple-life vibe. It helped me during a dark time to remember how simple joy feels again.

It is very difficult not to like any of Gilmore’s books especially this one that revolves around Christmas, the happiest of holidays. Everything about the book is lighthearted and entertaining. There is some mild steaminess in the book. Overall, this is a good book to read as the holidays are approaching!

Gilmore’s use of the small town setting allows her to connect this book with the ones before it. Thus, there are characters that are already familiar to any reader having read the previous books. Even so, this book can be read on its own.

A few other things: Grumpy Kira is not a nice Kira. Kira does not like Christmas?!?!? How is this possible when she owns a Christmas Tree Farm! And Bennet - his love language is helping people he cares about (swooning here!); the littlest things he does made me smile.

Obviously there is snow; there is SOOOOOOO much snow however there are advantages to a snowstorm & a snowball fight with a hot guy. And the ending is so romantic - just be ready. I can say no more.

If you are ready for the holiday magic to begin then start by reading this book.

Holy cow this book was AMAZING! I’m gonna have to say the best one yet! 😭 I gotta take my time on this review so stay tuned. This book deserves time and love in the review. ❤️

Ok. This book. Was amazing. Kira and Bennett were way too cute together. Their attraction started next to immediately. Kira is the tough one and Bennett…I loovveedddd Bennett. He is literally a golden retriever MMC and just loves helping people. He fights his Mr. Fix-It urges because it’s only caused him to be taken advantage of in his past dating experiences but when it comes to Kira, he literally can’t help himself.

Once they finally stopped fighting their attraction for each other, their relationship immediately glows all over the pages. Not only is Bennett helping Kira fix up the old house on the tree farm she invested in, but they begin going through some of the things that the previous owner left behind. There’s a rumor throughout the town about a possible discovery somewhere on the farm and everyone puts Bennett up to the task of digging around.

But, y’all. My ABSOLUTE FAVORITE PART in this book…are the letters. I’m not spoiling it so when you get there, you will know. And you’ll know which part almost made me cry while I was out eating lunch and watching a game with hubby. Please visit me on my insta when you read this so I can hear your thoughts too.

I received a complimentary copy of this book and opinions expressed in the review are completely my own. Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins Publisher for this opportunity!

3.5 stars (rounded up).

"The Christmas Tree Farm" by Laurie Gilmore is the third book in the cozy and slightly spicy Dream Harbor series. This book revolves around Kira, a grumpy heiress who has just bought the town's Christmas tree farm, and Bennett, a sunshine-y guy who is visiting his Jeanie (who owns the Pumpkin Spice Cafe!) while trying to enjoy a vacation away from his California tech job. At first, Kira is totally standoffish and rude to the people of Dream Harbor, but we come to understand why she is the way she is. I think this plotline won't work for a lot of readers, but it was ok for me. I liked the exploration of how her privilege led her to buying the Christmas tree farm sign (and experience) unseen. I also appreciated the commentary about how Bennett stayed in a toxic situationship/relationship long past its expiry date. I also loved how Bennett was the sunshine-y cinnamon roll and Kira was the grumpy black cat! More of this in romance, please! My main issue is with the pacing. It takes far too long to get the story going. It starts very, very slowly, and eventually, it does open up, but slows down again toward the end. I liked the spice, the chemistry between characters, the little looks into the other two couples in the series, and the set-up for a future book. They are like less cheesy version of Hallmark/Netflix original Christmas films. These books go down as easy as a cup of Christmas cocoa. They will give you warm, fuzzy feelings, and the spice will heat you up from the inside. It is a really fun series, and I will definitely read the next one.

Thank you to NetGalley, Laurie Gilmore, and Harper 360 for the complimentary ARC of this book. All opinions are my own. I was not compensated for this review.

What fun sweet book. Now I have not read the prior books, time crunch honestly. I do believe the other books tie in, the brother of Pumpkin spice café owner is the MMC in this book but overall it could be stand-alone! I was not expecting the dynamic between the characters but this book gave me Hallmark and Gilmore Girls combo with extra spice and I loved it!!!

Bennett is in town to visit his sister Jeanie (owner of the Pumpkin Spice Cafe) and has somehow been appointed by the town to check in on the grumpy Christmas tree farm owner Kira. She had dreams of owning a farm and homesteading, so she bought a farm sight unseen without realizing it was the town’s beloved Christmas tree farm. She’s been a hermit for the past few months trying to prove that she can be independent and she doesn’t need anyone’s help. Until she runs out of money and needs to re-open the farm for tree buyers. Bennett is the ever-helpful rescuing type of guy who relies on his helpfulness to be wanted by his dates. He’s trying both the help and resist helping Kira, and she is definitely resisting any assistance. It’s a lot of push and pull, but they ultimately get stuck together in a snowstorm and a temporary fling develops. It was fun to revisit this quirky little town and to see Bennett and Kira integrate into a bigger friend group.

I would like to thank NetGalley for this ARC. I definitely think this book is the best one in the series so far! I can't wait to see what else this author will bring to this series!

For someone who is obsessed with Christmas let me tell you that this should be added to your holiday tbr. This gives off those hallmark small town Christmas vibes. I felt like I was watching a movie right on the pages. The town is so cute and I loved everything about the Christmas tree farm. This was a quick and fun read about a girl named Kira, who moved away from her life to start over. Thinking she just bought a house with a plot of land she quickly finds out that it is actually a Christmas tree farm and she has to get to work. Then we have Bennett, who is in town visiting his sister. He quickly takes a liking towards Kira and will do anything to keep seeing her.

Read if you like:
- holiday books
- Small town
- Grumpy x sunshine

This book is such a cute fun Christmas read! Definitely perfect for the upcoming seasons! I can’t wait to dive back into this story closer to Christmas!

Many thanks to HarperCollins Publishers for providing an advanced reader copy via NetGalley in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own.

Just in time for the holiday season, The Christmas Tree Farm brings all the cozy, warm vibes. In this grumpy + sunshine, found family delight we follow Kira who blew her entire trust fund on a Christmas Tree farm. Her idea of a “fresh start” turns nightmare quick with one disaster after another. But just as she’s running out of hope, she meets Bennett who’s in town for the holidays. Ben enjoys being useful and quickly gets to helping Kira, however, he may or may not have been put up by the townsfolk to hunt for a hidden treasure or DEAD BODY (gasp!) on Kira’s farm.

Imagine your favorite Hallmark movie with just a touch of spice! Grab a warm beverage and cozy blanket and cuddle up for this cozy, romantic delight!

I loved this book! I have read every book by Laurie Gilmore and let me just say they keep getting better and better! This was my favorite of the series so far! It is such a cozy romance and perfect for a Christmas read!

A perfect Christmas season romance. This was such a cute story. I love a Christmas tree farm and Dream Harbor is already so cute and Idealic that adding one to the mix is giving me major fomo. I need to live in this small town. Kira is new to Dream Harbor and though it takes her awhile to fit in, she’s a great addition to the growing list of characters. Then there’s Jeanie’s brother, Bennett, visiting from California with his 3 adorable pups. After a not great first impression Bennett and Kira eventually become friends he helps her start to fit in. But what happens when Kira starts to have feelings for this man she knows is only visiting for the holidays? *cue suspenseful music* You’ll have to read to find out.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper 360 for the advance copy.

This was everything I never knew I needed from the Dream Harbor series. Now I’m biased because Christmas is my favorite holiday, but this book was just a spicer version of a Hallmark movie.

I got to see some of my favorite DH characters and live out a dreamy love story on a Christmas tree farm (cue Taylor’s song). Kira and Bennett were so fun to get to know and I cannot wait for everyone to meet them when this book is released later this month!

This was really cute. I didn’t think I’d be in the mood for a Christmas book in the middle of October, but this got me hearing Mariah Carey 🤣

My family would always cut down our Christmas trees at a Christmas tree farm, so this brought back some memories.

Bennett was a told golden retriever. He was so sweet. Kira came off black cat energy, but deep down she was a softy.

This book is cute for those who loved the previous 2 books and love all things Christmas. I also enjoyed the scene during the secret Santa exchange. Love seeing all the previous characters. I already know the main characters for the next book, but I’m BEGGING for an Annie and Mac book.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC, I squealed when I opened my email.

The Christmas Tree Farm by Laurie Gilmore is the third book in the Dream Harbor series. The story follows Kira North, the new owner of the old Dream Harbor Christmas tree farm. This was a very quick read for me and I absolutely adored it.
This is my favorite book in the series so far.
Overall, it was the perfect book for a cozy season!
Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.