I got a digital ARC of this short story collection and discovered each of these stories are about pining and yearning during the holidays and I love a good pining story.

Cruel Winter with You by Ali Hazelwood
Marc has been in love with his older sister's best friend ever since they were young kids. This short story is sweet and sexy and Jamie, now a pediatrician, finally allows herself to be vulnerable and admit to tech millionaire Marc that his once unrequited feelings are very much reciprocated. 5/5 stars

Merry Ever After by Tessa Bailey
Standard Tessa Bailey with the typical smol heroine (Evie) and tall hero (Luke) (everything is apparently very large on this guy but the heroine is made to fit him). I liked the single mom and the soft caretaking hero but endless mentions of how big he was (all over) grew tiresome. 3/5 stars

All by My Elf by Olivia Dade
This one included a forced proximity between two adjunct college professors embarking on a holiday side hustle aboard a wienermobile turned mincemeat mobile. Only Olivia Dade's brilliant mind could conceive of such a plot and make it work so very beautifully. William is the soft and tenderhearted hero pining for Nina who, unbeknownst to him, is pining back just as hard. 5/5 stars

Merriment and Mayhem by Alexandria Bellefleur
Everleigh is trying to sell her late grandmother's house and also throw one last Christmas celebration the way her grandmother always did. Unfortunately for her, everything that could go wrong, does go wrong, from a kitchen oven on fire to a broken ladder leaving Everleigh stranded on the roof with no way down. Enter Griffin Brantley, the sexy firefighter who keeps riding to Everleigh's rescue. This one was super fun and sexy and I wish it had been just a few pages longer. 4/5 stars

Only Santas in the Building by Alexis Daria
Another story involving grandmother loss and grief, comic book illustrator Evie is on a strict deadline while also navigating a crush on her upstairs neighbor, Theo. Likewise, Theo has been harboring a crush on her as well. These two are so sweet and adorable as they find their way to each other. 5/5 stars

Cruel Winter: ★★★★★
Ali Hazelwood’s writing style continues to impress! The flashbacks were perfectly placed, enhancing the story’s flow, and Marc’s intense obsession with Jamie was captivating. Normally, I miss dual POVs, but with a male lead this devoted, a single FMC perspective felt just right. Ali nailed it.

Tessa Bailey: ★★★☆☆
For me, Tessa’s books are either home runs or misses, with little in between. This one leaned more toward the latter. It had the vibe of a Fanfiction Oneshot but lacked that holiday magic. Besides the calendar dates, the Christmas spirit was hard to feel. While the spice was definitely there, I struggled to connect with the characters like I usually do in her books.

All by My Elf: ★★★★★
My first Olivia Dade read, and I’m hooked! Loved the mid-30s main characters, and as a former Newport News resident, I adored revisiting familiar spots through the story. This novella was a delight from start to finish, and Dade is now at the top of my TBR list.

Merriment and Mayhem: ★★★★★
A sizzling firefighter-meets-chaos-demon romance that’s impossible to put down. I raced through this one! The ending wrapped up a bit quickly for my taste, but the rest of the story was so engaging that it didn’t detract much. Definitely adding more from this author to my list!

Only Santa’s in the Building: ★★★★★
This novella was the perfect cozy, swoon-worthy finish to the collection. Every moment felt warm and festive, and the epilogue was a dream!

Amazon assembled an incredible lineup of five talented authors, each bringing their A-game. I loved discovering three new-to-me authors in this collection, and I can’t wait to dive into more of their works. Thanks so much for this wonderful reading opportunity!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary E-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I am obsessed with Ali Hazelwood and this second chance novella was a balm of happiness. I loved the forced proximity and the hero was perfect.
Recommend to anyone!

✨Book Review✨

Under the Mistletoe - Stories by Ali Hazelwood, Tessa Bailey, Olivia Dade, Alexandria Bellefleur, and Alexis Daria

📖 This is a collection of 5 stories from popular authors, all set in December for the most magical time of the year. Each story is the perfect length to be read in a single sitting and guaranteed to put you in the mood for the holiday season! Special shoutout to @NetGalley for the advanced reader copy of this collection!

📚 If you’re looking for some bite sized Christmas stories then this is the perfect book for you to pick up. The pace is fast, as we’ve gotta get from acquaintances/friends to the bedroom quickly.

🌟 Curl up by the fire to be thrilled and tingled all the way. These are all open door romances, so reader beware!

Do you read holiday books? This has certainly got me looking forward to the Christmas season.

#BookReview #BookRecommendation #Bookish #UnderTheMistletoe #ChristmasCollection #BookLover

Each book had humor and a ton of spice. Some of them I would enjoy a sequel. I really enjoy these collections.

📚 Under the Mistletoe collection
✍ Ali Hazelwood, Tessa Bailey, Olivia Dade, Alexia Bellefleur, Alexis Daria
📖 Holiday Romance Novella colleciton
⭐3.5/5
🌶️ 🌶️
➡
🙏 Thank you to Amazon Original Stories, NetGalley and the author for an advanced copy of Cruel Winter with You. All opinions are my own.
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What I thought: This collection of stories was the perfect holiday blend of joy, spice and laughs. Each story had swoonworthy characters with charisma and banter and somehow, each of these packed enough chemistry and heat to make me believe I'd just read read 200 pages worth of build-up in anticipation of the characters connecting. Cruel Winter with You was my favorite story in the bunch and it may just be in top contention for my favorite Ali Hazelwood- second chance romance with the ultimate grand gesture of pining? Yes, please!

Not every one of the novellas resonated with me (I was surprisingly befuddled by Merry Ever After (Tessa Bailey) but mostly enjoyed these. They're the perfect bite-sized way to get into the holiday spirit without TOO much holiday and were honestly just fun to read.
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Read if you love:
*holiday books without being overly CHRISTMAS
*true RomComs- these all made me laugh!
*a few swoonworthy MMCs: a billionaire, a firefighter, a farmer and a professor- phew!
◾
See also: A Risk Worth Taking, The Mistletoe Motive, The Matzah Ball

This is a tough one to review as it is a collection of five separate stories by five different authors. The premise is very fun and they are all very short so it's worth the read of you are in the Christmas spirit. These are all pretty spicy especially for the length of the story. With all that being said some of the stories were better developed than others. Cruel Winter with you by Ali Hazelwood is a story about childhood friends to lovers and he's been gone for her the whole time. For the length of the story, I thought there was really good character development and chemistry between the characters. I enjoyed that they've known each other for years And wasn't instalove.
Merry ever after by tessa bailey was disappointing. It's about a big man and a little lady and that's essentially all you need to know.
All by my elf by Olivia dade probably has the most fat fetched storyline. It's about two adjunct professors who work in a hot dog truck as their side gig. This was confusing and didn't work for me.
Merriment and mayhem by Alexandria bellefleur was adorable and sweet but ended very abruptly. The story was definitely instalove and she decided to move to this town for him after knowing him a handful of weeks.
Lastly, we have only Santas in the building which was probably my favorite of the five. Evie is a coming book illustrator on a deadline. Her hot neighbor wants to help give her some Christmas cheer. It's so sweet and feels like the best length of all of the stories and even has an epilogue.

These five short stories were so much fun to read, and oh so spicy!
Cruel Winter with you: I loved this second chance story! And a favorite trope too with the “snowed in together”. I loved these two and how they were able to finally get together!
Merry Ever After: single mom and hot farmer is not a trope that I thought I would like till Tessa wrote it. Super good and arguably the steamiest of the bunch! I adored where they ended up and wish I could get a much longer version of their story.
All by My Elf: coworker crushes! This was cute, but I didn’t love it as much as the others.
Merriment and Mayhem: this one made me laugh the most at the outrageous circumstances our female character kept finding herself in. And the banter was fantastic. This one was probably my favorite of the bunch.
Only Santas in the Building: I think my favorite things about this one was that our female character was a comic book artist (geeking out), and that he got crafty in his gifts of admiration to her. Swoon! Loved it.
All in all this averaged 4.5⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 So much fun! Highly recommend.

This is an EXCELLENT collection of stories by some amazing authors! You know how sometimes in short stories (especially of the spicy variety), there just isn't really much *plot* or character development? That is COMPLETELY NOT the case in these stories! Yes these are short stories, but I never felt like any of them were lacking in "story!" They were all so charming, emotional, and intelligent! After I finished each story, I thought, "Oh, this one was so good, it's my favorite of the collection." Then I read the next story and thought the same thing. Each standalone story is excellent; there's not a dud in the bunch!

Holiday perfection! Short stories are a tough medium for romance in my opinion, but these were all delightful and I had no complaints! I think Ali Hazelwood's was my favorite, but I'd definitely recommend them all. I loved having so much variety in one short story collection. And the spice was delightful!! If you're a romance fan, you need to jump on these because you'll love them!

Perfect collection to get ready for the Holidays! I love all these amazing authors and their short stories were perfect! Only wish they were longer.

I adored this holiday novella series!!! all these authors are marvelous, and they’ve given us spicy holly jolliness that I just adored!

- Cruel Winter with You by Ali Hazelwood: this is the cutest spiciest story! I love a brothers best friend story, especially where he falls first & so much harder! Marc & Jamie are so incredibly gone for each other, I loved their little snowed in romp to clear the air & have the start to their hea 🥰
- Merry Ever After by Tessa Bailey: what a fun, spicy, grumpy/sunshine story! I love a single parent x grumpy, down bad pairing & no one does it better than Tessa Bailey! Evie & Luke are so freaking adorable together, both have such strong wills & warm hearts & I love seeing them make their own happy little family together 🥹🫶
- All by My Elf by Olivia Dade: another spicy, adorable, tender loving story! William & Nina are so into each other but so shy about it, I love they have a cozy up for all the heat in realizing their mutual crushes can become an adorable, spicy hea 🥰
- Merriment and Mayhem by Alexandria Bellelfeur: I simply adored hot firefighter Griffin & clumsy Everligh! their sweet story starts & ends with sparks (cue laughter). I loved the way they showed such tenderness & comfort to each other while always being honest & funny in their intentions. I loved seeing them chose their happily ever after with each other 🥰🫶
- Only Santa’s in the Building Alexis Daria: the sweetest spiciest end to this novella series! I loved Evie & Theo’s connection to each other as neighbors & special twist on secret santa! they’re so sweet & loving with each other, I loved how they finally get together & keep their little traditions going. ❤️

Such a fun, easy read! I loved all these spicy little short stories and it got me in the mood for the holidays. Would recommend!

These were little festive bite sizes filled with cuteness, heat and romance.

- Cruel Winter with you: I liked that we got the history of Marc and Jamie and what led up to this stormy Christmas. Some heavy personal issues for the Jamie which could not be fully delved into since it was a novella. But enjoyed it overall.

- Merry ever after: As always with TB very hot. Nice chemistry between the leads Evie and Luke. Cute short story with heat.

- All by my elf: This was okay, but did not grab me. My least favourite in the collection.

- Merriment and mayhem: Okay but again did not grab my attention.

- Only Santa’s in the building: really liked the title, premise, our leading lady and our leading man.

Overall for the whole collection 3.5 🌟

This was a nice collection of Christmas-themed short stories. I struggle with short stories as I just want MORE and want them to be a bit more fleshed out. I felt that way with all of these stories - they were so engaging and entertaining that I wished they were all full length novels. I especially loved Ali Hazelwood and Tessa Bailey's stories - they felt the most polished and put together for being a short story. I would read the crap out of Ali Hazelwood's Cruel Winter With You! This was a nice little foray into holiday reading.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book before release.

Cruel Winter with You — 5/5
☆ he falls first
☆ childhood friends

I absolutely adored this story. I’ve been a fan of Ali Hazelwood for years and she never disappoints.
A very cute enemies to lovers with childhood flashbacks that make you love the characters more and more with each page.


Merry Ever After — 5/5
☆ small town romance
☆ single mother

I’ve read over 20 Tessa Bailey books at this point and they just keep getting better and better.
I instantly fell in love with Evie and Luke.
I really wish this was a full novel because I wanted more!


All by My Elf — 2/5
☆ forced proximity
☆ friends to lovers

I really wasn’t vibing with this one which is a shame because I usually like Olivia Dade’s books.
The main characters just didn’t hit for me. I didn’t like that a “funny little quirk” about Nina was that she is always speeding. I don’t find that funny at all.
William is just kind of bland. Both of them are really. They don’t really have personalities.
I think this one just wasn’t for me.


Merriment and Mayhem — 5/5
☆ firefighter
☆ small town romance

Oh my god, I truly with this was longer. I loved every second of this. I’m obsessed with Everleigh and Griffin. They had so much chemistry.
The pacing of this was also really great! Even though it was a short story it didn’t feel like they were rushed at all.


Only Santas in the Building — 5/5
☆ neighbours to lovers

This was my first time reading anything from Alexis Daria and it definitely won’t be the last. I’ve been hearing good things about her over the last few months so I went into this pretty high expectations and was not disappointed at all.
I loved everything about this and really wish this was a full length novel!

I was very much looking forward to reading this short-story collection when I snagged it as "Read Now" on NetGalley this month. Ali Hazelwood is one of my favorite authors, I've loved the Bellinger Sisters duology by Tessa Bailey, and therefore I was excited to read those stories and discover new authors with similar writing styles.

Unfortunately, these fell short for me. While I try not to find fault with the short story format here, I found most of these cringe-worthy and not believable. I did like the flashbacks included in Hazelwood's novella as they added sufficient depth, but very strongly disliked the main trope of the story. The rest of the stories were fine for what they were, but I felt they were forgettable.

If you're looking for the ease of short stories and something Christmasy-y this holiday season, you may like these for a comfortable afternoon of reading. Huge thanks to the authors, Amazon Original Stories, and NetGalley for a copy of this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Cruel Winter with You - Ali Hazelwood
Jamie and Marc have known each other their entire lives, and Marc has been in love with Jamie for years. Now, they are both adults, and back home for Christmas. Jamie heads to Marc’s house in a snowstorm to grab a copper pan that her dad needs to make ham. The snowstorm is terrible though, and Jamie gets stuck there. Before she knows it, they are playing Truth or Drink, and as truths start unraveling, sparks ignite and heat up the chilly night.

I loved this short and sweet childhood friends to lovers romance. Jamie’s character had so many doubts about herself and her life, but Marc always saw the best in her. I loved how honest and open they were able to be with each other by the end. There’s a touch of spice at the end, and while I would love for this story to be explored more, it did feel like a complete story.


Merry Ever After - Tessa Bailey
Evie is a single mom and new in town. The local farmer, Luke, keeps showing up at the thrift shop she works at looking handsome and searching for jeans that fit. Evie isn’t looking for anything serious, but she makes Luke a custom pair of jeans and then sparks fly when she delivers them personally.

This story was very insta-lovey in a way that didn’t quite work for me. I really would have enjoyed a little bit more build up to the relationship, or even just skipping the part where Evie didn’t want anything serious before immediately changing her mind. It also just didn’t have quite enough holiday vibes for me even though the story occurred around Christmas. I did enjoy Evie’s strength and independence.


All by my Elf - Olivia Dade
Nina and William are adjunct professors working a side job that involved driving a Mincemobile and making lots of puns. They get stranded in the Mincemobile during a blizzard and realize they have been crushing on each other for months.

This one was a little confusing at the start, but I figured out what was going on pretty quickly. It was full of puns which I enjoyed. I do think it was maybe a little bit too much information up front, which didn’t leave enough time to really build the romance as much as I would have liked. Overall, Nina and William were cute together and this was a quick easy read.


Merriment and Mayhem - Alexandria Bellefleur
Everleigh Dangerfield seems to keep getting herself into situations that require handsome firefighter Brantley to save her. First there’s a baking disaster, and then when trying to hang Christmas lights, she finds herself dangling from the side of the house. Everleigh is only visiting so she doesn’t want anything serious, but Brantley keeps showing up and soon she can’t stop herself from giving him a chance.

This novella was so much fun. I loved the romcom vibes and banter between Everleigh and Brantley. I do think it could have benefitted from a tiny bit more relationship building, but it was a fun and easy read. This was my first time reading anything by Alexandria Bellefleur, but it won’t be my last!


Only Santas in the Building - Alexis Daria
Evie is pretty new to the apartment building, and she’s been so busy she hasn’t even had time to get her Christmas ornaments out of storage. When cute little ornaments start appearing on her door, she has no idea who they are from. She finally figures it out after meeting her handsome upstairs neighbor under the mistletoe.

This is a short and sweet novella. I loved the banter and chemistry between the main characters. The holiday vibes were absolute perfection. I also loved that we got some of Evie’s backstory, so it felt more like a complete story. This one was really fun and enjoyable!

Great little collection of holidays novella.

Overall 4⭐️

Cruel winter with you by Ali Hazelwood.

4.5⭐️ I wanted more of this! He falls first and harder and I fell for Ali’s words again! I am not sure how she managed to make me feel so many emotions in so little pages but I loved it. Perfect caught in a snow storm holidays novella.

Merry ever after by Tessa Bailey.
2.5⭐️ This one didn’t work for me as much. It had its moments but overall too insta love. And I didn’t love the caveman damsel in distress vibes.

All my Elf by Olivia Dade.
3⭐️Despite the name this had the least « christmassy » feeling to me. Other than the snow storm nothing screamed Christmas to me. I liked that both the FMC and MMC were more mature, the story was sweet, but the start felt confusing and I wasn’t overly invested.

Merriment and Mayhem by Alexandria Bellefleur.
4.25⭐️ Another new author to me and I really enjoyed it. I loved the flirty tone right away. Griffin could come and rescue me anytime. 🥰

Only Santas in the building by Alexis Daria.
4.25⭐️I did this one on audio and this author was new to me. I loved the tone right away. Evie’s internal dialogue has a cute neurotic YA feel to it and Theo is a sweetheart who is all about acts of kindness. Short and sweet. This is a single POV and I thought the narrator did a great job.

Thank you NetGalley & Amazon original stories for the advanced reading copy, all my opinions are my own.

Under the Mistletoe Collection is a fun set of short stories to get you in the holiday mood. Each of the five stories are written by a popular romance author. There is a range of the amount of Christmas featured in each of the stories. Some were full of cheer and others were a bit spicier. Overall, they left me in a happy holiday mood!

If you’re looking for a quick light read to put you in the holiday mood, be sure to pick up the Under the Mistletoe Collection!

Thank you to NetGalley and Amazon Publishing for an advanced copy of this book!