Welcome to Litsy!

I read the first three novellas in December. When I got to the final one, I seemed to lose interest. I think the change from England/Scotland settings to New York through me, even though the fourth is called Christmas in Central Park. 😆 I decided to pick it back up today and ended up enjoying it as much as the others.

Also, maybe I was just out of it entirely because it took me until the third one to realize each one involved shortbread in ⬇️

#wintergames #teamreindeergames loved this collection of Christmas novellas from some of my favorite historical romance authors.

26 pts

This is a collection of four novellas and as expected some novellas are better than others. There are two that are funny, I like to see some humor in this type of genre. There is one that it was boring. As expected they are some kind of cheesy maybe spicy. Those parts were also funny. 3⭐️If you like historical romance with humor I think you will like it. Nothing extraordinary.

#DecemberDreams
Day 10. Holiday Romance
#HolidayRomance

#wintergames #reindeergames here is my December TBR! Excited to do a lot of reading this holiday!

@liseworks @kezzlou85 @jessxlark78 @karons1 @toriestories @matchlessmarie @aperfectmjk @clwojick @StayCurious

Next holiday read!

Had a great romance book club earlier this week and sneakily introducing some fave historical authors before we tackle another year of reading. We talked the most about the MacLean. Jordan was a fan favorite. All were enjoyed. Coming up on 1 year for this book club and it‘ start is one of my favorite things of 2021. Next up is Red White & Royal Blue 😀

I read the first story in this collection this evening: Tessa Dare‘s “Meet Me in Mayfair.” Dare is a favorite regency romance writer and this story didn‘t disappoint…I loved the relationship that the two characters built over the course of an evening spent walking through London. The author did an excellent job building a believable connection in a short time!
#FestivePhotoChallenge Mistletoe #WinterGames2021 #TeamGameSleighers

I enjoyed 3 out of 4. Tessa Dare is one of my fave romance authors. And stories 2 & 3, a second chance romance story and a forced proximity romance story, were fun & enjoyable. Story 4 I did not care for because she was a liar and he was a manipulator. Not a good basis for a romance.

Book 2 for #DashingDecember

Homemade holiday for #RoaringWolf - each story includes shortbread & there‘s a recipe at the end that I tried 😋

This was a fun, light-hearted collection. I REALLY enjoyed the stories from Tessa Dare and Sarah MacLean, wasn't a big fan of the Sophie Jordan one, and liked the Joanna Shupe one, but not as much as the first two. Would recommend to fans of genre romance. Listened on #scribd on #audiobook. 1st completed book of 2021!

Last full read of 2020! So I bought this one when I saw my BFF @EclecticBookLover was reading it! Needed some good old fashion romance and I think this collection may become a holiday tradition for me. 😂😂

#WinterGames #MerryReaders 101 points!

These novellas were fun. Individual reviews below:

Meet Me in Mayfair - a regency twist on Before Sunrise
The Duke of Christmas Present: A Christmas Carol, but romance
Heiress Alone - Home Alone meets Outlander
Christmas in Central Park - my favorite premise, but suffered from the instalove/instaboning (would have worked great as a full length novel, though)

#HolidayReads #WinterGames #TeamRedNosedReindeer @StayCurious

My #elfswap arrived!!! I‘m so happy! Sarah you sent candles I love!!! So much! Pretty washi tap, book Mark - and the pouch is 100% my aesthetic ❤️🌲❤️🌲 a journal and I love the books!! Thank you so much!!! ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

Last batch for the night. Peppermint bark sugar cookies.

Recipe: https://www.littledairyontheprairie.com/peppermint-bark-sugar-cookies/

#wintergames2020 #ReadNosedReindeer

Book number 2 and cookie number 2! Mint chip sugar cookies.

Recipe: https://www.littledairyontheprairie.com/mint-chip-sugar-cookies/

#wintergames2020 #ReadNosedReindeer

Finished the last three stories in this Christmas anthology earlier this week. I enjoyed all three stories, but Sarah MacLean‘s remains my favorite with Tessa Dare‘s a close second. I‘ve typically gravitated towards contemporary romances over regency ones, but authors like this might be changing my mind.

Shortbread makes an appearance in each story. Sarah MacLean included this recipe at the end of the book. I‘m going to try baking some this week.

Objectively, these were all pretty ridiculous but I still enjoyed them as a one-off read. However, one of the reasons I like trying collections like this one is the hope of finding a new author to try, and none of these stories appealed to me all that much. A soft pick - if you like these kinds of stories, you'll like these.

These filled prompts for #FestiveFlicks #AVeryMerryBingo & #BookmasBingo, continued my goals for #ReadYourWayReadathon⬇️

Delightful, charming holiday stories. I loved them all! #Bookbingo @TheAromaofBooks

Week 1 totals for #wintergames2020 #teamreadnosedreindeer

Finished 2 books: team buddy read + TBR read + finished first story from the tagged Christmas anthology last night. 92 pts

Watched the team movie plus pictured holiday movies + tv episodes: Dash + Lily x7 episodes. Sugar Rush Christmas x3 episodes. + painted Christmas bookmarks for a craft. 107 pts

Roughly 12 hours towards #readyourway ⬇️ 120 pts

Total: 319 + 50 early bird pts = 369

I loved this collection of stories!! There's 4 stories, so bear with me while I review them all in the comments. #WinterGames2020 #MerryReaders @Clwojick 101pts.

Lovely spot to take a break and read a Christmas anthology! #BookspinBingo

First story I gave a ⭐⭐⭐
Second story was a ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Third story was a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Fourth story was a dud with ⭐⭐
I didn't like the last one, because the hero wasn't upset that he slept with a married woman, he was more upset she was a virgin 🤨🤦‍♀️

Ehhhhh I love these authors but I just don‘t like romance short stories, it‘s all too rushed and insta-love. 👍🏼👍🏼1/2

These were 4 fun novellas that I will now read every Christmas. Cute shortbread joke runs throughout the stories and each story is inspired from a favorite Christmas movie.

Reading romance on my holidays (another Tessa Daee - His Bride for the Taking, not yet on the catalogue).

This was a cute collection of romantic #HolidayReads. Heiress alone was probably my favorite.😊

Meet me in Mayfair by Tessa Dare
The Duke of Christmas present by Sarah Maclean
Heiress alone by Sophie Jordan
Christmas in Central Park by Joanna Shupe

#Teamfestivus @wanderinglynn

#WinterGames @Clwojick @StayCurious

I am starting to get the Christmas feeling and wanted to find some christmasy books. I scoured my tbr and this was the only one I found! 😂 this is totally fine, I just thought I had more! Gotta work on that tbr at all times! 🤪
Also seeing all your holiday post are really bringing out my Christmas spirit! 🎄

When I originally took this photo, I didn‘t take it to post it. However, I think it should be shared and I already brought the book back to the library 😂

This is the MacLean family‘s Shortbread recipe. It is featured in all of the short stories as magical shortbread that will make you fall in love.

I‘m not the best baker, so I don‘t know if I‘ll attempt to make these. We‘ll see!

#teamelectricsex #wintergames +6pts

I‘m so glad I finally read this book. This might be the book I add to my yearly Christmas read. I think I now need more Christmas historical romances. But I don‘t think I know any. I think I have discovered a couple more romance readers I need to try out.

#HolidayRead #WinterGames #TeamElectricSex - 21 pts

Just snapped the perfect holiday photo and then I retook it to include a book 😂

This photo actually fits many prompts
#DearDecember - Set in Europe
#HollyJollyReading -Lights
#FestivePhotoChallenge - Holiday Romance (none are currently sappy)

#wintergames #teamelectricsex 1pt

This includes 4 Christmas anthologies with the running threads of a duke and a shortbread cookie recipe included in each story. As with all shorter romance stories, the love and HEA happens very quickly, but each story was strong enough to stand alone. I liked that each author used different time periods and settings.

Mixed bag for me that I really should have waited another month to read and get in the holiday spirit. I really liked two of these (publisher + advice columnist; Scottish duke + stranded heroine). Another was fine and sweet (duke + the heroine he's about to evict), and the fourth, a second-chance romance, didn't do it for me.

Doing a quick catch up on my reading: I liked the stories by the two authors I really like, but was less keen on the other two. This is not a surprise to me!

Getting that Christmas review in right under the wire...so, this book was fine. I liked the first two stories, the third was okay, and the fourth was meh...This is a terrible review but there's just not enough here to delve further. But, how much do you love my vintage ceramic Christmas tree?

So I give this 3.5 stars over all average for this collection. The first 2 stories I would give 4 stars, the third 3.5 stars. The fourth story I couldn‘t finish because it felt completely out of place and mildly misogynistic. I recommend reading the first three and skip the fourth. #romantsy

Finished this lovely short story collection. I was already a HUGE fan of Tessa Dare and Sarah MacLean, but now I‘ve found two more authors to adore.

Total #24B42019 time is 5:45.

Like with most anthologies, I liked the stories to varying degrees. However, I'd say all of them hovered between a 3.5 and a 4, making me give this a solid 4⭐ overall. It was such fun to read holiday-themed stories!

It‘s a rainy day in my part of Texas, giving me the perfect excuse to stay in and read all day.

Cuddling with Jasper today while trying in get in one last holiday read of the season. Merry Christmas! Hope everyone is having a pleasant day. 🎄❤️

Just finished this yummy confection, a book of short stories by some of my favourite #romantsy authors. The common theme is magic shortbread, handsome “Dukes” and Christmas 🎄. A frothy but satisfying collection. Merry Christmas 🎄💕

This sums up why I love bookstores and libraries.

Taking a break from I Am Pilgrim for the next day or two to enjoy my most anticipated holiday read.

Kyle is wrapping presents currently and Bailey is “helping”.

The idea of each story being connected by a magical love inducing Scottish shortbread was charming. I enjoyed how each story lead from one locale to the next. I wanted to love this collection. I love the authors and their other works. But the stories felt like they were shoehorned into too short formats. Only read a few books a year? I‘d say skip this and look for other books by these authors. If you read a lot, this is a fun bit of holiday fluff.

It 6am and tears are streaming down my face from reading the second story in this anthology. The Duke of Christmas Present by Sarah Maclean is a second chance romance full of heartbreak and hope😭🤧❤️
I‘m only halfway through this book and it‘s already a five star read!

Good morning! I finished a book last night and starting this one today. It includes Christmas novellas from 4 of my favorite historical romance authors. #romantsy

I loved this collection and I normally hate short stories. Dare‘s story had me laughing until my sides hurt. MacLean‘s second chance romance was so sweet, and I love her writing. She always sucks me right in and I have trouble putting her stuff down. I‘d never read Jordan or Shupe before, but I liked both of these stories. Good characters, well written, and entertaining. I‘m not a fan of Shupe‘s preferred NYC setting, but that‘s my only gripe.

#DecemberTBR I know I won‘t get to all of these, but my proposed TBR for the month consists of my four #currentlyreading books, six library books, two Christmas romances (one from NetGalley), and my annual reread of A Christmas Carol. I‘ve met my #MountTBR goal and Goodreads goal for the year, but I‘m not sure if I‘ll complete any other challenges. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Season‘s Readings!

While it‘s a little early for Christmas romances, this book was lovely. My favorite was Sarah MacLean‘s story! #romantsy