Welcome to Litsy!

Catching up on reviews!
This was a fun Xmastime PG-13 romance story. The main character owns a used bookstore in London but heads to her hometown for a week to stay in a castle for a friend‘s wedding. Romance blossoms in the castle garden with the head gardener!
Just what I hoped it would be for this type of book at this time of year!
Read if you like interracial couples, upper class/lower class battles, or plants.
🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄

#HolidayBookDragons

I read 218/409 pages towards my goal. My fil was visiting us this weekend so I didn‘t make it, but the #WinterSolsticeReadathon still encouraged me to read when I could. It also pushed me to read an extra 21 minutes last night when I was ready for bed but wanted a nice, even 6 hours for #WinterGames24 😅

Thank you @StayCurious and @LiseWorks !

Late to sign up, but ready to start the fun #WinterSolsticeReadathon for #WinterGames24!

My goal is to finish Meet Me Under the Mistletoe- currently on p. 29/410, and get some more points for #HolidayBookDragons.

Thank you @LiseWorks and @StayCurious !

This is a low pick for me. I didn‘t really like any of the characters. They were either overly dramatic or blah. I liked that Nory owned a secondhand bookshop and loved books, but she had such a hard time actually selling them? This is set around Christmas and very winter estate, but it‘s not a cutesy holiday romance. More a winter romance drama.

#wintergames2024 #xmaschachas

And now I‘m all caught up!

⭐️⭐️💫

I didn‘t enjoy this as much as the other Jenny Bayliss holiday novels that I‘ve read, but it had that cozy, wintry, English countryside atmosphere. I didn‘t feel attached to any of the characters and there seemed to be too many storylines. 🎧

2.5/5

Nory is returning to her hometown and she'll be staying as a guest in the castle bringing Nory back into contact with the gardener who is not a fan of her friends.

There were some side characters I liked, but there were a few who were awful, and it felt like most of the book was just waiting for when their awful behavior would mess everything up. When it finally happened at 80% through, I almost dnf'ed the book I was so frustrated.

ebook: Meet Me Under the Mistletoe by Jenny Bayliss
audiobook: Written in the Stars by Alexandria Bellefleur
print: Honest Advent by Scott Erickson

#weekendreads @rachelsbrittain

I was surprised to see so many negative reviews for this one; it seems that the title and cover promise holiday froth and it doesn't deliver. I'm just as happy with lesser froth and I enjoyed the meatier themes and complicated relationships.

Also, a used book seller and a gardener, how could I not love that combo? I used this for a “job you'd love“ square and I don't know which one I meant. 😁

#BuddyReads #WinterGames #HollyJollyReaders

"S hepherd Market is old London. Two small squares of ye-olde quaint shop fronts and pubs, some dating back to the 1700s, nestle unconcerned among the steel and glass monoliths of their descendants."

#FirstLineFridays @ShyBookOwl

Mom is back in the hospital, but I‘m starting this new one while she naps 🎄

I love Jenny Bayliss's holiday romance novels. 🥰
They're atmospheric and she really builds out all of the relationships in the MC's life - not just the romance, but the friendships and family dynamics too.
There is almost no 🌶, but sometimes the 🍭 wins!
The main character in this one is Elinor Noel - but she goes by Nory.

#mistletoe #wintergames #dailyphotochallenge @StayCurious

Here's my December #bookspin / #wintergames reading list.

#bookspinbingo #doublebookspin @TheAromaofBooks
#USS #wintergames2023 @dabbe @AnnR @ShananigansReads @LeeRHarry @CindyMyLifeIsLit @Allylu @NikkiM5

Less festive but more substantive than I expected, and I'm not mad at it! I really loved Nory and her friend group, and the way everyone had some learning and growing to do was so real and skillfully done. Going to have to read more Bayliss! #womensfiction #contemporaryromance #christmasromance

I liked this one. For some reason though it wasn‘t my favorite and I‘m not sure why. I liked the characters. Maybe the story moved a bit slow at times? I feel like I usually devour stuff from this genre rather quickly and this one seemed to take longer. Can‘t put my finger on it exactly but this was just a like, not a love for me

This is how I‘ll be spending my lunch hour on this cold snowy Thursday. Much better than working out…though I‘ll probably force myself to do it after work 😂

ETA: except today is Wednesday. Can you tell I‘m exhausted and brain dead? 😂 Thank god for a nice, easy read that requires zero thinking

A cute read that I needed after Don Quixote. It wasn‘t super Christmas-y, but I didn‘t mind. I bought the book when I found out the main character owns a book store. Sorry about the target sticker but hey this was $7

This is between so-so and a pick. I‘m feeling generous because I did appreciate the MC was a bookseller who hated to part with the books in her shop. It really isn‘t a Christmas book as it focused more on the friend‘s wedding and their friendships and relationships. Christmas is more of a backdrop & really, this could‘ve been set at anytime during the year.

Three of the books I had put on hold at the library for #winterreadathon finally came in this week. 🤷🏼‍♀️ So I‘m reading them anyway.

Imagine my delight when the book nerd MC of the tagged is reading my fave Gaiman book! I do love when the MC is a book nerd.

This was a fun Christmas story set during the time leading up to a wedding. Nory meets up with her oldest school friends and the reunion brings back painful memories and she also meets a dishy gardener at the castle where the wedding is being held.

This was a charming, fun romance with all kinds of atmosphere and interesting characters.

I liked Twelve Dates of Christmas so picked this up recently. Nory attends a house party/wedding for her friends & is re-acquainted with a guy she knew as a teen. Her family is nearby. I enjoyed all the characters, the romance, even the winter setting. Author throws in some serious topics—classism, past suicide, conflict with a brother—but overall, it‘s a fun read. Thought I should read one seasonal book this month!

Fun holiday read with castles, flowers and a wedding.

What a perfect little holiday read 💕 Bayliss delivers warmth, humor, and just the perfect measure of that little tug of sorrow we often feel around the holidays.

And the award for funniest quote of the year goes to “…I was spray-tanned by a woman who thought being the color of marmalade was the height of sophistication…”

I liked this #Romance. Good banter, a group of quirky secondary characters.

#WinterReadathon
@Andrew65 @GHABI4ROSES @DieAReader

#currentread

Utterly delightful! This holiday romcom is a warm cup of tea with found family, school friend vibes and multiple settings to make you smile. Whether you love exploring a historic manor estate, a beautiful garden, bustling London or a packed to the brim bookshop, you‘ll find it in this book. CW for suicide (off page). #WinterReadathon #BookspinBingo @Andrew65 @DieAReader @GHABI4ROSES @TheAromaofBooks

Is anything better than a quiet morning reading by the tree?

This cover and title suggested a more seasonal read where even the mistletoe had more to do with its placement in an English garden than its seasonal use. Holiday disappointment aside, I did like the story of 7 friends, 15 years post boarding school and how they fit in each other‘s lives at 34. TW for the 8th friend who died by suicide in years prior to the onset of the story.

Excited to jump into this JB book!

Well this was a fabulous read. It covers an awful lot of emotions. One minute its happy and funny, the next it touches on some darker and more sad aspects. It did have me laughing so many times. The ending was well written and tied the story off so well. I liked the conclusions of each character with no one giving up for another. 5* #Netgalley

This book wraps around you like a warm hug and fills you with warmth like the cups of hot cocoa everyone frequently drinks. I absolutely adored Elinor, “Nory” as the soft-hearted, genuine lead character that she was. Her group of friends and family are not perfect, but they are relatable and loving. Isaac is a wonderful lead man, too. This is a perfect cozy winter read, and a must for book loving romantics.