Holiday Wedding is a suspenseful, swoony, spicy romance mystery that comes with the festive and heart-warming atmosphere of the holiday season! 

 

There are two love story you’ll get to follow: Gwen and Caleb as well as Dean and Jenny. 

I wasn’t aware this was part of a series, but I’m glad to say I could enjoy this one just fine without reading the 1st book cause the author did a great job providing enough background information so I didn’t feel lost or miss anything. 

 

As much as I love reading about the sweet and lovey dovey moment between Gwen and Caleb as they overcome each obstacles in planning their perfect wedding, I preferred the sizzling enemies-to-lovers romance of the grumpy and moody Dean and the cheerful sunshine Jenny. 

I adore their bantering and I really like the part when they’re stuck together due to an unexpected storm, which kinda forces them to bond! 

 

This book comes in two different version, the sweet and spicy version. I got the spicy version and found the spicy scenes well-written and perfectly balanced, not overtaking the main plot. 

 

Overall, it’s an entertaining and enjoyable read! Such a page turner! 
 If you’re looking for a holiday read with tropes like grumpy x sunshine, forced proximity, enemies-to-lovers, and one bed, then you’ll love this one! 

 

 

⚠️ 𝐓𝐖: sexual content, kidnapping, pregnancy, stalking, gun violence, panic attacks, PTSD, brief mention of death of a parent 

I read this book in a couple of days, and it was a nice, easy read. However, I did find that the primary characters, Caleb and Gwen, exhibited a level of codependency that I personally found a tad bit excessive. 😅

I loved that there were two characters giving their own stories, and it flip-flopped back and forth, so a couple of chapters were about Gwen, and then the next couple of chapters were about Jenny. I liked that it allowed for the exploration of two distinct love stories. 📚❤️

While I applaud the inclusion of mental health as a central theme, particularly in the relationship between Dean and Jenny, I felt that the emotional breakdown depicted may have been somewhat exaggerated, especially considering the intimate moment that followed. 🤔

Overall, am I going to read more books by this author? Absolutely 💯 

 #melissadymondauthor #bookreview #romance #mentalhealth #twistsandturns

Thank you to netgalley for my ARC!

Overall, I enjoyed this book. The writing and plot kept me turning the pages and I loved Caleb and Gwen's connection. Their love is so pure and cute, and they are both loyal and committed to each other. I enjoyed all the characters and Jenny and Dean's blossoming romance as well. I was genuinely happy for them when they got together and slightly more interested in their story.

There were a few things that bothered me, though. 

This has one of my least favorite tropes ever.

I knew it the second FMC felt nauseous the first time. I hate surprise pregnancy. Yes it happens in real life unexpectedly and derails plans but it's overused and I saw it coming a mile away.

I'm over it. There were a couple other things that were predictable as well.

The first sex scene between Jenny and Dean was partly hot, and partly cringe. The cliche trope of the FMC seeing the MC naked for the first time and her shock of him just being sooo big that he won't fit, and him saying "don't worry, you can take it, I'll make sure you're ready." *EYE ROLL* I just read another scene like this in a different book that I DNFed. I'm begging all authors... please stop writing this.

When the stalkers have Gwen and Lola reveals her reasons... ugh. It makes sense that she's jealous of Gwen and wanted Caleb back. Even that her career has tanked since then. But because "I won't let you ruin my favorite holiday! Christmas is MINE!" Really? She sounds like a toddler.

I can't say much more or this whole review will be a spoiler, but the other things were minor and not worth mentioning here. But I did love the ending and would still read the next book in the series.

**Spoilers in content warnings**

Thank you to NetGalley, Victory Editing and Dr Melissa Dymond for this ARC.

This is the continuation of Gwen's (a doctor) and Caleb's (a famous actor) story from Holiday Star, with the added story of Gwen's BFF Jennie and beefcake bodyguard Dean.

It's December and Gwen's and Caleb's wedding is imminent. Tensions are high and Jenny and Dean are thrown together by various wedding tasks and a winter storm crippling New York, giving us the grumpy/sunshine, enemies to lovers and fake dating tropes, with forced proximity and only one bed situation thrown in for good measure.

This is a sequel written for readers who were keen on more of Gwen, Caleb and friends. It is therefore not really suitable as a standalone book, and I downloaded the first book from Amazon before reading this. 

It is written in dual POV between Gwen and Jenny, but to me it contains more of Gwen's story. I have to say I didn't find Jenny's story as interesting but that may be because she wasn't given the exposure and the right to her own book.

Like the first one, this book comes in a sweet and in a spicy version (although NetGalley only has the spicy one), with the sweet version only involving kissing, whereas the spicy version being at it from page one. To be honest, I think the author should decide what level of spice she wants to write and then stick to it. I generally prefer less spice but I can always skip a few pages.

It is well written and there is a cute dog but the story itself is a bit of a hotchpotch of romance and mystery, with three couples in various stages of their relationships, a wedding and a stalking plot that escalated rather alarmingly.

With a lot of snow and the action contained to wintertime, it is more Christmassy than the first, but we get the same level of hidden trauma from the main characters, with the mental health issues handled sensitively.

The third book Holiday Love between Helen and Teddy is set up in an epilogue, but while I like epilogues I was a bit overwhelmed by all the bonus epilogues and "click here for Caleb's version" links.

I did however like the colourful illustrations and the romantic tone of the book plus the info on colon cancer detection, and I would like to read the third installation because from history they are often better than the second (waves to Back to the Future and Men in Black).

This book comes with a festive twist—dual POVs? Yup! And the best part? You get two love stories in one! Gwen and Caleb are finally tying the knot, and let’s just say I might’ve teared up when Caleb sang (okay, I definitely cried). But the real treat? Gwen shares the spotlight with her bestie Jenny, who’s busy poking fun at grumpy-but-dimpled Dean while they’re on a Scooby-Doo-style mission to find Caleb’s stalker. I was living for every moment Dean swooped in to save Jenny, and don’t get me started on that bonus chapter from his POV—swoon alert! The ACOMAF reference had me squealing! The suspense? Totally on point, and Melissa hit me with a twist I didn’t see coming (though I kinda did, but not this soon!). The epilogues? Pure gold. If you’re into Christmas vibes, a sprinkle of mystery, and a whole lot of love, this is your holiday must-read!