A combination of holiday romance, spice, suspense and mystery, this story held my attention but as the story developed it felt as if it reached a bit too far.

Despite my critiques, this book was challenging for me to put down. It has all the good feels and I definitely still wanted to see how it ended. This is the second book in the Holiday romance series but can definitely be a stand alone read.

“Gwen and Caleb are madly in love, so walking down the aisle should be as smooth as Santa sliding down the chimney on Christmas Eve, but when Jack Frost sends a blizzard, their Christmas cookies start to crumble. And the icing on the gingerbread house? There’s a stalker on the loose! This Holiday Wedding isn’t looking so holly jolly. It’ll take a Christmas miracle to get these two married.

Jenny’s life is a lump of coal. Her career as a reporter has stalled, and her ex-boyfriend boss is grinch. Eager to leave LA, she dusts off her snow boots to spend a month in New York covering Caleb Lawson, fiancé of her best friend, Gwen. New York is merry and bright except for Dean, Caleb’s grumpy bodyguard. He put Jenny on the naughty list years ago. When these two reluctantly join forces to hunt down Caleb’s stalker, the hot cocoa starts steaming. But can this maid of honor and best man make it down the aisle before their newfound feelings turn frosty?”

There are two versions of this book a spicy/open-door version with explicit scenes and a sweet/closed-door version with only kissing to meet your reading preferences.

If you’re looking for a light holiday read with a mix of romance and mystery don’t let my thoughts stop you from grabbing this one!

Holiday Wedding: A Hot Holiday Romance with a Twist (I'm an unapologetically spicy girl

I am so grateful to have been gifted with the opportunity to read this ARC by Dr. Melissa Dymond through Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op.

I wanted to like this book but I do have to say I didn’t like it as much as I thought I would.

The stories about both couples were just weird to me. Especially the storyline between Jenny and Dean. One minute they are “enemies” and in the most quickest second they were together. There was not enough “foreplay” so to speak. The banter between them was neither witty or flirty or appealing enough for me.

The story of Gwen and Caleb was like a Hallmark holiday mystery with a tiny sprinkle of spice.

I can see some people enjoying this book. I, just personally, did not connect to it. But bravo to the author for her hard work in putting her imagination down on pen and paper and sharing it with the masses!

My rating: 3.5 ⭐

This book is dual pov of two best friends who are in two different relationships.

I will say that I was expecting more from one pov over the other, but was a little wrong.

However, I would also like to say that I didn't read Holiday Star which is the first book and felt like you could probably miss it and not feel left out. Throughout the book they do mention the past here and there, but I think that this can still be read without it. In my opinion.

These are some of the tropes:
Enemies to lovers ⚔️ 
One bed

First of all, I love that this book is available in sweet or spicy. I read the spicy! We get to the spicy right away! Holiday Wedding follows Gwen and Caleb from the first book Holiday Star as they are preparing for their wedding. She is a Doctor and he is a famous actor turned Broadway star. Simultaneously, it also follows Dean and Jenny. Jenny is Gwen’s best friend and Dean is Caleb’s body guard. So, there are two love stories going on in this book. I thought it was wonderfully done. The author brings so much depth to the characters. You really feel like you are a part of the story! There is mental health representation and body image representation. Some of the tropes are enemies to lovers, forced proximity, one bed, and grumpy sunshine. This book really has it all! There is a mystery mixed in with the love story and lots of obstacles on the way down the aisle! Dean definitely stole the show! He is swoon worthy! If you love Christmas books with a thrill ride mixed in, I would highly recommend this book! So good!

I love Melissa books, she didn’t disappoint at all with this book. It started off with spice and ended with spice. Definitely has me wanting to know more. I was more fascinated by Jenny and Dean story more than the main character Jenny. (Sorry but not sorry).. overall it was a great holiday vibe book. Love the Christmas theme. There was a turn in the book that I didn’t see coming at all. Love the mystery and thrill from the intensity. We all want a happy ending but of course nothing is that easy.
Thank you NetGalley and Dr. Melissa for the ARC! I truly enjoyed this book and looking forward to your next one!

It's such a unique story with multiple POVs and it starts out bold, which had me scared to death--you'll see--and all I have to say is trust the process. When things are too happy it's easy to think when will the ball drop. I didn't realize it was part 2 and didn't read the first story but I still thought it was brilliant. I loved all of the characters and was delighted to watch their stories unfold and come together. The writing is beautiful and such an easy not-puttable-down book. There is so much love in this book and good bit of spice while retaining a fun and interesting plot. I'd read anything by this author. Such a clever story and the art was a bonus! The artwork throughout the book was perfect and didn't take away from the story.

I want to preface that I didn’t realize that this book was a second book until the end author’s note. This one is strong on its own and I loved everything about it until about 75-80% of the way through. Don’t want to spoil it, but I guess the trope just isn’t for me. This story follows 2 main couples: Gwen and Caleb, the bride and groom, and also Dean and Jenny, security and best friend. Now that I realize that Gwen and Caleb’s story has their own story in another book, it makes a lot more sense the minimal relationship building as it had already been established. I did greatly appreciate the author catching the reader up on important life events in their relationship that made them more complex. The stalker/kidnapper aspect was also a twist and interesting touch. The spice is very mild and well written. Christmas is more of a date countdown than a prominent vibe in the book.

Now Dean and Jenny, I loved them. This story is more about them and they truly grow throughout this story. They have fun banter and I wouldn’t say they are truly enemies to lovers, but more love resistant to lovers. They both work through their own baggage and discover the love they deserve.

Thank you the ARC provided by Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op. It took me a minute to get my review in, but this book is also now available everywhere and especially KU.
#netgalley