Series Name: Mistletoe Romance, # 3
Holly ignored the question, the warm lull of Declan’s proximity still wrapped around her like a fleece blanket and the scent of his cologne lingering. She lied about his cologne stinking. She actually loved the sharp, spicy scent of it and had been in the process of breathing it in before Eric showed up.
Along Came Holly is a fun, festive read that is sure to get you into the holiday spirit.
Holly Winters owns the jolliest holiday shop on Main Street and this season is shaping up to be the best yet. The only pit in her figgy pudding? Declan Gallagher, the owner of the hardware store next door. He’s the scroogiest man in all of Mistletoe, Idaho. Then Holly’s revenge prank escalates into an all-out war with her Grinchy neighbor, and the situation turns sticky when she realizes she needs his help.
Declan can’t believe the nerve of his oh-so-cheerful neighbor hiring him to set up her holiday lights display, but the money is too good to pass up. Despite his utter loathing of excessive decorations, he throws himself into getting the job done, only to encounter sabotage at every turn. To his astonishment, Declan finds himself championing the very woman who used to get under his skin. Then one rooftop kiss has him thinking maybe the season’s traditions aren’t as heinous as he believed. Declan’s heart has grown three sizes since Holly came along, but how can he admit he’s falling for the one woman he shouldn’t want?
This book is quite the addictive holiday romp. It just scratched that festive itch I’ve been having lately. This is my first Codi Hall book, but it won’t be my last. Along Came Holly is the third book in the Mistletoe Romance series, but like most rom-com series, it can be read as a stand-alone. Fans of this series will love that past MCs make plenty of appearances in this book. This book is for you if you enjoy rom-coms with wild antics, lots of laugh-out-loud moments, and sizzling chemistry. I love a book that can make me laugh, and this book did that on multiple occasions. The rivalry and all-out prank war between Holly and Declan was utter perfection. I had to keep reading because I wanted to know the next prank they would pull on each other. I had to re-read parts of this book because I just wanted to soak up all the crazy goodness that was happening. The story has a nice flow to it. At first, you are entertained by the rivalry between Holly and Declan, and then you become hooked on their growing attraction to each other.
I liked Holly; she has this larger-than-life personality with this crazy, chaotic energy. You’d think her character would be this hot mess, but that was not the case in this book. Holly has her life together; she runs a successful social media platform, owns her own store and house, and knows what she wants out of her life. Her chaotic energy is what makes her successful and so damn likeable. Her only “flaw” is how she jumps to conclusions about Declan and his grumpy attitude towards Christmas. She really gives him a hard time about it and tries to push Christmas on poor Declan.
Declan is a great broody MC. He is just grumpy and prickly, and I loved it. He isn’t an asshole, there are times when he says dickish things, but it’s often because he speaks before he thinks. He has a kind heart underneath that prickly exterior. Also, Declan’s prickly attitude comes from being knocked down in life, which has left him a bit jaded. I loved watching that prickly exterior melt when he was around Holly.
I love a good grumpy sunshine romance. For whatever reason, that trope just hooks me in and takes my heart on a swoonastic ride, which is what happened to me when I read this book. Codi just knocked the romance out of the park with this story. There was this wonderful blend of the grumpy sunshine and rivalry/enemies-to-lovers tropes. They just worked together to create this entertaining love story. There are a lot of cute and quirky moments between Holly and Declan. But there were also some quieter and deeper moments when they really started to form that deeper romantic connection. Their chemistry and banter just worked for me. I loved it all.
If you are looking for a book to get you into the holiday spirit, then you should pick up Along Came Holly.
Thank you, Sourcebooks Casablanca, for giving us an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
