Guest Reviewed by Ami
Title: Mistletoe on Main Street
Author: Olivia Miles
Series: Briar Creek #1
Heroine/Hero: Grace Madison/Luke Hastings
Genre: M/F Contemporary Romance
Length: 400 Pages
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing/Forever
Release Date: September 30, 2014
Available at: Forever, Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads
Blurb: Sleigh bells, snow, and second chances . . .
Briar Creek’s quaint shop windows, cozy homes nestled in snow, and neighborly residents are what Christmas dreams are made of–for everyone except Grace Madison. She left her hometown years ago to pursue a writing career. But when her father’s death leaves his bookstore empty, Grace must return to face why she fled Vermont in the first place: Luke Hastings, who still heats her up like a shot of smoky whiskey on a cold winter’s night.
Grace is back, and Luke is worried. How much has she changed as a bestselling author in the big city? What memories will she stir up? And was the choice he made five years ago the biggest mistake of his life?
Now, with their past, present, and future rocking around the Christmas tree, it’s time for Grace and Luke to face the music . . . and the mistletoe.
Review:
Christmas, small-town romance, and second chances … sound like a recipe for a story I would like. Plus, the cover is so pretty. And who says I can’t start reading a Christmas story in September anyway? Right?
Unfortunately, while it is still pretty good, I thought the story moved rather too slowly for me to sympathize with Grace and Luke and their story to return back to love. My issue was mostly on the reasons of they broke up in the first place. I thought there was too much bitterness coming from both: Grace thought that Luke forgot about her too easily after she decided to leave their hometown by marrying another woman. Meanwhile, Luke was overcome with guilt because he never did love his ex-wife (who died two years previously) as much as he loved Grace. They had issues, and for me, it went on for a bit too long for me to be able to believe in their reunion.
Both Luke and Grace also lacked that sizzling chemistry which could make me root for them. Also, I wasn’t such a huge fan of Grace when she made that move towards Luke when he was already engaged and then angry at Luke for not taking the step. Although, I wasn’t a big fan of Luke either for being rather undecided with the whole thing. I guess both characters didn’t impress me much.
However, I did like the secondary characters in this, i.e. Grace’s siblings: The fiery Anna, who owned a café and seemed to have this vibe of a romance-history-never-told with Luke’s cousin, Mark. And the kind-hearted Jane, who in this book suffered from a failed marriage when she found out that her husband cheated on her. Those two seemed to have a more interesting story, and I would love to follow their journey to happily ever after.
Overall Impression: It was good.
*I received a copy of this book from the publisher in return for a fair and honest review.*
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