Naughty & Nice 3-Story Bundle (Room at the Inn, All I Want for Christmas Is You, and One Perfect Christmas) [NOOK Book]

Enjoyed

I enjoyed reading all three ebooks.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Loved it

Great Holiday stories about love and hard decisions

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Reviewed by: Rachel Book provided by: NetGalley Review originall

Reviewed by: Rachel
Book provided by: NetGalley
Review originally posted at Romancing the Book




ROOM AT THE INN: I’ve never read a book by Ruthie Knox. I have to admit to being a bit spellbound afterwards. Usually with shorter stories it’s hard to evoke emotions within readers enough to make them want to either love your characters or murder them. I felt both! I hated how Carson seemed to treat Julie, but at the same time, I wanted them to be together so badly that I found myself white knuckling my kindle! Carson is a very deep and intriguing character and Julie is a very strong heroine. It was a lovely and short erotic romance that I found very appealing for a winter night sitting by the fire. Well done! (readers beware, graphic sex)




ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS YOU: Again, another author I have never read before. This story started out slow for me. I don’t know why I felt that way, but I did some research after reading the novella and discovered it is actually a prequel for the authors newest release. The characters of Maddy and Billy were very, very young and at times immature. Maddy’s mom was constantly trying to convince her that marrying Billy was a bad idea and the whole time my heart absolutely broke for how much Billy loved Maddy. Yet she seemed to doubt herself. Does she love him enough to give up her own dreams? Does she love him enough to follow him around? It is clear what the author is doing. She set the stage beautifully for the next story in which you can see her foreshadow that Maddy will eventually be bitter over Billy’s success and having to give up her dreams for him. Overall, the writing was great, but the story bothered me a bit, only because it seemed that Billy loved Maddy more than she loved him.




ONE PERFECT CHRISTMAS: I’ve seen Stephanie Sloane’s name for quite some time, but I’d never had the pleasure of reading any of her books. It is always a struggle when you read a novella because a lot of times authors struggle with character development. Especially when they only have six chapters to push forth a story. Stephanie Sloane did an impeccable job with this! I was immediately pulled into Lucas and Janes story! Childhood friends brought together for the holiday season. After one stolen kiss Lucas finally understands that all he’s wanted has been in front of him for his whole life! Only, now he has competition! What a lovely sweet story! I found myself rooting for both characters and truly enjoyed the outcome! Well done!




All in all this anthology was the perfect treat for the Holidays! I loved it because the authors hit so many different genres. The plots were solid and I knew that each story was short making it really easy for me to read when I had the time. Anthologies are great too because they expose you to so many different authors. Because of this book I will definitely be checking out more works by these very talented gals!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Three novellas

Light reading. Some explicit sex (unnecessary). Ruthie Knox story more fully developed.

To aly

Hi im jermey the waiter/bartender can i get you anythin

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Aly

* walks in with skinny jeans, cowboy boots, and plaid shirt* Hey y'all! *sits down*

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HELLO?????????

Is anybody on

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Tarah

Hey everyone

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Josh

Orders a miller

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To josh and justin

Hello im tori ill be your waitress to day we close at 5:00 abd open back up at 8:00 cantl i start you off with a drink ? . Winks .

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Justin

Walks in hungry

0 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Sexual.

Is it sexy like porn?

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Two out of three aint bad. :-) I am a fan of all three auth

Two out of three aint bad. :-) I am a fan of all three authors. Which is why I was so excited about reading this one. Or I should say, all three. Perhaps some authors and some genres lend themselves better to short stories than others. I finished all three which I would not do if they were terrible. I would recommend it to someone familiar with very short stories. Someone that does not expect a great deal.

Great job ruthie

First story was great. Perfect short story! Second story was hardly worth you time. Last story was ok.

Room at the Inn:  Of the three stories in this book, this was by

Room at the Inn:  Of the three stories in this book, this was by far my favorite.  The main characters Carson and Julie are in their 30's.  They had fallen in love when they were in college and Carson brought Julie back to his home town of Potter Falls, which she automatically fell in love with.  When his mother became ill, Julie donated one of her kidneys to her, and after that, decided to stay in Potter Falls, while as Carson just wanted to get away from there.  As the years pass, Julie becomes the "town's sweetheart," involved in everything, and everyone just loves her.  She and Carson would end up hooking up every time he came back home, which wasn't often, but then that stopped happening to.  After the death of his mother, Carson returns home to check up on his ailing father.  He ends up getting a room and Julie’s Bed and Breakfast with the agreement that he would help her with repairs.  Try as they may, they cannot deny their feeling for one another and things soon get hot and heavy again.  Will Carson be able to face his feelings for Julie?  When it comes down to the wire?  Will he choose his job or love?  




This was a great story.  I loved the characters.  Julie is just great all around.  She has a charismatic personality, she's funny, and she would do anything for the people she loves.  Carson is quite the hottie, and I really liked him also.  The chemistry between the two is through the roof and there are some very steamy scenes.  There is also a tremendous amount of humor and I enjoyed the banter between Julie and Carson.  The story line was entertaining and progressed well.  Overall, this was a delightful Christmas novella that was both funny, sexy, and romantic and I really enjoyed it. 








All I Want for Christmas is You:  This was the shortest of the three stories, being only several chapters.  It was so short I really had a hard time getting into it.  I would consider it an NA or mature YA story.  The main characters are Maddy and Billy.  These two childhood sweethearts want to get married on Maddy's 18th birthday and have to tell her parents.  In the process she has to face her feelings, and is kind of wishy-washy about it, seeming really unsure about what she wants.  I liked Billy, he seemed a lot more sure of himself and seemed like a really great guy.  Basically the whole story revolved around whether or not Maddy would show up at the courthouse on the day they got married.  




One Perfect Christmas:  This short story was actually historical in nature, set in the 1800s.  Jane Merriweather and Lucas Cavanaugh grew up together and were the best of childhood friends.  After Jane's engagement ends abruptly, Lucas spends some time with her, comforting her, and finds his feelings for her are more than just friendship.  One night after having too much too drink, Jane confesses her feeling for Lucas.  Even though he feels the same way, the thought of settling down scares him to death so he just leaves for some months.  When he finally does come back home, he finds that despite all his adventures, his feelings for Jane are still the same.  Jane's family is desperate for her to find a husband.  Her father has poorly managed their estate and they are basically broke, so they need her to "marry well," in order to save their home.  Jane too has just arrived back after leaving because she was so embarrassed by what happened with Lucas.  In the meanwhile, Lord Needles arrives on the scene, who is also interested in Jane, and he is quite the hottie, which makes Lucas really think about things.  With the threat of her impending engagement, will he finally tell Jane how he feels, or risk losing her forever?




I enjoyed this story, it was short, but it was good, keeping my interest.  The romance was good, and I enjoyed the characters, even Lord Needles, who helps Maddy realize what is important in life.  There ending is quite steamy also.  This was a short, steamy, historical Christmas romance and I did enjoy it.  

Room at the Inn Carson¿s father, Martin, is not doing well after

Room at the Inn
Carson’s father, Martin, is not doing well after the death of his wife and Carson comes back for a little while to help him. While staying at his father’s house, Carson must sleep on the couch because Martin has piled all sorts of junk into the bedroom. When Carson complains, Martin suggests that he go and stay at the local inn; a in which Julie runs. And so starts all the feelings that Carson and Julie feel for each other and how they try to tame them until they can no longer hide it.

Out of the entire book, this story was my favorite for many reasons. First, it took up about half of the book, giving the reader time to really get to know the characters and get settled into the plot. Oh, and it was the steamiest book.

All I Want for Christmas is You
I really wanted to like this story. It is about young love during Christmas; how could I not? However, I didn’t. I couldn’t really get into the characters so I couldn’t connect with their love for each other. I think that really hurt me with the plot line. I couldn’t understand how one minute Maddy was so ready to marry Billy and the next minute, she was reconsidering her decision.

I really disliked the interaction between Maddy and Billy’s older sister in the beginning of the book. That whole disdain for each other threw me off. It made me really not like Billy’s sister and Maddy.

One Perfect Christmas
One Perfect Christmas surprised me because it is set in the past; like 1886 past. It was definitely not what I was expecting in this book but it worked out well.

As the reader, you can tell that Jane and Lucas are meant to be no matter how hard they push each other away however fate keeps putting them in each other’s paths making it hard to stay away. Lucas realizes this once Jane finds a possible suitor and he decides that he is not going to manipulate her thoughts but will fight for her love.

~BookWhisperer Reviewer MC~

Title: Room at the Inn Author: Ruthie Knox My Rating: A+ Genre:

Title: Room at the Inn
Author: Ruthie Knox
My Rating: A+
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Main Characters: Julie and Carson
Sexual Intensity: hot

Story Overview:
Carson Vance couldn’t wait to get out of Potter Falls, but now that he’s back to spend Christmas with his ailing father, he must face all the people he left behind . . . like Julie Long, whose heart he broke once upon a time. Now the proprietor of the local inn, Julie is a successful, seductive, independent woman—everything that Carson’s looking for. But despite several steamy encounters under the mistletoe, Julie refuses to believe in happily ever after. Now Carson must prove to Julie that he’s back for good—and that he wants her in his life for all the holidays to come.

My Review:
A+ rating
Yes, this is a story that left me with tears in my eyes. It was such a GOOD story! Sixteen years....that's how long ago Carson left Potter Falls and the love of his life, Julie, there. He's been back for short visits, but never stays, even though every single time the chemistry and feelings between him and Julie are always explosive.

Julie came to visit Potter Falls when she was dating Carson in college. Having grown up in NYC with a family that was all about their things, she found a life and a home in Potter Falls, even though Carson refused to stay there and share it with her. For Carson, Potter Falls has always meant this crushing pressure on his chest. He feels like he's suffocating there and never stays. Julie stayed, adopted his parents, and saved his mother's life...in every way.

This story was so incredibly creative and wonderful. I couldn't figure out just what Carson's problem was, but when it's really revealed why he feels this crushing pressure in this town, my heart just broke for him. *gah* SUCH A GOOD STORY!! So heartfelt. So emotional. So absolutely PERFECT as a Christmas story. Truly, this story is simply wonderful!! It's definitely one I will read every single year. Read it...you won't regret it!!

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Title: All I Want for Christmas is You
Author: Molly O'Keefe
My Rating: B+
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Main Characters: Billy and Maddy
Sexual Intensity: hot

Story Overview:
Maddy Baumgarten and Billy Wilkins are spontaneous, in love, and prepared to elope the day after Christmas—that is, if Maddy’s family doesn’t throw a wrench in their plans. After all, Maddy’s barely out of high school and Billy’s a notorious bad boy. Maddy doesn’t care about Billy’s rough past—all she cares about is living in the here and now. But after Maddy’s mother stops speaking to her in protest, and a Christmas Eve heart-to-heart with her father leaves her with butterflies, Maddy starts to get cold feet. She loves Billy, but is she taking this big step too soon?

My Review:
B+ rating
This is a novella which features the beginnings of Billy and Maddy's marriage. They are the couple in the upcoming novel, Crazy Thing Called Love, releasing in late January. But in this portion of the story, they are very young. Maddy is about to turn 18 and Billy is 20 and on the verge of heading into the NHL. They plan to get married on her 18th birthday which is the day after Christmas, but Maddy has doubts and so does her family.

They are so young in this and definitely act that way throughout the novella, but I loved having this little insight into their backstory. Back story is VERY important to know when you head into their current story (which I was lucky to also have an ARC of so that I could jump right into it when I finished this. HINT: It's an AMAZING book...my review won't be up until it's release date, but I gave a HUGE A+ to Crazy Thing Called Love. Seriously, that book is so good. You want to read this one to get you ready for that one.)

But back to this book...it's a novella when they are very young. It's very angsty, but also very sweet. The novella only covers 3 days, but these two have been together/friends/dating for 8 years. It's short, it's sweet, but it gives you just a taste of the tempestuous relationship between this volatile hero and emotional heroine.
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ONE PERFECT CHRISTMAS by Stephanie Sloane

Story Overview:
After being jilted by her fiancé, Jane Merriweather turns to her dear childhood friend, the Honorable Lucas Cavanaugh, for support—and unlocks the smoldering desire simmering in the man’s troubled heart. Frightened by his newfound feelings, Lucas flees to Scotland. But when the Christmas season brings them together again, one glance is all that’s needed to reignite his yearning. If Lucas can convince Jane that his intentions are as pure as the falling snow, they’ll turn a dreary December into a joyous Yuletide affair.

My Review:
I am not going to rate this novella, simply because I don't read or enjoy historical novels that often anymore. I did read this one and it was written really well. This just isn't a style of novel that's to my tastes.

Loved this book!

I loved the three different stories. I have to say my favorite was Ruthie Knox. I am a big fan of Ruthie's and she did not disappoint. I would highly recommend!!

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No text was provided for this review.