Belle Calhoune | No Ordinary Christmas

The Book:

No Ordinary Christmas by Belle Calhoune (Mistletoe, Maine #1)

Published September 28, 2021 by Forever

Date read: September 20, 2021

The Characters:

Lucy
Dante

Buy it on Bookshop.org | Amazon

The Plot (from Goodreads):

The quaint New England town of Mistletoe is thrilled to welcome back one of their own, Dante West. Now a famous Hollywood action star, Dante is filming a movie in town to help the local economy, as well as make amends with the people he hurt when he abruptly left Mistletoe all those years ago.

Librarian Lucy Marshall isn’t thrilled to see Dante. He was once her best friend and first love until he left her behind without a word of goodbye. When Dante makes her an offer she can’t refuse — use of the library as a filming venue in exchange for a lucrative donation, Lucy finds herself spending a lot of time in Dante’s company. With the magic of Christmas in the air, Dante and Lucy begin to forge a new bond. But can two people leading such different lives find lasting love the second time around?

The Review:

Thank you to Forever for this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

No Ordinary Christmas reminded me a lot of Home For The Holidays by Sara Richardson. It was a quick, adorable romance that I listened to in one sitting while repotting a plant. It’s so weird to be reading Christmas books when it’s still 90 degrees out, but I adore holiday romances no matter the season.

No Ordinary Christmas had all the hallmarks (get it) of a great holiday romance. I loved reading about the town’s Christmas festivities, the tree farm, and the characters’ own traditions.

This is the only kind of second chance romance I enjoy: when the characters split up because they’re too young and then find each other again later in life. I loved how these characters were able to have emotional conversations about why they broke up in the first place and what they could improve in the future. I would have liked to see a little more about their past, but overall their romance was interesting.

This is the perfect little romance to enjoy by the fire with a cup of cocoa.