Member Reviews

Such a festive read! A solid 3.5 stars from me (rounded up to 4 for rating purposes); I loved the gentle humour and snowy setting that made me want to curl up reading it under a blanket with a hot chocolate!

I loved the synopsis of a scrooge-like character, Will, running a hotel that promises a magical Christmas but does not quite live up to expectations...enter Sarah who sends unwitting customers to the resort via her travel agency. Following poor feedback Sarah decides to take a leap of faith and head to the hotel (that is a blast from the past for her) to see for herself and attempt to get them to turn a more festive corner.

I enjoyed reading about Sarah's ideas to assist the hotel, in financial trouble, with giving customers the Christmas experience they have gone for. Will works with his brother Ed and they are chalk and cheese, both seemed to take a fancy to Sarah but I was rooting for Will who was hiding from his own past demons.

A tale of warmth and hope that resonates in particular with the time of year it is set in as everyone expects some magic and happiness at Christmas-time.

My thanks to Harper Impulse via NetGalley for providing me with this advanced reading copy in exchange for an honest review.

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This is a book that has something for everyone - winter landscapes, snowmobiles, a flirtatious man, a grumpy man, a mountain resort needing some Christmas cheer, a feisty woman who is determined to turn the resort around, a familiar face, and just a fabulous story set in the run up to Christmas.

So the winter landscapes, well the book is predominately set in Canada at the Shooting Star Mountain resort. There is snow as far as the eye can see, I definitely felt cold reading this, but has beautiful scenery too and I could really picture it all.

Turns out snowmobiles to play quite a big part in the story, and its due to one of them that the circumstances of one of my favourite scenes in the book occurred. Plus the descriptions of the speed, and how it feels to ride one were really amusing. Also really enjoyed the scenes featuring the dog sledding, and Sarah learning to snowboard!

The flirtatious man is younger brother Ed and one of the brothers running the resort. He is though rather work shy and is only happy when flirting with women, or out on the slops. Watching him attempt to get out of doing that resembles hard work is really amusing.

Whereas the grumpy, scrooge like man is Will, the older brother and he has his reasons for acting like he does. We first come across him responding to some of Sarah's rather stroppy emails and you get a glimpse of his real personality shining through.

I loved every moment spent at the Shooting Star Mountain Resort and enjoyed seeing its transformation as Sarah, our feisty female tries to boss the brothers about and bring it back to its former glory. Sarah had spent one rather memorable Christmas there as a child and is determined that the place can be as special as it once was.

If you are fan of Zara Stoneley then like me you may be please to see a familiar face in Sam, who works alongside Sarah. Sam was the lead in A Wedding Date, so it was lovely to catch up with her.

From the first few pages this is a book that had me smiling, and racing through the pages in pure enjoyment. Certainly one of the authors best books and one that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Thank you to Netgalley and Harper Impulse for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

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I'd not read anything by Zara Stoneley previously, but I found the cover of No One Cancels Christmas rather appealing in its simplicity, and the blurb definitely sounded like the sort of story I'd enjoy reading. And I wasn't wrong!

The story is told in the first person, from the point of view of the newly single Sarah, and the action takes place in both Canada and the UK. It begins just before the Christmas holidays with Sarah, a travel agent, deciding to fly out to Canada to sort out the Shooting Star Mountain resort, which has been receiving very negative reviews of late. Here she meets and experiences the owners, Will, the brooding one, and his brother Ed, the work-shy one.

The main characters are likeably flawed, with issues to resolve, and the secondary characters add colour to the story. I particularly liked Poppy, the child who attaches herself to Sarah on the flight over and Rosie the dog. Animals are such knowing creatures. But my favourite character would have to be Sam's mum, Ruth, as she provides some of the comedic moments without being aware of it - which of course adds to the comedy value.

I enjoyed reading this book and I will look out for more stories from Ms Stoneley.

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The Shooting Star Resort in Canada is a place close to Sarah’s heart. She spent Christmas there when she was younger, and has happy memories of a magical time with her family . Sarah is now a travel agent and she is getting complaints from customers that The Shooting Star is not the magical Christmas place it is portrayed to be.

Sarah is determined to turn the resort back into a Christmas oasis and travels to Canada to deal with owner Will Armstrong, but what she finds isn’t what she expected. Sarah sets out to show Will that Christmas can still be fun if you are willing to give it a chance.

A warm festive book with a touch of romance which was enjoyable to read.

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I liked this book: it's cozy, heartwarming and the perfect festive novel.
It's well written, fun to read and with a cast of lovely characters.
Recommended!
Many thanks to Harper Impulse and Netgalley for this ARC

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This book is a Winter Wonderful story.

Warm and romantic and sweet... after all the falling and failings and faceplants. I loved this book. The characters are wonderful. The story is action packed and FUN. A Christmas getaway that isn't at all expected.
Can business and vacation mix? Can a vacation fling live on after the holiday is over?
Can deep past hurts ever be healed?

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I love Zara Stoneleys books and I love Christmas!
Sarah was brought up by her aunt and ends up working in her aunts travel agency. And as feedback for a winter resort in Canada worsens, Sarah decides she going t Canada, at Christmas to sort out the resort and the owner. And the mix ups and mayhem start from the moment she arrives!

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This book reminded me of a Hallmark movie. Sweet and cute. Nothing too deep. Just a cute Christmas story to get you in the holiday spirit.

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I received a copy of this book through Rachel’s Random Resources Book Tour.

The main character starts out very immature but grows and learns of her past. Will is struggling and comes to clean up his brothers mess. What they find is what they are both missing in each other.

Fun atmosphere and definitely interesting to learn about each of the characters.
Full review on my blog on October 26😊

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3.5 Stars

A fun and addictive read but I'm afraid there wasn't anything to make it really stand out. I enjoyed it but it wasn't particularly memorable.

This is a sort of sequel to The Wedding Date but as it follows one of the other characters can easily be read as a standalone. There is a little bit of overlap and some spoilers for the first book but given the predictable nature of the stories it's not too much of an issue.

The story is a familiar one and has many of the usual tropes and scenes you expect in a Christmas romance, winter wonderland setting with log fires, sleigh rides and lots of snow, a heroine determined to enjoy Christmas and a grumpy scrooge like hero who seems to hate it (and our heroine). I don't mind the cliche though and at this time of year I'm looking for a happily ever after romance.

Stoneley's writing is good, the characters may be a little stereotyped but they're lively and fun and some scenes really made me laugh. I'm afraid however I never really felt the chemistry between our leads and the romance fell flat for me. There is a strong possibility it was just my mood but I never really connected to either Sarah or Will. I kind of liked them but didn't have any strong feelings either way about them. The development of the relationship between them didn't seem natural to me either. The switch from adversaries to lovers was a little too sudden for me and I actually found myself flipping back through the book to see if I'd missed something. I was however tired and distracted when reading so it could have just been me.

I should say that regardless of any qualms over the romance I flew through the whole thing in a morning so it clearly wasn't a bad read. I'm just not sure it's a particularly memorable one. I will however be looking out for whatever Stoneley writes next.

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I love this author and she didn't disappoint me at all I was laughing and crying at the same time such a great heartwarming read and full of festive cheer and perfect to curl up and read. Shows how one man can threaten to ruin Christmas for travellers going on holiday and full of romance and magic and a fantastic read you just don't want to miss. Also about families and learning the truth.
Sarah was brought up from a young age by her aunt as she thinks her parents abandoned her. She's close to her aunt and helps in the family travel agent shop providing people with perfect holidays. She loves Christmas and has happy memories of this time in a resort in Canada but she starts reading bad reports of people who have been to the resort and about how Will is not getting in the Christmas spirit at all and not welcoming guests so she wants to go out there to get him back in the spirit and for people to enjoy their holiday time there. Problem is she always spends Christmas with her aunt so she goes to speak to her but she breaks it first that she is going to see someone special at Christmas so won't be with her she's upset as doesn't feel it will be the same. She confirms she will go away to this resort to turn it around. When she gets there can she sort Will out and turn him around and get him into the Christmas spirit and as the big day approaches she wants to make it special and when people from back home turn up will this be able to happen. Will Sarah finally find romance or can she just not settle down and be happy. Can they turn the resort round and what happens when she learns a family secret.
This is a brilliant book and worth more than five stars and so recommend anyone to read it and curl up and enjoy the Christmas spirit.

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I don't think I've ever read a novel set in Canada but boy was it Christmassy! I always really enjoy Zara Stoneley's novels and even though this type of cover isn't usually something I request, I have loved Zara's past novels so knew it was going to be good! The blurb really sounded enjoyable to so when I started reading it, I was so glad I did request it!

Main character Sarah is a travel agent, and whilst everyone is out enjoying the build up to Christmas, Sarah is extra busy with her work and whilst she's happy with this, one man threatens to ruin it for her. Will is your typical 'hate-Christmas' character and I was happy when I read that Sarah was going to show him what Christmas is all about! They go to Canada and it is just simply magical. Even though it seems like the most ideal place to be at that time of year, Will still isn't feeling festive and that makes us question whether he has a good reason as to why he's feeling like this about the most festive and perfect time of year!

I really enjoyed this novel and I invested with the characters and their stories straight away. It was enjoyable and I flew through the pages. Thank you to the publisher for a chance to read this novel, which I have reviewed honestly.

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No one Cancels Christmas by Zara Stoneley.
Christmas is approaching and Sarah who is a travel agent. For her it also means the busiest time of year. But one man threatens to ruin Christmas for Sarah. So Sarah decides to show Will that Christmas can be magical. But Will is having none of it. Is there a reason he is like he is? Can Sarah change his mind? This was a fantastic read. Loved the story and some of the characters. Sarah was my favourite character. I loved how she was. And how she was with Will. Brilliant. I loved the ending too. Perfect. 5*.

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Lots of LOLs :c)

My review has been posted to my blog & Goodreads.

Review has also been tweeted as usual.

Thank you! :c)

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A great festive read!

This is the story of travel agent Sarah. She heads off to Canada to the resort she spent Christmas at years ago - she wants to help it recover and be the winter wonderland it once way. Manager Will Armstrong is standing in her way and she needs to find out what his problem is and then talk him round.

Well written and the story keeps you interested. Also chance to catch up with Sam and Jake from the previous book The Wedding Date.

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