Heartwarming book you'll be glad you read.
Liz Westmoreland wears her heart on her sleeve when it concerns her grandparents inn.
She carries a smile on her face and her heart in her pocket. She has such fond memories of their inn and her time there with them as a child before they sold it and moved away and she moved out of town. When she returns to town with her burning dream to purchase the inn she is dismayed to see it has fallen into disrepair.
Matt Hardy had a childhood crush on her and gladly hires on as her contractor but is it a good idea? Is there a little Christmas magic sprinkled in among her grandmothers angels still on the property?
Will Liz be able to stick with her plan of not dating those she works with?
How will the towns folk react to Liz returning to the inn and remodeling it to reopen when they still remember her grandparents? Will they welcome her or snub her?
The descriptions described in the book makes me want to find a quaint little inn and spend the winter there with the snow softly falling outside.

Pub Date 15 Oct 2019
I was given a complimentary copy of this book. Thank you.
All opinions expressed are my own.

Title: Christmas Angels
Author: Nancy Naigle
Genre: Romance
Rating: 4 out of 5

Liz Westmoreland spent summers growing up the in the little town of Antler Creek, where her grandparents ran an inn. When they sold it, it broke her heart, although she treasured the memories. When she stumbles upon a listing for what looks like her beloved inn, she buys it sight unseen, and is horrified when she finds her new purchase in disrepair, making her wonder if the place will ever shine like it did in her childhood.

Matt Hardy missed out on buying the inn, but he just hopes the new owner won’t make thing worse like the last ones did. When he realizes his childhood crush is the new owner, he’s eager to help her restore the inn, even if she doesn’t quite remember him. But when an accident has Liz questioning if she’s even meant to turn the inn around, he and the residents of Antler Creek must come together to convince her she’s found her home.

Christmas Angels was a sweet romance read, even for someone who doesn’t like Christmas stories months early. The author captures the small-town feel well, although I wonder if places so completely uplifting and friendly even exist (I mean, everyone supported and liked her, which seems unlikely). I thought the romance resolved itself a little too quickly and seamlessly, but this was a cute read.

Nancy Naigle is a bestselling author. Christmas Angles is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.)

This book was just okay for me for several reasons. There was way too much repetition about Liz’s dreams and what Angel’s Rest meant to her, how much it meant to Matt and how happy the town was about the re-opening of Angel’s Rest B&B. The writing is good and Liz does have a pleasant personality as does Matt but without all that repetition there would have been plenty of time to create some much needed flirting and romance to the story while still keeping it PG rated. When I can’t see into a character’s heart I just can’t get into the story and I had to force myself to read it so I could write my review. I have read other books by this author and I have to say that this book pales in comparison. I read an early copy of this book through NetGalley and all opinions expressed in my voluntary review are completely my own.

This was a romance with hardly any conflict at all. So if you need to read a feel good romance and you're so busy getting ready for Christmas you need a story that isn't too deep, this is a great choice. I save more stars for stories that go a little deeper, but I can appreciate the need to just escape and chill. Maybe Macomber for the younger generation?

This is a beautiful story of family. It brings to life 0a story yo cha0mpion all the way through.

A perpetual holiday, winter pageturner. I got all the warm cozy feels with this one.

Imagine finding an auction for an inn, your family owned, one that you shared so many memories.

You would buy it and figure out the rest as it comes and this is the premise.

I absolutely gobbled it up. So good and well written with all the charm and holiday coziness.

Nancy Naigle is always my first holiday read and she didnt disappoint with Christmas Angel's it is truly magical.

Unfortunately, I was very disappointed by Nancy Naigle's "Christmas Angels." I thought it would be a light, sweet Christmas romance, in the vein of a Debbie Macomber or Emily March novel. Instead, it turned out to be a cheesy, relatively boring story with annoying, underdeveloped characters and very little relationship development between the main characters, Liz and Matt.

I was annoyed by Liz in particular because she seemed to be living so much in the past and relying on "signs" to decide everything for her. She was so fixated on re-creating her grandparents' "perfect" life that she never really seemed to get a life of her own. I didn't feel like I got to know Liz very well outside of her relationship with her grandparents, either. For example, her divorce was mentioned a few times in passing, but there was zero detail or explanation to go along with it. It seems to me like that would have been an important part of her life, and might have helped explain why this project was so important to her. In addition, Liz's "friendship" with Dan didn't make any sense to me. On several occasions, she went out of her way to say how much she "treasures" it, but constantly complained about how everything was always about him, and that Dan was selfish, didn't support her, etc. If that's the case, why would she be friends with him in the first place? His character didn't seem to serve much purpose in the story anyway, other than to create unnecessary drama.

I didn't feel like I got to know Matt very well, either. For example, it's mentioned a few times that he's an architect, and I think it was also mentioned that he's based in Chicago, but I was very confused about how he was able to take so much time off to spend working on the renovations to Liz's house in North Carolina. Is he self-employed? Further, I found it to be incredibly cheesy that Matt's first reaction upon seeing Liz was to say to his friends, "She's the woman I'm going to marry." I don't understand how he could possibly have known exactly who Liz was based on just her first name, and then, knowing nothing else about her, decide that he was going to marry her. After so much time had passed, her personality and interests could have been completely different from those of the girl he once knew.

Additionally, there were a number of plot points that didn't really make sense to me. For example, why would Liz take the rest of the year off to fix up the house when it was supposed to be about 30 days before it would be legally hers? It would be stupid to start working on the house before then in case the sale fell through. (Of course, she bought it sight unseen, so she already didn't seem like the brightest bulb.) Further, after her fall in the woods, Liz started worrying about not having liability insurance, and interpreted that as one of the "signs" that she wasn't meant to re-open the lodge after all. Almost immediately after that, however, she decided to allow a strange couple (with a small child, no less!) to stay on the property, which was a giant construction site complete with an open trench. Again, that doesn't seem very smart to me if one is trying to avoid liability issues.

Finally, I hated the "big misunderstanding" between Liz and Matt at the end of the book. It seemed stupid and unnecessary to me, and like the author felt a need to create drama for drama's sake. What bothered me the most about it was that it didn't even make sense for Matt to believe the rumor. He knew Liz's long-term plans and that she was about to hire a caretaker for the property, so why would she also be planning to sell the lodge?

Bottom line, this book just didn't work for me. It could have been interesting given the HGTV-like elements involved in fixing up an old house, but IMO the annoying, underdeveloped characters and weak plot overshadowed all of that.

*ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are my own.

Liz has always dreamed of buy her grandparents old inn and running it as a B&B. It seems meant to be when she is browsing an auction site and sees the property up for sale. She wins and returns to Angels Creek to find it in total disrepair. Matt wanted to buy the property next to his but loses the bid. When he finds out it's his old crush from childhood he offers to help restore the inn. A box of magical Christmas angels it seems that love is in store for the two of them with her grandmother's blessings. A sweet Christmas romance. I received a copy of this ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Fans of Robyn Carr, Debbie Macomber and RaeAnne Thayne are simply going to adore Nancy Naigle and her charming, engrossing and heart-warming small town romances. Full of hope and heart, curling up with one of her books over the holidays is one of life’s greatest pleasures and her latest novel, Christmas Angels, is another fabulous tale that has got keeper written all over it.

As a child, Liz Westmoreland has always wanted to buy her grandparents’ enchanting inn in the small mountain town of Antler Creek. Liz had wanted nothing more than to follow in her grandparents’ footsteps and run the inn, but sadly fate seemed to have other ideas in store for her. The inn had been sold, leaving Liz with nothing but memories of the past and a great sense of regret that she was never going to keep the inn in the family. However, life does have a funny of working things out and of surprising you as Liz discovers when she is browsing the internet and stumbles upon an auction for her grandparents’ old inn. When she bid for it, nobody is more surprised than Liz when she wins the auction. But when she sets off to make a new life for herself in Antler Creek, she soon realizes that time has moved on and that the inn has gone to rack and ruin. Now seriously dilapidated, Liz wonders whether she did the right thing to give into such a nostalgic impulse. Is Liz in way over head? Or has she just made the best decision of her life?

Matt Hardy cannot believe that he narrowly missed out on the inn adjoining his land! It had broken his heart to see the picturesque inn gutted and destroyed by the previous owners who had wanted to build an art gallery and he just hopes that whoever bought the place will not continue to destroy it! However, Matt is stunned when he claps eyes on the new owner and realizes that she is none other than the girl he had a huge crush on as a kid: Liz Westmoreland. Even better, Liz wants to restore the inn to its former glory and Matt is the perfect candidate to help her out in her quest – especially as his old feelings for her have returned with a vengeance!

Liz and Matt soon begin to spend more and more time together restoring the inn’s fading fortunes. As they begin this major renovation project, they are surprised when they stumble upon a collection of angels which belonged to Liz’s grandmother. Surprise soon turns to bemusement when these angels begin to unexpectedly pop up all over the inn, leaving Liz to realize that it’s her grandmother leaving her little messages that she has done the right thing coming home to Antler Creek.

However, when an accident leaves Liz thinking that she has made a mistake, she cannot help but wonder whether she was a fool to think that she could ever make a life for herself in Antler Creek – or whether Matt and the community will make her see that she has finally found a place where she belongs.

A wonderfully touching, tender and heart-warming tale it is impossible not to love, Christmas Angels is a brilliant tale of renewal, healing and second chances that I simply adored. Nancy Naigle knows how to tell stories that touch the soul and lift the spirit and Christmas Angels is a fantastic read that is romantic, hopeful and feel-good.

Liz and Matt – and Antler Creek – will steal your heart and you simply cannot help but fall under the spell of this wonderful little town and the people who live there.

A spellbinding read that makes for perfect holiday reading, Nancy Naigle has knocked it out of the park again with Christmas Angels.

Christmas Angels by Nancy Naigle is a magical Christmas story. Liz Westmoreland has had a dream since she was a teenager and she has a chance to make it come true. She purchases her grandparents old lodge at auction in as-is condition. An art gallery had gutted the interior and made some unusual design choices that must now be undone. Liz wants to restore Angels Rest to its former glory and carry on the traditions started by her grandparents. Matt Hardy is an architect who lives on the land adjacent to Liz’s. He remembers Liz from when she visited her grandparents as a child. Matt is eager to help Liz with her renovations and get an opportunity to get to know her better. I found Christmas Angels to be well-written with fabulous characters. I found the interactions between Liz and Matt to be delightful. I just loved Maizey who provided good advice and delicious food as well as Krissy, Matt’s sister. Elvis was another great addition with his playful antics, unique grin and wiggling backside. I enjoyed the authors depictions which allowed me to visualize the story. There are tender scenes that just made me smile. There is an opportunity for a second book (hint, hint) featuring Matt’s sister who would like to open a shop in the town and the deputy who caught her eye. Christmas Angels is a heartwarming tale that that will linger with you long after you finish reading it.

3.5 stars

I wasn't a huge fan of Christmas Angels. Don't get me wrong, I loved the romance part of it. Thought that was well written and sweet. It was just that I couldn't connect with Liz. I thought she was taking unnecessary risks on a place she hadn't seen in decades. I also thought the town rallying behind her (like their livelihood depended on her reopening the inn) was a bit much. But, I did enjoy where the book was set (an hour from where I live) and I loved that it was set between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Stevie‘s review of Christmas Angels by Nancy Naigle
Contemporary Holiday Romance published by St. Martin’s Griffin 15 Oct 19

I decided to make an early start on reviewing holiday stories this year, and so picked up a pre-release copy of this year’s novel from a new-to-me author, influenced at least as much by its promise of a plot based around house restoration as by the knowledge that a Christmas romance was also going to feature prominently. Liz Westmoreland is a project manager, working with top-end chains of stores to get their new venues launched successfully. However, her happiest childhood memories are of holidays spent with her grandparents at the Angel’s Rest Inn, and she has a long-held dream to one day open her own bed-and-breakfast establishment. Perusing properties for sale pages on the internet one afternoon, Liz comes across an auction listing for her grandparents’ old place and decides to bid on it. With the auction taking place the following day, Liz has no opportunity to view the property, but decides the risk is worth it for this particular purchase.


Having placed the winning bid, Liz rushes off to view her new purchase, only to find that the previous owners have stripped it of most of the features she remembers and loved. Disappointed, she returns to the closest town, where she encounters locals who remember her grandparents and who rekindle her determination to bring the near-derelict building back into use. The local cafe owner puts Liz in contact with a couple with a room for Liz to rent while she starts arranging the work, as well as with local all-round-useful-bloke Matt Hardy.

Matt is an architect, who built his house on the land adjoining Angel’s Rest and who shares Liz’s desire to return the property to its former glory. He had bid on it at the auction, but wasn’t as willing as Kat to pay the price she eventually handed over for the inn. Matt has fond memories of the Christmas light and animatronics shows put on by Liz’s grandparents, as well as of Liz herself, on whom he had a childhood crush. Not that Liz remembers him – he never managed to speak to her much back then.

Liz and Matt start work together, beginning with one of the cabins on the grounds, so Liz has a place to stay while the restoration proper gets going. Fortunately, there are plenty of local men in need of work, and Liz also makes friends with a number of the local women, who involve her in family activities. Sadly, the plot threads in this book seem to be very divided on ‘traditional’ and gender-normative lines, with the women doing very little of the renovation work, except where arts and crafts are concerned. There was also a great presumption of church-going Christianity by both the author and the characters, which left me feeling slightly creeped out and not at all keen to keep on visiting this particular fictional town.

I kept reading to the end, and while the mentions of church and God decreased, the Big Misunderstanding between Liz and Matt could have been very easily avoided by characters having sensible conversations. I also found the apparent psychic attributes of Matt’s dog, as well as the story behind his name, to be just plain odd (extra minus for said dog having a docked tail).

Grade: D

I received a complimentary copy of this book from St. Martin's Press via NetGalley and I am voluntarily reviewing it.

This was a great story. I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was almost like watching a Hallmark movie in book form. While I really enjoyed the story, it just didn't feel like a romance story to me until the very end.

Liz Westmoreland discovers that her grandparent's inn, Angels Rest, is going to be auctioned off the next day. It has always been her dream to own it. She wins the inn and goes to Antler Creek to start the renovation process. She comes across Matt Hardy at the restaurant in town. He is drawn to her to the point that he suggests the ham sandwich for lunch as she is perplexed as to what to order for lunch. Matt submits a bid to be the contractor to help bring back the inn to life as the former owners gutted the interior into an art galley.

I fell in love with quite a few characters (Krissy, Matt's sister and Grady, the sheriff) so I hope there are a few more stories in Antler Creek. This book is written in a dual POV format. With this, I could see Matt falling in love with Liz (he basically loved her when they were kids) but I couldn't feel it on Liz's part. She is going through so much on her own that it didn't come across for me. But like I mentioned earlier, it is a great story.

This is a sweet, clean romance. If you like Hallmark movies, then you should read this book.

I am a Christmas story lover; so this one was a perfect choice for me. It's funny, that as I am reading the story; in my mind, I kept saying to myself that this would make a perfect Hallmark Christmas movie. Then within the story, the author mentions Christmas movies on the Hallmark Channel and I had a good chuckle.

This is a wonderful story about "coming home" again. It is a beautifully written holiday story about 2 people; Liz & Matt, that met as youngsters and then meet again adults; strangely enough bidding on the same piece of property in Antler Creek in an on-line auction site. Matt remembers Liz; but, Liz doesn't recall Matt. Matt had a huge crush on Liz; way back when....

This is such a lovely story about small towns and a community that truly embraces their neighbors and helps out whenever and wherever they might be needed. I loved the small town charm of Antler Creek and its people.

Christmas Angel is your feelgood type of book.

Description
A heartwarming Christmas story filled with the magic and miracles of the holiday season by USA Today Bestselling author, Nancy Naigle.

Growing up, Liz Westmoreland dreamed of taking over her grandparents inn located in the small mountain town of Antler Creek only for it to be sold before she ever got the chance. While browsing the internet, she stumbles upon a listing for what looks to be the picturesque inn and it’s set to go to auction. Liz places a bid, and by a miracle, wins the auction. But when she gets there she finds the property in significant disrepair.

When Matt Hardy narrowly lost the inn and property that butted his land, he just hoped it wasn't another city slicker coming to make matters worse after the previous owners gutted the place for an art gallery. But the minute he recognized the sweet, freckle-faced girl from his childhood and heard her plans to reopen the inn, he jumps at the chance to help his childhood crush restore a place where he made so many fond memories.

While working on repairs, Liz and Matt discover her grandmother’s collection of angels in one of the cabins. When the angels start mysteriously showing up all over the inn, she begins to look at them as reassurance—that restoring the inn is what she's meant to do. But when an accident leaves Liz feeling like she made a mistake, will Matt—and the residents of Antler Creek—be able to show Liz that she's found a home? And possibly true love as well?

My Review:
Liz's wish is to restore her grandparents lodge back to how it used to be brings a surprise romance. Matt, the contractor she hires to bring the lodge back to life is the perfect guy for her.

If you are a die-hard fan of Hallmark movies, then this is the book for you. I can see this novel being developed for Hallmark!! Hallmark are you out there?

I received this book for free in exchange for my honest opinion. I highly recommend this book.

The perfect heartwarming Christmas romance to read this season. Liz has always dreamed of owning her grandparent's inn and when it comes up on auction, she bids unseen and wins. Upon arrival she can not believe the condition of the inn. She soon makes friends with Matt, who also wanted the property but he offers his services to get the inn back up and running. Little did Liz know, Matt had a secret crush on her when she would come visit her grandparents. After Liz suffers an injury, Matt will gather the community in helping getting the inn ready for Christmas.

This story will sure get you in the mood for Christmas season from homemade cookies, Christmas angels and all of the decorations. Loved the heartwarming romance that develops between Liz and Matt. This would be the perfect Hallmark movie!!

Liz buys her grandparents’ lodge with the hope of bringing it back to life. She takes a leave from her job as a project manager to manage the necessary renovation. Matt is the contractor she decides to help her make the necessary changes along with the townspeople. This book was a sweet, quick read that is written to become a Hallmark Christmas movie.

I received an ARC of this book courtesy of NetGalley and Entangled Lovestruck publishing. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and given freely.

By now you have probably noticed that it’s basically Christmas in October on my blog right now. I think this is like the third or fourth holiday romance that I have had up for review or feature on my blog lately.

I’m a sucker for holiday romances and I simply can’t pass one up! I love the cliche predictability that comes with a charming romance novel set against the holiday season. Nothing says cozy to me like a holiday romance.

Which is exactly why I wanted to read this one. I read one of Nancy Naigle’s other holiday romance last year and loved it! She has written a couple of other series but Dear Santa was my first holiday romance by her and it was such a joy that reading this one was a no brainer!

Summary
Growing up, Liz Westmoreland dreamed of taking over her grandparents inn located in the small mountain town of Angels Creek only for it to be sold before she ever got the chance. While browsing the internet, she stumbles upon a listing for what looks to be the picturesque inn and it’s set to go to auction. Liz places a bid, and by a miracle, wins the auction. But when she gets there she finds the property in significant disrepair.

When Matt Hardy narrowly lost the inn and property that butted his land, he just hoped it wasn’t another city slicker coming to make matters worse after the previous owners gutted the place for an art gallery. But the minute he recognized the sweet, freckle-faced girl from his childhood and heard her plans to reopen the inn, he jumps at the chance to help his childhood crush restore a place where he made so many fond memories.

While working on repairs, Liz and Matt discover her grandmother’s collection of angels in one of the cabins. When the angels start mysteriously showing up all over the inn, she begins to look at them as reassurance—that restoring the inn is what she’s meant to do. But when an accident leaves Liz feeling like she made a mistake, will Matt—and the residents of Angels Creek—be able to show Liz that she’s found a home? And possibly true love as well? (summary from Goodreads)

Review
One of the things that I love about holiday romances is how quick I am read one! I love when I have a book that I can curl up with and immerse myself for a few hours on a lazy weekend and walk away feeling 100% satisfied and content when I am done reading.

This one has a sweet romance, a little melodramatic but not irritatingly so. The hero, Matt, was such a swoon worthy romantic interest and he will be one that stands out for me in the sea of holiday romances that I have been reading lately. I thought Liz was a little impulsive but it was refreshing and I really liked exploring her character throughout this one. I especially loved that the setting was a bed and breakfast that needs renovating. For me it added so much charm—-loved loved loved that aspect!

While this book was a pretty quick read (I read it in a couple of sittings in one day) there were parts that felt a little slow for me. Not painfully slow, or so slow that I felt like I needed to take a break, but there were times when I noticed that it lost some steam along the way. However it really picked up at for the last few chapters. I would have liked to have seen some of that momentum spread out a little more evenly though.

If this book doesn’t get you in the holiday spirit, then I don’t know what will! Don’t miss it!

Book Info and Rating
Kindle Edition
Expected publication: October 15th 2019 by St. Martin’s Griffin
ASIN B07P7BXYPC
Free review copy provided by publisher, St Martin’s Press, in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and in no way influenced.
Rating: 4 stars
Genre: romance, holiday romance

Christmas Angels by Nancy Naigle. This is Liz Westmoreland and Matt Hardy’s story.

I loved this sweet holiday read. Liz and Matt’s characters are so likable and you want to get to know them. The author did a great job with descriptions in the story. I could visualize the little mountain town of Antler Creek. A great read to put you in the holiday and Christmas spirit.

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.

When Liz decides to change her life she doesn't look back. She bids on an inn sight unseen. It will take a whole town to bring things back to where they should be. This is a cozy Christmas story that makes you feel good

Liz Westmoreland worked in Charlotte on big real estate properties and happened to find her grandparents' old bed and breakfast up for auction. She had always dreamed of owning it and had fond memories of summers there, and bought it on a whim. There was a lot of work that had to be done, some of which was already outlined by Mike Hardy, whom she had narrowly outbid. She didn't remember him from summers past, but he remembered her as well as the crush he used to have on her. It was a lot of work to refurbish the property, especially over the winter as the weather grew worse.

Christmas Angels is a cute contemporary romance with relatable characters. Liz is used to being so busy that a small mountain town is a completely different speed than what she was used to. Some of her friends have selfish streaks and don't understand her love for the old place, and others are happy for her. Matt is such a nice guy that it almost feels unreal. The rest of the townspeople in Antlers Creek have that small-town feel: they know everything about Liz buying the property as soon as it's formalized, will recommend the contractors and stores that have the best workers and are full of memories of her grandparents and Angels Rest as the bed and breakfast with a homey feel.

There isn't much of a conflict to potentially drive these two apart, and Liz's life in Charlotte is apparently easily put on hold for months on end. She gets absorbed into the town as if she hadn't ever left, and they all pitch in to help when things go bad for Liz. She's able to return the favor for others in time for Christmas, and it feels just like getting a group hug. This is a sweet and fluffy romance, just like sugar cookies for the holidays.