A genuine old fashioned, feel-good holiday tale. Holly is a single mother who works tenaciously to succeed with her bakery. A do it all woman who isn’t going to let obstacles get in the way of making a better life for Maya, her daughter, and herself. But then comes the news that the new building owner is going to sell.

Brooke has bitter feelings towards the town and does not even blink at what’s going to happen to her old school mate once she’s sold the property. Since it belonged to her estranged mother, she wants it out of her hands as soon as possible. But when Holly, Maya, and everyone else open their hearts to Brooke during Christmastime, she can’t help but love them back.

One big grin of a holiday romance to be enjoyed with some hot, buttered rum or hot chocolate.

If you’re looking for a Hallmark movie in a book, a gay Hallmark movie in a book, I have just the book for you. It takes about as much time to read as to watch a holiday-themed movie, and it’s an adorably sweet story. Bonus for those not into the steamy scenes, this one’s a solid PG-13.

Brooke is coming home to bury her mother at Christmastime and sell off her assets. Her mother was pretty beloved by the town, but none of the townsfolk had to live with Brooke’s mother and her abusive tendencies. Holly rented her bakery space from Brooke’s mother, and at the news she’s selling out as fast as she can, Holly offers a less than warm welcome upon Brooke’s arrival. As they spend time together, mostly arguing about the fate of the building, they become friends, and maybe something more.

It was the perfect way to spend a rainy day, and if you’re looking for something cute and cozy for the holidays, pick this one up.

A town called Noelle by M k Hardy.
Brooke has returned to Noelle due to her mother’s sudden death. She hates the town all she wants is to bury her mother, sell her properties and never return to the town. When she arrived she crosses paths with Holly a single who runs her bakery from one of the properties being sold . Brooke doesn’t anticipate meeting any of her tenants so when challenged she is taken aback. From there they develop an unexpected friendship with a few surprises along the way when Brooke is snowed in a town she hates and just wants to leave .

Likeable characters a nice easy read involving the festive season. However Not all that exciting and a bit predictable though.

Brooke is basically Scrooge, and she has to return to the Christmas-loving small town she grew up in when her mother passes away, to sell her mother's property.

Brooke's mother used to be Holly's landlady, who has a coffee shop in town. She's not happy to hear Brooke will be selling. So needless to say, these women don't get along well at the start of the book.

What I didn't understand though, was how much they switched between being civil, and even friendly, with each other, and then going back to being angry with each other over Brooke's decision to sell. I felt a little like the tension between them was created to have an enemies to lovers dynamic, but it didn't feel like this progressed naturally, as they were mostly civil with each other and their fights seemed a little forced.

Overall, I didn't feel any real chemistry between these women, mostly because their emotional development was awkwardly paced. Unfortunately, this book just didn't really work for me because of that.

CWs: death of a parent, funeral, past death of a partner, past abuse by a parent

The beginning of this book is slow, with occasionally clunky writing, but once the heroines started talking to one another this turned into a sweet, low heat f/f Christmas romance with an enemies to lovers plot. Holly’s personality shined, and I loved her interactions with her precocious but kind daughter, Maya (who quickly attaches herself to Brooke and brings her into their lives whether Holly likes it or not). Holly comes out to herself through discovering her feelings for Brooke.

Brooke’s transformation from sullen and uncompromising landlord, to an uncertain but hopeful love interest was less believable. There’s some drama and damage in Brooke’s relationship with her toxic mom that’s glossed over.

I enjoyed the last third of the story, once these two started to tentatively open up to one another. I’m glad I didn’t give up after the first few pages.

Brooke returns to her hometown after many years away to settle her mother’s estate and sell off all the properties she owned. She clashes with bakery owner Holly who has finally begun to turn a profit with her shop. Holly stands up for herself but grumpy Brooke is reluctant to spend any more time in the town she hates. Cue the endless snowstorms, forced togetherness and eventual thawing of hearts.

It’s hard to develop characters enough to capture the reader's interest in a novella. The little bit of world building required, setting up the back stories and meeting the locals and family all take away from the relationship development between the mains. Of course it’s a Christmas tale and lightweight clearly defined grinch and heroine roles make for nice easy reads.

A sweet Hallmark version of the Grinch Who Stole Christmas.

ARC received with thanks from publisher via NetGalley for review.

This was a refreshing holiday read. Although I was hoping there would be a little more depth to the characters so I would be able to connect to them a tad more than I did.

Lights out.

Brooke has to visit the town she fled years ago to take care of some loose ends as a result of her estranged mother's death. She was left with some property that she is eager to get rid of. But there is a feisty owner of a bakery who doesn't appreciate the gift of eviction

I loved how Holly didn't know how to play nice with Brooke. She would try and then become so upset that she could not control what she would say. I'm always up for a good enemies to lovers story. Since this is novella length, it didn't get too carried away. But there was enough conflict to make things interesting.

Both women were dealing with sad things from their past and trying to move forward the best way they knew how. I wish that we would have had a few more scenes with the two getting to know each other so that I could feel a deeper connection. Again, this was so short, there really wasn't the opportunity for that. Emotions did come across, though, so the author did well considering.

There was some uncertain texting that made me smile.

Overall, this was a cute holiday read. It was exactly what you would expect from this type of story.

I recommend to those who like to read about romance, small towns, small business, estranged family, overcoming loss, and drinking to take the edge off.

This is a perfect Christmas novella -- short, sweet, MCs on opposite sides of a problem, scars of the past, warmth, community, family, love.

Brooke Hawkins inherits three properties when her mother dies. The properties are in the small town, Noelle, a place Brooke couldn’t leave behind fast enough when she was younger. With no love lost for the place or her mother, all Brooke wants to do is finish the legalities and sell the properties to a spa that is interested in buying all three of them together – asap. Holly Jackson has a bakery and café in one of Brooke’s properties and feels her world collapsing when she is informed that she is going to have to vacate. When she finally meets Brooke, Holly justifiably throws Brooke out of her shop. However, life as a single mom isn’t easy, and the bakery is just about pulling in business, so Holly needs to have at least one conversation with Brooke to explore alternatives. That conversation doesn’t go too well. However, Brooke cannot make the quick getaway from Noelle because the weather Gods have decided otherwise. During the time Brooke stays back, she runs into Holly again and Holly is unfailingly warm and kind-hearted.

Like we said this book is just so sweet. Holly and her daughter Maya are adorable. Brooke is perfectly understandable. We love the little technique of incomplete, deleted text messages that the author uses to tell us about the characters’ state of mind. It is a very effective method of communicating using very few words. Of course, we totally love the ending too.

Tale of trust, love, and Christmas. Holly is trying to run her business but she is unsure of the new landlord. Brooke simply wants to sell her mother's property and never look back. Throw in a number of blizzards, Maya, and a pleasant and welcoming town and you have a wonderful tale of romance.

A Town Called Noelle is an enjoyable Holiday romance. This novella moves pretty quick, so don't blink. Brooke goes back to her hometown of Noelle to bury her mom and sell off her properties as quickly as possible. The problem is Holly has a bakery in one of the properties that is set to sell. Brooke and Holly get off to a rough start, but as they are forced to spend more time together, Brooke begins to lighten up and has a decision to make. These two initially don't have a ton of chemistry (mainly because of the circumstances), but as time moves on the chemistry develops. Again, I liked this one, but it did move a little to fast for me.

3.5 stars.

I received an ARC copy of this book from the Publisher via Netgalley and voluntarily leaving my review.

This was a cute fluffy Christmas romance.

Brooke doesn't want to return to her small-town in Noelle, Michigan but when she has to settle her mother affairs she wants to do it in a hurry so she can leave.

Holly is a baker and she has a daughter name Maya when she learns the owner daughter plan to sell the building where her business is at let's just say when they meet it's fireworks and not the good kind.

When Brooke is stuck in town due to blizzards and she and Holly get to know each other and it wasn't smooth sailing even when you tell there a attraction there.

This was overall good read that can easily be on hallmark Christmas movies.

My first read by this author and I’m definitely going to look forward to her new books !
This was a short, sweet and cute read. Obviously it’s a novella and I felt it was very smooth!
I can’t say there were fireworks in the storyline, but I can say I enjoyed it. The thing is with novellas it’s tough getting that deep connection between the MCs, it rarely does work. And with this read, it wasn’t different, the connection wasn’t amazing.
Having said that, if you’re looking for a fluffy read that won’t take so much time and will entertain you, I would recommend this.
I liked both MCs, liked the story and the writing was very decent.. there was a hint of angst, which I liked a lot but there was no sex scenes (not that I have to have my sex scenes in a read, but it’s worth mentioning in a review)..
my rating for this is a 3.5 rounded up to 4 ..
“I received an ARC for an honest review.”

Very cute Christmas novella. A short and sweet enemies-to-lovers story.

Brooke is forced to return to small-town Noelle, Michigan to settle her late mother's estate. Looking to sell off the properties quickly to an outside developer, Brooke is held up by a series of blizzards and her growing concern/attraction for Holly, a soon-to-be evicted tenant in one of the properties.

Short book, ten days to lovers romance. Sure it's fast; sure Holly's never fallen for a woman before. Don't over analyze, just sit back and enjoy the story.

**I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**

Quick and easy read, but it wasn't alot of characterbuilding in this novella, everything went fast, too fast for my taste.

A Town Called Noelle is a cute holiday novella. It is heartwarming and just a general feel good read. I found the main characters well developed and intriguing.
If you are in the mood for a sweet Christmas romance, pick this book up.
Thank you to NetGallery, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read and review this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

Adorable, predictable but quite enjoyable. A bit of a different take on old friends meet and quickly develop a close relationship. Made me happy because I was rooting for them. Very quick read.

Spending Christmas in a small town called Noelle, especially if the weather is snowy and cold sounds like a wonderful idea unless you are Brooke Hawkins. Brooke has traveled from her home in Boston to Noelle, Michigan for her mother’s funeral. She has no desire to be in this town, and plans to stay only long enough for the funeral and to sign the papers needed to sell her mother’s property. The weather doesn’t help her plans though, since a huge snowstorm swoops in just as Brooke gets to town and closes most everything including the roads for several days. While she is snowbound in Noelle, she meets Holly Jackson and her young daughter Maya. Holly is a baker and rents one of the properties being sold by Brooke. When Holly finds out about the sale, and that she will have little time to relocate even if she could find a place, she is not pleased with Brooke, and it shows. But there is also a strange attraction between the two.

A Town Called Noelle by M.K. Hardy is a lovely novella that I enjoyed reading. This is the type of story where you have one of the main characters who seems on the surface to be if not heartless, at least caring more about their self than those around them; a bit of A Christmas Carol type of story with Scrooge being Brooke. Of course, this means that there is some angst as the tale progresses. The authors (M.K. Hardy is a pen name for two authors who write together) did a good job with the small town setting. The characters are also well-developed and real. I had difficulty connecting with Brooke at the beginning, but then, she is a bit of a Scrooge during that part of the story. I did have a bit of trouble once or twice figuring out who was talking or thinking, mostly between Brooke and Holly which caused me to break from the story a couple of times. Overall I enjoyed the story and it left me feeling good at the end. If you want a feel good holiday story that you can read in a day, this might be a good book for you.

Trigger warning: This novella deals with the funeral of a mother of one of the main characters. The two had been estranged for years because of homophobia and emotional abuse. If that would cause you problems, you might want to give this story a pass.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and NineStar Press for an honest review.

Rainbow Reflections:
https://rainbowreflections.home.blog/

I wish there was a way to give 1/2 star ratings here. I would give this a 3.5 instead of just a 3. I very much enjoyed the storyline and it is a very cute holiday novella. With it being a novella, the storyline is rushed a little bit. The main characters hate each other at the very beginning of the book, but it seems like their turn toward friendship takes a hard and fast turn. It felt like more needed to be told to get the characters into that friendship role than was presented. I did enjoy the gradual melting of Brooke's attitude toward the town and toward Christmas. I wish there had been more backstory as to why she disliked both so much apart from struggles with her mother growing up. There are not any hot sex scenes, but I did very much enjoy the kissing scenes.

I believe the story would have been better if it had been extended into a full-length novel to fill in some additional story elements. That said, the story is very sweet and is a good holiday read.

I was provided with a free ARC of this book by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

It's like a deliciously tropy Christmas movie but f/f and I'm so here for it. My one qualm is I wish it were longer but other than that, so here for it.