This book is seriously adorable. I don’t know about you but I just need pure enjoyable reads right now in my life and this sweet, small town romance does the trick!
.
The sequel to #TheTouristAttraction this book does not disappoint. I was literally laughing from the first line. My kids follow me on Instagram so I’m not typing what the first line is but trust me I was dying laughing.
.
I’m a total sucker for any book with an Alaskan setting. Doesn’t matter if it’s romance or tear jerker (I’m looking at you #TheGreatAlone) Alaska is a magical setting for a book.
.
Just as any great Christmas book or Hallmark movie can tell you there is always a big business owner (Lana) looking to take over the small town for its own good and then falls for a local business owner (Rick) who wears sweater or flannels not suits! Who works in a pool hall (bar, hardware store, teacher you get the drift) not a corner office! Mix in a Santa Moose on the loose and a great cast of secondary characters you have a winning Christmas book!
.
Thank you to #NetGalley and #sourcebookscasablanca for an arc in exchange for an honest review

DNF at 60%. I loved Tourist Attraction so much and was beyond excited for this follow up - take me back to Moose Springs and at Christmas? Yes please!!!

Unfortunately, this one didn’t work out for me. I love the small town feel - giving me Stars Hollow in Alaska vibes. (Is Gilmore Girls always my small town reference point? Probably - but I’m okay with that.)

Lana is a newcomer - she’s been coming as a tourist for a long time but now she’s here to stay and make it her business and has bought up a lot of the town to renovate. She is not getting a warm welcome and is trying to find her place to fit in.

Rick owns the pool hall that has long been for locals only, no tourists and is still healing from his divorce a few years ago.

I gave this a good shot because I really wanted to love it but it all fell flat to me. Lana’s business dealings, interactions with her family, relationship with Rick - none of it felt genuine to me at all. This book was also trying to do A LOT - enough that the romance has really gotten lost in the midst of all the everything else.

This was disappointing but I’ll still be giving the next book in the series a shot. Thank you to Sourcebooks and Netgalley for the free ebook. I also bought the audiobook from librofm.

Mistletoe and Mr. Right is the holiday love story of Lana Montgomery and Rick. Rick lives in a small Alaskan town, Moose Springs, and Lana is there to build high-end condos. After years of coming back to Moose Springs, Lana decides to spend Christmas there especially since her best friend has moved there. In order to win over the town she announces during a town meeting that she will catch the elusive Santa Moose that has come back for another year to destroy Christmas displays.
This book is what I refer to as a "palate cleanser" book. It is enjoyable even though it is predictable. However this is not like most fish out of water romances. There is no dislike between these characters that then turns into romance, instead this is almost straight romance from the beginning and by romance I mean two people like each other and go on a couple of dates but see a lot of each other. This was a nice quick read for some good holiday fun but nothing overly special.

Lana is the rich heiress who works impossibly hard and may or may not be a sometimes crappy friend and sometimes incredible one that we met in The Tourist Attraction. This book follows her as she is attempting to make the condominiums happen to "save" Moose Springs. Probably I shouldn't have quotes around "save," but that's certainly the attitude the locals have about it. Moose Springs' economy is really centered on tourism now as much as the locals don't want to admit it, which is a thing that rings pretty true for me, a native West Virginian who grew up with politicians resisting progress at every turn. However, they also have excellent points.

One of those points stems from the small town trauma of a drunk driving incident killing Rick's ex-wife's sister, husband, and daughter, leaving him and the ex-wife to raise their nephew. The driver was a tourist, of course. Rick is not like Graham from the last book though, in that his irritation with the tourists does not contain the same level of vitriol AND he's kind of already absolutely fascinated by Lana when the book opens. He's really sweet and very anxious about the idea of making a move on Lana.

If I'm being honest, my rating winds up at a 3.5 because this book was very slow in too many parts. It definitely could have used some tightening. It also seems like it's trying to straddle the women's fiction/romance line, which is fine, but if you're going to include that much about Lana's work, I need it to be a resolved thread. Although maybe (probably) I'm being too sensitive to that.

Lana is actually a really fascinating character. She's very much the bubbly, sunshiney one, but it seems like that's more of a mask than anything else. I really liked some of her inner monologue and the way that Rick seemed to want to know the real Lana. I also liked Rick, even if he's a little bland in some ways.

This book is also full of some of those over the top rom com moments that boggle the mind a bit and to be honest, just never quite ring true for me the way they didn't in The Tourist Trap. But now I feel like this review is making it sound like I didn't like the book, but I did enjoy it. So let me just leave there with the positive of, I really enjoyed the characters and the town and am absolutely looking forward to continuing in this series.

Thanks to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for the advanced copy for review!

Cute romance set in a small mountain town involving the woman that the town hates (though she feels as though she's just trying to help) and the curmudgeon pool hall owner. This was a closed door romance - very hallmark-esque. Though I thought the story had a lot of potential, it felt lacking to me and was a bit disappointing.

What I liked:
- Cute forced proximity scenes that brought the couple together
- how supportive the characters were of each other
- learning more about the town and the people in it

What I didn't like:
- It was long! I felt like the author was trying to fit in too many plots points.
- Also had long chapters
- Almost focused too much on the town, I wanted more from the relationship
- Third person perspective - I think this story really would have benefitted if told from first person perspective

A great Christmas romance in a year that feels like it'll never have a Christmas. Honestly, it's a great escape. It's not perfect, but not mediocre either. I loved the quaint town, it felt like an additional character you wanted to root for.

I was so excited to read this book. I loved Zoey and Graham from the first book and I fell head over heels in love with Moose Springs. Unfortunately this second book did not live up to the first one.

It's not that the story was horrible because it wasn't. It was just incredibly boring. I didn't care about the main characters. They had ZERO chemistry. They didn't fit in any way. I like both characters as individuals but I do not like them as a couple. I felt like Lana was constantly talking to Rick like he was a child and she her over use of "darling" drove me crazy. Rick was a sweet guy but a bit boring. Lana grew on me. I liked her more towards the end of the book.

Honestly the best parts of this book involved Zoey and Graham. I kept reading for those moments alone. I am excited for Easton's story.

Thank you Netgalley for the copy of this book.

A continuation of such a cute trilogy!

We're introduced to Lana in the first novel. She's no nonsense. She's gorgeous. And Rick likes her but feels she's out of his league. Oh and in this one there's a Scrooge McMoose on the loose that Lana has vowed to catch to impress the town.

I did like the first one better, and I think it's because I identified more with Zoey than Lana. But Rick's "strong but silent" type hit the mark for me!

With the first book from this series being a near DNF for me, I wanted to give it another go. And for me, I think it comes down to that I'm not much of a holiday romance reader. I keep trying every single year, but they're just not for me.

This was definitely an enjoyable read and the story was adorable. Many holiday romance fans, Mistletoe and Mr. Right will absolutely check off a lot of boxes for them. Sarah definitely packed in the emotions towards to the end and it really got to me.

Even though it wasn't quite a win for me, I'm glad I gave this series another chance. If you're a holiday romance fan, I definitely recommend this.

Mistletoe and mr right
Pub date Oct 1st 2020
May contains spoilers
I loved this book the romance between Lana and Rick was amazing Lana character was strong and determined person who just really wanted two fit in moose springs she rich powerful. Has her own jet and pilot two travel every wear her job his two keep the people happy in moose springs and make sure they pay their rent on time and the buildings are ok. Lana wants two prove two everybody in moose springs that she here two stay and keep the peace then she meets Rick who is handsome but doesn’t know she rich and has allot of business two attend two they meet when he behind on the rent and Lana feels sorry for him and agrees two terms with him and they start flirting and having fun. Rick likes Lana she his dream girl and he wants her allot so they flirt and he ask her out on dates and he tell her about his ex wife and she explain why she in town and things are going great they try two catch a moose before it’s start hurting everybody and she get two know people and what they like she goes two the committee meeting and start two fit in with everybody, Alaska is starting two get busy her with tourist in moose springs. And everybody thinks she own the place she tries two fit in and zoey her friend helps her she and Rick start going out on dates and start two enjoy each other company and even know she two posh for him she still loves Rick deeply. This book is loving romance book This book makes you want two go two Alaska and she the skiing resort and the place. I love Christmas books it never two early for them. You love Lana character in this book has you get two know her. She so determined two fit in moose springs she feels for the people and how hard times they are. You get two know Lana family which some are not nice people they money people and don’t care much about Alaska. There quite a few plot twist and some really good scenes in this book. You get two learn that most people love eggnog cinnamon drink and I really want two try one now. I loved this book allot you love it I gave it five stars.

Loved stepping back into Moose Springs again! This was a very sweet friend to lovers rom-com and I enjoyed getting to learn more about Lana's and Rick's lives. I was very touched by Lana feeling out of place in Moose Springs and really loved seeing her character grow. I found her to be a very headstrong female love interest which made me enjoy the book more. Rick, I had a little bit of a harder time understanding. He was a very quiet and reserved character with a good heart and I felt that Lana was a good match for him. I definitely laughed out loud at their first date in the taxidermy-filled b&b. I was left wanting a little more out of the story but overall, was a cute story!

I have not laughed out loud so much while reading in a long time. Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for a chance to read an ARC of this Christmas time comedy.

If you like humor with your Christmas reading, this is the book for you this season. It left me gripped until the ending and laughing hysterically. I really enjoyed the unique humor and the character building that you see in this book. It kept me coming back to learn more about each person. The romance aspect didn't overshadow everything even though it was the main portion. The ending is a little more open; however, knowing there is at least one more in this series helps with some of the loose ends. (Not a cliffhanger or unresolved problems, more of a curiosity of what will come from the decisions made in the end.) If this is the type of humor I can expect from this author, I will definitely be coming back for more.

I was so excited to return to Moose Springs! The Tourist Attraction was such a lovely surprise, and I knew I already adored all the characters that it introduced, so I didn’t have any doubts that I would enjoy Mistletoe & Mr. Right.

Lana is such a strong character, and she absolutely deserves her own story. She may seem like the opposite of Rick in every way, but the one thing they share for sure is they are lonely. They are two lonely people that deserve to be happy. Lana is having a hard time getting the locals to warm up to her, but she never gives up. And watching her try again and again is sweet, but also made me a little angry at the people of Moose Springs.

Rick has his flaws—he’s a bit stuck in his ways and at times painfully shy—but one thing he is not, is scared off easily. His unwavering loyalty is refreshing. And I loved that he allowed himself to be vulnerable, too.

If you prefer your holiday romances lighter on Christmas, this one would probably fit the bill. It wasn’t overly Christmas-y, but still left me warm and fuzzy. Not to mention there’s an assortment of animals—including an elusive moose, a cute hedgehog, and an irresistible kitten.

It was nice getting to catch up with Graham and Zoey, as well. And while I enjoyed Mistletoe & Mr. Right, The Tourist Attraction still edges it out a bit as my favorite. Lana and Rick were a fun couple to root for, and I was sad to see this one end. I’ll be looking forward to the next book set in Moose Springs!

This is an adorable Christmas romance that hooks you from the very first line and takes you on a whirlwind adventure around a slightly nutty Alaskan town.

Lana Montgomery, rich socialite and heir to a giant real estate empire, knows she isn't loved by the people of Moose Springs. She wants to attract more rich tourists to a town filled with people who hate tourists, so she doesn't blame them for not warming up to her. But she's determined to win them over, even if that means hunting the mythical and elusive Santa Moose that takes its rage out on every piece of Christmas decoration it encounters. Thank god for Rick Harding, who doesn't hold a grudge against the woman of his dreams for accidentally shooting him with a tranquilliser dart. Because Lana will need some help in making a few Christmas miracles come true.

I liked the first book in this series, but I LOVE this one. It made me feel all the feels, although I do fear I'll have nightmares involving taxidermied squirrels in the next few days. I wasn't the biggest fan of Lana in the first book, and I still think she's ridiculous for walking around in high heels on icy ground, but oh boy did she manage to win me over in this one. I love how she slowly started to trust herself to let Rick close enough to see past her fake everything-is-okay smile. One minor detail that I would have loved to have seen even more of was Lana's history with the town and its people. It gets mentioned a few times, but it would've been nice if she had confided in someone why she was trying to save the town.

Rick is the perfect love interest for Lana. He's still dealing with his own past, but he's always looking out for her and making sure she is happy. He's just the dreamiest. The romance between Rick and Lana was a bit slow-burn, especially compared to the insta-love between Graham and Zoey from the first book, but the chemistry between them was there from the start and so so good.

I can't wait to return to Moose Springs. The sooner, the better!

I enjoyed the first book in this series mostly for its comedic appeal - the author has a great way with slapstick situations - but I enjoyed this book more for the character development. I felt like I knew Lana and Rick - their backstories and family life - in a way we didn't get with Graham and Zoey in the first book. Even so, Morgenthaler puts the "com" in "romcom" - sometimes you don't know what you are going to get with the illustrated covers, but Mistletoe and Mr. Right is a true romantic comedy. I'm guessing (hoping?) Ash and Killian might get the next book in the series...

Rick and Lana are one of those couples that, on paper, should never work. He's small-town Alaska, kind of shy, owns a pool hall, is struggling financially, and was burned badly by his ex. She's uber-rich, a corporate executive, oozes confidence, wants to open his little town to the jetsetters of the world, and, oh yeah, is his landlord. But when you start to peel away the layers, and Rick and Lana begin to reveal to one another who they really are at their core...well, it's Christmas, and anything is possible.

I am having so much fun reading Sarah Morganthaler's Moose Springs, Alaska series. I adore her quirky characters, the townies vs outsiders push and pull, the town itself (if you ever watched Northern Exposure on television in the 90's, Moose Springs has the same vibe), and, of course, who doesn't love an eccentric moose. Or two. Or more.

Lana and Rick both ended up being more complex than I expected. Also, more fun...and funny (Fair warning: don't eat or drink anything while reading Chapters 7 and 8. One of the most hilarious dinner date scenes I've ever read). I really enjoyed them together - their sweetness, their humor, their kindness, the endearing awkwardness, and their shared love for Moose Springs. Yes, there were times when I got tired of hearing Lana call everyone "dearest" but by the end of the book, after I felt like I had really come to know her, it had become an intrinsic part of her and less nails on a chalkboard.

I loved catching up with characters from book one, The Tourist Attraction, and watching them and their relationships evolve. I'm excited to see where their adventures take them in future books. I have no idea how many books Morganthaler has planned for the residents of Moose Springs but there are still several characters begging for stories and if she writes them, I'll be buying them. Plus, who knows how many more eccentric moose are in the wings, waiting for their chance in the spotlight? 😉

4.5 Stars
ARC received for fair and unbiased review.
Will post at The Romance Dish on 9 October.

Thank you so much to Sourcebooks Casablanca for fulfilling my wish on Netgalley to read Mistletoe and Mr. Right! I read book one in the Moose Springs, Alaska books (the Tourist Attraction) near the beginning of pandemic and it was super cute, and Mistletoe and Mr. Right definitely lived up to the precedent set by that one!

Mistletoe and Mr. Right 5/5 Stars

Summary from Goodreads: Lana Montgomery is everything the quirky small town of Moose Springs, Alaska can't stand: a rich socialite with dreams of changing things for the better. But Lana's determined to prove that she belongs...even if it means trading her stilettos for snow boots and tracking one of the town's hairiest Christmas mysteries: the Santa Moose, an antlered Grinch hell-bent on destroying every bit of holiday cheer (and tinsel) it can sink its teeth into.
And really...how hard could it be?
The last few years have been tough on Rick Harding, and it's not getting any easier now that his dream girl's back in town. When Lana accidentally tranquilizes him instead of the Santa Moose, it's clear she needs help, fast...and this could be his chance to finally catch her eye. It's an all-out Christmas war, but if they can nab that darn moose before it destroys the town, Rick and Lana might finally find a place where they both belong...together.

I love Lana. I love her so much. She's such a boss and she really knows what she's doing with work and stuff, but in terms of the whole never feeling like she belongs and always trying so hard to fit in and be a part of the community she really wants to be a part of- oof I felt that so much. Man, it's always so nice to have easy to relate to, easy to understand main characters! I loved Lana and Rick! And having Diego make cameos was also great. And I loved seeing Graham and Zoey again- and the Killians! And Ash and Easton! I'm really growing to love all of the characters and the town of Moose Springs so much! The story in this one wasn't quite as strong as the story in the Tourist Attraction was, but I think the characters were able to make up for that because I liked Lana and Rick a lot. I'm really excited to see where Sarah Morganthaler takes things in book three (which, based on the description is going to be about Easton, so I'm extra excited about that)! Mistletoe and Mr.Right came out on October 6th, so definitely go check it out for a quick, fun, feel good romance read!

A great follow-up to the Moose Springs, Alaska series! Rick and Lana are so sweet together in a delightful opposites attract way. Lana grew on me more in this book, and it was great to still get glimpses of Zoey/ Graham, and of course, Jake. There was some great comedy throughout the book, which I was so happy to see because I was worried that would have been left with Graham and Zoey. I am really excited to read the rest of this series!

Happy pub day to Mistletoe and Mr. Right!! 🥳

I love Hallmark movies. The cheesiness of it has never been a problem for me at all, that’s just part of its charm.

For some reason though, the cheesiness in this novel rubbed me the wrong way. The main character, Lana, drove me bonkers at times. How many times can one person call those around her “dearest” in one novel...I think the answer is somewhere around 157.

I did enjoy her as the boss though. She was very firm with ridiculous people (Silas), and still kind and thoughtful when it came to the feelings of those who lived in Moose Springs and how her family company’s presence affected them.

The antics that happened with Lana and her best friend Zoey did make me laugh, and I enjoyed their scenes together. As well as her and Rick trying to catch the Santa Moose.

The love story with Lana and Rick was cute, but felt off at times for me. I think I attribute it more to the writing than the characters themselves.

I think my feelings about this novel also stem from reading really great, well written novels lately, and this was just a little under their caliber in my opinion. It’s still a cute read though if you are wanting a light hearted Christmas novel during the holiday season! ❤️

Thank you to @NetGalley and @sourcebookscasa for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

This was such an adorable book! Perfect for Christmas and I wish I've read it around that time. Maybe I'll re-read it who knows, it was the cutest.
Loved the main characters and the way their relationship was developing, their chemistry was palpable. Really liked the side characters and the friendships. Everything worked well to deliver a sweet story to warm your heart.