I read this in one day. I thought the premise was fun, I love love triangles. I thought the setting was lovely. At times the relationships and timing felt a little rushed, but I really enjoyed it.

A cute Christmas romance that gives you all the fuzzy feelings of the holiday season and truly satisfies that romcom craving we're all looking for right about now.. I rushed through this read because it was funny, cute, and I felt a connection to the characters and the overall small town vibe that permeated through this novel,

This was a cute and sexy story. I really enjoyed the love triangle, a different take then what you usually see. In this case it wasn't good guy vs. bad guy, but both guys were good and the girl just needed to decide who was a better fit. It wasn't super Christmassy, which was a bit of a let down, but overall still a good read.

This was like a steamy Hallmark movie!! I love the quaint small village with the quirky characters and the emotional tug of the love triangle. I was so intrigued to see how it all played out. And did I mention it was sooo steamy!?!! I also really enjoyed the loving relationship between the protagonist with her mother. Just a sweet and fun holiday romp!

I enjoyed this incredible read with wonderful characters you want to be your friend, small mountain town vibe, and a great story that immediately captivated me and kept me totally absorbed in all that was happening until I read the last word. There are laugh-out-loud moments, steamy sex scenes and heartwarming times. This is the first book I have read by Augusta Reilly but I hope to read more by this gifted author. If you enjoy well-crafted contemporary romance, don't miss "Why I Held Your Hand". I received an advance reader copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley and am voluntarily leaving my review.

This book is centered on a small town in desperate need of the help of a marketing firm to save them. From there, a love triangle quickly ensues. Though not as Christmassey as I had hoped, it was high in the steaminess factor. It also hits the spot if you are someone who likes a slow burn kind of romance. I wish there would have been a little more character development, as I had a hard time rooting for Laura at some points. All in all, it was a fun, quick read!

Laura is desperate to find a way to help the quaint town of North Powell prosper. She hopes hiring a marketing firm will help her show the world her town is tourist worthy. At first meeting there appears to be a strong connection with David, one of KPS Marketing’s owners. David quickly becomes the center of Laura’s life but she works weekly with one of the other partners, Spence, and she finds an attraction to him as well. Can she love two men and how do you make the ultimate choice? Great characters and an honest look at choosing a life partner.

I'm not a huge fan of steamy romances full of sex scenes and I was expecting a Christmas rom-com.
It's well written but it's not my cup of tea.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

I want to get this out of the way by saying despite the adorable holiday cover this is not a holiday read. There are a couple of holiday aspects in the book but if you go into this thinking it is going to be super festive you are going to be disappointed.

Why I held your hand is a love triangle romance with loads of steam. Laura is from the small town of North Powell and is trying to save the town from going under. Enter KPS marketing willing to help market the town but Laura catches both David and Spence's eye. Who does Laura end up with? You'll have to read!

This book was get me a fan and pour a bucket of cold water on me hot! Like full steam ahead! I have to say this and I'm unsure if anyone else has made this comparison but this story was like Parks and Recreation meets erotica and honestly I really enjoyed it! I feel the writing in this book was very well done and is a fast and fun read that I would recommend to steamy romance fans.

While I do agree with some of the reviews saying this book was a little old fashioned or behind the times, I really, really enjoyed it. This short romance starts strong from the beginning and the love story only deepens as we keep reading. I loved the pacing and even though it was a little cringe-worthy at times, I think it is definitely worth the read. I always expect romances to be too good to be true and not realistic, but that’s what makes them so fun! I would definitely read another book by this author.

Linda’s Book Obsession Reviews “Why I Held Your Hand” by Augusta Reilly, Rhapsodic Press, October 2020 for Suzy Approved Book Tours

Augusta Reilly, the author of “Why I Held Your Hand” has written a Hallmark-type steamy, contemporary romance story. Only in this story, the main character has two love interests to choose from. The genres for this novel are Fiction, Romantic Comedy, Women’s Fiction, and Love Story. The timeline for this story is set in the present. The author describes her characters as complex, complicated, quirky, and indecisive.

The town of North Powell is in trouble in more ways than one. Economically something has to be done. Laura Delaney loves her quaint town with hot springs, trails, and mountains, and hires a marketing team. Two of the members of the team David Harper and Spence Markham, seem to be working and playing closely with Laura.

It is suggested that a Dickens festival will bring attention to this little town. This is easy to read, witty, and sexy book that I would recommend on a cold night. Don’t you want to know who gets a happily ever after?
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An enjoyable small town romance great for the holiday season!

I struggled with Laura's decisions regarding the love triangle. I was rooting for everyone so I had a harder time!

4⭐️
I liked this a lot. I loved the chemistry and romance. The author writes a witty, sometimes snarky dialogue. I love it when an author can accomplish that. This was a love triangle and I generally don’t like that. And that the reason why it isn’t getting a 5 star review.
It had all the feels I enjoy and I had a roller coaster of emotions pretty much through the whole book. I hate cheating! It makes me crazy and it even makes me sick to think someone is doing that to someone. So that was bad and realistic. So I was determined to finish it. And I’m glad I did.
I loved the flow and pace of the story, but I hated how Laura couldn’t sort her feelings. It made no sense to me. It was heartbreaking. There is an HEA if you’re interested.
And this really wasn’t a holiday read in my opinion.

Thank you Rapsodic press via Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Why I Held Your Hand by Augusta Reilly is an adult contemporary romance set in a small town called North Powell, stately Victorian homes and surrounding hiking trails. Though the cover of the book gives the perfect holiday and Christmas vibes, the book somewhere misses to do the same. Except for the tourist attraction I don't get any Christmas vibes.

Laura Delaney hires a hotshot marketing team to figure out how to inject the old magic back into North Powell’s sagging tourist trade. But she is dating David Harper - Smart, funny, handsome, and amazing in bed, he’s the perfect man. Since this project is all in or all out for the town to survive, she needs to keep her relationship a secret until the project is completed.

At the other side, we see Spence Markham, the company’s offbeat “idea man” and David’s professional nemesis. When Spence suggests hosting a Dickens Festival to revitalize the town’s once-booming holiday season, Laura is thrilled. She’s even more thrilled when Spence falls in love with Powell House, the dilapidated Victorian that Laura hopes to renovate and turn into a town museum.

Laura as a character is very confusing to me. At one chapter she is happy with David Harper and we see their relationship getting better, but immediately in the next chapter we see her longing for Spence Markham. I mean I understand we all get confused at times, but in this story we just keep beating around the bush till the end. But would I want to read something like this? no.

I do not see Laura Delaney as a role model character. Her confusion between the two men in her life just made me felt sad for both David Harper and Spence Markham. It felt she has been lying to both of them as well as herself all the time throughout the story. The sex part and those smoochy thoughts of Laura also gave a very wrong impression of the character.
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Thank You to NetGalley and Publisher - 'Rhapsodic Press' for the eARC in exchange for a honest opinion.

Some of the dialogue was witty, but the opening scene was confusing right off the bat, and the relationship dynamics just didn't feel real to me. Too quick, no build-up, a promising premise but no delivery (for me).

Alright y'all, I was expecting a cute little rom-com with this book and instead I got a laugh out loud, love triangle. It was freaking fantastic! I spent pretty much the entire book laughing!⁣ And talk about steamy 🥵 Whew! I am a huge fan!
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Laura Delaney hires a marketing firm to help breathe some life back into her charming little town. She meets with David, Spence and James to toss around ideas to see what they can do. She falls for David almost immediately. He's handsome and smart, thoughtful and funny. They hit it off right away and she thinks he's the one. But spending so much time with the quirky Spence has her wondering if she jumped the gun with David. Now she has to decide what she really wants 😏 ⁣
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The banter in this book is hilarious. Laura is a fabulously, funny character. I never thought I would laugh so hard about mayonnaise sandwiches, but I did 🤣⁣

A fun, swoony, and steamy romance about a small town called North Powell that needs help revitalizing its community. Laura hires a PR firm and ends up falling in love with David and then Spence the marketing genius!

It has everything you expect from an irresistible and unputdownable love triangle romance you will read in a sitting. The characters are enjoyable to read, the small town and saving the small business, the historic Dickensonian festivals, and hot springs were all great to read about.

I thought that the ending was so well done and I am left wanting more. I hope to see more of the other characters get an HEA too. Possibly a sequel?

Not very memorable, fairly superficial, but a quick and easy read. Also, the marketing around the book seems strange- it's not really focused on Christmas/the holiday season, most of the book does not take place around the holidays at all.

4/5 stars

WOW. I mean wow. This book really surprised me. I have a habit of reading other reviews before starting a new book so I went into this thinking I would hate it. Boy was I wrong...

Laura lives in North Powell; a small town in the middle of the mountains that makes it seem as if you stepped into a Dickens novel. Sadly, they're losing money and fast. With the help of a fancy city marketing team, Laura is trying to turn the fate of her hometown around. Luckily, the team comes with not one but two hotshot men: David and Spence. Things progress with both of them quickly and with a deadline fast approaching, Laura will have to choose between the two soon. Which guy will be the one to steal her heart?

This was an absolute blast to read. From the first chapter, I was DYING of laughter. Laura is such a delightful character. She has a lot of charm and just has a way about her that you feel like you want to be her best friend. Spence was amazing. I loved how down to earth he was and how mature his character was even though he was the younger choice. He and Laura had amazing chemistry and you could really feel it even when there wasn't much going on. David was my least favorite. He was super sweet and obviously he and Laura had that instant attraction but (and this is totally just my opinion) I found him to be a bit bland. Maybe I'm reading too many mafia books where the love interest is always a bad boy (I mean it's kind of a given if you're in the mafia) but I just expect the guy to have a bit of charm or that extra oomph if that makes sense. I felt like David's main trait was that he was reliable and overall a good man. He lacked those extra qualities that made you want to pick him ( think Meredith Grey going "Pick me, choose me, love me" ugh so iconic). However, I thought the contrast between the two guys was great and I really was considering both. Their characters are very well written so it's easy to get caught up in the moment and imagine what it would be like with each one.

What I really didn't like or expect was how graphic the book was. I knew there were sex scenes but I didn't imagine this many and I definitely didn't expect that much detail. It really didn't sit well with me and it brought me out of the story. I was expecting to read a more lighthearted romantic comedy and got more of romance with a side of hot and steamy. It was just too much for me but I know that a lot of other readers are into that so maybe you would enjoy it. I also didn't really like how Laura justified her actions towards the end. I'm not going to spoil anything but the way she was acting and processing her emotions was so juvenile and immature. I just got super annoyed with her and couldn't imagine a grown woman acting that way.

This book really took me by surprise. I honestly didn't expect to like it all and instead, I read it all in about 2 hours because I just couldn't put it down. It's a quick read that will get your heart pumping and mind spinning as you wait to find out: who will Laura choose?

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I went into this book expecting a straightforward rom-com but this book is so much more!

The romance part of this book is very well written and the complicated feelings Laura has towards David and Spence are so well described that I think every reader could empathize, if not directly relate. I loved that nothing was straightforward for Laura and she didn't make her decisions lightly. She also made mistakes, pushed limits, and had to soul search. While I love a simple romance as much as the next reader, I also really love messy, real life characters and relationships.

This book really delivers on the comedy part! The conversations are sarcastic and witty and I was laughing out loud multiple times. Laura and David had the best lines!

The setting of the book is small-town quaint, with Victorian homes, local landmarks, and dreamy hot springs. It's not your typical small-town romance though!

The steamy scenes were on fire in this book! If you're looking for a major dose of sexy alongside your romance, this is the book for you! If you prefer closed-door scenes, I still think you should check this book out, just prepare to do some skimming. 😉

This is my favorite line from the synopsis (full summary in comments): "Soon, what started as a simple assignment becomes a tale of two possible futures. But which one will Laura choose?"