The perfect best friends romance!

Just when you think you've read it all, Cindi Madsen comes with a new twist of the best friends romance. I thoroughly devoured the book and all its chapters. The situations were depicted so perfectly and relatably well that you can just see everything through the eyes of the major characters.

Just the book for a slow day

Gavin and Julie have been a Gavin and Julie since the duo was in their diapers. The problem is that they never received the message and remained best friends into adulthoodhood, much to the distress of their respective families, who think they would be just perfect for each other! This Christmas, however, their families are determined to push their relationship to the next level. With a few well-orchestrated hijinks, suddenly both of them are seeing each other in a new light. Will they start their New Year as more than friends?

I flew through the book. The writing was easy to get into and I enjoyed spending time with the main leads and the supporting characters. I love a good 'best friends to more' romance trope and I would have loved to see some more jealous Gavin in the book, especially when it came to Julie and his football teammates. I also would have liked to see some more steamy scenes between the characters. Gavin as her flirting coach was used minimally and to some embarrassing results at certain points in the book. The author repeated that the flirting and being sexual was almost out of her wheelhouse and it felt like too much, especially when she made Julie so insecure already.

The use of 'friend-zone' in the synopsis bothered me simply because I never got the sense that he was friend-zoned. They were best friends but it's not as if Gavin or Julie had attempted anything romantic to take their friendship to the next level at any point when they were younger. Gavin had also been in a long-term relationship with his high-school sweetheart for nearly 8 years. Another thing that kept distracting me was that I have read the Playbook series by Alexa Martin and there is also a quarterback on the Mustangs named Gavin. I kept thinking back to the other series.

Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing for the opportunity to read and review this e-arc, available for release on November 16th.

Loved this book! It's like the best Hallmark movie come to life - complete with elves and Christmas. I loved the characters and the way they came to life on the page. Gavin is a sexy NFL player, while Julie is the somewhat nerdy pathologist. On paper, they don't make sense, yet they've been best friends since they were toddlers. Add in their families also being best friends with a scheme to get them together, and the holiday themed hijinks begin.

This story made me smile and laugh out loud, while also having poignant moments. If you enjoy the genre, you will love this book. This is a must read book that is a perfect read for the holidays.

This was a fun cute book, which gave me all the feels. A perfect holiday read to brighten these dull times.

I enjoyed reading this book so very much. The characters were sweet and endearing. I loved that the female lead was a science nerd - it's great to see STEM careers incorporated into fiction. I loved the book from start to finish, and I will definitely re-read it again in the future!

I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Gavin and Julie have been friends since they were born thanks to the wonderful friendship their parents have with each other. Their parents set out to play match makers yet again while they are both home for the holidays. This time the parents AND grandparents join in on the sneaky tactics.

Julie and Gavin go through the entire emotional roller coaster that the realization of falling in love with your best friend is bound to cause. Gavin doesn’t handle it well even if he is a quarterback jock!

I’m just basking in the spirit of the holidays right now, and this sports/holiday romance amplified my feelings by about 1000.
Sports meets best friends meets holiday would be the best way to describe this feel good romance.
I loved the character of Julie. Her quirky brain and misunderstood demeanor set the stage. Gavin being the other half to her whole was perfect. We all know no one loves you better than your best friend, and that was clearly on display here.
Add in some meddling family, an entire football team and their antics and you’ve got a champion.

Realizing they are in love with their best friend!

Gavin Frost and Julie O’Neill have been best friends since they were toddlers even when he became a professional football player and Julie graduated medical school. They knew that their families would be ecstatic if they started dating so when Gavin and Julie were home at the same time, they decide a little “reverse parent trap” would help push them into a relationship.

The Mistletoe Trap pairs a professional football player with a socially awkward doctor that loves her job as a pathologist leading to some interesting statistics. I love friends to lover’s romances, but Gavin needed a little push by his teammates to do something about how he missed Julie because they knew he was in love by how he reacted after talking to her.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The Mistletoe Trap by Cindi Madsen is a fun romance that borders on a comedy with their crazy parents. Julie and Gavin have been friends since they were in diapers and their parents have been trying to make them realize they would make a great couple.

Gavin is a star quarterback home for the holidays with a shoulder injury which made him seem very human. Julie was hilarious as a pathologist. I am dying to ask the author if all of Julie’s comments about pathology are true. She was geeky and lovable.

This is not a clean read. Although there is only one physical scene there are several instances of thoughts and comments about sex. If you don’t mind that I think you will very much enjoy the book. The characters were fabulous.

Language - the F word was used 27 times, seemed excessive to me. Which is the only thing that kept it from being 5 stars

I received this book from Netgalley. I was not required to write a positive review.
You can see my full review at More Than a Review dot com where I rate the level of sex, violence, language and drug/alcohol use in books.

5 Stars for this laugh-out-loud romance!

Julie and Gavin have been best friends since they were in diapers. Now, he's a quarterback in the NFL and she's a pathologist and they live thousands of miles apart. Even though they still talk or Facetime almost every day, they don't get to see each other in person but a couple of days a year. But this Christmas they'll be able to spend a week together because he's on the injured list. Now all they have to do is dodge their parent's matchmaking, so that their friendship can stay intact.

I just loved Julie ... she's such a nerd and has absolutely no filter! The predicaments she got herself into had me laughing out loud so hard that there were tears running down my face. And then there's Gavin ... I loved how he just got Julie and didn't make her feel like the nerd she was. This is a slow burn that you just know is going to be explosive when they finally give in. Everyone knew Julie and Gavin belonged together ... but Julie and Gavin. If you're looking for a good laugh ... I highly recommend this book!

I received an early copy courtesy of Entangled Publishing through NetGalley in exchange for a honest review.

I really enjoyed this book which follows "The Wedding Deal". Gavin is the new QB for the Mustangs football team and we get a follow up to the couple from "The Wedding Deal" which is a bonus. Gavin has injured his shoulder so he is looking forward to spending time with his best friend since diapers, Julie, along with their extended family. Their parents have been trying to get them to be a couple forever with no luck...until now! I loved the two families, especially Gavin's parents! They are what you want from your own family. Julie is a doctor who specializes in pathology and has a habit of talking about her work too much, especially when she is nervous.

Gavin and Julie get to their happily ever after, but only after Gavin stumbles quite badly. This was a great read and I high recommend it!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Cindi Madsen's stories just make you wanna go "Aaahhwwww". Cuteness factor: through the roof. And although all books can be read as a standalone, Cindi makes it just that more fun to bring characters from other stories into the mix.
In The Mistletoe Trap we have Julie and Gavin, friends from their time in nappies and still going strong. And although their families have hinted time and time again that they should make such a lovely couple, Julie and Gavin are just friends. And now Julie and Gavin are coming home for christmas (since they work at different states), their parents seem to have finally understand that Gavin and Julie will never be more. So, they try to fix up Julie with a date. A Reverse Parent Trap. But of course, Gavin and Julie will not fall for this, now will they? A wonderful slow burn, friends turn into lovers story with a background of Christmas holiday cheer and the NFL team of Gavin starring in their wonderful remarks. And yes... this is indeed the team of Lance from The Wedding Deal and yes, he and Charlotte will be making an appearance. Yay! Four out of five stars from me and a special thank you to Netgalley for providing the arc.

"Christmas is most truly Christmas when we celebrate it by giving the light of love to those who need it most." -Ruth Carter Stapleton

Thank you to NetGalley and Cindi Madsen for my review copy! This is a cozy holiday story of childhood best friends, both with families that hope their friendship turns into something more. This cute reversed parent trap story gets 𝟯.𝟳𝟱/𝟱 from me! ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

The small-town setting of this book is perfectly charming! I enjoyed reading this and it really made me feel ready for the Christmas season. We just got an early season snowstorm so it was the perfect thing to curl up and read today. The ending was great and left me wanting to hear more about all the characters! I would love to see some more about his team mates and the rest of their family members.

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. Julie has been friends with Gavin who is the quarterback for a football team. Their family has tried to get them together for years. Can Julie take the next step in their relationship? I enjoyed the cast of characters.

Sports romance, friends to lovers, plus the parent trap. Super cute holiday romance! I enjoyed it and it was just what I needed to get in the holiday spirit. Thank you to netgalley for the ARC!

I really wanted to love this book. Super cute cover, adorable "happily ever after" storyline... This should have been right up my alley. The writing itself was quality, but sadly, I just could not make myself care about this couple. The characters were rather one dimensional, the pacing of their story felt slow. It just didn't catch my attention. I ended up forcing myself to speed read through the second half (I take my ARC responsibilities very seriously!).. A different reader could see this story in a totally different light, and I hope they do.

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion. My thanks to the author, publisher, and #NetGalley for the opportunity. #TheMistletoeTrap

I absolutely loved this book. It's not always that a book brings out the fangirl in me, and this is exactly what happened here.
Long story short: we have an underrated best friends to lover trope. And so well done, I must say. The author went beyond saying "hey, we're best friends" but actually showed it throughout the story with little gestures. Even though it felt a bit like watching a movie, I still believed Julie and Gavin 100% and their chemistry and camaraderie were on point. And, oh, the slow burn! Almost killed me.
I also found small details that made me like and enjoy this story even more. Like there's diversity, the lack of toxic relationship and fragile masculinity or the fact that both characters take time to speak about their concerns and show their feelings (even though there's a bit of drama, but that's to be expected).
All in all, I recommend this a lot. It was sweet, funny, cozy, warm and with the right amount of hotness too.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Gavin and Julie have been best friends since they were toddlers. Despite their efforts to convince their parents that they would never be more than friends, their parents have continued to try to push them to be a couple.

After returning to their hometown for the Christmas holidays, they are both surprised to find out that their parents have set Julie up on a blind date with the son of friends. Reeling from a recent bad break-up, Julie is on board with the date, but Gavin is surprised to find himself jealous and upset about it.

Gavin and Julie begin to realize that they have feelings for each other that they had been unwilling to acknowledge in the past. Will they acknowledge those feelings to one another and if so, can they make a long-distance relationship work?

Typically, give me a holiday romance or a sports romance and I'll fall in love with it - but putting the two together could be a recipe for success, except something about it just didn't work.

It was like what I loved about both of the cliche stories was gone. On one hand, the story felt too long and not so much of an easy read for a holiday romance, and then, because it was an NFL quarterback on break, the sports part of the story didn't live up to the hype either.

While there was nothing subjectively wrong with it, this wasn't the right book for me (despite the adorable cover) and it could've told the exact same story in half the space.