I was looking forward to reviewing this on my blog for the holiday season, but I can't in good conscience do that while the strike is ongoing. It's a shame that these authors will not get the promotion they deserve because of something that is out of their hands, but every day that the strike continues is another strike against HarperCollins and its reputation.

This was fantastic! It's everything you want in a good Hallmark Christmas movie but with the steam you're waiting for! I picked up the audio and it was so good.

The characters, the setting, the steam...all of it! I definitely recommend this...actually I already did...to my dermatologist the other day and I'm pretty sure she's planning on picking it up.

// ❄️⛄️🎄🎁

A Merry Little Meet Cute
By Julie Murphy & Serra Simone

When I saw this cover and read the synopsis of this novel, I knew that I had to read it. A spiced up Christmas story with main characters that are bi-sexual, one is a porn star and the other is an ex-boy band member (think Harry Styles, major 1D vibes). The representation is real in this story; sex workers, mental health, LGBTQIA+, plus sized female lead, body and sex positive, and Jewish representation. Sign me up!

Bee Hobbes (Bianca Von Honey) is a porn star and top influencer on ClosedDoors (platform like OF). When a last minute accident happens days before a Hopeflix’s Christmas movie (like Hallmark Channel) is to start filming, Bee is casted as the female lead by accident. She must keep her identity secret and be on her best behaviour to reach her job of acting. Nolan has a bad reputation from being in a former boy band, and needs to clean up his imagine so he is cast in the lead of a family Christmas movie, but when he finds out that his ultimate fantasy dream girl is his co-star…. will he be able to hold back? The chemistry and sexual tension between Bee and Nolan is amazing! I didn’t want to put the book down.

After reading this novel, I really am ready for some Hallmark channel Christmas movies and reading holiday smut this holiday season. This was truly an original idea and a story that I have never read before, it was so refreshing and I couldn’t put the novel down! This novel is not for the faint of heart in terms of graphic sexual content (open door romance). Don’t let the cover fool you, the smut is real in this novel. 🌶

I would like to thank HarperCollinsCanada and NetGalley for this Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review

Romance: ❤️❤️❤️❤️
Spice:🌶🌶🌶
Plot points: 💥💥💥💥
Stars: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

If you’re looking for the book version of a hallmark movie, this is not that book. But, if you a are looking for a book about a curvaceous porn star that accidentally gets cast in a hallmark like movie with a badboy bisexual former pop-star who unbeknownst to her is her number one subscriber then this is that book.

What I liked:
-body positivity
-sex positive
-diverse sexualities
-pro sex worker
-loving supportive families
-pro mental health

What I didn’t love:
- While a great deal of the characters are supportive of Bea’s porn career, it’s often talked about as a thing that’s fine but let’s not let people know about it. Nolan wants to keep their relationship a secret at first due to the purity clause in their contracts and then to protect his reputation and it was just disappointing.

Thank you NetGalley and Avon for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

My biggest compliment to this fun, off-the-wall rom com is it’s level of inclusivity. The authors did not shy away from anything. All of the characters were loving, supportive, and open minded. Having a plus size female, main character was a breath of fresh air. The fact that the storyline was sex positive was the icing on cake. Not to mention that the romance doors were blown straight off the hinges throughout this one. This was basically an LGBTQIA+ hallmark Christmas movie with a couples extra doses of smut. I loved each of the characters and definitely felt the chemistry between the two MCs. I highly recommend this one for some spicy holiday fun!

✨ Review ✨ A Merry Little Meet Cute by Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone

A porn star meets her boyband idol to costar in Hallmark Christmas Special. THIS WAS THE PERFECT BOOK SETUP AND I LIVE FOR IT.

Miscommunication reigns as Bee Hobbes (aka Bianca Von Honey) hides her youth obsession with former badboy boyband star Nolan Shaw, and Nolan hides his love for porn star Bianca Von Honey; and they both are hiding their deeper stories so as not to challenge this opportunity to move into mainstream acting to pay the bills.

Fat-body positive, and just an utter delight, I adored this book. It was everything I needed to get me out of a depressing sad book slump. And, unlike so many cheesy Christmas books, this one doesn't hesitate to bring the steam. I LOVED THIS BOOK.

Was it perfect? Probably not. But it hit just what I needed when I needed it, and I'll sing its praises.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: contemporary romance, f/m romance
Location: small Christmas town in the Northeast
Reminds me of: Rosie Danan's books
Pub Date: out now

Read this if you like:
⭕️ fat-positive / sex-positive romance
⭕️ gorgeously ridiculous plots
⭕️ Christmas romances with some steam
⭕️ 90s/00s boyband nostalgia

Thanks to Avon and #netgalley for an advanced e-copy of this book!

This was a great, cozy, sexy romance read. I love the characters and their banter. The premise is different and sexy and so fun! I wanted to visit the town and be friends with these characters. These bisexual messes were the best!

I'm on the fence about my rating for A Merry Little Meet Cute, but I think I've finally decided on 2.5 stars, rounded up. On the one hand, the story was unique, and the characters were interesting to read about. On the other hand, the story was far too long. I lost my momentum about halfway through, especially since I was already wondering to myself during the entire read, "how on earth would anyone in their right mind think they could get away with this?" It didn't help that I was excited to read this book because of the great reviews. Still, I also wasn't ready for the amount of spice in it and thought that (considering the title) the book might be a tad more on the cute side. So, if you love a book with some extra spice, "fat positivity" that is actually just repetitive reminders that the main character is plus size, and insta-love (I'm not a fan of this type of trope), then read up.

Thank you to NetGalley and publishers for access to this arc in exchange for an honest review.

A Merry Little Meet Cute is a holiday romance with extra spice! Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone gives readers a fun holiday and captivating romance.⁣
⁣
Bee is a plus size heroine who is adult film star. She is surprised when she gets cast as the lead in a Hallmark-y type movie. Although it's something new for her, she is up for the challenge. But she has to keep her adult name Bianca Von Honey a secret. Nolan, an ex-boy band star, is playing the male lead opposite Bee. From the moment they meet, their chemistry is through the roof. They have to keep things professional but it's proving to be tougher than expected.⁣
⁣
As Bee and Nolan spend time together on set, their attraction grows. One steamy night leads to another and another. And then they start to catch feelings for one another. But can they actually be a couple once they go out in the real world and escape their filming bubble?⁣
⁣
I'm telling you this is such a fun, romantic, and spicy holiday read. I expect nothing less from these two dynamic authors!

A Merry Little Meet Cute hit all the right spots. I mean that is every way you can interpret it.

This book was a Hallmark Christmas romcom with all the filth and fun of a Sierra Simone and Julie Murphy book. There's no higher praise than that.

An adorable very hot Christmas story about an ex-boyband member and a plus sized porn star who film a Hallmark channel movie.

Yeah that's it.
I am giving it four stars because this feels like watered down Sierra Simone. I was expecting a little more fire. I'm guessing the casual romance reader will think this is too sexy.

I really, truly hated this book. Bee isn't a full character. She's just a new spin on the old trope that fat girls put out but it's sex-positive because she likes the attention. Except it's not because that's exactly why the trope exists. Fat girls are supposed to enjoy any sexual attention they get because no one could like them otherwise. And we're not given a chance to like her otherwise because she has no real personality other than good to go.

And Nolan? I am absolutely furious that this character was allowed to exist and we're not supposed to view him as a villain. He never viewed her as a human. Having a little porn crush is creepy as hell. Not telling her immediately that he's seen her naked? CREEPY. And she's like oh wow he wanted me? Fat girls put out stereotype.

This book sucked and I am mad I finished it.

This was a very atmospheric holiday romance with a unique premise, one you probably have not seen a Hallmark movie of! It was fun getting to see the behind the scenes of the making of a Christmas movie, and the two authors wrote so flawlessly together that I couldn't tell it was two different authors writing. I loved the plus size representation. I just wish the book hadn't focused so much on the physical relationship between the two characters to the point that it didn't leave much room for romance and for them to get to know each other as people first. But those looking for a spicier holiday romance will enjoy this thoroughly!

The queen of spice with the queen of inclusive, plus size romance? WHEW, I knew this would be good. I will always cherish and prioritize any story with characters that look like me who just get to be LOVED. No if ands or buts about it. Julie Murphy gets it. She knows how to write a plus sized character and knows how to write a man who will love them properly. And Miss Simone? That woman knows how to write spice. This was a great crossover novel and I hope they write more together in the future!


Thank you #netgalley for an early read of #AMerryLittleMeetCute in exchange for my honest review

Don’t let that cute cover fool you- this is a very steamy read. It’s a fun Christmas rom com that stars an adult film star who gets cast as the lead in a Hallmark-ish holiday movie. She’s starring opposite her favorite former boy band lead singer who’s trying to repair his bad boy image. This kept me smiling and I really appreciated the positive representation of so much (anxiety, sexuality, bipolar, pornography).

I really enjoyed it. i listened to the audio and thought the dual narrators did a great job.

Thanks to the publisher for a complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.

This novel is sure to warm you up on those chilly winter nights! Bee and Nolan are paired up last minute to star in a holiday romance. A clean holiday romance. With Bees career as an adult entertainment star and Nolan’s reputation as the bad boy, the sparks and chemistry fly off the page.

Such a steamy and cute holiday book! I hope there’s more to come from this writing duo. Sex positive and body positive win!

Super cute story by Julie Murphy. I love her writing and this one did not disappoint. Perfect for the upcoming holiday season.

I’m bored. I love Julie Murphy but this one is not gripping me as I thought it would. It’s also a bit too long and repetitive in some spots. I was very interested in this one because it was something different but it didn’t do it for me. I love the plus size protagonist but I wish it was made known she was plus sized and then let go. The constant reminders make me not feel so good when reading it. Why can’t she just be a sexy woman who happens to be plus sized. I will continue to read books by Julie Murphy though. I love her writing and characters.

This book had no reason to be 400+ pages. I was starting to struggle to make it through this one.

The story itself moves along very very slowly and I felt that nothing really major or shocking happened that would keep my interest.

I loved Bee Hobbes as a character and loved all the body positivity and inclusivity within the story! This was definitely the best part!

I felt that having the authors Sierra Simone (author of Priest) AND Julia Murphy (author of If The Shoe Fits) duo this together actually worked well with balancing out the spicy and the cute and cozy side of the story!

I found the spice level to actually be very tame and well balanced in this one, compared to say, Tessa Bailey books. There are mentions of porn and sex toys , although, nothing descriptive regarding those two topics. There are 2-3 descriptive sex scenes though between the love interest.

Definitely don’t go into this one thinking it’s a fully closed door, clean and cutesy Christmas read but if you don’t mind / enjoy a little spice in your reads, then this one was a-o-k.