Unfortunately the book didn’t hold my attention and I had to force myself to finish the book. The characters felt to immature and cringey. The story line had so much potential but the execution wasn’t carried out properly.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Sadly I did not get the chance to access this one before it came out, BUT I loved it. It read like a Beth O'Leary book, which I feel like is SUPER high praise. I loved the idea of the intersecting story lines with the one center point being the Groom.
I loved this book for what it was, and I will definitely be looking more into Donna Schwartze books after powering through this one.
Thank you so much to Net Galle, Donna Schwartze, and the publishing company behind this title.

4.5⭐
Genre ~ Holiday fiction
Series ~ Blitzen Bay #1
Setting ~ California
Publication date ~ August 6, 2021
Page Count ~ 266 (39 chapters + 3 e’s)
Audio length ~ 5 hours 58 minutes
Narrators ~ Stella Hunter, Robert Hatchet
POV ~ dual 1st
Featuring ~ college student, ex military, small town, no steamage

Noelle (23) & Nash (27)
Noelle is having second thoughts about marrying Steve, so with only 25 minutes before the ceremony she hightailed it outta there, vial flying and right in the back of Nash’s truck. With barely a second guess he drives her away and to the quaint town of Blitzen Bay.

I am not even a super big fan of Christmas, but I totally want to visit Blitzen Bay. What an adorable sounding small town. It does take place during Christmas week, but it’s not overly Christmasy. My only gripe is that I don’t love when Christmas sounding names are in my Christmas books, ie: Noelle & Holly.

Overall, this was super adorable. A bit of slow burn, but not really. You’ll just have to read it to see what I mean.

"The Runaway Bride of Blitzen Bay" is an enchanting holiday romance, and I'm excited to delve into more of this author's works. The story revolves around Noelle, on the verge of marrying her fiancé during Christmas, as doubts about their relationship start to cloud her mind. In a spur-of-the-moment decision, she flees the wedding, finding refuge with Nash, her fiancé's former high school friend. As Noelle spends time in Nash's village, she not only rediscovers herself but also unravels the true essence of love.

The book captivated me with its entertaining characters and engaging narrative. I particularly enjoyed the bond between Noelle and Kit, hoping to see more of them in the author's other books. The protective male trope portrayed in Nash was something I found appealing.

Omg I loved this. It was so sweet and I couldn't stop reading! Beautiful stuff. Will definitely re read this in the future

A Massive Thank You to the Author, the Publisher and NetGalley for giving me the chance to read and review this book prior to its release date.

I loved Noelle and Nash, their story was a perfect sweet and heartwarming holiday romance. Noelle, a runaway bride, and Nash the one who helped her get away, formed a great friendship during her time in Blitzen Bay and I loved watching them fall in love!

I really struggled to get into the book and the characters. Because it takes so long for the main characters to meet it didn't hold my investment. Also the MMC seems to hate the FMC without even knowing her, like I always hate a judgey character. I ended up dnf'ing the book at 20% as they hadn't interconnected yet and tbh the writing was a little lack luster in this book to keep me from reading on.

4.5 This was such a cute holiday rom com and I cannot wait to pick up more from this author. This story follows Noelle right before she gets married to his fiancé near Christmas. Noelle starts to have some doubts about their relationship and decides to flee leaving the groom at the alter. Noelle sneaks out with Nash her fiancés teammate from high school. Nash takes Noelle back to his village so she can hide out and get her mind straight.while their Noelle not only discovers herself but what love actually feels like.

I loved this book the characters were fun and entertaining and the writing kept me engaged throughout. I really enjoyed the relationship between Noelle and Kit and hope they are in some of the other books by this author. I am a sucker for protective male tropes and this one kind of falls into that one which I enjoyed. I would like to thank Netgalley and the publishers for a chance to read this book for an honest review.

A cute Hallmark-like runaway bride story that had the bones to be great but was too unrealistic and fast-paced.

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

4.5 stars. Thank you to Netgalley and Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for this e-Arc. I loved, loved this book and I love this author Im so glad I came across her books. This is the second book I read by her and they are such easy reads they just flow into each other and the characters are sarcastic and sassy and full of life which is so enjoyable.

Thrilling read! I was able to connect with all of the characters and throughly enjoyed the story the author painted.

I would like to thank netgalley and Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for a free copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Enjoyable, cosy Christmas town with loveable characters.

The Runaway Bride of Blitzen Bay is the start of a new series by Donna Schwartze. I devoured the Grand Slam trilogy - Truth or Tequila, Raine Out and Leave It On The Field in less than a month's time and couldn't wait to read more books by this author! In this book we meet Noelle who on the day of her wedding realizes she is making a huge mistake and decides to run away. She hides - wedding dress and all - in the back of a pickup truck belonging to Nash. He brings her to Blitzen Bay. The town of Blitzen Bay is just the perfect town in my opinion. Especially at Christmas! You will fall in love with the characters and want to read what comes next! So glad I discovered this author!

The Runaway Bride of Blitzen Bay by Donna Schwartze is a sweet romantic story set at Christmas time.

Eventhough this is a little bit like a Hallmark movie, it gives us two lovely and relatable characters that come together in this charming opposites attract romantic comedy.

The author give readers enough time to get to know the main characters before they even meet, and they do in a charming way. Both of them are pleasant and likable but I just couldn't truly connect with them for some reason.

There were some persons who really grated on my nerves and who were really annoying and a bit stereotypical,

There is no spice so it is a good choice even for young readers and the holidays only add to the special moments.

I was ecstatic when I got The Runaway Bride of Blitzen Bay (Blitzen Bay series) by Donna Schwartze from the ARC book from netgalley. Now I’ve read every single book of Donna’s, as I absolutely adore her writing,characters and world building. So much love goes into it, and over time I really feel like I've connected with the fabulous gang for more laughter and action.

"𝙔𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚'𝙨 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙛𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙩," 𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙖𝙨 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙗𝙤𝙙𝙮 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙨 𝙖𝙜𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙨𝙩 𝙢𝙮 𝙠𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙨." 𝙄𝙩'𝙨 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙗𝙚𝙜𝙞𝙣𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜."

We are introduced to new characters in this book, the first one being Noelle Ivy Clark. Noelle is amazing, let's just say she knows how to make an exit from the wedding walkway, laughing out loud. This is were introduced to the amazing and sweet Nash Young, who is  retired from the Military. If you're thinking does he know them characters from the Military, the answer would be yes. This book was so wonderfully done, I loved that the book is Noelle and Nash POVs. I love reading different characters' point of views, as you get the story from both sides and make it that more exciting. There are very sweet characters introduced and of course some not so good. So many amazing scenes  in this read. Also happy and sad tearful moments. I wish blitzen Bay was a real place that sounds absolutely magical and a calming place. 

"𝙄 𝙪𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙢𝙮 𝙢𝙞𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣, 𝙢𝙖'𝙖𝙢".
"𝙍𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙖𝙡𝙠. 𝙃𝙢𝙢, 𝙄 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠 𝙮𝙤𝙪'𝙧𝙚 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙣 𝙪𝙥 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙚 𝙖 𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙩𝙡𝙚 𝙗𝙞𝙩."

Donna’s done it yet again, I didn't want to read this too fast, as I didnt want it to be over. But of course I failed, once I started that was in it I was in their world. That's what is so incredible about this series, it's like my happy place to escape for a few hours. It's fast paced and has the most heart melting romance that will leave you giddy. If you haven't read any of Donna's books I can't recommend them enough, they are absolutely phenomenal read.

On Noelle's wedding day, she realizes she isn't ready for the leap into the wife life. She's second guessing her relationship with her fiance Steve and wonders why she's been ignoring her gut for the past few months. I don't think it helps that both Noelle's and Steve's parents seem like the worst - so overbearing and demanding. She ends up running out of the venue and escaping via truck bed of a guy who Steve went to high school with.

Enter the driver of said truck, Nash. He is a veteran who lives in a small town nearby, Blitzen Bay. He agrees to drive the getaway car and Noelle decides to stick around Blitzen Bay to give herself a few days to decide what she wants and figure out if she even wants a future with Steve.

The people of Blitzen Bay are the sweetest and Nash is a great match for Noelle, even if she's not 100% sure if she's ready to move on. I loved their story. It was such a comforting read and gave me all of the Hallmark vibes. This was a pretty quick read and I highly recommend it.

Thank you to Donna Schwartze, NetGalley, and Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The start was really intriguing and interesting however, after those parts everything went downhill.

I just couldn't connect with the characters anymore as well as the plot and found it a little bit too quick at all.


*Thank you Netgalley for the e-arc.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read a copy of "The Runaway Bride of Blitzen Bay" by Donna Schwartze!

This novel centers around Noelle, who is scheduled to get married in 3 days. It should be the happiest time of her life, however, she can't help but to feel that her mother wants the wedding to happen even more than she does, and this leaves an unsettled feeling in her stomach. She doesn't want to end up marrying the wrong person.

30 minutes before the wedding begins, Nash the retired military vet arrives and becomes her getaway driver as well as her rescuer. This was a romantic comedy that I thoroughly enjoyed! I was very pleased that there was no spice because sometimes an abundance of that can make me feel uncomfortable.

Overall, I rated this novel a 4/5 stars!

This first story in the Blitzen Bay series did not disappoint! I love stories where the universe has brought people together in strange but purposeful ways. The Runaway Bride of Blitzen Bay was a story full of laughs, twists and turns, and fantastic dialogue between Noelle and Nash. I look forward to the rest of the Blitzen Bay series to come out!