Disclaimer: I received an eBook copy of this book from NetGalley to read and review.

My Friends! Bust out your hot chocolate, light that crackling fire (or flip a switch if you are like me and have a fake fireplace), and snuggle up with your coziest blanket - because if you are like me, you may find yourself power-reading through this book!

Reading like a cross between a Debbie Macomber Christmas story and a hallmark channel movie - dashed in with some SPICE, you are sure to love this book as much as I did.

Layla is a hard-working and fiercely loyal woman to her company and her employees. Wanting nothing more than to see her company flourish and grow after years of mismanagement she finds herself sharing the reins with Mason Klaus - whom she would like nothing more than to shove in front of a bus. Klaus, the human form of the Grinch and Scrooge reincarnate appears to want nothing more than to make her miserable.

After a series of events both comical and eye-rolling Layla finds herself on a journey beyond her wildest imagination that leaves her wondering if maybe Mr. Grinch actually does have a heart - and maybe she can be his Cindy Lou-Who.

I found myself enjoying this book quite a bit, and highly recommend it for a light/fast seasonal read to get you into the Holiday spirit!

Reading this book at the beginning of November was so weird for me since as much as I love Christmas I prefer beginning traditions at the beginning of December. This book felt like a true hallmark movie. Enemies to lovers, Christmas Vibes, CEO vs CEO, Fake marriage. Folklore. Mild mature content. Yet it was better than a Hallmark movie, and it wasn't super cheesy.

Overall, I rated this book 3.5/5.

I enjoyed the plot, the writing style was easy to follow, and both covers were cute. My main issues come from Lyla being unsurprised by things, such as when she enters a winter wonderland and isn't very shocked. It was just overall unrealistic with her character not reacting to all these weird things going on around her. The romance build-up fell flat for me because it happened and I didn't feel immediately excited for the couple. I almost expected a bit more spice from a romance book, but that is just how I feel.

This book needed an epilogue, as stated in the description it is a HEA. But at the end of the book, I wanted to see the couple happy and needed a little more.

Kevin was my fav, I needed more of him.

Some of my favourites quotes “‘If he wants a fiancée, then that’s exactly what I’ll give him. A perfect, doting fiancée...... It’ll drive him crazy.”

“‘If you told me a week ago that I’d be putting bruises on your knees, I wouldn’t have believed it.’”

I received this ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

— workplace rivals
— fake dating/engagement
— small town vibes
— ✨magic✨


i completely flew through this book; such a quick and easy read! definitely give it a shot if you’re in a reading slump because it might get you out of it.

the little bits of magic was so fun, and i kept imagining the town of yule as the town in the movie fred claus which really added to my personal reading experience.

the fake dating trope will always have my heart <3 and this version of the trope was different than others that i’ve read before (due to the ✨magic✨), so that was really fun!

i’ll be checking out more of kate callaghan’s books in the future :)


*thank you to netgalley and kate callaghan for sending my this eARC in exchange for an honest review!*

The Naughty or Nice Clause is a traditional and surprisingly sweet Christmas romance. While it follows the typical formula of most Christmas books, you are looking for something to get you get you in the holiday spirit, this book is a good start.

This book was a fun way to kick off the holiday season. Enemies to lovers, fake dating, AND Christmas, yes please!

My favorite part of the book was the setting of Yule and how it was described in the book. I could easily picture this quaint, snowy Christmas village and it was pure winter wonderland. That’s exactly what I’m looking for in a Christmas book. I also loved Mason’s family, especially his younger brother Kevin. The twist on Santa Claus and Christmas magic was cute and very creative.

The main characters were fine, but a little underdeveloped. They didn’t seem to have much chemistry, but I did like how their relationship progressed and how she helped him work through his return home and grief for this father. The romance is a slow burn with just a tiny bit of spice. I feel like the ending was a bit rushed, but I did like the ending and thought it was a great compromise (it’s still a HEA).

The book is only a couple hundred pages, so it’s a quick read and a great way to get into the holiday spirit!

🎄The Naughty or Nice Clause🎄

Rating: 3.5/5⭐️

I think this book was a really cute fun read. I loved that Lyla and Mason bickered all the time! They had such amazing banter it was just really fun to read. I loved that Lyla is this huge Christmas fanatic and Mason is ironically against celebrating Christmas. We get enemies to lovers, fake dating and just a good Christmas romance!

There were a couple things that bothered me when I read this. One, when and how Lyla gets to Mason’s village should have freaked her out way more than it did. She was over it really fast and just accepted everything without a freak out. Also Lyla and Mason would switch from a heated fight to being happy like really fast. Gave me some whiplash there. Other than that it was a really good book that I finished really fast!

Reading a Christmas story with a little bit of angst was a refreshing palate cleanser from the typical sugary-sweet Christmas rom-coms that are prevalent right now. Kate did a great job of drawing you right into the story, and developing both main characters as well as their relationship. Through her descriptive writing, I was able to picture Yule in all its glory as well as Mason's family. I appreciated that Lyla didn't immediately give up who she was in deference to Mason, and that they both fought to choose one another.

l read this book in one sitting because I didn't want to put it down!

I just reviewed The Naughty Or Nice Clause by Kate Callaghan. #TheNaughtyOrNiceClause #NetGalley

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. It is an enemies to lovers romance with a few twists and some Christmas magic added to make it even more entertaining and riveting. This book does include toy makers, though the two CEOs, Mason Klaus and Lyla Smurfit, are usually bickering and at odds. These two enemies seem to enjoy bickering and fighting for control, but one night changes everything between them. A Christmas party that wasn’t meant to happen at their workplace, leads to Lyla discovering a drunken Mason in his office obviously upset over some news he has just received. Lyla finds herself in the uncomfortable position of showing some compassion for the man she has always thought of as her enemy. She makes sure to escort him home while having someone else lock up the office after the party. Her good deed does not go unpunished as a rather irate and very irritating Mason shows up very early the next morning at her home, ranting about the damage her off the cuff party lead to and that she owed him. The next thing she knows, Lyla is in a winter wonderland, in her pajamas and robe with her feet bare once again. It is there, she discovers that there is much more to Mason Klaus that she has ever thought. The legend, his family, and the work done at the North Pole are all revealed with a few intriguing twists.. However, the heart of the story is the slowly blossoming romance between Lyla and Mason as she helps him deal with the family he distanced himself from, his legacy and his feelings about the rift he didn’t try to heal before now. They face some opposition, his sneaky ex and their lie about being engaged being discovered as they pitch in to help with the Christmas rush. All in all, this story is a rather intriguing and delightful read.

I received an ARC of this book via NetGalley and I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

I

THE NAUGHTY OR NICE CLAUSE is a Christmas-themed story where Lyla is co-CEO of her family's toy company alongside an investor meant to return the company from the brink of bankruptcy, Mason Klaus. When Mason cancels the annual Christmas party, Lyla throws it anyways with the night ending in disaster. As a compromise to her culpability in this situation, Mason invites Lyla to join him with his family for the 12 days of Christmas holiday. Mason hasn't been fully honest about his family dynamic as Lyla finds herself being introduced as his fiancée.

I found THE NAUGHTY OR NICE CLAUSE to check off the Hallmark holiday vibes quite easily as there's a palpable sense of magic and wonder that Christmas can bring; but the romance aspect was a bit lacking in my opinion. The main characters, Lyla and Mason, are overall likeable, but they don't have much, if any, chemistry to speak of unfortunately. I enjoyed the dynamic between the members of the Klaus family and the overall story set in the secret village of Yule.

I found it difficult to enjoy the writing style Kate used; the novel is told in the third person and I found this to be distracting as well as contributing a stilted delivery of the story. I think the storyline would have benefited from being told in the viewpoint of either main character to make it more personable.

This is a quick, cute, cozy and relatively light-hearted read.

<i>I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher, CallaghanWriter (Independent Book Publishers Association), of this advanced digital copy for the opportunity to read this novel in exchange for an honest review! All opinions shared are my own.</i>

A fun wintery read that will give you all the feels. I enjoyed the story and the fun characters! A sweet Christmassy book to curl up to and enjoy!

Song: all I want for Christmas is you

🎅 summary: Lyla loves Christmas. Everything to do with Christmas, which is what makes her the perfect boss of a toy company. Only her co-owner Mason is a major grinch about the whole Christmas season. When Mason receives a surprise letter from home, he must return for the holidays, but he plans to bring Lyla with him. Lyla is in for the shock of her life when she realizes that Mason Klaus is not the grinch she thought.

🎅 recommend to:
- holiday rom com lovers
-someone looking for some holiday spirit
- fans of the Santa Claus 2

🎅 my thoughts: this was a cute read! I think it’s perfect for right around the holidays and definitely something to add to your list to read by the Christmas tree. I wasn’t expecting the whole North Pole vibe but I think it was a cute twist!

Fantasy + Christmas + enemies to lovers + forced proximity = ONE HAPPY LAURA

Wow. What a great book this was. I finished this book in about four hours as I couldn't bring myself to stop reading. It was amazing. It really brought out the magic of Christmas.

It was the perfect combination for the holidays. Lyla and Mason's relationship was fun, and adorable. It has all the tells of a classic festive Hallmark story, but better.

I'll also be post reviews on my Instagram account at @blondesbooknook

Many thanks to NetGalley for sharing this amazing digital reviewer copy with me in exchange for my opinion.

Oh my god this book was so cute! I was so pleasantly surprised by this one. The world Kate Callaghan created really felt like a Christmas wonderland. I love how both Mason and Kevin opened up over time and seeing all the characters grew with each other over the 12 days. The perfect holiday read!

After Lyla’s father retires as CEO of the toy company the family runs, she believes that she is next in line to take it over. Instead, she learns that it has gone to Mason Klaus. Now Lyla’s had to run the company with him, even though they both can’t stand each other.

It is never to early for Christmas books, or movies, for me so I was very eager to jump into this book.

Besides it being a Christmas book this is filled with some of my favorite tropes: enemies to lovers, fake dating and forced proximity.

The only problem with this is that I had a problem liking Lyla. I never really got why she hated Klaus & then she flip flopped between her feelings after accepting that she really did like him.

(Disclaimer: I received a free digital ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.)

If you love Hallmark movies this book is for you!! I felt like I was in this book! You feel like part of the family and the magic of it. I blew through this book. The main characters Mason and Lyla was so enjoyable. They had the enemies to lovers situation going for them. I just wished there was more in the end. I would have liked to seen where they went further in the future but no matter what it was a good ending. I highly recommend this book!! Thanks for letting me read this in advanced. It was a honor to read it.

This is the perfect Christmas story with a grumpy-Sunshine, enemies-to-lovers romance. This book has all the drama and magic you could want in a Santa Claus, north Pole, Grinch story. Perfect read to snuggle in with a cup of cocoa (this story will make you crave some) by a warm fire. I am voluntarily posting an honest review after reading an Advance Reader Copy of this story.

Before posting my review I just want to thank NetGalley for the advanced copy!

I want to give this book 5 stars, but I am only able to give 4. The first 2ish chapters and the last 2 just felt so rushed and fell a bit flat. However! The rest of this book is absolutely amazing! This is a perfect example of grumpy sunshine or in this case Scrooge and sunshine. Lyla and Mason are just so perfect for each other.

This was a book were I was squealing with glee many times and in love over some of the cute moments. The spice level of this book is I would say 2/5 and I really wish there was more because Mason was drool worthy! This was such a cute Christmas book and it has definitely got me in the mood for the season!

This is a satisfying sexy Christmas read with a touch of fantasy. I liked it well enough, the romance wasn't really there enough for me. The writing is good but very script like, a lot of telling and not enough showing.

Thank you to NetGalley and CallaghanWriter for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Definitely put a bit of Christmas in me, I was feeling a bit of a grinch this year. Could have use a bit more pages to the ending. The ending felt a bit rushed and scrambled. Also a bit more of explanation to the time in the story, like when they travelled the first time it was morning then they arrived and went to sleep. A bit confusing at first.
It has the beginning of a good enemies to lovers romance. I enjoyed reading.

“The Naughty or Nice Clause” is a slow burn, enemies to lovers, fantasy romance just in time for Christmas.

While I could have used a bit more world building and fleshing out of the characters, I still enjoyed this sweet, quick read.

If you’re looking for a quick Christmas fantasy, this may be the book for you!