while i was reading, i loved it! pearl is by far one of my favourite characters i have ever read in any novel. she’s so funny and blunt that everything she says, we know it’s true! one thing that i would have to say is that there is quite a few typo/grammar errors but other than that, this is well written! should not be categorized as a mystery because that only takes up about one fifth of the actual novel but overall, it made me feel all the emotions the author portrayed in this novel, so i rated it 4/5⭐️

This is a nice little novel, unfortunately I did not have the chance to read the previous "Adventure Club" book in the series.

However, you have two elderly roommates, that are "hobby sleuths" - especially Pearl is a pistol, while Sally is more the quiet and sweet one.

They are visiting their friend Mike, who is the former FBI agent and newest Police Chief of a little "Christmas Town" community in snowy Oregon, nestled in the mountains.
You may also call it a "Classic Tourist Town" - at least around Christmas time.

Our duo is winning a baking contest, since they had to replace a team, and their hotel gets flooded.

So the ladies are moving into Mike's home to spend the holidays - and Sally's kids are trying to make it to them, to spend the Christmas Holidays.

There's quiet a crew of characters, that live in the snowy town and we get to know some of them.
We also have the "old money" tyrant, who seems to want to rule over the town, and claims she's got attacked...

Happenings are running hot, and our ladies are constantly busy to rescue Christmas - especially since a blizzard seems to linger on the Horizon...

Will Sally's Family make it to their goal, or will Sally, Pearl and Mike be alone on Christmas ?

To find out, you need to read this book !

This was my first book that I’ve read from this author. I was given this ARC from NetGalley and truly appreciate this. I found from the very beginning that it was a part of the series. While most books don’t require you to read in order for cozy mystery style books, I would have benefitted from some more reference of the characters. I may go back and read the first book.

This book had good parts. I really enjoyed the writing style. However, the content of the book was very slow and it took a long time for anything to really happen and progress. I think as this series develops, it will get better but this was easy enough to get through but not the best cozy mystery style I’ve read in the past.

Even though there are parts that lag and some of the dialogue seemed forced, I would recommend the book because aside from dialogue the author did at least keep the words on the page moving, the plot didn’t move but the pages did if that makes sense. Again, I want to see more from this author.

Cover: 5⭐
Setting: 4.5⭐
Pearl and Sally: loved them

Fans of light mystery (and women's fiction with a slow burn romance) will enjoy this book. Ultimately, it was a little slow and the author did a lot of telling, instead of showing. I almost felt like I was reading a TV show at times. Side note: this would be such a fun series!

The plot is there, the characters are there, but somehow it just didn't hook me. I wanted more from the mystery and more from the developing relationship between Mike and Sally.

Sally and Pearl are best friends that have recently moved in together. When Sally's adult children can't be with her at Christmas, she feels a little lost and down. Her friend Mike suggests they come visit him for Christmas, in a gorgeous scenic mountain town known for their Christmas cheer.

Can Sally and Pearl rediscover Christmas while coming to terms with their new realities? Will Sally drop her guard and see Mike as more than a friend?

When the town busybody thinks someone is out.to.kill her, Sally and Pearl decide to help get to the bottom of it! Is Birdie just overreacting? Or is there something going on?

This was fun to read around Christmas time and I did love the characters, they were just missing that extra something that would have really made them stand out.








Thank you to netgalley for an eARC to review.

Golden Girls meet Thelma and Louise set in an over the top Christmas City destination with a snow storm and several attempted murders mystery. I loved both Pearl & Sally!
Thank you Open Sky Publishing & NetGalley for the ARC

I was sent a copy of Christmas, Cabernet, and Chaos. A Sally and Pearl Adventure, written by Wendy Day from NetGalley, in return for my honest review. This is a story full of festive charm. It’s difficult not to feel Christmasey when reading this book. What better place to spend Christmas than at Mckenzie Bridge, Oregon – the Christmas Capital of the Northwest? From snow-capped pine trees to log cabins, open fires and Christmas sugar cookies.
The main characters, Pearl and Sally, are delightful characters and Pearl’s one-liners are hilarious. This is a cosy feelgood book which I enjoyed reading. However, I did think it was slow-moving, the actual mystery/who dunnit not really developing until halfway through the book. Had the story revolved more around the mystery and this developing much sooner, I would have given this a four/five star.

This book was adorable! Who wouldn't want to read about the Chaos that ensues when two senior ladies get together? I did not know there was a first book before reading this one, so I liked the flashbacks and look forward to going back to book 1 to learn more about Sally and Pearl!

What’s not to love about senior sleuths trying to solve a mystery that the police won’t. The tagline of Golden Girls meets Thelma and Louise does indeed. It was like reading Sophia trying to solve mystery.

If you’re looking for a book that feels like a Hallmark Christmas movie, then this is the book for you! If you are picking this up as a mystery, I would say you would be disappointed. I think they marketed this one in the wrong way, it was definitely more of a women's fiction than anything else. By the time there was a mystery for these crime solving best friends to investigate, the book was almost over, and the mystery itself was one tiny dud.

I think my favorite part about the entire book is Pearl. She’s funny, grumpy, and doesn’t have a filter. This book felt like a book version of GRACE AND FRANKIE so if you want to see two old crazy birds go on adventures, this one is for you!

First, the cover is adorable and I love it! But the story was a struggle for me.

At 25%, I thought these 2 MC's, Sally and Pearl, were pretty adorable. They were sassy and spunky and off to find an adventure at this random Christmas town in Oregon. At 50%, I was wonder what I was reading. The story did a good job, since it's #2, of catching me up on their previous hijinks and I was ready for those things to start. Instead I was getting a super light romance story and the appearance of a Christmas town that seemed completely unprepared for Christmas or visitors or snow. The mystery didn't start until 65% into the story and, by then, it felt like an after thought. It wasn't terribly compelling and seemed overshadowed by Sally's worry for her kids and her demands they attend the ONLY day she would accept to celebrate Christmas - the 25th.

Pearl was pretty obnoxious. By 50% of the story, she felt like a bobble head next to Sally that just seemed to kick out weird idioms and sayings like "this old dog just don't hunt" and other random quips that never seeemd appropriate and even confused her closest friend.

But most disappointing was Sally. Even though she knows a massive storm is hitting the town she's in, closing roads, bursting pipes, taking down trees - she's just adament with her kids that they make it to her no matter what. Who wants their kids to travel unsafe?

I'm sad this one was a miss for me. I like cozies but this one just wasn't for me.

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

This was a cute story. The older ladies managed to get quite a few things done in this small town in Oregon. A town that I actually camped in this year.

Are you a red or white wine drinker?

I love a good Cabernet and was excited to get Christmas, Cabernet, and Chaos by Wendy Day.

Pearl and Sally are best friends that find themselves finding adventure wherever they go!

I wanted to love this one but it fell short. The characters were definitely quirky, which I really enjoyed however I didn’t really connect with them. I was also bored a few times while reading and was glad that the book was short.

I didn’t realize this was a sequel. The author did an excellent job filling you in about the last book!

Thank you NetGalley, Open Sky Publishing and Wendy Day for this advanced copy in exchange for my honesty review.

2.5 stars rounded up

I was excited for this one because the first one was like Golden Girls, Killers of a Certain Age, and maybe Thelma and Louise too, all thrown together. It was a fun and funny read. This one dragged for me. The same jokes and situations were repeated - and they weren't as funny the second time. If you enjoy books about sassy, vivacious, elderly women then I highly recommend the first one.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book ahead of publication. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

Good premise and fairly funny. I could not get into the writing. It felt forced, maybe redundant. Not awful but not enough to keep my interest

This cozy mystery was a nice little read. It followed two BFFs that can't stay out of trouble - not that they tried!

Parts were very entertaining, and made me laugh. Parts made me wistful for the friendship in these pages. A friendship like this one is a treasure, for sure!

I leave this read entertained and happy I requested this free ARC from NetGalley.
I voluntarily leave my review, and thank Wendy Day, Open Sky Publishing and NetGalley for the read.

When Sally learns that she won’t have any family around on Christmas, she’s devastated. That’s until her crush turned friend, Mike, invites her to visit him in McKenzie Bridge. Delighted by the invite, Sally drags Pearl all the way over to the small town that takes Christmas to the next level. Pearl doesn’t have an ounce of the Christmas spirit in her, but Sally sure does, so it’s a Christmas miracle when they find themselves getting more and more involved in the small town’s holiday snafus.

If you’re looking for a book that feels like a Hallmark Christmas movie wrapped up in a neat book cover, then this is the book for you! It’s bursting from the seams with Christmas cheer complete with a Christmas miracle. I was excited to start this book thinking it was a holiday cozy mystery, but quickly discovered it’s certainly cozy, but where was the mystery? Well, without spoiling anything, there was hardly anything mysterious going on. By the time there was a mystery for these crime solving best friends to investigate, the book was almost over, and the mystery itself was one tiny dud.

I think my favorite part about the entire book is Pearl. She’s funny, grumpy, and doesn’t have a filter. We follow Sally and Pearl, but I really enjoyed following Pearl the most. I also like the small town Christmas vibes, and the book itself made me feel like I was reading a cozy holiday Hallmark movie turned into a book. There’s also a good cast of core characters, and the book itself is pretty well written. I just wish it wasn’t presented as a cozy mystery because it certainly was not. I spent a portion of the book wondering what it was trying to be because it was drawing too many things in at the same time. We’ve got a cozy holiday, a baking contest, a light holiday romance, a tiny dud of a mystery, and a few Christmas miracles all wrapped into one cute read. I kept wondering where the mystery was even as the small mystery was happening.

I’m rating this as a cozy mystery because this is what it was presented as, and so it’s a solid 2.5 stars out of 5 stars. However, I do think it’s a cute and fun read on top of being well written, so it would’ve gotten a higher rating if it was presented as contemporary or women’s fiction.

The synopsis for this book says: “Golden Girls meets Thelma and Louise”. I would call this “Golden Girls meets The Thursday Murder Club inside a Hallmark movie”. The “golden girls” are Pearl and Sally. This is the second book in a series and it’s pretty short, almost a novella, but it contains long passages to catch the reader up with the events from the first book. Everything that happens in this book is highly predictable and the plot lacks in originality. However, the characters of Pearl and Sally are likeable, and the secondary characters, like sheriff Mike (Sally’s love interest) is nice too. Everyone is nice in this book. Even the mystery is light and shallow. An average Christmas read. Another one this month, omg! 🤦🏻‍♀️ Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest opinion. 🎅

hyped as Golden Girls meets Thelma and Louise. Ok, I really liked the sound of this one, and picked it up looking for a light and fun Christmas caper. It does have echo of this, but after awhile some of the banter felt like scratching a chalkboard. Sorry, might just be me. Also, this is the first I've read in the series, so that is my fault, but the many references to their past crime solving did nothing for me. If you've read others in the series and liked them, you will like this one. In that case I would recommend.

Christmas, Cabernet and Chaos by Wendy Day is delightfully entertaining! You gotta love Pearl’s wit and Sally’s kindness.
They are two smart, witty, loving and kind best friends who travels for Christmas at McKenzie Bridge, a small town full of the season’s magic, but they got chaos and mysteries along the way, and the chance to make new friends and change someone’s life for the better.

Christmas, Cabernet and Chaos por Wendy Day es una historia entretenidísima! Te van a gustar el ingenio de Pearl y la gentileza de Sally.
Son dos amigas, inteligentes e ingeniosas que viajan a McKenzie Bridge, un pueblo pequeño repleto de la magia de la temporada, a pasar las fiestas de Navidad después de que los planes navideños de Sally se van por la borda. Se ven rodeadas por misterios y caos, pero también encuentran la forma de ayudar.

Two women, a mystery and Christmas, what is there not to like about this book. It is part of a series but I haven't as yet read any of the other books. 4 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and publisher for this ARC