Thank you Atria and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review! Tessa Bailey is my favorite author which comes as no surprise - so this ARC was such a treat to receive. It was a fun and different story for her, but not my favorite. I wish it had been more holiday-y!

Love me anything Tessa Bailey! This was a fun & spicy holiday book. Fast paced too, which I really appreciated.

DNF - this was surprisingly heavy. blackmail?? it just didn't read like a sweet holiday romance. it just coudln't keep my interest or help me sink into the story

Wreck the Halls by Tessa Bailey is a cute holiday rom/com. First, I LOVE THIS AUTHOR! I will read anything she writes even a holiday book in the spring. While there is some holiday mention, it could pass as a winter read. This is an author you can rely on to deliver the steam in a romance and make you love the characters. I will always look forward to this author and her books!

It's been awhile since I've read this book but I know I really enjoyed it although it wasn't one of my favorites. I hope to be better about reading books when they are published and making sure to review them on netgalley when I finish them. Thank you for understanding.

Tessa Bailey is a reliable, good-time romance author, perfect for any reader who is willing to not take their fiction too seriously. This rom-com was a little too overstuffed for my taste, with too many characters and side plots; however, it was an overall good time!

I always expect to love a Tessa Bailey book but I cannot believe I loved this book as much as I did. It is a masterclass in pining and soulmates. These two characters are so absolutely meant to be with each other and it is a fantastic thing to read. Not only is this book laugh out loud funny, but every part is just masterfully crafted. Beat and Mel are characters I want to read about over and over again.

This was almost an amazing 5⭐️ read for me but the ending was a bit of a miss for me unfortunately.

I loved their connection! Beat is so protective of Melody, it's actually adorable and doesn't make me jealous at all! LOL. Their first meeting was so sweet but the way their friendship progresses throughout the book was so special and captivating. It's no wonder people were so enamored with them! I couldn't stop reading. I wish we had more of them.

I think Tessa just isn't for me- this was boring, cringey and not Christmasy at all. I should have paid more attention to the synopsis because I am not here for a girl wanting only one man when they met ONE TIME OVER A DECADE AGO. nope.

Parts of this book were great. I think Tessa either writes amazing or her characters can come off a little immature to me. This book has a little of both. Mostly I really enjoyed them and their dialogue. A few moments took me out of the story with the ending feeling so rushed. But overall I truly enjoyed this one.

It was…fine. Maybe I just don’t get the hype around her books, but this felt like it followed a specific set of guidelines instead of feeling organic. Their constant soulmates talk felt weird. I liked the idea of reuniting a band, but even that felt eh.

Wreck the Halls by Tessa Bailey was sweet and fun. It’s really not a Christmas book at all but rather an adventure for Beat and Melody to get their mothers’ band back together for a reunion show.

I adored Melody and thought she was so relatable, funny, and a person I would love to be friends with. She made the book shine.

I received a copy of this eBook from NetGalley in exchange of a honest review.

Wreck the Halls is the first Tessa Bailey book I’ve picked up in years, and while it got off to a solid start, in the end, it fell a bit flat for me. This story relies on the premise of two people meeting when they were teens one time, and then carrying a torch of sorts until they meet again into adulthood. Their mothers were part of a rock group that disbanded abruptly and have been living lives without contact ever since. But the fanbase is still rabid, and Melody and Beat have their own agendas for agreeing to a live tv show where they try to reunite their mothers for one last concert and to disclose what brought about their breakup.

From the get go, I bought the pining for each other. I’m not usually one given to the instalove plot, but I think it worked here, and I was on board for a Melody and Beat relationship from their first meeting. I thought their banter was so fun and cute, but by the end of the book, Beat’s protectiveness was starting to get on my nerves. I’m a fan of chivalry, but this was over the top even for me. Melody was my favorite of the two. I love a flirty heroine who is unsure of herself but manages to charm the hero nonetheless.  I didn’t think there was going to be much depth here, but I was pleasantly surprised. The familial relationships were complex in interesting ways that fit the plot. Melody’s relationship with her mother, Trina, was especially sad, and I kept wondering what was lying beneath it. And then there was the extra tidbits with secondary characters Danielle and Joe, part of the production team working with Melody and Beat. That extra was a lot of fun.

Here are the parts that didn’t work for me: Beat being so apologetic for being wealthy was a huge turn off. He wasn’t out spending money frivolously. (Though I wouldn’t have cared if he was; it was his family’s money.) He used his wealth to help with charities. Since the whole secondary storyline with him hinges on this (which I won’t spoil,) it fell flat for me. Also, this cover was misleading. Aside from the event reuniting their mothers taking place on Christmas Eve, there is very little Christmas anything in this story. If that’s what you’re looking for, give this one a pass. Finally, the consent issue. I am not the consent police. If an author makes me feel like both characters are into it, that works for me. Having said that, it is the author that sets the standard. And I find it interesting that while Tessa Bailey went to the effort of making Melody’s consent clear, when Beat said ‘no, please stop,’ she never slows or obtains clear consent. Melody just keeps going. And it left a bad taste in my mouth after the author went to such lengths of showing Melody’s.

While Wreck the Halls did have some parts that drew me in, in the end, it just didn’t work. If you’re a longtime fan of Tessa Bailey’s writing, you might like this. If not, I wouldn’t suggest starting here.

I received a copy of this eBook from NetGalley in exchange of a honest review.

I absolutely adored Melody! Beat was pretty great too but Melody was fantastic. So honest and personable, she had a shitty start to life but didn't let it get her down. Beat was way too hard on himself but together these two made magic happen. Their moms and their feud was an added bonus. Such great over the top personalities that were believable for rock stars. I loved that the villain got what was coming to him by these two strong protective mothers. I will reread this one!

Love this! I devoured this book in one sitting! Tessa Bailey rarely misses the mark and this one is no exception!

A few notes: This is not a Christmas book. The main characters are named Melody and Beat. If you can get past these two things this is a good book for you. I haven’t found a Tessa Bailey book that I’ve disliked.

Tessa Bailey just knows how to write a character that is obsessed with their woman, and Beat is OBSESSED with Melody. Tessa Bailey always slays a spicy scene and this book is no exception.
This book is not a Christmas/Holiday feely book, and I was okay with that. I really enjoyed reading this book, and I will always recommend a Tessa Bailey book.

I've read almost all of Tessa Bailey books and she rarely lets me down, but she did with this one. It's sweet, and I'm not sure if it's just the storyline I couldn't relate to or if I really just didn't care about Melody and Beat (I want to roll my eyes just typing their names), but I just couldn't get into it. It felt like a YA romance, but with adults. The whole premise was too outlandish.

This put me in the holiday season mood! A spicy romcom with Hallmark vibes, Wreck the Halls is another fun holiday story from Tessa.

Melody and Beat's mom's were the lead guitarist and singer of a famous band (yes, their names are not creative lol) that infamously broke up. Due to the rivalry, Melody and Beat don't meet until they're sixteen and bond over their unique position. Nonetheless, they don't meet again for fourteen years when tv comes calling with a seven-figure deal to reunite their moms for a Christmas Eve concert.

Despite the years apart, Melody sees how Beat needs the money, and recognizes it could give her financial independence from her mother, so agrees. For Beat, he needs to pay off a blackmailer who he's tried to keep away for five years and protect his family.

As they work together, despite it being the first time they ever truly got to talk and get to know each other, they immediately feel understood and like they met their other half. She may be an introverted book restoration specialist, and he may be the charming golden boy who helps run his mother's foundation, but it's clear to the viewers, their mothers, and them they have a connection. Unfortunately, with Beat's blackmailer hanging over his head, and a history in the public eye lacking privacy, they both try to to trust each other truly and openly.

Beat and Melody definitely make up for lost time and fall hard and fast for each other. While Beat is a simp who quickly makes Melody his world, he's also particular in the bedroom (and plane and gym...) as we learn.

Combined with fun side characters, music puns, shenanigans, and family revelations and growth, this is a cute and spicy short holiday read.

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon for an arc in exchange for an honest review!

Read for: star-crossed lovers, trust issues, protective & possessive, dirty talk, holiday story, cute nickname

3.75 stars
2.5 spice

Wreck the Halls is another book by a new to me author I wanted to try. There is something to be said about trying new authors, there's also something to be said about staying with the authors you are familiar with and enjoy. This was another author that a lot of people seem to like with a lot of reviews. If you're looking for a book that gives you Christmas vibes and you feel like you're wrapped in Christmas, this one isn't it. With that said, I thought the plot was lacking and by lacking, I mean almost nonexistent. What the author was trying to convey could have been made into about a 150 page, or less book. This had over 300. I think the author was trying to go for cute and clever, maybe, with the main characters names. Beat and Melody. You can draw your own conclusion with the names. Beat and Melody are the son and daughter of two big name singing stars who were pregnant at the same time. The band broke up and the two women have refused to speak to each other ever since. Beat is being blackmailed and each time he has to pay a higher fee to keep his mother's name from being smeared. The women haven't seen each other in years but there is a real push to have them reunite onstage for a Christmas show. With a romance between the adult children of such rock superstars you can imagine the chaos the ensues. There were some heartwarming scenes, and this book may be just right for you.

Pub Date 03 Oct 2023
I was given a complimentary copy of this book.
All opinions expressed are my own.

I love anything Tessa writes. This was a cute holiday romance. It got my in the holiday spirit. Loved both the main characters and their romance. Highly recommend.