The Christmas Cookie Wars by Eliza Evans
PUB Day: October 22nd, 2024
Thank you, NetGalley & Penguin Group Putnam
4.5 ⭐️

FMC: Fashion Designer
MMC: Elementary Principal

This was my first book by Eliza Evans but it was such a great read from the beginning! I absolutely fell in love with the two main characters in every way possible! Love how their relationship developed throughout the story and showed perseverance through all the challenges life threw at them! I could totally see a sequel to this book being made to show their happily ever after.

#NetGalley #NursesWhoRead #TeachersWhoRead #AutisticBookworm

I am always somewhat skeptical when I read a single parent book for different reasons. But this book was done wonderfully with the parents and kids.
Melody and her twin boys, Tate and Finn, were so much fun to read about. Them learning to cook was an adventure in itself, which I completely understand as I've been teaching my 8-year-old daughter how to cook. The flour fight was perfect.
This book was exceptionally holiday - and cookie - themed. It made me want to bake cookies every time I picked it up!
I do wish it was more show than tell, as the latter creates blander books with less feeling. I wanted more of the romance between Melody and Jonathan. I needed to see them interact in a romantic setting more than twice. They mostly hung out at school functions, talking about their kids, and we are told everything else.
Overall, I did enjoy the book.
3.5/5 stars rounded up.

Thank you NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review. I enjoyed this small town romance! It is the holiday season and Melody is stretched thin between work, taking care of her twins, and baking for their school's fundraiser. When she finds out the school is cancelling bake sale events for fundraising opportunities, she steps in to lead the cookie committee and keep the fundraiser alive. With the help of the handsome principal, she learns to slow down and appreciate the holidays, strengthen her relationship with her boys, and fall in love. This book definitely gave off Hallmark movie vibes!

This book is adorable! It’s the sweetest little holiday read! I really fell in love with Melody and Johnathon. They were both easy characters to love. I found myself rooting for their HEA the whole time!

The Christmas Cookies added a fun touch. I loved all of the different events and competitions throughout the book. Prepare to crave cookies after reading this one! The side characters really added a lot to the story too. I want Melody’s sister to have a book! She added some great banter.

If you are looking for a fun book to put you in the holiday spirit, then I highly recommend grabbing this book!

This was a great book to get you in the mood for the holidays. It was a great Holiday Rom-Com with Hallmark vibes.
Fast read and a great holiday read!



Thank you to Netgalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons and Edelweiss+ for the ARC

HELLOOOO CHRISTMAS BOOK SEASON!!! I am so excited to dive into my TBR, the Christmas trope is my favorite trope.

I am on my audiobook grind right now apparently. I ALSO did this book on audio and I loved the narrator!! She really had the most relaxing voice and gave so much personality to the characters. Overall, this is the PERFECT Lifetime Movie-esque Christmas book that is definitely sweet. No spice here, so it’s perfect for anyone that loves romance without the SMUT.

This book has:
-cookies galore
- perfect snowy setting in Colorado
- widowed single mother
- hot principal
- small town drama

Overall, if you are in the need of a feel good sweeeeet romance definitely pick this up!

I found this to be a really fun read in between some other more serious reads. I liked the rivalry and how it developed into something more. These were quirky and fun characters. And it really helped get me into the holiday mood.

Thanks NetGalley for this ARC.

This is a quintessential Hallmark movie. It will bring to mind those heartwarming Christmas tales where the female character is only lightly sketched while the male embodies all the best qualities on paper. However, the story never truly delves into how these characters come to be. There are plot holes that remain frustratingly unresolved, leaving you wondering why certain interactions unfold as they do. The whole idea of cookie week feels hastily executed, and the dynamics between characters lack depth. Yet, if you’re in the mood for a feel-good story, where everything tidily wraps up at the end with a perfect ribbon on top, then this is the book for you. Just don’t anticipate anything more profound than a Hallmark movie.

This book is a hallmark movie in book form! A great book to start the holiday season with. The only reason I gave 3 stars instead of 4 was because I felt like there was a lot more room for character development.

"I never know what to say to you. I mean, I never feel like I say the right thing to you. The things I want to say.”

This was a fun read! I really enjoyed reading how Melody and her sons’ principal, Jonathan, butt heads as they are in charge of the Christmas cookie committee. I was expecting a little bit more enemies to lovers between Melody and Jonathan and we didn’t get so much of that. It was more that they just didn’t see eye to eye and everything, but they were pretty much polite with one another. The chemistry between the two of them was everything and I loved all the hilarious scenes the two of them get themselves into. While this book is a close door romance, the kisses were especially hot! I really like how this was more a slow burn romance. One thing I liked about this book was how Melody’s sons were quite realistic for fictional kids. I liked that they had their emotions and sometimes they acted up instead of being goody two shoes. The ending was perfect and I like that it had the perfect amount of holiday feels!

Read if you like:
3rd person heroine’s POV
Single mom romance
Single mom x School Principal
Holiday romance
Closed door romance
Realistic kids
Slow burn romance

I thought the characters and the plot were great. When done successfully, romances with single parents are something I really enjoy. What a wonderful, beautiful holiday romance! It was like a hallmark movie in a book, and I loved it! The main characters' romance developed slowly and was very sweet.

Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin group putnam for this eARC.

5/5, one of my favorite holiday romance books this season! I love the main character's relationship with her children. The storyline was wonderful and the relationship build was slow and sweet. It was so easy to picture everything happening in this one. I loved it and didn't want it to end!

thank you to netgalley and penguin group putnam for this eARC!

this book was adorable! i really enjoyed the plot and the characters. i’m a big fan of romances with single parents when it’s done well, i think it’s very cute, and this was done well. it’s the perfect holiday romance; its simple, its incredibly christmassy, and its not spicy. it’s definitely corny. i think most holiday novels (especially romances) are a little corny by definition, but it’s not easy to ignore in this one, so if corny isn’t your thing this book probably isn’t for you. for me though, it definitely is the right vibe for what this book is. i don’t really have any specific critiques or a part that really stood out, it truly is just an adorable, christmas, small town love story. this book will be perfect for that cozy christmas vibe and i’ll definitely be recommending it in december!

This felt familiar, and not in a good way for me. It was missing a spark, not only to really deliver as a Christmas romance, but also with the romance in general. I did think it was cute, simple, and sweet, and will definitely find it's audience! It's just not me.

Thank you to NetGalley, Evans, and PRH for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Super cute storyline, Christmas town, and romance! Loved the real emotions with the kids and hateful/spiteful moms! Throughly enjoyed this book, and got me ready for Christmas!

This was such a great feel good holiday book/ romance! Widowed mom of 2 twin boys, a divorced strict principal with a teenager of his own. Both on the cookie committee together and end up realizing there’s more to them than being a hot mess mom and strict principal to the students.

They begin to learn more about each other and their kids outside of getting sent to the principals office, Ainsley loves that she’s a fashion designer and boutique owner. They all have a lot more in common than what they first assumed.

It was like a hallmark movie in a book i loved it!

Super cute! If you are looking for a cute holiday story that's going to make you crave cookies, this is definitely it. It's sort of light on Christmas, but it's such a feel good read. I could easily see this playing on the Hallmark Channel. There is a cute little romance subplot. I loved all the little school events and how everyone rallied at the end to make things happen.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam | G.P. Putnam's Sons for my copy of The Christmas Cookie Wars by Eliza Evans in exchange for an honest review. It published October 22, 2024.
Eliza Evans is back with another wonderful Christmas novel. I loved this one even more than I loved The Christmas Cafe, and I really enjoyed that one! This book has it all, and more depth than your average Hallmark-esque Christmas story.
I loved the community, I loved the supportive family, I loved the Cookie Daze and all the events. I just adored this sweet book!
As a Christmas book lover and connoisseur, I highly recommend this one!

The Christmas Cookie Wars by Eliza Evans is a delightful and fun story. I loved the characters of Melody and Jonathan, as well as all of the characters. The family dynamic between Melody and her twin boys is so heart-warming, I also felt a connection with Melody as she is learning to cope as your children grow up and become independent, while celebrating the memory of a Dad/Husband gone way too soon.
I loved joining in on all of the family traditions, family fun and blossoming love and romance. Grab your favorite mug of hot chocolate, a cozy warm blanket and settle in for a delightfully fun journey through Melody and Jonathan's Holiday!

4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Christmas Cookie Wars
Author: Eliza Evans
Romcom

Thank you so much Netgalley and Putnam for this ARC! Here I go again jumping from Halloween to Christmas. This was the perfect book to get you in the mood for the holiday. I personally have a thing for baking books, so the Christmas cookie baking competition going on was my favorite part! Also, our FMC is a widow raising her two sons on her own, and she starts developing feelings for their, also single, principal. They are rivals in the cookie wars, and he is winning by a landslide! Her whole family basically bands together to help her try to win the competition. It was so cute and had all the warm and fuzzy feels you look for in a Christmas read. No spice at all. Kinda like a hallmark movie. It was a little cheesy at times though. Still great to get in the Christmas spirit! 🎄🎅