Sunny Palmer is in Christmas Notch for her best friends wedding. Since Sunny has sold a script to the Hope Channel Network she has to now deliver on that promise. Isaac Kelly was in a popular boy band years ago and is still grieving his wife's death five years ago. He has moved to Chiristmas Notch to try to make the pain hurt less. Sunny and Isaac had a one time hook up along with Jack and neither of them has forgotten. Now Isaac and Sunny are living under the same roof along with Sunny's cat. Isaac has decided to help Sunny with solving the Christmas Angel story while Sunny is trying to find a new muse for Isaac so he can finish his last required record. This is a cute stroy. Besides being steamy it was quite funny. I haven't read the other books in this series and felt that I could follow along with the story. Now I want to go back and read the other ones! Thank you both to NetGalley and Avon Books for letting have an advanced copy of this book.

Visiting Christmas Notch again was so much fun and I didn't realize how much I missed these characters. Isaac and Sunny might be my favorite now. This was such a fun, quick Christmas read!

Both Isaac and Sunny are struggling creatively and decide to come together to help each other. He gives her a place to stay and she agrees to help him find a muse so he can write music again. He continues to struggle with his grief from losing his wife, but slowly Sunny starts to bring him out of the darkness. It takes him some time but he eventually welcomes her sunny dispositions and lets himself enjoy what they are building together.

I really enjoyed how they leaned on each other for support, even if at first Isaac can't accept his true feelings for Sunny because he feels like he's betraying his late wife. They both had their own emotional struggles and together found their way through it all which was so heartwarming. The side characters in this story were as funny as always and I love the banter between them all. If you want a spicier, more humorous take on a small town Christmas story this book is for you!

Thank you Netgalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!!

They should have stopped after the first one. Sorry note sorry. The first in this series was perfection. The first novella was enjoyable and tied up a few things. The second book started well enough and then committed unforgivable acts that plummeted it to two-stars. The second novella was a labor to get through. And this one was a DNF from me. They just kept getting worse.

Ultimately, if you've LOVED the two that came before you would probably give this a try. I can't see anyone loving it though. ISWIS.

There is too much happening, I felt no connection to the characters, and it all just felt so forced. Not to mention it's just too long.

The only part of this series that is worth the read is Teddy's prologue and epilogue love journey and should have been an actual book itself.

It's gonna be a no from me dawg.

This was my favorite installment to the series. All of their books were great in their celebration of size, gender and types of love. There's always something to learn with these books. These books will be missed every holiday but I feel like it's the perfect ending with the last INK member and the patriarch having their own happy ending.

The forced proximity trope was perfect for Isaac since he has been described since book 1 as a grieving recluse. There was so much growth throughout his grief process. Their growth together was amazing to watch happen. Them as a couple, to me seem so genuine and great. It was just a great couple to end the series with.

Thanks to Net Galley and Avon for an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review, as always all words are my own.

I really enjoyed the first book in this series, so I was looking forward to this one. Although A Jingle Bell Mingle had some cute and very funny moments, I did not enjoy it as much as I expected to. Sunny and Isaac are both pretty relatable characters, but their romance felt SO repetitive. I did not care AT ALL about the "muse" situation. Forcing Isaac to go on dates with other people was only good for some comedy. The will they/won't they didn't have enough tension, especially with them constantly hooking up.

It was great to be back in Christmas Notch! I think this one was my favorite book in the series. Besides all the smut (and there is A LOT) there was a cute Christmas/holiday story. I enjoyed going on the journey with Sunny & Isaac to discover the answers to the Christmas Notch Christmas miracle.

I really enjoyed this book, I’m a huge fan of Sierras writing so it was lovely to read a collaboration of hers with Julie Murphy! Wonderfully spicy, perfect winter holiday read. Thank you netgalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for this ARC!

This series is funny, sexy, heartfelt, loving, and full of Christmas cheer--I'm sorry to see it go, but loved how it ended.

There is a lot happening in this book! I enjoyed Sunny and Issac and their story but it was a little chaotic in the beginning.

If Julie and Sierra have no fans, I have taken to the woods to Thoreau myself and can't be reached.

FUN FEISTY CHRISTMAS EXCELLENCE jingled all my bells. And somehow there is still plot and character development. I want to be where these people are. A rip roaring good time. Sunny's cat deserves an oscar. Sunny and Isaac have cracklin Christmas chemistry.

Thank you for the ARC in exchange for. an honest review.

2.5 Stars, rounded to 3 for the sake of the NetGalley rating system.

I’m finding it hard to review this book because I found it quite uneven, both in terms of tone and writing quality. It makes me wonder what the writing process looks like between these two authors.

One of my biggest pet peeves is when a book is part of a series, but that isn't mentioned in the synopsis. The ARC copy I received did not mention this very vital information. I have no issue with non-stand-alone books, but only if the author does the expositional work of acquainting the reader with the world and characters within it. This book does the opposite - drops you straight into the action and lists a couple of dozen characters within the first two chapters. It’s hard to determine who is important to the plot and who is being mentioned for the sake of fan service.

I was about ready to DNF when I read the sentence “I watched his Grammy-winning mouth as he put the straw back between his lips”, but I decided to stick with it. It’s confusing when an author can write a sentence so clunky then turn around and write something incredibly poignant like “happiness was an impossibly far away thing, a thin scrap of cloud whispering under the stars”. And then use the word “Stygian”. Real mixed bag. Just when I thought things were improving, I read: "It was my favorite place in the house to sit and think about death and loneliness" Well, so much for subtlety.

In the end, I did finish this book and found myself liking Isaac and Sunny despite myself. There were some beautifully composed sentences and sentiments. But also a ton of content I felt to be unnecessary to the plot, overly cheesy, etc. It’s hard to review the third in a series without having read the other two, but I get the feeling that the entire thing would have benefitted from the editing and honing of ideas.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and Avon/Harper Voyager for the advanced reader copy of this book, provided in exchange for my unbiased opinion.

Isaac and Sunny were very cute… I did feel like I missed some of the story not having read any of the previous books in the series before this one. I appreciated the humor and wit with these two. The steamy scenes were great and the story was adorable. This was my first read of Julie but I have been a longtime fan of Sierra. I will go back and check out the rest of the series now though!

4 stars

Spicy, festive, and just a teeny bit angsty, this was a cute holiday romcom. The mailman/holiday mystery/movie script plot was fun although a little hard to follow at times. I kept forgetting that it was happening because there would be long periods where it wasn’t really brought up at all. I did like how it was resolved and tied the story together though.
I also felt like the characters were a tiny bit underdeveloped. you get enough of their backstories to understand them but I just wanted more about them and especially about their jobs.
There were so many characters in this book and I honestly could not keep track of who everyone was and how they related to each other but I didn’t read the first two books so I don’t hold that against the book. (This is an interconnected standalone so you can definitely follow the main characters’ story without reading the others you just lose out a little on the other characters)
I thought the spice in this book was really great. It didn’t seem over the top or cheesy but was fun and fit the characters while also helping move the story along.

Thank you NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the ARC!

Thank you to NetGalley, the Publishers, and Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone for an ARC of A Jingle Bell Mingle. I really enjoyed this and it’s a series that keeps on giving. The story hasn’t gotten repetitive and I love the story line of each of the couples! One part had me going oh? Ohhh 😂 I loved watching all the characters grow in each book and giving Teddy the time he deserves. I can’t wait to see where this series can go next?

Sunny Palmer has returned to Christmas Notch for inspiration and Christmas festivities for her new screenplay that she didn’t mean to sell but sold. Isaac Kelly, former INK band member, and certified sad boy is in the Christmas Notch’s historic mansion needing to finish out his final album. As expected, Isaac finds himself in Sunny’s motel room the next morning and invites her to stay with him while she works on her screenplay. I mean it’s just him in a huge mansion! He decides to help her with her screenplay and she’ll help him finish his album. What could go wrong? Buckle up and get ready for a wild, sexy, Christmas ride!

Thank you, NetGalley, and the publishers for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.
I'm not sure how something could be themed, so holiday heavy and yet not bring me any holiday cheer at all.
I can't believe I'm saying this, but there was too much sex and not enough Santa. 🤣
Overall, the story was fine, and the relationship was pretty cute, but for a holiday book, I didn't get enough holiday vibes.

2SLGBTQIA+ Holiday Steamy Romance following a first-time screenplay writer who winds up staying with a former boy bander in his Vermont home as they help each other with their blocked creatively.

4/5 stars: This is the final entry in the Murphy & Simone's Christmas Notch series is a 2SLGBTQIA+ Holiday Romance that follows a part-time adult film actress/one-time adult film director/makeup artist turned screenplay writer who makes a handshake deal with a former boy band heartthrob, who's still getting over his wife's death, that they'll help each other spark their blocked creatively all the while living together at Christmas in his historic mansion in Vermont. Written in dual POV, with plenty of laugh-out-loud moments and a whole lot of raunchy humor, Murphy & Simone's writing and character work are excellent; the characters are well-rounded, complex and yet remain likable. Additionally, their secondary cast members are well crafted and uniquely voiced. It's a joy to catch up with everyone in Christmas Notch, Vermont. I loved seeing Sunny and Isaac's journey to a loving each other. They're tough and complicated people and hurt each other along the way but in the end they find their HEA. And I have to say I love that Teddy, everyone's lovable porn dad, open's and closes the book in his POV and finds love too. And Sunny's cat Mr Tumnus is the absolute best and hilarious as all get out. Murphy & Simone's OPS scenes are deliciously steamy and the banter is so good it will have you swooning. While there are plenty of heartfelt and humorous moments, Murphy & Simone does takes on some very tough and sensitive subjects; so take care and check the CWs. This is written as a stand-alone but you'll SO want to pick up the other books in the series: A Merry Little Meet Cute (Bee and Nolan) and A Holly Jolly Ever After (Winnie and Kallum) to get the complete backstory.

I received this eARC thanks to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager | Avon in exchange for an honest review. Publishing dates are subject to change.

This is BY FAR my favorite read of the entire series!

Wow. I loved Sunny and Isaac; I loved that fate just kept bringing them together; that Isaac just agrees to let her move into his mansion with Mr. Tumnus and his quirks; and most of all I love that they're solid friends first.

The entire storyline kept me interested. Isaac's grief, inability to write music, overall readiness to give up on life meanwhile Sunny is dealing with secret family drama, inability to write a screenplay that's coming up due and loneliness at the Christmas time.

Sunny's screenplay, based off a "true Christmas Notch story" is actually a mystery and the duo work together to figure out what actually happened, all while hitting bumps along the way.

There is also a second storyline occurring - Teddy and Steph - who have been a long time coming for their happy ending.

As much as the first books got under my skin for stupid reasons, I'm truly saddened to see the story end. But they knocked it out of the park with this one.

This series is just fun. Smutty delicious fun. I need to go back and read book two but it’s delightful to read this duo.

I was kindly provided by the ARC of this book by NetGalley and Harper Collins Publishers in exchange of an honest review, thank you ✨

4.5⭐️

This was just…. So perfect for me 🥹❤️‍🩹
The story of Sunny and Isaac is definitely one that’ll live forever in my heart.
As someone who lost her significant other very fast very soon, I completely understood Isaac and his fear of live again and actually live again, I was crying with his inner monologues about Brooklyn and Sunny and his fears and his guilt because those fears were mine too, and I felt that guilt too, and like him, I had to be brave and started living again because I know that’s what my love would wanted for me 🤍

And Sunny, oh god I just LOVEEEE HER!!! I loved Bee in her book and I loved her here too, but Sunny, it’s just my spirit animal 🛐 I love how she was so energized and so spontaneous and adventurous and so confident, but also was so beautiful and emotional to see that vulnerable side of her, how she managed grief and how she felts that she deserved to be sad and unhappy too, how she wanted not to be always happy Sunny who makes others happy, that she needed to be the one some take care of I read of being the one taking care of others, and Isaac was that for her even when they didn’t know it 🤍

This books definitely became one of my favorites, and seeing that everyone had their HEA was just chef kiss 🙊🙂‍↔️

P. D. I NEED a book or a novel about hot librarians 👀 iykyk

Adult film actress Sunny Palmer and former boy band star Isaac Kelly have been side characters of the previous two Christmas Notch books. After their best friends’ wedding leads to them waking up together in a freezing motel room with questionable wiring and a broken shower, Isaac takes a chance and asks Sunny (and her demonic cat) to stay with him at his home. My biggest complaint about this book is that there are A LOT of side characters from the previous two books, so if you haven't read both of those AND REMEMBER THEM, this book will be a struggle. Other than that, the plot is enjoyable and the second=chance romance with forced proximity works well as tropes to develop Sunny and Isaac's romance. This book is spicy! Lots and lots of open door scenes, though the smut is more vanilla than in the books Sierra Simone writes on her own.

Final verdict: if you've read and enjoyed the first two books, you'll enjoy this third and final Christmas Notch books. If you haven't, either skip this or start at the beginning of the series. For me it was a two-star read, but I suspect fans of the series and its many side characters would rate this around 4 stars, so I'm raising my rating to 3-stars.

Thank you to Avon and Harper Voyager for providing me with an advanced copy of this novel via NetGalley.