Thanks to Netgalley and the author for an eARC. Lyla wants to run her family company but when the company was in trouble Mr. Klaus came on to help. They argue about how to run the company and Lyla wants him gone. In his moment of need Lyla agrees to help him by going home with him for the holidays. She didn’t realize that meant going to a magical village and finding out there is more to Mr. Klaus than she first thought. A cute Christmas romance with magic, arguing co-workers, and healing from family pain. Enjoyed this cute story and can’t wait to read the next one.

Lyla is forced to share her portion of her father's inherited company with Mason Klaus, an investor that is known for being chilly and uncaring socially when it comes to how he runs his company. I mean, how could you argue the goodness of anyone who schedules work meetings for the Christmas holiday? Truly and unfortunately so yucky and shameful. Of course, these two cannot stand each other- it is evident that not many can withstand Klaus, per the entire premise of this book of course.
The Christmas party is CANCELED- but Lyla says no, we're partying regardless. Then- a fire erupts! Literally and emotionally, corporately etc. Mason promises her forgiveness on one condition- she follows along with his family to celebrate the 12 Days of Christmas. She agrees, reluctantly, but is immediately introduced as his fiancee. What is the cost if she doesn't follow along with his ruse? This is a certified HEA, and it is indeed lovely.
The characters are so cute- I LOVE the grumpy/ sunshine trope, even for a reader who typically never chooses romance. As Christmas is my favorite, I love cozying up with one as soon as the weather gets cool enough in my southern state to do so. The romance aspect left some to be desired, ,so I am rating this a four. The premise is unique, fun, delightful, and the town is so charming and cozy to me.
Plentiful thanks to the author and publisher for allowing me the eARC!

Lyla and Klaus have been work rivals since he bought her father's share of her family company a year ago. Furious that he has decided to cancel this year's Christmas party, she decides to change plans and have a party in the office. During the party, Lyla finds Klaus in his office drunk after finding out that his estranged father has passed away. Now his sister has asked him to return home and he plans to go through with it. Lyla noticing how drunk he is decides to help him get home since she couldn't in good conscience leave him there drunk. But in doing this leaves the office party unattended and that has unexpected consequences. Since Klaus is paying for the damage from the party, he says that Lyla has to accompany him home to be even. When she arrives at his home, she finds out that home is the North Pole, or Yule, and that she has been working with Santa Claus' son all this time. Lyla finds out more and more about Mason Klaus, which changes her opinion of him and has her falling for him unexpectedly. It was a fun, inventive and interesting read. I really enjoyed it and couldn't put it down when I got started with it.

This is a fun and interesting twist to the fake dating trope that is set in the holidays.

This is a book I wanted to love, this story feels original, and it was a really cute idea for a story. Unfortunately, it fell a bit flat for me. It just felt like something was missing from it all.

I didn’t see the romance between Mason and Lyla. I didn’t see the chemistry between the two. Mason felt so disconnected throughout the whole story that personally didn’t feel convinced they were meant to be together.

This book has it all - a Christmas story, more than a bit of magic, enemies to lovers, corporate jealousy, a grieving family brought back together and a nasty former girlfriend.

It reminded me a fair bit of The Santa Clause movies, except for the sexy parts. I enjoyed it a lot.

Cute and cosy Christmas romance!

A predictable but warming tale with enemies to lovers, reindeers and a troublesome cat.

I enjoyed the fast pace and the slow burn in this book, the smaller details of ice skating and the naughty or nice list were also nice touches.

This was such a cute Christmas love story. I didn’t want to put it down at all…and it had me in a Christmas mood in September. This is definitely one to pick up when you’re looking for that Christmas feel.

Lyla is part of a family that has run a toy company for generations. She inherits a bankrupt company and no shares, and must resign herself to helping run the company with a corporate, no-nonsense type named Mason. The two do not hit it off, and are at odds about numerous aspects of the company's culture and mission. Mason decides to cancel the Christmas party, and in turn Lyla keeps the party on - but then, a terrible fire results from the party. Mason offers her a deal - he will forget what happened, but she must join his family for numerous days of Christmas festivities. Lyla agrees, in the hopes of figuring out how she can get the company back - but then, Mason introduces her as his fiancé, which upends everything.

I just loved the descriptions in this book; the scene setting was really superb, and I felt like I was present. Plus, I loved the twist of Mason's family! Read the book to understand more!!

Thank you to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I love a good holiday rom-com and that’s what I thought this would be. It has a delightful premise of two characters, totally opposite and clashing at every opportunity, who find love in the end. For Christmas, they both are running a toy factory (how perfect) and its just before the big rush of the Season. To top it off, one of the partner’s name is Mason Klaus (Claus) although he is such a s Scrooge and doesn’t like any reminders of Christmas going so far to cancel the company Christmas party. In contrast, Lyla Smurfit loves EVERY thing Christmas and her place is decorated like Santa’s wonderland. When Klaus gets a letter from home which leaves him devastated, he knows he must return after being gone 10 years and convinces Lyla to go with him to support him. Lyla is nothing but a good-hearted soul and although is resentful of Klaus’s interference in the family company, she agrees to help him out. But then magically, they are transported to Yule, a very foreign place, and Lyla begins to realize that Klaus has not been forthright about his background. As she meets his family, she is surrounded by warmth and love which she has been craving for since her mum died when she was small. But she also sees Klaus in a new light as the magic of this place creates magic between them as well. Could it be love? While Klaus must decide whether to stay, every day Lyla falls more in love with him. I love the magic of Christmas and yes, it was a bit predictable with a name like Klaus that something more was up but I rode with it because it was like a fairytale. Although not the best writing, the descriptions of the town, the gingerbread, the LIST, the special golden dust created in the workshop were delightful. That is until you turn the next page and the author thought it was important to add a gratuitous scene between Lyla and Mason that were graphic in language and thought about them having sex. REALLY? This just took away from that classic Hallmarky would be movie that it could be. Not needed at all. While I liked the HEA ending, it was a let down from the magic and wholesomeness of the story after this addition to the story. Too bad as it had such promise.

Many thanks to #netgalley #thenaughtyorniceclause # katecallaghan for the opportunity to read and Review this book.

Oh, what a romance with just a twinkle of Christmas magic.
The romance in this was everything. I loved it. They really take center stage. It’s all about them together and separately. They have such a great enemies-to-lovers relationship. They butt heads, and it never stops.
The Christmas magic was such a great element to the story. It added some mystery to how everything works. The Christmas element felt more of a setting than a Santa Clause-focused story, like many Christmastime movies. Which is great! I liked that it didn’t overtake their story; it was just a part of it.

Oh, I would have loved for Natalie to have a little more consequences. She needs her comeuppance.

This book gave all the sweet Christmas feels! I loved the characters and how the story played out. Such a good one!

2.5⭐️


Cada vez que Mason era grosero o se equivocaba, Lyla, le tenía paciencia y le perdonaba, pero cuando ella cometió un error, él se hizo el ofendido.






Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

We follow Lyla and Mason in this story. Mason comes in to the same company Lyla works at and tries to change transitions that she loves. That doesn’t go over well- they butt heads…

Mason gets a letter from his sister informing their father had passed away and has to return home- he cons Lyla into coming and introducers her as his finance 😳

She finds out that his last name “Klaus” isn’t just a last name. They are in the North Pole …

I thought this story was very cute and I loved all the little banter that went on & really enjoyed masons siblings! I hope to see them in future books! 👀

I fell into the North Pole (Yule) with ease thanks to the supremely simple world building this book affords. I honestly loved the Yule portion of this book more than the opening that took place in the real world. I fell in love with the found family and can't wait to revisit the Village in future books. This had all the Christmas feels without feeling needlessly childish. This is definitely one to add to your Christmas TBR. Spice 1/5

Review copy provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I don’t know why this book doesn’t have a higher rating. I absolutely LOVED this book. I was so sad when it ended I immediately TBR’ed the next book in the series and started reading another book by Callaghan.

In this novel we follow Lyla and Mason. They are work rivals where he falls first. When Mason receives a letter from his sister informing him his father died and he should come home for Christmas, he asks Lyla to come as a friend. However, he immediately introduces her as his fiancée. With a bit of magic, this book has many twists and turns that will put you in the Christmas spirit.

I will be the first to admit I didn’t know there would be magic realism in this book. I’m a huge fan of magical realism when it is done properly (think Ashley Poston, Andrea Lochen, and Sarah Ready), and this magic was sheer perfection.

I have so many things I could name that I loved about this book: the setting, the characters, the slow enemies to lovers vibes, and all the Christmas things.

I loved that Santa Claus wasn’t the cliche Santa. The spin on this was so unique. Chef’s kiss!

The only thing that could have improved this novel was a bigger gap between the third act breakup and them making up. Sure I was jumping in my seat when they got back together but it was a bit too quick. Otherwise, I loved this book and can’t wait to dive back into this world.

*An ARC was received in exchange for an honest review. You need to buy this book and read it if you love Christmas, magic, and happily ever after!

Oops. I thought this one seemed familiar. I did read it in 2022 and it seems my opinions are mostly the same.

This was a quick and surface level Christmasy story that I think had a lot of potential but mostly fell flat for me. The book felt more like a script for a holiday movie - heavy on the dialogue and Lyla’s internal thoughts, but breezing through details that would have expanded the characters and made the story more substantial. If you’re looking for some simple, cute Christmas magic with Mr. Klaus, this may do the trick. The Klaus family characters were delightful but this enemies to lovers romance was a little hard to believe. It had a good set up, just not a very believable cross into their romantic feelings.

Thanks to @netgalley and CallaghanWriter IMPA for the opportunity to read this advanced copy e-galley.

Lyla and Mason are co-CEOs of a toy company, but Lyla has pinned Mason as her enemy since the day he came with 51% of the company’s shares. They butt heads at every decision, including the one to cancel the annual Christmas party. Lyla has it anyway and a fire breaks out, closing the offices over Christmas. As punishment for this, Mason convinces her to come home to visit his family, only she doesn’t know he’s an actual Klaus of the North Pole kind.

Mason’s family of characters are well-written, and perhaps even too well-written, as I found Mrs. Klaus and Mason’s siblings to be far more entertaining and charming than the two main characters. Lyla and Mason’s enemies to lovers story was at times hard to follow. I also couldn’t get a good read of Lyla as a character until halfway through the book.

Overall I thought it was a charming story with a fun twist on the North Pole and Santa.

Lyla cannot stand Mason Klaus, the man who came in and bought out 51% of her toy company, especially because he wanted to end the Christmas traditions that she loved so much. In a turn of events, however, he cons her into helping him by having her pose as his fiancée when he goes home to Yule, more commonly known as The North Pole. His past is slowly revealed and their relationship becomes more than just tumultuous business partners.

This was a cute romance, and the setting of Yule was perfect. The author did an amazing job of describing what sounds like the perfect Christmas village. There is a small amount of magic sprinkled throughout the book which I appreciated because what is Christmas without magic. I enjoyed this book, but felt like the end of the story was slightly rushed with resolution coming just in the last few pages. I left wanting just a bit more; more about the relationship between Lyla and Mason, more about the town of Yule and the expectations of being Klaus, and probably a bit more steam and tension between the two of them. It was a fun and fast read, and I did enjoy it during this holiday season.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced reader copy of this cute Christmas romance. The opinions in this review are all my own.