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.