I struggled with what to rate this one. It has like ALL of the holiday romance tropes, but it is still really cute. At the end of the day, that is exactly what is advertised & what you get. A fun holiday romance set in a quirky small town with a cookie competition! I found myself enjoying it more as it went along. Definitely one to read if you want a super sweet holiday romance. Thanks to Noelle Douglas, Dreamscape Media, and NetGalley for the chance to read and review! My opinions are my own!

A Sweet Holiday Romance with a Dash of Competition!

The Christmas Crush is a delightful holiday read full of romance, humor, and, of course, cookies! Elena and Lawrence’s chemistry shines through their competitive banter, making their enemies-to-lovers dynamic irresistible. The small-town charm of New Hope adds heart to the story, while Sugar, Lawrence’s lovable dog, steals a few scenes. Though the plot is a bit predictable, the cookie war and the holiday spirit more than make up for it. If you’re looking for a light, feel-good romance with a sweet twist, this is the perfect read!

The Christmas Crush by Noelle Douglas

Elena needs the new opening of sparkle cookie, her career is important to her.
Lawrence owns the local bakery and the idea of Sparkle cookie taking his customers sends him into a blind panic and things go even more awry when Elena and Lawrence get into a very public argument.

They know they are rivals but the more time they spend together, the more they can see their attraction is almost as strong as the imposing cookie war.

This book was perfect. It fully hugged me and drew me in. I could smell the cinnamon and nutmeg in my mind.

Elena really steps into herself and lets herself finally let go of all the negativity she has held onto and Lawrence realizes that Elena isn’t the enemy but the exact thing he needed. It was so cute! It was a slow burn hallmark movie in a book.

Enemies to lovers - CHECK
Small town - CHECK
Cinnamon roll MMC - CHECKKKKK

Really was a solid wholesome holiday classic

4 stars

This book was kind of a hot mess. It reads like it was written by someone who has no idea how franchises work. I found it more annoying and anxiety-inducing than cute. Did not give me the fun, holiday romcom vibes I was hoping for.

Sooo cute!! I loved this. Super low angst but still incredibly sweet.

I loved the main characters. I loved how they just gave in to the attraction.

My heart broke for Elena towards the end 😫 but I’m glad there was some good grovel!! Her sticking it to her stupid boss was great.

Overall loved the story. Loved the narration. 👏🏼

3.5 ☆
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If you're looking for a romantic, slow-burn, Christmas-themed book with Hallmark movie vibes, this book is highly recommended for you.
The audiobook is good. The narrator did a good job bringing these characters to life. And her "male" voice was everything. I actually enjoyed her male voice.
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Thank you, Netgellay, and Dreamscape Media for the audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

Elena is a marketing rep for Sparkle cookie which sounds like what we would know Crumble Cookie to be, a huge popular corporation. The people in New Hope are not excited about the cookie store opening so Elena goes there to try and make a good impression and get the people more comfortable with Sparkle being in town. That’s where she meets Lawrence who happens to own a bakery that specializes in cookies. He’s obviously upset about the soon to be cookie store opening and they don’t start off on a good note but things change when they get to know one another!

3.5. This was cute and perfectly fun to listen to! I enjoy both main characters a lot. I wish the conflict hadn’t been such a long part of the story, but I enjoyed it still.

This audiobook was narrated by Kim Churchill. I loved the audio version, she did such a good job with the characters!

Thank you so much to Netgalley, Noelle Douglas, and Dreamscape Media for providing this free ARC. This is my honest review. This published on October 8th.

I have posted my review on Goodreads, my Facebook book club, and will make a TikTok to post before the pub date raving about this book!

I really enjoyed the narrator’s voice and cadence while reading this story.
This is a very cute and sweet Christmas story. It reminds me of a Hallmark Christmas movie with a lot of nostalgic nods to the holiday. It’s a great read for anyone looking to be immersed in the holiday spirit with a sweet romance a HEA ending.

3.5 ⭐️

This book has a traditionally masculine, small town, turn your partner’s eye bakery owner MMC. The FMC is a corporate bakery VP, also a looker, who wants more than the what the rat race had to offer. Heart eye emojis fly when they see each other for the first time.

I really appreciate this book for depicting emotionally healthy people who tell others the truth even when it makes them uncomfortable. Miscommunication does not drive this hallmark-esk story. For that alone, AMEN! It’s perfect a sugary sweet, feel good story to grab when you’re in the Christmas mood or when nostalgic for cookie baking.

The audiobook is good. I didn’t find any issues with it. I did listen at 2.5x to give an idea on the time commitment.

Thank you to NetGalley, Noelle Douglas, and Dreamscape Media for this audiobook ARC. 🎄

I am in full holiday reading mode, and 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐦𝐚𝐬 𝐂𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐡 has me ready to start baking my Christmas cookies!

This is such a sweet, small-town romance. Elena works for a big corporate cookie company that is opening a branch in the town of New Hope. Most folks aren’t happy with a chain store trying to come into their quaint town. Plus, they have a local baker, Lawrence, who specializes in cookies.

At first, Elena and Lawerence see each other as rivals, as Lawerence must fight to keep his bakery open against the big competition, and Elena fights to keep her job. Soon, however, they can’t resist the chemistry between them; both must decide if love is more important than the bottom line.

Okay, talk about a recipe for a new book boyfriend: Lawrence owns his own bakery, has a dog named Sugar, and loves his grandma (who calls him Pumpkin), and they bake together. While this rivals-to-lovers romance doesn’t have much spice, it is adorable and has so much festive fun with tons of yummy cookies. Sweet and cozy - this is a delightful holiday romance!

Thank you @dreamscape_media for the gifted audiobook.

🎄🍪✨🐶

If you’re looking for a sweet, festive rom-com to get into the holiday spirit, The Christmas Crush by Noelle Douglas is an adorable read that will leave you craving cookies and romance! The story follows Elena, a corporate go-getter determined to make her mark by opening a new branch for Sparkle Cookie in the quaint town of New Hope, Pennsylvania. But the locals, especially handsome baker Lawrence (and his adorable dog, Sugar), aren’t so keen on a corporate giant invading their small-town charm that could steal his customers and ruin his bakery.

The rivalry between Elena and Lawrence quickly heats up when they’re forced to collaborate in a cookie competition. Their witty banter and undeniable chemistry make for a fun, heartwarming read. Packed with festive flair, cookie battles, and the perfect dash of holiday magic, The Christmas Crush is ideal for small-town romance fans with a sprinkle of enemies-to-lovers vibes! Add it to your holiday reads ASAP!

I listened to the audio version narrated by Kim Churchill. I don't think I've ever listened to anything narrated by her before, but I really liked her narration. Her voice was very pleasant to listen to and the volume was pretty even across the whole book.

This story hit three of my very favorite things in books...Christmas, romance, and baking. I'm a very happy camper who now can't wait for Christmas to come. Elana and Lawrence started by facing off in the book. Lawrence has a cookie bakery in his small town and Elana works for a big cookie company that is coming to town. Arch enemies! Of course there is an underlying attraction that complicates things for them.

This was one of those books that was a lot of fun and gets you in the mood for love and the holiday season. I highly recommend it if you're a Christmas romance junkie like me!

Thanks to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for the audio. All thoughts are my own.

The Christmas Crush by Noelle Douglas
4.5/5 Stars
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

•••Spoiler free review below•••

I am starting off holiday reads early this year as I always feel like I never have quite enough time to read everything I want to. This one is so cute with a plot that could be a Hallmark movie (in the best way possible) and will leave you wanting cookies. I definitely recommend this sweet Christmas romance for your holiday tbr!

Read this book if you like:
-corporate meets small town
-cinnamon roll MMC
-COOKIES!!!
-work rivals

The Christmas Crush releases on October 8th and if it's not already on your tbr, it should be!
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Special thanks to Dreamscape Media for sharing a free copy with me in exchange for my honest opinions.

This was such a sweet Christmas romance book! I got all the Hallmark feels and was swooning over Lawrence and Elena's relationship!

I enjoyed the concept of big city girl who works at a large cookie corporation falling for small town baker. I liked the journey of self discovery that Elena's takes while trying to find her own voice.

I listened to the audiobook and enjoyed the performance.

First let me say I loved the narrator, she has the most soothing voice, but what threw me off a bit was the single narrator combined with the 3rd POV. I am not usually one to care about first person point of view vs 3rd person point of view, but in this instance with a female narrator it just felt confusing and made it harder to engage with the characters.

Once I moved past this and Elena arrives in New Hope I got more into it, I am a sucker for any kind of baking competitions.

It felt a tad predictable and these two could both learn to think before they speak and act but it was still a sweet holidays romance, especially if you are a fan of Hallmarks holidays movies.

I was given an ALC of this book and my opinions are my own.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐦𝐚𝐬 𝐂𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐡 𝐛𝐲 𝐍𝐨𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐞 𝐃𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐥𝐚𝐬
𝗠𝗬 𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚: ★★★★

This sweet holiday romance is exactly what I needed to help kick off my holiday TBR! This was the perfect small town Christmas romance and I ate up every single page!

I adored the town of New Hope and the wonderful people that lived there, especially the town baker Lawrence. His story of making it as a baker, yet still in a bit of a struggle and trying to climb back to success while a chain cookie company is headed to town had me hooked from the start! I loved that this started as an enemies to lovers with Elena being the representative of the new competitive cookie company, yet she quickly realized she was on the wrong side of the competition. I enjoyed the moments when they were starting to connect with each other.

I loved all the angst, banter, the competitiveness that played out, but most of all I loved all the sweet moments once they pushed things aside. While primarily set in the small town I did enjoy the mix of city life and Elena’s big corporate career with the more wholesome side of New Hope. It was enjoyable to experience the stark difference. I adored how things wrapped up in the end as well.

This really is the perfect holiday read to cozy up with this season!

The Christmas Crush tells the story of Elena, who is on point for ensuring a trendy new cookie shop trying to get into a picturesque small, snow town. Not long after her arrival, she falls in love with the town but is taken aback by the baker of the competing bakery - and homemade cookies.

This has all the elements of a sweet Christmas read - a hallmark movie in literary form. Great to read in an afternoon, or listen to while sitting by a fire (for those of us listening in 90 degree weather, also a welcome escape!).

Thank you to Dreamscape Media and Netgalley for an ALC.

This book was a really cute blend of Christmas love trope and baker love trope. An enemies-to-lovers in the form of bakers from competing companies. This book had all the elements… from the cute fall/winter town to the adorable sidekick dog. I listened on Audiobook and it was a great car-read!

A cute, feel-good rivals to lovers small town romance debut that sees a baker and the woman who works for his new competition falling in love as they are forced to spend time together over the holidays participating in a cookie competition. Good on audio and perfect for fans of books like The cookie wars by Eliza Evans. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the ALC.

3.5 Stars. If you enjoy holiday Hallmark movies then this is the book for you. Elena works for Sparkle Cookie a large cookie conglomerate. Her boss doesn’t respect her, and often takes credit for her work. She is sent to the small town of New Hope to help open a new bakery.

Lawrence owns the favourite local bakery which he started with his grandmother’s help. He is worried his business will suffer and his rent will increase due to Sparkle Cookie. Lawrence is an impressive MMC. He’s built like a football player, a little grumpy, loves his grandmother and Gilmore Girls. When he first sees Elena he is immediately attracted to her until he finds out who she works for.

Although they are rivals, they find it very hard to fight their mutual attraction. When they finally give in and decide to date, it is so wonderful to experience them slowly falling in love. This is a closed door holiday romance, so after kissing things are left to the imagination. I would have preferred spice but that is my particular preference.

Kim Churchill does a good job of bringing the story to life. Each character had a distinct voice that was easy to discern. She provided lots of energy and enthusiasm to the story and made it interesting to listen to.

As you can imagine, the fact that they are rivals does create issues in the last part of the book. There is a third act breakup but it makes sense for what happens and is well handled. I love the grand gesture Lawrence makes, it is beyond sweet. Fans of Hallmark movies will love this book and you’ll definitely be craving Christmas cookies while you read it.