Member Reviews

Thank you to Sharon Sala, Dreamscape Media, and NetGalley for allowing me to listen to a free eaudio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I've always wanted to give Sharon Sala a try; I've actually been collecting her books for years without having read her, because I'm a hoarder like that. This title popped up on NetGalley and I thought, the time is now!

And it was okay. For sure the fluffiest bit of fluff I've read in a while. Trey and Marley got very familiar very quickly; they knew each other for a day or two, had sex, then suddenly they were unofficially engaged and Trey was moving in. I actually completely missed whenever that moment happened---one minute they were starting to get it on and I skipped ahead a bit because I wasn't in the mood to listen to that, and next thing I knew Marley was telling Trey which drawers he could use and the word "permanent" was being tossed around. I was so thrown off that I checked to make sure I hadn't accidentally skipped a few chapters instead of a few minutes. Nope, just instalove.

Relative, this book really didn't have much plot. Trey and Marley experienced absolutely zero conflict in their relationship. Absolutely zero internal conflict. Well, Trey seemed depressed at the very very beginning because he was lonely, but that didn't last long, definitely not long enough to be called an arc. Marley missed her parents but wasn't hung up on it. They were both very self-confident and comfortable in their own bodies and life courses. All the conflict was external---Trey's parents, Trey's secret authorship, Marley's shoehorned-in stalker guy, the media circus.

I can't decide if I'm mad about it or not; on one hand, it was very relaxing to be in the heads of characters who aren't stressing over self doubts or emotional problems. They had their shit together, and it was . . . comforting. On the other, it didn't make for a very exciting or satisfying story. It should have been boring, but the characters were likeable enough to keep me interested in them.

Then there were the angels. There's a bit of a Christian element and theme to the story that was in no way hinted at in the NetGalley listing, which is annoying. The angels send Marley verbal messages that steer her in the right direction in life. Why Marley is so privileged, I have no idea. It does make her come across like a Mary Sue, in a way---thank god the angels warned you to go to the bathroom, or you'd have puked in bed and made a gross, undignified mess. Thank god the angels gave you the secret to Anders's emotional PTSD, or you'd have had to earn his respect the hard way. Thank god you've got the angels helping you cut corners, Marley, or you'd actually have to struggle.

And then there was the time when Marley named Sharon Sala as her favorite author of romantic suspense. I'll just leave that there for you to think about.

So yeah, I wasn't much impressed. Probably what I liked most about this book was Tyler Darby's excellent narration. There were times when he pronounced or inflected something strangely, but nothing super annoying or distracting.

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This was a sweet read with a smidge of spice. It had a lot going on. A lot.

**Spoilers** She saves him in an accident, he saves her later on, she hears angels, he has a horrible relationship with his parents, she has a stalker ex, he is a mystery writer with a hidden identity, he is her favourite author, she is attacked, he has a life changing offer. At the same time they fall in love, like instantly. Talking marriage within weeks. There's just a lot going on yet somehow it's a bit waffle-y and I just wanted it to wind up. The pacing was fairly even throughout rather than the regular build up.

Maybe a nice cosy read around the fire at Christmas rather than fireworks on New Year's. I listened to this on audio and whilst I loved the narrators deep voice, I would have preferred dual narration.

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Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the ARC of this audiobook for my honest review

Wow this was a cute romance, a bit insta lovey but it worked out for the plot, and it’s understandable in the circumstances. The characters were amazing I liked them both so much like I’d date the guy and the girl haha. The atmosphere was cozy and the writing was really well done, I really liked how they switched between characters it just switched whenever you wanted to know what another person was thinking and I LOVED that and it was written so well it didn’t even confuse me. It made it speed through the story really well. The plot was great really unique and I just loved the tinge of holidays. So it can be a year round read but it makes it extra cute in December. I really enjoyed this book and I can’t wait to read it again but physically so I gotta buy the book!

I'll be publishing my review on Goodreads and StoryGraph 24th October and on Tik tok most likely will add to a monthly wrap up post with review the beginning of November.

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Thank you Net galley for the advanced copy of this audio book that was released this week. Cute premise and I really fell in love with the characters and the overall story line. Girl rescues man in car wreck and disappears when help arrives leaving behind a shoe stuck in the mud. He searches for his Cinderella… story continues. There are so many other parts to this story that I could have done without but overall different cute romance story.

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This is a lovely book about faith and fate. From the start you root for Marley and Trey. There are twists and turns you would never expect. It is part mystery, part small town romance and part faith. I will definately be thinking about this book for a while!

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In a modern twist on the classic Cinderella tale, Trey Austin finds himself in a ditch during a thunderstorm. Just when he thinks all hope is lost, a mysterious woman comes to his rescue, leaving behind only a single shoe in the mud as help arrives. Determined to find her, Trey launches an online search, and when she responds, he eagerly wants to meet her to express his gratitude.

Hailey Beaumont, the woman who saved him, feels a divine connection to Trey, guided by the angelic voices she has heard throughout her life. Content with her existence as the owner of a charming bed and breakfast on her family’s ancestral land, she invites Trey to stay with her and get to know her better.

The story unfolds with sweetness and warmth, showcasing the care Hailey extends to her community, which captivates Trey. However, the rapid pace at which they declare their love feels a bit rushed. While there’s more to Trey’s backstory that readers will uncover, Hailey’s spirited personality and candid nature shine through. The voices she hears are presented as a unique gift rather than a religious element, which adds an intriguing layer to her character that I truly appreciate.

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Sweet, yet very different Christmas-y story.

Trey is driving in a rainstorm when lightning ⚡️ flashes and he loses control of his car and goes into a ditch/cliff.

Marley is also driving, and although she plans to go to the RIGHT at the fork, her 'ANGELS' instruct her to go left... and so she does, and sees that a car has gone off the road. Upon further inspection, she notes that the car is upside down in the water, and the driver is unconscious...with the water rising quickly...inside the car!

She runs down to help him, and is unsure how she is going to move him. He's over 6 feet tall, and she's barely 5 feet. She asks her 'angels' to help her...and she moves him to safety...in the pouring rain. Then calls for help.
Once they arrive, she is on her way... Never leaves her name or any contact info.

THIS IS THE OPENING!!! 😮😮

Trey wakes up in the hospital, and thinks he is having nightmares, until he realizes that it's what actually happened. He is desperate to find this woman and THANK her personally...but is unsure how to do it...

And so the book takes off from here!
Sweet. Salty. Sad, yet hysterical too! This one just hits all the buttons!!

She is a pint sized firecracker 🧨 that blows up like the fourth of July!! I LOVE her energy and spunk!!
And he seems to be a quiet, reserved guy...who is just lost in this world...

This was a hit for me!!

Thanks to #NetGalley and #DreamscapeMedia for an ARC of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review. It was recently released on 10/8/24, so LOOK for it now!

#SnowyMountainChristmas by #SharonSala and narrated nicely by #TylerDarby. (Although I do wish they had gotten another narrator for Marley...but he was good!)

4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ for me!

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The narrator and characters just did not click with me. Although the book starts with a terrible accident, and the idea of fate bringing people together, I just couldn't find myself invested in the characters enough to keep reading to see how it ended.

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Snowy Mountain Christmas is bestselling author Sharon Sala’s latest novel, a Christmas-themed standalone romantic suspense. It utilizes a Cinderella trope and contains multiple references to angelic guidance.

Trey Austin is a bestselling mystery author who lives anonymously because he writes under the pseudonym Chapel Hill. While on a research trip in Arkansas, he gets caught in a storm and is involved in an accident. His vehicle lands upside down in a ditch and he is rendered unconscious. A small female passerby spots his vehicle and bravely rescues him, losing a red shoe in the mud. When emergency responders arrive, they dismiss her without even getting her name.

27-year-old Marley/Ladybug/Bug Corbett runs her family’s lodge outside Colorado Springs since her parents’ deaths four years earlier. Family friends Jack and Wanda Wallace help her out and have become surrogate parents. Marley loves cooking and spends two weeks in Arkansas collecting recipes while the lodge undergoes renovations. When she starts home during a torrential storm, she feels guidance from an angel to take a particular road and then sees a wrecked vehicle. She rescues a handsome unconscious man and then calls 911. After she returns home, she is sexually harassed by a former school classmate, Jared Beckett.

As Trey recovers at his home in Phoenix, he writes about his accident and the mysterious angelic rescuer. His posts on social media become viral and are then shared on the national news. Eventually he receives an email from Marley and decides to travel to Colorado to meet her in person. They get snowed in and quickly fall in love. However Marley is in danger from Jared, who wants to end her life because she rejected him. Trey has to reveal his alter ego and deal with emotional childhood trauma from neglectful parents.

Sharon Sala’s stories are based on her dreams, and her descriptive writing style makes it easy for the reader/listener to visualize the action. She consistently writes strong, engaging characters who readers would want to know in real life. Her characters may have had some bad luck, but they are courageous and hardworking. Snowy Mountain Christmas is not only about romantic love; it also shows how families can be created by love between friends. The reader feels the love between Marley and the Wallaces, and Trey and his agent, Meredith Bernstein. In all of this author’s books, the villains get what they deserve. Snowy Mountain Christmas contains a sweet Christmas romance between unforgettable characters. I couldn’t put this story down; it deserves more than 5 stars!

Tyler Darby did an outstanding job narrating Snowy Mountain Christmas. He performed authentic Southern accents for the Arkansas characters, and both his male and female voices were perfect.

I received an advance review copy (ARC) of the ebook from NetGalley and SourceBooks-Casablanca for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. After purchasing the paperback, I received an advance review copy (ARC) of the audiobook from NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for free.

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This had the feel good vibes to it but also some scary things to work though. If I’m being honest though, I did not like the FMC. Her attitude felt like way too much, like the female version of “short man’s syndrome.” I also felt like his relationship with his parents and the stuff that was discussed about their relationship wasn’t really worth being part of the book. That whole piece was frustrating. On top of that, the “attempted murder” felt really cringey. It started off great but the more it went on the crazier it got and not in a good way.

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Snowy Mountain Christmas
by Sharon Sala
narrated by Tyler Darby

Five Stars

I LOVED this story! I LOVED this narrator!

"One minute, Trey Austin is driving through torrential rain; the next, he’s being rescued from a car wreck by an angelic woman with the courage to brave the storm. Her face was the last thing he saw before he lost consciousness. No one got her name—but she lost one shoe stuck in the mud. It’s Trey’s only clue, so he takes to the internet, hoping against hope that he’ll find his angel."

That angel? Marley Corbett. Owner of an Inn and hearer of Angels. These two coming together is so much fun. Marley hearing from angels is just such a sweet part of the story. I highly recommend this book for a wholesome holiday story.

#SnowyMountainChristmas #SharonSala
#TylerDarby #FiveStars #NetGalley
#DreamscapeMedia #Christmas #Audiobook
#Holiday #Romance #Angels #Contemporary
#ALCReview #ReadThisBook #ReadAllTheBooks
#BedAndBreakfast #BusinessOwner

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A very sweet small town, insta-love love story. Two strangers save each other both literally and figuratively in a cute romantic tale. Hailey and Trey living are strangers who through a twist of fate, some angel magic and the internet are brought together. There are some hiccups along the way, but they find their happily ever after. Lovely narration.

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Overall, I did like this book. I was not overly impressed with the narrator. It was a male narrator and I didn't feel he did the greatest job with some of the female characters and the two main male characters Trey and Jack sounded almost the same. Additionally, Trey the main male character is a writer from Phoenix who ends up going to Colorado in search of his "Cinderella". The narrator makes him speak like some kind of cowboy which just doesn't seem realistic as 1) he is not a cowboy - he is a writer from Phoenix 2) he was raised in a wealthy family by nannies and went to boarding school. Part of this is the dialogue - the author has Trey constantly saying "darlin" over and over (which isn't the best writing in my opinion) - which doesn't seem realistic.

The main story plot line, however, is a good one. The female protagonist is interesting and spunky as are her neighbors Jack and Wanda. As I said the story is good and the characters just really the narrator and some of the dialogue of the male protagonist bring my rating down.

That said, it's a decent story and if you like a light romance - worth reading or listening to the audiobook.

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Snowy Mountain Christmas is a sweet romance with a touch of spiritual intervention.

It wasn’t quite my cup of tea- I found the instalove a bit too saccharine, the more sinister element a bit out of place, and the pacing rushed. However if you’re looking for a cheery comfort read with cosy hallmark vibes this might be the one for you! I did love the mountainous lodge setting, and the premise of Cinderella being the rescuer rather than the damsel in distress.

I think it would have been great to have dual narrators for the audiobook - at times I found it a bit tricky to follow the different characters. However the audio was animated and well enunciated, making for an easy relaxing listen.

Thank you Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for a copy of this audiobook. Opinions expressed are my own.

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Snowy Mountain Christmas by Sharon Sala
Contemporary holiday romance.
Trey Austin is driving through a torrential rain storm on a country road when lightning flashes, nearly hitting the car. Avoiding the strike, he ends up flipping the car and falling into a ditch where the water is rising rapidly. He’s saved by a woman that cuts him from his seat belt and is somehow able to drag him out of the car and ditch to higher ground where she’s able to call for help. Trey doesn’t get her name at the time, but he’s given one of her shoes that she lost in his rescue. Trey goes public, pleading with anyone that might have information on who his savior was.
Hailey Beaumont owns a bed and breakfast in Colorado that is being remodeled and updated before opening again. She reaches out to Trey when she sees his messages to confirm it was her on the side of the road and he immediately travels to the inn to meet her. There is a snowstorm on the way and Trey arrives in time to spend the holiday with Hailey where they fall in love.

🎧 I alternated between an ebook and an audiobook which is narrated by Tyler Darby. The performance is easy to listen to and engaging at the same time. The tension of an emergency is heard and felt as well as the joy of spending the holiday season with loved ones. There were specific voices for Trey and Hailey as well as the handyman neighbor and others. The holiday warmth comes through clearly making the audiobook my preferred method of reading for this story.
I did speed up the playback to 1.5 which more closely matches my reading and conversation speed.

Slightly spiritual in that she hears the voices of angels.
Warm and comforting holiday story. He’s a loner but with her, he feels complete. A beautiful and sweet romance.

I received a copy of this from NetGalley. This author is an auto buy for me.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DAyhZpIRWst/?igsh=MXB4bG9oNXBuM240eA==

https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/47f912b5-1adb-4755-a285-b8cdf122036d

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Overall a sweet holiday read. I felt it moved very fast which normally is a good thing but this time it felt too rushed. I felt this book could have ended chapters before it did. Honestly though I did enjoy it. This couple was very adult about how they communicated and dealt with issues which you don't see enough of. Narration was good.

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Snowy Mountain Christmas was more than just a Christmas story. The characters had depth and the plot had some meat to it. The narrator was easy to listen to and exactly what I imagined Trey to sound like. I did get a little confused at one point as I would have preferred more than one narrator for Trey and his father. I also found some of the references to each other a bit over the top but it might be just the setting of the story. Overall, I enjoyed the book and will watch for other Sharon Sala books.

Thank you Net Galley, Sharon Sala and Brilliance Audio for the opportunity to preview this novel. The opinions expressed are my own.

This novel/audiobook will be available tomorrow (Oct. 8, 2024) for your holiday reading list!

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Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape media for the earc Snowy Mountain Christmas. This was a cute Cinderella story. Little bit of drama but it was cute all around.

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This was the cutest audiobook I’ve ever listened to! This was a great one and the narration really made the story I loved it

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Trey Austin grew up with wealthy parents who were never really parents to him. One day driving home, he was in a serious car accident. He was saved by a petite Marley Corbett. Thinking he would never see her again the responding officer tells him he found her shoe. On a quest to find his Cinderella he puts out his story to find this mystery woman who saved his life. His story goes viral and Marley finally reaches out Trey goes to the B&B that she owns and they bond over a special Christmas holiday.

This is a cute and cozy story. I'm never going to like an Insta love story like a slow-burn or a normal person romance. However, Trey and Marley are opposites attracted in many ways and peas in a pod in others. Aside from our love story, we have a little bit of everything thrown in. We have some paranormal elements with Angels. Then we have the relationship of Trey's parents thrown in and we get a few chapters with their POV. Then we have this awful guy who wants to hurt Marley from the start of the book. Then we have the secret identity of Trey. A lot is going on. I would have been satisfied with their love story and at times I thought "Give me more" while I was ready for it to be over and to get on with the point. By the end, I was wanting the ending to come. Overall, the book is sweet and cozy. If you love a cleanish romance with Insta Love then you'll love this snowy romance.

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