Meh. Not a fave! Into the coworker crush plot, but the whole hot dog/wiener/sausage turned me off to the story over all. Appreciate the spice though! …even if though it happened in a giant wiener car 🥴😵‍💫

(Thank you, Brilliance Publishing | Amazon Original Stories and NetGalley, for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.)

Thank you to Brilliance publishing and Netgalley for the Audio. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

As adjunct professors Nina and William took up a job through the holidays selling mince pies out of a traveling mobile that looks a lot like male genitalia. This does make for some funny moments while stuck in traffic. Nina has had a crush on William since she came to the university. But hasn’t had the courage to do anything about it. Stuck in the middle of the highway in a snow storm just might be a good time for some Christmas confessions.

This was probably my least favorite story of the collection. You could tell that William had a thing for Nina and I just wanted to get it all out in the open. Then the sex scene in the mince meat mobile was way too politically correct with all the can I touch you stuff after I thought it had been made pretty clear that they both wanted to do all the touchy touchy things. Also, a sex scene in something that in my head looked a lot like the Oscar Wiener Mobile was just not sexy to me.

Still Nina and William were sweet if incredible dense about telling each other how they feel. It wasn’t a bad story I just liked all the others more.

Narration:

Andi Arndt is a pro narrator and brought their A game. The voices and emotions were great and they made the funny scenes even funnier than if I would have read the book.

📕📱🎧 All by My Elf
by Olivia Dade
⭐⭐️⭐️.5

This was a cute little short story, but it was my least favorite of the Under the Mistletoe series.

As a whole, the story was good, had some funny moments and some spice which I did not expect. I also enjoyed the walk back to memory lane with the Never Have I Ever game, but I found this short novella lacked a couple of things. The first thing is Christmas vibes. Even if the story happened during Christmas time, didn't make it feel very Christmas-y! I know it's only a short story, but I believe there could have been more to it that would have made this even better.

It was still a cute read but did not meet my expectations.

Okay I thought this quick novella was adorable and the cutest little moment to jump start my holiday reading! I couldn’t help laughing along with (at?) the characters as they are stuck in traffic driving a decommissioned weiner mobile dresses as elves for a holiday gig. I couldn’t help but squeal when they got stuck in holiday traffic and were forced to spend the night together in said Weiner. And then I BLUSHED when they started a very heart warming, yet spicy, game of “never have I ever” that lead to the happily ever after that we all wanted and needed. And then the Weiner mobile turned into a spicy sausage. I cannot wait to read the rest of the stories that make up this romantic holiday anthology.

All By My Elf by Olivia Dade is cute novella features professors that need some extra cash between semesters that are working a side gig during the holiday break and their coworker that knows they both have a thing for each other supports a forced proximity moment for them to get their feelings out in the open…. And a wiener mobile and all the accompanying jokes so this was a fun and flirty holiday novella!

yikes, I didn’t like this one at all. The nail in the coffin was the description of her Vulva, why is that in a romance novel 🤪. It’s pretty gross and I found it to be a dull read.

All By My Elf promises a cozy, festive romance with a unique premise—two university teachers moonlighting for a schnitzel company, stranded overnight in a van during a snowstorm. Unfortunately, the execution falls flat.

The characters, Nina and William, come across as bland and one-dimensional, with a childlike quality that feels out of place for adult protagonists. Their dialogue and interactions lack the charm and depth needed to make their romance believable or engaging. Instead of endearing quirks, their personalities feel underdeveloped, as though written by someone still finding their voice.

While the novella includes some spicy scenes that could have been enjoyable, the choice of language—particularly the word "vulva"—takes away from the intended sensuality, making these moments more awkward than alluring.

The best thing about All By My Elf is its brevity. At least its short length made finishing it bearable, though without the hint of spice, I might not have pushed through. Overall, this is a skippable read, even for die-hard holiday romance fans.

All By My Elf by Olivia Dade is book three of five in the spicy Under The Mistletoe Collection, short stories marketed as "December romances that thrill and tingle all the way!"

Spoilers probably ahead...

A snowstorm leaves two co-workers stranded on the side of the road in a (for all intents and purposes) wiener mobile, making this a right-time-we-have-condoms-type situation. But of course before we get to that point, there has to be some friction and longing and in this case there was an apparent miscommunication between Nina and her best friend... so much so that Nina thought her best friend and William were knocking boots (best friend you say!? Do these two best friends not communicate at all???). But thankfully after Nina and William play a round of Never Have I Ever, Nina finds out the truth, allowing Nina and William to do the deed in the back of the food wagon... which, let me remind you, is stranded on the side of the road in a snowstorm (that giant hotdog strapped to the roof is going to impale someone, but in this case that just doesn't sound like a good time!). Also, Nina is a 37 year old divorced woman, but instead came off like an immature twenty-something.

I wanted more sass and quirk from the audiobook narrator's tone and inflection, which could have made this book intentionally (or ironically) corny, but instead just caused it to deflate!

This series features 60-ish page/1.5 hour-ish long books and they're just the sort of story to slip into when you've got just a bit of spare time!

Thank you NetGalley, Brilliance Publishing and Amazon Original Stories for the complimentary audio copy to read and review.

I honestly love this whole collection because it's such a fun and spicy novella to give ya the feels but also the spice. This had me swooning and just enjoying have a simple holiday read. Can't wait to finish the rest in this collection.

I've been disappointed with other Audible Original stories, but this one was cute and fun and everything wrapped up nicely. I'm excited to read the other stores in the collection.

Thank you NetGalley and Brilliance publishing for an ARC of All By My Elf!

This was a cute, spicy, and funny read!

However, for a Christmas short I was expecting more holiday cheer, and there was a weird amount of consent for such a short book. Yes, consent is necessary, but does not need to be brought up 7 or 8 times in a single scene.

This was a super cute holiday stuck in the snow romance. Funny and fast paced, there was so much happens in such a short time. Definitely a great one to kick off the holiday season!

Honestly, not for me. It's a spicy novella but there wasn't enough to get me invested in the characters or plot. Maybe in an anthology with more connection but as a standalone it wasn't worth it for me. Fine, but not great

Cute romance! Despite its short length, the story was complete with character development, longing, humor, and spice. The beginning was a little confusing but once I got into it, I adored the main characters and the setting, particularly the hot dog truck.

All by My Elf is part of the Under the Mistletoe Collection. This story has everything I want in a cute novella — holiday fun and nerdy characters with solid banter. There was a fun game of ‘never have I ever’ while located inside a take on the wiener mobile which brought all the secrets out. I’m impressed with how much Dade packed into this story and how many times I laughed out loud while reading it. The one drawback I have is that it felt like we were dropped into the middle of the story at the beginning which may be a byproduct of being a novella. I read this via audiobook and the narration by Andy Arndt definitely added to my cackling while reading. Arndt was a great choice for the role, and it really showed in the narration. I’d definitely recommend reading this.

All by my Elf by Olivia Dade

This was my first Olivia Dade read and I’m so sad to say this one was unfortunately my least favorite of all of the books in this collection. It’s hard to pinpoint, but I couldn’t find myself being invested in the romance or characters, and the story felt like it lagged a lot at the beginning with minimal humor and I kept wanting for the story to grip me. I guess the characters felt a little cookie cutter for me without having their own unique voice. For how short it was I think maybe the pacing just wasn’t to my liking. I didn’t really feel the odds and again that attributed to me not being very invested. It wasn’t bad, however it just wasn’t gripping for me. Maybe I’ve read too many holiday romances so it felt like it didn’t stand on its own. However for someone looking for a low stakes, easy reading, sweet palate cleansing holiday romance this would be a great pick!

The audio and narration was however great and fit the voice of our FMC and MMC. The narrator brought a lot of emotional tone and timing that really kept the book afloat for me.

Thank you Olivia Dade, Brilliance Audio and NetGalley for this ALC in exchange for my honest thoughts

All by My Elf is a cute pinning for your coworker romance. Caught in a snowstorm in a mince mobile (think like an Oscar Meyer weinermobile) Nina and William must cuddle for warmth. Once hand of Never Have I Ever leads to secret desires voiced and the chemistry ignites. Read for a cute story and wonderfully fun puns. Everything is made better by being narrated by Andi Arndt.

Thank you Brilliance Publishing and NetGalley for my ALC in exchange for an honest review.

All by My Elf follows Nina and William who, while working a side job over Christmas, get stuck in a snowstorm overnight.

This short story is cute and wholesome as we follow the two opening up to each other while playing a game of Never Have I Ever. It's the perfect quick read/listen to while snuggled up and it will make you smile.

Thank you to Brilliance Publishing and Netgalley for this audio ARC. I'm looking forward to listening to the other stories in this collection!

Super cute holiday novella. Love the snowy setting in this story making it the snowed in trope. It also brought out a few other favorite tropes like: forced proximity, love at first sight, and coworkers-to-lovers. I loved the banter between Nina and William. He likes Nina but she thinks he likes her friend. Nina's friend is actually trying to get William with Nina. It's a bit of confusion but such a sweet story.

The audio narration was done by Andi Arndt. She always is such a great narrator. I loved the way she narrated the story.

This is a super quick holiday novella with great representation. Olivia Dade had some one-liners and puns in here that made me laugh too. I will admit though that I was definitely confused at the beginning as to what the situation was and the ending, although cute, left me with tons of questions. Overall, I think it’s perfect if you have an hour or so and need a fun audio to listen to.

Thank you so much to Amazon Publishing for my ALC 💜

2.75-3/5⭐️