Christmas Angels: A Novel

She always dreamed of taking over her grandparents inn located in the small town of Angels Creek only for it to be sold before she ever got the chance. Accidentally stumbling upon a listing for what looks to be the picturesque inn, has Liz Westmoreland placing a bid and winning the property that she finds in significant disrepair. Matt Hardy narrowly lost the inn so he jumps at the chance to help his childhood crush restore a place where he made so many fond memories. When angels start mysteriously showing up in all over the inn, Liz looks as reassurance that she’s doing what she’s meant to do, but an accident has feeling like she made a mistake. This wonderfully heartwarming and sweet romance is a perfect read to put any reader in the holiday spirit as the residents of a small town and a spunky canine work to show Liz that she has not only found a home but true love as well. The chemistry between Liz and Matt sizzles with lots of heat and the romance itself is powerfully sweet as the work on restoring the inn together and bring back the Christmas spirit that they both remember. Lots of emotions flowing from the pages ensure that the readers really get to know the characters and become caught up in their story. The plot is steady paced, informative and full of romance and holiday spirit of every flavor with lots of wonderful secondary characters supporting the hero and heroine in their endeavor and in a few ways that really share the special meaning of the holidays bringing warmth and melts even the coldest of hearts in this delightfully magical holiday romance.

This book touched me in so many ways that I don't know where to begin, except to say that this book is a keeper and needs to be read over and over again. I smiled and cried and cheered and remembered a lot of my own childhood Christmas and how special different events were. Antler Creek and especially Angel's Rest have always held a very special place in Liz's heart and when she gets the chance to purchase Angel's Rest back, as it had once belonged to her grandparents, she jumps on it and buys it from an online auction. Unfortunately once she arrives, she discovers that previous owners basically destroyed the interior of the lodge. Fortunately she is put in touch with Matt who has fond memories of his own of Angel's Rest and Liz and Liz's grandparents. Matt and the residents of Antler's creek come together to help Liz make her dream come true of reopening the Lodge and the traditions that her grandparents had, especially the Christmas light display. Liz finds pieces of her grandmother's angel collection left in different places and takes those as a sign that she is doing the right thing, but then she accidentally breaks her ankle and she takes that as a sign that maybe she didn't make the right decision. It will take a lot of help from a lot of special "angels" including a very special dog named Elvis to help Matt show Liz that she is where she belongs. Read to see if Liz will come around and embrace her dream again also read to see just how many lives can be touched by the simplest things. This story reminded me that one can never know just how far reaching one act can travel. Thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for allowing me to read an ARC of this book. The above is my honest and freely given opinion.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from St. Martin's Press via NetGalley and I am voluntarily reviewing it. This was a great story. I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was almost like watching a Hallmark movie in book form. While I really enjoyed the story, it just didn't feel like a romance story to me until the very end. Liz Westmoreland discovers that her grandparent's inn, Angels Rest, is going to be auctioned off the next day. It has always been her dream to own it. She wins the inn and goes to Antler Creek to start the renovation process. She comes across Matt Hardy at the restaurant in town. He is drawn to her to the point that he suggests the ham sandwich for lunch as she is perplexed as to what to order for lunch. Matt submits a bid to be the contractor to help bring back the inn to life as the former owners gutted the interior into an art galley. I fell in love with quite a few characters (Krissy, Matt's sister and Grady, the sheriff) so I hope there are a few more stories in Antler Creek. This book is written in a dual POV format. With this, I could see Matt falling in love with Liz (he basically loved her when they were kids) but I couldn't feel it on Liz's part. She is going through so much on her own that it didn't come across for me. But like I mentioned earlier, it is a great story. This is a sweet, clean romance. If you like Hallmark movies, then you should read this book.