2018 Holiday Books and Movies

HOLIDAY BOOKS ON MY TBR PILE: I knew Snow in Love was going to make my list this year since it features a story by one of my favorite authors, Kasie West. Mutts and Mistletoe has cute dogs on the covers so I couldn't pass that up and Christmas Camp is written by the person who wrote the Netflix hit A Christmas Prince, which was horrible yet entertaining, making it another must read. Carols and Chaos offers a historical fiction Christmas story by an author I love while Moonlight Over Manhattan and Love & Other Train Wrecks just sounded like enjoyable reads.

NEW TO ME: With Vanessa Hudgens playing the main character I couldn't say no to The Princess Switch (Netflix). A sequel to A Christmas Prince? Of course I will be watching A Christmas Prince: The Royal Wedding (Netflix). Switched for Christmas (Hallmark) features Candace Cameron Bure while Road to Christmas (Hallmark) stars Chad Michael Murray. The Holiday Calendar sounds like another Netflix Christmas hit and The Grinch is a favorite of mine.

OLD FAVORITES: As a fan of musicals and musical competitions, The Mistle-tones (Freeform) had to make this list. I watch The Holiday and Love Actually every single year, they both have a great cast! I haven't watched Olive the Other Reindeer in quite some time, but I am hoping to change that this year. Rise of the Guardians is such a well-made movie and I didn't get around to watching it last year. Yes. Die Hard is one of my all-time favorite Christmas movies. Yes. It is a Christmas movie. Fight me in the comments! ;)

Puppies Crash Christmas is both a wonderfully adorable delight, and gives me great anxiety. This video is only available on Hulu. It is 30 minutes of adorable puppies wrecking a cute Christmas scene with Netflix show Easter eggs scattered throughout.

Tell Me in the Comments: What holiday books are you planning to read? Do you have a favorite Christmas movie?

Short & Sweet Holiday Review: A Christmas to Remember

A Christmas to Remember by Jenny Hale
Length: 318 pages
Genre: Adult/Holiday/Romance
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
Source: I bought an ebook copy.
My Rating:

Goodreads Summary: Everyone loves Christmas – don’t they? Carrie Blake loves her job as a nanny but, while her friends are settling down, all of Carrie’s spare time is spent with other people’s families. Though it breaks her heart, her New Year’s resolution is to embark on a new career and fix her love life. As Carrie starts her last job, she’s sure she’ll be going out on a high – the house is amazing , the kids are adorable, and she’s in charge of decorating the tree! The only problem could be her boss… single-dad Adam Fletcher might be both handsome and successful, but he’s always working. Doesn’t he realise he’s missing out on precious moments with his son and daughter? As Adam’s family arrive for Christmas including his sensitive sister, Sharon, and his fun-loving elderly Grandpa, Walter, Carrie realises that she might just have found the perfect allies in her quest to persuade Adam to loosen up. There’s still time for Carrie to make this the best Christmas ever… after all, Christmas is the time for miracles, isn’t it? Let the festivities begin!

+ Add to goodreads

My Review

I have been in the mood to read ALL the holiday romance books this December. I don't know why, but I have been craving them. So I just jumped right in. This was my second book of the season, and it was pretty good.

A Christmas to Remember has an interesting cast of characters and adorable children. It will give you warm feels and make you smile, which is exactly what I am looking for in my holiday books. Even though I liked Carrie the nanny, and the sexy single-dad Adam, I was really hoping for more interactions between the two! We spend so much of the story inside Carrie's head that we don't get nearly enough dialogue between the two main characters. This was a big bummer and the reason I gave the book three stars instead of four.

Although this book wasn't perfect for me, I am sure many will enjoy this holiday romance. A Christmas to Remember was sweet. If you are looking for a book full of Christmas feels, then this one is a good choice.

TTT #30: Top Ten Books Santa Should Bring Me

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly event hosted over at The Broke and the Bookish.

I love this week's topic. Some of these books on my list were ones I actually put on my Christmas list to my parents and some of these are ones I just now thought of and wish I would have put on my list. I may have to do a Christmas loot post when I get back from vacation if I get enough bookish goodies to share with you all. *The titles are linked up to goodreads if you would like to find out more about each book.

The Young Adult Books I Would Advise Santa to Bring Me
1. Compulsion by Martina Boone sounds like a Gothic young adult novel I don't want to miss.
2. H20 (The Rain) by Virginia Bergin - What if rain was deadly? I want to know.
3. Every Breath by Ellie Marney - I must read this Sherlock book. 
4. So far I have only heard good things about Princess of Thorns by Stacey Jay.
5. I'm too intrigued to pass up on reading Hit by Lorie Ann Grover.

The Adult Books Santa Should Really Bring Me
6. I need to read a Neil Gaiman book and since American Gods is the most read book in my state I'm going to start there.
7. The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin is supposed to be incredibly good with the MC's love of books at its core.
8.  I fell in love with the hilarious Amy Poehler when I started watching Parks and Recreation. Now I can't wait to read her book Yes Please.

These Two Very Special Books Would Make Great Gifts... Just Saying.
9. I only own a not so pretty version of Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë and I would love to own the beautiful version below instead.
10. I would love to receive Percy Jackson's Greek Gods by Rick Riordan for Christmas.

I would love to see what books are on your wish list this year so please share below. I hope you all have a Very Merry Bookish Christmas!

Holiday Review: My True Love Gave to Me

My True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Holiday Stories by: Various Authors (Oct. 2014)

320 pages

Genre: Holiday/Romance/Cheer

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

Source: The library.

Purchase: Barnes and Noble | The Book Depository | Amazon

Goodreads Summary: If you love holiday stories, holiday movies, made-for-TV-holiday specials, holiday episodes of your favorite sitcoms and, especially, if you love holiday anthologies, you’re going to fall in love with MY TRUE LOVE GAVE TO ME: TWELVE HOLIDAY STORIES by twelve bestselling young adult writers, edited by international bestselling author Stephanie Perkins.

My Review

If you are in the mood for a holiday read I suggest you give My True Love Gave to Me a chance. It contains 12 charming stories written by some of everyone's favorite young adult authors. It was too difficult to summarize the book as a whole so I'm going to break it down into 12 very tiny reviews. Here is the list of the stories and their authors along with each story’s individual star rating.

Midnights by: Rainbow Rowell – Full of Rowell adorableness, this story is all about love on New Year’s Eve. (5 stars)

The Lady and The Fox by: Kelly Link – This is a mysterious folklore type story full of snow and Christmas. (3 stars)

Angels In The Snow by: Matt De La Pena – I deem this to be the one that left me the most unsatisfied. (4 stars)

Polaris is Where You’ll Find Me by: Jenny Han – I want more! This story was cute, funny, and unique. (4 stars)

It’s a Yuletide Miracle, Charlie Brown by: Stephanie Perkins – This was all smiles. I loved the characters. Perkins didn’t disappoint. (5 stars)

Your Temporary Santa by: David Levithan – A much deeper/emotional read, but still funny. (4 stars)

Krampuslauf by: Holly Black – Almost a little too weird for me, but it was still good. (3 stars)

What The Hell Have You Done, Sophie Roth?by: Gayle Forman – Downright heartwarming and fun. (5 stars)

Beer Buckets and Baby Jesus by: Myra McEntire – This was a very basic and typical holiday story. (3 stars)

Welcome to Christmas, CA by: Kiersten White – This could be a Hallmark Christmas movie and I would love it. This embodies Christmas Spirit, just look at the title! (4 stars)

Star of Bethlehem by: Ally Carter – I give this one points for being different, but take away points for being a tiny bit boring. (4 stars)

The Girl Who Woke The Dreamer by: Laini Taylor – This was a good way to end the book, full of hope and uniqueness. (5 stars)

The Bottom Line: This is a wonderful read that will get you in the holiday spirit. I'm not a big reader of short stories, but I had no issue enjoying these.

TTT #15: Top Ten Books I Wouldn't Mind Santa Bringing Me

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly event hosted over at The Broke and the Bookish.  

This week for Top Ten Tuesday we are sharing what books we would love Santa to bring us. I kept my list strictly to books that are already published, because even though Santa is pretty awesome I don't think he would be able to get me books that haven't been published yet. Pictures are linked up to goodreads!

1. Premeditated by: Josin L. McQuein

I feel like I have wanted this book since forever. So why do I want this one? Because of the synopsis:  

A week ago, Dinah’s cousin Claire cut her wrists.

Five days ago, Dinah found Claire’s diary and discovered why.

Three days ago, Dinah stopped crying and came up with a plan.

Two days ago, she ditched her piercings and bleached the black dye from her hair.

Yesterday, knee socks and uniform plaid became a predator’s camouflage.

Today, she’ll find the boy who broke Claire.

By tomorrow, he’ll wish he were dead.

2. Dark Witch (The Cousins O'Dwyer Trilogy #1) by: Nora Roberts

I'm a fan of Nora Roberts' supernatural type books and I love witches! 

3. Life After Life by: Kate Atkinson

A story where the main character lives her life over and over again. I'm in.

4. Omens (Cainsville #1) by: Kelley Armstrong

Mysteries, murder, and an author I enjoy, are the reasons why this book made the list.

5. Amber House (The Amber House Trilogy #1) by: Kelly Moore, Larkin Reed, Tucker Reed 

A house that holds secrets always intrigues me.

6. The Burning Sky (The Elemental Trilogy #1) by: Sherry Thomas

I've heard this is a really good book and the cover drew me in.

7. Out to Lunch by: Stacey Ballis

This just sounds like a very interesting and unique novel.

8. All Our Yesterdays (All Our Yesterdays #1) by: Cristin Terrill

I can't even begin to tell you all of the reasons why I want to read this, but you should check it out too.

9. The Princess in the Opal Mask (The Opal Mask #1) by: Jenny Lundquist 

There are two main reasons why I want to read this book. First, the cover is gorgeous. Second, the line from the synopsis "Every fairy-tale ending has a price..."

10. No Safety in Numbers (No Safety in Numbers #1) by: Dayna Lorentz

Survival stories always capture my attention.

I really wish so many of these were not in a series... So what books do you want Santa to bring you? Share below! 

Source: Zazzle.com

Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays!

I just want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! I hope you all have an amazing day. I will be at work and then having family time!

Here is an older and funny music video for your enjoyment! I confess, I still listen to this song every Christmas.