Holiday Ever After by Jill Shalvis – a Review

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Description:
Three fan-favorite Jill Shalvis novellas are together for the first time in this holiday anthology!

One Snowy Night
It’s Christmas Eve and Rory Andrews is desperate to get home to her family. Problem is, her only ride to Lake Tahoe comes in the form of the annoyingly handsome Max Stranton, her long-time crush, and his big, goofy, lovable dog. A long road trip in a massive blizzard might be just what they need to face their past…and one steamy, snowy night is all it takes to bring Max and Rory together at last.

Holiday Wishes
When Sean O’Riley shows up for his older brother’s bachelor weekend, the last person he expects to see is Lotti Hartford, the woman he lost his virginity to a decade ago. As the weekend continues, Sean realizes he wants to leave his hook-up life behind, but can he convince Lotti to open her heart to him again?

Mistletoe in Paradise
Years after their secret fling ended, Hannah isn’t eager to see James during their families’ annual joint holiday-themed yacht adventure. But when they’re the only people who show up, James and Hannah are stuck together on the high seas for days. As the former lovers try to make the best of the Christmas snafu, they soon realize the best things in life can’t be planned, and sometimes love is sweeter the second time around. 

Review:

Holiday Ever After by Jill Shalvis is a holiday bonanza with three novellas (from Heartbreaker and Wildstone series).

One Snowy Night
We meet our heroine, Rory Andrews, as she needs a ride home for the holidays, and is surprised when her friend asked Max Stranton to give her a ride home, since he doesn’t live far from Lake Tahoe.  She reluctantly accepts the ride, and Rory gets a kick out of Max’s dog, Carl; since she is a dog groomer and she knows Carl loves her. Cute.  Rory did see Max lately, as he worked in the same building as her, and she usually groomed, Carl.
 
Rory and Max were friends in high school, but though she had a crush on him, nothing ever developed, and she left home at the age of 17, rarely coming back.  Along the way home, they run into a blizzard, which will allow them to get to rekindle their friendship, and get know each other more. In a very short time, the chemistry between them heats up.  I found it nice that Max stood up for Rory when they arrived at her home, especially since she hasn’t been home for a long time.  This was a fun cute story, and a couple we rooted hard for to stay together.

Holiday Wishes
Sean O’Riley had planned his brother’s bachelor/bachelorette weekend, and the entire group of friends (boys and girls) arrive at the Bed and Breakfast to enjoy the weekend before the wedding. Sean is surprised to recognize the person in charge of the Inn. Lotti Hanfield runs her family’s B&B, and is shocked to meet the boy (now man), who broke her heart, and has never seen him since then.  When she ignores him, his brother and friends tease him that this woman wants nothing to do with him.  Sean has always been a playboy, but lately when seeing all his friends begin to settle down, he feels the change in wanting to find someone to spend forever with.

Lotti has been hurt before, and is not interested in Sean’s attempts to show her that he is a changed man.  Lotti has made plans to close the B&B for two weeks for a vacation, but the nasty blizzard will change things.  Everyone is very pleased with how Lotti has arranged everything for the group (events and food). But now that no one can leave, Sean convinces Lotti to help him set up an impromptu wedding at the B&B; but with a food shortage, she was able get some stuff from local neighbors, and they all worked together to decorate the wedding.  Being stuck at the inn for a couple of more days, was just perfect for them to fall for each other, as they had great chemistry.  This story was lots of fun and enjoyable, and also great to see so many of our favorites from previous books. 

Mistletoe in Paridise
Hannah Banfield, our heroine, is a workaholic as a health care advocate, with little time to spare.  But with Christmas close, she agrees to join her father on their annual Caribbean yacht trip; but she also knows her mother is not coming, and Hannah needs to give her father her mother’s divorce papers.  To her surprise, her father also invited James, who was Hannah’s love years ago. 

James Webber, our hero, was happy to see Hannah, but both are surprised when the yacht starts moving with only the two of them (James’s family also used to attend the annual trip), as well as her father and another person.  While stuck together for a few days, James and Hannah talk about their lives, and how both are buried in their work.  They talk about the death of James’s brother, and how it changed their lives.  James sees Hannah constantly interrupted on her cell for work, and learns how she is now working in health care, especially since the death of Jason.  James also explains he needs to change his life, as he has his own business (expedition company), but also works overtime to handle his father’s company.  He plans to tell his father that he is quitting and work only on his business. 

When Hannah’s father leaves them at a stop for a day or two to spend time alone, both James and Hannah realize that they still love each other.  It was sweet and wonderful to see them work past the issues that have kept their lives at a standstill, and needed to open themselves to being happy.  I really loved James and Hannah together, and their eventual happy ever after.

Holiday Ever After was fun to read, as all three novellas were great.  No surprise here, as Jill Shalvis is one of the best at writing wonderful sweet romances. If you have not read her books, you are missing a gem of an author. 

Reviewed by Barb

Copy provided by Publisher