Holidate (Dating #3) by Monica Murphy-Review & Excerpt Tour
HOLIDATE
Dating #3
by Monica Murphy
Release Date: October 15, 2019
Genre: adult, contemporary,sweet, romance
Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Apple
ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date October 15, 2019
Candice Gaines loves Christmas. Not only does she bask in the twinkling lights, sing Christmas carols and go crazy with the decorations, she’s also in the giving spirit, donating much of her time and wealth to various charities in the local area.
Charlie Sullivan despises Christmas. Though it keeps his family afloat, considering they own Sullivan Family Christmas Tree Farm, the main provider for Christmas trees on the Monterey peninsula. He’d much rather work among the trees versus have to deal with people.
But Charlie’s parents are taking on more philanthropic projects—and as their oldest child, they want him to be their official public representative. He just has to play nice and convince everyone he’s not a total holiday hater.
When Charlie’s mom asks Candice to accompany him to a variety of holiday parties and events, she reluctantly agrees. She thinks Charlie is a big ol’ Grinch, but is determined to change his mindset and help him spread Christmas cheer. Charlie finds Candice too chatty, too sweet, too much. Do people like her really exist?
Why yes, yes they do. The more time they spend together—along with a few kisses under the mistletoe—the more they start to like each other. Hopefully Charlie can convince Candice he doesn’t have a heart that’s two sizes too small before the ball drops on New Year’s Eve.
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REVIEW: HOLIDATE is the third instalment in Monica Murphy’s contemporary, adult DATING romance series. This is Christmas tree farm owner Charlie Sullivan, and philanthropist and fund raiser Candice Gaines’ story line. HOLIDATE can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story lines is revealed where necessary.
Told from dual first person perspectives (Charlie and Candice) HOLIDATE follows the building romance and relationship between Christmas tree farm owner Charlie Sullivan, and philanthropist Candice Gaines. The holidays are about to get busy and Candice finds herself the ‘victim’ of a lie when she is asked by a well-meaning mother to accompany her son to a variety of holiday parties. Candice, with a holiday scheduled filled to the brim, isn’t exactly thrilled to be holding hands with the local Grinch but discovers there is more to Charlie than meets the eye. What ensues is the building relationship between Candice and Charlie, and the potential fall-out when the truth is revealed.
The colorful secondary and supporting characters include Candice’s friends Kelsey, Eleanor, Caroline (Save the Date #1) and Sarah, her brother Jared’s girlfriend (Fake Date #2), Joyce Rothschild, as well as Charlie’s mother Isabel Sullivan, his sister Victoria; and tree farm employee Isaac Jones.
HOLIDATE is a cute holiday themed story; a ‘Hallmark-esque’ sweet romance where the push and pull of enemies to friendship quickly escalates with each encounter. The premise is endearing; the romance is sweet (no $ex scenes, a few kisses and limited physical touching); Candice is energetic and over the top, almost childlike in her love of Christmas; Charlie struggles with the season and everything it represents. HOLIDATE is a light-hearted and delightful read.
Reading Order and Previous Reviews
Save the Date
Fake Date
Holidate
Copy supplied for review
Reviewed by Sandy
And handsome.
And gruff.
And he smells good. Have I mentioned that? He smells like a pine tree, of course, and his scent is mouth-wateringly delicious.
Ugh. I hate myself sometimes.
He pushes open the door of the building almost violently, sending it swinging wide, and I sneak in behind him, causing him to turn and practically snarl at me when he realizes I’m standing in front of him.
But I forget all about his snarl when I see how enchanting this room is. It’s not an office, but an actual store, filled to the brim with holiday decorations and knickknacks for sale. Candles are burning—I can smell cinnamon and spice wafting in the air. The scent of the real pine trees laden with ornaments standing in the room also lingers, and I breathe deep, closing my eyes for a moment so I can take it all in.
When I open my eyes, it’s to find Charlie standing there, his hands on his hips, his brow lowered. “Are you okay? That head injury still flaring up and giving you trouble?”
I roll my eyes. “No, you idiot. I’m enjoying the festive atmosphere.”
Oh, that was mean. I shouldn’t have said that.
But I don’t think he even noticed.
I slowly turn in a circle, pure delight flowing through my veins. I don’t know what to look at first, it’s all so beautiful. And there are layers upon layers of decorations. On the walls, cluttering shelves and tabletops, overflowing giant baskets. And of course there are the trees. They almost sag with their bounty of sparkling ornaments and twinkling lights. It would probably take me hours to explore it all, and I’m dying to start my exploration right at this very moment. “This store is so adorable!”
“My sister Victoria runs it.” He glances over at the counter where the register sits, but no one’s there. “I don’t know where she’s at, though. Maybe you could talk to her about—whatever it is you want to talk about.”
No way is he pushing this agenda onto his sister. Isabel wants Charlie to do this, and no one else.
“We’ve wasted the past five minutes with you huffing and puffing and refusing to speak to me.” I reach into my large bag and pull the folder out I wanted to show him. “Give me ten minutes. That’s all I need to talk about what we’re going to do over the next few weeks.”
He grimaces. Sighs. Tugs the cap off his head, all that gorgeous hair spilling across his forehead, and my fingers literally itch at the chance to push it out of his eyes.
But I restrain myself. Barely.
Monica Murphy is the New York Times, USA Today and #1 international bestselling author of the One Week Girlfriend series, the Billionaire Bachelors and The Rules series. Her books have been translated in almost a dozen languages and has sold over one million copies worldwide. She is both self-published and published by Random House/Bantam and Harper Collins/Avon. She writes new adult, young adult and contemporary romance.
She is a wife and a mother of three who lives in central California on fourteen acres in the middle of nowhere along with their one dog and too many cats. A self-confessed workaholic, when she’s not writing, she’s reading or hanging out with her husband and kids. She’s a firm believer in happy endings, though she will admit to putting her characters through angst-filled moments before they finally get that hard won HEA.
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Excellent review and excerpt
Thanks for the wonderful review Sandy
Wonderful review, Sandy. This looks like another fun holiday story line.
Looks great, thanks Sandy
Terrific review, Sandy. Amazing how many wonderful Christmas stories and we are not even in November.
Great review, Sandy. Looks like a fun read.
Great review, Sandy. Sounds like a fun story.
great review, sandy. sounds like a fun holiday story.
Another excellent review and excerpt , thanks Sandy
Thanks for the wonderful review and excerpt.
Great review, Sandy. Looks like a fun read.
Good reviews as always and love the assortment of giveaways