A Heartfelt Christmas Promise is the next heartwarming and inspirational Christmas story by USA Today bestselling author, Nancy Naigle.Vanessa Larkin just agreed to an out-of-town job assignment over the holidays. With the promise of a hefty bonus if she can get things done by the new year she heads for tiny Fraser Hills. Determined to succeed, she’s not worried about whipping the shutdown … about whipping the shutdown process into overdrive to meet the challenge. Only when she gets there she realizes her bosses haven’t been upfront with the town about the plans to shut down the plant.
Mike Marshall, a widower raising a teenaged daughter, is a big believer in tradition and doing things the old-fashioned way. When Mike finds out his grandfather has sold the family business to some big corporation, he’s angry. Not that he wanted the business, but selling it makes no sense to him. As much as Mike and Vanessa butt heads about doing things the old vs the new way, when his teenage daughter requires some motherly advice he gives in to Vanessa’s offer to help.
As much as she despises having to do it, Vanessa has to announce the shut-down plans and get things moving–and it’s not going to make her popular with the town, or with Mike who she’s completely taken by. Now this has become a corporate vs heart decision, and she’s not sure she can make both sides happy. She’s hoping for a Christmas miracle that might land her with the very best Christmas gift of all…
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This book was a cute holiday read! I was even left with a hankering for a piece of fruitcake:) Small town dynamics, a touch of Christmas magic, and a really cute fur baby made Vanessa and Mike’s story feel like a charming Hallmark movie.
I received an advance reader copy from Netgalley/St. Martin’s Press and this is my honest review.
A Heartfelt Christmas Promise was a heartwarming and wonderful holiday novel. I honestly felt like I was reading a Hallmark Christmas movie!
Vanessa Larkin works for an acquisition company in Chicago. She’s up for her next assignment and she is anticipating spending the holidays in either Washington state or Paris, France. She would be happy with either as long as her cousin is able to spend the holidays with her there. Color her surprised when she ends up getting an assignment in the small town of Fraser Hills, North Carolina, population under 2,000.
Vanessa figures that she’ll be able to go into the small town and do her job efficiently and have everything tied up in a nice tidy bow by the new year, but you know how best laid plans go, right?! Vanessa begins to meet the townspeople, learns about Fraser Hills, about Porter’s, the company she is to be closing, and suddenly she’s not particularly upset to be spending time in the quaint town.
Mike Martin is a widower who works with Percheron horses. He’s big on tradition and doesn’t like change all that much. His sixteen year old daughter, Misty, works at Porter’s and is wise beyond her years, which is both a blessing and a curse for him! He’s a great guy who works hard and wants the best for his family and his town.
Vanessa is solely focused on work, but being in Fraser Hills helps her to begin to refocus her priorities. Misty and Mike help with that along the way as well. The relationship that Vanessa has with her cousin Anna is wonderful as well. In the end will she end up taking down a business that makes the town what it is, or will she do the exact opposite?
People like Mike, Buck, Misty, Anna and Lilene help to make this story what it is. It’s the relationships you forge and the help you get from those people when you may need it the most and don’t even know it and that’s something that Vanessa learns along the way. I absolutely loved Scooter and the role he plays in this story.
A lovely holiday novel to get you in the spirit of the season!
**I voluntarily read an early copy of this title courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review**
The writing here was fine, but I had a few personal issues with the story and the characters.
The story felt like a Hallmark Christmas movie, too sweet and too predictable. I enjoy those movies, but too many at a time can lead me into sugar overload. The characters were stereotypical, and I didn’t connect well with them or the romance chemistry.
Some people will love this as they rightly should as their personal preference. Perhaps I’m too jaded, but I found it just OK.
Thanks to #NetGalley and #StMartinsPress for providing me the ARC. The opinions are strictly my own.
I look forward to Christmas books by Nancy Naigle each year and this story will definitely make your heart smile!
I was transported to a beautiful small town in the mountains of North Carolina where people worked hard,and cared about their family and friends. Love was felt.
Change is always difficult, but when Vanessa shows up from Chicago to close down the Porter fruitcake business; tensions rise and the town folks are ready to defend their livelihood and their neighbors!
A beautiful story that will melt your heart and no matter when it is read, will make you feel warm and fuzzy!
A story we all need!
“A Heartfelt Christmas Promise” by Nancy Naigle
A sweet clean contemporary romance that reads like a Hallmark holiday movie. A truly fun light read with a few twists to keep you on your toes. I expect you read the description and are checking out reviews to see if you really want to read this story. I say, if the description caught your eye then I think you will enjoy your time with Ms. Vanessa Larkin and the people she meets while completing her holiday work assignment.
note: I received an ARC of this story from the publisher via NetGalley with the expectation I would write and post my honest review.
Oh this book was so good! I wanted to crawl inside it and stay. I wanted to visit Frazier Hills and eat fruitcake from Porters!! It was just the perfect book and just what I needed after the last few I’ve read. Definitely recommend!
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the early copy
A Heartfelt Christmas Promise by Nancy Naigle is an excellent contemporary Christmas novel that is a feel-good romance that will place anyone into the holiday spirit. I have been a fan of Ms. Naigle for quite some time and have loved every book of hers that I have read, however I have to say that this is one of my favorites so far.
I loved so many things about this book: the full character cast, the wonderful small town of Fraser Hills, NC, the plot, and of course the wonderful ending! The author did a fantastic job creating a visual masterpiece in regards to the adorable and homey town of Fraser Hills. From the descriptions of the buildings, layout, its inhabitants, and the decorations literally made me feel as if I was there. I loved Vanessa Larkin and Mike Marshall. I liked both of their characters, their past histories, their personalities, moral compasses, and of course their chemistry. As they say, opposites attract. I loved how each brought out the best in one another. I enjoyed the plot, the obstacles placed, and the successes won. A wonderful, festive gem. This was so wonderful and I truly think that this would make an excellent movie onscreen or on TV.
5/5 stars
Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this ARC and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.
I received an ARC for an honest review from NetGalley. We meet so many wonderful people in this story. They each bring their way of life to us. As I was reading the book the title kept popping into my head, but it was the word promise that I kept thinking about. Even before I started reading I kept thinking about the title and it seemed to me that the title A Heartfelt Christmas Promise was an indication that this wasn’t going to be just a straight forward Christmas book and it wasn’t. This book far exceeded what I was expecting and it was filled with promise. Like making a promise, your intentions are you will fulfill that promise but sometimes it happens in ways we never expected.
This book was as refreshing as North Carolina country air.
No Scrooges in the town of Fraser Hills, NC. Just lots of Christmas fun and joy!
Vanessa Larkin is all set to spend Christmas in Paris, France. Sure she’d be there on assignment. But still… Paris! She was excited to think that she and her mom’s cousin Anna would spend the holiday together there. Edward Grayson, her boss, had a change of plans for her though. He is sending her to Fraser Hills, NC to close down the fruitcake factory there and set up a warehouse for a sporting goods company in its place. Vanessa had done this sort of job many times yet this time she felt a little twinge of guilt to be bringing this bad news to Fraser Hills just before Christmas. Vanessa was pleasantly surprised when she arrived in town. It’s such a friendly town. The residents weren’t real happy to see her there though. Pesky rumors! A corporate visit sounded ominous to them. After viewing the two large factory buildings and discovering the fruitcake business was confined to a smaller building Vanessa started planning around her corporate mandate. She knew she could come up with a solution that would make the townsfolk happy. And maybe the guy she first saw at the beginning of her trip would look at her with a smile. The guy driving the sleigh pulled by eight beautiful Percheron horses. Mike Marshall. That guy.
Mike Marshall is a single dad raising his sixteen-year-old daughter Misty as best he can. It would be great for Misty to have a mother’s love helping guide her but his beloved wife Olivia died years ago. No woman has caught his eye since Olivia’s death until the corporate rep, Vanessa Larkin came to town. Mike didn’t know what Vanessa’s presence in Fraser Hills meant to the town but he couldn’t resist spending time with her. He knew Vanessa planned to return to Chicago when her business in town was finished but he could dream about a different outcome, couldn’t he?
A Heartfelt Christmas Promise by Nancy Naigle is a magical Christmas romance. Ms. Naigle’s imagination always brings magic to her Christmas romance stories. She never disappoints. Reading this story is guaranteed to spread Christmas joy. The town of Fraser Hills has so many wonderful Christmas traditions such as a lively Christmas parade and special tree lighting ceremony outside the local hospital. I love how heartwarming this storyline is. I smiled so much while reading this story. All the characters are so realistic and likable I’d like them all as friends and neighbors. This is such a lovely Christmas romance. And that cute puppy on the cover is Scooter and his antics will melt your heart.
I loved this heartwarming and emotional story! So many themes – finding a balance between work and life, reconnecting with the people you love, overcoming misunderstandings to find happiness, second chances at love, healing relationships, chemistry, and love. Add in a talented and smart teen-anger, some gentle giant Percherons, and a puppy who can’t stay out of trouble, and you have an entertaining story to get you in the mood for the holidays. Excellent!
A good story about a woman that goes into other business to reorganize and fire and hire people ends up at a small town to do a job but town fought back to try and save company. Had a really good romance throughout book was a fun book to read kept my attention throughout
Vanessa Larkin is a woman striving to prove herself in a career where men hold all the cards.
She thought she would be spending Christmas in Paris working on a project that she had earned through her hard work. Instead she is sent to the small town of Fraser Hills, North Carolina to fix a mess left by one of her male coworkers. She is supposed shut down a fruitcake factory, the business that employs most of the town’s citizens.
She is welcomed with open arms by the friendly folks of Fraser Hills and finds her rigid, no-nonsense approach to the business at hand starting to waver. Her orders were to shut down the fruitcake factory, but how can she do that to the townspeople that she is coming to love and respect?
Ms. Naigle has written a wonderful holiday story with well-developed characters and a storyline that leaves you with renewed faith in humanity. This book definitely reflects the spirit of the Christmas season.
I received an advanced reader’s copy of A Heartfelt Christmas Promise from the publisher through Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.
This was a cute Christmas story about a woman who needs to find what she really wants. Vanessa needs to find the right balance between personal and work life. During the Christmas holiday Vanessa goes to a small town in North Carolina for work. While she is there her cousin comes and stays. Vanessa soon learns that staying in this small town is different than anywhere else she has been. While she tries to do her job she falls in love with the town. If you love small town Christmas stories than this book is right up your alley.
*I received a copy of this book via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.*
Venessa is dreaming of spending Christmas with her aunt in Paris, she knows she would be working. She get surprise it, someone else is going to Paris, she has to go to Fraser Hills, NC, home of best fruitcake. She has a little over month to close factory and get building ready to be a warehouse. Everything seems easy, till she gets there.
She meets people, they are great to her. This time doing her job, do not feels good.
She has to make decisions, what’s good and what’s not.
This book is wonderful. loved every page of it.
Another wonderfully written book by Nancy Naigle. Heartwarming story that helped me escape to a small town during the holidays and cold weather during hot days outside my door.
I love the small town setting and I felt like i was part of the community of Fraser Hills, North Carolina. I live in a town that has a Christmas parade, with horses and riders all decked out. Just enjoying the winter weather.
A story about independence, forgiveness and trusting people. A sweet romance with wonderful characters.
Thank you NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read this book.
This is another fantastic book from Nancy Naigle! She is one of my favorite authors and this book is a great example why I love her writing so much. She creates characters that are so life-life. Her scene settings are very picturesque. Her stories are heartwarming and stay with you long after you finish reading the book. While I am reading, it is almost like a movie is being shown in my mind. I love the small town setting and the residents that care deeply about where they live.
I happen to be a person that loves fruitcake and do not understand why it is always made to be the brunt of a joke. I love that this book centers around a fruitcake factory, especially that it is a beloved part of the town.
The story is sweet romance, but so much more. It is about making good decisions for the future, trusting the proper people, forgiveness for past hurts and learning self worth and independence. Also there is an adorable little puppy. What more can you ask for!
I enjoyed this book so much and I highly recommend it. I read it during the time of Covid19 and it definitely helped me escape real life for a while and look forward to happier times.
I want to thank NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for giving me the immense pleasure of receiving the Advanced Reader Copy. My review is my own opinion not influenced by receiving the ARC. @SMPRomance