Oh baby, it’s cold outside…Austin Bishop doesn’t want a lot for Christmas. He especially isn’t looking for love. But romance shows up anyway, in the form of the most beautiful, curvy redhead he’s ever seen.Suddenly, canoodling under the mistletoe seems like the best Christmas activity this side of eating homemade snickerdoodles. A fling with no strings attached? There’s no better way to … There’s no better way to celebrate the holidays.
Except, partway through the twelve days of Christmas, it stops being a fling and starts feeling like a whole lot more.
But Ivy has secrets, and so does he…
Christmas of Love is the fifth novel in the Long Valley Romance series, although all books in the Long Valley world can be read as standalones. It has some strong language, and oh my, sexy times. Enjoy!
NOTE: In October 2020, this book was re-released after a major expansion and update was done. The new edition is clearly marked with an “Expanded and Revised” red medallion on the cover. I hope you enjoy this new edition!
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This is a new revised and extended version of the book.
Ivy has returned home after too many years away. She has been following her dreams, or so everybody thinks.
Austin doesn’t trust women easily after what happened with her ex-fiancée. However, he can’t get Ivy out of his mind.
Both of them have secrets and they feel insecure. They are afraid of the other person knowing them.
The book is well-written and easy to read. A beautiful Christmas story to read on a cold evening, sitting down by the fireplace. The characters are likeable and you will fall in love with them.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and I am voluntarily leaving a review.
This is a great Christmas book that can be a stand-alone but is also part of the wonderful Long Valley series. Ivy and Austin could not be more different and she was only in town for a couple of days. Ivy soon discovers that her plans for a quick escape back to California have hit a major snag and her whole life is absolute to change spectacularly. This book was previously published as a novella but it has been extended into a full length book and it is a great read with wonderful characters and and a HEA. Erin Wright brings her characters to life and draws you in to their world. You will not be disappointed with this book … or with the whole Long Valley series.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Erin Wright has done it again by creating an awesome holiday romance.
I loved the down to earth characters and the troubles they had and worked out.
The plot had all the feels and I had to read till the end.
Ready for the next one.
Ivye is been running from Long Valley and the people that bullied her for so long that she no longer fit in. When she mets Austin, at her parents’s party, they instantly connect and start hanging together to made it up to Tiffany. But can they face their past struggles and a future together? A lesson of braveheart and forgiveness. I received a free copy of this book and I voluntarily reviewed it.
I enjoyed this story. Ivy and Austin are a great match once they get the chance.
Christmas Of Love is a sweet holiday novel with a simple and somewhat over done theme.
After years away due to the ridicule and bullying she received in high school and feeling like she never measured up to her ‘perfect’ sister, Ivy McClain has returned home to Sawyer, Idaho for her parents anniversary party. Living the life of a starving artist in San Francisco hasn’t turned out so great. When she meets Austin Bishop and things begin to click for them Ivy begins to see the person she truly is while also feeling like a failure and a fraud at all the lies she has told to present herself in a better light. Now she must face the consequences and make some life altering decisions.
Austin didn’t see himself settling down after his ex left him, but he can’t stop thinking about the woman that he just met. How can he let himself believe there is a chance when he knows the talented and beautiful Ivy will return to San Francisco after the holidays? And how will he reconsile his feelings for her when he discovers her lies?
Something is missing
I liked Wyatt and Stetsons books okay, but this one lacks depth. The others fell down on how the main character treated their women. And I would straight up never ever speak to a man who talked to me like Wyatt did to the sheriff’s daughter. And I’d have made Stet spit out a couple of teeth. I liked that Austin understood why he was taking her deception so hard. I like that he just disengaged. I didn’t like how their courtship was handled but the fight was so much more well done than the other two Long Valley books I’ve read.
I read the first book when it came out and loved it. I really didn’t think the author could have improved on it. It was some time ago and all I can say is WOW! I am so glad that I read this one. I have read all of the Long Valley series. Reading these books makes me feel like I am there and visiting with old friends.
The characters are wonderful. They really feel so human. They aren’t perfect just like me. I love the fact that this book is written in a dual POV format. That is the part that makes the story shine.
Ivy is home for her parents’ anniversary. She left Sawyer, ID for California right after she graduated high school. She was bullied in school and needed to escape. People back home think she has a thriving art studio. Unfortunately the truth is so much different. She is a waitress. She meets Austin at the party and the sparks just light up between them. One of Ivy’s tormentors is at the party (uninvited of course) and cuddles up to Austin. The conversation that Ivy has with herself is adorable!!!!
The day after the party, Ivy is due to fly home but her older sister, Iris slips and falls and is rushed to the hospital. Ivy can’t leave. She couldn’t come home months earlier when Iris was in a car accident so she must stay! Needless to say, Ivy can’t get home, she didn’t buy an insurance policy for her plane ticket so the cost of a one-way ticket back to California is beyond her limited funds.
This is a delightful tale that I so thoroughly enjoyed reading. It was like reading it for the first time. If you enjoy a well-written story that is full of laughs and chuckles, then you will enjoy this one. However, I would only be able to recommend this to someone over 18 as there may be some to take offense to the “bedroom” scene. The author really glossed over the details but I would hate to offend parents of someone younger.
Sweet, sexy, thrilling and redeeming romantic journey that will warm your heart and leave you with all the best kind of warm fuzzes. Perfect love story to get you in the holiday mood.
Ivy McLain is sweet, sassy and looking to make her dreams as an artiest come true, not looking for true love specifically in the home town she ran from for very good reasons. Austin Bishop is rugged, handsome, sweet, charming and in no way looking for the love of his life, not after the last time his heart was stomped in the dust. Sparks fly and chemistry will not be denied, loved this highly entertaining holiday romance.
This has new parts and revision from the older version and it makes it sweeter with just the right amount of newness to have you reading ro see what has changed and added
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Cold weather and sexy times
Ivy and Austin’s story was an emotional rollercoaster for them and for me. So when they finally reached their HEA I felt it along with them. This book along with its predecessors was another hit for Erin. I received a free copy via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Another great story by Erin Wright.This is a sweet christmas theme romance. I honestly can’t get enough of this author. This is a rerelease with more content.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
The original was good but this version is great! Best by an adult is tough but carrying around the bad stuff from childhood makes it heartbreaking. I love how Ivy and Austin battle to overcome and try to be the special that they are. Opens your eyes to the life long effects of cruelty in people’s lives.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Love this edition as much as the original
There were several time I cried while reading this book.
Ivy has been lying to her family and everyone for many years that she is a successful artist in California. Now she has come home for her parents anniversary and is only home for a few days when she meets Austin but then one of the girls that bullied her in high school comes up while they are talking and makes it look like they are dating. After Austin makes it clear that they are not dating and that he did go out once with her she won’t leave him alone, Ivy agrees to go out with him only to make it clear that he is off limits to Tiffany. But then they go out a few more times and enjoy spending time together in public and alone at home. Ivy keeps trying to convince herself that everything will turn around and she will be able to afford to buy the ticket back home after the new year. Fast forward three weeks and it is New Year’s Day and now she rushes out of his bed and house to get home. She needs to come clean to her family about all the lying and then she will find Austin and tell him the truth no matter how much it hurts her.
Will her family react the way she thinks they will? How will Austin react? Will Ivy every get back to California and does she even want to go back now?
This was an absolutely lovely story. I loved it from beginning to end. I voluntarily read and reviewed this book in exchange for a free copy.
It will be easy for some people to relate to Ivy because of mean girls making her teenage years unbearable. While others will not really understand. But it had to be so hard on Ivy for a couple of reasons. Her sister was loved and popular which I am sure made Ivy feel inferior plus the hormones going through out her body. Unfortunately these feeling can go on to adulthood which happened to Ivy. It broke my heart that she lived the way she did and felt she had to tell the lies she did. I was so happy when she met Austin in her hometown and he was attracted to her. It was fun reading about the adventures they did together that made her look a little different at her hometown. Austin was such a good guy. Lies eventually come out though. You need to read the book to see what happens.
Ivy McLain looked around at her parents’ boring 40th anniversary party, hearing groups of farmers talking about crops, broken equipment, and water (too much or too little) – mundane, boring things — and she was VERY cold. She did not understand why anyone would voluntarily live in Sawyer, Idaho! She wanted to return to California and get away from this place! She needed some hot cocoa before she froze to death on the spot! She rapidly turned toward the refreshments and ran right into what felt like a solid brick wall. The attractive cowboy steadied her on her feet; then she saw the cider she had caused to spill all over him. Blubbering apologies, she dragged him to the table and grabbed paper towels to dry his face. She couldn’t stop looking at his green eyes and awesome grin.
Austin Bishop introduced himself to the flustered redhead. But before they got to chat further, a pushy female named Tiffany threw herself all over him. He had made a mistake of dating her one time and she acted like he had made a lifelong commitment! When he finally got away from her, Ivy had disappeared. He asked Declan about her and was told she was leaving the next day. That was probably for the best since he wanted nothing more with serious relationships after he was painfully dumped by the woman he hoped to marry.
An accident involving Ivy’s older sister changed her plans about leaving. And when Austin needs Ivy’s help getting Tiffany to back off by pretending to date Ivy, their connection sets off a spark between them. Could a real relationship develop? Could Austin take a chance on Ivy and break his “no-serious-relationship” rule? And would Ivy be willing to stay, as long as they could be “warm” together?
I sincerely love this author’s books and the descriptions of the action among the characters. The bits of humor thrown in kept me laughing through much of the story! It didn’t take long to be drawn right in! The characters were wonderfully developed, most of them quite likable. These truly were “old friends” if you read the previous books in the series. The pacing of the story was perfect. I definitely recommend this one. It will take the reader through a world of emotions, but warm relationships and family will surround you. Don’t miss reading this – it’s a really good one to put you in the mood for Christmas, which is fast approaching!
Ivy has always felt that she loved in her sister’s shadow. Iris was wonderful at everything and she could do nothing. Add to that two nemesis, who made her life hell by tormenting her, all through school, and Ivy feels she has plenty of reasons to me miserable. The only thing that keeps her young is her art. She grows to hate the small town she grew up in. She left right after graduation.
Unfortunately, no matter how hard she tries, Ivy isn’t happy in her new life. She waits tables to get by and tries to build up her art business. Ivy comes home for her parents’ anniversary party and runs into the hottest guy. Sparks fly, until one of the girls who taunted her comes up and latches on to him.
Through a series of events, Ivy winds up stuck in her hometown for a few extra weeks. She realizes that because of her absence, everything she has back in San Francisco will be gone. She worries over this and how to tell her family. But in the meantime, she gies out on a few dates with the hunk from the anniversary party and falls in love. He has no clue what her life is really like either.
Finally, Ivy can no longer live with the deception. She blurts everything out. Will she be able to rebuild her relationship with the hunk and her family?
This book is great. I anxiously await anything that Erin Wright writes. This latest addition to the Long Valley series didn’t disappoint.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
What a touching book. Sometimes our past so shapes our lives we allow ourselves to do things we never thought we would – lie to everyone about everything. Or block ourselves off from life – like Austin after his parents and ex.
Both of these characters are relatable and ones you feel sorry for but hope they get what they need.
It’s story could be replaced by do many other names and we can relate.
I did feel like I needed to find out more about Iris and Declan.
Look forward to the next book.
Ms Wright rewrote the original story. This one is very good. Worth reading even if you read the first one