DNF @ 30%

I hardly ever DNF but I just couldn't make myself keep reading this! I've read a few books by this author now and I think their writing style just doesn't work for me.

It was so out of place with the rest of this series. For some reason it was written as though the characters would have been more ly to be conversing with Mr Darcy and Elizabeth Bennett, rather than modern day Americans. Plus the hints at being elves and Santa were jarring and the plot felt forced.

For a book this far in the series to make the town feel completely different, in a bad way at that, it just didn't make sense to me.

Also not a single character came across as able so I'm admitting defeat with this one. Hopefully the next book will be better.11 s Sara1,996 38

Not for me, but maybe it’s for you

Meh. The cheese stand alone because in the end I really didn’t enjoy this very much. The running of Nicholas’s shop really gives Christmas Falls a Santa’s workshop type store, yet the actual running of it seems unbelievable. James is supposed to convince his grandfather to sell, but he literally never talks to him about it. He just talks about talking to him. And then I feel there was a missed opportunity to really play up the enemies to lovers between James and Ezra. I didn’t feel any sort of angst between the two and despite their supposed animosity, their relationship just sort of happens without much buildup. And the ending seemed so easy and really rushed despite all these supposed obstacles. Idk, I didn’t vibe well with it.5 s Joseph1,406 41

I really d this a lot. James and Ezra made a really hot couple once their animosity gave way to the sparks they were feeling for each other. I'll admit that James takes a while to warm up to the reader. He's selfish and priggish, but there's a tragic part of his past that explains what makes him the way he is. Very self-determined, at thirty-three he has just two items remaining on his life goals list: make partner and retire. How sad.

Ezra is described as being a Timothy Chalamet looka, so no surprise that is how I pictured him in this book, or at least as he looked in CMBYN. He's snarky yet full of life and joy. He has had a terrible past, too, which makes him very protective of those people who look after him. He has a heart made for love, though, and it is through his loving attitude towards James that James finds redemption in the end.

Hall writes fairly elegantly for genre fiction, and I noticed some reviewers are putting the prose down as being Austen-ish or out of some historical novel, whatever that means. I that Hall uses complex sentence structures and has his characters speak as adults, not caricatures so many MM romance writers do (especially in this series). His sex scenes are just beautiful to read. Are they a bit purple prosey? Perhaps. But it's much better than the "wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am" sex scenes in so many books these days. His characters approach sex with passion and, yes, lust, but Hall saves the reader from suffering through repetitive, frankly boring, sex scenes that read every other sex scene out there.

We don't see a lot of Christmas Falls in this book, and I think that was good. In some of the previous books, Christmas Falls becomes a MC itself, and it often feels intrusive that the characters have to go to this restaurant or this bar or this Christmas tree lighting event, etc. Hall is able to concentrate on his characters and their relationship to each other without the need to horn in extraneous characters Griff or Mik.

Of course, this is not a perfect book. It's fairly predictable. James has returned to Christmas Falls to convince his grandfather that he is too old to run Santa's Workshop and that he needs to sell it to the huge corporation James works for. We all know this isn't going to happen, and the resolution is a bit too tight, as if the strictures of the situation called for only one solution. every other book in this series, it revolves around someone moving to Christmas Falls, someone returning to Christmas Falls, and whether or not they'll stay there or move on, leaving romantic partners swinging in the wind. It would be great to see some other plot device besides this one in this series.romance4 s Cadiva3,681 371

Cute "enemies" ish romance with a lovely heartwarming feel

I'm not sure if this is the first book I've read from Hayden but I really enjoyed it.

I adored the toy shop setting and the kind of "enemies" but not really vive he brought to the Christmas Falls setting really worked.

Santa's Workshop has been a solid presence in the series and we've met its owner Nicholas before. This book introduces his nephew James, and at first he's difficult to root for.

You see, he's in town to try and get his grandfather to see his bespoke and traditional toy shop to the multinational conglomerate that he works for, in the hope of being made a partner.

You can tell though that not all is well in his world though and enter Ezra to show him everything he could have if he came home to Christmas Falls.

I loved the dynamic between them, Ezra's sunny optimistic nature, his attitude of grabbing each day and living his best life cones from a place of sadness, thrown out of his home for being gay.

You can see how he slowly makes James reevaluate his own life and his own tragic past, when he lost his parents in a traffic accident around Christmas when just a small boy.

Together they fratch and brush up in all the wrong ways until it suddenly changes. Then things take a turn for the hot and sexy as all the feels start James' journey back home. 3 s True Loveislovereview2,519 1 follower

James is ambitious, rigid, and composed, he has the feeling he’s almost at the top of the ladder. One thing has to be done, to show he’s capable of promotion. He has to let Grandpa sell his artisan toyshop, to Sinclair Emporium, which James works for. Yes, I know it sounds horrible, and it is, James thinks he’s doing his gramps a favor, but oh boy.

Grandpa Nicholas crafts the toys and everyone who enters the shop leaves happily. He loves James dearly and wants him to be happy.
Ezra is Grandpa’s assistant who lives above the store in a tiny place. He’s the happiest person on earth. At first sight, he understands James' moves, the grumpy villain can not succeed.
There’s so much joy in this magical place, it would be devastating.

James wants to figure out who Ezra is and what his motivations are, this beautiful petite, always happy guy, is a thorn in his behind. Selfless just his gramps, but still a thorn.

Somewhere deep there’s a much softer James, one who loves his gramps deeply, one who never got over his parents dead, one who can feel the Christmas spirit, and that is the one who helps in the shop.
That James is the one Ezra adores, and it’s mutual.

You have to understand Christmas Falls is a happy little place, with warm loving content people.
James' way of business is so far away from what Gramps and Ezra tried to accomplish.
It has everything to do with love, heart, soul and compassion. Oh James you have so much to unlearn.

What a hugely enjoyable read this is. Feelings all over the place. The Christmas spirit is palpable.
Ezra and James are so wonderful together, sweet, fun, and have some attractive spice moments.
The story is detailed, and wonderfully to envision, the emotions are everywhere and sensible.
Overall an emotional ride with a Christmas-worthy outcome.

Reviewed for Love Bytes - LGBTQ book 2023 close-proximity hurt-comfort ...more3 s Fernanda Parente596 83

I love small town romances and when Christmas is included, even better.
I loved this book specially Ezra with his wild curly hair and a Christmas spirit.
Ezra works at the Santa's workshop and he's deliriously happy until James arrives. James is the grandson of owner of the workshop/store and wants his gandfather to sell his shop to a big corporate where he works and hope the climb to the top of the corporate lader. James gets a promotion and his grandfather can retire with plenty of money. But Ezra and the christmas spirit can do miracles. Or not?

A cute christmas story highly recommended 3 s Katey Guillot699 11

…what…?

I…

Um…

Hmm…

*laughs for literally 45 minutes*

No.


So, I don’t think I was supposed to laugh until I was choking and my body hurt I just did six straight hours of burpees at a spicy scene, but, I mean…*gestures around*… here we are. I’m having a hard time trying to stop the after chuckles because they’re probably going to unalive me at this point. I’m in PAIN. Send help.

We’re not even going to talk about the mechanics. I have nothing I can say to fully explain what I just read through. I think it was written a historical romance, but I’m not sure why, and I’m not even sure that was the goal? , the text didn’t match the characters or the time in which this series is set. Everything was confusing and it was a mess.

And then there’s the disconnect again. That makes three books so far that don’t really feel they have much to do with the series. It’s sad because there were so many chances to build upon what the others did, include cameos and add quirky new details, or even just do anything outside of passing usage of places as background props.

Then we get to the spicy bits. I honestly laugh a lot in real life. I laugh until it hurts quite frequently, actually, but I’ve never laughed that long and that hard over a schmex scene. I even highlighted the best worst ways to say c***. People were concerned I was going to stop breathing.

2.5/5. This was bad. But , it was also comedy gold and I will be using several lines for the rest of my life in the same way I still quote vines. Freeshavocado is now hot whiteness, I don’t make the rules.2023-reads2 s2 comments Bethany (Bee_TheBibliophile)603 43

Back to Christmas Falls - this time following James who’s reluctantly returning to his hometown and Ezra who’s ecstatic to find a home somewhere so great. Their story is sweet, steamy and full of sneaking around.

James Willoughby is back in Christmas Falls to help his grandfather, Nicholas - aka Gramps, with the holiday rush at his artisan toy store but he has way more planned than that. He works for a large toy store chain and wants to buy out Gramps to help him retire while also helping James achieve his goal of becoming partner. He’s professional, hardworking and focused so much of the time, but Ezra gets under his skin from the moment they meet.

Ezra Thorne is new to Christmas Falls and found a place to call home with Gramps and the toy shop, fitting right in behind the counter and making a life for himself in the apartment over the shop. After being kicked out of his home by his parents, the love and community provided by Gramps and all of Christmas Falls is a welcomed change. Ezra is sweet and caring but his experience with his parents have made him hesitant about love in general.

These two are directly at odds with each other for the first half of the book - James wanting Gramps to sell the store and Ezra wanting him to keep it - but there’s an attraction between them that they can’t deny. Once they start spending time together to finish up the work that needs done in the shop each day, it’s only a matter of time before they start to explore what’s between them. Even though they’re opposites in a lot of ways, they help each other realize that what they want most is right in front of them and in Christmas Falls of all places.

Really enjoyed this addition to the overall Christmas Falls series - while most of their time was spent in the toy shop, it felt it fit right into the world created by the other author’s stories. Can’t wait to read more!2023-arcs 2023-reads 4-star-greatness ...more2 s Monica432 19

This was such a sweet and funny story for the Christmas Falls series and I loved it.
Ezra has found his place in the world. He works at a toy shop in a little town that is all about Christmas so he couldn't be happier. Then James, the owner's grandchild, shows up trying to convince his grandfather to sell his shop and that's where the animosity arises and it's game on.
I had so much fun with this book. I loved the numerous glares that Ezra gave James all the time and his comments about the city guy. I enjoyed their banter, mostly coming from Ezra, and how James tried to convince him it was the best for his gramps.
The attraction for each other was there from the beginning and once they started getting to know each other things turned in a different direction. James was the grumpiest guy on Earth, but Ezra made him see what Christmas was all about. It was very romantic to witness Ezra work his magic and turn James into what the latter was really meant to be.
They were perfect together and had more in common than they thought at first. It was beautiful to see James change and remember everything he had loved as a child. Ezra and James were pure magic together and their relationship was romantic and sweet. James understood why Ezra loved Christmas Falls, due mostly to a tough past, and that made them get closer as James had also had a difficult past.
This is another wonderful story in the Christmas Falls series that I loved and enjoyed so much. A romance novel with a Christmas atmosphere that stole my heart.christmas christmas-romance contemporary-romance ...more2 s Showarst603

4.5 stars

No Elfing Way by Hayden Hall may be my favorite book in the Christmas Falls series. James, big city businessman, is trying to convince his grandfather to sell his toy store. He meets Ezra, Nicholas’ employee. Ezra hates James on sight and it’s easy to understand why. James was fairly unlikable in the first 30% of the book. He didn’t want to hear how his grandpa was not ready to retire and still loved working at the store. Ezra and James couldn’t have been more different, but I loved how they really balanced each other out. Ezra helped James remember the things he loved about Christmas and his hometown, and James helped Ezra feel loved for maybe the first time in a long time. Both men had family trauma that would have been interesting to explore, but maybe didn’t have a place in a Christmas romance. However, James’ trauma did shape him into who he was and I would have d to have seen that play out a little bit more. I was definitely concerned that James was going to break his grandpa’s heart and Ezra’s heart by giving in to his boss’s demands. But in the end it was all okay. I definitely would have LOVED to have seen an epilogue here. How did James adjust to living back in Christmas Falls? But I really did enjoy this one so much.


I received an ARC for my honest review2 s Shannon37 16

3.5
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