Review: Anthology – Once Upon A Christmas Wedding

“I liked him better when he was unconscious.”

Lizzie Rotherford

The worst part about this anthology is its massive size. 27 novellas is a lot to work through, and the similarities between them are accentuated the further you get. Most of these Christmas romances are set in the Regency era, but some forays are into the Medieval, Victorian, and Edwardian eras.

I don’t recommend attempting this in one go as I did, but many of these novellas are definitely worth a read. I rated 14 of them 4 or 5 stars. Thankfully, many of them are available separately if you don’t want to tackle this behemoth.

Scarlett Scott – Wedded In Winter

This novella has Home Alone vibes as Beatrix finds that she missed the carriage taking her family to Abingdon Hall, leaving her alone in London with Merrick Hart, who she has loved for years. Bea is headstrong, stubborn, and an absolute brat. Merrick knows that returning Bea’s feelings will destroy his life as he works for her protective brother (who happened to forget her in London). They did not mesh well as a couple, and I quickly lost interest in their antics.

Annabelle Anders – Hell’s Wedding Bells

I loved how Lila and Vincent came together to make the best of a marriage that neither of them initially wanted. There is sweetness, tension, intrigue, and a dash of sorrow. There were some questions unanswered at the end, but they weren’t enough to spoil my enjoyment.

Merry Farmer – The Holiday Hussy

I despised Fabian for most of this novella. His arrogance and unwillingness to let Alice talk was aggravating. He did get better towards the end of the novella, but the cliff-hanger ending annoyed me.

Tessa Candle – Two Lady Scoundrels and a Duke

This novella is an amusing series of crazy hijinks. Katherine, an almost highwaywoman, and Marie, a notorious widow, duke it out for the hand of a Duke. The story stays light-hearted, and Katherine and Marie work very well as contrasts in handling adversity.

Emma V. Leech – The Winter Bride

Grace is in trouble. Luckily for her, she finds her way to Ned’s farm that offers security with the widower owner. Grace is a sweet, sheltered lady who embraces this new challenge with open arms. Ned is harder to bring around due to the difference in their social status. His worrying gets a little annoying, but for the most part, they are a cute couple.

Emmanuelle de Maupassant – The Lady’s Guide to Mistletoe and Mayhem

Two fish-out-of-water come together in this fun and quirky novella. Ursula is determined to make her own way, fleeing from her controlling uncle and landing in the highlands as an etiquette tutor. Rye is floundering to find his feet after being called to Scotland to take over his uncle’s title. There is plenty of mayhem and giggle-worthy moments (courtesy of the local animals) as they both struggle to land on their feet.

Virginia Taylor – Beautifully Reckless

Rose is a popular young miss who has flocks of admirers. Instead of accepting one of the men vying for her hand, she sets her sights on the one man who refuses to even consider courting her. Her master plan is to force him into compromising her reputation while traveling back to their country homes. The entire situation was eye-roll worthy as Rose can’t seem to make her mind about what she wants to do, and Ian just caves to most of her whims.

Laura Trentham – A Wicked Wedding

Marcus and Diana make a good couple. The smuggling draws them closer together as they brave the danger to bring them together. Marcus is steadfast and knows what he wants. I couldn’t figure out if Diana was being purposely obtuse or was just more wishy-washy when it came to her wants rather than those around her.

Stacy Reid – Mischief and Mistletoe

It annoys me when a book/novella has a complete tonal shift partway through. Mischief and Mistletoe goes from an amusing game of keep-away as Callie tries to bring their parents together, and Graham tries to stop her from interfering in their courtship to a maudlin, mopey downer. The 180-degree shift ruined it for me.

Linda Rae Sande – The Angel of an Astronomer

This Victorian novella is a sweet romp in the snow. Angelica is a spirited miss who is not afraid of rushing off in her dressing gown to confront suspected peeping toms or throwing things at her brother when he annoys her. Ben is enchanted with her from their first face-to-face meeting, and their subsequent romance is fun to watch.

Maddison Michaels – The Mistletoe Mistress

Stories starting with a bet usually end with a lot of annoying drama as the wager is discovered. This novella neatly sidesteps that trope as Holly leads Michael on a merry chase. I adored Holly’s feistiness, which meshed well with Michael’s (sometimes overbearing) protectiveness.

K. J. Jackson – The Christmas Countess

This is a bittersweet tale of reunited love. A lot has happened in the six years that Karta and Dom have been separated. It’s a slow burn as they relearn each other. The dramatic reveal was not one that I was expecting, which is a pleasant surprise.

Amy Sandas – Kiss Me, Macrae

I did not expect much from a novella starring a mistakenly shared bed. Allegra and Baird grew on me, and I thoroughly enjoyed their journey beyond the pains of their pasts. Their hurts are very different, but they both find a way forward by leaning on each other.

Emily Murdoch – Kidnapped With A Knight

I liked the fact that this novella was not focused on the upper class. Unfortunately, that is all this novella has in its favor. Edmund may have fallen on hard times, but he is still a spoiled brat. I lost all interest in them when he lashed out and started sulking when some information was revealed that he did not like.

Mariah Stone – The Russian Prince’s Bride

This novella got better as it went along, but the amount of angst never let it get better than mediocre. Several grammatical errors made me do a double-take, but the 11-year feud between the brothers sunk the story. On a brighter note, I did enjoy the Irina storyline and her parallels to Helen.

Beverley Oakley – Christmas Charity

I never really clicked with Charity. She is incredibly naive, impressionable, and helpless, especially after living in a brothel for years. It doesn’t take much effort to talk her into doing anything. She never grows a backbone through the entire novella, and that was a letdown.

Sky Purington – Highland Yule

Self-sacrificing to make someone else happy, but hurting yourself and the one you love is not a storyline that I enjoy. It is a bitter start, but the sweetness bringing Colmac and Rona together made up for it in the end.

Elsa Holland – The Russian Betrothal

This story is well-written, and the characters are vibrant. I think I would like this author’s style with a different story arc. I wanted to like this novella, but I just can’t enjoy the plot. Under the same circumstances, with no support and being pushed and pulled in multiple directions, I would break much sooner than Georgie, and that broken trust would take a long time to heal.

Elise Marion – Mistletoe Kisses

This is a sweet story about two people fighting their way past the prejudices against them to find love together. I liked both Jo and Maxwell. While the prejudices against them were different, they both showed a strength of character in persevering against it.

Dayna Quince – Marrying Miss Bright

Sebastian and Bella are both trying to do what is best for their families. While Sebastian is less headstrong about it, he is well matched with vivacious Bella. I especially liked her take-charge attitude.

Ashe Barker – Deeds Not Words

James is an arrogant jerk, Victorine is a shrill harpy, and Clarissa is a headstrong idealist. That was my highest opinion of them, and that was at the start of the novella. Needless to say, Clarissa and James didn’t work as a couple for me.

Celeste Barclay – A Spinster at the Highland Court

These two certainly are randy. Masturbation and sex take up much of the novella. Questions that are raised by what little plot there is are never answered. If you are looking for a raunchy read, this one works well; otherwise, I would look elsewhere.

S. Cinders – Wassail, Wagers, and Weddings

The end of a ten-year engagement is an enchanting bushel of fun. Lizzie is tired of waiting for Jack to get around to marrying her, so he has his work cut out for him to win her love again. There is plenty to enjoy, from childhood antics, inn parlor druggings, to sweet little children. I thoroughly enjoyed this novella.

Annabel Joseph – Holly and the Beast

This is a sweet, fluffy story. Holly is unexpectedly tossed into a marriage with Malcolm for a peace treaty between English and Scots in the borders. Both have initial prejudices that they have to move beyond, but for the most part, it is a tale of two people learning about each other and coming together.

Celeste Jones – Home For Christmas

There isn’t much to this novella other than pining, sighing, and nasty neighbors. Sure it says that they’re in love, but Clinton focuses on money and future comfort rather than ensuring that he fulfills the promises he’s already made. In turn, this leaves Josie to fret and be at the mercy of the tart tongue of the local spinster. There truly isn’t much to love about this novella.

Vanessa Brooks – Holly and Old Lace

A husband who does not wish to take another wife, except to produce an heir, and a young debutante surprised by an unexpected wedding, do not make a good couple. Libby, Kitty, and Clemmy are the only reasons that this novella did not get 1 Star. Gregory treating Holly like a child, especially the spanking scene, is distasteful. The line between abuse and BDSM is very murky in this novella but comes down on the side of abuse to me.

Em Brown – A December Debauchery

There is nothing special about this novella. It’s BDSM with a dull plot that drags a proper, older widow to the Chateau Debauchery trying to ensure her son’s happiness. Arthur clearly has no intention of granting Phillipa’s request, but he sees a chance to seduce her and takes it. Phillipa’s kindness is the only thing that raises this novella from a 1 star.

I definitely need a breather from Regency romance after this monster.