4-STAR REVIEW: CHRISTMAS COVE by Sarah Dressler

Publication Date: August 17, 2023

With only three weeks left in December, travel editor, America Greene, arrives in the idyllic Christmas Cove to find it… Christmasless!

America needs a story, and fast, so she teams up with the town’s good-looking (and eligible) mayor, Leo, to light up Main Street and salvage her chance at being a full-time writer. The connection between them heats up, halls are decked, sleigh bells ring, and lights twinkle. Just when she thinks the holiday is saved, a nearby city threatens the future of Christmas Cove. With her heart, and career, hanging in the balance, she must learn that Christmas is much more than just a place on a map before time runs out.

Christmas Cove by Sarah Dressler is a Hallmark movie in the making. From the moment I started reading this sweet, clean holiday romance set in a small town, I was hooked. The cover drew me in as well. There are a lot of Christmas hopes and dreams built into this heartwarming and often sad story.

America is a magazine editor who loves everything Christmas, and her boss sends her to Christmas Cove to write an article about the town during Christmas with all of its festivities, or so it seems. But the brochure and previous publicity are based on something other than the current reality of the town, so what was the mayor thinking when he made his request?

America makes the best of a bad situation and gets the townspeople interested in decorating Main Street like it was in the past. America and the mayor, Leo, hit it off, and their attraction is off the charts. But what good is that if America plans to return home in a few days? He also doesn’t understand why she thinks he requested the town’s publicity, which adds a twist to the story.

I liked the characters we met and loved learning more about them, although we only seemed to scratch the surface. A few stories are being told and woven together, but there are definitely loose ends. Even though there’s an unexpected happily ever after for America and Leo, we’re left with things to ponder since the author hints there may be another book without explicitly telling us Christmas Cove is part of a series or connected book.

Pull up a chair and engross yourself in Christmas Cove as you envision how the town once was and cheer on their efforts to immerse themselves in the holiday spirit.

Sarah Dressler, originally from Florida, now calls the mountains of Colorado home. Beginning her writing career as an award winning fashion blogger, Sarah now writes fiction full time. She has spent her life traveling the world, first as the daughter of a US Air Force officer, and later as a military spouse. She enjoys sunset walks with her husband of nearly twenty years, and raising two very busy teenagers.

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