No Ordinary Christmas by Belle Calhoune

Hi everyone!  No Ordinary Christmas by Belle Calhoune is a story of understanding and forgiveness.  Set in a small town in New England, the book is the first in the author’s Mistletoe, Maine series.  I’m already looking forward to the second book in the series.

From The Publisher:

The quaint New England town of Mistletoe is thrilled to welcome back one of their own, Dante West. Now a famous Hollywood action star, Dante is filming a movie in town to help the local economy, as well as make amends with the people he hurt when he abruptly left Mistletoe all those years ago.
Librarian Lucy Marshall isn’t thrilled to see Dante. He was once her best friend and first love until he left her behind without a word of goodbye. When Dante makes her an offer she can’t refuse — the use of the library as a filming venue in exchange for a lucrative donation, Lucy finds herself spending a lot of time in Dante’s company. With the magic of Christmas in the air, Dante and Lucy begin to forge a new bond. But can two people leading such different lives find lasting love the second time around?

Book Review

I enjoyed No Ordinary Christmas.  The theme of understanding and forgiveness is one of my favourites and ties in nicely with the Christmas small-town setting.

The central characters are well developed and highly likeable.  The movie that Dante is filming is romantic and ties in nicely with the memories the characters share along the way.  The backstory for supporting characters is also shared and sure to be the focus of other books in the series. I especially appreciated the fact that several characters had physical limitations which makes the story more reality-based.

Dante’s character is home to try and repair broken relationships as much as he is there to make a movie.  He hurt several people when he left town without saying goodbye over eight years ago.  The book does a great job of highlighting the importance of communication to enable others to view things more clearly.

I enjoy reading about the individual and the town’s traditions, and the book had plenty of those.  Lucy and Dante dancing in the town square was swoon-worthy. If you’re looking for a small town Christmas romance full of charm, No Ordinary Christmas is for you.

What I Liked:

• The small-town Christmastime setting
• The way this second chance romance develops
• The inclusion of characters with physical limitations

I Recommend This Book To:

Those readers who enjoy Holiday romances set in small towns.

My Rating:

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Add No Ordinary Christmas to your Goodreads shelf

Acknowledgments:

Thank you to Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Similar Books I’ve Reviewed:

The Christmas Village by Annie Rains

A Royal Christmas Fairy Tale by Karen Schaler

Dear Santa by Debbie Macomber

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