Reviewed by Valerie
TITLE: Once Upon a Sexy Scrooge
AUTHOR: Ella Frank and Brooke Blaine
PUBLISHER: Self-Published
LENGTH: 152 pages
RELEASE DATE: November 29, 2022
BLURB:
Ah, Christmas. The most magical time of the year. A time when the snow is falling, cider is flowing, and couples are kissing under the mistletoe.
Too bad all that makes me want to gag.
Look, it isn’t that I’m a hater, it’s just that I have a job to do, and this particular holiday is getting in the way of that. And I know what you’ll say, that Micah Noble’s Christmas Tree Farm is a beloved tradition for many of the families of Merrihill, but you have to see the bigger picture here: a five-star luxury resort where overworked Manhattanites can escape to, a serene place of spas and shopping and watching sexy lumberjacks chopping wood…
Oh, wait, scratch that last one. Lumberjacks aren’t my thing. Anymore. Micah Noble cured me of that, which tends to happen when you’re trying to buy someone’s family land to bulldoze to the ground.
He can call me a Scrooge all he wants, but business is business, and pleasure is…well, not something I can afford to think about. Even if it does come packaged in those tight jeans and flannel shirts that make me want to rip them off with my teeth—
No. This is not happening. I will not think of Micah as anything other than an obstacle to getting what I want. A really, really sexy obstacle.
Ugh. Screw Christmas and the sleigh it rode in on.
REVIEW:
Once Upon a Sexy Scrooge would make a cute Christmas movie: The Curmudgeon and the Lumbersexual. This is an opposites attract, stuck in a snowstorm romance starring Maxwell (the Scrooge), a big city acquisitions guy, and Micah, a big, bearded, axe wielding, covered in flannel small town guy.
Max doesn’t appreciate much other than making money by acquiring properties for his firm which then develops the land for lucrative enterprises. The current property he has his eye on is Micah’s family’s homestead and Christmas tree farm in a quaint Vermont town. His company wants to turn it into a resort and spa. Max has not been making any headway on the phone so he sets out a few days before Christmas to pester Micah in person. Sounding like a Hallmark movie yet?
When they meet, Max swallows his tongue because Micah is the sexiest man he’s ever seen. He’s not as enamored with the man’s snark and acerbic wit. Micah, meanwhile, regards Max as an uptight, snobby man who’s used to the finer things in life. He accurately assumes Max is so caught up in his cutthroat life in Manhattan, he forgets to enjoy life outside of his career.
When Max’s car breaks down and he’s stuck at Micah’s cabin until it can be repaired, Micah takes the opportunity to show Max what a family Christmas is all about and why he’ll never sell his property. As the days go by, Max begins to appreciate – enjoy, even – the small town charm and the Christmas joy felt by the tight-knit townsfolk. Of course, he comes to appreciate Micah as well.
This novella is another successful book by the Ella Frank / Brooke Blaine pair. It’s a fun story but I never warmed up to Maxwell and didn’t feel a strong love connection between the two. Your millage may vary, however, since this duo is generally a dynamite team.
RATING: 
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