The Trouble with Mistletoe by Jill Shalvis Series: Heartbreaker Bay, #2
Published by Avon Publication Date: September 27th 2016
Pages: 384
Also in this series: One Snowy Night, Accidentally on Purpose, Chasing Christmas Eve
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If she has her way ...
Willa Davis is wrangling puppies when Keane Winters stalks into her pet shop with frustration in his chocolate-brown eyes and a pink bedazzled cat carrier in his hand. He needs a kitty sitter, stat. But the last thing Willa needs is to rescue a guy who doesn’t even remember her ...
He’ll get nothing but coal in his stocking.
Saddled with his great-aunt’s Feline from Hell, Keane is desperate to leave her in someone else’s capable hands. But in spite of the fact that he’s sure he’s never seen the drop-dead-gorgeous pet shop owner before, she seems to be mad at him ...
Unless he tempers “naughty” with a special kind of nice ...
Willa can’t deny that Keane’s changed since high school: he’s less arrogant, for one thing—but can she trust him not to break her heart again? It’s time to throw a coin in the fountain, make a Christmas wish—and let the mistletoe do its work ...
Cocktails and Books received this book for free from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect our opinion of the book or the content of our review.
This is the second book in Shalvis’ new Heartbreak Bay series and thankfully avoided the sophomore slump so many series seem to run into.
In The Trouble with Mistletoe, we rejoin the group of friends living/working in San Francisco, this time focusing on pet shop owner, Willa. Willa is a typical Shalvis heroine – she had a rough start in life, but appears to be strong and outgoing. She loves easily, but picks awful guys, and she’s a true caretaker. In a true blow to Willa’s ego, Keane shows up in her shop needing help. He’s the guy who stood her up in high school and doesn’t even remember who she is!
I liked Keane; he’s an all-around good guy with a lot more to offer than he realizes. I appreciated how he didn’t hesitate to step in and help Willa when she needed it, even when it meant brushing up against her nosy/scary group of friends.
Willa and Keane worked well together as a couple, but I found myself repeatedly frustrated with the push/pull they had going on. The back and forth happened a few too many times for my taste, it would have been nice to see them actually work on the issue between them instead of just running away then coming back for sexy times.
The secondary cast is fantastic and they add a lot of humor to the situations. If you are a Shalvis fan, you will enjoy this installment to the Hearbreak Bay series. Since each book focuses on a different couple, this would work well for newcomers to Shalvis’s work as well.
