Book Review: Christmas Ever After by Karen Schaler

Posted September 30, 2020 by Asheley in review / 2 Comments

Christmas Ever After by Karen Schaler
Book Review: Christmas Ever After by Karen SchalerChristmas Ever After by Karen Schaler
Published by HawkTale Publishing on September 29, 2020
Source: the publisher
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four-stars

From Karen Schaler, the writer of the Netflix phenomenon A Christmas Prince and Hallmark’s Christmas Camp comes this new heartwarming holiday romance. Mamma Mia meets The Bachelorette in Christmas Ever After…

While promoting her next novel, a Christmas love story, author Riley Reynolds is caught off guard when she’s asked during a live national television interview how she can write about romance when she still hasn’t found “the one” herself. Scrambling for an answer, she quickly answers that she has had great love in her past and that love inspired her novels. Little does she know that this one offhanded remark will turn her world upside down. Three of her ex-boyfriends see the interview, and each, believing she’s talking about him, shows up for her Christmas Camp book event at the Christmas Lake Lodge, determined to rewrite his happily-ever-after with her! Over the festive weekend, Riley’s old boyfriends compete to win her heart, pulling out all the stops while planning the most romantic Christmas dates on the planet. Despite herself, Riley starts falling for each guy- again-but for different reasons. As Riley revisits each relationship and discovers more about herself, she embraces the magic of Christmas and finally finds true love and her own Christmas ever after…

Bonus Content: Christmas Ever After includes delicious original Christmas recipes and fun holiday crafts and activities.

I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

REVIEW:

I knew when I settled into reading Christmas Ever After by Karen Schaler that it would be delightful and full of holiday feelings. I’ve enjoyed every one of her holiday stories so far, and this one was just as enjoyable! 

This is one of those stories where a person that doesn’t enjoy Christmas at all is thrust into something very Christmas-y and eventually opens her heart to the holiday season. I always, always love this type of story! In this case, famous author Riley Reynolds is told by her publisher that she needs to write a Christmas romance story, but she really doesn’t want to. She swore off Christmas when she was just eight years old and she hasn’t celebrated it since then. Her publisher arranges for her to host a Christmas Camp event with some of her loyal readers in an effort to promote her upcoming story, and just before she is to go to the event, she has an embarrassing television interview. During the interview, she was taken off-guard by an unapproved question and her response gave three ex-boyfriends the idea that she may still hold flames for them. So they all show up at her Christmas Camp event with hopes of rekindling their relationships. 

Christmas Ever After by Karen Schaler

The synopsis compares Christmas Ever After to Mamma Mia and The Bachelorette, and I have to agree that this story does give off those vibes. The three ex-boyfriends that show up at Riley’s Christmas Camp are a nod to the amazing Mamma Mia, and their interactions with Riley are a little bit like The Bachelorette. Even more (and better!) than those comparisons, this book feels like a Hallmark movie, like snuggling up with hot chocolate and a warm blanket on a cold day. It’s scrumptious and really made me feel Christmas while I was reading it. 

The first book that I read by Ms. Schaler was Christmas Camp, and it was awesome to see that this story nods back to the earlier one so well. The camp that Riley hosts is one much like the camp in the earlier book, complete with Christmas-themed rooms in the resort and Christmas-themed events for the guests to enjoy. And the supporting cast of characters is wonderful and lovable-this is something that I have grown to love about Ms. Schaler’s stories. 

There is indeed a sweet romance in these pages, but I won’t spoil who it is with, and how. Just know that I loved it, and I may just end up rereading this one again this year since we have a few months until Christmas. Fans of Christmas stories and Hallmark movies will love this one! 

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About Karen Schaler

Karen Schaler Author Photo

Karen Schaler is a three-time Emmy Award–winning storyteller, screenwriter, author, journalist, and national TV host. Karen has written original Christmas movies for Netflix, Hallmark, and Lifetime, including the Netflix sensation A Christmas Prince, Hallmark’s Christmas Camp, and four books, Christmas Ever After, Finding Christmas, Christmas Camp, and Christmas Camp Wedding, earning her the nickname “Christmas Karen” in the press. Karen has also created a real-life Christmas Camp experience for grown-ups, held around the world, where she carefully curates and hosts magical holiday activities from her movies and books and the show Christmas Karen: Behind the Story. For Karen’s novel Finding Christmas she also wrote the movie. Traveling to more than sixty-five countries, Karen is the creator and host of Travel Therapy TV. All of Karen’s stories are uplifting and filled with heart and hope.

Asheley

About Asheley

Asheley is a Southern girl. She loves Carolina blue skies, Ben & Jerry's ice cream, and NC craft beer. She loves all things history but prefers books over everything.

You can find her somewhere in North Carolina, daydreaming about the ocean.

Find Asheley on Litsy @intothehallofbooks!

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2 responses to “Book Review: Christmas Ever After by Karen Schaler

  1. Asheley, thank you for taking the time to review my next Christmas Romance Novel Christmas Ever After! I’m so glad you read the story and that you’d read Christmas Camp! I actually wrote the Christmas Camp Hallmark movie first then the novel and for all my movies I try and also write the novels including last year’s novel Finding Christmas and of course for Christmas Ever After. Stay tuned….

  2. Sara Strand

    I’m almost done with this and I’m loving it! Thank you for being on this tour. Sara @ TLC Book Tours

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