The Trouble With Mistletoe by Jill Shalvis
Series: Heartbreaker Bay #2
Published by Avon on September 27, 2016
Pages: 361
Source: Library
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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 . . .

Review:

The Trouble with Mistletoe by Jill Shalvis is a quick read, very cute. I liked it more than the previous book, Sweet Little Lies, because there isn’t a huge “secret that can change destroy everything.”

This book features Willa and Keane. While each of the books in this series are technically standalones, I love reading them in order because I already knew Willa from having read the previous book. Keane is from Willa’s past. They went to high school together and Keane broke her heart, although he isn’t aware that he did so. Their initial meeting in this book is pretty fun, as Keane is looking for help with his Aunt Sally’s cat and Willa runs a [very cool and super cute] pet shop that specializes in pet daycare and other specialized animal services. Keane is a builder and the cat is terrorizing his job sites.

Willa loves animals and found a way to turn her love for them into a quirky-yet-lucrative business. She employs at-risk young people and helps them with housing, etc. but she has a difficult time with commitment in her personal life because of her own troubled past. Keane has some issues with commitment as well, but his life is missing the support from a group of friends like Willa has. He puts all of himself into his work. This story isn’t really a second chance romance because of the circumstances under which these two knew each other in their past – I would call it more of a redemption story.

Pru and Finn, from the first book, make appearances. The large cast of close friends are all present and accounted for, particularly Elle and Archer who continue to intrigue me. (I’m dying to read their book.)

I’m still not convinced that this series is as awesome as the Lucky Harbor Series, but it features so many of the things that I love about Shalvis-stories that I can’t help but enjoy it. Great cast of characters, great romantic tension, humor. Since this is a holiday-themed story, I was hoping that the holiday-feeling would be a little bit stronger, but holiday-lite works for me too.

Check out my other reviews in the Heartbreaker Bay Series:

Sweet Little Lies | The Trouble with Mistletoe | One Snowy Night | Accidentally On Purpose
Chasing Christmas Eve | Holiday Wishes | About That Kiss
Hot Winter Nights | Playing For Keeps | Wrapped Up In You | Twist Of Fate