Aaaand, I finally finished! Before Christmas, even! :)
Lots of interesting stuff here (varying time periods, settings, writing styles, editing, and levels/types of steam), but these were my favorites:

Hell’s Wedding Bells - Annabelle Anders
Home for Christmas - Celeste Jones
Holly and the Beast - Annabel Joseph
Mistletoe Kisses - Elise Marion
The Holiday Hussy - Merry Farmer
Christmas Charity - Beverly Oakley
The Russian Betrothal - Elsa Holland
Marrying Miss Bright - Dayna Quince
The Russian Prince’s Bride - Mariah Stone
Holly and Old Lace - Vanessa Brooks
Wedded in Winter - Scarlett Scott
A Wicked Wedding - Laura Trentham
The Angel of an Astronomer - Linda Rae Sande

Thanks to all of the authors for putting together this enormous collection and making it free. It kept me entertained off and on almost all year long, and now I have a bunch of new writers to check out…:) ( )

I never want to read about a wedding on Christmas ever again.

I am so so so glad I am FINALLY done with this. The relief! While I actually enjoyed more of the stories than I expected, this went downhill when I read the whole second half over the last week.


THINGS I LEARNED FROM THIS ANTHOLOGY (in categories cause I'm just that sick of everything)
Plot & character things
- All men speak in a rich baritone
- A woman's hair is always long and usually curly
- Every blonde woman is an angel (twice the angel if her hair is also blonde & curly)
- Scotsmen are always rugged and we'd forget they're Scottish if they didn't call the heroine "lassie" in at least every second sentence
- Epilogues only exist to show us that the heroine is pregnant
- Isn't it funny to call this heroine in Christmas romance anthology Holly? So original!

Sex things
- "It's called a cock."
- There's always oral sex before the virgin is deflowered (or "claimed", as most stories put it. By his rod.)
- "What was that?!" - "It's called an orgasm."

Actual serious criticism
- People of color didn't exist in 19th century England, not even as servants (except for that one story)
- Neither did queer people
- Beta readers for spelling and grammar? We don't need them cause we're just THAT good. 99% of these mistakes were things spellcheck should've picked up on, what are you even doing?!
- Apparently spanking is so sexy that there's no need to distinguish it from abuse. Hard disagree.


INDIVIDUAL RATINGS (to be taken with a grain of salt, especially those at the beginning - when I wasn't sick of the premise yet - and those at the end, when I was too sick of the premise. I've also got an update with a mini review after every single story for you to enjoy...)
Hell's Wedding Bells - 4 stars
Two Lady Scoundrels and a Duke - 1 star
A Wicked Wedding - 5 stars
The Lady's Guide to Mistletoe and Mayhem - 1 star
The Russian Betrothal - 4 stars
Beautifully Reckless - 2 stars
The Mistletoe Mistress - 3 stars
Deeds Not Words - 2 stars
Holly and the Beast - 3 stars
The Winter Bride - 3 stars
Mistletoe Kisses - 3 stars
The Christmas Countess - 2 stars
Mischief and Mistletoe - 2 stars
Kidnapped With the Knight - 1 star
The Russian Prince's Bride - 4 stars
Christmas Charity - 3 stars
The Angel of an Astronomer - 4 stars
Wassail, Wagers and Weddings - 3 stars
Highland Yule - 1 star
Marrying Miss Bright - 3 stars
Kiss Me, Macrae - 3 stars
Holly and Old Lace - 1 star
Home for Christmas - 2 stars
A Spinster at the Highland Court - 2 stars
The Holiday Hussy - 1 star
December Debauchery - 3 stars
Wedded in Winter - 2 stars ( )

A Wicked Wedding by Laura Trentham: “ . . . her smile and twinkling eyes had him grinning at her like a ninnyhammer." When I read that I knew I was in for a treat. And I was right. If Diana and Cole's story in A Wicked Wedding is any indication, the Once Upon a Christmas Wedding anthology it is part of is going to be one fantastic read. It’s the perfect blend of sweet and spice.

Diana and Cole have known each other since childhood; they grew up together. So the dialogue between them fairly snaps. But things are a little different now. Cole is The Earl of Linley. As the third son, he was never supposed to be but tragedy made it happen. Diana is just about marrying age, but with her outspoken manner and standing in the shadow of her sister’s beauty it might not be that easy. When Cole returns home as “My Lord” there is a new tension between them, some undercurrent that wasn’t there before. What’s happening? Diana can’t seem to stop her thoughts, “He would fill the emptiness and she wagered she wouldn’t even need a warming pan. What would happen if they were alone? . . . She pictured herself rubbing Cole’s feet.” I had to laugh out loud. Not sure foot rubbing would be on the agenda.

I always love anything and everything that Laura Trentham writes, and A Wicked Wedding was no exception. Her stories are so sweet, and the heat in this story didn’t hurt either!

I received an advance copy of A Wicked Wedding, thoroughly enjoyed it and recommend it without hesitation. It has everything: a great plot populated by well-developed characters, and is full of humor, love, romance, surprise, suspense, danger, sadness – and LOVE. Read it! ( )