Charming Charlie by Trish LeBaron

 

Synopsis:

The only perfect thing about Charlie MacAfee Bates is her perfectly disastrous dating record. But Charlie has a lot of love to give, and she’s ready to storm the holiday dating scene to find her magical match and gain her biggest wish—a perfect little family full of squishy babies. Armed with her checklist of ideal qualities in a man, and a magical dating app, Charlie is determined to have Mr. Perfect wrapped up under her tree by Christmas. Unfortunately she’s spending most of her time with her new boss, a man who doesn’t match a single item on her list.

All Nick Linwood wants for Christmas is to stay perfectly grumpy. His house may be decked with boughs of holly, but he’s not fa-la-la-la-looking forward to the anniversary of his ex leaving him at the altar. Nursing a broken heart, Nick has withdrawn from the community of Moonrise Cove and become too grinchy to enjoy anything about the holidays. Until a beautiful redhead with rich coffee-brown eyes answers his job posting, draws him out from behind his work, and charms him without even trying.

Ignoring what’s right in front of her, Charlie follows misguided online advice that sends her on a streak of terrible dates that are anything but holly or jolly. What will it take for her to realize Mr. Perfect only exists on paper and Mr. Perfectly Right for Her has been working beside her all along?

My Review: 5 Stars

To tell you how much I absolutely adored this book, I'm going to start off with a confession. Hopefully this will also be a warning to you to clear your schedules before starting this book.

Confession. I stayed up WAY too late reading this book and only stopped because my kindle kept hitting me in the face whenever I dozed off. I also didn't even attempt to go back to sleep when I woke up at 2:43am. I literally rolled over, grabbed my kindle, hopped on the ferry, and headed right back to Moonrise Cove to pick up where I had left off. I was not going to let Charlie and Nick do anything without me! 

Charlie. *sigh* Charlie, Charlie, Charlie. Girl! What in the world am I going to do with you?! I have never loved someone so much but also wanted to shake some sense into them constantly. Charlie and I had many talks while she was trying to figure out what was right in front of her the whole time. I may or may not have growled at her in frustration a time or two. But I couldn't stay frustrated for long. Charlie really is such an amazing heroine that you can't help but love her! She's been through a lot to get to where she is and I loved how Nick was her safe place while she figured it all out. 

And speaking of amazing.... 

Nick. *dreamy sigh* Oh how I loved you! Grinch-like behavior and all! Nick, too, has been through a lot. There's a good reason for his grinchiness and I loved that Charlie didn't shy away from it. She helped him to see that what he thought was right, really wasn't and that love can be so much more with the right person. I swear these two were handpicked by Santa! 😉 They were just what the other needed, when they needed it. Their love story really is magical. 😍

Y'all. Why can't Moonrise Cove really exist, magic and all?! I would become a permanent resident there if I could! There's always a feeling of nostalgia and comfort whenever I visit. It makes me want to curl up in my big comfy chair, wrapped up in my cozy blanket fresh out of the dryer, with a mug full of my favorite hot chocolate in my hand, and forget that the world around me exists. It's definitely one of my favorite places to be!

I do have to say that while I absolutely adored this book and couldn't get enough of it, I wanted just a little bit more. I'm crossing my fingers we get to see more of Charlie and Nick in future books because I have questions I'm dying to get answers to. 😂

I'm so glad I discovered Ms. LeBaron! She is a very talented writer that knows just how to capture and keep my attention. I cannot wait to see what she has planned for us next! I'm sure it will be just as amazing as her first two books! 

As for my casting, I saw these two pretty much from the beginning. Love them! What do you think?