Skip to main content

The Mistletoe Countess by Pepper D. Basham Review

Happy Monday Friends :)

I hope you all had a great weekend, and that you're looking forward to the week ahead.

I actually ended up spending the majority of my weekend in my house as we're going through another heatwave, and I just didn't feel like dealing with it.

Because of this, I was actually able to finish 3 books over the course of the weekend, and today I'm excited to share my review of one of those books with you all.

It may seem funny to have been reading a Christmas book during a heatwave, but it worked for me, and I'm here to tell you all about it.


The Mistletoe Countess by Pepper D. Basham:



Source: Publisher via NetGalley

Publication Date: September 1st, 2021

Publisher: Barbour Fiction

Genre: Christian Fiction/Historical Fiction/Christmas Read


Synopsis:


Will the magic of Christmas bring these two newlyweds closer together, or will the ghosts of the past lead them into a destructive discovery from which not even a Dickens’s Christmas can save them?

Mistletoe is beautiful and dangerous, much like the woman from Lord Frederick’s Percy’s past, so when he turns over a new leaf and arranges to marry for his estate, instead of his heart, he never expects the wrong bride to be the right choice. Gracelynn Ferguson never expected to take her elder sister’s place as a Christmas bride, but when she’s thrust into the choice, she will trust in her faithful novels and overactive imagination to help her not only win Frederick’s heart but also to solve the murder mystery of Havensbrook Hall before the ghosts from Frederick’s past ruin her fairytale future.

(synopsis from goodreads)

My Review:

I'm going to be honest and say that The Mistletoe Countess did not end up being what I expected, and this ended up being both a good thing and a bad thing. 

First off, I absolutely adored both of the main characters. Grace has to be one of my all time favorite protagonists, and I found myself rooting for her oddities and rather strange ideals over and over again. She definitely meets her match in Lord Frederick Percy, and I loved how much their friendship grows over the course of the story, and how they are both concerned with not abusing their power, and staying true to what God has asked of them.

The faith content is effortlessly breathed into each and every portion of the story, and it never comes across as inauthentic or out of place. Both Grace and Frederick have to truly come to terms with what it means to follow Jesus wholeheartedly, and their faith journey was one of my favorite parts of the story. I always appreciate when a book character is a fellow book lover, and I loved reading all the bookish tidbits that are scattered throughout the entirety of the story. One of my favorite parts of all had to be the library scene that was heavily reminiscent of my all time favorite scene in Beauty and the Beast.

Pepper Basham is the type of author who knows how to make her readers laugh and cry, and knows how to take them to places they never could have seen coming. The Mistletoe Countess ends up being a lot more than a simple historical romance as it quickly turns into a murder mystery with a dastardly plot that will have both Grace and Frederick scrambling to put together all the pieces.

Everything weaves together beautifully, and this story ended up being so much more than what I initially expected when I picked it up. However, there was one negative side to this as well. I can't wrap up my review without commenting on the plethora of sexualized content that rounds out this otherwise beautiful story, and I was definitely a tad turned off by it. Nothing is super graphic or explicit, but it plays a large part of the story, and it just seemed really out of place to have conversations of faith followed by many, many conversations about lust and desire and the like. I was definitely thankful that none of these type of situations occur between the mains before they are married, but I wasn't a fan and would have enjoyed the story much more without them.

Still a pretty amazing story though, and one that I will be recommending. I just advise that if you're uncomfortable reading that kind of content, then this book might not be for you.

Final Rating: 4/5.

Thanks so much to Barbour for allowing me to advance read and review this!

I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary advance reader copy of this novel from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to give a positive review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thanks so much for reading guys! Have a great rest of your day :)


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

First Line Friday: Carolina Breeze

Happy Friday Everyone :) I hope you're all having a great week! Mine has actually been pretty good. We've had some really nice days, and my husband and I were finally able to put our garden in, and various flowers and the like. We've also had a couple of lovely, rainy days as well, and I love how green everything is looking in our yard right now. For today's post, I'm excited to once again be linking up with the lovely Hoarding Books  for another edition of First Line Friday. This fun weekly meme simply consists of sharing the first line of the book you're currently reading. For this week's first line, I'm going to be sharing from Denise Hunter's recently released title that I ended up absolutely loving. Carolina Breeze by Denise Hunter: About The Book: A jilted bride. A struggling innkeeper. And a romantic mountain getaway that changes everything. Rising Hollywood star Mia Emerson is looking for a safe place to land in the wake of a public breakup a

First Line Friday: Just As I Am

Happy Friday Everyone :) I hope you're all having a great week, and looking forward to the weekend. Since it is Friday, it's time once again for First Line Friday, which is hosted over at Hoarding Books. For today's first line, I'm going to be featuring a recent debut novel that I had the opportunity to read and review. About The Book: Adeline Rhodes has spent years locked away in a New Orleans apartment controlled by her criminal boyfriend. After a daring escape, she realizes just how far she has grown from the things in which she once believed. Declan King has lived a life of solitude and duty for the U.S. Army. When the deaths of his grandparents bring him home to his family farm, he is forced into contact with people who know too much about his past to simply leave him alone. When Adeline’s past catches up to her, the two strangers find themselves thrust into a fake relationship to protect Adeline from her vengeful ex. As their chance meeting begin

First Line Friday: Courting Mr. Emerson

Happy Friday Everyone :) Since it is Friday, I'll once again be participating in First Line Friday which is hosted by Hoarding Books .  For this week, I'm going to be sharing the first line from Melody Carlson's newest book, Courting Mr. Emerson. About The Book: When the fun-loving and spontaneous artist Willow West meets buttoned-up, retired English teacher George Emerson, it's not exactly love at first sight. Though she does find the obsessive-compulsive man intriguing. Making it her mission to get him to loosen up and embrace life, she embarks on what seems like a lost cause--and finds herself falling for him in the process. A confirmed bachelor, George vacillates between irritation and attraction whenever Willow is around--which to him seems like all too often. He's not interested in expanding his horizons or making new friends; it just hurts too much when you lose them. But as the summer progresses, George feels his defenses crumbling. The quest