I thought I would grab this for a fun holiday read but quickly found myself HOOKED! This book is laugh out loud funny (my family is convinced I have lost it) with a heartwarming storyline and great characters. I have fallen in love with the DeLuca family and the quaint town of St Helena. Can't wait for the next installment. So happy to have found a great new author in Marina Adair (new to me anyway)! ( )

Kissing Under the Mistletoe is a contemporary romance that strikes at the heart. The story is centered around the now 27 year old French-Mexican, single mother who has had her life ruined at every corner by a man she barely knows. When Regan was a naive 19 year old girl she fell in love with the wrong man. He was wrong for many reasons, but the kicker would be that he was already married. Of course this became news to her on the fateful day they were caught by Gabe. The very day she had learned she was having a girl.



What he also failed to tell her is just how ruthless his wife’s family could be. Richard’s wife Abigail, her family would never allow Regan to live it down, though Richard got away scot free, and millions richer. Now the only link to causing the family shame or harm is Regan, the other woman. Gabe will do anything to keep his loved ones safe, even if it meant harming another.



Needing a change of pace, and a new beginning, Regan moves her daughter away from everything she has ever known. Two weeks, deep in wine country, she quickly learns that it may have been yet another mistake to add under her belt. Unknowingly, she moved right into Gabe’s hometown. She bares her famous temper, and winds up stealing the town’s beloved Randulf statue from the Christmas display.



In a twist of unforeseen events the pair find themselves at odds. At first he wants her to leave, and quickly gets her fired from her new job. But Regan is a born fighter, and the words give-up are not in her vocabulary. Frantically she tries to find a new job, a place to live, and anything in her power to give her daughter a sense of normality that she herself never had.



It comes to light when she reads her five year old daughter’s Christmas wish. All little Holly wants is a forever home, and it becomes clear to Regan that she will do anything to give it to her. Even if it means every single person in the community hates her for being a homewrecker. She just wants more for her daughter than she ever had.



Gabe just wants to protect his family. He is always the hero, and has been since his parents died in an accident. He was left to pick up the pieces of both business and raising his siblings. He wants nothing more than to know they are safe and well, but all of that is turned upside down when the “Vixen” he loves to hate strolls into his life once again.



He wants her gone and even feels sorry for ruining her chances, but at the same time he is trying to keep Abigail and Regan from ever crossing paths. Gabe knows Regan wasn’t the only woman he had cheated with, but there is just something about her that screams a warning. Little did he know that it was his desire to know her, to touch her, and to love her.



Can these two warring, yet attracted characters find a way past themselves, their families, and whatever fate throws their way? Do they fall in love? Does Gabe forgive Regan, though she never really did anything wrong? Does little Holly get her wish?



This book is beyond touching. Your heart will break, and break as you learn about Gabe and Regan. More so, as a mother I found the scenes involving Holly to pull and rip at my heartstrings.



Deep in the story, I guarantee you will not be able to put it down. Between the romance is mystery, friendships, enemies of the plastic kind, and one reindeer that threatens to tear the town apart. I just couldn’t put it down, because even up to the last few pages I couldn’t tell what would happen.



On a side note, I think that single mothers (past and present) who enjoy romance will love this story. Anyone who understands that daily struggle of being a Mommy, and knowing how hard it is to find time for yourself, let alone to have an identity otherwise. I believe this story could have an inspirational effect for any woman who has ever been hurt emotionally by a man too.





In many ways I want to thank the author. I found the story refreshing and heartwarming. ( )

Originally Reviewed At:Mother/Gamer/Writer
Rating: 5 out of 5 Controllers
Review Source: ARC provided by the Author
Reviewer: Heather



Kissing Under the Mistletoe is a contemporary romance that strikes at the heart. The story is centered around the now 27 year old French-Mexican, single mother who has had her life ruined at every corner by a man she barely knows. When Regan was a naive 19 year old girl she fell in love with the wrong man. He was wrong for many reasons, but the kicker would be that he was already married. Of course this became news to her on the fateful day they were caught by Gabe. The very day she had learned she was having a girl.



What he also failed to tell her is just how ruthless his wife’s family could be. Richard’s wife Abigail, her family would never allow Regan to live it down, though Richard got away scot free, and millions richer. Now the only link to causing the family shame or harm is Regan, the other woman. Gabe will do anything to keep his loved ones safe, even if it meant harming another.



Needing a change of pace, and a new beginning, Regan moves her daughter away from everything she has ever known. Two weeks, deep in wine country, she quickly learns that it may have been yet another mistake to add under her belt. Unknowingly, she moved right into Gabe’s hometown. She bares her famous temper, and winds up stealing the town’s beloved Randulf statue from the Christmas display.



In a twist of unforeseen events the pair find themselves at odds. At first he wants her to leave, and quickly gets her fired from her new job. But Regan is a born fighter, and the words give-up are not in her vocabulary. Frantically she tries to find a new job, a place to live, and anything in her power to give her daughter a sense of normality that she herself never had.



It comes to light when she reads her five year old daughter’s Christmas wish. All little Holly wants is a forever home, and it becomes clear to Regan that she will do anything to give it to her. Even if it means every single person in the community hates her for being a homewrecker. She just wants more for her daughter than she ever had.



Gabe just wants to protect his family. He is always the hero, and has been since his parents died in an accident. He was left to pick up the pieces of both business and raising his siblings. He wants nothing more than to know they are safe and well, but all of that is turned upside down when the “Vixen” he loves to hate strolls into his life once again.



He wants her gone and even feels sorry for ruining her chances, but at the same time he is trying to keep Abigail and Regan from ever crossing paths. Gabe knows Regan wasn’t the only woman he had cheated with, but there is just something about her that screams a warning. Little did he know that it was his desire to know her, to touch her, and to love her.



Can these two warring, yet attracted characters find a way past themselves, their families, and whatever fate throws their way? Do they fall in love? Does Gabe forgive Regan, though she never really did anything wrong? Does little Holly get her wish?



This book is beyond touching. Your heart will break, and break as you learn about Gabe and Regan. More so, as a mother I found the scenes involving Holly to pull and rip at my heartstrings.



Deep in the story, I guarantee you will not be able to put it down. Between the romance is mystery, friendships, enemies of the plastic kind, and one reindeer that threatens to tear the town apart. I just couldn’t put it down, because even up to the last few pages I couldn’t tell what would happen.



On a side note, I think that single mothers (past and present) who enjoy romance will love this story. Anyone who understands that daily struggle of being a Mommy, and knowing how hard it is to find time for yourself, let alone to have an identity otherwise. I believe this story could have an inspirational effect for any woman who has ever been hurt emotionally by a man too.





In many ways I want to thank the author. I found the story refreshing and heartwarming. :-) ( )

What do you get when you have adultery, missing millions, a single-mother trying to take care of herself and her child, and a big brother who has made it his life’s mission to protect his “little” sister from the woman he feels wrecked and destroyed her marriage? You get a family full of angry Italian men just looking for someone to blame. Anyone, except for the two people who are truly at fault. You also get the backdrop for Kissing Under the Mistletoe by Marina Adair.

This is the first book by Marina Adair I’ve read. It will definitely NOT be the last. In fact, I must admit I dreamed about this book. I kept thinking that it was familiar and comforting. I woke up realizing that Marina reminded me of Jill Shalvis. That’s a TOTAL and COMPLETE compliment to Marina, to be a new author and have the ability to connect with readers like she does.

I LOVED the characters of Regan and Gabe. I have to admit there really wasn’t much about this book I didn’t like.

Regan Martin is a twenty-seven- year-old single mother to an adorable six-year-old little girl named Holly. She made the mistake of trusting and falling in love with a guy named Richard, who happened to be married to Abby DeLuca, of the successful and powerful DeLuca wine family.

Gabe DeLuca is thirty-five and is the oldest of the five DeLuca siblings. Being Italian, family means everything to him. And since the death of his parents twelve years ago, he has made it his mission to look after and protect his four younger siblings, no matter how old they are or what he has to do.

Gabe and his three brothers, Nathaniel, Marco, and Trey feel that it is their job to protect their “little” sister, Abby because they caught her husband Richard cheating on her with another woman. Regan wasn’t the first woman Richard ever had an affair with. She was just the one who lasted longer than a few weeks and was the last mistress Richard had before he disappeared.

Gabe has spent the last six years making sure Regan NEVER gets a chance to work in the wine industry again. She ends up in his hometown and his first thought is that she needs to be ran out of town. Gabe’s brothers come up with the idea that Gabe needs to get close to Regan, to determine what she knows about Richard and if she has any contact with him.

As always with romance stories, things get a little out of hand and before you know it, you’re in love. It’s no different for Gabe and Regan. The only part of the book that I didn’t get or maybe just didn’t understand was the end with all of the DeLuca siblings. I don’t want to spoil anything, I just found it hard to believe that an entire family is going to hate someone and then welcome them into the family.

The second book in the St. Helena Vineyard Series, Summer in Napa comes out in May 2013. Summer in Napa features Marco, the DeLuca brother who runs the Napa Grand Hotel, and Lexi Moreau. Marco and Lexi appear to have a little bit of a past with each other. I am definitely looking forward to reading it.

Source: Personal Purchase
Reviewed for Read Your Writes Book Reviews blog ( )