Member Reviews
ylvie is meant to be going on her amazing beachside honeymoon. However her fiancee has dumped her - a week before the wedding, so she is not living her best life. Until her best friend decides to step in and declare what Sylvie needs is a girls trip to…. Lapland… in winter… for Christmas.
As luck would have it the destination is the hometown of Sylvie’s first love, who just happens to be ‘the one that got away’, and when she sets eyes on him again all those feelings come rushing back. Can this possibly be Sylvie’s Christmas miracle?
I loved everything about this book. I laughed, I cried, I cheered both girls on with their pursuit of love. Excuse me while I pack my bags and hop on a plane to Lapland to chase the aurora borealis and find my own love in the snowfields. With, of course, another Kiley Dunbar novel to keep me company on the way.
A lovely and life affirming novel, very season appropriate and highty enjoyable. Would definitely recommend to other romance readers.
Chistmas at Frozen Falls was a charming Christmas read with well written descriptions, but it was way to predictable in the end. Also, I felt the end left too much open for my liking. On the bright side, I want to give the author credit for including a slightly diverse cast, both in the shape of Nari with Korean heritage and Niilo with Sámi heritage. Even though I might have a couple of issues with this book, it's still a charming Christmas read with a Nordic feel to it.
If you’re ready to laugh, check out this book. I loved Sylvie! I felt like I was rooting for her happy ending.
Cute, Christmas contemporary doesn’t completely warm the heart.
3.5 out of 5 stars
I feel like everyone immediately knows some quintessential facts about me: I adore my dogs, I can be a bit loud, and I adore Christmas novels and movies. My dedication to Christmas knows no bounds. Just try changing the Hallmark channel anytime in the month of December. You will be (not so nicely) escorted from my house. Needless to say when I was offered an opportunity to review Christmas at Frozen Falls by Kiley Dunbar, I grabbed my hot chocolate and e-reader and settled in.
Our main character Sylvie has been brutally dumped by her fiancée the week of her wedding. Yikes! So our story begins six months later and Sylvie is trying to progress with her life. Christmas is approaching and plans are being made and remade. Rather than go on the tropical honeymoon Sylvie had arranged, her best friend Nari convinces her to pick a different location. Instantly, a college sweetheart pops into Sylvie’s mind. Could Stellan still be in Finnish Lapland? There is only one way to find out: a best friends’ ultimate Christmas getaway, complete with snow, reindeer, huskies, and remote cabins! However, there is more coming than either Sylvie or Nari can predict, complete with a chance at love.
Overall, I enjoyed this story. The atmosphere was completely engrossing and even transported me to the other side of the Artic Circle. Imagine my shock when I took a break from reading and stepped outside into the blistering 98 degree weather. The story was cute and provided enough warm fuzzies to rival my warmest, fuzziest socks, but there were some minor issues. Grammar issues were more frequent than I would have liked. Sylvie’s story was competing with Nari’s, which was very distracting, and there needed to be more steam! Every time we had a hint of a kiss, the scene abruptly changed. Just give a girl something! I also took issue with the vacation to Finnish Lapland itself. This is supposed to be a week-long trip and I would have loved to read more about the country and its cultural traditions, but we mainly got tension and angst and adorable female bonding time. Please do not misunderstand me. I LOVED seeing a strong female friendship, but it would have been great to see it balanced a bit better. My main problem came with the end. The book seemed to suddenly stop, leaving me scratching my head. Kiley, please tell me how this is going to work! I need to know. What are Sylvie and Nari doing now? Wrap this up in a neat, professionally wrapped package and put a giant sparkly bow on it. I just need more!
*ARC provided via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review
A heart-warming delicious read that makes you want to play in the snow, snuggle with a husky and drink hot cocoa... I couldn’t put it down.
Enjoyable book, my first time reading Kiley Dunbar. Christmas in Lapland. That is Finland for the geographically challenged. Chilling outside but warm inside. Descriptions of the scenery is delightful. I did get chills thinking about the temperature. The stars, snow, dogs kept me reading. . Nice story about learning you can live your dreams not those handed to you and expected. It is a bit slow in parts, but on the whole a book I would recommend.
Christmas at Frozen Falls is a sweet Christmas read about healing, friendship, and the one who got away.
Initially, I wasn't a fan of this book. It starts off months after the infamous 'dumping before the wedding' and even though I can understand Sylvie being devastated by the loss of the future she thought she'd have, I couldn't understand how she was still so broken when the evil-dumper, Cole, was a complete jackass and his mother sounds like the mother-in-law from the deepest darkest depths of hell! Sylvie dodged a massive bullet and I didn't feel she was grieving over the loss of her fiance so much as the loss of a fantasy future, if that makes sense? She was more upset about the dog - totally understandable - and it made her melodrama tedious.
But then, she and her best friend decide to head to Finnish Lapland for Christmas and this gets Sylvie thinking about the Finnish guy she loved back in Uni - Stellen - and you feel that connection, that loss, fresh and aching even though their relationship had ended fifteen years ago! Thus the story got more interesting and Sylvie got less annoying.
When the resort they go to happens to be Stellen's resort, you know what's going to happen (and let's face it, it's in the blurb) but it doesn't detract from the sweet, wonderful, journey of falling in love again with the one who got away.
It was so easy while reading this book to get swept off to snow-covered forests under a glowing sky... To smell the crisp coldness of the snow mixed with pine sap. To imagine yourself snuggled in a blanket with a cup of hot chocolate beside a roaring fire.
It was magical, especially with the romance bubbling along beside you.
The ending had me smiling and happy but a little unsatisfied if I'm honest. Stellen and Sylvie had a happy for now ending. A nice, teasing, promise of a beautiful future if they could make it work. For some, that would be enough but I'm the type of gal who, in those circumstances, needs a flipping epilogue reassuring me that everything does indeed end happily.
Let's face it, people don't read romance for a reality check! Give us a cast-iron happy ever after, dammit!
Regardless of my minor grumbles, I recommend it if you want a mental trip to Lapland this year to play in the snow and play with some husky dogs!
Lovely festive read. It was a heart warming romance. It was a wonderful book to read. It was well written and flowed well.
The book was magical. It was amazing how a story set in the freezing cold land of Lapland could produce so much warmth that it brought a glow to my heart. A fun romance which showed me that everything happened at a definite time in this universe, even falling in love. And author Kiley Dunbar has proved it so beautifully with this book.
Sylvie was to marry Cole, he ditched her, a jerk. So the supposed honeymoon trip was with her best friend Nari to Lapland. And romance blossomed with an old college ex, Stellan.
My first book by this author, it was a romantic journey into the descriptions of the landscapes and the self-discovery that Sylvie went through. I liked how she grew up and understood herself far better down the pages.
The chapters had different POV which sometimes don't work well for me, but the author totally made it rock here. I liked knowing how everyone was genuine and vested in their relationships. Love and friendship abounded in this sweet tale, along with the tradition and cultures of Lapland.
The book had an additional aspect which enamored me completely. Not only was her romance detailed, but best friend Nari had one of her own which was quite interesting as she was a travel blogger who didn't love easily.
Frozen Falls was delightful where I could believe that anyone could fall in love, both with the land and the people of Lapland. A convincing tale where the warmth of Christmas was rooted in the hearts of the characters, healing them and giving them a second chance.
This is a new author to me and I definitely will read more of her books. I love Christmas books and Christmas at Frozen Falls was no exception. Great plot and setting. My thanks to the publisher for my advance ebook. This is my unbiased review.
Less than hundred days to Christmas and the literary world is already abuzz with Christmas books. So if you are not yet in the festive spirit, this story will be the perfect start. Travel to Finnish Lapland, hug some cute huskies, see the Northern Lights and experience the magic of Christmas along with Sylvie and Nari.
Yes, yes, I know. It is not even winter, but what does it matter to a talented author. Off we go to the winter wonderland, all thanks to the beautiful writing of Kiley Dunbar. And the love story is just the icing of the cake. Oops! my bad. It is love stories since there are not one but two.
For Sylvie and Stellan this is a second chance at love, while for Nari and Niilo, it is love at first sight (love the way their names rhyme). Narrated through multiple perspectives, we get to experience each character's emotional turmoil, all leading to a much expected and cutely visioned happy ending.
So don't forget to add this cosy, cute romance to your Christmas reading list. Have a great time enjoying the wintry nights in Lapland!
I really enjoyed this book. First Christmas book of this year that i have read, and I must say that I started with the best of them all.
This is the first time I read a book by this author and I must say I really enjoyed it! It is such a gorgeous setting for a story and it just makes you feel very festive. This is not just your average run of the mill Christmas book yes there is humour but there is also some very emotional parts that are just fab!
Loved this book. Great characters, easy read, uplifting, funny, romantic and charming. A really nice story that is the perfect escapist read.
This year Christmas books seem to be entering the mix that bit early. As I usually have a weird ritual whereby I only start talking about/blogging about/ reading Christmas books on October 4th ( I don’t know why the specific date!) the need I had to read this book threw me, but I went with it (albeit praying next year there won’t be Christmas books landing in August!!)
This is the story of Sylvie, who has been jilted in the most horrible way a week before her wedding. Her ex-groom-to-be Cole, is a clueless piece of work with a would-have-been mother in law to Sylvie who is the ultimate in high end baddies!! I will admit, before I jetted off with Sylvie and her epic best friend, Nari, I was absolutely taken with Cole’s family, and in particular his mother and long suffering sister. (Okay I’ll say it now, if there was any form of a sequel to be had I would kill for more of this, his sister’s story kept going around in my mind in this book! There. I said it!!)
Anyhoo, back to Sylvie! I loved that they were going to Lapland at Christmas and the magical dreamy setting and activities (complete with cute dogs) made me so happy!! I flew through this book enjoying every second but it was the beginning, with Cole and his family, her own lovely family, the bang on humour and zing, memories of festiveness and the sparkliness in general are what has sealed Ms. Dunbar as an author I will without doubt be following!!Very much recommended! Thanks so much to Rachel’s Random Resources for for the book in return for an honest review.
Rating: 4.5/5
I absolutely loved this heart-warming and snowy Christmas romance. Lapland was the perfect setting and I had serious envy over the cabins that Sylvie and Nari got to stay in! Wishing that this Christmas I could be out there with reindeers and cookies and hot Finnish men!
A cosy and warm read that I whizzed through in a weekend - would recommend!
What an adorable and emotional book
This book made me feel like it was Christmas
The writing style was very strong and managed to bring an emotional element to it
This is a wonderful sweet romantic read
This book will make you want to book tickets to Lapland this Christmas! If you want a book to kick off your festive mood this holiday season, this book is the one to choose. The setting is wonderful and the characters are engaging. I'm hoping to choose it as the Christmas book club read in December in the library.
Check Out My full Review On Bibliomedico : https://bibliomedico.wordpress.com/2019/09/10/blog-tour-book-review-christmas-at-frozen-falls-by-kiley-dunbar/
First Of All , I must talk about the setting , This Beautiful Novel takes place in a Literally Magical Place , All I’ve been Thinking After reading it , (I Want To go there ) , Like seriously . In my country , the weather is still really hot , So this novel made me remember how amazing Winter could be . 😛
The Novel Is so WEll- researched and You can Notice That By the descriptions and the Things mentioned such as , Customs , Nature ….
Kiley Dunbar Writing style Is great , actually . Her Words are so warm , the descriptions are visual , lush and intriguing . I was smiling while reading the whole book .
I loved the characters so much , the novel was full of festive feelings , amazing characters, Christmas vibes , Family and friends .
As always , I won’t spoil the story by talking about it , I will leave the blurb below , But for me Christmas at Frozen Falls was the perfect start for my Christmas – themed reads .