The Christmas Swap was a fun read in July for me as I was on vacation in the Rocky Mountains. The book is a light romance focusing on a homeowner, Tyler, who ends up not leaving his home as planned when another family has booked it for Christmas. He quickly becomes attracted to guest Emma, but there is many mishaps on which guest likes whom in the story which causes too much high school style drama. If you want a simple romance for the holidays, you will enjoy this one.

This was a short and sweet romance. I liked West and Emma, they seemed like two genuinely nice people, but most of the rest of the characters were not really likeable. Gillian and her mother, in particular, were unkind. Gillian was manipulative, judgemental, a snob and just plain nasty. I’ve no idea why someone like Emma is still friends with her. Gillian rescued her when they were younger, but that’s no reason to put up with such a toxic “friendship”.

The setting of West’s house and the town, skiing etc was well done, though a little more description would have made the various restaurants etc a little more distinguishable from one another. However, the mountains, snow and decorations in West’s house did give a nice Christmas atmosphere.

I was rather disappointed that Emma and West were somehow in love after only spending a total of one day together. I think it would have been more believable if there’d been more time. However, I think that’s partly down to the book being so short.

If you’re looking for a short and sweet Christmas romance, and don’t mind a manipulative character, then this is the book for you.

I was given a free copy of this book, my opinions are my own.

I have to preface my review by saying that I eagerly anticipate Melody's Christmas releases each year, but this is probably my least favorite ever. In the spirit of 2020 as a whole, it's a bit of a one-off. This is a quick read that will leave you thinking about the characters once you put it down. You have complete opposites -- sweet Emma and spoiled princess Olivia -- who somehow have managed to be friends for well over a decade. Once you read the story, you'll completely understand that sentence! I'd love to say that there is personal growth here, but the story rolls along very well and then suddenly everything just wraps itself up with a neat little bow. The ending felt very rushed....

This is an author that I go to when I want a feel good read. I have read a few of her Christmas titles. This one was a cute, fast read. I enjoyed the characters and the setting.

By far the worst Melody Carlson book I have ever read. A trite, tired storyline that has clearly been recycled once too often.

Decent romance. Not anything more than attraction. The story was okay, it was believable, but it was clearly designed to force Emma and West together. I found Gillian to be more of a charicature and the fact that every male in the book was in love with Emma made them one-sided and annoying more than anything entertaining. The writing itself was nothing special. it was heavy with dialogue and not enough descriptions of the setting or any kind of character emotion--it all had to be inferred by the dialogue and the context. I was entertained, but I was expecting more from Melody Carlson.

If you had never experienced a white Christmas, would you jump at the chance to join your friend's family at a quaint ski village for Christmas? Emma's friend, Gillian, talked her into joining her dysfunctional family for Christmas in Breckinridge Colorado. Emma meets a mysterious caretaker that teaches her to ski.

The author describes Breckenridge in beautiful detail. The exhilaration Emma felt when she learned how to ski made me wish I was younger and ready to hit the slopes. When the story ended, I found myself wanting more - I wanted to continue to follow Emma and West in their relationship. It was more interesting than the typical Christmas short story.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. The opinions expressed are my own.

Melody Carlson has written another great book. The Christmas Shop has a great plot with characters that you will love. The book would make a fantastic Hallmark movie. If you enjoy Christmas and romance books you will not be disappointed. I received an advance ebook from the publisher and this is my unbiased review.

Well done house swap story involving a
Sweet substitute teacher, her conniving friend and a case of hidden identity. The ski scenes were wonderful and the characters were perfectly drawn. Both the wonderful and the awful were good to read about. I enjoyed it all and it ended much too soon, I could have read about these people forever. Excellent.

It pains me to write this review. I don’t like giving negative feedback, but I feel I need to. This will only be my second-ever one star review. This book was incredibly problematic. From a man describing a woman as “exotic,” to manipulative characters, putting people down for not being rich, and toxic relationships, this book was a chore to read. I wanted to DNF it so many times, but kept reading with the hope that it would get better. I usually LOVE Christmas stories, but this one missed the mark completely. Honestly, I would not even describe this as a Christmas story. It was a story about a family that does a house swap in Colorado, manipulates each other and goes skiing a lot. I sadly can’t recommend this book.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.

Emma Daley wants the holiday season to be a white Christmas.

A young teacher and struggling musician is sure that’s not going to happen in sunny Arizona.

In Colorado Rockies, Tyler Prescott who lives in a picture perfect mountain home is looking to make a vacation trade this year.

Tyler Prescott is a songwriter and talented musician, he’s put his own career on hold to write songs for celebrity acts to perform.

His mother, convinces him to do a vacation trade for Christmas.

What he didn’t bank on was that one of the houseguests would be so strikingly pretty.

So, he decides to stick around, try to get better acquainted, and for this, he poses as the house's caretaker.

But when Gillian, whose Emma's friend discovers his true identity and decides to set her sights on him, it throws a spanner in his works.