I actually read the first book in this series, The Christmas Wedding Guest, before I knew about this novella. I fell in love with the town of Wishing Tree and decided I had really wanted to visit with the residents again. The majority of this story takes place during the town’s Christmas in July celebration. While this celebration is a lot of fun, it was nowhere near the extravaganza we saw at Christmas.

Shaye happens to be passing through town during the kickoff fun run for the town’s July festivities and Lawson is instantly drawn to her. They make small talk which leads to lunch which leads to a stroll around town. There is a definite connection between the two, but Shaye is on her way to starting a new life elsewhere. With no firm date to be to her destination, can she stick around for a bit and just enjoy making some new friends in this quirky town?

This is a really sweet introduction to the Wishing Tree series. The characters are extremely lovable and had me rooting for them to find their happiness. I did find the building chemistry lost a lot of momentum when the author had days pass without showing the reader the interactions but, instead, telling us about them in a kind of offhand manner. In fact, there is mention of them kissing and it says it wasn’t the first time. How did the author not tell us about their first time kissing? That doesn’t make sense to me in a romance novel, no matter the length. Not when you’re telling us about other kisses. Still, for the most part this is a lovely story and I’m still really enamored with this town.

You can find more of my reviews at All In Good Time.