Allison: The Christmas Wedding Ring | Susan Mallery | Book Review

I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

New York Times bestselling author Susan Mallery returns with a Christmas-themed retelling of her beloved story, The Wedding Ring Promise! In her youth, Molly Anderson couldn't help crushing on gorgeous bad boy Dylan Black-even though he had eyes only for her older sister. When things didn't work out between them, he said goodbye to Molly as well, vowing they'd have a great adventure when she grew up. Years later, dumped by her fiance just before Christmas, she's finally ready to take Dylan up on his promise.A guarded Dylan always had a weakness for Molly, and when she waltzes back into his life—grown-up and gorgeous—he's stunned. So why not whisk her away for some no-strings-attached fun?Laughter-filled days and late-night kisses are changing Molly's life, for good. The only gift she truly wants now is Dylan's love, but when he discovers the secret she's been keeping, she may lose him again…this time forever.

The Christmas Wedding Ring by Susan Mallery was a cute holiday story featuring a slow-burning romance between an innocent heroine and a ‘bad boy’ hero. The two main characters of the story, Molly and Dylan, who have known each other since the days of when Dylan was dating Molly’s older sister in high school. Young Molly developed a bit of crush on the older bad boy and held on to every second that she and Dylan spent together. Eventually, Dylan and Molly’s sister broke up and Dylan left town but he and Molly always held a promise between them: if Molly was ever in need of some adventure she would come and find him and together they would go on an adventure.

Flash forward to 14 years later when Molly’s life is falling apart around her and she decides to find Dylan and take him up on his offer. A daring move considering that she hadn’t heard from the guy in over 14 years but understandable considering that her life was going to pieces around her. Molly and Dylan have both grown up since the last time they’ve seen each other. Molly is now a successful accountant while Dylan owns his own motorcycle company. They were almost complete strangers to each other except not. It was interesting to watch them take in the new aspects of each other as they also realize that there may be more to them than just a rekindled friendship.

I liked both of the characters but I have to admit that there were times that Molly grated on me. I understand that she had a lot going on with her but she had so much self-doubt sometimes that it took away from the potential romance for me. She kept talking about “letting herself go and just live in the moment” but I don’t know if she ever really did. Not when she was waiting for a dreaded phone call every night or allowing negative memories to overshadow the ones that there being made in front of her. There seemed to be a real disconnect between her words and her actions which made it difficult at times to enjoy the story.

However, regardless of how I felt about Molly at times, the ending of The Christmas Wedding Ring was totally worth it. It may have been a bit Hallmark movie like but honestly, I think that is exactly what we need at times. The descriptions of Christmas, the whimsical sensation you get as you are reading, almost as if you are really there. It put such a smile on my face, and I was so pleased with the way that things were finished. This was my first Christmas read of the 2014 season, and it was definitely a good one to start out with.