Love & Joy

Holidays in Hallbrook, Book 8

By: Elsie Davis

Narrated by: Rachel Butler, Liam Butler

Length: 6 hrs and 57 mins

Publisher's summary

Let the battle begin...

A 30th birthday is a landmark, but Zoe is crushed when everyone - including her nine-year-old son - seems to forget it. Of course, she has no idea about the surprise party, or the even more surprising birthday kiss from her best friend’s brother and secret high school crush, Blake Peterson.

Zoe doesn’t have time to dwell on it, though. She’s worked hard to rebuild her life after a divorce, and she fully expects the promotion dangled in front of her. Her boss has other ideas, however: A contest to renovate Peterson’s Ice Creamery, and may the best man - or woman - win.

What’s worse, her competition is none other than Blake himself, Old Man Peterson’s grandson.

Blake’s ready to join the family business, but his grandfather says he has to prove himself first. Now, he has to work side-by-side with the beautiful Zoe, and the two butt heads right away. It’s a battle between Zoe’s nostalgic style and Blake’s beliefs that high-tech modernization is crucial to the bottom line of a company.

They’re both stubbornly sure that they’re right, but the more time they spend together, the more difficult it is to deny there’s something growing between them that has nothing to do with business. Can these two put their differences aside long enough to discover what’s really important?

©2021 Elsie Davis (P)2022 Elsie Davis

Sweet Love

Such a sweet story and I love Rachel Butler as the narrator, along with her son Liam. Zoe has reached her 30th birthday, but nobody remembered, not even her son. Until, everyone surprised her with a celebration party and a kiss from her highschool crush, Blake. A competition brings them together and at odds. It's so hard for Zoe, she just wants to be manager and be happy. Read on for a fun story.
I was given a copy of this audiobook by the author for an honest review.

Sweet Contemporary Romance

This was a cute story. I didn't understand the contest, much, but it was a way to get them together. Why just copy the ideas of another shop? Why not take some aspects of a few, but create their own ideas?
It was a bit annoying that every time the dog was in the scene, he barked. All of the books in this series include dogs, but I don't remember any dog barking as much as this one. Usually, dogs bark because someone arrives at the home, or the dog sees another animal, or because he's rough housing. In this story, he seemed to bark when he was talked to. Odd.
The change in heart for this city slicker was endearing as was his testimony that his boldness was actually a coping mechanism to hide his insecurities. His character was probably the most indepth for this series so far. I loved that!
I am glad they spent time in church in this one, but I felt for Ressurection Day, being the most important Christian holiday, it was really lacking in that field.
The narration was very good in this one, especially the child voice actor, but there was a lot more variety in the character voices in this story!!

Love this story!

Elsie Davis knows how to take me back to the goodness of people. Each of her romances is sweet and warm, like watching a Hallmark movie! This one features Zoe and Blake. Zoe is divorced and is doing her best to support her son. Now getting the manager position at Peterson's Ice Creamery is in her sights. But Blake has been summoned home. An old high school crush, her best friend's brother and the son of the Peterson's, the two have been pitted against each other in a contest to update the store. Blake is all into bringing the store up to to the present, and Zoe thinks the nostalgia of the place is what makes people coming back. With teams formed and the prizes in sight, the two are ready. But teaching Blake the ins and outs of the everyday operations brings them closer together, and the feelings from the past and now in the present are forming. What will happen? Will Zoe's son like Blake? Is he willing to settle down in a small town? What does the town want? What will Blake's sister think? And who will win the contest? So much love and chemistry in this one from the very start. These two have a history, and while they were not together, their friendship is still there. I love the banter, the fun with Zoe's son Scott, the wise advice from Old man Peterson and the vibe of this entire small town. It's like coming home. Another amazing story.

Rachel Butler continues her fabulous narration along with her son Liam in this one. The characters are perfectly suited to their voices, easy to know who is speaking and the sound is easy on the ears! We are even treated to the occasional dog bark! It's a fun and enjoyable listen.

Another great read

Elsie Davis has a fun way of writing stories that keep the readers attention because they can relate to the down home characters and their lives. Sweet, clean and fun. A great addition to the series.

The narrative was well done, as usual.

I received a free copy of this audiobook and I am voluntarily leaving this review.

Delightful

A delightful story that was well done by narrator, One feels for Zoe wanting another chance with Blake, a kiss was it just that or more. Assistant at her place of work, the anticipation of promotion. When dreams stopped the grandson came into learn the ropes was Blake. Hoping for happy endings for Zoe. Given audio for my voluntary review.

Love at last!

I took one star from the story because I thought that Scott was mouthy, had attitude, and was overindulged. It got to be annoying when all the adults were constantly pandering to his sour ways. Other than that this story, along with the rest of the series, is a wonderful sweet and clean tale of two old friends discovering that the past does not dictate the future. Love, hope and success await you in this story of friends, family and special occasions in the small town of Hallbrook.
The narrator did another great read as she enticed us into the lives of Zoe and the Peterson family. Liam did a convincing job as Scott and brought a fun element to the experience with his talents.

Couldn’t finish

This seemed to be a really cute story but I just couldn’t get past the narration. The sing song and at times overly exaggerated way she spoke was too annoying for me. Additionally, the character transitions made the characters unrealistic. I may look for the paperback version as I thought it was a good story. I would not recommend the audio version.