Mr. and Mrs. Christmas

by Michelle Stimpson, Marcella Cox (Narrator), Ian Hackney (Narrator)

7 hours and 28 minutes

Falling for my best friend’s brother while pretending we’re engaged to save our hometown at Christmas—what could go wrong?

There's no place like home for the holidays ... especially for Lesley Carver. Life in the big city just wasn't her jam and now she's back in Hickory Falls, working at the family diner and helping her mom after she took a tumble. Lesley longs to build a life here, working at the cafe, selling her handmade ornaments and ... er, apparently reviving her high school crush on her best friend’s older brother. Only one problem, her mom wants her to leave Hickory Falls far behind.

Jamal Gainey is beyond busy keeping the family farm afloat. But when the mayor ropes him into pretending to date his little sister's best friend to help make the town into a Christmas destination, he finds he doesn't want to say no. Plus oops, a reporter has already dubbed them “Mr. and Mrs. Christmas” and the story may have gone a teensy bit viral on social media.

As the story draws tourists from far and wide, bringing much needed life back to Hickory Falls, the ruse starts to feel all too real. "Mr. and Mrs. Christmas" takes on a life of its own even as Jamal and Lesley start to realize their relationship isn’t just a Christmas miracle for the town, but the miracle they both need.

Genres: Romance, Audiobook, Christmas, Holiday, Fiction, Contemporary, Cozy Mystery

8 pages, Audible Audio

Published November 14, 2024

About the author

Hello, Goodreads community! I'm Michelle Stimpson, and storytelling is my heartbeat. I've found my calling in penning heartwarming women's fiction that offers a seat at the table of family, humor, and hope. As an author, my greatest joy comes from crafting narratives that resonate with anyone seeking to find laughter and light in the pages of a good book. My tagline, 'Read. Love. Repeat.', is a promise of the emotional journey I aim to provide—engaging stories you’ll love and yearn to revisit.

Happy Reading

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Reviews

[Kristina]

Gawd this was awful.

DNF 30% or so.

[Erica Bartsch · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm sorry, but I was bored as shit reading this. I literally cranked the speed up on the audiobook to finish it......

[Anna Bruhn · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was terribly boring. Would’ve DNFed if I wasn’t morally opposed to DNF.

[Veronica · Rating 2 out of 5]

This story was cute but the ending kind of fell flat for me.

[VelvetNocturne_ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This small town christmas romance was sweet and wholesome with scavenger hunts, fake dating, BIPOC, cute puppies, cherry orchard farms and just the cutest side characters. Anyone looking for a cozy hallmark-like read will enjoy this one.

[Erin Grace · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love a good fake dating story 🥰

[Grace Batterson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just a cute hallmark style Christmas story. Super cute, clean, and fun

[Biggest Little Book Talker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cute small town Christmas.
Lesley moved back to her small town to work at the family diner while she figures out life. Her mom is making sure that she knows that this situation is only temporary and she needs to get her butt back to the big city asap. Lesley just wants to work the dinner and make her own handmade ornaments, is that so hard to understand?
The town and business is in trouble, including her best friend’s farm. The farm where her high school crush and best friend’s older brother Jamal now works.
The best friend and the mayor come up with a scene to get the two together and make there town a Christmas tourist destination.
Listen to this audible for some major hallmark small town Christmas vibes.

[Angelic · Rating 4 out of 5]

Honestly really good! I love that this fake dating ended the way it did. 🥹🥰🥰 another great Hallmark style book!! 🥹

Def recommend this as another holiday read! Childhood crush turn fake dating plus HEA.

[Meredith Stepien · Rating 5 out of 5]

Honestly loved it. So slow and cozy and soft and sweet. Borderline like a sleep story! Michelle Stimpson knows how to do a cozy Christmas!!

[Amanda Campbell · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was too long, and I found it a little boring.

[Shammah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good clean Christmas read/listen. Not the best, but still better than a lot of choices out there.

[labibliofille · Rating 1 out of 5]

Okay, I DNF'd around 50%. I love the pride this small town has in it's community, heritage, history, and spirit, but I couldn't get past the strange decisions made throughout.

There's not even a miscommunication issue between characters, there's an utter lack of communication and consent (there's no way I'd let anyone do to me what they mayor did to these two, even if it led to a Hallmark movie-esque HEA). Who in their right mind would think it's okay to boldface lie about two people, one of which you think of as a friend, right in front of their faces? It feels icky. Nevermind that this whole scenario feels unbelievable.

Speaking of icky, I truly don't like how people in the community meddle in general, but mostly how our MFCs mom just won't listen to her adult daughter. I know mom's think they know best, but at some point an adult child needs to be able to make their own decisions even if they don't fit into the ideas you had for their future.

The writing is lacking, the plot is slow, and there's really nothing of substance happening. Maybe if this was an actual Hallmark movie I'd feel differently (since it would be paced faster, undoubtedly), but as it stands Mr. and Mrs. Christmas is a no from me.

The best part is the dogs love story, but I can't justify continuing to listen for such a tiny poart of the story.

[Linda Eckert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, I don't know if I'm Christmas'd out or if this book just didn't have it for me, but I didn't like this book. The story was all over the place and just not cohesive. The characters individually were great! But together in the story, they didn't mesh...I don't know how to explain it, I'm just going to say I didn't like it. 2.5 🌟 but I will round up because it's a Christmas book and maybe I'm the problem.

[Daniel Askew-Hargreaves · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story is a great reminder of what Christmas is all about, love, friendship, giving and making memories with others and traditions for you and your family and in this story a town. So glad I read this book

[Bridget · Rating 3 out of 5]

Average story, a lot of inner dialogue and repetition in conversation. Some sweet moments performed very well, especially by Ian Hackney.

[Megneto♓️ · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 🌟 So rounded to 3 on here
Not really my cup of tea unfortunately 😕

[Denise B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute.

[Alexandra · Rating 2 out of 5]

A bit too dragged out.

[Tanya Adams · Rating 1 out of 5]

It’s a great Hallmark story for teenagers. I was bored and hate to not finish a book but this was an exception.

[Taylor Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

The ending felt off somehow but it was still a decent listen

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute Christmas story. Very hallmark worthy

[Marcia Lane-McGee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wholesome.

[Ashlee Saligoe · Rating 3 out of 5]

3⭐️ this was cute but did not wow me.

[Christina Knowles · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very corny, not a whole lot of plot or conflict, and the little bit of conflict was resolved too easily. There should also be a warning that it is religious. If I wanted a religious bent to the story, I’d look under Christian Fiction or whatever. I know it’s a Christmas book, but the title makes it sound secular.

[Erin · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF. Even on 2x speed I could not get through how awful this book is.

[Marsha · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you have ever wondered what it would be like to take a two hour Hallmark movie and turn it into a 7.5 hour audio book, this is what it would be like. I didn’t love the characters and the underlying story was weak. Lesley’s mama was a real piece of work and that brought down the whole story for me. The story did have its moments but overall it was not real great.

[January · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mr. and Mrs. Christmas by Michelle Stimpson (2024)
7h 29m narrated by Marcella Cox and Ian Hackney

Genre: African-American Romance, Holiday > Christmas

Featuring: Detroit, Michigan; Struggling Fictional Small-Town Michigan, Café, Single Mother, Only Child, Homecoming Trope, Best Friend's Sibling Trope, High School Crush, Dual POVs, French Bulldog, Beagle, Dogs, Orchardist, Publicity, Fake Relationship Trope, Ornament Making, Cherry Orchard, Tricenarians, Meddling Mother

Rating as a movie: PG

Songs for the soundtrack: "Wherever You Go" by Sygnature, "Deck The Halls" by Musiq Soulchild, "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town" by the Jackson 5, "Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer" by The Temptations, "Sleigh Ride" by TLC, "Jingle Bell Rock" by Earth, Wind & Fire, "8 Days of Christmas" by Destiny's Child, "Christmas Must Be Something More" by Taylor Swift, "White Christmas" by Bing Crosby, "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" by Nat King Cole, "Jingle Bells" by Al Green, "Ain't 2 Proud 2 Beg" by TLC, "Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town" by Bruce Springsteen

Books and Authors mentioned: A Visit from St. Nicholas by Clement Clarke Moore [Twas the Night Before Christmas], The Best Man by Malcolm D. Lee, A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams, Hans Christian Andersen

My rating: ⭐️⭐️½🥞🍒🐩🐕🎅🏿🤶🏾🎄

My thoughts: 📱40% 2:57:59 Chapter 10 Jamal - This plot is weak. This is like a lame Hallmark movie you'll keep watching because it's something to do.

This story started well but quickly went downhill. The story Pop-Pop told wasn't heartwarming and made little sense, so I couldn't get behind the plot of everyone running with this destined love story. Then it was terribly boring until 4.5 hours end, and the only thing that saved it was the history of the cherry tree star; it kept me interested. The mama drama was another highlight, but if this was a movie, it would have been playing in the background while you did something interesting like a puzzle. The cover has the right dogs, but the people don't match the descriptions in the story, which is insulting.

Recommend to others: Not likely to be honest.

[Jen (That's What I'm Talking About) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mr. and Mrs. Christmas held such promise; it has all the makings of a classic Hallmark Christmas story: small town, fake romance, cute dogs, falling snow, and lots of Christmastime fun. And had the book been about half as long, it may have been successful, but for me, Mr. and Mrs. Christmas was a drawn-out, full-of-fluff bore.

Lesley and Jamal are both great characters. He stayed home and loves working on his family’s cherry orchard. She pursued the big city job and realized she’d rather be small town cozy. When the mayor makes up a story that the pair is engaged in order to bring attention and visitors to the small town, Lesley and Jamal realize they are willing to play along in order to help their family and friends. I appreciate that they did actually try to deny the story in order to be honest. And since each has secretly harbored a crush on the other for years, it’s an easy fit. Theirs is a slow-burn romance, which works as each is at a crossroads trying to decide the best future.

My issue is that the entire story moves so slowly. There are repetitious themes and plot lulls. I was most annoyed with Lesley’s mom, who wants a better life for her daughter and pushes Lesley to leave Hickory Falls to the point of being mean. She refuses to listen to Lesley’s own thoughts, needs, and wants, and I found myself cringing with each confrontation. The story goes on and on for way too long.

Narration: The story is shared via the third person alternating POVs of Lesley and Jamal. Both narrators perform their respective MCs well. Each alters the dialogue based on character gender and age; however, Hackney has a fairly deep baseline voice, and while he does soften and lighten his voice for females, it’s not quite as effective as when Cox deepens hers for male characters.

In the end Mr. and Mrs. Christmas held all the right sentiments for a classic Christmas romance, but the entire story was too long.

My Ratings:
Story: C-
Narration: B

[Anastasiya M · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one had the potential to be such a cozy, heartwarming holiday listen—and in some ways, it delivered—but overall, it just didn’t stick the landing for me. The two main characters were honestly the saving grace. They had great chemistry, genuine warmth, and brought a little sparkle to the story. I actually looked forward to their scenes together and found myself rooting for them. But unfortunately, the rest of the cast? They drove me up the wall.

Most of the side characters felt exaggerated or just plain irritating, like they were there to stir up drama for the sake of it rather than add anything meaningful to the plot. It made the pacing feel off, and I kept waiting for certain parts to be over so we could get back to the heart of the story.

The themes were good in theory—family, forgiveness, finding joy again during the holidays—but the execution felt heavy-handed. Instead of letting the emotions simmer and build naturally, it all felt a bit rushed and too on-the-nose. There was a lot of potential for a touching, feel-good Christmas tale, but the balance just wasn’t there.

The setting did give me some festive vibes, but it wasn’t immersive enough to fully sweep me into the holiday magic I’d hoped for. And the writing style didn’t help much either—it was serviceable but lacked the kind of charm or emotional depth I usually love in seasonal stories. It felt more like ticking boxes than actually creating a world I wanted to live in for a few hours.

All in all, it wasn’t awful, just disappointing. A couple of great characters can only carry a story so far when everything else around them keeps dragging it down.

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