Mr. Grumps Christmas: A Christmas rom-com full of enemies to lovers, grumpy x sunshine, and small town chaos.

by Liza Bee

One bakery. One Recipe. One very unexpected Christmas miracle.Welcome to Piper Falls, where sugar cookies come with a side of small-town charm… and maybe a second chance at love.

Graham Hale doesn’t do Christmas. Or small towns. Or sugar-dusted nostalgia. But when his grandmother passes away, the big-city CEO finds himself back in Piper Falls, Texas, with one finalize her estate and sell off her beloved Bluebonnet Bakery before the holidays.

There’s just one problem—Evie Callahan.

The bakery’s endlessly cheerful, cinnamon-scented baker isn’t about to let a corporate chain bulldoze the heart of their town. She’s determined to honor the woman who taught her everything, even if it means going spatula-to-spreadsheet with the grumpiest man alive.

When the town ropes them into the annual Christmas Cookie Contest, Evie scrambles to recreate Grayson’s grandmother’s signature recipe—but nothing turns out right. To her surprise, Grayson offers to help, despite not knowing a whisk from a rolling pin. Late-night baking sessions turn into laughter, flour fights, and something dangerously close to feelings.

As Christmas approaches, Graham is torn between the life he built and the home he left behind. And Evie has to decide if trusting him again is worth the risk of a broken heart.

He came to sell the bakery. She came to save it. Neither expected a recipe for love.

Perfect for fans of small-town charm, enemies-to-lovers sweetness, and a good old-fashioned Christmas happily ever after.

141 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 22, 2026

About the author

Author of cozy shifter romance with a spicy bite, I love crafting worlds where quirky town names are just the beginning. Get ready to meet meddling grandmothers who know best, and wolves with hearts of gold (and a little bit of sass). I've been lost in stories since I first learned to read, always dreaming up new tales until one finally refused to be ignored!

Reviews

[Christy Acc · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love reading Liza Bee’s stories! I love that she’s branched out to rom coms! This story is a cute novella about second chances, small towns, and my all time favourite, grumpy x sunshine! We can’t forget sneaky, mischievous grandma! Thank you for the ARC opportunity!

[Erin Ellison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Back in Piper falls! This one follows Evie (our baker) and Graham (CEO)


This one was so good. So cute. All the spicy Hallmark vibes. I love the childhood friends to enemies to lovers. Nothing beats a meddling grandma either. This was so cozy, so sweet, so heartwarming. I thoroughly enjoyed this one. Their first kiss OMG. The tension when they first came back into each other's lives... Yea... Perfection. The entire premise of this was absolutely delicious. 

Such a fun quick read!! I definitely recommend this one!! Their happily ever after is everything 🩷 I'll definitely read this one again. 


✔️grumpy/sunshine

✔️Ceo/ baker

✔️small town

✔️ Christmas romance

✔️Forced proximity 

✔️Cozy rom com with some spice 


Thank you for my ARC! I'm leaving this review voluntarily.

[Katherine Tricker · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75⭐

This is a quick read with a lot of heart, and I enjoyed the journey Evie and Graham had to go on.

Evie is determined to save the Bluebonnet Bakery from being sold to a large corporate bakery chain by the previous owner's grandson.

Graham has to return to Piper Falls to speak to the lawyer about his grandmother's will before he can complete on the sale.

Graham and Evie are childhood friends who held a flame for one another but never knew the other felt the same.
Letters and extra stipulations on the will mean they need to spend time together. Will they find the courage to be truthful about their feelings or will they part ways forever?

[Holli Pounds · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really thought my christmas reads were finished until this bad boy jumped into my emails! Nothing like reading a cosy christmas read in January!

This book follows Evie & Graham - Evie works at a bakery in Piper Falls, she had dreams of taking it over from Grandma Margret but Graham, Margaret's grandson wants to sell the bakery.

Graham comes back to Piper Falls for the sale but isn't given the best welcome. He receives a letter from his grandma and is expected to stay in town for a month and learn the ins & outs of the bakery along side evie!

There is alot of buried feelings between Graham & Evie - can they find their way back to eachother? Can they win the cookie contest? Boy does grandma Margret put them two through the ringer!

When they share their first kiss in the rain *swoon* its just amazing!!

If your looking for a sweet, swoony and cute christmas read. This book is for you!

[Dawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well...Liza Bee has done it again.
Dammit she's made me fall in love with 2 more fabulous characters along with a magical place and special secondary characters.
Graham, Evie, that beautiful bakeshop, discovering their love is just so special.
This book is everything I've come to expect from her writing and she doesn't disappoint.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶🌶

[Alyssa Skaggs · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a cute quick read. It was a friends to enemies to lovers type vibe and it all worked out in the end. It was well written and had memories from the past spanning back to the present moment.

[Diamanti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hello, people!
Christmas may have passed but for me it lives every moment in my heart and I never get tired of reading stories that take place in this favorite season of mine.
The protagonists are Eve and Graham and there is also a grandmother who makes the story even more enjoyable.
I really liked the spicy vibes, their chemistry, the development of their relationship, the tension between them, their first kiss, the tenderness, the cozy atmosphere and how quickly the pages flew by. It was an ideal and quick 100.
Of course, I cannot fail to mention the author's writing which was tender, romantic, sweet, warm and enjoyable!
Please, read it! It's worth it!

Thank you very much to the author for the eARC!

This is my honest review!

[Dorte Lodberg Greiner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Evie Callahan and Graham Everett Hale are childhood friends. They have been in love with each other, but never told each other. A misunderstanding has caused Graham to flee the city and if it hadn't been for a A requirement in his grandmother's will was that he never return to the city.

Let me just reveal that they are both reminded of their past feelings for each other and how their hearts have felt at home in each other's presence.

The book can be read without knowing anything about the town or its other residents, as none of them appear in the book. But all in all, a wonderful romantic book.

[Morgan Bronson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a super cute and cozy 150 pages. It follows childhood best friends that reunite after a death in the family. The FMC, Evie, has been baking her whole life and wants to buy out the small town bakery. The MMC, Graham, hasn’t been home in 10 years and has to return to hash out the next steps for the bakery. They have to work together to win a Christmas cookie bake off competition and there was meddling from the deceased along the way.

I enjoyed both characters and I was screaming “admit your love for each other” the whole first half of the book. It was refreshing that they were both in their early 30s. I hadn’t read a non-magical book in a long time. This was a great palate cleanser!

I’d recommend this book to anyone who likes a second chance romance, cozy vibes, and HEAs.

[Victoria C. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this as an Arc and all I can say is YES. Gives me such an hallmark vibe and I just love it. I love the childhood reconnection and a meddling grandma even from the grave. The flow of this story is just perfect. Evie and Graham ignored feelings for so long on a simple mis understanding and the whole town just knew except for them. I was so worried that they just wouldn't end up together and I was fan girling kicking and screaming and they let each other and told each other how they felt. I even screamed at graham again over a mis understanding. i wont spoil it but the epilogue had me ugly crying.

[Amber Kirk · Rating 4 out of 5]

CEO x Baker
Grumpy x sunshine
Small town
Forced proximity
Christmas romance
Hallmark vibes with spice
Cozy rom com
Enemies to lovers (ish)

I thought I was done reading Christmas books but I had to jump on this short spicy Christmas novella, and I’m so glad I did! Such a cozy rom com it was sweet and I was hooked! The tension, the build up was perfection, and when they finally kissed… I was kicking my feet like I got kissed! I absolutely loved Margret our meddling grandma. lol her grandson wants to sell the bakery, and Evie comes back to town to help run the bakery, and when Graham is expect to stay for a month to learn the ins and outs of running the bakery, the tension is undeniable! I ate it up it was written fantastic! If you enjoy a short spicy Christmas read with swoon worthy moments and fun banter and tension, this is right up your alley. You’ll definitely want to read this! 😍🎄

[lizface · Rating 5 out of 5]

“You are my home, my forever Evie. I can’t wait to make up for every foolish year I missed.”

Perfect second chance romance mixed with the Grinch 🤭
I loved the meddling grandma and her bestie. They knew EXACTLY what they were doing making them compete together in the cookie contest. I loved the gift Gray got for Evie 🥹
He just sees her and knew exactly what she needed.
The epilogue was so damn cute!!
I wish one day to have more from them. They are absolutely adorable.

Thank you Liza for my eARC 🫶🏼

[Crystal Rivera · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute book. Graham and Evie had years of miscommunication. I enjoyed how they were able to hash things out and reveal how they felt.. dash of meddlesome grandmothers and some small town charm it was a great book.

[Dayton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Evie and Graham! Eeekkk!!!

This was such a cute story!

Liza always brings her characters and stories to life in such beautiful ways and she hit the mark with this one!!!

I’m obsessed!

Do yourself a favor and grab this book!!