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Whole Lotta Mistletoe: A (Mostly) Wholesome Cozy Christmas Comedy
“Mistletoe’s a weed,” she would say. Then she inherited a mistletoe factory.
The life of Maria St. Nicholas seemed to be lifted from a generic Christmas movie. She was born and raised as an orphan in Mistletoe, Pennsylvania, home to the world’s only mistletoe factory. At 18, she left her hometown for New York with big dreams. Those dreams were dashed when her fiancé broke her heart on Christmas Eve. Now “Mistletoe’s a weed.” She buries herself in work, wine, and Christmas movies while in a rut deeper than the dent in her couch. Changes are in store this season when an old friend tracks her down with news; the owner of the mistletoe factory has died and left the factory to Maria.
Welcome to Mistletoe, Pennsylvania, where standard work attire is holiday flannel and steel toed boots, there’s an inflatable on every lawn, and “Happy Holidays” is an insult rather than a greeting. Join Maria on her journey with the help of some colorful characters, a nun with a penchant for high vocabulary, precocious orphans with a talent for espionage, an ex-boyfriend with a candy cane addiction who works as the factory foreman, and a local politician who wants to turn the factory into a luxury ski lodge. Will Maria find her yuletide mojo? Only in a town called Mistletoe.
Whole Lotta Mistletoe is both a satire and celebration of those holiday movies that require an extra dose of Christmas spirit to suspend our disbelief, whether we watch those movies on Hallmark, Netflix, Hulu, or GAC. Please enjoy responsibly with an ugly Christmas sweater.
The life of Maria St. Nicholas seemed to be lifted from a generic Christmas movie. She was born and raised as an orphan in Mistletoe, Pennsylvania, home to the world’s only mistletoe factory. At 18, she left her hometown for New York with big dreams. Those dreams were dashed when her fiancé broke her heart on Christmas Eve. Now “Mistletoe’s a weed.” She buries herself in work, wine, and Christmas movies while in a rut deeper than the dent in her couch. Changes are in store this season when an old friend tracks her down with news; the owner of the mistletoe factory has died and left the factory to Maria.
Welcome to Mistletoe, Pennsylvania, where standard work attire is holiday flannel and steel toed boots, there’s an inflatable on every lawn, and “Happy Holidays” is an insult rather than a greeting. Join Maria on her journey with the help of some colorful characters, a nun with a penchant for high vocabulary, precocious orphans with a talent for espionage, an ex-boyfriend with a candy cane addiction who works as the factory foreman, and a local politician who wants to turn the factory into a luxury ski lodge. Will Maria find her yuletide mojo? Only in a town called Mistletoe.
Whole Lotta Mistletoe is both a satire and celebration of those holiday movies that require an extra dose of Christmas spirit to suspend our disbelief, whether we watch those movies on Hallmark, Netflix, Hulu, or GAC. Please enjoy responsibly with an ugly Christmas sweater.
240 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 15, 2022
1 person is currently reading
23 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
January 9, 2023
This was difficult to get through, I probably should have dnf right after the rant against people who say happy holidays to be inclusive of other holiday practices outside Christianity, but I stayed...
Even when the bar somehow didn't serve alcohol
Even when they called John Legend's version of Baby it's cold outside "castrated"
Even when the county comtroller seemed more like a cartoon
Past the way too obvious naming the character Maria St. Nicholas
If it had been one thing or three or five but the hits kept coming. Weird moments I assume came from forcing the book to wholesome in such a way that it didn't feel natural (bars with no alcohol)
But I'll go on
Scolding orphaned children for swearing...the word was sucks
Maria is put swiftly in her place (by a man of course) when she questions if the reason people are having a hard time accepting her as the boss is because she is female. He speaks for a plant full of workers when he explains that no mistreatment Maria has received and might receive in the future will have to do with her gender. I can't roll my eyes hard enough.
But here's where they finally lost me (though I was barely hanging on). When Maria needs courage to face the big bad she gets it from kindly Sister Agnes who beats Maria about the hand with a ruler til she's nearly bleeding. (Throw the whole book away) But somehow we are supposed to accept that this is okay because Maria asked for it, what?!
And the love interest Eric in a barely there romance is barely recovered from opioid addiction. Recovered enough to run the mistletoe plant but not so recovered that his dad was able to stop searching the house for secret stashes.
And it all comes full circle when we insult one of the villians of the story by telling her she looks anorexic.
*sigh*
There just wasn't enough good story to make up for all the bad story. Cannot recommend
Even when the bar somehow didn't serve alcohol
Even when they called John Legend's version of Baby it's cold outside "castrated"
Even when the county comtroller seemed more like a cartoon
Past the way too obvious naming the character Maria St. Nicholas
If it had been one thing or three or five but the hits kept coming. Weird moments I assume came from forcing the book to wholesome in such a way that it didn't feel natural (bars with no alcohol)
But I'll go on
Scolding orphaned children for swearing...the word was sucks
Maria is put swiftly in her place (by a man of course) when she questions if the reason people are having a hard time accepting her as the boss is because she is female. He speaks for a plant full of workers when he explains that no mistreatment Maria has received and might receive in the future will have to do with her gender. I can't roll my eyes hard enough.
But here's where they finally lost me (though I was barely hanging on). When Maria needs courage to face the big bad she gets it from kindly Sister Agnes who beats Maria about the hand with a ruler til she's nearly bleeding. (Throw the whole book away) But somehow we are supposed to accept that this is okay because Maria asked for it, what?!
And the love interest Eric in a barely there romance is barely recovered from opioid addiction. Recovered enough to run the mistletoe plant but not so recovered that his dad was able to stop searching the house for secret stashes.
And it all comes full circle when we insult one of the villians of the story by telling her she looks anorexic.
*sigh*
There just wasn't enough good story to make up for all the bad story. Cannot recommend
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 21, 2022
What a wonderful holiday story filled with a beautiful
Setting, lovable characters, and a little jumps. Read With a peppermint chocolate martini or piping hot peppermint hot chocolate
Setting, lovable characters, and a little jumps. Read With a peppermint chocolate martini or piping hot peppermint hot chocolate
December 15, 2022
This is for the audiobook version. I was pulled into this book so much so that I had to pause it on several occasions because I go so upset by the jerk in it. It's a "Hallmark movie" style of a book. So much so that it starts off with the main character, Maria St. Nicholas, watching Hallmark movies. I love all of the characters even the jerk they are very well written and are easy to love or hate them. I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys Hallmark movies.
August 31, 2025
⭐️ 4.0 STARS ⭐️
January 5, 2023
Lured in by the cover...and not even a very good audio.
January 12, 2023
This was the perfect book to cozy up by the fire and relax during Christmas break.
October 5, 2023
It's really, it was great, but I got threw it, but barely!
December 22, 2025
Cute holiday comedy! Pretty silly but enjoyable overall
January 12, 2023
This novel totally put me in the holiday spirit! I enjoyed it with a few cups of peppermint coffee and I must say that the experience of reading it as well as its storyline and characters prove most memorable! If you like Hallmark type Christmas movies this is going to be a book you will really love! enjoyed it so much I am ordering copies to gift this Christmas!
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews