From Cocktails to Sleigh Bells

Misadventures and Mistletoe #1

by Wren K. Morris

It was one night before Christmas, but for Cole and Kris, one night might not be enough.

Nicole “Cole” Barnes can’t seem to summon any Christmas cheer, not even while donning her best irreverent reindeer sweater for her bar’s annual contest. Slipping on the ice after a long Christmas Eve shift feels like the perfect nightcap to her lackluster holiday… until she’s rescued by a handsome stranger.

Turns out, she and her would-be-hero have a lot in common: they're both long time service professionals running low on Christmas spirit.

The catch? He’s Santa (for real), but he’s not at all the holly jolly grandpa in the greeting cards.

Kris Kringle has been running Santa Enterprises for years, but the ho-ho-ho has become rather ho-hum. This feisty bartender’s scorching wit could be just what he needs to stoke his passion again… if she doesn’t roast his chestnuts on an open fire first.

Cocktails to Sleigh Bells is a stand-alone MF holiday romcom novella. It has no cliffhanger and ends in a HEA.

Genres: Romance, Christmas, Holiday, Novella, Fantasy, Holiday Romance, Contemporary

87 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 6, 2022

About the author

Wren K. Morris grew up surrounded by fields and cows but now resides in Atlanta, GA, enjoying city life with her menagerie of animals. An avid reader and writer from a young age, Wren has been creating stories since she was old enough to form words, and now does so professionally.

Wren’s books focus on a celebration of independent, powerful women and characters who are beautifully flawed in emotionally charged plot lines that make you feel. Surrendering to Scylla is her debut novel, but there are many more to come.

Reviews

[Sammie Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a cute, quick and spicy Christmas novella, I freaking LOVED IT!!! Kris is not your typical Santa Claus, and when he sees Cole walking in the street before slipping on ice and passing out, it’s love at first sight. Not so much for Cole, who stabs him in the arm for his troubles. Simple misunderstanding, no big deal!

So he brings her home and doctors her before his crew of reindeer named men crash the party, outing him as Santa. These two concede to their extreme attraction, filled with punny, hilarious dirty talk, and culminating in a really sweet ending. Super cute, one to reread again each Christmas!

[rae ✿ · Rating 3 out of 5]

dec 20th🎄🎅🏼

"I guess Santa really come last night" 😏


starting today dec 20th to 24th i'm going to start reading 5 christmas books but make it monster/paranormal romance🤭

[Melanie (mells_view) · Rating 4 out of 5]

They never put that one on the Christmas cards.

This was fun. You have to really enjoy or be unbothered by Christmas puns, but other than that this was a good time in a quick package.

Two lonely people on Christmas Eve, end up exactly where they need to be with exactly who they need to be with, but make it spicy Santa.

[RLbooks (in and out) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Light and steamy Christmas romance with a tatted up, pierced, and modern Santa falling for a bar owner. Cole (h) is on her way home after closing the bar on Christmas morning when she slips and knocks her head on the ground. Luckily for her, Kris (H) has just finished his portion of gift delivery and witnessed the fall so swoops in to be a Good Samaritan. Written in first person, dual POV. No Ow/om drama and neither are virgins.

After a bumpy start when Cole regains consciousness and is freaked out (minor stabbing occurs), she realizes Kris is actually trying to help. A trip to his place, some Christmas magic, unveiling of his secret, naughty holiday puns, and lots of steamy times later, these two have a sweet connection. Also, lots of consent happening here and the magic extends into the bedroom. His besties (bringing in the reindeer names) also make appearances and are hilarious. The epilogue is a year later adding another dose of sweetness. I enjoyed this instalove holiday romance. It moves quickly and I did wish for a bit more development but it’s also meant to be a quick holiday bite and I think it hits the right notes there.

[Wicked Fox ✨️ · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Holy. Forearm. Porn."

I'm a huge fan of Wren K Morris' work so I had to read this immediately when it came out! I adore From Cocktails to Sleigh Bells.This was such a fun read! The Christmas puns, dad jokes truly made my day. Cole and Kris finding one another in their burnout state of holiday cheer was perfect. And eggnog! 👀 Read to find out what that means 😈

[Poppy || Monster Lover · Rating 4 out of 5]

All. The. Christmas. Puns. This lighthearted novella had a confident and emotionally closed off FMC and a cocky dirty talking MMC. I loved that both Cole and Kris used so many obnoxious puns, and that it was a compulsion for Kris. I would have loved to see more of their love story on page, but the smut was awesome and it was still adorable in such a naughty way.

Spice: 4/5

Triggers: concussion, unnecessary self-defensive mild stabbing with knuckle key thingy, grief from loss of parent

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast burn and funny!

On Rudolph: "fuck that bitey bastard"

Elves are real. And they're really, really into spreadsheets. And fitness. They can also apparently draft a corporate email that will make your head hurt from all the jargon.
*There was a typo in the above sentence - "you" instead of "your"

Santa? Not a husky, jolly older gentleman with rosy cheeks. Oh no. Santa? Product of my filthiest dreams. I would do terrible, terrible things to Saint Nichoas.

Great holiday novella, even though I'm a month late.

[dani · Rating 4 out of 5]

cringe but cute

[Omnya Ali (Free Palestine) · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5⭐
I couldn't finish it, almost not in the mood 😒
Beside, I couldn't get along with the characters😕💔

[pdxrach · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s finally done! 25 Lays of Smutmas is complete with this, the 25th Lay! (My bookclub is wonderful y’all!)

And we end this thing on a high note! Santa is a pierced and tatted consent king! Our FMC is strong and not afraid to stab a dude with a personal protection device! This read was loads of fun and an excellent way to finish a Season of Smut!

[Maida (Medley of Books) · Rating 4 out of 5]

RATING: 4.5 'Magical' HEARTS!

From Cocktails to Sleigh Bells is a light and steamy festive romance with a swoon-worthy ‘Santa Claus’ (chiseled, tattooed and pierced) that falls for the loveable yet fierce human bar owner. Kris and Cole are cute and flirty, their relationship as sweet as it is stomach-tinglingly sexy, and oh so easy to fall in love with. Naughty holiday puns, a cast of endearing secondary characters, and merrily-ever-afters guaranteed, this is a read destined for the shelf of favourites!

IF YOU LOVE:
♥ Holiday Romance
♥ Secret Identity
♥ Insta Love
♥ Naughty Holiday Puns
♥ Eggnog Flavoured 💦
♥ A HAWT Modern Santa

[H-e-l-e-n-a · Rating 3 out of 5]

JAJAJAJAJAJAJA
No volveré a ver a Santa de la misma forma. 🤣

Esta no es la clásica historia navideña de Hallmark Channel. Aquí hay un Santa bastante hot, con tatuajes, piercing en su 🍆 y mucho eggnog. (If you know what I mean) 😏

Nicole es la dueña de un bar, y al terminar la jornada, se topa con Kristopher aka Santa, que la ayuda luego que ella tiene un accidente con el piso congelado.
Después de un mal entendido, terminan en un Netflix N Chill. 🔥🤭

La historia super corta, no se profundiza en los personajes, y me hizo reír bastante. Me gustó para lectura de domingo e iniciar mis lecturas navideñas de la temporada.


📖
“You are the absolute strangest woman I have ever met.” He laughs, pulling me down for another kiss. “And I am so, so glad for it...
_
Fucking eggnog. And not just any nog, I’m talking the good shit. The homemade, perfectly spiced, mixed to perfection kind. Not the shitty store bought kind.

[Alex (HEABookNerd) · Rating 4 out of 5]

FROM COCKTAILS TO SLEIGH BELLS was a delightful read from start to finish! It's Christmas night and Santa, a young, sexy, and tattooed version, has just finished delivering presents when he sees a beautiful woman wipe out on ice and promptly knock herself out. What follows is a sexy one night stand as Nicole “Cole” Barnes learns that Kris Kringle is the real life Santa Clause.

The business side of Christmas and the way it's changed into a big time enterprise was really creative and Kris's vehemence toward Rudolph had me chuckling. And don't even get me started on all the dirty Christmas puns! The magic that makes Kris Santa also makes puns compulsive and I loved that he was embarrassed about it until Cole made him feel more comfortable with her own dirty puns. They were really fun together and I loved how flirty they were.

I also loved "the boys" (as Kris refers to them) who are Kris' best friends and his Delivery Team Leads who have replaced the use of reindeers. They were definitely scene stealers and I'd love to get stories about each of them.

Content Warning: references to past death of a parent

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Favorite Quotes:

The various Delivery Team Lead positions are passed down through their family lines as well. Christmas today isn’t all that much different from a crime syndicate—it’s still various families bonded together in tradition and clandestine efforts—we just tend to have more colorful lights and caroling than theft and murder.

- - - - -

Holy shit. Santa is a spanker. Eat your heart out, Krampus.

[Bon · Rating 4 out of 5]

that was one sexy santa

[Emilee Gray · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was HILARIOUS

[Harmony A Haun · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dirty little cute novella

I picked this up when a friend reviewed it and said it was a novella. I'm always up for a quick, fun read and this one did not disappoint!
.
I love the concept and the twist on Santa Clause! I really enjoyed all of the puns and the Christmas-y innuendos and vibe.
.
It's the perfect little dirty novella to give you a pallette cleanse between cheesy holiday romcoms!

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

*3.5*

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very fun Xmas romance novella, featuring a non-traditional Santa and the bartender who kinda-sorta-a-little stabbed him. Full of ridiculous dirty holiday puns, lots of tasty consent, and a shout out for all of us who will fight you if you insist that Die Hard isn't a Xmas movie.

[Camilla · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a wonderful short read! Absolutely loved this quick little holiday romp. Who knew Santa is actually a pierced hunk with a bubble 🍑 and tattoos? The humour, puns and spice were all on point and I absolutely adored the "crew" - this modernised version of how Christmas is run was a blast. Perfect read to get one into a festive mood!

[Dani · Rating 5 out of 5]

What you'll get:
Christmas
Bartender x Santa
Lumbersexual Santa
Piercings somewhere unexpected
There be tattoos here

This was hands down my favorite spicy Christmas novella. Cole and Kris meet on Christmas Eve and have the most hilarious one night stand. Kris has a com'pun'sion to make Santa puns whether he wants to or not and they keep coming out in the middle of inopportune moments. I liked that Christmas has been updated to a well oiled machine and that the "reindeer" are other hot dudes. Let's go.

[Ignacia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe I should start reading the summaries before reading 🙈

I had no idea what i was getting myself into nor was i expecting a magic christmas story with puns and dad jokes, instalove and too many wtf moments.

This was so utterly ridiculous that made me laugh a few times but there was also a couple of very very cringey scenes too.

The only thing I will remember about this book is the Rickman Revenge.

[Christina (Christina's Book Corner) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dec 11-12
It was one night before Christmas, but for Cole and Kris, one night might not be enough.

Nicole “Cole” Barnes can’t seem to summon any Christmas cheer, not even while donning her best irreverent reindeer sweater for her bar’s annual contest. Slipping on the ice after a long Christmas Eve shift feels like the perfect nightcap to her lackluster holiday… until she’s rescued by a handsome stranger.

Turns out, she and her would-be-hero have a lot in common: they're both long time service professionals running low on Christmas spirit.

The catch? He’s Santa (for real), but he’s not at all the holly jolly grandpa in the greeting cards.

Kris Kringle has been running Santa Enterprises for years, but the ho-ho-ho has become rather ho-hum. This feisty bartender’s scorching wit could be just what he needs to stoke his passion again… if she doesn’t roast his chestnuts on an open fire first.


Review spicy Santa smut with tattoos 😍

This was fun and spicy

This is about Cole who is a bartender leaving her bar and she falls then we meet Kris aka Santa

Who takes her to his apartment

She finds out he's Santa she's into it and things get spicy with Santa

And his 💦 is eggnog flavor

[Krystle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was so freaking cute!

Santa is a little different in this one. Gone is the older, rounded, jolly guy we’ve come to know and instead is a young tattooed and even a 🍆 pierced Kris Kringle. Oh and his 🍆 is also tattooed.

Our FMC is Nicole (or Cole as her friends call her) who owns and runs a bar. She’s lonely and sad on Christmas since it was he late father’s favorite holiday. After her shift at the bar she has a slip on some ice and in come Kris after finishing up his Santa duties on Christmas morning. He goes to try and help when Cole stabs him in the arm cuz she thinks he’s trying to attack her.

He convinces her he’s only trying to help her and to come back to his place. Things get spicy and he confesses he’s really Santa Clause and of course they fall in love!

The amount of Christmas puns and dad jokes in this is ridiculous but honestly was hilarious and expected for a Christmas novella! Santa even had eggnog flavored 💦😏🤣

The only thing that really bothered me was that there were a lot of spelling/grammar errors in this and it’s unfortunate to see so many in such a short book.

[Brooklyn Lowe · Rating 4 out of 5]

“North Pole?” The cocky bastard just shrugs. “It stands proudly, leading the way to Santa’s wonderland, and does nothing but deliver joy. It seemed fitting.”

I mean.. what did you expect would happen when Kris meets Cole for Christmas?

Cole’s lost her Christmas cheer, and when Kris tries to save the most beautiful damsel in distress, ends up getting stabbed by her. So what does he do? Takes her to his magic apartment and tries to show her his magic dick, until his employees (you know, Dasher, Vixen, Dancer Etc…) show up, but aren’t reindeer are actual hot men and ruin the moment.

This isn’t your typical Santa. His peen is pierced and tatted with a candy cane tattoo that says, North Pole. And this isn’t your typical damsel in distress, as she can out naughty pun them all.

[♏Vanessa♏ · Rating 5 out of 5]

B!oody Brilliant Christmas novella

Things have been updated in the North pole and they run much more efficiently with a hot, lumberjack type, magical hunk God as Santa. It was lust/love at first sight and, despite, the many dirty thoughts spicy things only happens around the 60% mark.
This book is hilarious and absurd (in the best possible way), the author packed a ton of Christmas puns, and s£xual Christmas jokes in just 70 pages (that is a skill).
This Santa is very naughty and our fmc is happy to be his perfect match.
Totally worth the 30minutes it took to read it, and I want more.

[Ashley (Red-Haired Ash Reads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a hilarious and fun Christmas story. This was a steamy Christmas night with a young and tattooed Santa and a beautiful woman who gets his Christmas puns. I really enjoyed Kris and Cole’s story. Between all the Christmas puns, the steamy sex, and the movies with the Boys, this was just a fantastic holiday romance that I didn’t want to put down. Also really loved “the boys” who are Kris’ best friends and fellow delivery team. They were hilarious and seemed like a great group of guys to be friends with.

Trigger warnings: death of parent mentioned; grief;

[Melinda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favorite holiday romances I’ve read. I laughed so much while reading this one and the spice was excellent too! If you like the idea of a hunky tattooed Santa that can’t help but tell dad jokes and holiday puns and eggnog this is the holiday romance for you!

“Oh no, Pet. I’m going to cum down this chimney and give you lots of presents.”

“Come on, Daddy Christmas, tell me all the dirty things you’re going to do to me under the tree. Are you ready to rail me like the Polar Express?”

[amanda kt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Are you looking for a steamy and sweet quick novella in which Santa is “mafia lumberjack” hot, with a salt and pepper beard and covered in tattoos, a consent king with a filthy mouthy and literal magic hands? Oh and lots of holiday puns. Look no further! Nicole (“Cole”) and Kris and his crew all felt fully realized despite the short length. Barely any conflict, very cozy, fun uses of magic. Think of it more as a short story and enjoy the sleigh ride!

[Adrienne Klassen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was exactly the kind of Christmas novella I've been searching for! It was adorable, it was deliciously smutty, magical without being tacky, and of course, it was also festive. I can't wait to read more about this world of the new Kris Kringle. Sitting on Santa's lap has never been more appealing.

[D.J. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfect Christmas read. Nothing else I read this month is going to come close to as good as this, so might as well just stop now, haha.

The writing is fantastic and hilarious. Lots of dad jokes and salacious puns. Very sweet story, and I was attracted to both of the leads!