The Christmas Spirit (Remarkable Remedies, #5.5)

Haven Hollow #25

by H.P. Mallory

It’s Christmas Eve, and Poppy isn’t feeling much of the Christmas spirit.

Her mind churning with doubt regarding her recent engagement to Marty, Poppy’s thoughts are a turbulent sea of anxiety and regret.

When a stranger walks into Poppy’s shop, introducing herself as Noelle, she tells Poppy she’s looking for a potion called Holiday Cheer. Poppy is surprised because she’s never even heard of it.

Almost as soon as Noelle walks into the shop, she disappears again, leaving only the recipe for the potion and a festive candy cane.

After brewing the mystery potion, Poppy finds herself transported to a dreamscape of her own life five years into the future.

Whether the vision is a gift delivered by the Spirit of Christmas or the result of Poppy’s stressed mind, she’ll be confronted with a future that will make her reconsider her present.

Genres: Fantasy

165 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 23, 2022

About the author

I’m a huge fan of anything paranormal and I always have been. I get super excited whenever they have those Twilight Zone Marathon days and anything ghost or vampire related will always attract my attention.

My interests are varied but aside from writing, I’m most excited about traveling. I’m extremely fortunate to have been able to live in England and Scotland, both places really having a profound effect on my books.

Thanks for checking out my books and I hope you enjoy them! Happy Haunting!

H.P.

Reviews

[William · Rating 5 out of 5]

Entertaining fantasy listening 😊😯

This kindle ebook novella is from my Kindle Unlimited account book 25 of 44

Poppy is having dreams about her love 😘 life. It is all related to a Christmas potion she made for her shop. Another great story in the series.🎉

I would highly recommend this series and authors to readers of fantasy world 🌐 adventure love 😘 friends relationships novels 🙄🎶 2025 🏡🤔

[Ann Gillaspie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Merry Christmas in Haven Hollow

This is a quick little Haven Hollow story in which Poppy is granted a surprising Christmas wish. She’s questioning her engagement to Marty and is about to make a difficult decision. There are parts of the book that are a bit redundant but I just sped read through those. Otherwise, it has a good plot and look into Poppy’s perspective.

[Toni Glitz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not Quite A Christmas Carol. Poppy’s Big Decision.

This novella is the 25th book in the Haven Hollow series. It is a collaboration between HP Mallory and JR Rain. The book falls in the Paranormal Women’s Fiction genre.

This is not your run-of-the-mill happy ever after Christmas Novella. Poppy is torn. She has a big decision to make and she doesn’t know what to do for the best. Both choices will cause someone some heartache. Marty’s surprise marriage proposal at Thanksgiving dinner put her in a position where she felt she had to say yes. Sadly for her, she loves Marty but she isn’t in love with him and now she doesn’t know what to do next.

Her feelings for Andre are as strong as ever but she can’t be sure they are reciprocated and besides, since she accepted Marty’s proposal, Andre has been absent.

It’s nearly closing time on Christmas Eve when Poppy greets her last customer of the day, a cheerful newcomer who introduces herself as Noelle. Noelle is the spirit of Christmas present and future all wrapped up in one. What follows is a journey of self-discovery which helps Poppy to finally come to the right decision.

The Haven Hollow series is written from a variety of points of view and features stories from Wanda’s Witchery, Poppy’s Potions, Spook Society, Haven Homes, Remarkable Remedies and Princess Procedural. They all run in parallel with each other. The reading order so far is:

Gypsy Magic : Poppy’s Potions (Haven Hollow, Book 1)
Cashmere Curses : Wanda’s Witchery (Haven Hollow, Book 2)
Faery Enchantment : Poppy’s Potions (Haven Hollow, Book 3)
Spandex Sorcery : Wanda’s Witchery (Haven Hollow, Book 4)
Love’s Goddess : Poppy’s Potions (Haven Hollow, Book 5)
Demon in Denim : Wanda’s Witchery (Haven Hollow, Book 6)
Taffeta Trickery : Wanda’s Witchery (Haven Hollow, Book 7)
The Black Cat Cocktail Club : Poppy’s Potions (Haven Hollow, Book 8)
French Country Frights : Haven Homes (Haven Hollow, Book 9)
All Hallows Eve : Remarkable Remedies (Haven Hollow, Book 10)
Mystic Veil : Poppy’s Potions (Haven Hollow, Book 11)
The Yule Log : Remarkable Remedies (Haven Hollow, Book 12)
The Broken Mirror : Remarkable Remedies (Haven Hollow, Book 13)
Art Deco Apparitions : Hallowed Homes (Haven Hollow, Book 14)
The Vampire’s Grave : Remarkable Remedies (Haven Hollow, Book 15)
Herringbone Hexes : Wanda’s Witchery (Haven Hollow, Book 16)
Raising Cain : Spook Society (Haven Hollow, Book 17)
Druid’s Curse : Poppy’s Potions (Haven Hollow, Book 18)
Colonial Corpses : Hallowed Homes (Haven Hollow, Book 19)
Angora Alchemy : Wanda’s Witchery (Haven Hollow, Book 20)
Day Dream : Remarkable Remedies (Haven Hollow, Book 21)
Ritzy Business : Spook Society (Haven Hollow, Book 22)
Pan’s Delight : Poppy’s Potions (Haven Hollow, Book 23)
Armed and Charmed : Princess Procedural (Haven Hollow, Book 24)
The Christmas Spirit : Remarkable Remedies (Haven Hollow, Book 25)

[Ashley · Rating 1 out of 5]

the novella is ok

Possible slight spoilers but we already know Poppy is second guessing Marty so maybe not. I’m so annoyed at the way the authors have written Poppy into being this superficial wishy washy man chaser. She’s been attracted to Marty since the first she saw him. Was absolutely gaga over his sexy underbite. But someone hotter comes along and pays her attention and out goes the dad bod and underbite. He deserves so much better and I hope he gets his side of romance somewhere because he’s really getting the short end here. I feel like in her search for security and stability she’s totally doing what she told someone she wouldn’t do in book one and taking advantage of him. Because from what I can tell the lack of passion she’s complaining of is wholly on her end. He was trying and she blew him off because she keeps thinking of someone sexier.

[Patricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Poppy is having second thoughts over her engagement with Marty. It is Christmas eve and Poppy is filled anxiety and a little bit of regret. Until the moment a sweet stranger comes into her shop and has Poppy mix up a potion . After Poppy brews up the potion, she is transported into a future that is five years ahead . Will the vision help Poppy out and help set her feelings on the right path and help her decide her present.
Poppy is back and she is stressed to the max, she is torn on what to do about her future . Also she is having trouble with Finn growing up, just like all moms do. I was kind of worried about her in the end of the last book , she is such a people pleaser and wants to do the right thing. We actually get to see her grow up and stand her ground. Noelle is a sweet character that is all Christmas magic and sweetness all rolled into a cutie. We don't see much of her but what we do see is a sweet magical pixie that is showing Poppy the way.
This book was written right after Pan's Delight which I was excited for. We didn't have to wait to find out what is going on with Poppy. They really hit it on the head. It is like they took a part of Scrooged Christmas story and applied it to Poppy. It is a fast fun read that put me in the Christmas spirit. I can't wait for the next Haven Hollow book. If you want a fun series check it out.

[Sapphyria · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am so glad H.P. Mallory and J.R. Rain penned this novella so quickly after the ending of Pan’s Delight shocked and dismayed me. The Christmas Spirit takes Poppy on a journey five years into the future to see what her life has turned out to be. It is during her stay that Poppy realizes she has hard decisions to make when she returns to the correctly timeline.

I only wish the ending was a little smoother. I can’t explain how without giving away spoilers. I’ll just say that Poppy’s order of operations was backwards. I hope Poppy makes the correct choice, one that I was rooting for until the ending of Pan’s Delight. Can’t wait to find out in the next book.

[Riana Elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

Man, I keep checking out holiday stories in the hope of finding something filled with Christmas cheer... this one just felt like an author trying to justify an affair through magical means. The protagonist spent the entire time blaming circumstances and everyone else for the unhappiness in her life while consistently performing thought & action that kept her in that cycle - a paradigm shift in the thinking could've added a lot of interest to the plot but there was no true ascension of identity, only the shallowest of changes in behavior.

[Debra Rodriguez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Remarkable adaptation of A Christmas Carol

If your reading the collective series you’ve grown to love all the characters. Poppy was the star of the 1st book and continues to grow and entertain us. This book adapts the classic holiday tale of Christmas futures. Enjoyed it. Actually Marty is the one character who doesn’t connect with me. Written as a positive influence on Poppy’s son great person and friend he’s simply too ‘easy’.

[Rebecca Goss · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was so frustrated with Poppy at the end of the last book. I understand that she is a people pleaser and didn't want to hurt Marty's feelings. But he should not have put her in that position. I was so glad the Christmas spirit gave her a glimpse into a future with Marty. It wasn't bad. Not bad at all. But is "not bad" enough?

[Gina Marie ~books are my drug of choice~ · Rating 5 out of 5]

happy

I enjoyed the book the most of any of the recent books in the series. Even though everything wasn’t fixed it looks like most of what has annoyed me in recent books about Poppy will be changing. I was so happy to see that. Poppy is regaining her courage and future happiness. Looks like she is finally going to get out of her own way.

[Cynthia T · Rating 5 out of 5]

All is Merry and Bright

I was very upset by Poppy saying “yes” to Marty. This is a beautiful Christmas story, and I loved it! Thank you, HP and JR! Merry Christmas! For everyone who follows this series, please read this ASAP. It will make you smile.

[Denise · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it!

I really enjoyed my visit back to Haven Hollow. It was Christmas time and very pretty. It had a lot of Christmas spirit. The angst was in Polly's mind and she finally makes a decision. Can't wait for my next visit!

[bridget burke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really?

We’ve all been waiting for Andre and Polly to get together and I feel like this book ended about 5 chapters short. Hoping for a book from Andre’s perspective. Obviously, I’m a big fan after reading 25 books in the series-great story- can’t wait for the next. Cheers!

[Donna Peltier · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love it

Mallory and Rain write wonderful stories. This short one about Poppy and her choices was a quick, sweet and satisfying read. I adore Haven Hollow and look forward to more fantastic stories!

[Janice E. Ryberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Christmas Spirit: A Paranormal Novelle

I just love Christmas stories whether it is fiction or not. Although this is particularly sweet and has a charming ending.
I do remember a previous story with these characters and enjoyed it as well!

[Jami Kehr · Rating 5 out of 5]

Poppy questioning her decision concerning Marty finds herself visited by someone who can show her the outcome of her choices. This installment is a great quick Christmas break read.

[Joanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Christmas Spirit

Poppy gets a visit from Noelle and gets the gift of seeing what her future would be like if she married Marty. Good story. Happy with the way it's going now.

[Jana Oglesby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very cute story about family & a little about self discovery. It flowed well & let us continue on a little side bit with Poopy. I can wait to see what happens next!

[Shelly Mahar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing book!

I love this series. I mean, really love. If there were 500 I'd read them all happily. The sad thing is waiting for the next book! I can't wait to see what happens!

[Cheryl R. Haley · Rating 5 out of 5]

sweet and quick

Very cute. Love how the Christmas spirit has moved Poppy into making some life changing decisions. Always a fun read.

[Robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an entertaining, well-written novella. It was fun and held my interest. I enjoyed this novella and look forward to reading more books in this series.

[Tammy Nitschke Sokol · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful!!!!

Great read. I'm still #TeamAndrePoppy!!!! This is a flash forward peak at Poppy in the future so she can decide if she is making the right choice!!!