A Novel Noel

7.7 stars.

Not only was this a great romance, but I learned a great lesson from this Christmas bingo challenge that the woman does. It's really inspiring, because making a chart or list of dares and challenges for yourself is one of the most effective motivational tools ever invented.

I suggest that if you have any struggles in your life regarding motivation and procrastination, take a lesson from this Christmas bingo chart.

The lead actors have a lot of chemistry and the film is quite entertaining. Something about it flows and they are a good pair. Mr. Penny has a Hallmark Midas touch. I've yet to see him disappoint. He's been in some real sluggish movies, but he always seems to shine through. The lead female, although, seemingly an endangered female species of the Hallmark variety (a rare appearance) never fails to entertain. She's got great screen presence and like Penny, rarely disappoints. The two of them together is a match made for a great film, and I was actually inspired by this story.

The perfect storm of trying to recover from the 2023 writers and actors strikes combined with Hallmark's breathtaking avarice funneling resources away to other revenue streams has created a very disappointing season so far. This movie is one of the few I enjoyed enough to watch twice.

With a plot similar to Lifetime's quirky 2018 "Christmas Around the Corner", the. Bookstore setting gives it an automatic appeal. And while some of the plot developments were easy to see coming, the appealing cast made it an enjoyable watch.

My only issue was that the final denouement seemed a little awkward and rushed, but since that would describe the entirety of most other movies this season, I can't complain too much. Definitely worth watching.

Woo, some of these reviewers are grumpy like the male lead 😂. Yes, this story has been done before, but what movie hasn't. I'm going to search if you can work in a bookstore and live in the apartment above. Sounds like a delightful opportunity to me. The male lead is really grumpy for a while, so that was a bummer for me. I actually thought the main lead was the author, but had someone else portraying her. I believe that story has been done too 😂. The reindeer games were fun. There wasn't much chemistry between the two, but I still enjoyed it. The pub owner and bakery gal are fun characters. I must say, I was blinded by the twist. The two characters help one other move over a hump. There's a fun Bingo idea. Cute movie.

Well obviously some of the reviews on here must have an ulterior motive or we didn't watch the same movie. There's no way this movie should get 1/10 or 3/10. That's just spiteful for some reason. Julie Gonzalo is absolutely gorgeous in this movie and she always gives a great performance. I watched it again this morning just to admire her beautiful wardrobe. Brendan Penny is always solid in every movie he is in. I'm so happy Julie has two new Christmas movies this year. She deserves it. I love this movie long with Chris's new movie Holiday Crashers. They sure are a talented and stunning couple.

This movie has some common elements in terms of a struggling bookstore, a burnt out publishing editor, rookie writer needing a push, and newbie shakes things up to help profits. It is also a bit unusual in that the editor appears to have paid to work there and live above the store as a kind of vacation. As another reviewer pointed out, there was one other movie almost exactly like that, but that's the only one I can think of.

I enjoyed this movie probably because I was tolerant of how annoying the two leads were with each other for a little bit too long. The reason I tolerated it was because I am very familiar with both Gonzalo and Penny. Their characters eventually connect and I got invested in their relationship. Beyond that though, the story doesn't stand out. The secret identity, if you will, of Harper comes out to Sawyer before halfway which is a bit unusual. There is a bittersweet twist towards the end.

The basics in acting and dialogue were decent, you might even say good.