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Skylar M. Cates
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The Christmas Lights Battle: A Shelby Beach Romance Kindle Edition

by Skylar M. Cates (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 323 ratings
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For a single dad and his neighbor, the Christmas competition is on! Julian Moss wants to give his children a happy Christmas. Since his divorce, Julian has no time for a social life; he’s been doing the tiring work of two parents while his cheating ex-husband dodges his responsibilities. If that isn’t stressful enough, he has to deal with his new—and ridiculously good-looking—neighbor and his noisy dogs. Christmas used to be Julian’s favorite holiday, but lately all he sees is the cost. Then Julian’s young son tells him about a Christmas lights competition with a much-needed prize. Leo Adams is going to be alone for Christmas…again. All he’s ever wanted is to be accepted by his family, but he knows that will never happen. Deciding to focus on his career as a personal trainer, Leo develops a boot camp program on the beach, but he needs publicity. The lights competition offers Leo a way to get some free press, and if it annoys his snooty neighbor Julian—all the better. The battle is on, and both Julian and Leo want to win. The stakes are high, the reward is great, and the neighbors are in it to win it. There’s nothing like a little competition to make Christmas at Shelby Beach extra merry and bright.
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  1. Book 1 of 4
    Shelby Beach Romance
  2. Print length
    218 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publication date
    December 5, 2018
  5. File size
    2.3 MB
  6. Page Flip
    Enabled
  7. Word Wise
    Enabled
  8. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  9. See all details
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Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B07L5LS5B7
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Skylar M. Cates: A Treading Chaos Publication (December 5, 2018)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ December 5, 2018
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 2.3 MB
  • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 218 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 323 ratings

About the author

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Skylar M. Cates

Skylar M. Cates

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Emotional, Roller-Coaster Romance

Skylar M. Cates loves a good, heartfelt romance, especially ones that are both steamy and emotionally satisfying. She is quite happy to drink some coffee, curl up with a good book, and not move all day. Her novels feature strong, passionate characters who care about their friends and family. Skylar loves to craft stories where people are challenged by vulnerable situations. Although lately the laundry room is the farthest place she has visited, Skylar still loves to chat with people from all around the globe. Contact her on Twitter, Facebook, or through her newsletter.

Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5 stars
323 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers enjoy the wonderful holiday story with relatable characters. They find the book sweet, fun, and with a Christmas background. The characters are well-developed and easy to understand.

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Story qualityCharacter development
5 customers mention "Story quality"5 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the story's quality. They describe it as a wonderful holiday story with lovely characters and a Christmas background.

"...Turned into really good story. The characters are real and believable. You feel empathy for Leo. His pain...." Read more

"...Throw in a holiday lights competition and you have a great story." Read more

"A sweet, fun Christmas novel that has two lovely characters, and some meaningful development...." Read more

"This is a wonderful holiday story about two wounded hearts that find healing...." Read more

3 customers mention "Character development"3 positive0 negative

Customers like the character development. They say the characters are relatable.

"...Turned into really good story. The characters are real and believable. You feel empathy for Leo. His pain...." Read more

"A sweet, fun Christmas novel that has two lovely characters, and some meaningful development...." Read more

"great characters and you really can't go wrong with kids and a Christmas background. Easy read but that doesn't mean it's fluff...." Read more

A Sweet Story
5 out of 5 stars
A Sweet Story
I loved this story with the hate love relationship. Julian and his kids live next door to Leo and decide to decorate their house for the annual Christmas competition in the hopes of winning. Leo not to be outdone does they same and eventually sparks fly and these two can no longer hold back.A very enjoyable story.
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Top reviews from the United States

  • Carle
    5.0 out of 5 stars Love lights shine
    Reviewed in the United States on December 8, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    At first I thought whoopie, think I got stung on this one... But! I kept reading and before long I was glad I kept going. Turned into really good story.
    The characters are real and believable. You feel empathy for Leo. His pain. And Julien, if you've ever loved and been hurt, then you can understand. But they sparked and that spark ignited something real and true.
    Helpful
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  • Relly
    4.0 out of 5 stars Good
    Reviewed in the United States on December 13, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    4 stars

    This is what I look for in a holiday book, you’ve got an enemies to lovers scenario with lots of feels.

    Both guys have their own hang ups but Leo was the one that I connected to the most. He is so much like a kicked puppy looking for affection and acceptance but hiding behind his confident exterior, and I just wanted to hug him.

    Julian started off quite prickly which made him harder to like, but once he thawed and the guys started interacting I found myself liking him. I loved the way he was with his children, he was a great parent. I also loved the way he was with Leo once they got together, he had a way of reading him and helping him that worked for me.

    Looks like I’ve found a new series as I want to know what happens with Zane.
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  • Khali
    3.0 out of 5 stars Sweet
    Reviewed in the United States on December 8, 2018
    This is a sweet story where two neighbours competing in a Christmas lights decor challenge slowly go from enemies to lovers. Leo’s had a rough start in life and makes for a sympathetic character. Julian on the other hand, initially comes off like a prat. As we learn about his ex-husband and his heartbreak, we see that Julian is protecting his heart. The interactions between Leo, Julian and the kids is lovely as is the relationship with Julian’s family.

    There are some heavy themes touched on in this book but in a fairly superficial way - it is a holiday book after all. That said, there was an oddity to the cadence of the writing, some things felt repetitive and there were some odd turns of phrase (especially during the sex scenes) that were eyebrow raising.

    All in all, a sweet holiday romance.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable holiday romance
    Reviewed in the United States on May 5, 2022
    Verified Purchase
    Shelby Beach and it’s residents have quickly become one of my favorites to read. The opposites attraction, interesting friends and a neat location add to the story. Throw in a holiday lights competition and you have a great story.
    Helpful
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  • Two Nerds With Words
    4.0 out of 5 stars 3.5 Merry Stars
    Reviewed in the United States on December 9, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    A sweet, fun Christmas novel that has two lovely characters, and some meaningful development. While the book was a little slow-paced at times, the characters and their growth had me actively cheering for their HEA.
    Helpful
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  • Gene Wolery
    5.0 out of 5 stars Love is the secret of Life!
    Reviewed in the United States on November 11, 2022
    Verified Purchase
    Love should be the driving force of Life, it should lift us from the mundane to the highest level of Living. We all should always strive for each other and do whatever we need to do to promote inclusion of all people!
    Helpful
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  • Sarah
    4.0 out of 5 stars Strong Start To Series
    Reviewed in the United States on April 13, 2022
    While we might be nearing Easter, I decided to give this Christmas romcom a go. The Christmas Lights Battle is my first Skylar M Cates book, and I've already got the rest of the Shelby Beach series downloaded to my Kindle and ready to go.

    The Christmas Lights Battle tells the story of Leo and Julian, two neighbors in the small coastal town of Shelby Beach who get off on the wrong foot but discover that they are exactly what the other is missing. Leo is new to town, a personal trainer starting his own business of beach boot camps and zumba classes. He is dedicated to his blooming business while filling the gaps leftover in his income by taking on personal training clients at his best friend's gym. He's also housesitting and dogsitting for another best friend who is out marking items off his bucket list.

    Julian is a single dad, tightly buttoned and scarred from his ex-husband. He is dedicated to his kids, but doesn't have much of a life outside of raising his two kids and working. Most of his social interaction comes from his family, which when you meet his family, not a bad thing. I loved his entire family so much. Julian was a lot harder to love at first than Leo, but by the end of the book, I absolutely adored him.

    The two men are competitors at first, and you can feel the competition heating up between them, enhancing the immediate attraction they felt to one another. When it finally boils over, you're left saying FINALLY. Julian and Leo both come into their budding relationship with a lot of scars and a lot of traumas, and its great watching as they fit their broken pieces together.

    This book is very clearly the set up to the rest of the series, and I cannot wait to dive further into the world of Shelby Beach. The Christmas Lights Battle is low angst, but does have a few trigger warnings to look out for. A side character is in remission for cancer, there are mentions of conversion therapy and religious trauma, and Julian's ex-husband cheated on him. There are also quite a few bits of homophobia in the book, mostly in references to the past. So reader beware.

    All in all, I would recommend this book and I will be continuing the rest of the Shelby Beach series.
    Helpful
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  • Books are Life!
    3.0 out of 5 stars Holiday Enemies to Lovers style MM Romance
    Reviewed in the United States on December 8, 2018
    2.5 stars

    This book was a bit of a let down. From the title and cover it looked like it would be funny and quirky but the lights battle only made up a small amount of the story.

    Here we have Julian, a divorcee who has 2 children and a rotten ex husband, and Leo, who is estranged from his family. They are neighbors who both decide to do the lights competition for different reasons. They have a bunch of ups and downs but eventually find their way into a relationship.

    I felt like the story got a bit lost from the fun holiday read it was supposed to be as it turned serious pretty much from the get go with the ex husband being awful and the talk of Leo's past.

    Overall, I wasn't a huge fan of this book which was super disappointing for me. Maybe I'm in a grinchy mood but this holiday story didn't do it for me. :(
    Helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

  • Isabelle McGraw
    5.0 out of 5 stars love the Christmas competition
    Reviewed in Canada on November 30, 2021
    Verified Purchase
    I love Christmas stories so much.

    This was sweet and steamy. I love the little fight they had before they sated to be together.

    I didn't like the end in a sense I wanted a little more detail like maybe a year after epilogue or something like that but still a great story.
    Report
  • Liash
    4.0 out of 5 stars Great holiday read with very low angst
    Reviewed in Australia on December 14, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    This was a fun holiday read. I admit I thought there was going to be more of a battle with the Christmas lights between Leo and Julian than there was - their animosity towards each other was over pretty quickly. I did love the focus on family, acceptance and also good friends. I also liked how Leo and Julian brought out the best in each other, and helped support the other unequivocally. A great book if you're after a holiday read with very low angst.
    Report

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