Category Archives: Hallmark Movie Reviews

Christmas on Honeysuckle Lane

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Have you ever had to sell your parent(s) home? Was it hard to let go?

Emma returns to her childhood home to spend one last Christmas with her siblings. They plan to sell the home after Christmas. It’s especially hard for Emma to be home since her parents’ recent passing. The movie shows Emma reminiscing about Christmases in the past – spent with her mom.

I was surprised to see the letters hidden in the secret compartment of her mom’s desk. I was also surprised as to why her mom had been saving those old letters. Since her mom ended up marrying somebody other else – Emma’s dad – who is NOT the author of the letters – I was a bit floored as to why she kept them.

The man who wrote the letters stays in town after Emma’s mom had broken the engagement. Her mom wanted to marry someone else. However, the author of the letters stays in town and marries another woman in town – which is revealed near the end. I found the explanation of Emma’s mom saving the letters to be implausible.

I enjoyed the chemistry between Emma and Morgan. Morgan is hired to go through the house and appraise its’ valuables, including the desk with the secret compartment. Morgan also assists Emma with the mystery of finding the identity of the man who wrote the letters to Emma’s mom.

Of course, it’s a Hallmark movie and you must always have conflict! Emma is a lawyer and she’s recently broken up with her ex-boyfriend. However, he shows up at her family’s home at Christmas – determined to win her back and proposes to her!

Wasn’t it comical when the engagement ring got stuck on her finger?

Her ex had some nerve, especially since he forced the ring onto her finger when Emma didn’t even say yes!

Morgan seemed like a kind and patient man. He was a nice reprieve from Emma’s awful ex-boyfriend.

Didn’t it get on your nerves when her ex-boyfriend made gluten-free pancakes and then wrongly states that gluten-free pancakes are Emma’s favorite? I felt like he was FORCING his likes/dislikes onto poor Emma! No wonder she broke up with him.

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Christmas on Honeysuckle Lane is based upon the book by Mary McDonough! Come show Mary McDonough some love and purchase her book! After you read it, let me know how you like it! I’d also like to know how the book compares to the movie!

So, have you ever had to sell your parent(s) home? Was it hard to let go?

https://ceceliadowdy.com/christmas-tales-2/

Over the Moon in Love

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Is it possible for a man to be in love for two decades and do absolutely nothing about it?

Devin has been in love with Brooklyn since high school. After high school, they went their separate ways. They reconnect twelve years later. Brooklyn has a matchmaking service that has a 100% success rate (imagine that – does not sound plausible to me, but, it was nice hearing about this in the movie.)

Devin is a singer. Shortly after he reconnects with Brook, he meets Stephanie – a woman who is scoping out Brook’s business to see if it would be a good fit for the cover of her dad’s famous magazine. Brook need the publicity, but when she discovers that she needs to match up Stephanie with Devin…she falters. Stephanie stipulates that if Brook matches her up with Devin, it could increase her chances of being featured on the cover of the magazine.

I really enjoyed this Hallmark movie! The emotions between Brook and Devin seemed SO REAL. Brook knew Devin so well and when she “helps” Stephanie, by telling her about Devin’s likes and dislikes, and tells her what to say on her dates with Devin…just showed that Brook really had deep feelings for Devin – which was why she never matched up with anyone herself.

I thought it was a bit cheesy and implausible when Brook spoke to Devin on the phone and disguised her voice as Stephanie’s – just so that Devin would be impressed by “Stephanie’s” responses to his questions. I’d have thought he’d known he wasn’t speaking to Stephanie. I didn’t think that Brook sounded like Stephanie.

Robin’s egg blue? What man has a favorite color of robin’s egg blue? Most men would just say “blue” or “light blue”, but robin’s egg? I don’t think so….

Devin has been in love with Brook for twenty years and has never told her.

Wow. I just have to stop and think about that for a few minutes. Is it plausible for a man to feel so deeply for a woman for so long without seeing her or having a relationship with her? Seems like a time would come where the love would somewhat fade as the person moves forward with their life.

Overall, this is a decent Hallmark movie – one of the better ones. I thought it was strange to have a guy have a favorite color of robin’s egg blue. Most men would have no idea about robin’s egg blue. Would’ve been more plausible to just call it…simply…light blue.

So, have you ever known anyone who was in love with somebody but never told that person about it? What happened? Did he/she keep their love a secret forever?

https://ceceliadowdy.com/the-candy-beach-series/

Hallmark Movies and Mysteries Fans Will Enjoy this FREE Romance Mystery Ebook!

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My romance e-book, Shades of Chocolate, is FREE for a limited time! DOWNLOAD your copy TODAY! Hallmark Movies and Mysteries Fans will love this sweet, intoxicating, chaste romance mystery!

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I have another treat for you! My author friends have placed their books on sale for 99c! Come check out these cheap, intoxicating, small-town, Hallmark-style romances for less than a dollar!

A few of the small-town romances are FREE as well! 

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Celebrate Christmas in July with a Sweet Book!

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https://ceceliadowdy.com/christmas-tales/

Hallmarkies, do you celebrate Christmas in July? If so, how do you celebrate?

Hallmarkies, just popping in to say hello with a quick blog post! I’ve been watching some wonderful Hallmark Christmas movies for Christmas in July. I haven’t been able to blog about them as much as I’d like because I started grad school. I’m working on my Master’s Degree in Accounting and Financial Management. It’s an online program via The University of Maryland (my alma mater). I’m also working full time, so, my life has been hectic all summer!

If you like Hallmark Christmas movies then you should try one of my sweet Christmas novels! They’re a great treat to read, literally. I have a cookie and or baking theme in all of my books, which makes them so tasty and enjoyable!


Do you celebrate Christmas in July? If so, what do you do to celebrate?

The Christmas Card

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Have you ever broken a marriage engagement?

Well, Faith is in a predicament. She’s engaged to Paul. Paul is a nerdy, boring, and not-very-nice international wine broker, or something like that. He’s gone all the time and Faith hardly sees him.

When handsome military man, Cody, swoops into town, her life changes. Cody…well…he’s FINE. He’s so cute and nice. His good looks and charm shine even more when you compare him to boring Paul.

Cody is just passing through town. He appears to be a drifter. And after he saves Faith’s father’s life, her family begs Cody to spend Christmas with them. Faith’s dad wants Cody to help out at their mill, and Cody agrees. After all, he’s attracted to pretty Faith and he wants to spend time with her too.

Cody is glad to connect with Faith – that’s why he’s in town in the first place. Faith sent him a Christmas card and he’s determined to thank her for it. Although they don’t know one another, (Faith sent the card to Cody anonymously), they get closer during the Christmas season.

So, have you ever broken a marriage engagement? If so, why did you break it?

Paris, Wine and Romance

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Hallmarkies, Have you ever been to Paris?

I have, although, my trip was not as romantic as Isabella’s and Jacques! Isabella owns a winery in Oregon. Her uncle has sent her pinot noir wine to Paris to enter a competition. She’s shocked when she discovers that her wine has final-ed! So, she’s whisked away to Paris to attend the competition.

She then meets Frenchman Jacques – the hotel has mixed up their suitcases. Jacques, also a family winemaker, is attending the contest with his mother and brother. Both him and his brother have entered their wines into the competition.

I loved seeing Jacques and Isabella interact. Hallmark used lots of nice, Parisian romantic touches to this movie – wine, cheese, fashion, etc. I thought the mishap with Jacques’ wine, where one of the volunteers drops the entire crate and ALL of the bottles were broken, was a bit over the top! What were the chances of something like that happening? I buy crates of wine to keep in my basement. Those bottles are usually packed tight and they don’t break unless you remove one and then smash it to the ground!

I also thought it was a bit over the top when the journalist mistook Jacques brother for Jacques since the brother was mistakenly wearing Jacques’ nametag. Usually a journalist will verify his/her source before placing a quote in a national (or international?) newspaper. Definitely artistic license was being used in those 2 instances.

I thought that the accents for Jacques and his family sounded authentic! So French. I’m no expert, but, they sounded lovely and Jacques was a nice, sweet guy. He was perfect for Isabella and I really liked how he suggested to her that she was over-anxious and needed to calm down. They got to see the sights of Paris! How romantic!

Speaking of food and Paris, I wanted to mention my novel Sweet Delights. In my romance story, the heroine, Patty-Lynn has won the prestigious International Paris Pie Competition for her Banana Cream Pie! There’s even a sweet, delicious recipe for Banana Cream Pie at the end of the story! You should try it if you like, good, old-fashioned sweet romance! Great Amazon reviews, too!

So, have you ever been to Paris? If so, what sites did you see? Did you enjoy yourself?

Chance at Romance

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Chance at Romance – Podcast

This blog post is sponsored by Divine Desserts Publishing, LLC. Check out our wholesome, Hallmark-style romances by visiting ceceliadowdy.com/books.

Have you ever had an online romantic relationship?

Well, Samantha is about to start an online relationship with Heath, except, unbeknownst to Samantha, the relationship is really with Heath’s preteen son, Donny! This movie cracked me up! No, it’s not one of my favorites, but, I like it better than most of the Hallmark Movies that I’ve seen.

Hold on a second. Do you like clean, wholesome romance stories that remind you of a Hallmark movie? If so, you should read my novel Loving Luke. Loving Luke is every bit as good and sweet as a Hallmark Christmas movie! Now back to Chance at Romance…

Samantha, a barista at a coffee shop, is tired of these going-no-where dates. I chuckled when she was eating in the restaurant with her date – he was allergic to everything and it was obvious he had some MAJOR issues. Well, when she spots Heath, as well as Heath’s artwork, at a showing, she contacts Heath via his website. She has one of his prints and she’s always admired it.

But, instead of corresponding with Heath, she corresponds with Heath’s son (Donny) who is his website manager. Donny wants his dad to remarry and he thinks that Samantha is perfect – after all, she’s not Celeste. Donny can’t stand Celeste, his father’s art agent.

Donny sends Samantha a train ticket and makes arrangements for her to come to their house. She’s then stranded because of bad weather and a road closure.

I loved the interaction between Samantha (Sam) and Heath. The chemistry between them was strong. I also loved seeing Donny grow and learn to be a kid again. He’s meddlesome and worries about adult issues, but, Sam gently tells him that he should be hanging out with his friends instead of trying to set his dad up on a date.

Donny does reconnect with old friends as Sam’s pot pie business booms during her short visit to Heath’s and Donny’s town. Those pot pies looked AMAZING and Hallmark should share a recipe for Samantha’s Homemade Chicken Pot Pie!

My only pet-peeve about this movie was Heath….he was so…well…let’s just say he wasn’t very intelligent. Like, when he made the necklace with the porcupine needles for Sam, Celeste sees it and wants it. She gives some stupid reason for wanting the necklace and Heath gives it to her! What a dumb thing to do! He warns her not to wear it…does he not realize that Celeste does what she wants to do – the woman does not listen. Heath really needs a good dose of common sense.

Also, when Celeste picks him up from his house to go to London…well…he just goes with her. Another dumb move. I know she’s his agent but…hasn’t he ever heard of taking a separate flight? Celeste starts saying terrible things about Sam and Heath barely says anything about it. He tells Celeste not to talk like that…but, he was NOT very forceful about defending the woman he loves. I felt he should’ve made more of an effort to defend Samantha’s honor to Celeste. If he REALLY loved her, he would’ve gone the extra mile to prove his love….

Heath had no backbone, plain and simple. He was a weak hero – if he were stronger, then I believe this movie may have made my favorites list.

Back to Heath…his calling and calling Sam after he “kisses” Celeste? Why didn’t he just go to see her already? Yeah, I know he shows up on a white horse at the end, but, he should’ve gone after her right after he discovers that she knows about the kiss. He didn’t fight enough for Sam’s love and I don’t think he did much of ANYTHING to discourage Celeste’s advances!

So, have you ever been in an online romantic relationship? If so, what happened? Did you marry? Did you live happily ever after?

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Stranded in Paradise

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This blog post is sponsored by Divine Desserts Publishing LLC. If you like sweet romance movies like Stranded in Paradise then you MUST read ROCKY ROAD DREAMS by CECELIA DOWDY. In Rocky Road Dreams Melanie and Kyle are briefly stranded due to a massive snowstorm. While stuck together, romance brews amidst the cold winter days. Both Kyle and Melanie do some deep soul searching as they struggle to make their relationship work! Read Rocky Road Dreams today and tell a friend by sharing this blog post. You may find Rocky Road Dreams at ceceliadowdy.com/books – or simply click on the link at the end of this blog post! Now, let’s talk about the Hallmark movie Stranded in Paradise!

Have you ever been stranded somewhere?

Well, Tess is stranded and unemployed at the same time! After her she’s fired from her job (as head of Human Resources Dept.) she decides to do what she must in order to find a job. She’s been scheduled to attend a Human Resources conference in Puerto Rico! So, after a bunch of mishaps (lost phone, lost shoes) she discovers that her cabin-mate is Carter.

Carter is on his way to Puerto Rico, too, but, he’s trying to raise money to bring clean water to impoverished people. I thought it was a bit of overkill how Carter and Tess “coincidentally” run into each other while in Puerto Rico. Both of them have lost luggage and then the hotel which they are staying is under renovations.

Then, Tess discovers that her mean, dirty boss has cancelled her conference registration. Both Carter and Tess are stranded because of a hurricane. When Tess discovers she can no longer stay in the hotel, Carter finds shelter for both of them from a local.

I really liked this movie. It’s not one of my faves, but, I liked it more than the average Hallmark movie. I liked Tess’s spunk. Even though she was unemployed, she did what she could to find a job. I also really liked Carter. He cared about helping people, and he was a really great listener, too. This was a perfect beach movie, complete with a romantic kissing scene at the end!

So, have you ever been stranded? If so, where? How long were you stranded?

This blog post is sponsored by Divine Desserts Publishing LLC. If you like sweet romance movies like Stranded in Paradise then you MUST read ROCKY ROAD DREAMS by CECELIA DOWDY. In Rocky Road Dreams Melanie and Kyle are briefly stranded due to a massive snowstorm. While stuck together, romance brews amidst the cold winter days. Both Kyle and Melanie do some deep soul searching as they struggle to make their relationship work! Read Rocky Road Dreams today and tell a friend by sharing this blog post. You may find Rocky Road Dreams at ceceliadowdy.com/books – or simply click on the link at the end of this blog post!

https://ceceliadowdy.com/rocky-road-dreams-lp/

ROCKY ROAD DREAMS BOOK LINK