Genre: Holiday

Holiday Review: The Holiday Honeymoon Switch

Posted January 1, 2025 / Book Reviews / 1 Comment

Story If you’re a fan of THE HOLIDAY (people switching houses around the holidays) and strong friendship stories, this could be a good Christmassy read for you. Holly and Ivy (lol yes they discuss how funny their names are together) are best friends. When Holly gets broken up with the day before her wedding, she can’t bear the idea of still going on her Hawaiian honeymoon but still needs an escape. Ivy had planned to head to an eco-friendly cabin in NY for her annual two-week art retreat during the same timeframe, so they end up switching places. Naturally some romance occurs in each location for the two main characters. I can’t decide if I didn’t love the characters themselves or if I just didn’t like how the author wrote them (like her writing style for them?). I didn’t feel overly connected to them and thought the writing style was just not great? The concept was good, the friendship vibes were strong, and the third act “breakups” / miscommunication were minimal, which is a plus. Wintery Setting & Holiday Feels The story alternates between a very Christmassy setting in upstate New York and a not-so-wintery Kauai. Both places had nice Christmas vibes though. It was fun because I’ve actually been to both settings in this book! I liked how they made holiday traditions in both settings even though one of them had warm, beachy weather. The small town in New York was really cute and holiday-ish, especially with the parade […]

Holiday Reviews: The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year and A Winter Wish

Posted December 25, 2024 / Book Reviews, Review Roundup / 0 Comments

Story I’ve been an Ally Carter stan since I was a preteen so you know I’m going to be here for anything she puts out. I didn’t love her previous adult mystery/romance and was really hoping this one would be better for me. I’m thrilled to report that it was! Maggie and Ethan are rival mystery book authors (according to Maggie at least). They’re both heading out on a mysterious Christmas trip, no clue that they were invited by the Agatha Christie of their time (Eleanor Ashley). They, along with members of Eleanor’s family, were brought to her huge mansion/castle in the English countryside for some reason. When Eleanor goes missing a few days before Christmas, Maggie and Ethan use their crime, poison, and general mystery trope knowledge to try to figure out what happened and where she is. I really enjoyed the romance between these two and the setting was incredible. Only one bed, enemies-to-lovers, he-fell-first… all the good tropes! The fact that there was also a mystery in the backdrop made this book even better. Carter did a great job balancing both genres IMO but I do wish there was a liiiittle more of the mystery. I think the Knives Out plus holiday rom-com comparison was perfect for this book, which also means additional puzzles, riddles, and time with other characters would have been welcome. Wintery Setting & Holiday Feels The book is set at a snowy castle on 20,000 acres in England with no phone signal, plus […]

Holiday Review: Christmas Crimes at the Mysterious Bookshop

Posted December 18, 2024 / Book Reviews, Review Roundup / 1 Comment

Overall Average 3.5 stars across the 12 stories. This wasn’t a bad collection but not very memorable. I liked the stories that centered more around the bookstore. Lots of them were about authors or writers (which made sense) and had a ton of literary/mystery references. Probably a great collection for a classic mystery lover. Stories Black Christmas – Jason Starr This was a bit creepy and depressing to start off the book of stories, but I didn’t mind it. I could assume where it was going but the very end confused me. A Midnight Clear – Lyndsay Faye I kind of thought this was too similar to the first story but it took a more interesting turn toward the end. You expected it to go in one direction and it didn’t. Wolfe Trap – Loren D. Estleman This is meant to be a “Claudius Lyon Mystery” apparently and even though you could argue you don’t need to know anything about that series to read this little standalone, it definitely would have helped… I’m still pretty confused about who the characters were, including the narrator. The ending was funny but overall not worth the effort and confusion.” Secret Santa – Ace Atkins This was my favorite so far, easily! You expect a certain story arc and it repeatedly changes. The author did a whole lot in a short story. “The Writer” character himself went up and down in likability as well – lot of complexity in this. The Gift of the […]

Holiday Reviews: I’ll Be Gone for Christmas and Spectacular

Posted December 11, 2024 / Book Reviews, Review Roundup / 0 Comments

Story I’m a sucker for THE HOLIDAY and any book that promises that kind of “holiday house swap” will certainly make it on my TBR. I went and requested a bunch of Christmas books a few weeks ago and this was the first one that came in on Libby, so I ended up making it my first holiday book of the year! Clover and her ex-fiance, Knox, are still living on the same property, working the family farm after her mom passes away. Bee is living in San Francisco and looking to escape her twin sister, Beth, after she made some mistakes with their shared company. Luckily Bee’s friend invented a house swap app and the two gals end up leaving their lives behind for the holiday season. The book saw Clover start to fall for Bee’s sister and Bee begin to fall for Knox – as expected. The story itself was absolutely a cute, drama-free, slow burn romance with practically zero spice. It certainly is a more diverse version of THE HOLIDAY and exactly what I wanted in that regard. There were a lot of character names for no real reason (one of them was named Dee and another was Bee, which should be illegal) and I got a little confused when trying to keep two plotlines straight. Wintery Setting & Holiday Feels The premise of following a holiday season in the city along with one in a “Christmas-obsessed” small town in Ohio sounded like the best of both […]

Holiday Reviews: Bright Lights, Big Christmas and Through the Snow Globe

Posted December 21, 2023 / Book Reviews, Review Roundup / 0 Comments

Story I really enjoyed THE SANTA SUIT last year and was excited to try another short and sweet Christmas book from Mary Kay Andrews. BRIGHT LIGHTS, BIG CHRISTMAS followed Kerry as she joined her brother in NYC selling Christmas trees from the family farm. She hadn’t been at their lot since she was a kid – when her parents split up, her brother and father ran the tree farm while Kerry stayed with her mom. She’s feeling lost between jobs and is subbed in for her father this year, who recently had a heart attack. The characters were good – there’s a romance with a cute single dad from the building next door. I really loved meeting everyone else in the building and the nearby restaurants too. One of their neighbors goes missing and they all band together to find him in time for Christmas. It leads to an interesting new life path for Kerry that I really enjoyed reading about. I didn’t love the romance necessarily; the kid was cute but the father was a little pushy. It was off-putting to have him move so quickly on her when they’d known each other for a couple of weeks. Wintery Setting & Holiday Feels NYC during the holiday season is one of my favorite settings, as I’ve mentioned time and time again. The block they were located on felt real and gave some nice Christmas feels. Christmas tree lots or farms are some of my favorite settings for holiday books. […]

Holiday Reviews: Snowed in for Christmas and The Christmas Orphans Club

Posted December 14, 2023 / Book Reviews, Review Roundup / 0 Comments

Story I wasn’t sure what to expect from this one but I have to say, I enjoyed it! Becca and Harrison are neighbors on a college campus (one is a sorority house mom and the other is the football coach) who went on a date two years ago… then he ghosted her. They’ve spent the years since avoiding each other until a huge snow storm comes right as the students are heading for winter break. They end up hunkering down together due to power outages, lack of firewood, and extreme wind and temperatures. I really enjoyed their chemistry and the snowed-in style romance here. It’s so much fun to watch two people get closer from a relationship perspective while they’re forced together in those circumstances. Becca was such a fun character who tried her hardest to not let other people’s assumptions about her get in the way of her being herself. Harrison was grumpy but soft underneath, which I like. Honestly, I think Harrison got off a little too easy on the ghosting thing. There’s obviously some explanation as the two start talking about it but I think that could have been beefed up a little bit. The ending got progressively more cheesy (lots of instalove) but was still cute in general. Wintery Setting & Holiday Feels There’s definitely a difference between books that take place on Christmas and Christmas/holiday books. I think this story straddles the middle a little bit. The story happens right before the holiday and the […]

Holiday Reviews: The Christmas Appeal and Tide and Punishment

Posted December 8, 2023 / Book Reviews, Review Roundup / 0 Comments

Story I really enjoyed THE APPEAL when I randomly picked it up last year on a vacation. I couldn’t put it down and found it super addicting due to the mixed media format. (I still haven’t read anything else by Hallett but I have multiple books ready to go on my Kindle!) This was a Christmas novella featuring the same Fairway Players from the initial book. They decided to put on a holiday play of Jack and the Beanstalk using a gross old beanstalk from years and years ago. The mystery unfolded in a really neat way, much like THE APPEAL. I didn’t figure it out right away but there were definitely a few elements later in the book that I saw coming. It was a pretty fun mystery in general given its length. Wintery Setting & Holiday Feels There were somewhat limited holiday feels in this one, partially because of the mixed media format and partially because the content itself wasn’t overly holiday-oriented. I liked the “holiday round robin” emails sent out to set the stage and time of year at the beginning, which also reacquainted us with the characters. The play of Jack and the Beanstalk is not really Christmassy… I think it was necessary for the plot and mystery that comes in later, but A Christmas Carol or literally any other holiday play would have upped the seasonal feels for me. Overall I really enjoyed this one, and think the audiobook was done well! I’d recommend readers […]

Holiday Reviews: The Christmas Guest and Emergency Contact

Posted November 20, 2023 / Book Reviews / 0 Comments

Story This was my first holiday-themed mystery and I’m really excited for the others I have on my TBR now! This story follows Ashley, an American girl studying in England, who is invited to her friend’s family estate for the holidays. She immediately falls for her friend’s charming older brother and is brought into their cold, not-so-comforting home (and family) for the holidays. The brother, Adam, has been accused of murdering a local girl but this doesn’t really deter Ashley. Surely he had nothing to do with it? This is a story-within-a-story where someone is reading a diary years and years later. I really enjoyed the twist in this one! After it was revealed, I did lose interest for a few pages, but Swanson brought me back in somewhat quickly. I think the story took a few interesting turns and I really enjoyed how everything was revealed. Wintery Setting & Holiday Feels The holiday feels are interesting in this subgenre. Yes, it was creepy and gothic and had a mystery element. But it definitely also had cozy scenes in pubs and festive decor around the dinner table. It was a fun mix, to be honest! It creates a different kind of holiday feel but the setting was cold and wintery for sure. Overall I’m really glad that Swanson made this short as a novella – I truly think it was the perfect length and format for this kind of story. The twist packed more of a punch for me. Going […]

Holiday Reviews: Once Upon a December and One Last Gift

Posted December 31, 2022 / Book Reviews, Review Roundup / 0 Comments

Story This was such an odd reading experience. So many things came to me as I was reading that annoyed me or confused me that I actually had to keep track in a note on my phone… I don’t ever do that anymore! Before I get too far into the details, I’ll chat about the story concept itself… which was actually the best part! Astra has a holiday weekend with her three best girl friends each winter and they usually shop around this little winter market. Each year it’s come to town, she’s encountered Jack (working at the kringle bakery) and he always seems familiar. The market itself (Julemarked) is actually magical and travels around the world every December, popping up in a new location. He’s remembered her over the years and always waits for the market to land back in Milwaukee. They age differently in the Julemarked because they’re really only “alive” for a month each year. In any case, all that backstory to say that this was a unique story. When Astra finally remembers him and slowly starts to gain memories of the market back, the two start to fall for each other. Everything about Astra irritated me: the way she bent over backwards for her ex husband about her dog, answering his calls, and even hemming his pants. She talked constantly how he essentially forced her into abandoning her friends for the few years they were together and how she never wants to do it again (yet […]

Holiday Reviews: Resting Scrooge Face and Lovelight Farms

Posted December 22, 2022 / Book Reviews, Review Roundup / 0 Comments

Story I picked this one up on a whim when I wanted another holiday novella – clearly I’m all about quantity this year but luckily most of the novellas have been quality too! This one was unfortunately the “worst” of the bunch but still not too bad, especially considering the length. Nola heads home to her cute hometown in Maine after a breakup and subsequent relocation out of NYC. Her high school sweetheart, Caleb, is still there running the local hardware store. He broke her heart and they haven’t had to see each other in a while. The mailman does a little meddling and the two of them end up writing anonymous Christmas-hating letters back and forth without realizing who they’re writing to. It was a cute concept that really should have been a full-length novel. Wintery Setting & Holiday Feels As always, I will read a book set in Maine… especially during the holiday season! The setting was good and explained well enough, I think, for this story. It’s really hard to feel major holiday vibes from a book this short but it was nice hearing the characters go back and forth on their Scrooge-y feelings about Christmas… and then gradually warming up to it all! Overall This is a hard one to recommend or rate just because so much of it went right out of my brain upon finishing. Yes, for the millionth time, it’s very short, which is part of the problem (but not the whole problem). […]