Holiday Romance Wrap-up 2023

 Frosty Proximity - Liz Alden

This boss/employee romance follows Peter and Kara.  Kara is Peter's personal stylist and the two have an extremely professional relationship - introvert Peter trying to keep his crush for Kara under wraps and Kara thinking Peter is put off by her bubbly personality.  But after a snowstorm leaves her stranded in Switzerland and staying with Peter's family, the two realize they don't want to be strictly professional at all.  This was a shorter read than I was expecting given the premise.  At only 154 pages, there was a lot of aspects to this read that I felt were either glossed over or magically fixed themselves without any effort by the characters.  For an example, if part of Peter's character is that he's an introvert and tends to keep to himself, then I wanted to see that more on page and see him working through it or actively choosing to try and talk with Kara.  But instead we see him immediately thaw toward her pretty much as soon as he sees her with his family and then that part of his personality seems to entirely disappear.  I really loved Peter and Kara as their own characters and thought they worked together pretty well on page but they really only spent 3 days together so my inner insta-love skeptic wasn't entirely sure about the HEA we got.  We get to see Peter's family celebrating Hanukkah and a little of Kara's family celebrating Christmas. There were some really great heartwarming as well as steamy scenes, but I just felt like Alden was trying to pack a little too much into too short of a page count and as a result we lose some of the development or depth to the story and characters that I really wanted.

Thanks to NetGalley and the author for the ARC.

Publication date was October 24, 2023.

From Snowball Fights to Hot Summer Nights - Wren K Morris

This MMF romance is the second in the Misadventures and Mistletoe series and follows Dancer, Trevor, and Candy. Dancer and Trevor have been friendly for months but neither one thinks the other would be interested in anything more.  But when Dancer takes a space in a charity show at a strip club, another dancer - Candy - can see the chemistry between the two men is ready to burst.  She gives them each the push they need to finally become more.  When Dancer and Trevor both want to see more of Candy - in every way they can imagine - the three of them will have a merry time together indeed.  This was such a fun, fluffy read and I really enjoyed it. While the first book in the series follows a different couple and has an HEA, there is a lot of world building/explanation in that first book so I would recommend reading it first. I loved how we get all 3 POVs of our main characters so we can really get in their heads and get to know them a little more quickly. There's fantastic chemistry between all the characters pretty much from the get-go and it is done in a way that highlights their compatibility, not just physical desire. I'd categorize this as zero angst which is exactly what I like in a shorter holiday read.  There are moments of doubt, sure, but they are pretty much instantly addressed in a very straightforward and caring way.  I do wish we had time to see more scenes of the different configurations of couples building their individual relationships more.

His Last Christmas in London - Con Riley

This MM romance is the first in Con Riley's Christmas Collection and follows photographer Ian and food critic Guy. After a disastrous breakup with this boss, Ian is just about out of money and getting ready to leave London.  But when he's needed as a last minute fill-in to take photos of Guy and food, Ian finds himself intrigued at the soft person under the hardened critic exterior.  Guy is almost 20 years older than Ian, and the last time Ian fell for an older man it ended horribly. But as the two spend more time together before Christmas, they realize there might be more to this than just a fling. This ended up being a much more emotional read than I was expecting.  Yes, it had plenty of spicy moments and sizzling chemistry between the two men, but it also had a lot of heart.  Ian and Guy both find themselves emotionally vulnerable at points and both have a great support system.  We only get Ian's POV, however, and I wanted to see Guy's POV so badly, especially once we find out about his past relationship. 

Beastly and Bookish - Catrina Bell

This paranormal romance is part of the Horned Up for the Holidays series and follows childhood friends Rom and Noelle.  Fifteen years ago, Rom and Noelle were best friends but when Rom's family left town without saying goodbye, Noelle figured she'd never see him again.  Now, Rom returns to his childhood home to open a new branch of his family's coffee house chain. He never dreamed Noelle would still be there.  The two pick up right where they left off and when they are snowed in together after an avalanche, they both know there's no going back to just friends. This was such a fun read and I will definitely be reading the other books in the series.  We get a bit of small town charm/antics and Bell also captured the tourist frustrations well.  There are a handful of flashbacks to when Rom and Noelle were younger which really helped fill in the gaps of their childhood friendship and the history between our main characters.  I loved Rom and Noelle as characters so much - especially how Rom was such a softy but could turn on his demon-bargaining skills when needed for business purposes.  The world building was very straightforward and covered the based that we'd need to know for this story. 

Thanks to the author for the ARC.  Publication date was December 4, 2023

Best Friends Don't Kiss - Max Monroe

This friends to lovers romance follows Ava and Luke.  The two met their freshman year of college and have been friends for the last 15 years.  Now, Ava is returning home to Vermont for her sister's wedding and high school reunion and she needs a fake boyfriend.  Luke agrees, and as they practice being in their fake relationship before traveling to Ava's hometown, they both start to realize that they've had feelings for the other for a long time.  This was a really great friends to lovers arc that didn't start out with one friend already in love with the other - as is often the case. I found Ava and Luke to be very well developed characters and their friendship was fantastic.  They really felt like actual friends who cared about each other's lives and goals.  We get to see a good amount of them being just friends before the fake dating aspect kicks in.  Once they do start dating, then the chemistry ramps up from there.  I really liked Ava and Luke as a couple but I wanted a bit more of a gradual romance.  The pacing just felt a bit too rushed for my liking.  I also think having both the wedding and high school reunion was too much for the amount of pages we had and neither of those events felt like they got the on-page time they deserved. 

The Boss Who Stole Christmas - Jana Aston

This boss/employee romance follows Holly and Nick.  They both work at a toy company - Holly as a toy designer and Nick as the owner.  The both seem to dislike the other but business needs come first and the two find themselves on a trip to Germany a few weeks before Christmas.  As they spend more time together and interact outside of the office environment, they find a whole lot of feelings buried under their initial animosity. I would have absolutely loved this as a full length novel.  However, since it was novella length, I found the enemies to lovers arc to be extremely rushed.  There was a good amount of set up and characterization at the beginning, but the middle felt almost non-existent and then suddenly we were at the ending.  Pacing issues aside, I really loved Holly and Nick as characters and the chemistry they had once they got together was fantastic. I wanted to explore the setting in Germany more, but did really enjoy seeing the Christmas Market at least. Overall, this was an okay read but I really think it could have been 5 stars if it was longer and the romance was more developed.

One Night On Christmas Eve - Thea Masen

This short and spicy read follows Sienna on her quest to turn her flirtation into something real by hiding inside a present ... naked. Only instead of her crush coming through the door, it is his brother instead.  This was a fun and steamy read that still had a good amount of heart.  As with most shorter works, we don't get a ton of time to get to know the characters but Masen does a great job of working as many details as possible into the story in a seamless manner.  I also appreciated this is a HFN (happy for now) ending which I find much more believable than an HEA when the story takes place over only one night. We did get enough characterization and chemistry on page that I would like to imagine these character did work out in the end.

Wreck My Plans - Jillian Meadows

This brother's best friend romance follows Lena and Gavin.  They've known each other for years, but after Gavin stopped coming to Lena's family Christmas celebrations a few years ago, they haven't seen each other.  Gavin is back this year and the previously fun and flirty relationship between the two has shifted and the plans they both had for the holiday go out the window so they can have a chance at love.  This was such a great read and I absolutely loved Lena and Gavin.  The banter and spark between the two of them was fantastic and there were points where I wanted to yell at them to "just kiss already!". I did get a bit of  whiplash from the set up because Lena was so angry at Gavin at first and the reader had no idea why at the time. So then I thought it was going to be an enemies to lovers situation but then they talk it out and then are friends again pretty quickly. Also, for a brother's best friend, Gavin sure did seem to spend all his time with Lena instead.  Once Lena and Gavin did get together, they really did feel like they were meant to be together. 

Kissed by the Krampus - L Eveland

This MM monster romance is the first in the Monsters in My Bed series and follows a human named Chris and a krampus named Ollie.  After Ollie rescues Chris from a car wreck, he nurses the human back to health in his cabin.  The two strike up a bond that quickly turns into more. When the government shows up to try and kidnap Ollie and bring him back to their secret monster science lair, Chris must work to save Ollie and the entire human race.  Let's be honest - this has some extreme similarities to Lily Mayne's Monstrous series, specifically book 1 Soul Eater (which I read earlier this year). There are plenty of reviews on Goodreads that list out many of the similarities so you can go check those out if you're interested.  I loved Soul Eater and I while I liked this read, I certainly didn't love it as much.  With being so similar to Soul Eater, it is really hard to not constantly compare the two.  I thought Eveland really did a great job with the relationship between Chris and Ollie in the cabin and the way their relationship developed felt pretty natural. I loved the hurt/comfort dynamic as well as Ollie's interest in mundane human items that he collects while out on his adventures. The worldbuilding and plot outside of the cabin, however, did lose me and felt like it wasn't nearly as well-developed.  

Christmas with the Horned God - Aveda Vice

This second chance romance follows Rowen and Asher.  Rowen is returning to her hometown for the first time in years and when she takes a detour to see the Christmas tree farm she worked at when she was younger she doesn't expect to get stranded, see Asher again, or see the signs warning that something isn't quite right up there on the mountain.  Rowen and Asher left their budding relationship back when they were teens but spending time together at the place where their relationship began brings back plenty of memories. This was a great read and I loved the paranormal elements. Vice does a great job at really building up the complicated relationship between Rowen and Asher and I loved how we get snippets of their time together back in the day.  The tension between the two is palpable and is delicious when it turns from animosity to desire. I appreciated how we got both POVs so we could see how this surprise second chance situation was messing with both of their heads.  This was probably the most emotional read of this round of romances but I thought Vice did a fantastic job of handling these more sensitive topics.  I found myself wanting to see more of the horror elements of what was happening out on the mountain - we were either stuck in the cabin with Rowen or following Asher while they were stuck in their own head.  I was just really intrigued by the paranormal/magical elements and wanted more of them. 

Thanks to the author for the ARC. Publication date was December 22, 2023

Venice Actually - Kelly Reynolds

This acquaintance  to lovers romance is the second in the Holidays in LA series and follows Leighton and Killian. Leighton has been kicked out of her apartment without much notice and is trying to find a new place to live smack in the middle of the holidays.  Luckily, Killian has a spare room to offer her.  The two are friendly, but never really hung out much one on one.  But that didn't stop Killian from developing a major crush on Leighton.  When Leighton's sister tells their parents that Killian is Leighton's fiance, he now has an excuse to get as close to her as he wants.  And it turns out, she might want him to get close and stay there. This was fantastic and had everything I wanted in a holiday romance.  I absolutely loved both Leighton and Killian, but their dynamic together was even better.  They are one of those couples where the fake dating feels real right from the beginning and the whole world knows it except the two of them.  We get some great holiday antics from Leighton's family as well.  Killian has anxiety and Leighton has PCOS so we get to see how they come together to help each other out when the other needs extra support.  We also get to see characters from the first book, which is always a fun time.

Wreck the Halls - Tessa Bailey

This rockstar-adjacent romance follows Melody and Beat - their mothers were a rock duo who had a very messy break up while they were pregnant.  Now, decades later, Melody and Beat are approached with a reality show following them as they try to reunite their mothers for one show on Christmas Eve.  Both Melody and Beat know there isn't much hope for the reunion but Beat needs the money and Melody wants to help so they agree.  I'm not usually a fan of famous people romances unless both MCs are in the industry and fully understand what they are getting into together.  Bailey sets up the connection between Melody and Beat perfectly and they both mention multiple times how they are the only ones who can really understand each other.  The majority of this read takes place as they are filming/live-streaming the reality show and that wasn't a huge draw for me as I'm not a big reality TV person.  However, I did love the behind the scenes details and we get a good number of scenes where it is just Melody ad Beat, no cameras. I did feel like the conflicts between the two of them were repetitive and felt like they were getting resolved the same way each time.  So much so that by the time we get to the final make-up scene, I wasn't sold that the two of them wouldn't have another repeat of the same issue not so far down the road. 

Set the Record Straight - Hannah Bonam-Young

This FF, friends to lovers romance follows Clara and Evan.  The two have been friends since childhood and Evan is gay while Clara is straight. But when Clara's new boss seems to think Clara is queer, the two agree to fake date and attend each other's work holiday parties together.  But when fake feelings begin feeling real, the two friends realize they have something special between the two of them.  This was a wonderful, zero angst romance. I adored Clara and Evan as friends and literally happy squealed once they got together.  This is Clara's bisexual awakening, of sorts, but it felt pretty natural to her character.  I loved the quirky holiday traditions that Clara's family has and seeing just how welcoming and warm they were to the news that the best friends are now romantically involved.  This is a dual POV read, but I found Clara and Evan's voices to be so similar that there were times where I couldn't tell who was speaking.  There is also a bit too much outside tension for my liking for a novella of this length - we have Clara's work event, Evan's ex girlfriend and her holiday party, and Evan's homophobic parents in their hometown.  None of these ended up being particularly stressful or long but there was just a lot packed into not that many pages.  The romance was incredibly well done and the spicy scenes had the perfect balance of heat and emotion. 

Romance Wrap-up November 2023

 One Night in Hartswood - Emma Denny

This MM historical romance follows Penn and Raff in 1360's Oxford.  Penn is arranged to be married to Raff's sister, but runs away the night before the wedding.  Raff is sent out into Hartswood to find the soon-to-be groom and restore his family's honor.  Only problem is that he has never met William de Foucart and doesn't know he goes by the nickname Penn.  So when Raff makes the assumption that Penn is simply a palace worker, Penn doesn't correct him.  As the two travel the countryside together, they grow closer.  But when their true identities are revealed, it could spell disaster for them both.  I really enjoyed this read and am finding that while I'm not a huge historical romance reader, I do really love the LGBTQ+ ones.  The set up for this was really intriguing and I loved how it let us get right into Penn and Raff's journey.  The travel element did get a little repetitive, but Denny was able to keep inching the tension between the two men as they traveled so I didn't mind too much. Both characters were really well developed and we got such a great sense of their personalities so quickly in the book.  The slow burn chemistry between Penn and Raff was superb and I loved how we got to see each of their inner monologues about how they were feeling about the romance as well as their own secret identities.  I wasn't expecting it to get as dark as it did in the third act with abusive family members and near death situations, but I loved seeing Penn get to use his strength of political machinations to try and solve some big problems. 

Thanks to Harper Collins for the ARC.  

Publication date was November 7, 2023.

Keep this Between Us - Albany Archer

This small town romance follows Tuesday and Bond.  Tuesday's family has sent her away on a forced restart after a scandal.  She's determined to make it work, but wasn't expecting to fall in love with the town or Bond.  The two meet on Tuesday's first night in town at the local bar and have an instant connection.  After a few days of getting to know each other and falling quickly, the two find out that Tuesday is the new employee at Bond's family business that was quickly and unexpectedly bought out from under him. But when the past comes back to threaten Tuesday's new life, the two of them will have to figure out if their new romance is worth fighting for.  This was a spectacular small town romance.  It had everything I was hoping for - great side characters, charming banter, and a lot of heart.  This did lean a bit too far into the insta-love side of things for my personal preference, but I think Albany did a great job fleshing out both characters so I did believe that they had a real connection.  I loved the different 'versions' of Tuesday that we saw as she was working through her trauma and figuring out what she wants out of her own life.  Bond was such a solid rock in her life as well as the lives of the other characters we meet.  Their connection was electric and I loved how they supported each other.  I hope there are more books set in this small town because I would absolutely read on in the series. 

Thanks to the author for the ARC. 

Expected publication date is December 5, 2023.

From the Start - Katie Duggan 

This romance follows childhood enemies Nic and Josh. After unexpectedly crashing his birthday party, Nic overhears some people discussing Josh's prowess in the bedroom.  This inspires Nic to ask Josh to help her learn how she can communicate and enjoy her time with partnered sex.  The two embark on sex lessons that turn out more explosive than either of them expected.  I loved this read and Josh is a new favorite MMC.  Both Nic and Josh are such complex characters that really came together in a very realistic way.  They didn't magically 'fix' each other, but they both made an effort to understand and support the other when they needed it and it absolutely melted my heart. The sex lessons were off the chart hot but there was also so much heart in this story.  Nic's autism felt very realistic and came up consistently throughout the story, so it wasn't used as just a plot device.  Josh's feelings about his body was really refreshing and was something I don't see often, even when reading other books with bigger MMCs. There were great side characters - especially Nic's whole family.  I really hope we get more books in this series. 

Thanks to the author for the ARC.  

Publication date was November 21, 2023

Friends Don't Fall in Love - Erin Hahn

This is the second book in the county music romance follows Lorelai and Craig.  Long time friends, Craig was the only one who stayed by Lorelai's side after she sang a protest song - even her fiance left her.  After a one night stand, Lorelai left the industry for five years until she felt the itch again.  She calls up the one friend she has left in the industry - Craig.  Craig has always had a crush on Lorelai, even when she was engaged to his former bandmate.  But now he owns his own indie record label and he's convinced him and Lorelai might finally come together as more than friends.  This was such a great read and I loved Lorelai and Craig.  Famous people romances aren't usually a go-to for me, but Hahn does a great job of really focusing the story on the characters so it felt very grounded.  There is a good amount of country music inside baseball going on in this book, but Hahn integrates it very well into the overall story so it never felt too heavy.  I loved Lorelai and Craig as characters and their different journeys of their careers.  They had great chemistry but I wanted to see more of the friends side of things.  We see some flashbacks of them back in the day as well as a few scenes of them being friends in the current day but I wanted more on page to really feel their friendship.  

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the ARC.

Publication date was October 17, 2023

Back Into It - Eve Dangerfield

This is the fourth book in the Playing for Love series and follows Cheryl and Patrick.  Cheryl is 9 years older than Patrick, a fact that puts him squarely in the friendzone.  Patrick doesn't mind, at first. He'd rather have Cheryl as a friend than not have her at all.  But after a party, Cheryl confesses that she wants to be more than friends only she needs him to take control.  All bets are off starting the next morning but when Cheryl tries to go back to their previous arrangements, putting Patrick back in the 'friend' box, he'll do anything to show her he can be much, much more. I loved Cheryl and Patrick as well as their love story.  Both characters are believably flawed in their own ways and those flaws do affect other parts of their lives, not just the romantic part.  While Patrick is a professional football (soccer) player, we don't get a whole lot of that side so this didn't really feel like a typical 'sports' romance. We get a lot of flashbacks to how they were as friends in the 4 years before the night of the party which helped to show just how close of friends they were.  I wanted to see more of those friendship moments once they actually got together, especially at the end after they resolved their 3rd act breakup. Dangerfield can certainly heat up a book in no time and the intimate scenes we get are top notch.  This did lean a little into the degradation side of things which isn't my personal preference, but it did feel authentic for our characters.  We get some cameos from the previous couples in the series which is always fun.  

 

Thanks to the author for the ARC.  

Expected publication date is December 5, 2023. 

Pumpkin Spice - Tagan Shepard

 This small town, FF romance follows Nicki and Carter.  After a major breakup, Nicki is ready to give up on romance and settle into her life of minimal human contact - with the exception of her sister and niece.  Carter recently moved to town after a break up of her own and is helping out on the family's pumpkin patch.  The two women instantly hit it off, and not even a series of clumsy accidents can dull the shiny new relationship blooming.  This was such a cute romance and it perfectly captured the autumn vibes I was hoping it would.  Nicki and Carter are both in their 40s and both are cautious with their hearts so they aren't going out on a limb for just any romance.  This was a bit of a shorter read at 264 pages, but it still managed to pull off a slow(ish) burn romance. I liked that the romance was a little slower so it gave Nicki and Carter more time to get to know the other.  I loved the amount of simple, little dates they went on and small conversations they had that consistently got deeper as their relationship bloomed. We get a good cast of small town characters as well and some quirky antics.  There were a few times where it felt like we skipped over scenes that I really wanted to see.  One example is when Nicki is invited to dinner with Carter's family at the end of a chapter.  She agrees, and I'm expecting the next chapter to be that dinner scene, but instead it skips to the next day.  Since this was an ARC, maybe that is different in the finalized copy.

Thanks to NetGalley and Bold Strokes Books for the ARC.

Publication date was October 10, 2023

On the Plus Side - Jenny L Howe

 This makeover TV show romance follow Everly and Logan. Everly has been nominated for the new series of On the Plus Side - a shows that focuses on plus-sized people and updates not only their closets, but all other aspects of their lives.  Logan is the camera man tasked with following Everly around always seems to manage to catch her most ungraceful moments.  As filming continues, Everly starts to feel like she's finally coming back into herself after years of blending into the background.  This is one of those romances that felt like the romance was the 2nd plot line and the real focus was Everly's journey.  I think the majority of the book being from Every's POV really tilted the read toward her.  I loved her story and found so many of points that resonated with me. I did love the romance we see on page and the banter between Everly and Logan from the very beginning was fantastic.  The TV show element was, of course, a very large part of the plot as well.  I don't usually gravitate toward those TV shows, so I'm not super familiar with their own tropes but Howe does a great job of giving the reader enough information in a natural way that I didn't feel lost at all.

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the ARC.

Expected publication date is December 26, 2023.

Love, Naturally - Sophie Sullivan

This romance follows Presley and Beckett.  After a breakup, Presley decides to go on her planned couples trip to Get Lost Lodge by herself.  Beckett's family own the lodge and he's coming over to help them out.  He and Presley have an instant connection and the ten days they have together before Presley returns home suddenly don't seem like they'll be enough.  This was such a feel-good read for me and I really enjoyed it. We have a great cast of side characters and get some quirky small town antics.  Presley and Beckett were great characters and Sullivan does a fantastic job of really giving the reader a good sense of their character right away.  I'm not the biggest fan of insta-love stories but I could believe Presley and Beckett had that much of a connection.  We get enough scenes of them talking about their big hopes, dreams, and personal histories that I could feel their connection was more real than some other insta-love situations. I did want a little more friction in the narrative.  They just fell together so easily and then everything worked out perfectly for them and the other characters.  It left me feeling like it was all a little ~too~ perfect and I wanted just a little more of a struggle to get to those good outcomes.  I'd love if we get Beckett's siblings in future books.

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the ARC.  

Expected publication date is January 16, 2024.