I rated this holiday romance a 4/5 stars. I usually don’t think about characters when I’m away from the book, but I did about this one. It dig a spot into my brain. This first person narrative (all in one POV) had heavy LGTBQ+ representation throughout. I’m glad I picked this one over others in the book of the month selections.
Here’s my live thoughts while reading:
With the prologue being “episode 7” I don’t know if the events were real or a film scene as homework or what. I love that we have LGBTQ+ representation right off the bat with the main characters and the snow setting was set so poetically.
Chapter one starts ten months after the prologue scene So it looks like a dual timelines story. It’s fun to read a date in a contemporary book that is the the extremely near future, “December 20, 2022”
Ellie is having a hard time in life. Her rent is going up. She hates her current job, which doesn’t pay enough for the increased apartment cost. Her manager won’t give her the promotion and she has social anxiety so meeting up with coworkers to relax isn’t an option. All she can think about is last Christmas where she might’ve been the girl of her dreams. But right now, everything has gone to shit.
I love how she’s approached by this sexy, rich, available guy but he’s actually going to be the obstacle.
I’m learning all types of new terms I was unaware of- demisexual, allosexual… I’m checking in with some notes after Chapter 10 but don’t have many because the story has run smoothly. I’m liking the fake relationship and the trapezoid relationship situation. The only criticism I have is sometimes the gender and sexuality topic feels preachy or forced or unnatural to prove a point, like a lesson.
Halfway I’m loving that miscommunication isn’t the issue here. Oh I’m desperate to know what really happened that fateful morning last year.
Sometimes it feels like Ellie’s inner dialogue doesn’t quite match her personality in her dialogue when she has witty comebacks. I don’t hear her wit when she’s thinking stuff so it doesn’t feel real when she makes those comments. And Jack should be more upset during this entire book. She’s taking things too nicely. Also, I wish they weren’t drinking in the cabin scene.
So in chapter 27 when all shit hits the fan it doesn’t feel believable. Because Jack already knew most of the info. And the one part she says is unforgivable doesn’t make sense because that flaw was already shown earlier yet Jack supported Ellie through that fear.
The declaration of love was a cute scene but I wish I could’ve pictured the scene a little better. It felt a tiny bit rushed.
The ending was a happily ever “start” to their relationship which is cute and realistic since not everything lasts but everyone’s rooting for them.
I’ve read a bunch mostly MM romances before but only one other FF so this one was different than my usual read. I like romance but it’s still hard for me to fully get into their feelings and feel turned on during the sexy scenes when it’s not mirroring my sexuality. I want to experience and support different varieties of diversity within the sexuality range in fiction, but it’s harder for me to connect and it doesn’t move me as much. Is that a personal issue or do others out there feel the same way? Is this a topic ever discussed among readers? Obviously we all have our own preferences in types of reads. I don’t want to read only hetero characters, yet those relationships impact me more.
Cassie Swindon 