Romantic Holiday Books to Read
Pretty soon it will be Christmas. Since the holiday is coming up soon, I decided to review some of the books I read. Each book is either Christmas or Thanksgiving-related. I enjoyed reading each book.
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Christmas in Spite of You
Thank you, NetGalley, Black Odyssey Media, and K.C. Mills, for providing me with the arc Christmas in Spite of You. I will be giving an honest review in return.
Trigger Warnings- sex scenes, assault.
Tropes: Forced Proximity and Grumpy and sunshine
Imagine sharing your one-bedroom apartment with a sexy
businessperson during the holidays. What would you do?
Noel Anderson is a Christmas-loving woman. She has two big
Christmas wishes on her list. She wants to go home for Christmas to see her
parents. Her other wish is to land a new virtual design job. She wants to know
about the virtual design job before Christmas. Her email informed her that the
hiring process would begin after the holidays. Now Noel feels overwhelmed as
she urgently requires cash for rent and other necessities. Noel advertised her
apartment for rent over the holidays on Shared Space. Placing this ad will give
her a chance to earn money. Whoever answered the ad would have the place to
themselves. Noel’s plan was flawless.
Kanton answered Noel's ad to arrange a meeting with
Noel's neighbor. Noel and Kanton had a perfect plan to increase their finances.
Unfortunately, Noel has a cold and cannot go home. This change in her plan
makes Christmas-obsessed Noel grouchy. She decides to cancel the ad for the
house guest, puts in her cancellation, and goes to sleep. The next
morning, after waking up, she finds a strange man cleaning her kitchen. The man
is Kanton, who she notices is well-dressed and handsome.
His looks do not put her at ease, so she charges into the
kitchen and demands him to stop. Kanton finds her behavior amusing, but her
body is sexy. He tells her he is the house guest and has a right to be there.
They go back and forth about his right to be there.
Noel finds out he does because her cancellation did
not go through. Now she is stuck with the hot and Christmas-hating man for one
week.
I love how K. C. Mills takes the time to give background
information about Noel and Kanton. Mills provides information about both main
characters’ traits, ambitions, family, life, and connections. Noel has a sweet
and giving nature. Her positive outlook causes people to love her. She also has
a wonderful support system. Noel’s supportive system inspires her to have hope
for the future. They also motivate her to build a healthy romantic
relationship.
While Noel has people who admire her, Kanton keeps people at bay. He wants a
family but does not find a compatible significant other. The other thing he
pursues is clients. His apprehension of having a genuine relationship may come
from his mother’s behavior. She wants him to marry the perfect girl she picked
for him. This is one reason He does not want to go home for Christmas. The
author also describes that his family is not sentimental about Christmas. That
is why he does not celebrate the holiday.
Once Noel finds out he does not celebrate Christmas, she makes this Christmas
special. Her plan allows her and Kanton to have intimate moments, like watching
romantic holiday movies and eating together. These small moments allow the
couple to share laughs and cuddles. It is a wonderful way to build up to the
sex scenes. It makes their romance more believable and special. Overall, it was
a heartwarming book about people finding love.
Only for the Holidays
Thank you to NetGalley and Abiola Bello, for providing me with the arc Only for the Holidays. My review is based on my opinions of the book.
Tropes: Forced Proximity, Fake Dating Representation: Black female main character, Black male main characters, Black family
Tia is planning her boyfriend Michael’s eighteen birthday. She is excited to plan the celebration and spend time with Michael. Michael only contacts her about his party. Micheal comes clean and says he needs space. That her family drama is too much for him. Tia’s heart is broken, and she is determined to get Michael back. He relents her attempts and focuses on her creating his party. Tia’s mom says that the family is going away to the country for Christmas. This makes Tia upset about who wants to be there for Mike, even though he does not care about her. Tia goes with her mom and sisters on their holiday trip.
While at the hotel where they plan to stay, a young man named Quincy has a broken heart, too. He broke up with his girlfriend. Still angry about what she did, he tries to get ready for the Winter Ball. The Winter Ball is an important thing in their community, and Quincy is helping his parents host it. He, however, does not have a date with the ball. After friends question him about his date for the event, he lies and says he has one.
He’s now pondering how to score a date. Tia and her family arrive, and Mike is all she can think about. Her frustration about being away from her so-called boyfriend causes her to focus on others or her surroundings. This leads to one accident that is quite funny. This, unsurprisingly, catches Quincy’s attention. Her behavior makes him think is stuck up, but he finds her cute. He quickly understands Tia is in a horrible situation with her boyfriend. Something Quincy can relate to after dealing with his ex. Tia and Quincy spend time with each other. They realize they have more in common than they think. This leads to Quincy asking Tia to the Winter ball. She agrees despite still having feelings for her ex. The romance between Tia and Mike is heartwarming.
Tia’s tendency to have accidents often results in humorous situations. This makes Quincy adore her and want to assist her in difficult situations. Quincy was a very loyal person, which was something Tia needed. She needed a boyfriend who exuded unwavering loyalty, allowing her to express herself, and providing unwavering support. I love the moments they have together. Those scenes include baking with one another, riding horses, and ice skating. They even had a scene in a hot tub. It has a lot of romantic moments. I enjoyed their book and would like to read a sequel or another book like this one.
I’ll be Gone for Christmas
Thank you to NetGalley and Georgia K. Boone, for providing me with the arc I’ll be Gone for Christmas. My review is based on my opinions of the book.
Tropes: Forced Proximity Representation: Black main female characters, Black Queer characters, Queer Characters, Interracial couples.
This book is quite different because it has two female protagonists and tells each of their own stories. Bee Tyler is one of the main characters in the book. She is a writer for a tech company in San Francisco that she and her twin sister run together. Bee is the creative type and believes she is falling short in her role at the tech company. Her sister takes care of the coding and is the mastermind behind the whole operation. Bee feels like she failed her sister because she has finished her side of the project. The fear of failure and retribution from her sister causes her to agree to swap her home with a stranger.
She does not tell anyone but her closest friends that she is leaving. Her friends convince her to use their Vacate app to arrange the house swap. That stranger is Clover. Clover has her problems. She is still grieving over her loss and ending her engagement with her best friend, Knox. This grief causes her to swap houses with Bee. Clover packs her bags and leaves the country life behind in Salem, Ohio. Goodbye.
Clover’s arrival in the city was quite a culture shock. The people were in a rush, and she bumped into quite a few people. One person she bumps into is Bee’s sister, Beth. Upon meeting Beth, Clover thinks she is curt and dismissive towards her. Despite her behavior, Clover finds Beth attractive. The two continue to meet one another through Bee’s friends. All of Bee’s friends expose Clover to a world where people are open to their sexuality. This helps Clover overcome her issues on her own.
Bee also overcomes a few problems of her own, and that is to be herself. Clover’s dad is quite fond of Bee and spends time with her. The affectionate tone in his voice when discussing his deceased wife and cherished Clover caused Bee to realize that families can display genuine love for each other. She realizes she can experience romantic love once more upon meeting Knox.
Knox is a gentleman but flirts with Clover. Compared to Clover and Beth’s relationship, their relationship took a while to develop. I wanted more love scenes between Bee and Knox.
Georgia K. Boone did a commendable job presenting a context for Clover’s journey of self-discovery in her sexuality. The author explored Beth’s parents’ perspective on her sexuality. This understanding allows readers to understand her relationship with her parents and Bee. I also like how the author puts you in the mood for Christmas by including classic Holiday songs in the book.
A Perfect Stuffing Danielle Allen
I purchased this book: here.
Trigger Warnings: sex scenes Representation: Black main female character. Black main male character.
Damon and Thalia met when both picked a lemon pie. It was the last one. The two realize liking the same pie is not the only thing they have in common. Both happen to be attending the same event. The sparks were flying at the store but even more at the Friendsgiving.
I enjoyed this novella and the chemistry between the two main characters. This book was spicer compared to the others, but I enjoyed it.
