December 12, 2024 • 50 mins
Holiday Picks:
- Christmas Presents by Lisa Unger
- The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year by Ally Carter
- Faking Christmas by Cindy Steel
- Emergency Contact by Lauren Layne and Anthony LeDonne
- Cabin Mate by Leah Brunner
- Season's Schemings by Katie Bailey
- Lovelight Farms by B.K. Borison
- All I Want is You by Falon Ballard
- A Risk Worth Taking by Jessica Joyce
- Merrily Yours by Rachel Lewis
- Christmas by Design by Allie Samberts
Books mentioned in this episode:
- Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six by Lisa Unger
- The New Couple in 5B by Lisa Unger
- The Blonde Identity by Ally Carter
- The One With the Kiss Cam by Cindy Steel
- That Fine Line by Cindy Steel
- Double or Nothing by Cindy Steel
- DC Eagles Series by Leah Brunner
- Holiday Hostilities by Katie Bailey
For links to the books discussed in this episode, click the link here to take you to the Google Doc to view the list.
For episode feedback, future reading and author recommendations, you can text the podcast by clicking the "Send us a message button" above.
For more, follow along on Instagram @whereileftoffpod.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
Today's episode of when I Left Off is brought to
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Pick up your copy whereverbooks are sold and if you love
it, don't forget to leave.
I Left Off.
(00:53):
I'm Kristen, your host, andtoday we are talking all about
Christmas books.
These are my Christmas slashholiday book recommendations.
Spoiler alert it is all romance.
Yeah, it's all romance, sorry,so if you wanted, well, there
aren't really that many likeChristmas thrillers or Christmas
(01:15):
fantasy novels.
It's a lot of romance, andevery romance author this year
said I'm going to come out witha Christmas book.
Like this must have been sixmonths ago, a year ago.
That they're like you know whatI need to do in 2024?
I need to write a Christmasbook.
And I said, okay, I'm going totry to read them all.
Did I get through all of them?
Definitely not, but I gotthrough a lot and let me tell
(01:37):
you, the research for thisepisode was extensive.
I read a lot of Christmas books.
Some were better than others.
I've compiled my favorites totalk to you today.
All about them.
It's a mix of open door andclosed door.
A lot of the main books aregoing to be closed door and then
a lot of the novellas are opendoor, but I do have a mix.
(02:01):
I do have some full lengthnovels that are open door as
well.
So stay tuned for all the books.
And before I get into romancebooks, because you're already
here, anyway, if you said youknow what, my Christmas reading
wouldn't be complete without aserial killer and a Santa mask,
(02:24):
I've got you covered.
So the first book I am going tobe talking about is a thriller,
but after that it's all romance, I swear.
So okay, here is this one.
It's called Christmas Presentsby Lisa Unger.
So I listened to this onaudiobook and this book came out
a year or two ago.
It came out a couple years agoand I've wanted to read it since
, and then it was available onmy Hoopla, so I decided to give
(02:49):
it a shot.
Like I said, it does feature aserial killer and a Santa mask.
So there's that.
Lisa Unger wrote Secluded CabinSleep 6.
And she also wrote this year'sbook was the Couple the New
Couple in 5B, I believe.
Pretty sure it's a new couple.
In 5B I did like I likedSecluded Cabin Sleep Six I there
(03:13):
was one part that slightlybugged me a little bit, but
overall, like the readingexperience was good.
It was twisty, it was creepy.
Again, they're all like in acabin and people are dying off.
So it's kind of one of those.
And then there were noneretellings kind of thing.
So I always like those and Ilike the cabin setting.
So I would say, possibly giveSecluded Cabin Sleep 6 a try.
(03:36):
The couple the new couple in 5Bwasn't my favorite, but there
are a lot of people that likedit.
So you know, if you tend to notlike my Thriller Rex and we're
on the opposite side of things,then maybe give that one a try
too.
I don't know, but Christmaspresents that's what we're
talking about right now.
So, okay, it's not exactly dualtimeline, but there are several
(03:58):
flashbacks throughout.
Our main character is the onlyliving witness to a crime
committed by her high schoolex-boyfriend, who is currently
serving a life sentence for thecrime.
She now owns a bookstore andshe ends up crossing paths with
an author slash true crimepodcaster who comes on the scene
and is doing a deep dive on thecase.
He is also trying to solve therecent string of disappearances
(04:22):
in neighboring towns.
Will solving one case lead tothe other?
Will the killer take anothervictim before it can be solved?
You would have to read to findout.
So that is Christmas Presents,and I thought it was at least
like a good, well-written, fun,christmassy thriller.
Was it maybe the mostentertaining thriller I've ever
(04:45):
read?
No, it was a little bit slow inparts, but the ending really
grabbed me and it was unique.
So I would say, give this one ashot.
If you were looking for aChristmas thriller, there aren't
that many out there that arefull-length books, so I would
recommend this one.
If you do tend to likethrillers, and especially if you
like Lisa Unger, then go aheadand give this one a shot.
(05:05):
It was, it was decent, it waspretty good.
So, anyway, that is rec numberone.
That's a thriller.
Next up is all romance, allromance.
For the rest, don't worry,first up is my OK.
So I read this book this year.
It actually came out this yearand I am now going to be doing a
reread of this every year.
(05:26):
It is a must read now.
I loved it.
It is Closed Door and this isthe Most Wonderful Crime of the
Year by Allie Carter, and this Iwould classify as more of a
rom-com mystery.
And before I get into a littlebit more about the book, it was
sent to me by HarperCollins inexchange for my honest review,
(05:46):
so thank you to HarperCollinsfor sending this my way.
Oh my gosh.
Like I said, I loved this book.
Also, I would also like to saythat I've convinced several
friends to buy this book.
You know how, whenever you lovea book and you immediately have
to get everyone that you knowto also read said book.
(06:07):
That's really where I'm at withthis one, and everyone that
I've recommended it to has alsoloved it, and I have honestly
not heard a negative review.
I've even like, recommended itin the comment sections on
Instagram and other people haveliked and replied with how much
they loved it.
So I have not heard a singleperson say that they do not love
(06:29):
this book.
So, basically, don't take myword for it.
Just take everyone's word forit and, if you need it, just a
little bit more convincing togive it a try.
Sarah Adams also loved thisbook, so, basically, you just
need to read.
It is what I'm saying.
Okay, so this is Ali Carter.
She wrote the Blonde Ambitionand I need to read that one now,
(06:52):
after having read this book,this was my first Ali Carter and
this will not be my last AliCarter, so let me go ahead and
tell you a little bit more aboutthis book.
Okay, this book starts out as amystery and for a second I was
kind of wondering should it bein the mystery genre.
But then she drops a plot twistin the middle and you realize
(07:14):
exactly why it's a romance novel.
She, she wins, she just wins.
Okay, before I get into theplot synopsis, I just wanted to
point out one more thing.
I know I'm gushing, but youknow what?
It's fine, it's the Christmasepisode, so I'm allowed to gush
about Christmas books after I'veread so many in preparation for
this episode.
(07:34):
So this is one of those rarebooks that is actually amazing,
in both audio and physical.
I started out with the arc onmy Kindle that HarperCollins
sent me and I was reading that,and then, to be able to get
through all the Christmas books,I had to switch to the audio
book, and I will say thatswitching between the Kindle and
(07:55):
the audio book, so I basicallykind of tandem read this there.
It's both amazing in audio andthe physical.
It's one of those rare booksbecause I feel like a lot of
books are either really good asan audio book or really not, and
this one, honestly, you couldconsume it either way and I
think you'd have pretty much thesame reading experience.
Ultimately it's.
(08:15):
It's kind of hard to put intowords, but I think it's the
pacing of the book that justreally makes it special.
And when I say the pacing, Ireally mean like the formatting
of the sentences, and it justmakes it feel like a really
punchy, funny, entertaining readthat you're going to fly
through.
It's like the way that thesentence structure and the
formatting of all the sentencesare done to create a specific
(08:37):
pacing that translates bothwritten and then also on audio.
Because I was a little bitskeptical.
I liked the written version somuch I didn't want to switch to
the audio, and then I did and Ireally enjoyed that way too.
So, okay, I'll actually tellyou what this book is about now.
So Maggie and Ethan are rivalmystery authors.
Ethan's basically like a JamesPatterson, and Maggie writes
(09:01):
cozy mysteries about a cat thatsniffs out poison.
They start out at theirpublisher's office Christmas
party and are invited to thehome of their mysterious biggest
fan for Christmas.
The two rivals are forced tosolve a crime that unfolds when
they get there, as things startto take a turn in the snowy
mansion.
And that's all I can give youwithout any spoilers in the book
(09:25):
.
So I'll say a couple more thingsabout it.
But oh my gosh, ethan, he I'mtrying, I'm trying to tell you,
but I'm already laughing.
So at the most random times,whenever they're both alone, at
(09:49):
the most random times wheneverthey're both alone, he I don't
you know, I think that herealized Maggie's disdain for
him based on her comments, but Idon't know, sometimes I can't
tell, like I'm going to have toreread this already to see what
his level of awareness of herdisdain for him was.
But anyway, whenever they werealone, he would say something
like I want to make out it wouldjust annoy the snot out of her
(10:12):
and she was so bothered by himand it was hilarious and it was
like a little side joke thatAllie put in there the whole
time those like I want to makeout is what Ethan would say,
like every time they were alonein there the whole time.
Those like want to make out iswhat Ethan would say, like every
time they were alone.
And it was just hilarious howlike absolutely enraged Maggie
was by that statement.
(10:32):
And also I did want to point outreally quick that the clues are
Christmassy as well.
Like, some of the clues areChristmassy, which I thought was
a really fun twist.
I mean, there are Christmasmysteries, but again there
aren't.
I feel like in the mysterythriller genre in general, there
aren't a lot of, there reallyaren't a whole lot of options
(10:52):
for Christmassy, and so I likedhow this one.
Of course it does have theromantic elements in there, but
the clues were actuallyChristmassy and the plot twist
there were some plot twists thatI didn't see coming.
I was able to guess a couple,but I was not able to guess all
of them.
There are enough in there towhere it doesn't feel overdone,
but it gives you something tolook forward to.
(11:13):
So even if you guess one like,you're not going to guess
another one, and so it was justa really fun like whodunit
mystery with some romance, andit had a lot of banter and I
just found myself laughing andjust genuinely enjoying the ride
.
So, like I said, I'm going to bereading this book every year.
(11:34):
It's definitely going to be amust read every December.
I loved the Most WonderfulCrime of the Year by Ali Carter,
and it and the next book I'mgoing to be talking about are my
two favorites.
So, if you take my advice atall, read the Most Wonderful
Crime of the Year by AllieCarter.
And then I'm about to talkabout Faking Christmas by Cindy
(11:56):
Steele, which you, if you listento the podcast, you probably
know how much I love that one.
But those, those were my twofavorites.
Those are my two absolute stand, standouts, and all the other
books in this episode are so, so, so good.
I would recommend all of them,but I think that the most
wonderful crime of the year andfake and Christmas are my two
favorites, so I cannot wait totalk to you about both of those.
(12:17):
Before I get into fake andChristmas, I did also want to
say that Harper Collins sent mea second book.
It was was A Jingle, bell,mingle, and this is by Julie
Murphy and Sierra Simone, andthis book was too spicy for me.
So I am not including it in mywrap up because I did end up
DNFing it because it was toospicy.
(12:38):
But you know me, I'm prettylike.
For the most part I'm prettytame on my spice preferences.
So if you wanted somethingspicier, then this definitely
may be the book for you.
It does have a really cutecover, so I would suggest
reading the blurb to see if itis for you.
So a Jingle Bell Mingle was toospicy for me, but that means
(13:02):
that it may be perfect for you.
I have a lot of friends that ifbooks are too spicy for me,
they immediately want to knowwhich book it is and will try it
out in five seconds.
Also with that one, though, itdoes take place in the beginning
at the wedding of one of thecharacters.
So you may want to read A MerryLittle Meat Cute as well and go
(13:24):
ahead and grab that one too,just to give you a little bit
more context, unless you don'tmind and you just want to go
right into A Jingle Bell Mingle.
But those are the two booksthat I was sent, and the Most
Wonderful Crime of the Year forme was just a perfect hit.
Okay, next up.
Was just a perfect hit.
(13:49):
Okay, next up, faking Christmasby Cindy Steele.
So this is also a closed doorbook.
Okay, this is this is myfavorite Christmas book, and
Cindy Steele has a specialedition of this one, which I
honestly want.
So bad, but I just haven't doneyet because I'm trying to be
better, but I may have to.
Yeah, but I may have to.
Yeah, I may have to break downand get the special edition of
this book.
It's so cute.
(14:09):
Okay, this is one, if youremember correctly that I
started out on audiobook, lovedit so incredibly much on
audiobook that I actually endedup ordering on Amazon the
physical, and I had to finish itwith the physical because I was
just afraid that I was going tomiss out on any detail at all
(14:30):
and I just needed to read therest with my eyes to capture
every single moment and savorthis book.
And I have the page flags toprove it.
You can see where theyliterally start, like almost
halfway.
So, and also, as I was waitingfor my book to come in from
Amazon, I was dying and really,really, really wanted to hit
(14:51):
play on the audio book, but Isaid, no, you're not, and so
that was a little bit of tortureuntil it came in.
So that's how much I love thisbook.
Ok, this is what it's about,and then I'll just tell you more
about why I love it.
Ok, it's almost break for highschool English teachers Olive
and Miles.
Olive sees Miles as enemynumber one and after an incident
at a teacher assembly, she justneeds a break from him.
(15:14):
She's traveling to Vermont, toa ski resort, with her family
for the holidays and her momthinks that it's a great idea to
invite her ex-boyfriend and hisfamily, hoping that they'll
reconnect.
Panic leads to Olive lying andsaying that Miles is her
boyfriend to get everyone offher back.
But it's fine until they get tothe lodge and find out his
(15:38):
family owns it.
So now they actually have tofake date to solidify the lie,
because of course, he's therefor Christmas break as well.
Can Olive convince her family?
Her arch nemesis is actuallyher boyfriend?
Read to find out.
Okay, if you have not read aCindy Steele book, what are you
(16:00):
doing?
I don't care if you read OpenDoor.
I don't care if you read ClosedDoor.
You doing?
I don't care if you read OpenDoor, I don't care if you read
Closed Door.
Cindy Steele is one of thoseauthors that she's just a
romance author.
If you read Open Door I readOpen Door a decent amount and I
didn't notice like I just don'treally notice that her books are
closed door because they justhave so much banter.
(16:22):
They have so much like steamand pining and just everything
and laughs that you're not evengoing to notice that they're
closed door.
And for those readers thatwon't close closed door, you'll
be pleasantly surprised.
Cindy Steele just hits it outof the park.
Even she said I did have her onthe podcast and even she has
(16:43):
said that several open doorreaders have come to her and
said I, you're one of the onlyclosed door authors I read.
So if you have not read CindySteele and you want a Christmas
book Faking Christmas isfantastic If you want a book
from her regular grouping, Iwould suggest the one with the
kiss cam.
You've probably heard thingsabout that.
It is fantastic.
I mean, she doesn't miss.
(17:05):
I have not read a bad CindySteele book at all.
But I also really like thatfine line yes or wait.
Was it Double or Nothing?
Oh, no, no, I can't remember ifthe one I liked slightly better
was Double or Nothing or thatfine line.
I think it was that Fine Line?
I'm pretty sure that Fine Linewas my favorite so far, but
(17:26):
Double or Nothing is still alsoreally good.
So, anyway, you cannot go wrongwith any of Cindy's books.
But back to Faking Christmas.
So this book it has the banterYou're going to laugh.
It has a lot of depth.
That's one thing that Cindyalso does fantastically well.
She has a lot of depth in herbooks, but they don't
necessarily come across that way.
(17:48):
They still come across as funrom-coms, but there's a lot
going on underneath the surfacefor all of these characters that
will unfold throughout thestory.
And this has one of the bestthird act conflicts that I've
ever read.
Notice I did not say third actbreakup, I said third act
conflict, and I don't like thirdact breakups.
(18:08):
But the way that this was donewas honestly just masterful.
It was masterful.
Everything about this book isgreat.
I could not enjoy it more.
I finished it and immediatelywanted to reread it, and I don't
tend to reread books.
So just take that for what youwill.
This book is just pure gold.
Like.
If you trust my recommendationsat all, just read this book.
(18:32):
It is so good.
Faking Christmas is I really.
It's my top.
It's my favorite Christmas book.
So read it, love it.
You're gonna love it if youread it.
Everyone that I've recommendedthis to that has read it has
really, really enjoyed it.
Again, I don't think I've hearda negative review of this one
(18:54):
either.
I cannot remember hearing anegative review of Faking
Christmas.
So if you needed an excuse tostart Cindy Steele, let this be
your excuse.
Read Faking Christmas.
Okay, up next this I alsolistened to this one on
audiobook and I did love theaudiobook.
(19:15):
This is Emergency Contacts byLauren Lane and Anthony LaDonna,
and with this they are actuallyhigh school sweethearts and
they're married in real life.
So I thought that was kind offun.
But they wrote a romance noveltogether.
This one is also closed door,but with all of these so far
that are closed door, I honestly, again, just didn't really
(19:39):
notice that they're closed door.
Like, I just didn't noticethere was so much banter.
The plot moves so quickly.
There was so much pining, somuch banter, the plot moves so
quickly, there was so muchpining and it just I honestly
didn't notice that these wereclosed door.
But they are.
They are closed door there.
There is no spice.
So, okay, this book.
Let me give you a plot synopsisand then I can talk a little
(20:01):
bit more about it.
Catherine is a workaholicattorney who hates Christmas.
On her way to work, she hasthis accident and she forgot to
change her emergency contact.
So her ex-husband, tom, isnotified and ends up going to
help her, only to find out thatshe has nowhere to go for
Christmas and she can't takecare of herself because she's
(20:24):
injured.
He decides to take her out tohis family, even though this is
the Christmas Tom is going topropose to his girlfriend, and
now the two exes, tom andCatherine, are stuck on the trip
from heck to get back to hisfamily.
(20:45):
Okay, so, like I said, Ilistened to this on audiobook.
I laughed the entire waythrough.
They this is just like forcedproximity at its finest and the
way that they are just stucktogether and they just gripe at
each other the entire time.
It is hilarious.
So if you want a lot of tensionand a lot of bickering, then
(21:07):
you're going to have to readthis book.
So it's forced proximity andsecond chance romance and
honestly, this was just so funfrom beginning to end.
It did have a really sweetending, but it's one that's
going to make you laugh, andespecially because Catherine
hates Christmas and Tom lovesChristmas.
They just could not be moreopposite.
(21:29):
Like this is also grumpysunshine at its finest as well,
so you have forced proximity,second chance and grumpy
sunshine, so I would recommendthis one.
It was so funny.
I really enjoyed it.
All of these books I've talkedabout so far are just completely
different from each other.
They're really unique, they'rereally fun and they just stood
(21:51):
out to me and made me laugh andwere just honestly, a fantastic
time.
They were everything that aChristmas book should be.
Up next I have Cabin Mate byLeah Bruner.
This one is also closed doorand this is the friends to
lovers trope.
So this is technically thefourth book in the series, the
Under the Kansas Sky series, butit is an interconnected
(22:14):
standalone so you were totallyfine to read it first.
So Brooks is the immatureplayboy.
Throughout the books we findout that he's actually been in
love with his best friend, molly, who has been with her
long-term boyfriend, and thislong-term boyfriend is actually
like the scum beneath your shoe.
He is just the worst.
Like go, go away.
They break up from hisstupidity and her parents are
(22:37):
absolutely devastated becausethey're rich and he was of their
caliber, so in need of a fake,brooks agrees to step in and the
two spend the holidays togetherwith her family.
And will this ruin theirfriendship?
Read to find out.
So this has the friends tolovers trope.
(22:59):
This is actually alsomillionaire to billionaire and
it is forced proximity as well.
This one was so fun.
I loved the friends to lovers.
That's my favorite trope,obviously, friends to lovers and
it is done really well, reallywell here.
They actually run a businesstogether, brooks and Molly.
So they already have constantforced proximity and they're
(23:23):
really close.
But you know Molly hasn't seenBrooks in that way because she's
been with her long-termboyfriend who sucks.
So you know you'll seeeverything start to unfold.
This is classic, amazing, leahBruner Also.
I just have to make a plug forthe DC Eagle series.
If you have not started youneed to.
Desire or Defense is book one,flirtation or Face Off is book
(23:46):
two, and Betrothal or Breakawayis book three.
This hockey it's a closed doorhockey series which is one of
the best hockey series I've read, just FYI, and so anything
Labor to Rights, I'm going toread it.
This is no exception.
I enjoyed Cabin Mate so much.
It is adorable.
So I would highly recommendthis book and up next I have
(24:11):
Seasons Schemings by KatieBailey.
So this is closed door and ifyou like Sarah Adams, then
you're going to like KatieBailey.
Their styles are very similar.
They're not exactly the same,of course, but they are very
similar.
So I do think that if you likeSarah Adams, you will like Katie
Bailey.
I've enjoyed every one ofKatie's books I've read so far
(24:32):
and I'm pretty sure I've readall.
I was going to say all but one,but now all but two, because
she just released anotherChristmas book called Holiday
Hostilities, and that one isalso a Christmas hockey romance
and I've heard from friends thatit is fantastic.
I didn't get to it yet but I amdying to, but also I want to
savor it.
So I would recommend possiblychecking that one out as well.
(24:57):
But this is Season Schemings.
In this one it is Maddie is themain character and she is
working in broadcast journalism.
She's actually in Anchor and sheanchors like happy news and she
had a really tumultuous breakupnot that long ago and this
(25:17):
ex-boyfriend is getting married,and so whenever they get an
invitation from the ex-boyfriend, that's when Maddie is like, oh
, I don't want to go to herwedding.
That's when Maddie is like oh,I don't want to go to her
wedding but enter Bastion Slaterin NHL.
Well, I mean, of course he's ahockey player if he's in the NHL
the NHL's most infamous player,some would say.
(25:39):
And she, of course, had alreadykind of had a crush on him
because he's super attractiveand she's like this is not a
good idea because I'm gonna bethe one to get my feelings hurt.
But they agree to fake date.
And so they agree to fake date.
(25:59):
But they fake date and itactually ends up leading to a
marriage of convenience throughinteresting circumstances is the
best way I can describe it.
I'm trying not to ruin things,so that's the hard part is like
I'm trying to tell you thingswithout ruining it.
And so, anyway, it does lead toa marriage of convenience.
(26:21):
This was so cute.
Just the way that Sebastian orZeb, he sticks up for her is
adorable, adorable.
I loved this book.
It was so cute, it was so good.
Like.
It's hard to describe again.
I'm trying not to spoil it, soI feel like I can't give you all
the details, but it is really,really fun.
(26:42):
Everything Katie Bailey writesis really fun, and the cool
thing is that Katie and Leah arefriends and so they actually
have like tie-ins to eachother's books because they both
have hockey teams.
So one hockey team is calledthe DC Eagles and then one's the
Cyclones, and so I'm prettysure it's in Season Schemings,
this book, where the Cyclonesactually play the Eagles in one
(27:03):
of the games, and I was like, oh, look at that, how cool.
They kind of like tied theirbooks together with an invisible
string a little bit.
So anyway, fun, random tidbit.
But Season Schemings by KatieBailey is super fun and of
course, if you want to read herlatest holiday hostilities, you
could do that as well.
I'm stoked to read it.
And if I had all the time inthe world to read all the
(27:23):
Christmas books in the world, Iwould have already read it, but
I did not.
So next up we are crossing intoOpen Door Territory, so this
book is Open Door and it is.
All I Want Is you by FallonBallard.
This is actually my firstFallon Ballard.
I do have all of her books onmy shelf.
I just have not gotten to themyet, so this was my first one on
(27:46):
my shelf.
I just have not gotten to themyet, so this was my first one.
All I want is you, and again,this is Open Door, it's Second
Chance and it's Forced Proximityand Romance Writers.
So really, what more could youwant?
Let me just say that, like,Second Chance is not my go-to
trope, it's not really one thatI thought I tended to enjoy, but
somehow authors, as of late,have been doing a really great
(28:09):
job with Second Chance.
So now I've been reading moreof that trope than I probably
ever have.
Like it's.
It's been done really welllately.
So thank you to all the authorsthat are writing it well,
because I didn't know I likedthis trope, but yet again
Fallon's helping change my mind,in addition to Jessica Joyce
(28:30):
and Lorne Lane and all thoseothers.
So anyway, ok, let me tell youa little bit more about the book
and this one.
I said it was open door.
It does have like several spicescenes.
They're not like superdescriptive.
So I would say maybe this islike a 2.5 to 3 on the scale,
like if you read I mean, if youread just like standard Berkeley
(28:52):
romances, then you're good.
This is no more than those.
So, but it does have severalspice scenes.
So also just putting that outthere.
But it really is not like superdescriptive or anything.
So it's kind of been like thelight to medium range of spice,
like just kind of your, yourtypical spice level of you know,
just like general Berkeleyromances.
So not anything crazy, ok.
(29:15):
So Jessica and Nick are bothromance writers.
They had a tumultuous breakupin the past and they're forced
to be in the same room when oneof them has to present the other
with an award.
At a publishing Christmas party.
Set at a winter lodge, they gettrapped together thanks to a
snowstorm and they end upworking on a project.
Will they be able to completethe project and will they ever
(29:39):
get out of the snowstorm, out ofthe lodge, away from the
snowstorm?
You will have to read to findout.
I can't tell you much more thanthat because then I start
running into spoilers, spoilers.
But I could not put this bookdown.
The pacing was really fun andthe book was a really good mix
of Christmassy, but of course italso had a good plot.
It moved really well.
(29:59):
I really loved the whole likerivals to lovers aspect and of
course it was second chance andforced proximity as well.
But it's definitely like rivalsto lovers.
The banter just between themain characters was great.
But also there's this friendsgroup chat which, like she, has
author besties and they're allin this little group chat and so
(30:20):
you get some of their textchains and those were just pure
gold and I laughed so much.
The only thing that bugs me avery small, like a tiny bit, not
enough to not include it on thelist, but I just wanted to
point it out in case this issomething that you don't want to
read or that drives you crazyor whatever.
So ultimately it's kind of likemiscommunication adjacent.
(30:46):
It is a miscommunication.
It is yeah, yeah, now that Ithink about that, it is a
miscommunication, which I reallydon't like miscommunication.
But the reason why they brokeup is not revealed to the female
main character.
For a while, like he just kindof broke up with her and will
(31:06):
not tell her why, and I feltlike it was just dragged out,
maybe a little bit too long, tothe point where I almost just
kind of like wanted it out sothat way they could deal with it
.
I was almost like I don't care,I'm done with hearing about
this, like either just tell usor just don't tell us.
So I felt like maybe it couldhave just been revealed a little
bit earlier and then maybe theyworked with like the
(31:29):
repercussions of what it ends upbeing for the rest of the book
and maybe that could have lastedlike the second half.
So, anyway, it just takes awhile for the male main
character to tell the femalemain character why they broke up
, like what his reasoning was,which just sounds kind of crazy.
(31:49):
So, yeah, that that is amiscommunication.
That's in there.
Um, I definitely don't think itruined the whole book by any
means, but it it's just.
It was pretty strong for alarge majority of the book.
So I just wanted to give you aheads up in case that matters to
you.
But it was really, really funand I enjoyed it.
So, basically, if you finishthe most wonderful crime of the
year and you need something morethat has rivals to lovers with
(32:12):
authors and you want the samekind of you know, quick pace
with rivals to lovers that arealso authors, then read this
book.
I thought it was really fun andI enjoyed a lot.
Up next we have a classic.
Uh, so this is Love Light Farmsby BK Borison.
You've probably heard of it,you've probably read it.
(32:33):
This is open door.
This is an open door book.
Love light farms by bk borisonis open door.
I feel like I have to say thatand I'll tell you in a second
more about why it is friends tolovers and of course, it's a
holiday classic, if you didn'tknow, just because I feel the
(32:54):
need to explain.
If you didn't know, the lovelight series takes place in a
town called love lights and eachbook is fitted to a different
season.
There are four books in thisseries and so they are all very
atmospheric because they allrelate to a specific season, so
they put you kind of in thatspecific season.
And this is actually the firstbook in the series and and I
(33:15):
obviously really enjoyed thisbook.
It's one of the best friends tolovers books that I've read.
But again, I really love thetrope Stella.
I just want to point this outagain.
I loved the book, but Stellamight bug you a little bit
because you're like Stella, helikes you, I promise, so just
keep that in mind.
But her and Luca are just soadorable that it's going to be
(33:38):
worth it and I I really lovethis book and I need to do a
reread because I read this lastyear and I need to reread it for
this year.
But here is my little plotsynopsis.
So Stella owns Love Light Farms, which is a Christmas tree farm
.
She enters a competition thatwould be great exposure for the
farm and drum up some business.
She ends up filling out theform saying that she runs it
(34:00):
with her boyfriend and then,when she's picked yay, she has
to find said boyfriend.
Luca, her longtime best friend,decides to pose as her
boyfriend for contest officials.
But will things start to feelreal?
You'll have to read to find out.
That being said, like I'vepointed out several times
(34:20):
already, this book is open door.
So it's actually kind ofcomical how many conversations
I've had with both readers andauthors who didn't realize that
this is open door.
So I think a lot of people justtend to think that it's closed
door, and I've had a lot of myfriends that read closed door
come to me and go hey, should Iread Love Light Farms?
It's closed door, right, andI'm like it's not Mayday, it's
(34:42):
not closed door, it is open door.
This is an open door book.
So that's why I keep saying it,because I've had this
conversation over and, over andover again.
It is an open door book.
It it's pretty descriptive, tobe honest.
I read it last year when I wasnot reading as spicy of books so
this seemed pretty spicy at thetime.
(35:04):
So I don't know what I wouldrate it now that I have read a
lot spicier.
But it is pretty descriptive.
If you can handle AllieHazelwood, you're fine.
It's not as if it's superintense or anything, it's just
this level of description likeit's not as intense as Allie
Hazelwood, it's a little bitmore poetic, but it's just very
(35:26):
descriptive.
So you're going to know what'sgoing on.
So just keep that in mind.
And so far from what I've readin the series again, I'm just
letting you know in case you doonly read closed door books and
this matters to you or if youlike to keep kind of mild spice
so far from what I've read ofthis series it seems to get
spicier in subsequent books.
Mixed Signals was extremelyspicy and that is book three.
(35:48):
I have not read Business Casualor In the Weeds.
So the series goes.
Love Light Farms is book numberone In the Weeds.
So the series goes.
Love Light Farms is book numberone.
In the Weeds is book number two.
Mixed Signals is book numberthree and then Business Casual
is book number four.
So I've read one and three butI have not read two and four.
And yeah, three was prettyspicy for me Again.
(36:10):
I read it at the very beginningof this year, like it was the
first book I read this year,very beginning of this year,
like it was the first book Iread this year.
So I've read spicier since, butjust know that like it is
decently spicy, it is decentlyspicy.
So know that going in LoveLight Farms is always a classic.
I would always recommend it.
I really enjoyed this book andI need to do a reread.
(36:30):
So those are my recommendationsfor full length books.
Now I have three novellas topoint you towards.
So Christmas novellas.
I was hoping to get to a couplemore but I didn't.
So I have three that justthey've stood out above the rest
so far and I'm really glad thatthis didn't turn out like my
(36:53):
fall.
I meant to do a whole like fallvideo and fall post of fall
books, but every time I read afall book it was just it was
literally like stinker afterstinker after stinker.
I just could not find a fallbook that I liked.
It was almost comical, but ifit was fall, I just ended up not
liking it, which was so sad.
So luckily, with Christmasthere were so many books to
(37:14):
choose from.
All the books on my list justkind of won out over some of the
others a little bit, and thesenovellas are really, really good
.
They may be short, which isactually kind of great for this
time of year, because things aresuper busy.
You may not have time for afull length Christmas book and
if you don't, these novellas aregreat.
I gave you relatively tamerecommendations above and for
(37:37):
some reason I just decided to dothe complete opposite for the
novellas.
All of these are open door andvarying levels of spice, but
they are all spicier than any ofthe books that I.
Uh, there's maybe one thatmight be on par with the others
in spice, but two of them arespicier than what?
Than what I told you up above.
(37:57):
So these novellas are short,they're spicy and they are
really, really fun.
They're perfect if you don'thave time for a full Christmas
book, but they're really welldone and they're really complete
, and kudos to these writersthat can take something like a
novella and just write the crapout of it, because all of them
really did so okay.
Ok, here we go.
First up is A Risk Worth Takingby Jessica Joyce.
(38:20):
Technically, this is not somuch of a Christmas book,
because it's kind of moreholiday, because Claire and
Connor end up meeting on NewYear's Eve.
So this whole book kind ofstarts out more around New
Year's.
So you may want to wait asecond and read a little bit
closer to New Year's.
I need to do a reread.
I read this earlier in the yearand I'm already going to be
rereading it.
Jessica just came out withpaperback copies of A Risk Worth
(38:42):
Taking, so you better believeI'm going to reread my paperback
copy.
Ok, this is what that one isabout.
So Claire and Connor meet at aNew Year's Eve party.
He's there for work and she'skind of working the party more
as like I'm pretty sure she's abartender, or I don't think
she's a caterer, but she's acaterer.
No, I'm pretty sure she's abartender, not a caterer.
(39:04):
Anyway, she is working theparty and they see each other
across the room and they've kindof been like checking each
other out a little bit.
And then whenever she goes toempty the trash, she ends up
running into him because heneeded to get out and get a
break and thus starts theirwhole like whirlwind little
(39:24):
romance.
And I'm trying to like, I'mtrying not to spoil this for you
.
The one thing that I love aboutthis book Risk Worth Taking is
that the character developmentis insane.
It's not it's not really instalove, it's more like insta
infatuation.
And especially in a novella youdon't have time for anything
(39:46):
else and this one's pretty shortfor a novella.
I think it's like only 74 pages, but I feel like I read a
complete novel.
After reading this.
Like this feels so incrediblycomplete.
I just have no idea how Jessicadid that, but shocker not
shocker, because it's her shedid and it was just fantastic.
(40:06):
The chemistry and tensionbetween Claire and Connor, it's
just palpable.
They do go back to their placeand yep, that's that's where the
rest of it kind of takes place.
There's a lot I'm trying not tospoil it there's a lot of
talking about next steps andlike if you have a big decision
in your life and if you shouldgo forward with it.
(40:28):
And Connor, he says this thing,and now I can't remember the
exact words, but it's somethinglike the risk of indecision or
something like that, and it isso true and it kind of just hits
you.
It hits you in the heart Likeyou're expecting that you're
going to get this really cutelike steamy little rom-com New
Year's Eve thing, and thenthere's so much depth in this
(40:50):
that it kind of it took me bysurprise and it just feels
really applicable to life ingeneral.
And I think that's one of thebest things about Jessica's
writing is that not only do youjust feel viscerally what her
characters feel, but there areall these hidden messages and
she'll just say something andyou're like, yeah, that's
(41:12):
exactly how that feels, or youknow, I really needed to hear
that, or I've been going throughthat as well.
So if you're kind of at acrossroads in your life, if you
feel like maybe things didn'tturn out the way that they
should have, then this book isfor you, because not only does
it address it, but it kind ofcomforts you and the
conversation that Claire andConnor have about this is just
(41:32):
really astute and well done andit's just going to give you a
little bit of peace and it'sgoing to make you think but in a
good way like you're going towalk away happy that you read
this little novella and thisconversation.
So anyway, I loved A Risk WorthTaking.
I thought it was fantastic.
Next up is Merrily Yours byRachel Lewis, and I did get to
(41:53):
talk to Rachel Lewis on thepodcast.
I believe she is on in the next.
Yeah, she's going to be on inthe next episode.
We will be talking more aboutMerrily Yours.
So if you want to hear a littlebit more about Merrily Yours,
then definitely listen to thatepisode if you want to hear kind
of like more from her writingside of it.
But I wanted to include it onmy list because I really love
this one.
(42:13):
I flew through this book so,okay, I did get an ARC from
Rachel, but merrily yours.
So the first book, this is astandalone.
It's a standalone to where youcould read it if you haven't
read the other book, but it's anice kind of like.
Yeah, it's a really nice tagalong to yours unexpectedly and
yours unexpectedly is book oneand that covers Bex and Anders
(42:37):
and then this is kind of likethe bridge novella slash, a
little kind of like extra teaserand that's all Christmas themed
.
So basically in this book ohand warning, this book opens on
a spice scene.
It is, it is relatively spicy,so a risk we're taking in
Merrily, yours are the two thatare.
(42:57):
They're a little bit spicierand Christmas by Design does
have some spice, but not notnecessarily to the level that I
would say that like A Risk.
We're Taking and Merrily Yoursdoes so with Merrily Yours by
Rachel Lewis.
It's the Bardot family and youknow them, you love them.
It's the Bardot family and youknow them, you love them.
If you haven't read yoursunexpectedly yet, add it to your
(43:20):
TBR.
It was so fun, so like thepacing was just so quick and it
was so funny, and that one isalso pretty spicy.
So if you do just need like aspicy, quick, fun read, read the
first one, yours unexpectedly.
Or you could start with MerrilyYours.
So okay, with Merrily Yours.
(43:40):
The Bardot family is home forChristmas and each chapter of
this book is actually adifferent character's POV.
So you get everyone's POV.
You get all the siblings.
You get also Anders I meantechnically he's married into
the family now and then you evenget the mom and dad.
So you get Elaine, and for somereason I am blanking on what
(44:00):
her husband's name is, but youget all of their POVs and
they're all home for Christmas.
So they all kind of connect andintertwine and this book is
going to make you slightly madin the fact, or this novella
that you're going to want all oftheir stories immediately and
you're not going to want to waitfor the rest of the series.
Okay, so in book one Yours,unexpectedly you feel like you
(44:24):
know whose story is coming upbecause of course, there's kind
of like a thread that isunraveled that you feel is going
to be the next book and you'reexcited for it and it sounds
good and you want to know whatthe heck is going on.
Well, in this novella, eachcharacter's POV basically sets
up like kind of what their lovestory is going to be.
(44:46):
You're not getting majorspoilers, but you're kind of
getting just enough of a teaseto know, like what tropes are
going to be involved and youmeet some of the love interest
for them.
So I am now dying to read therest of the series and as soon
as Rachel Lewis publishes them Iwill be reading them.
(45:07):
Oh my gosh, she's gonna have.
Well, no, I don't want to tellyou because I don't want it to
spoil the book, but there aresome really amazing tropes in
here.
There are some really, reallyfun interactions and it is a
really good book.
I will warn you that it does endslightly abruptly on purpose,
because it goes into the femalemain character for whose book is
(45:33):
going to be next.
So it sets up the female maincharacter, but you don't know
for sure which guy she's goingto go with.
You could really probably useprocess of elimination, but yeah
, so that's why it kind of cutsoff in the middle of hers,
because you're not to theirstory yet.
(45:54):
It's coming out next.
So this does leave on a veryslight cliffhanger, but I would
not let that deter you fromreading the book.
This is going to make you wantthe next one even more.
I do know whose book is comingup next.
I don't know that.
I've seen Rachel announce it,so I'm going to hold off on that
.
In our episode we're going toannounce it, so it'll be up.
So if you want to know whosestory is coming up next, uh,
(46:16):
definitely listen to our episodebecause we do talk about it and
she spilled it.
She told me so she told me onair and she said I could use it
and let everyone know, so youwill get to know whose story is
next.
Um, I really love the wholeseries and the bardo siblings.
And's just.
It's warm and fun andChristmassy and they have, like
(46:37):
this outdoor lawn decoratingcontest between the family
members and it's just really funand there are a lot of cool
traditions and it's just gonnagive you the warm and fuzzies,
so Merrily Yours.
I would highly recommend as anovella.
And then rounding us out innovella land is Christmas by
(46:58):
Design by Ali Sanberts.
I also read an arc of this one.
It was a very, very cute andvery fun and really unique for a
Christmas book and just a bookin general.
So okay, anyway, gemma andBeckett, they work at the same
architecture firm and they havea project coming up, and Gemma
(47:18):
is a single mom, she has adaughter and she could just
really use the extra money forChristmas, and so Beckett
decides to take on the project,really kind of to help her out.
But Gemma does not need helpfrom anyone, she is an
independent single mom, and soshe ends up going up with
Beckett to work on the project,but of course they get stranded
(47:40):
because of a snowstorm so manysnowstorms going on, but anyway.
So then they get strandedbecause of a snowstorm, and will
they be able to complete theproject and will their feelings
for each other change over thecourse of it?
You'll have to see.
I would classify this as maybekind of rivals to lovers.
They're not totally in the sameposition per se.
(48:04):
He's a little bit higher upthan she is, but I mean they're
still kind of rivals because,you know, within the company I
mean, everyone's somewhatcompeting.
So I would say it's like alight kind of rivals to lovers
thing.
Gemma does not like Beckett.
It is definitely grumpy,sunshine and then also you have
some forced proximity as theywork on this project up until
(48:25):
like Christmas and there's somany cute moments.
Gemma's hilarious, beckett'sreally funny too.
He's he's gonna give it back toher, like she's gonna give it
to him, but he is gonna give itright back to her.
So it was really fun to read andagain, this was another novella
that felt like a reallycomplete story.
I mean it just it felt like Ihad read a novel.
(48:47):
You know, which is great whenan author can do that in a
novella.
Of course you always want moreof the characters and you want
it to be longer, but everythingtied up really there was a lot
of character development goingon and I just felt like I went
through the full journey of abook in this novella and it was
highly satisfying to be able toread something so short and get
(49:11):
really a full-length story.
This one does have some spicein it.
It is not like anything crazy,but it was, it is, it does have
spice and it is open door.
So anyway, I would recommend allthree novellas A Risk we're
Taking, merrily, yours andChristmas by Design.
They're all so different,they're all so fun.
In their own ways they all havea very unique take Jessica's
(49:31):
being at New Year's, rachel'shaving all the different POVs
and then Allie's having thatarchitecture aspect was really
really unique and fun.
So I enjoyed all of those and,of course, any of the books I
told you about on the list.
I would recommend them.
I thought they were so fun.
You know there's so manyChristmas books that it can just
be overwhelming to know whichones to pick, and some are
(49:53):
really good and some are justnot and they're going to fall
flat.
So to know which ones to pickand some are really good and
some are just not and they'regoing to fall flat.
So in my opinion, if you readany of these books, you're going
to have a good time and you'regoing to enjoy yourself for
Christmas.
So thank you so much forjoining me and happy holidays.
Enjoy your family time, read alot of good books and meet some
new book boyfriends.
This has been Kristen Balls onwhen I Left Off.
(50:18):
Stay tuned for the next episode.
Today's episode of when I Left Off is brought to
you by the new novel Now you OweMe, written by debut author
Aaliyah Wright.
Now you Owe Me is the tale oftwin serial killers, ben and
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Racked with guilt, they vow totake their last victim, till one
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Read why Library Journalrecommends this riveting debut
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Pick up your copy whereverbooks are sold and if you love
it, don't forget to leave.
I Left Off.
(00:53):
I'm Kristen, your host, andtoday we are talking all about
Christmas books.
These are my Christmas slashholiday book recommendations.
Spoiler alert it is all romance.
Yeah, it's all romance, sorry,so if you wanted, well, there
aren't really that many likeChristmas thrillers or Christmas
(01:15):
fantasy novels.
It's a lot of romance, andevery romance author this year
said I'm going to come out witha Christmas book.
Like this must have been sixmonths ago, a year ago.
That they're like you know whatI need to do in 2024?
I need to write a Christmasbook.
And I said, okay, I'm going totry to read them all.
Did I get through all of them?
Definitely not, but I gotthrough a lot and let me tell
(01:37):
you, the research for thisepisode was extensive.
I read a lot of Christmas books.
Some were better than others.
I've compiled my favorites totalk to you today.
All about them.
It's a mix of open door andclosed door.
A lot of the main books aregoing to be closed door and then
a lot of the novellas are opendoor, but I do have a mix.
(02:01):
I do have some full lengthnovels that are open door as
well.
So stay tuned for all the books.
And before I get into romancebooks, because you're already
here, anyway, if you said youknow what, my Christmas reading
wouldn't be complete without aserial killer and a Santa mask,
(02:24):
I've got you covered.
So the first book I am going tobe talking about is a thriller,
but after that it's all romance, I swear.
So okay, here is this one.
It's called Christmas Presentsby Lisa Unger.
So I listened to this onaudiobook and this book came out
a year or two ago.
It came out a couple years agoand I've wanted to read it since
, and then it was available onmy Hoopla, so I decided to give
(02:49):
it a shot.
Like I said, it does feature aserial killer and a Santa mask.
So there's that.
Lisa Unger wrote Secluded CabinSleep 6.
And she also wrote this year'sbook was the Couple the New
Couple in 5B, I believe.
Pretty sure it's a new couple.
In 5B I did like I likedSecluded Cabin Sleep Six I there
(03:13):
was one part that slightlybugged me a little bit, but
overall, like the readingexperience was good.
It was twisty, it was creepy.
Again, they're all like in acabin and people are dying off.
So it's kind of one of those.
And then there were noneretellings kind of thing.
So I always like those and Ilike the cabin setting.
So I would say, possibly giveSecluded Cabin Sleep 6 a try.
(03:36):
The couple the new couple in 5Bwasn't my favorite, but there
are a lot of people that likedit.
So you know, if you tend to notlike my Thriller Rex and we're
on the opposite side of things,then maybe give that one a try
too.
I don't know, but Christmaspresents that's what we're
talking about right now.
So, okay, it's not exactly dualtimeline, but there are several
(03:58):
flashbacks throughout.
Our main character is the onlyliving witness to a crime
committed by her high schoolex-boyfriend, who is currently
serving a life sentence for thecrime.
She now owns a bookstore andshe ends up crossing paths with
an author slash true crimepodcaster who comes on the scene
and is doing a deep dive on thecase.
He is also trying to solve therecent string of disappearances
(04:22):
in neighboring towns.
Will solving one case lead tothe other?
Will the killer take anothervictim before it can be solved?
You would have to read to findout.
So that is Christmas Presents,and I thought it was at least
like a good, well-written, fun,christmassy thriller.
Was it maybe the mostentertaining thriller I've ever
(04:45):
read?
No, it was a little bit slow inparts, but the ending really
grabbed me and it was unique.
So I would say, give this one ashot.
If you were looking for aChristmas thriller, there aren't
that many out there that arefull-length books, so I would
recommend this one.
If you do tend to likethrillers, and especially if you
like Lisa Unger, then go aheadand give this one a shot.
(05:05):
It was, it was decent, it waspretty good.
So, anyway, that is rec numberone.
That's a thriller.
Next up is all romance, allromance.
For the rest, don't worry,first up is my OK.
So I read this book this year.
It actually came out this yearand I am now going to be doing a
reread of this every year.
(05:26):
It is a must read now.
I loved it.
It is Closed Door and this isthe Most Wonderful Crime of the
Year by Allie Carter, and this Iwould classify as more of a
rom-com mystery.
And before I get into a littlebit more about the book, it was
sent to me by HarperCollins inexchange for my honest review,
(05:46):
so thank you to HarperCollinsfor sending this my way.
Oh my gosh.
Like I said, I loved this book.
Also, I would also like to saythat I've convinced several
friends to buy this book.
You know how, whenever you lovea book and you immediately have
to get everyone that you knowto also read said book.
(06:07):
That's really where I'm at withthis one, and everyone that
I've recommended it to has alsoloved it, and I have honestly
not heard a negative review.
I've even like, recommended itin the comment sections on
Instagram and other people haveliked and replied with how much
they loved it.
So I have not heard a singleperson say that they do not love
(06:29):
this book.
So, basically, don't take myword for it.
Just take everyone's word forit and, if you need it, just a
little bit more convincing togive it a try.
Sarah Adams also loved thisbook, so, basically, you just
need to read.
It is what I'm saying.
Okay, so this is Ali Carter.
She wrote the Blonde Ambitionand I need to read that one now,
(06:52):
after having read this book,this was my first Ali Carter and
this will not be my last AliCarter, so let me go ahead and
tell you a little bit more aboutthis book.
Okay, this book starts out as amystery and for a second I was
kind of wondering should it bein the mystery genre.
But then she drops a plot twistin the middle and you realize
(07:14):
exactly why it's a romance novel.
She, she wins, she just wins.
Okay, before I get into theplot synopsis, I just wanted to
point out one more thing.
I know I'm gushing, but youknow what?
It's fine, it's the Christmasepisode, so I'm allowed to gush
about Christmas books after I'veread so many in preparation for
this episode.
(07:34):
So this is one of those rarebooks that is actually amazing,
in both audio and physical.
I started out with the arc onmy Kindle that HarperCollins
sent me and I was reading that,and then, to be able to get
through all the Christmas books,I had to switch to the audio
book, and I will say thatswitching between the Kindle and
(07:55):
the audio book, so I basicallykind of tandem read this there.
It's both amazing in audio andthe physical.
It's one of those rare booksbecause I feel like a lot of
books are either really good asan audio book or really not, and
this one, honestly, you couldconsume it either way and I
think you'd have pretty much thesame reading experience.
Ultimately it's.
(08:15):
It's kind of hard to put intowords, but I think it's the
pacing of the book that justreally makes it special.
And when I say the pacing, Ireally mean like the formatting
of the sentences, and it justmakes it feel like a really
punchy, funny, entertaining readthat you're going to fly
through.
It's like the way that thesentence structure and the
formatting of all the sentencesare done to create a specific
(08:37):
pacing that translates bothwritten and then also on audio.
Because I was a little bitskeptical.
I liked the written version somuch I didn't want to switch to
the audio, and then I did and Ireally enjoyed that way too.
So, okay, I'll actually tellyou what this book is about now.
So Maggie and Ethan are rivalmystery authors.
Ethan's basically like a JamesPatterson, and Maggie writes
(09:01):
cozy mysteries about a cat thatsniffs out poison.
They start out at theirpublisher's office Christmas
party and are invited to thehome of their mysterious biggest
fan for Christmas.
The two rivals are forced tosolve a crime that unfolds when
they get there, as things startto take a turn in the snowy
mansion.
And that's all I can give youwithout any spoilers in the book
(09:25):
.
So I'll say a couple more thingsabout it.
But oh my gosh, ethan, he I'mtrying, I'm trying to tell you,
but I'm already laughing.
So at the most random times,whenever they're both alone, at
(09:49):
the most random times wheneverthey're both alone, he I don't
you know, I think that herealized Maggie's disdain for
him based on her comments, but Idon't know, sometimes I can't
tell, like I'm going to have toreread this already to see what
his level of awareness of herdisdain for him was.
But anyway, whenever they werealone, he would say something
like I want to make out it wouldjust annoy the snot out of her
(10:12):
and she was so bothered by himand it was hilarious and it was
like a little side joke thatAllie put in there the whole
time those like I want to makeout is what Ethan would say,
like every time they were alonein there the whole time.
Those like want to make out iswhat Ethan would say, like every
time they were alone.
And it was just hilarious howlike absolutely enraged Maggie
was by that statement.
(10:32):
And also I did want to point outreally quick that the clues are
Christmassy as well.
Like, some of the clues areChristmassy, which I thought was
a really fun twist.
I mean, there are Christmasmysteries, but again there
aren't.
I feel like in the mysterythriller genre in general, there
aren't a lot of, there reallyaren't a whole lot of options
(10:52):
for Christmassy, and so I likedhow this one.
Of course it does have theromantic elements in there, but
the clues were actuallyChristmassy and the plot twist
there were some plot twists thatI didn't see coming.
I was able to guess a couple,but I was not able to guess all
of them.
There are enough in there towhere it doesn't feel overdone,
but it gives you something tolook forward to.
(11:13):
So even if you guess one like,you're not going to guess
another one, and so it was justa really fun like whodunit
mystery with some romance, andit had a lot of banter and I
just found myself laughing andjust genuinely enjoying the ride
.
So, like I said, I'm going to bereading this book every year.
(11:34):
It's definitely going to be amust read every December.
I loved the Most WonderfulCrime of the Year by Ali Carter,
and it and the next book I'mgoing to be talking about are my
two favorites.
So, if you take my advice atall, read the Most Wonderful
Crime of the Year by AllieCarter.
And then I'm about to talkabout Faking Christmas by Cindy
(11:56):
Steele, which you, if you listento the podcast, you probably
know how much I love that one.
But those, those were my twofavorites.
Those are my two absolute stand, standouts, and all the other
books in this episode are so, so, so good.
I would recommend all of them,but I think that the most
wonderful crime of the year andfake and Christmas are my two
favorites, so I cannot wait totalk to you about both of those.
(12:17):
Before I get into fake andChristmas, I did also want to
say that Harper Collins sent mea second book.
It was was A Jingle, bell,mingle, and this is by Julie
Murphy and Sierra Simone, andthis book was too spicy for me.
So I am not including it in mywrap up because I did end up
DNFing it because it was toospicy.
(12:38):
But you know me, I'm prettylike.
For the most part I'm prettytame on my spice preferences.
So if you wanted somethingspicier, then this definitely
may be the book for you.
It does have a really cutecover, so I would suggest
reading the blurb to see if itis for you.
So a Jingle Bell Mingle was toospicy for me, but that means
(13:02):
that it may be perfect for you.
I have a lot of friends that ifbooks are too spicy for me,
they immediately want to knowwhich book it is and will try it
out in five seconds.
Also with that one, though, itdoes take place in the beginning
at the wedding of one of thecharacters.
So you may want to read A MerryLittle Meat Cute as well and go
(13:24):
ahead and grab that one too,just to give you a little bit
more context, unless you don'tmind and you just want to go
right into A Jingle Bell Mingle.
But those are the two booksthat I was sent, and the Most
Wonderful Crime of the Year forme was just a perfect hit.
Okay, next up.
Was just a perfect hit.
(13:49):
Okay, next up, faking Christmasby Cindy Steele.
So this is also a closed doorbook.
Okay, this is this is myfavorite Christmas book, and
Cindy Steele has a specialedition of this one, which I
honestly want.
So bad, but I just haven't doneyet because I'm trying to be
better, but I may have to.
Yeah, but I may have to.
Yeah, I may have to break downand get the special edition of
this book.
It's so cute.
(14:09):
Okay, this is one, if youremember correctly that I
started out on audiobook, lovedit so incredibly much on
audiobook that I actually endedup ordering on Amazon the
physical, and I had to finish itwith the physical because I was
just afraid that I was going tomiss out on any detail at all
(14:30):
and I just needed to read therest with my eyes to capture
every single moment and savorthis book.
And I have the page flags toprove it.
You can see where theyliterally start, like almost
halfway.
So, and also, as I was waitingfor my book to come in from
Amazon, I was dying and really,really, really wanted to hit
(14:51):
play on the audio book, but Isaid, no, you're not, and so
that was a little bit of tortureuntil it came in.
So that's how much I love thisbook.
Ok, this is what it's about,and then I'll just tell you more
about why I love it.
Ok, it's almost break for highschool English teachers Olive
and Miles.
Olive sees Miles as enemynumber one and after an incident
at a teacher assembly, she justneeds a break from him.
(15:14):
She's traveling to Vermont, toa ski resort, with her family
for the holidays and her momthinks that it's a great idea to
invite her ex-boyfriend and hisfamily, hoping that they'll
reconnect.
Panic leads to Olive lying andsaying that Miles is her
boyfriend to get everyone offher back.
But it's fine until they get tothe lodge and find out his
(15:38):
family owns it.
So now they actually have tofake date to solidify the lie,
because of course, he's therefor Christmas break as well.
Can Olive convince her family?
Her arch nemesis is actuallyher boyfriend?
Read to find out.
Okay, if you have not read aCindy Steele book, what are you
(16:00):
doing?
I don't care if you read OpenDoor.
I don't care if you read ClosedDoor.
You doing?
I don't care if you read OpenDoor, I don't care if you read
Closed Door.
Cindy Steele is one of thoseauthors that she's just a
romance author.
If you read Open Door I readOpen Door a decent amount and I
didn't notice like I just don'treally notice that her books are
closed door because they justhave so much banter.
(16:22):
They have so much like steamand pining and just everything
and laughs that you're not evengoing to notice that they're
closed door.
And for those readers thatwon't close closed door, you'll
be pleasantly surprised.
Cindy Steele just hits it outof the park.
Even she said I did have her onthe podcast and even she has
(16:43):
said that several open doorreaders have come to her and
said I, you're one of the onlyclosed door authors I read.
So if you have not read CindySteele and you want a Christmas
book Faking Christmas isfantastic If you want a book
from her regular grouping, Iwould suggest the one with the
kiss cam.
You've probably heard thingsabout that.
It is fantastic.
I mean, she doesn't miss.
(17:05):
I have not read a bad CindySteele book at all.
But I also really like thatfine line yes or wait.
Was it Double or Nothing?
Oh, no, no, I can't remember ifthe one I liked slightly better
was Double or Nothing or thatfine line.
I think it was that Fine Line?
I'm pretty sure that Fine Linewas my favorite so far, but
(17:26):
Double or Nothing is still alsoreally good.
So, anyway, you cannot go wrongwith any of Cindy's books.
But back to Faking Christmas.
So this book it has the banterYou're going to laugh.
It has a lot of depth.
That's one thing that Cindyalso does fantastically well.
She has a lot of depth in herbooks, but they don't
necessarily come across that way.
(17:48):
They still come across as funrom-coms, but there's a lot
going on underneath the surfacefor all of these characters that
will unfold throughout thestory.
And this has one of the bestthird act conflicts that I've
ever read.
Notice I did not say third actbreakup, I said third act
conflict, and I don't like thirdact breakups.
(18:08):
But the way that this was donewas honestly just masterful.
It was masterful.
Everything about this book isgreat.
I could not enjoy it more.
I finished it and immediatelywanted to reread it, and I don't
tend to reread books.
So just take that for what youwill.
This book is just pure gold.
Like.
If you trust my recommendationsat all, just read this book.
(18:32):
It is so good.
Faking Christmas is I really.
It's my top.
It's my favorite Christmas book.
So read it, love it.
You're gonna love it if youread it.
Everyone that I've recommendedthis to that has read it has
really, really enjoyed it.
Again, I don't think I've hearda negative review of this one
(18:54):
either.
I cannot remember hearing anegative review of Faking
Christmas.
So if you needed an excuse tostart Cindy Steele, let this be
your excuse.
Read Faking Christmas.
Okay, up next this I alsolistened to this one on
audiobook and I did love theaudiobook.
(19:15):
This is Emergency Contacts byLauren Lane and Anthony LaDonna,
and with this they are actuallyhigh school sweethearts and
they're married in real life.
So I thought that was kind offun.
But they wrote a romance noveltogether.
This one is also closed door,but with all of these so far
that are closed door, I honestly, again, just didn't really
(19:39):
notice that they're closed door.
Like, I just didn't noticethere was so much banter.
The plot moves so quickly.
There was so much pining, somuch banter, the plot moves so
quickly, there was so muchpining and it just I honestly
didn't notice that these wereclosed door.
But they are.
They are closed door there.
There is no spice.
So, okay, this book.
Let me give you a plot synopsisand then I can talk a little
(20:01):
bit more about it.
Catherine is a workaholicattorney who hates Christmas.
On her way to work, she hasthis accident and she forgot to
change her emergency contact.
So her ex-husband, tom, isnotified and ends up going to
help her, only to find out thatshe has nowhere to go for
Christmas and she can't takecare of herself because she's
(20:24):
injured.
He decides to take her out tohis family, even though this is
the Christmas Tom is going topropose to his girlfriend, and
now the two exes, tom andCatherine, are stuck on the trip
from heck to get back to hisfamily.
(20:45):
Okay, so, like I said, Ilistened to this on audiobook.
I laughed the entire waythrough.
They this is just like forcedproximity at its finest and the
way that they are just stucktogether and they just gripe at
each other the entire time.
It is hilarious.
So if you want a lot of tensionand a lot of bickering, then
(21:07):
you're going to have to readthis book.
So it's forced proximity andsecond chance romance and
honestly, this was just so funfrom beginning to end.
It did have a really sweetending, but it's one that's
going to make you laugh, andespecially because Catherine
hates Christmas and Tom lovesChristmas.
They just could not be moreopposite.
(21:29):
Like this is also grumpysunshine at its finest as well,
so you have forced proximity,second chance and grumpy
sunshine, so I would recommendthis one.
It was so funny.
I really enjoyed it.
All of these books I've talkedabout so far are just completely
different from each other.
They're really unique, they'rereally fun and they just stood
(21:51):
out to me and made me laugh andwere just honestly, a fantastic
time.
They were everything that aChristmas book should be.
Up next I have Cabin Mate byLeah Bruner.
This one is also closed doorand this is the friends to
lovers trope.
So this is technically thefourth book in the series, the
Under the Kansas Sky series, butit is an interconnected
(22:14):
standalone so you were totallyfine to read it first.
So Brooks is the immatureplayboy.
Throughout the books we findout that he's actually been in
love with his best friend, molly, who has been with her
long-term boyfriend, and thislong-term boyfriend is actually
like the scum beneath your shoe.
He is just the worst.
Like go, go away.
They break up from hisstupidity and her parents are
(22:37):
absolutely devastated becausethey're rich and he was of their
caliber, so in need of a fake,brooks agrees to step in and the
two spend the holidays togetherwith her family.
And will this ruin theirfriendship?
Read to find out.
So this has the friends tolovers trope.
(22:59):
This is actually alsomillionaire to billionaire and
it is forced proximity as well.
This one was so fun.
I loved the friends to lovers.
That's my favorite trope,obviously, friends to lovers and
it is done really well, reallywell here.
They actually run a businesstogether, brooks and Molly.
So they already have constantforced proximity and they're
(23:23):
really close.
But you know Molly hasn't seenBrooks in that way because she's
been with her long-termboyfriend who sucks.
So you know you'll seeeverything start to unfold.
This is classic, amazing, leahBruner Also.
I just have to make a plug forthe DC Eagle series.
If you have not started youneed to.
Desire or Defense is book one,flirtation or Face Off is book
(23:46):
two, and Betrothal or Breakawayis book three.
This hockey it's a closed doorhockey series which is one of
the best hockey series I've read, just FYI, and so anything
Labor to Rights, I'm going toread it.
This is no exception.
I enjoyed Cabin Mate so much.
It is adorable.
So I would highly recommendthis book and up next I have
(24:11):
Seasons Schemings by KatieBailey.
So this is closed door and ifyou like Sarah Adams, then
you're going to like KatieBailey.
Their styles are very similar.
They're not exactly the same,of course, but they are very
similar.
So I do think that if you likeSarah Adams, you will like Katie
Bailey.
I've enjoyed every one ofKatie's books I've read so far
(24:32):
and I'm pretty sure I've readall.
I was going to say all but one,but now all but two, because
she just released anotherChristmas book called Holiday
Hostilities, and that one isalso a Christmas hockey romance
and I've heard from friends thatit is fantastic.
I didn't get to it yet but I amdying to, but also I want to
savor it.
So I would recommend possiblychecking that one out as well.
(24:57):
But this is Season Schemings.
In this one it is Maddie is themain character and she is
working in broadcast journalism.
She's actually in Anchor and sheanchors like happy news and she
had a really tumultuous breakupnot that long ago and this
(25:17):
ex-boyfriend is getting married,and so whenever they get an
invitation from the ex-boyfriend, that's when Maddie is like, oh
, I don't want to go to herwedding.
That's when Maddie is like oh,I don't want to go to her
wedding but enter Bastion Slaterin NHL.
Well, I mean, of course he's ahockey player if he's in the NHL
the NHL's most infamous player,some would say.
(25:39):
And she, of course, had alreadykind of had a crush on him
because he's super attractiveand she's like this is not a
good idea because I'm gonna bethe one to get my feelings hurt.
But they agree to fake date.
And so they agree to fake date.
(25:59):
But they fake date and itactually ends up leading to a
marriage of convenience throughinteresting circumstances is the
best way I can describe it.
I'm trying not to ruin things,so that's the hard part is like
I'm trying to tell you thingswithout ruining it.
And so, anyway, it does lead toa marriage of convenience.
(26:21):
This was so cute.
Just the way that Sebastian orZeb, he sticks up for her is
adorable, adorable.
I loved this book.
It was so cute, it was so good.
Like.
It's hard to describe again.
I'm trying not to spoil it, soI feel like I can't give you all
the details, but it is really,really fun.
(26:42):
Everything Katie Bailey writesis really fun, and the cool
thing is that Katie and Leah arefriends and so they actually
have like tie-ins to eachother's books because they both
have hockey teams.
So one hockey team is calledthe DC Eagles and then one's the
Cyclones, and so I'm prettysure it's in Season Schemings,
this book, where the Cyclonesactually play the Eagles in one
(27:03):
of the games, and I was like, oh, look at that, how cool.
They kind of like tied theirbooks together with an invisible
string a little bit.
So anyway, fun, random tidbit.
But Season Schemings by KatieBailey is super fun and of
course, if you want to read herlatest holiday hostilities, you
could do that as well.
I'm stoked to read it.
And if I had all the time inthe world to read all the
(27:23):
Christmas books in the world, Iwould have already read it, but
I did not.
So next up we are crossing intoOpen Door Territory, so this
book is Open Door and it is.
All I Want Is you by FallonBallard.
This is actually my firstFallon Ballard.
I do have all of her books onmy shelf.
I just have not gotten to themyet, so this was my first one on
(27:46):
my shelf.
I just have not gotten to themyet, so this was my first one.
All I want is you, and again,this is Open Door, it's Second
Chance and it's Forced Proximityand Romance Writers.
So really, what more could youwant?
Let me just say that, like,Second Chance is not my go-to
trope, it's not really one thatI thought I tended to enjoy, but
somehow authors, as of late,have been doing a really great
(28:09):
job with Second Chance.
So now I've been reading moreof that trope than I probably
ever have.
Like it's.
It's been done really welllately.
So thank you to all the authorsthat are writing it well,
because I didn't know I likedthis trope, but yet again
Fallon's helping change my mind,in addition to Jessica Joyce
(28:30):
and Lorne Lane and all thoseothers.
So anyway, ok, let me tell youa little bit more about the book
and this one.
I said it was open door.
It does have like several spicescenes.
They're not like superdescriptive.
So I would say maybe this islike a 2.5 to 3 on the scale,
like if you read I mean, if youread just like standard Berkeley
(28:52):
romances, then you're good.
This is no more than those.
So, but it does have severalspice scenes.
So also just putting that outthere.
But it really is not like superdescriptive or anything.
So it's kind of been like thelight to medium range of spice,
like just kind of your, yourtypical spice level of you know,
just like general Berkeleyromances.
So not anything crazy, ok.
(29:15):
So Jessica and Nick are bothromance writers.
They had a tumultuous breakupin the past and they're forced
to be in the same room when oneof them has to present the other
with an award.
At a publishing Christmas party.
Set at a winter lodge, they gettrapped together thanks to a
snowstorm and they end upworking on a project.
Will they be able to completethe project and will they ever
(29:39):
get out of the snowstorm, out ofthe lodge, away from the
snowstorm?
You will have to read to findout.
I can't tell you much more thanthat because then I start
running into spoilers, spoilers.
But I could not put this bookdown.
The pacing was really fun andthe book was a really good mix
of Christmassy, but of course italso had a good plot.
It moved really well.
(29:59):
I really loved the whole likerivals to lovers aspect and of
course it was second chance andforced proximity as well.
But it's definitely like rivalsto lovers.
The banter just between themain characters was great.
But also there's this friendsgroup chat which, like she, has
author besties and they're allin this little group chat and so
(30:20):
you get some of their textchains and those were just pure
gold and I laughed so much.
The only thing that bugs me avery small, like a tiny bit, not
enough to not include it on thelist, but I just wanted to
point it out in case this issomething that you don't want to
read or that drives you crazyor whatever.
So ultimately it's kind of likemiscommunication adjacent.
(30:46):
It is a miscommunication.
It is yeah, yeah, now that Ithink about that, it is a
miscommunication, which I reallydon't like miscommunication.
But the reason why they brokeup is not revealed to the female
main character.
For a while, like he just kindof broke up with her and will
(31:06):
not tell her why, and I feltlike it was just dragged out,
maybe a little bit too long, tothe point where I almost just
kind of like wanted it out sothat way they could deal with it
.
I was almost like I don't care,I'm done with hearing about
this, like either just tell usor just don't tell us.
So I felt like maybe it couldhave just been revealed a little
bit earlier and then maybe theyworked with like the
(31:29):
repercussions of what it ends upbeing for the rest of the book
and maybe that could have lastedlike the second half.
So, anyway, it just takes awhile for the male main
character to tell the femalemain character why they broke up
, like what his reasoning was,which just sounds kind of crazy.
(31:49):
So, yeah, that that is amiscommunication.
That's in there.
Um, I definitely don't think itruined the whole book by any
means, but it it's just.
It was pretty strong for alarge majority of the book.
So I just wanted to give you aheads up in case that matters to
you.
But it was really, really funand I enjoyed it.
So, basically, if you finishthe most wonderful crime of the
year and you need something morethat has rivals to lovers with
(32:12):
authors and you want the samekind of you know, quick pace
with rivals to lovers that arealso authors, then read this
book.
I thought it was really fun andI enjoyed a lot.
Up next we have a classic.
Uh, so this is Love Light Farmsby BK Borison.
You've probably heard of it,you've probably read it.
(32:33):
This is open door.
This is an open door book.
Love light farms by bk borisonis open door.
I feel like I have to say thatand I'll tell you in a second
more about why it is friends tolovers and of course, it's a
holiday classic, if you didn'tknow, just because I feel the
(32:54):
need to explain.
If you didn't know, the lovelight series takes place in a
town called love lights and eachbook is fitted to a different
season.
There are four books in thisseries and so they are all very
atmospheric because they allrelate to a specific season, so
they put you kind of in thatspecific season.
And this is actually the firstbook in the series and and I
(33:15):
obviously really enjoyed thisbook.
It's one of the best friends tolovers books that I've read.
But again, I really love thetrope Stella.
I just want to point this outagain.
I loved the book, but Stellamight bug you a little bit
because you're like Stella, helikes you, I promise, so just
keep that in mind.
But her and Luca are just soadorable that it's going to be
(33:38):
worth it and I I really lovethis book and I need to do a
reread because I read this lastyear and I need to reread it for
this year.
But here is my little plotsynopsis.
So Stella owns Love Light Farms, which is a Christmas tree farm
.
She enters a competition thatwould be great exposure for the
farm and drum up some business.
She ends up filling out theform saying that she runs it
(34:00):
with her boyfriend and then,when she's picked yay, she has
to find said boyfriend.
Luca, her longtime best friend,decides to pose as her
boyfriend for contest officials.
But will things start to feelreal?
You'll have to read to find out.
That being said, like I'vepointed out several times
(34:20):
already, this book is open door.
So it's actually kind ofcomical how many conversations
I've had with both readers andauthors who didn't realize that
this is open door.
So I think a lot of people justtend to think that it's closed
door, and I've had a lot of myfriends that read closed door
come to me and go hey, should Iread Love Light Farms?
It's closed door, right, andI'm like it's not Mayday, it's
(34:42):
not closed door, it is open door.
This is an open door book.
So that's why I keep saying it,because I've had this
conversation over and, over andover again.
It is an open door book.
It it's pretty descriptive, tobe honest.
I read it last year when I wasnot reading as spicy of books so
this seemed pretty spicy at thetime.
(35:04):
So I don't know what I wouldrate it now that I have read a
lot spicier.
But it is pretty descriptive.
If you can handle AllieHazelwood, you're fine.
It's not as if it's superintense or anything, it's just
this level of description likeit's not as intense as Allie
Hazelwood, it's a little bitmore poetic, but it's just very
(35:26):
descriptive.
So you're going to know what'sgoing on.
So just keep that in mind.
And so far from what I've readin the series again, I'm just
letting you know in case you doonly read closed door books and
this matters to you or if youlike to keep kind of mild spice
so far from what I've read ofthis series it seems to get
spicier in subsequent books.
Mixed Signals was extremelyspicy and that is book three.
(35:48):
I have not read Business Casualor In the Weeds.
So the series goes.
Love Light Farms is book numberone In the Weeds.
So the series goes.
Love Light Farms is book numberone.
In the Weeds is book number two.
Mixed Signals is book numberthree and then Business Casual
is book number four.
So I've read one and three butI have not read two and four.
And yeah, three was prettyspicy for me Again.
(36:10):
I read it at the very beginningof this year, like it was the
first book I read this year,very beginning of this year,
like it was the first book Iread this year.
So I've read spicier since, butjust know that like it is
decently spicy, it is decentlyspicy.
So know that going in LoveLight Farms is always a classic.
I would always recommend it.
I really enjoyed this book andI need to do a reread.
(36:30):
So those are my recommendationsfor full length books.
Now I have three novellas topoint you towards.
So Christmas novellas.
I was hoping to get to a couplemore but I didn't.
So I have three that justthey've stood out above the rest
so far and I'm really glad thatthis didn't turn out like my
(36:53):
fall.
I meant to do a whole like fallvideo and fall post of fall
books, but every time I read afall book it was just it was
literally like stinker afterstinker after stinker.
I just could not find a fallbook that I liked.
It was almost comical, but ifit was fall, I just ended up not
liking it, which was so sad.
So luckily, with Christmasthere were so many books to
(37:14):
choose from.
All the books on my list justkind of won out over some of the
others a little bit, and thesenovellas are really, really good
.
They may be short, which isactually kind of great for this
time of year, because things aresuper busy.
You may not have time for afull length Christmas book and
if you don't, these novellas aregreat.
I gave you relatively tamerecommendations above and for
(37:37):
some reason I just decided to dothe complete opposite for the
novellas.
All of these are open door andvarying levels of spice, but
they are all spicier than any ofthe books that I.
Uh, there's maybe one thatmight be on par with the others
in spice, but two of them arespicier than what?
Than what I told you up above.
(37:57):
So these novellas are short,they're spicy and they are
really, really fun.
They're perfect if you don'thave time for a full Christmas
book, but they're really welldone and they're really complete
, and kudos to these writersthat can take something like a
novella and just write the crapout of it, because all of them
really did so okay.
Ok, here we go.
First up is A Risk Worth Takingby Jessica Joyce.
(38:20):
Technically, this is not somuch of a Christmas book,
because it's kind of moreholiday, because Claire and
Connor end up meeting on NewYear's Eve.
So this whole book kind ofstarts out more around New
Year's.
So you may want to wait asecond and read a little bit
closer to New Year's.
I need to do a reread.
I read this earlier in the yearand I'm already going to be
rereading it.
Jessica just came out withpaperback copies of A Risk Worth
(38:42):
Taking, so you better believeI'm going to reread my paperback
copy.
Ok, this is what that one isabout.
So Claire and Connor meet at aNew Year's Eve party.
He's there for work and she'skind of working the party more
as like I'm pretty sure she's abartender, or I don't think
she's a caterer, but she's acaterer.
No, I'm pretty sure she's abartender, not a caterer.
(39:04):
Anyway, she is working theparty and they see each other
across the room and they've kindof been like checking each
other out a little bit.
And then whenever she goes toempty the trash, she ends up
running into him because heneeded to get out and get a
break and thus starts theirwhole like whirlwind little
(39:24):
romance.
And I'm trying to like, I'mtrying not to spoil this for you
.
The one thing that I love aboutthis book Risk Worth Taking is
that the character developmentis insane.
It's not it's not really instalove, it's more like insta
infatuation.
And especially in a novella youdon't have time for anything
(39:46):
else and this one's pretty shortfor a novella.
I think it's like only 74 pages, but I feel like I read a
complete novel.
After reading this.
Like this feels so incrediblycomplete.
I just have no idea how Jessicadid that, but shocker not
shocker, because it's her shedid and it was just fantastic.
(40:06):
The chemistry and tensionbetween Claire and Connor, it's
just palpable.
They do go back to their placeand yep, that's that's where the
rest of it kind of takes place.
There's a lot I'm trying not tospoil it there's a lot of
talking about next steps andlike if you have a big decision
in your life and if you shouldgo forward with it.
(40:28):
And Connor, he says this thing,and now I can't remember the
exact words, but it's somethinglike the risk of indecision or
something like that, and it isso true and it kind of just hits
you.
It hits you in the heart Likeyou're expecting that you're
going to get this really cutelike steamy little rom-com New
Year's Eve thing, and thenthere's so much depth in this
(40:50):
that it kind of it took me bysurprise and it just feels
really applicable to life ingeneral.
And I think that's one of thebest things about Jessica's
writing is that not only do youjust feel viscerally what her
characters feel, but there areall these hidden messages and
she'll just say something andyou're like, yeah, that's
(41:12):
exactly how that feels, or youknow, I really needed to hear
that, or I've been going throughthat as well.
So if you're kind of at acrossroads in your life, if you
feel like maybe things didn'tturn out the way that they
should have, then this book isfor you, because not only does
it address it, but it kind ofcomforts you and the
conversation that Claire andConnor have about this is just
(41:32):
really astute and well done andit's just going to give you a
little bit of peace and it'sgoing to make you think but in a
good way like you're going towalk away happy that you read
this little novella and thisconversation.
So anyway, I loved A Risk WorthTaking.
I thought it was fantastic.
Next up is Merrily Yours byRachel Lewis, and I did get to
(41:53):
talk to Rachel Lewis on thepodcast.
I believe she is on in the next.
Yeah, she's going to be on inthe next episode.
We will be talking more aboutMerrily Yours.
So if you want to hear a littlebit more about Merrily Yours,
then definitely listen to thatepisode if you want to hear kind
of like more from her writingside of it.
But I wanted to include it onmy list because I really love
this one.
(42:13):
I flew through this book so,okay, I did get an ARC from
Rachel, but merrily yours.
So the first book, this is astandalone.
It's a standalone to where youcould read it if you haven't
read the other book, but it's anice kind of like.
Yeah, it's a really nice tagalong to yours unexpectedly and
yours unexpectedly is book oneand that covers Bex and Anders
(42:37):
and then this is kind of likethe bridge novella slash, a
little kind of like extra teaserand that's all Christmas themed
.
So basically in this book ohand warning, this book opens on
a spice scene.
It is, it is relatively spicy,so a risk we're taking in
Merrily, yours are the two thatare.
(42:57):
They're a little bit spicierand Christmas by Design does
have some spice, but not notnecessarily to the level that I
would say that like A Risk.
We're Taking and Merrily Yoursdoes so with Merrily Yours by
Rachel Lewis.
It's the Bardot family and youknow them, you love them.
It's the Bardot family and youknow them, you love them.
If you haven't read yoursunexpectedly yet, add it to your
(43:20):
TBR.
It was so fun, so like thepacing was just so quick and it
was so funny, and that one isalso pretty spicy.
So if you do just need like aspicy, quick, fun read, read the
first one, yours unexpectedly.
Or you could start with MerrilyYours.
So okay, with Merrily Yours.
(43:40):
The Bardot family is home forChristmas and each chapter of
this book is actually adifferent character's POV.
So you get everyone's POV.
You get all the siblings.
You get also Anders I meantechnically he's married into
the family now and then you evenget the mom and dad.
So you get Elaine, and for somereason I am blanking on what
(44:00):
her husband's name is, but youget all of their POVs and
they're all home for Christmas.
So they all kind of connect andintertwine and this book is
going to make you slightly madin the fact, or this novella
that you're going to want all oftheir stories immediately and
you're not going to want to waitfor the rest of the series.
Okay, so in book one Yours,unexpectedly you feel like you
(44:24):
know whose story is coming upbecause of course, there's kind
of like a thread that isunraveled that you feel is going
to be the next book and you'reexcited for it and it sounds
good and you want to know whatthe heck is going on.
Well, in this novella, eachcharacter's POV basically sets
up like kind of what their lovestory is going to be.
(44:46):
You're not getting majorspoilers, but you're kind of
getting just enough of a teaseto know, like what tropes are
going to be involved and youmeet some of the love interest
for them.
So I am now dying to read therest of the series and as soon
as Rachel Lewis publishes them Iwill be reading them.
(45:07):
Oh my gosh, she's gonna have.
Well, no, I don't want to tellyou because I don't want it to
spoil the book, but there aresome really amazing tropes in
here.
There are some really, reallyfun interactions and it is a
really good book.
I will warn you that it does endslightly abruptly on purpose,
because it goes into the femalemain character for whose book is
(45:33):
going to be next.
So it sets up the female maincharacter, but you don't know
for sure which guy she's goingto go with.
You could really probably useprocess of elimination, but yeah
, so that's why it kind of cutsoff in the middle of hers,
because you're not to theirstory yet.
(45:54):
It's coming out next.
So this does leave on a veryslight cliffhanger, but I would
not let that deter you fromreading the book.
This is going to make you wantthe next one even more.
I do know whose book is comingup next.
I don't know that.
I've seen Rachel announce it,so I'm going to hold off on that
.
In our episode we're going toannounce it, so it'll be up.
So if you want to know whosestory is coming up next, uh,
(46:16):
definitely listen to our episodebecause we do talk about it and
she spilled it.
She told me so she told me onair and she said I could use it
and let everyone know, so youwill get to know whose story is
next.
Um, I really love the wholeseries and the bardo siblings.
And's just.
It's warm and fun andChristmassy and they have, like
(46:37):
this outdoor lawn decoratingcontest between the family
members and it's just really funand there are a lot of cool
traditions and it's just gonnagive you the warm and fuzzies,
so Merrily Yours.
I would highly recommend as anovella.
And then rounding us out innovella land is Christmas by
(46:58):
Design by Ali Sanberts.
I also read an arc of this one.
It was a very, very cute andvery fun and really unique for a
Christmas book and just a bookin general.
So okay, anyway, gemma andBeckett, they work at the same
architecture firm and they havea project coming up, and Gemma
(47:18):
is a single mom, she has adaughter and she could just
really use the extra money forChristmas, and so Beckett
decides to take on the project,really kind of to help her out.
But Gemma does not need helpfrom anyone, she is an
independent single mom, and soshe ends up going up with
Beckett to work on the project,but of course they get stranded
(47:40):
because of a snowstorm so manysnowstorms going on, but anyway.
So then they get strandedbecause of a snowstorm, and will
they be able to complete theproject and will their feelings
for each other change over thecourse of it?
You'll have to see.
I would classify this as maybekind of rivals to lovers.
They're not totally in the sameposition per se.
(48:04):
He's a little bit higher upthan she is, but I mean they're
still kind of rivals because,you know, within the company I
mean, everyone's somewhatcompeting.
So I would say it's like alight kind of rivals to lovers
thing.
Gemma does not like Beckett.
It is definitely grumpy,sunshine and then also you have
some forced proximity as theywork on this project up until
(48:25):
like Christmas and there's somany cute moments.
Gemma's hilarious, beckett'sreally funny too.
He's he's gonna give it back toher, like she's gonna give it
to him, but he is gonna give itright back to her.
So it was really fun to read andagain, this was another novella
that felt like a reallycomplete story.
I mean it just it felt like Ihad read a novel.
(48:47):
You know, which is great whenan author can do that in a
novella.
Of course you always want moreof the characters and you want
it to be longer, but everythingtied up really there was a lot
of character development goingon and I just felt like I went
through the full journey of abook in this novella and it was
highly satisfying to be able toread something so short and get
(49:11):
really a full-length story.
This one does have some spicein it.
It is not like anything crazy,but it was, it is, it does have
spice and it is open door.
So anyway, I would recommend allthree novellas A Risk we're
Taking, merrily, yours andChristmas by Design.
They're all so different,they're all so fun.
In their own ways they all havea very unique take Jessica's
(49:31):
being at New Year's, rachel'shaving all the different POVs
and then Allie's having thatarchitecture aspect was really
really unique and fun.
So I enjoyed all of those and,of course, any of the books I
told you about on the list.
I would recommend them.
I thought they were so fun.
You know there's so manyChristmas books that it can just
be overwhelming to know whichones to pick, and some are
(49:53):
really good and some are justnot and they're going to fall
flat.
So to know which ones to pickand some are really good and
some are just not and they'regoing to fall flat.
So in my opinion, if you readany of these books, you're going
to have a good time and you'regoing to enjoy yourself for
Christmas.
So thank you so much forjoining me and happy holidays.
Enjoy your family time, read alot of good books and meet some
new book boyfriends.
This has been Kristen Balls onwhen I Left Off.
(50:18):
Stay tuned for the next episode.
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