As the sun goes down at 4pm and the temperatures plunge down to the lower forties (if I am lucky), I can't help but want to curl up on my couch with my cat, a heated blanket, and a good Christmassy story. Below are a few books that I am hoping to devour this month-feel free to join me in this extremely informal buddy read!
In this sapphic take on The Holiday, Bee and Clover both need to get away from their everyday lives and decide to utilize the popular house-swap app Vacate to do so. Bee escapes to the Hallmark-esque town of Salem, Ohio and Clover to bustling San Francisco, only to find that the people left behind (Bee's sister Beth and Clover's ex-fiancé Knox) may be people to keep in their lives moving forward...
Here's why I'm excited to read this book:
1) I am a sucker for cute cover art, and Leni Kauffman's illustration style fits that perfectly,
2) I love the idea of two people becoming inevitably connected for non-romantic reasons,
3) Georgia K. Boone's writing has been compared to the writing styles of Cat Sebastian, Talia Hibbert, and Alexandria Bellefleur, all of whom are auto-read authors for me,
and 4) The tropes include grumpy/sunshine, small town/big city, and found family-those are the quintessential holiday tropes!
This new adult romance features two ex-classmates, Murphy and Ellie, who scheme to fake-date each other during a holiday week at Ellie's house in order get the approval of one Professor Meyers (Murphy's current professor and Ellie's mom). Murphy needs to get in Professor Meyers's good books because she is currently failing her class a second time and needs to pass in order to graduate, and Ellie wants to get her mother on board with her plans to move halfway across the country. But will a fake relationship during the holidays truly stay platonic, or will some holiday magic create something long-lasting?
I'll Get Back to You is on my holiday short-list because....
1) I feel like there aren't too many stories with a protagonist going to community college before transferring, and as someone who did just that, I think it is underrated,
2) It is also a new adult novel! I like reading this genre because it gives credibility and value to the not-quite-adults that exist,
and 3) It's is supposed to be super cozy, which is what I am looking for this holiday season.
In the Event of Love is the sapphic Hallmark title that I have been not-quite-guiltily waiting for! Morgan Ross is retreating to Fern Falls for the holidays after a nasty PR incident lays her event planning career low, with plans to lay low herself. However, that goes out the window when Morgan re-meets her former best friend/crush, Rachel Reed, who runs her family's struggling tree farm. After learning that Rachel's farm is the last obstacle between capitalism ruining Fern Falls, Morgan decides to run her biggest fundraiser yet and works alongside Rachel, all while trying to keep her heart safe.
I absolutely meant to read this last year and never did, which works out for me this year! I am very excited this title because:
1) It is a second chance romance, which I love reading,
2) I mentioned before that readers have been calling this "Hallmark but make it queer," and while I love the fluffiness and mindlessness of Hallmark movies, my biggest complaint with Hallmark has been the lack of diversity,
and 3) Rachel's character reminds me of Nicole Maple Coenen, the "lesbian lumberjack of TikTok" (check out her TikTok @nicole_coenen).
by Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk, and Nicola Yoon
This collection of short stories centers around one day in Atlanta where Stevie has to create a big gesture by midnight to win back her girlfriend, Sola-but there is a massive (for Atlanta) snowstorm outside. Can Stevie and her friends help her get back the girl in this story of Black joy and romance?
This sequel to Blackout has been on my list since it first came out and I am excited to read it because:
1) The authors associated with this project are all award-winners and have phenomenal writing styles,
2) While this is a collection of stories about a number of couples, the overarching plot is to bring together two queer people and I love that reversing of the "gay best friend" trope,
3) I don't read too many short story collections and want to broaden my horizons.
Which of these would you read this holiday season? Are there any that I missed? Let me know down in the comments. I can't promise I'll read them this holiday season, but I'd definitely love to read them next year.
