e-Audio, 10:38:40
Narrated by: Natalie Naudus
Release Date: November 1, 2022
Published by: Simon & Schuster Audio
Read from: November 28-29, 2022
Stand-alone
Source: Publisher (I received a copy of this book from the Publisher in exchange for a just and honest review. This did nothing to influence my review.)
TW: Homophobia, biphobia, transphobia, generalized anxiety disorder, stigmas around neurodiversity, ableism, adultery, cheating, past firing, social anxiety, negligent parents and familial estrangement, depression, drinking, mild drug usage, panic attacks, separation/divorce
For Readers Interested In: Contemporary Romance, Holidaze, LGBTQ+, Realistic Fiction, AdultThe author of The Charm Offensive returns with a festive romantic comedy about a woman who fakes an engagement with her landlord…only to fall for his sister.
One year ago, recent Portland transplant Ellie Oliver had her dream job in animation and a Christmas Eve meet-cute with a woman at a bookstore that led her to fall in love over the course of a single night. But after a betrayal the next morning and the loss of her job soon after, she finds herself adrift, alone, and desperate for money.
Finding work at a local coffee shop, she’s just getting through the days—until Andrew, the shop’s landlord, proposes a shocking, drunken plan: a marriage of convenience that will give him his recent inheritance and alleviate Ellie’s financial woes and isolation. They make a plan to spend the holidays together at his family cabin to keep up the ruse. But when Andrew introduces his new fiancée to his sister, Ellie is shocked to discover it’s Jack—the mysterious woman she fell for over the course of one magical Christmas Eve the year before. Now, Ellie must choose between the safety of a fake relationship and the risk of something real.
Perfect for fans of Written in the Stars and One Day in December, Kiss Her Once for Me is the queer holiday rom-com that you’ll want to cozy up with next to the fire.
*MY THOUGHTS*
As y’all know I had a family member in the hospital and I’ve been trying to keep myself in a good mood by reading some romance books that are set in the holidays. I don’t care what type of holiday, as long as it’s a winter holiday and has an HEA. Someone suggested this to me and let me tell you, it fit the bull EXACTLY. I LOVED this and I am so happy I was able to read it!
Ok so last year I heard that The Charmed Offensive was being talked about all over the place and everyone was head over heels for it. I don’t think I got my hands on it until way too late, so I missed the uproar. So when this one was announced, I said I am DEFINITELY NOT missing this one. Usually I wait because I think it might be like a little spoilery for the author’s previous work. (Y’all know how companion novels are) But with this one I didn’t care. I got my hands on it and read it because everyone was talking about it and I knew I didn’t want to be left out again.
So, the number one thing about this that I loved was the plot. Y’all I’m not usually a fanatic of mess and drama, but this was too good to pass up. The one person you fell in love with is the sister to your new fake fiancee?! Y’all, I had these damn headphones glued to my ears. I don’t know how I didn’t see this coming (I REALLY need to start reading the synopsis lol) but I didn’t, and i think i liked it more because of that. All the shenanigans that come from this had me laughing, biting my nails from anxiety of what was to come, and just being sad that they might not be able to get their ish together. I really liked Allison’s writing style and I put The Charmed Offensive on hold immediately. I needed more of the mess filled funny drama that squeezed a romance out of it too.
Now the reason I couldn’t give this 5 stars. I didn’t really like the rep for demisexuality. Now I’m not demi, but my cousin IS and her definition of what being demi is didn’t match up to this. It didn’t even match up to what the definition was in the book? Like she described that she needed a “deep connection with someone before anything happened between them. but there was this one person who she fell in love with in a day. And I get it, everyone is different, no one is a monolith, but the one person in my life that is demi didn’t agree with this. Now I am not demi so I can only go off what she said, but I trust my cousin.
The actual romance was ok tho. It was like so intense. I can’t imagine how hard it would be to see the person you love being in the same room hugged up with your sibling! And when they finally let something happen, it was like hot and heavy. Every kiss and every detail was intense. I don’t know any other way to explain it. They were like a hurricane; the warm ocean air and some humid air clashing together. Watching them was like a whirlwind. I had so many emotions about this romance, I can’t imagine what they felt. Like the pining for your sibling’s finace’?! Or knowing that you’re the fake finance and seeing the person you actually want right there in the flesh and knowing you can’t say anything less you want to blow up your spot? Lordt, this was crazy lol But then came the freakin third act break up. It was stupid because it was over something I knew she shouldn’t have done from the beginning. I didn’t know how it was going to come back and bite her, but I knew it would. And sure enough……… And y’all know how I feel about the miscommunication trope. The only reason I wasn’t so annoyed about this was because I also have anxiety and I know had I been in the same situation I would have also felt like she did.
The holiday portrayal was great as well. Y’all know I get a little salty when there’s not really any holiday fun in a holiday themed book, but this one fit the bill. There’s even a time when they’re making Christmas cookies and y’all know I love a good cookie weekend! We have one every year with my own family. There’s other events they have too, (a full itinerary lol) and I enjoyed that they were enjoying their family for the holiday. And of course the shenanigans that happened that first Christmas and what ended up happening in the present too. It was a lot, but it was entertaining lol
The narration goes without saying tho, y’all know that Natalie Naudus is one of my faves. I didn’t realize how many books she’d actually done, I didn’t know she had done this book, but when I realized it, I knew it was going to make it even better. And it did. Natalie is amazing and I really hope to finish her back list at some point.
This is probably going to be the only time you hear me say this is a slow burn that I actually liked. Why? Because I was into the drama to actually care lol But I felt like this had a good balance of things with what I did like and what I didn’t. It really made me wonder what I missed out on in the author’s debut. I’m going to have to fix that immediately.
Overall, I give this
