e-Audio, 10:43:45
Narrated by: Mark Sanderlin
Release Date: October 4, 2022
Published by: Dreamscape Media, LLC
Read from: October 24-25, 2022
Boy Meets Boy, #2
Source: Netgalley (I received this audio copy of this book from Netgalley and the Publisher in exchange for a just and honest review. This did nothing to influence my review.)
TW: Drugs, alcohol, anxiety, cursing, anxiety attacks, lying, blackmail, divorce
For Readers Interested In: Realistic Fiction, Romance, Holidaze (Christmas), LGBTQ+, Mental Health Rep (Anxiety), AdultBring a little joy to the world?
Not today, Santa.
Matthew Prince is young, rich, and thoroughly spoiled. So what if his parents barely remember he exists and the press is totally obsessed with him? He’s on top of the world. But one major PR misstep later, and Matthew is cut off and shipped away to spend the holidays in his grandparents’ charming small town hellscape. Population: who cares?
It’s bad enough he’s stuck in some festive winter wonderland—it’s even worse that he has to share space with Hector Martinez, an obnoxiously attractive local who’s unimpressed with anything and everything Matthew does.
Just when it looks like the holiday season is bringing nothing but heated squabbles, the charity gala loses its coordinator and Matthew steps in as a saintly act to get home early on good behavior…with Hector as his maddening plus-one. But even a Grinch can’t resist the unexpected joy of found family, and in the end, the forced proximity and infectious holiday cheer might be enough to make a lonely Prince’s heart grow three sizes this year.
*MY THOUGHTS*
First things first…. If you don’t get excited about this book just because of it’s title, we can’t be friends lol I didn’t actually think this was going to be a retelling of the Grinch, but when I realized it was sort of a loose re-telling, I was ecstatic. It’s actually my second favorite Christmas story (second only to A Christmas Carol) because of the way he changes his mind at the end. So of course, when I saw it on Netgalley, I immediately grabbed it. And I LOVED it!
When this opens, Matthew is a real grinch. He’s spoiled and used to name brands and everyone bending to his will. When he’s sent to his grandma’s place in the middle of nowhere, he is completely lost. This was the best part to me for some reason lol I LOVED the little sleepy town where everything and everyone put me in a holidaze. With the snow and the cookies and just everything. It was really cute. I knew I liked it when I kept talking about it to my husband. Wishing I could visit the inn at least once. I just knew the quiet and the cold and the decorations and the bunk beds would have been some of the quiet I need lol
Then there’s the freaking romance. I have to admit, I didn’t think he deserved him in the beginning, but I didn’t want to judge him too fast because I knew there was something underneath it all that made him act like this. And of course there was. But he even admitted he was acting like a brat. so he knew what he was doing, and I just couldn’t deal with that. But somewhere during the story, I started to fall for the two of them together. Don’t ask me when it was. (Had to be after the okay to do the gala when he started acting like a normal human again lol) But I liked the way they balanced each other out. One of them had little and wanted to give everyone else it all and the other had it all for themselves and wanted more. Until they got together. And as I said before, I LOVE that small heart change. And because it was someone close to them, it was even more special for him to see the light.
The writing style was also pretty great. I laughed, I cried, and when the mental health (anxiety focused) came into the story, I was cheering him on. And I love how committed he was to the Christmas theme. I’ve read quite a few Christmas romances so far this year, and alot of them have mentioned the holidays or that they’ve seen decoration, etc. but not all of them have actually been focused on them if that makes sense. But this one did and I was glad for it.
Backdooring this, I’m not LGBTQ+ so I won’t speak on the representation, but I will say something on the anxiety. We are not a monolith, so I understand that not all my experiences will be theirs. With that being said, I did see a lot of myself in Matthew. His spirals for one made me think to myself, “Am I also like this?” Because geesh. It was so real. I recognized some of the signs before he even admitted he had it. Definitely felt like looking into a mirror when I was first figuring things out. But if you also have trouble managing your anxiety, maybe be careful reading this. Give yourself some grace and take some breaks.
The narrator they picked was PERFECT for this book. When I started thinking of what I might think he would sound like, it was just like this. Even his voice for grandma was cute! And although I wasn’t a fan of his voice for some of the other characters, it didn’t stop the fact that he was perfect for the main character. I think that matters more than anything.
This loose re-telling was really cute and left me in such a good mood after finishing it. I can’t tell you how excited I’ve been since I heard about it. And I’m glad I got to experience it in time for the holidays. You should pick it up too.
Overall, I give this
