TW: Rape, physical abuse

I am so conflicted about my feelings for this book.

The first 3/4 of this book gets a strong 4 stars from me. I liked the quirky, strange characters and their relationships with one another. Even though Boy wasn't the most likable character, she was interesting. Other characters, as well, were difficult to connect with, but the discussions of race in the mid-20th century were compelling.

Then the end of the book happened.

I really disliked the discussion about sexuality and gender identity, specifically the idea that the person Boy grew up thinking was her father was actually her biological mother and the fact that she is seeing that as some sort of disease, something to be cured. It's just...no. Why on Earth would it matter if her mother identified as a woman or a man? The truth of the matter is that Boy was brutally abused for her entire childhood by the one person who should have protected her. Whether that person was a man or a woman shouldn't have any bearing on the situation. It felt like we were supposed to believe that if Boy's mother hadn't begun to identify as a man, Boy wouldn't have been abused...and that is just so wrong to me. Plus, the fact that Boy is the product of a rape is completely glossed over because "Fuck that guy." But then the fact that Frank was an abusive piece of crap is also glossed over, and it feels like it's being forgiven because of what Boy sees as his 'disease'.

I felt like it was so rushed and unnecessary. The 'twist' (btw, gender and sexuality shouldn't be a twist, just saying.) And then we are left completely open-ended. There is zero resolution to the story, which makes that twist feel even more unnecessary.

It's really unfortunate, because I was really enjoying this book for the most part up until then. Ultimately I'm going with a 2 star rating because I was so disappointed by the ending.

This is the fourth book I've read this year with a major character with autism.** The interesting thing about that is that each book is completely different in tone, plot, and character. That makes me so happy because I feel like people hear the word "autism" and have a very specific, pigeon-holed view of what that means, and the truth is that the autism spectrum varies greatly.

What I liked:

1. Stella. I thought she was a great character. To learn in the Author's Note that she herself has autism really cemented Stella as a character for me because the author admits that Stella is pretty much an extension of her. I love the arc that she goes through in this book from a place where she is attempting to hide her diagnosis to a place where she is able to accept herself and say, "This is me. I don't feel like there's anything wrong with me. It's just how I am."

2. Michael. I love that we have a love interest who is a biracial POC and that we get some insight into his culture and background. The way his character takes all of his family's woes onto himself was so endearing, even though as a reader I wanted him to be able to break away and do what makes him happy. I love the way he interacts with Stella.

3. The romance. I loved this. I thought their relationship was written really well. For anyone wondering, yes, it is very steamy. THIS IS NOT A YA BOOK. I repeat, NOT. YA. I'm not a prude, and I read my mom's historical romances multiple times when I was a teenager, but there were a couple of parts I actually felt myself blush. It was pretty steamy. But beyond the physical, I loved the way they were able to be themselves around the other. And the consent in this book...wow. Every intimate scene (especially in the beginning when she is super uncomfortable with him) he asks her permission and tells her that he doesn't want to do anything that makes her nervous. When he senses that she is scared or uncomfortable, he immediately backs off. It was great.

4. Defiance of gender norms. Michael is a fashion designer, or at least he wants to be. He works as a tailor in his mother's dry cleaning/alteration store to help his family. Stella is the successful one between the two of them. She makes more money, and she is older than Michael. She also works in a field that is predominantly filled with men.

What I didn't like:

1. Mystery behind Michael's family drama. I won't say what it is, but I won't have to. You'll know pretty much all the way through was Michael's dad did that was so heinous. It's the one part of the book I didn't feel was very well-written. I liked Michael's family for the most part, but this aspect just didn't really work for me. I also thought it was a little silly for Michael to have all of this self-loathing because of things HIS FATHER DID...which leads me to the other thing that annoyed me.

2. The conflict. We all know that in every romance there must be a point in the book (usually in the last 50-75 pages) where the couple has a falling out and separates. Usually it has to do with one character finding out a secret about the other, or some silly miscommunication. In this book, it was both.

Michael tells Stella what his father did, and then breaks up with her because he assumes that she doesn't want to be with him in real life, even though all of her actions and most of her words would contradict that. It made no sense to me. She literally tells him that she is obsessed with him, among other things that should've told him that she didn't want anyone else, but he conveniently forgets that for the last 70 pages of the book.

It felt contrived.

I still absolutely loved this book and would definitely recommend it for anyone who is looking for a steamy romance with a little quirk with regard to the characters. I am absolutely interested in the next book in the series (I think it's a companion series, but I'm not sure) next year.

**The other three were What To Say Next, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, and A Boy Made of Blocks.

TW: emotional abuse, violence (It's not super graphic, but I wanted to make people aware that there are characters in this book who have suffered abuse and trauma and it's kind of an important part of the story.)

I ended up picking this book up sort of on a whim. It, along with the other two books in the series, had been sitting on my shelf for the past several months. The other day, I picked up this book just out of a yearning for an easy, light adult romance. I didn't even realize it was set at Christmas (maybe I should have, considering the title, but it's actually the first in a series, and that's all I was really paying attention to at the time) so picking it up on December 5th felt kind of like fate.

I ended up really enjoying this book. I usually like my romances to be a little steamier than this one was, but there was something about the way the author approached the relationship between Eden and Beau that I really liked. I could see this being a tv movie, and I mean that as someone who is total trash for Christmas movies.

There are several different tropes employed in this book. Woman and her child on the run, abusive ex-husband, car breaks down in a small town, local good guy (usually a cop) comes to the rescue...it wasn't exactly the most unique or original setup. Even so, I'm a sucker for those kind of stories, as long as they're told well, and I liked the writing in this book.

One thing I didn't realize is that this was going to be a very chaste romance book. Like I said, I tend to enjoy the steamy romances. This book (and I'm assuming her other books) did not contain anything more than kissing. That being said, I really felt the spark between Eden and Beau and really liked the foundation and build up of their relationship.

Also, the characters are obviously Christian. God and church and prayer are present throughout the book. However, it wasn't done in a way that felt preachy at all. It is just who these characters are. As someone who isn't overly religious, I didn't feel like it was heavy-handed at all.

This book was a quick read for me. It's just over 300 pages, and I flew right through it.

All in all, I liked this book and I'm glad I finally read a holiday story this year that I enjoyed.

Every time I finish a Sarah Addison Allen book, I hug it. Like, literally. There is something magical about her writing that just gets me every single time.

It took me awhile after reading Garden Spells to pick up this sequel. I was nervous. I saw some reviews saying this installment was unnecessary, and I was afraid I'd feel the same. Luckily, my experience with this book is very much the opposite.

I love the whimsy in her stories and characters. There is just enough quirk to make these characters unique and interesting, but her stories are grounded in the real world, unlike some other magical realism stories. They deal with real conflicts and challenges. Their magical gifts are just one part of who they are as people, and I really love that.

Is it crazy that I would love one more book in this series, set a few years in the future when Bay and Mariah are both adults? While Bay had a nice and satisfying conclusion in this story, I would love to see Mariah get a little more attention. I figured out where her arc was heading before it was revealed, and I wanted more.

I always say this, but the only negative thing I really have to say is that I wanted more. I would've read another hundred pages for a little more in the scenes between Claire and Tyler and also Henry and Sydney.

I don't know if all of the editions of this book have this, but I also LOVE that there are recipes in the back of this book. All through the book, I kept thinking how I would need to google a recipe for fig and pepper bread. To find that it was included in the back of the book was such a nice surprise. I may try to make this for Christmas day.

Speaking of Christmas, this book technically takes place in October, but I would definitely recommend it as a great holiday read. It just has that feel to it, especially with all of the candy-making and baking.

I still have a few of her backlist to read, but I think I can safely say that I am a Sarah Addison Allen fan girl, and I have no regrets.

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I got it at some point in the past as an extra book in a subscription box. I hadn't heard much about it, and it promptly went onto my shelves as I picked up other books that were on my radar. Over time, I kind of forgot about it.

I picked this up on a whim yesterday as a sort of pallet cleanser to all of the fluffy romances I'd been reading for the past couple of weeks. Literally all I knew about this was that it was a dystopian.

I ended up enjoying this book quite a bit. It was a quick read with quite a bit of action to keep the plot moving.

It isn't perfect. There is a serious case of insta love (on one character's part, not really the other's) that was a little silly. And there are a lot of elements in this book that remind me of other, more successful dystopian series that came before it.

I don't think the romance in the book was entirely necessary nor was it well-developed. However, I will say that the author had several opportunities to insert an insipid love triangle and refrained, which was refreshing.

The end of this book ramps up the stakes, and the ending is a cliffhanger that makes me wish I had the second book right next to me so I could start it right away.

So while this isn't the *best* book, it was an enjoyable read that kept me engaged from beginning to end.

So, it feels a little weird rating this book so low. I flew through it, and it was obviously supposed to be a light and fluffy kind of read, which I tend to rate a little less critically than I do other genres. However, there was something about the writing style and narrative choices that were aggravating.

First of all, I felt like there were too many characters/subplots. None of them were particularly well-developed. It all felt very surface level to me. There was only one couple I really found myself invested in. I also thought this was going to be Chloe's story, but she was more a side character than anything.

Next, there was so much freaking repetition in this book. Certain phrases are used over and over ('particular gem' was something that was said at least three times that I noticed.) and characters have essentially the same discussions multiple times. Maybe a new tidbit will be divulged with each subsequent conversation, but for the most part, its exactly the same. Also, whenever one character meets another character, we hear their inner dialogue of their first impressions. And each character seems to have the exact same thoughts regarding all of the other characters. For example, one of the women at the hotel is 25 years old. Every single who meets her thinks: "She's so young. She must've been just a baby when she got married. Who gets married in their early twenties?" And this happens throughout the book. (Just a note: I was married at 19 and have been married for 17 years...just saying. It felt like the author personally has an issue with people marrying young and wrote that opinion into the personality of every other character in the book.) This book could've been a good 50 pages shorter if we didn't have to read the same conversations over and over again.

I think my biggest issue with this book was the attempt by the author to manufacture suspense and tension. There are three couples at the hotel that we are following, as well as Chloe, the hotel manager. All of them have had their marriages/engagements end, but we don't know why at the beginning of the book. That information is slowly (very slowly, molasses slowly) divulged to the reader throughout the course of the book. But it's done in a way that I can only describe as click-bait-esque. We would either have a conversation between two or more characters or be in one character's perspective. They would begin vaguely alluding to something that happened in their marriage. Usually they would become anxious and be physically incapable of talking about it. Or two characters would talk about whatever the problem was but the reader is left out of the conversation, only to be told something like, "I thought *my* marriage was a trainwreck!" and then we go on to the next scene. It felt very 'Four marriages end in different ways...number three will SHOCK you!'
So all this tension is building up throughout the story, and then when the 'secrets' are finally revealed, they are so anti-climactic that it made me knock an entire star off my rating. Chloe's is the most ridiculous. There is so much build up about the 'horrifying' thing that Frank did to her on their wedding day. Chloe has multiple anxiety-ridden moments at simply the thought of what he did to her...then we find out that the big reveal is that he got cold feet and told her that he couldn't go through with the wedding. That's it. He was a jerk and waited until the day of to break it off. BUT WE ALREADY KNEW THAT FROM THE BEGINNING OF THE FREAKING BOOK. There is literally no reason for it to be treated like some deep, dark secret. The author was trying to create tension that didn't actually exist, and it was really poorly done.

Also, I wanted to say that there are some problematic moments in this book with regard to LGBT characters and erasure. There is a bisexual character in the book. The fact that he is bisexual is treated as a shocking plot twist. Later, we are treated to this little bit of awfulness: "If that roaring eejit (idiot --they're in Ireland) is now claiming to be bisexual, then he's even more delusional than I took him for. Because as far as I'm concerned, bisexuality is just a halfway house until you're officially out loud and proud." This opinion is never challenged. In fact, the wife says that she would've felt better about him cheating if it hadn't been with another man, as if the fact that he is a cheater and kind of a creep all on his own isn't reason enough to divorce him.

I don't see myself picking up another book from this author in the future. I can see why there is an audience, but it's obviously not me.

So this is the fourth TJR book I've read. These last three I read one right after the other. And I've come to the conclusion that she may not be the author for me. That being said, her books are quick to get through, and I really want to like them, so I keep reading. For me, she's kind of like the Kasie West of adult chick-lit. Her books are easy and quick but I'm usually left feeling underwhelmed. That being said, I continue to pick up their books because I feel like I SHOULD like them. I also get Nicholas Sparks vibes from her books, which isn't exactly a compliment. BUT I STILL READ THREE IN A ROW.

I have a problem.

In any case, this book just wasn't great. I am shocked by the high ratings.

What I liked:

1. The concept of a long-lost love coming back into your life was intriguing.

2. The first part chronicling Emma's younger years with Jesse and Sam was probably my favorite part of the story. There were some definite moments of nostalgia, as I was around the same age as Emma's character.

What I didn't like:

1. I don't like TJR's dialogue. It is so bad. And not just in this book. People just don't talk the way she writes. Maybe this was so obvious to me because I've listened to her books all on audio and so I'm actually hearing this dreck spoken out loud. I would give some examples if I had a physical or e-copy, but I don't, and I'm not going to track one down for the sake of this review.

2. Predictable. I was hoping this book would veer away from the direction I assumed it would go. But it didn't. It played out exactly how I expected it would, as far as who Emma was going to choose at the end of the day.

3. I don't really care for first person, present tense. It has to be done really well, and I don't think this was. I don't know if it's just the way she writes, but it tends toward telling, not showing, especially when she's writing in first person. This book also had a sizable section that switched into second person, after the first part of the book which was told in first person, past tense. It was just a lot.

4. I had a hard time rooting for Emma in this book. I was glad that she was able to move on and open herself up to love after losing her husband, but the way she behaved after he came back was kind of gross. I was hoping that TJR would be able to write a realistic love triangle, and that's not what happened here at all. And don't even get me started on what she did when she and Jesse went to Maine.

I don't really care that they had sex. It makes sense to me I suppose that she would still feel that pull toward, especially since there was never any closure in their relationship. But it wasn't long after that that she began to realize that she was still in love with Sam and that she and Jesse were two different people than they'd been three years prior and that they no longer fit together. But that doesn't stop her from having sex with him again. That's a little icky, but I guess she could justify it to herself that she hadn't fully made up her mind yet. And then they actually lay all their cards on the table and admit to each other that their relationship is over and that she is going to go back and marry Sam. AND THEN THEY HAVE SEX AGAIN. That is gross. She has sex with a man she has no intention of being with all while the man she actually loves is waiting for her to figure her shit out.

That was the last straw for me.
Now, I'm okay not liking a main character, but since this is a romance novel, I'm pretty sure we're supposed to root for her to have a happily-ever-after. I just couldn't do that.

After reading four of her novels and only really liking one, I don't think Taylor Jenkins Reid is the author for me. And that's okay.

I've read several Susan Wiggs books in the past. I haven't read one in awhile, but I remember liking her stories and characters in past books I've read.

Unfortunately, this one didn't work for me at all.

It was full of cliches and tropes. The dialogue was awkward and stilted. The characters lacked depth.
The romance, which was the reason I picked this book up in the first place, was lukewarm to the point of being completely unbelievable. The two characters don't even meet until 200 pages into the novel. Until that point, it was Sarah complaining about her ex-husband being an ass and him complaining that his teenage daughter is acting like a teenager.
Huge chunks of time pass in the course of a sentence and while we're told that these two people are spending all of this time together and falling for each other, we don't actually see it happen. They have a couple of awkward conversations and zero spark.

There was also a few comments made in this book regarding a lesbian couple that made me uncomfortable. One of the women has a daughter who is 'totally skeezed out' by the relationship. There is another point where the relationship is described as 'totally unacceptable'. It seems like this was supposed to be illustrating the daughter's view of the relationship, but the words were actually in another characters POV. In the end, when it's revealed that

the daughter of the woman in a relationship with another woman is the person who has been committing arson around town because she couldn't deal with the fact that her mother is in love with another woman

it's pretty much glossed over. There are almost no consequences, and we don't actually see our male protagonist solving the case. It happens off-page and we learn about it after the fact. It's completely unnecessary to the story, and feels like something that was just tacked on.

I'm glad I read this book in the sense that it's now off my TBR, but I'm bummed I didn't like it more.

I was bored by a majority of this book. I also felt like the truth was obvious throughout the majority of the book, and the lack of a real resolution bothered me.

There are seemingly zero consequences for anyone in the book.

I feel awful for all of the children in the book having parents who are so incredibly selfish and reckless.

This book could've been fifty pages shorter if it wasn't so incredibly repetitive. While I understand what the author was going for, I found Clara's descent into mania incredibly boring. Again, it was obvious what was happening with her from the start, but it took over 300 pages to get from A to Z.

None of the reveals were surprising, and the characters lacked depth.

I skimmed the last third of the book because I just needed to get it finished.