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Content/Trigger Warnings: Sexual scenes, talk of divorce, mentions of mental and emotional abuse, mentions of harassment, talk of online harassment, mentions of doxing, hospital themes
“He felt like he was losing himself in the shining depths of her eyes, like he was being pulled in and that if he looked away, everything around them might come crashing down.”
Yes friends, it’s true, I’m on a holiday read kick and I have to say, if you haven’t added this novella to your winter tbr yet then you need to fix that right away. If you’ve been here a while, then you know how much of a sucker I am for read that have single parent households and on top of that, this is a romance novella. Yes please! I was here for this story from the first few lines of the novella’s description. Truly, I loved this story a heck-a-ton!
Settled in Cheyenne, Wyoming, Luke Grayson is doing what any single father is trying to do, be the best dad he can be to his son, Ethan, to make up for the absence of Ethan’s mother. So when Luke receives a call that his son is in the hospital with a potential concussion, the last thing Luke was anticipating was to find love, that is until he meets Christie. Christie Harmon has had a rough past. Forced to leave her hometown and start life anew, Christie refuses to have history repeat itself. There’s just one problem, one very handsome, charming, problem. Luke Grayson. Two people with rocky pasts will come together to chip away at each other’s walls and find out what true love really is like.
I adored the characters in this book. I think this is one of the things I say the most, but anytime there’s characters who come across as morally grey or imperfect, the more realistic feeling, I absolutely fall in love. Both of these characters have their flaws and we get to see both of these characters work through the doubts, chasing what will make them happy. Even in the dark times, they work through it even if it’s a little messy or the voices inside them are telling them ‘no’.
I think one of the biggest things I loved about this theme is the small town vibes and the sense of importance of family. Yes, this is a holiday read, but I loved that there were so many things centered around family. Speaking of family, if I haven’t mentioned already, Luke is actually a single father. I love every time an author decides to take the ‘single family’ route and even more so when it’s a single father. Single fathers just don’t get the attention they deserve in literature and every time I find a story with that little gem inside, it makes my heart warm and fuzzy. Not like single family household themes don’t already give me the warm fuzzies, but I always want to show my appreciation for those themes.
“Use the peoples who love you as your mirror. Not the people out to cut you down. The reflection they’re showing you is tainted and not worthy of your time.”
There’s also a heavy theme of how heavily our past can weigh on us and impact our present and future. How, despite handling everything the best we can, it can come full circle or still weighs us down even when we’re starting anew. I really appreciated the author taking that theme and really showing us that you can have anchors that pull you, but you can still find happiness, you can still keep healing in the now. And most importantly, I think the author did a wonderful job of expressing how the people who caused you harm aren’t a reflection of you as a person. The author really took the time to express that the people who you love and choose to surround yourself with will always reflect your heart’s intentions.
I think my only issue with this book was how short it was. I’m not going to lie, I wanted a little bit more from this novella. Give me 40-50 more pages and I probably would have been content. However, I recognize that this is a novella, but still, I was craving more details with this read.
Overall, this was a really cozy, holiday read to snuggle up with. I enjoyed grabbing a cup of hot chocolate and snuggling down to get in the holiday spirit with this book. Plus, it’s such a fast read and perfect for getting in end of the year reads. And again, single parent theme! It’s an absolute must read for your holiday tbrs!
Chapter Malliumpkin 