What’s better than a holiday love story? How about a holiday love story that includes the ‘let’s fake that we’re together’ coup? What’s better than that, you ask? A holiday love story with a coup AND it’s on the shorter side. Triple whammy annnnnd SOLD! I recently read two books that fall in to this delightful category and you’re gonna want to tune in.
The Christmas Pact
Vi Keeland and Penelope Ward teamed up with The Christmas Pact. It’s festive, it’s flirty, it’s saucy without a 50 Shades element AND this is a book you can leave on your nightstand if you have small humans in the house.
Does that not just sell you right there?
Riley Kennedy (female) and Kennedy Riley (male) work across town for the same company. Riley is a girl I think I would pal around with IRL. Some emails get crossed because, hello, same name in different directions. Kennedy is a bit smarmy and heckles our girl Riley a bit.
Enter the company holiday party and Riley is doing her best to avoid her email enemy (em-emy?). Kennedy drops in out of thin air and there’s clearly a spark. A something.
Kennedy suggests that they play ball with their respective meddling families by acting like they’re together to get their parents off their behinds for being single. However, lines get crossed and this little hijinx isn’t as easy to lock and load as they anticipated.
How these two authors created so much emotional pull in less than 250 pages, I dunno. But I’m so glad I signed up. Read this!
Mistletoe Between Friends
Samantha Chase books are a delight. I read the Shaughnessy Brothers series in a matter of weeks during Hope’s newborn phase while I was sitting out our interstate adoption paperwork. Mistletoe Between Friends is sweet and relatable and I really was rooting for the characters to get their heads outta their candy canes within a few chapters.
Ok, first. Relatable because Cameron Greene is perhaps a bit socially-unaware and all things rigid. I think we can all identify at least one (likely more) lovebug in our orbit who fits this EXACT mold. And I love that Samantha Chase incorporated this unique type of brain into her book.
Cameron has loved best friend Lily Cavanaugh for a zillion years. Their families are besties. Cameron and Lily were born mere weeks apart. Lily adores and accepts Cameron exactly as he is (genius brain, rigid, socially-unaware). Cameron adores, accepts and loves Lily exactly as she is (free-spirited, a bit direction-less, a bright light). Neither of these two are willing to fess up their feelings.
After another set of parent-led blind dates that suffer miserably, Cameron concocts the idea to pretend like he and Lily are together to get both sets of parental units off their personal life trail. Lily goes along willingly. What seemed like an easy-in, easy-out scheme turns into a spider web of emotions and logistics when the parents and extended family get involved. As do Cameron and Lily’s true feelings.
The difference between the two?
The Christmas Pact is a bit more PG-13. Set in New York. Swear words (my people!). Loved!
Mistletoe Between Friends is a bit more PG. Slow burn between friends. Loved!
Any other Vi Keeland, Penelope Ward or Samantha Chase books I need to get my paws on? Message me!