Susan’s Book Blog

I’m starting to get into holiday reads now that we’re halfway through December. These are a few I read last year and I loved all three!  🎄 In a Holidaze is a trippy and magical time loop romance with a cozy cabin setting and big happy family vibes.  🎄 The Holiday Swap is a sweet Hallmark-style identical twin life swap with bakery goodness.  🎄 The Geek Who Saved Christmas is a sweet ‘n fluffy grumpy/sunshine enemy neighbors-to-lovers after-40 romance. I highly recommend all three if you’re looking for some cozy holiday reading!  ❤️💚 What’s on your holiday to-read list, if you have one? (I’m hoping to get to The Plight Before Christmas and A Merry Little Meet Cute.)

  Stuffed by K. Sterling If you don’t want the magic of Christmas forever sullied by images of a horny Santa Claus who brings tidings of joy and three-ways, stop right here.  This was utterly bonkers, but brilliant. I was NOT expecting what this turned out to be. I went from What the hell am I reading, to OMG THAT IS SO SWEET IM GONNA DIE. This is in turns ridiculous (in the best way), sexy (read: absolutely filthy), and incredibly sweet and heartfelt. The tone is largely tongue-in-cheek and chock full of corn and cheese - until it gets seriously (and rather unexpectedly) sincere. I don’t know how Sterling pulled this off but it WORKS. It uses every porny cliché out there but doesn’t take itself seriously, which I think is precisely why it works.  A hilarious prologue sets the stage for a series of vignettes in which Santa grants people’s Christmas wishes. There are sexy shenanigans in them all but each of the stories has a very sweet, heartfelt happy ending. (Also? Santa...

  So This is Christmas   by Jenny Holiday Pub date 10/4/2022   Avon/ Harper Collins 🏔 3.5 stars out of 5 🏔 ✨ 🏰 👑 🎿🛷❄️🎄🎅🏻✨ Matteo Benz has spent his life serving at the pleasure of the Eldovian crown. His work is his life and his life, well…he doesn’t have much of one. When he is tasked to aid a management consultant who has been flown in to help straighten out the king’s affairs, he is instantly disturbed by her brash American manner—as well by an inconvenient attraction to the brainy beauty. Cara Delaney is in Eldovia to help clean up the king’s financial affairs, but soon finds herself at odds with the very proper Mr. Benz. As intrigued by his good looks as she is annoyed by his dedication to tradition for its own sake, she slowly begins to see the real man behind the royal throne. As they work together to return Eldovia to its former glory during the country’s magical Christmas season, Matteo discovers he is falling hopelessly in love with the unconventional A...

  You’re a Mean One Matthew Prince by Timothy Janovsky Pub Date 10/4/2022 ⛄️ 3 stars out of 5 ⛄️ This is basically a Schitt’s Creek Christmas AU. The narrator, Matthew, is so clearly written to be a David Rose-style spoiled brat that I could only picture the character as Dan Levy. He was so unlikeable it took me quite a while until I became invested. I actually considered quitting several times before the 25% mark. (Then again, it took me a long time to warm up to Schitt’s Creek as well.)  Matthew learns things about himself during his exile to his grandparents’ home. As he spends more time in the small town and with Hector, he learns that the life he previously knew was not a good one despite all its material rewards. Hector helps bring him down to earth and keep him there. Matthew’s struggles with anxiety also helped humanize him and soften his rough edges. I generally appreciate anxiety/mental health rep but it almost felt like a cheap ploy here to make Matthew likeable. It...

In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren My rating: 5 of 5 stars Ughhh this was SO GOOD. I LOVED it! I'm a little late to the game with this one seeing as it came out about a year ago but it's new to me. And it was nothing at all like I expected. It was trippy (the Groundhog Day time loop premise) and magical and fun and so so sweet. I adored both MCs; Andrew was a dream and Mae was funny and relatable. I really enjoyed the cozy cabin setting and the whole big happy family vibe. I just loved every minute of this book. Definitely one of my favorite holiday romances. View all my reviews

If you’re like me, you love books, bookmarks, and getting packages in the mail. 😝 So of course Book of the Month boxes are some of the funnest packages I get every month. This month I chose The Holiday Swap and added on In a Holidaze. Here’s my haul (it even came with Christmas stickers!): Bookmark (💯 🎯): Stickers! 👇🏼 If you want to try out BOTM, click here !  Every month you’ll get a choice if several different genres. No strings attached, you can skip anytime you want. It’s so much fun!

  🏰🏰🏰🏰✨ 4.5 castles out of 5 I loved this, it was so much fun! This was one of those books where I knew it was going to be a favorite even before the first chapter was over. The writing is sharp and the characters are quickly and fully realized. Max and Dani are amazing and I loved their banter and the rapport they have. Dani’s lack of awe for Max’s position had me cracking up. (And Max liked it too which made me like him even more.) A couple of my favorite things from the book: The Dirty Dancing lifts ‘Max Maximus’ & ‘Max Minimus’ “Dukish casual” The MC’s BFFs who are loving and supportive but don’t let them get away with any bullshit This book surprised me because the premise is super Hallmark fairytale Christmas movie, which is not normally my thing, but somehow it felt thoroughly grounded in real life with plenty of depth. I did feel like a subplot involving Max’s brother was left a little… unresolved. But overall it is fun and funny and delightful and adorable and supe...