Review & Giveaway - - Two Wrongs Make a Right

Two Wrongs Make a Right

by Chloe Liese

Publisher: Berkley

Release Date: November 22, 2022

Reviewed by Santa

Jamie Westenberg and Bea Wilmot have nothing in common except a meet-disaster and the mutual understanding that they couldn't be more wrong for each other. But when the people closest to them play Cupid and trick them into going on a date, Jamie and Bea realize they have something else in common after all—an undeniable need for revenge.
 
Soon their plan is in place: Fake date obnoxiously and convince the meddlers they’re madly in love. Then, break up spectacularly and dash everyone's hopes, putting an end to the matchmaking madness once and for all.
 
To convince everyone that they’ve fallen for each other, Jamie and Bea will have to nail the performance of their lives. But as their final act nears and playing lovers becomes easier than not, they begin to wonder: What if Cupid’s arrow wasn’t so off the mark? And what if two wrongs do make a right?

Santa Says:

Have you ever been drawn into a book from the very first page? Two Wrongs Make A Right by Chloe Liese is just that kind of book. It is a five star read for me and ticks off so many boxes for me. First and foremost for me, it is a wonderfully crafted re-telling of my favorite Shakespearean play, Much Ado About Nothing. Hello! Beatrix and Benedict or in this case Bea and Jamie. Benedict is his middle name but more about that in the book. There is even the exchange of letters like in the play in the form of texts. Just lovely. Second, fake dating for revenge. Brilliant! What could go wrong? Nothing if you don’t end up actually falling in love. Right? Once they embark on this fake dating, delicious shenanigans ensue.  

There are so many laugh out loud moments in the book. The dialog is witty and engaging. Each chapter is written from Bea and Jamie’s point of view. Their first encounter is stiff and awkward. Bea is neuro-divergent and navigates social situations awkwardly. She is an erotic artist. Jamie is a straight backed professional but also equally awkward in social situations. For every bit that they are different they discover how much they have in common. And the attraction is off the charts. Big points to Jamie as a classic romance hero. He’s a gorgeous baby doctor who saves geriatric cats. Bea’s artistry comes alive on her body as her tattoos express who she is as an individual. They grow beautifully together. 

Their relationship grows so organically that revenge dating becomes real dating and real love. But the forces that bring them together namely her twin sister Juliet and her fiance’ Jean-Claude. This guy’s a piece of work. They also wreak havoc on their world, The fall out from her twin sister’s love life threatens theirs. This was crushing to me but, in the end, all things are set to rights. And all’s well that ends well.  I know, I know. Different play. 

I have to say this one’s a keeper for me. I also intend to glom Chloe Liese’s blacklist. I hope this is the first in a series because there were some other characters in the book whose stories I’d like to read. I’m looking at you Chris, Kate and Juliet.

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Have you ever played Cupid for someone? Or has someone played Cupid for you?

Have you read any books by Chloe Liese?

One randomly chosen person who posts a comment before 11:00 PM, November 24 will receive a print copy of Two Wrongs Make a Right. 

*U.S. only

*Must be 18

*Void where prohibited

 

Review & Giveaway - - A Very Merry Bromance

A Very Merry Bromance

by Lyssa Kay Adams

Bromance Book Club

Publisher: Berkley

Release Date: November 1, 2022

Reviewed by Santa

'Tis the season for a Bromance Book Club matchmaking mission! This time, they're pulling out the mistletoe for everyone's favorite country music star, Colton, and his second chance at love.

Country music’s golden boy Colton Wheeler felt the most perfect harmony when he was with Gretchen Winthrop. But for her, it was a love him and leave him situation. A year later, Colton is struggling to push his music forward in a new direction. If it weren’t about to be the most magical time of year and the support of the Bromance Book Club, he’d be wallowing in self-pity. 
 
It’s hard for immigration attorney Gretchen not to feel a little Scrooge-ish about the excess of Christmas when her clients are scrambling to afford their rent. So when her estranged, wealthy family reaches out with an offer that will allow her to better serve the community, she’s unable to say no. She just needs to convince Colton to be the new face of her family’s whiskey brand. No big deal…
 
Colton agrees to consider Gretchen’s offer in exchange for three dates before Christmas. With the help of the Bromance Book Club, Colton throws himself into the task of proving to her there’s a spark between them. But Gretchen and Colton will both need to overcome the ghosts of Christmas past to build a future together.

Santa Says: 

A Very Merry Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams is just in time for all you Hallmark Channel Christmas rom com movie madness fans out there. And, yes, that means yours truly. It’s the most wonderful time of the year and this book checks off all the boxes. Hot cocoa. Check. Grumpy Scrooge meets Sunshine Elf. Check. Plenty of good cheer and, of course, the ever loving members of the Bromance Book Club. Check and check and check. A band of the hottest men in the Nashville area who happen to love reading romance novels. They see them as manuals on how to successfully woo and win the women of their lives. Yes, romance readers, they have unlocked the secrets we have already found within their pages. 

Colton Wheeler is a country music star with a stalled career. His muse seems to have gone missing. That is until one Gretchen Winthrop reluctantly comes back into his life. Gretchen is an immigration lawyer with demons of her own in the shape of her cold, indifferent family. And she hates the holiday season. Something Colton sees as a challenge. With the help of his buddies and romance novels aka manuals he sets out to woo her and bring her into the true experience of Christmas - full stop. 

Gretchen puts up with his Christmas wreath wrangling as long as he considers being a spokesperson for her family’s whiskey re-branding. A deal she struck with her devil of a brother. Gretchen is no match for Colton’s charm, swagger, not to mention his washboard abs and his romance reading heart. Gretchen is the kick start Colton’s career needs. 

Lyssa Kay Adams' series The Bromance Book Club is so much fun to read! I have read about half of the series, in no particular order and have found each one to be a delight. The banter is funny. The situations the guys find themselves in are hilarious and entirely of their own making. I, for one, would like to wish upon a Christmas star to see this series made into a limited edition series of movies. I’m looking at you, Hallmark! 

Have you read any of the Bromance Book Club books?

Are you as addicted to the Hallmark Christmas movies as Santa (and I) are?

Have you started reading your Christmas romances yet? Any to recommend?

One randomly chosen person who posts a comment before11:00 PM, November 11 will receive a print copy of A Very Merry Bromance.

*U.S. only

*Must be 18

*Void where prohibited

Review - - Paris Daillencourt is About to Crumble

Paris Daillencourt Is About to Crumble

by Alexis Hall

Winner Bakes All - Book 2

Publisher: Forever

Release Date: November 1, 2022

Reviewed by Santa

Paris Daillencourt is a recipe for disaster. Despite his passion for baking, his cat, and his classics degree, constant self-doubt and second-guessing have left him a curdled, directionless mess. So when his roommate enters him in Bake Expectations, the nation’s favourite baking show, Paris is sure he’ll be the first one sent home.
 
But not only does he win week one’s challenge—he meets fellow contestant Tariq Hassan. Sure, he’s the competition, but he’s also cute and kind, with more confidence than Paris could ever hope to have. Still, neither his growing romance with Tariq nor his own impressive bakes can keep Paris’s fear of failure from spoiling his happiness. And when the show’s vicious fanbase confirms his worst anxieties, Paris’s confidence is torn apart quicker than tear-and-share bread.
 
But if Paris can find the strength to face his past, his future, and the chorus of hecklers that live in his brain, he’ll realize it’s the sweet things in life that he really deserves.

Santa Says:

Paris Daillencourt Is About to Crumble by Alexis Hall is a four-star read. Yes, the title is a bit of a mouthful but in a delicious way. It is the second book in the Winner Takes All series. It can easily be read as a stand alone. The only characters that return are the production staff and hosts of the Bake Expectations (love the name) baking competition. Yes, there are echoes of one of my favorite shows, The Great British Bake Off! Both shows take place at lovely estates in England.

Paris Daillencourt finds himself entered into the show by his well meaning flatmate Morag. Paris is an avid home baker. He loves baking as it soothes him both from his studies in classics at university and, well, life in general. Paris is socially awkward and I felt so badly for him. His anxiety level and sense of self worth are especially magnified through every baking challenge judged by both the judges and in the eyes of the viewing public. Once the season airs, each triumph and presumed (by Paris) failure is dissected by social media which can be as vicious as the meanest schoolyard bully.

The only bright spot in all of his anguish is Tariq Hassan, a fellow contestant at Bake Expectations. It is one of the best cute meets I have ever read. It will nearly knock you out! (Wink! Wink!) Tariq is the exact opposite of Paris in every way. Tariq exudes a confidence that Paris feels he could never match. He has a great family who support and love him. Paris’ relationship with his parents is definitely one sided. Tariq is attracted to Paris and is not afraid to let him know it. They begin a relationship that is a revelation to Paris in so many ways. 

However, this is not a story of true love conquering all. Paris for all his endearing qualities can't seem to get out of his own way. His anxieties and insecurities prove to be too much for Tariq especially when Paris, centered on his own failures, cannot celebrate Tariq’s triumphs with him. As much as it pains him, Tariq steps away from Paris. And Paris has a moment of reckoning where he is forced to recognize that his anxieties and self doubts are something more. He faces his mental illness and finally gets the help he needs. 

I am becoming a fan of Alexis Hall’s books. I have read several of his other series and quite enjoyed them. I think that for this book, Alexis Hall takes this story far beyond romance to a novel about how to become our true selves. Paris discovers that he is a person of worth and value. That he is more than his own personal experiences. Something that the people around him namely his flatmate and friend, Morag and his professors knew all along. And, fear not, Tariq and Paris do come together in the end in a very satisfying happy together for now or HTFN. Not as catchy as a HEA but I think Paris and Tariq are headed in the right direction. After all, the best bakes are those that have proofed long enough to produce the best bakes.

 

Review - - Season of Love

Season of Love

by Helena Greer

Publisher: Forever

Release Date: October 11, 2022

Reviewed by Santa

Thanks to her thriving art career, Miriam Blum finally has her decoupaged glitter ducks in a row—until devastating news forces her to a very unwanted family reunion. Her beloved great-aunt Cass has passed and left Miriam part-owner of Carrigan’s, her (ironically) Jewish-run Christmas tree farm.
 
But Miriam’s plans to sit shiva, avoid her parents, then put Carrigan’s in her rearview mirror are spoiled when she learns the business is at risk of going under. To have any chance at turning things around, she’ll need to work with the farm’s grumpy manager—as long as the attraction sparking between them doesn’t set all their trees on fire first.
 
Noelle Northwood wants Miriam Blum gone—even if her ingenious ideas and sensitive soul keep showing Noelle there’s more to Cass’s niece than meets the eye. But saving Carrigan’s requires trust, love, and risking it all—for the chance to make their wildest dreams come true.

 

Santa Says:

Season of Love by Helena Greer will light up your holiday cheer faster than you can unravel last year’s Christmas lights! I am an unabashed holiday romance reader and will gobble up new ones and revisit them year after year. Well, this one had me at Sukkot. Let me backup here for a minute. What would a Christmas romance have to do with the Jewish holiday that takes place in the fall? I’m glad you asked because that is where Season of Love starts, in the Fall at Carrigan’s Christmas Tree Farm owned and operated by our heroine’s Jewish family. And also, because it’s so much more than just another holiday story. There are so many levels of character and depth in this book and Helena Greer writes them masterfully. This debut author is one to keep an eye on. 

Miriam Blum, our main character, lives in Charleston and has made quite a name and presence for herself on the internet as an artist. Her devoted followers known as Bloomers have grown to such a degree that she is about to open her own brick and mortar storefront in Charleston. She has a lovely fiance Tara who is a successful lawyer from Charleston royalty. Cole, her best friend from college, is there for her whenever she needs him. 

Everything is as it should be until she learns of her beloved Great Aunt Cass’ death. She drops everything and flies back to New York to sit shiva for seven days.  Her aunt owned a Christmas tree farm in the Adirondacks in upstate New York. She was catapulted back ten years when she dropped all family connections and ran away to Charleston. But she had only happy memories there at the farm. Her family celebrated Hanukkah every year there. Miriam spent summers there with her aunt, her best friend, and cousin, Hannah and the Matthews who ran the inn on the property. It had been her escape from an abusive and controlling father and her enabling and, seemingly indifferent, mother. 

Her plan was to stay the seven days, avoid her parents at all costs and return to her life in Charleston. However, Carringan’s, her great aunt and the gorgeous, redhead named Noelle who manages the farm seem to all have different ideas on the matter. Her beloved aunt leaves Miriam part owner of the farm and as wonderful a woman as she was, Aunt Cass seemed to have left them in a bit of a financial bind. Miriam’s father rears his vile head, too. And it’s all hands on deck to vanquish old demons, save the farm and bring its magic into the twenty-first century with an online presence and a year round appeal. 

There is an instant visceral pull between Miriam and Noelle but Noelle is resentful of her presence even as she works to help save a farm that has been a sanctuary for Noelle, as well. Miriam’s relationship with her fiance is put to the test by her lengthy absence  and doesn’t survive. As the story develops and we learn more about Noelle and Miriam we see walls crumble and bonds reinforced as they grow as a couple.  

As I said, I am an avid holiday book lover. I am delighted to add this to my keeper shelf and will be rereading it for years to come. I hope you will enjoy it half as much as I have.

 

Review - - Bet on It

Bet on It

by Jodie Slaughter

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Release Date: July 12, 2022

Reviewed by Santa

The first time Aja Owens encounters the man of her dreams, she’s having a panic attack in the frozen foods section of the Piggly Wiggly. The second time, he’s being introduced to her as her favorite bingo buddy’s semi-estranged grandson. From there, all it takes is one game for her to realize that he’s definitely going to be a problem. And if there’s anything she already has a surplus of, it’s problems.

In Walker Abbott’s mind, there are only two worthwhile things in Greenbelt, South Carolina. The peach cobbler at his old favorite diner and his ailing grandmother. Dragging himself back after more than a decade away, he’s counting down the days until Gram heals and he can get back to his real life. Far away from the trauma inside of those city limits. Just when he thinks his plan is solid, enter Aja to shake everything up.

A hastily made bingo-based sex pact is supposed to keep this…thing between them from getting out of hand. Especially when submitting to their feelings means disrupting their carefully balanced lives. But emotions are just like bingo callers—they refuse to be ignored.

Jodie Slaughter's Bet on It is a heart-stoppingly fun, emotional romance that will have readers falling in love until long after the last page is turned.

Santa Says: 

Bet on It by Jodie Slaughter was a smash, five-star hit for me from the moment we meet Aja Owens in the frozen foods aisle. It just so happens that Walker Abbott meets her at the same time. Although they are strangers, Walker reaches out to Aja while she is having a panic attack there. Not quite a cute meet but when they meet again at, of all things, a Bingo night the attraction is instant. Aja is a beautiful women who grapples with anxiety.

Walker returns to his hometown to help his grandmother, a Bingo enthusiast, who is recovering from a fall. His grandmother is the only reason he would ever set foot in that town again. Well, that and what turns out to be the best peach cobbler in the world featured at the local diner.  

That is until he meets Aja at Bingo night where Aja and his grandmother are regulars.  Aja, who teaches him the fine art of Bingo. The game of Bingo brings them together and they become closer but the winner gets so much more. The heat level is scorching in this book but not the only element that keeps them together. Walker and Aja help one another through their traumas and anxieties. Aja around her panic attacks and people and Walker around his parents’ drug issues and abandonment. 

Ms. Slaughter really takes you on an emotional journey but their love, Bingo and peach cobbler make their story ever sweeter.

Review & Giveaway - - Knot Again

Knot Again

by Kwana Jackson

Real Men Knit - Book 2

Publisher: Berkley

Release Date: July 26, 2022

Reviewed by Santa

Sometimes fireman Lucas Strong feels like he can only find any peace and quiet at the local laundromat, where every day is rinse and repeat — until a fateful run-in with his high school crush.

Hoping to attract more customers to his family’s knitting shop, Lucas Strong participated in an FDNY charity calendar and accidentally became a local celebrity. The only place he can find solace is Scrubs—a 24/7 laundromat where he can disappear for a couple of hours. But Lucas’s soapy sanctuary is shaken by an inquisitive little girl with a late-night interest in knitting, whose mother is his old school crush.
 
Sydney Harris knows that Harlem is like any other small town, and everyone is probably whispering about how she left such a good man—and a good life—behind to wash and fold laundry by the pound. If only they knew the truth. But Sydney will always put her daughter’s happiness first, even if that means moving back to Harlem and facing her past.
 
What Sydney never expected was to see Lucas again. A long-forgotten attraction kicks into high gear as Lucas and Sydney start to spend time together at the laundromat, and they must decide if this is true love or just an infatuation, thin and fragile as a soap bubble.

Santa Says:

Knot Again by Kwana Jackson is the second book in a series featuring four men and their stories following the death of their beloved adoptive mother, Mamma Joy. Mamma Joy adopted four boys, two of whom were brothers, Lucas and Noah. Mamma Joy’s death has been hard for her sons to deal with. This second five-star book centers around Lucas Strong and his second-chance romance with his high school crush, Sydney Harris.  

Strong Knits, owned by Mamma Joy, was home to the four boys, now men, and a focal point of their Harlem neighborhood. Lucas and his brother Noah still live in the apartment above the store. Lucas is a firefighter whose popularity in the neighborhood racketed up a few notches with his appearance as Mr. November in a calendar of NYFD firefighters.

Sydney was the one who got away. George Washington University was her ticket out of the neighborhood and from working in her grandfather’s laundromat. Teenaged Lucas did not stop her. She went on to live and marry in the DC area and became a kind of Real Housewife of the Potomac. The illusion of that life was shattered when she found her husband cheating on her. They divorce and Sydney decides to return to the old neighborhood and is back helping out at the laundromat with her daughter. 

The years slip away when Lucas and Sydney come together again but old hurts are hard to overcome. Lucas has some childhood trauma to reconcile. Sydney’s troubles are of a more contemporary nature. I was cheering for Lucas and Sydney through it all and their HEA was well worth the read. 

I look forward to reading Noah's and Damian’s stories and seeing where their stories take them. As men who knit, these brothers have inspired me to try knitting once again. Or I may, like Sydney, re-take up crocheting. Kwana Jackson’s books have always delighted and inspired me and this series continues in that vein. 

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Who among us is proficient in needle crafts? Have you been knitting/crocheting a long time or is it a recently learned skill?

Did you develop any other new skills during the pandemic? 

One randomly chosen person who posts a comment before 11:00 PM, August 30 will receive a print copy of book one in Kwana Jackson's Real Men Knit series: Real Men Knit. 

*U. S. only

*Must be 18

*Void where prohibited

Review - - The Magic of Lemon Drop Pie

The Magic of Lemon Drop Pie

by Rachel Linden

Publisher: Berkley

Release Date: August 2, 2022

Reviewed by Santa

Lolly Blanchard's life only seems to give her lemons. Ten years ago, after her mother’s tragic death, she broke up with her first love and abandoned her dream of opening a restaurant in order to keep her family’s struggling Seattle diner afloat and care for her younger sister and grieving father. Now, a decade later, she dutifully whips up the diner’s famous lemon meringue pies each morning while still pining for all she's lost.  
 
As Lolly’s thirty-third birthday approaches, her quirky great-aunt gives her a mysterious gift—three lemon drops, each of which allows her to live a single day in a life that might have been hers. What if her mom hadn’t passed away? What if she had opened her own restaurant in England? What if she hadn’t broken up with the only man she's ever loved? Surprising and empowering, each experience helps Lolly let go of her regrets and realize the key to transforming her life lies not in redoing her past but in having the courage to embrace her present.

Santa Says:

The Magic of Lemon Drop Pie by Rachel Linden is a smash, five-star hit for me. It is women’s fiction and a romance with a kinda magical swirl of meringue on top. The title is a tease about what the book is really about. The main character, Lolly, is stuck in a rut of her own making but all that changes when her sister reads out from Lolly’s middle school diary a list of things Lolly wants to do with her life.  

It’s a wakeup call of sorts. We all have one or two things we may have wanted to do but never got around to or decisions we may have regretted. Lolly feels trapped but has a unique opportunity to go back and get a glimpse of what life may have been like had things only been different. Her eccentric Aunt Gert gives her three lemon drops to take for each item on her list.  

Each journey offers unique insights and understanding for Lolly and the people she loves in her life and family. The most heartbreaking involves the one man she sent away. The one true love who she never really got over.  

After all the lemon drops are gone Lolly is left just as crumbled as she was in the beginning. By this time, I was wondering where my HEA was! Fear not, Aunt Gert and her best friend Eve provide Lolly with inspiration and new insights. In truth, Lolly needed to get out of her own way, let life unfold as it should and not be the savior of everyone. In doing so, Lolly becomes her true self. I’m not going to spoil the ending here but I will say that true happiness - true bliss - comes when it, and you, are ready for it.

Review - - You Were Made to be Mine

You Were Made to Be Mine

by Julie Anne Long

The Palace of Rogues -  Book 5

Publisher: Avon

Release Date: June 28, 2022

Reviewed by Santa

The mission: Find the Earl of Brundage’s runaway fiancée in exchange for a fortune. Child’s play for legendary British former spymaster, Christian Hawkes. The catch? Hawkes knows in his bones that Brundage is the traitor to England who landed him in a brutal French prison. Hawkes is destitute, the earl is desperate, and a bargain is struck.

Fleeing a savagely shattered dream, the sheltered Lady Aurelie Capet finds refuge in an alias and the warmth and kindness of the Grand Palace on the Thames—until a gorgeous, mysterious disturbance to her peace literally topples through the door.

An unexpected, fierce desire that feels destined, dangerous—and devastatingly sweet—ignites between the sheltered beauty and the jaded spy, and as they slowly unravel each other's shocking secrets Hawkes closes in on the truth about the earl. Soon it’s clear they can have no future without vanquishing the past: Hawkes knows that loving her means avenging her. Aurelie knows that loving Hawkes means freeing him to do that, no matter the cost.

Santa Says:

You Were Made to Be Mine by Julie Anne Long is another triumph in her Palace of Rogues series. This was a five star review for me. You know from the first page Hawkes and Aurelie were meant to be. And what better place to find one’s forever love than the Palace. But their journey doesn’t start in England but in post-war Paris. Lady Aurelie Capet is engaged to the Earl of Brundage but has mysteriously disappeared. Brundage engages Christian Hawkes who was released from a French prison for espionage. Someone betrayed Hawkes just as he was about to reveal the identity of an English traitor who cost hundreds of British lives in a battle led by General Blackmore, now the Duke of Valkirk. YES, that Duke from Julie Anne Long’s equally wonderful After Dark with the Duke. 

Hawkes agrees after looking at a miniature of Aurelie. He tracks her to England and, serendipitously, to the Palace. He literally falls at her feet, as does the rest of the house when Dot opens the door. He had just been stabbed. Dot’s screams bring the maids, who also scream and faint, and everyone to the foyer as the half dressed captain and viscount fly over balusters to see what the screaming is all about. All the while Aurelie moves forward, kneels and tends to Hawkes' wounds. It is at once the funniest and most poignant scene in the book. 

I love Julie Anne Long’s writing style and how she uses wit and physical humor to tell her stories. Her love scenes are sublime. Not only do these two fall in love with each other they fall in love with the family they find at the Grand Palace on the Thames. This found family, with Dot and Mr. Delacourte and all the others adds such warmth and dimension to Aurelie's and Hawke’s story. 

I look forward to the next installation of this series. Can’t wait!

 

Review - - A Thousand Miles

A Thousand Miles

by Bridget Morrissey

Publisher: Berkley

Release Date: June 21, 2022

Reviewed by Santa

After a decade of silence, Dee and Ben reunite for a road trip they once promised to take. It’s going to be a bumpy ride.

Dee Matthews is the cohost of the smash-hit podcast Did I Forget To Tell You?, where she interviews family, friends, and past lovers. Nothing is off limits, except for one man (known on the show only as Name Redacted) who happens to be her high school best friend Ben. During their senior year spring break, Dee and Ben took a road trip to visit Ben’s grandma. They buried a time capsule in her backyard, pledging to return in ten years to open it. Then their friendship fell apart in spectacular fashion. They haven’t spoken to each other since.
 
Ben Porter’s life since that moment has been unexciting but comfortable, until his grandma reveals a family secret that flips his whole world upside down. Her dying wish is for him to stop doing what is safest and go after what he really wants. He starts by showing up on Dee’s doorstep with every intention of fulfilling their long-ago promise. Despite her reservations, Dee can’t say no. This trip could be her chance to give her listeners the Name Redacted interview they’ve been begging for—and finally put her unresolved feelings for Ben to rest.
 
As the miles fly by, Dee and Ben's friendship reignites. But the closer they get to reaching their destination, the more apparent it becomes that their attraction to each other cannot be ignored. Their last adventure ended in disaster, and they’re about to find out if any hope of a future together is in the rear view mirror.

Santa Says:

A Thousand Miles by Bridget Morrissey is a four star read. It is at once both a simple and complicated story about a lost friendship that was never really let go. Dee and Ben were best friends in high school. In their senior year, they drove from Illinois to Colorado to visit Ben’s grandmother. Somehow they manage to return with their friendship shattered. Ben walks away without a word and ten years have passed. 

They create lives for themselves with Ben becoming a teacher in Indiana and Dee creating a successful podcast around secrets called ‘Did I Forget To Tell You’. Ben shows up after ten years and asks Dee to come with him back to his Gam’s house to pack it up. 

What really happens is they unpack all their feelings, angst and love they have been holding onto and hiding from all these years. It is not an easy ride. 

Morrissey takes the reader on this journey with Dee and Ben in some of the most beautiful prose I have ever read. I felt all their pain, joy and rediscovery of each other and themselves in every line. She interjects pieces of Dee’s podcast. Her co-host grew up with them and witnessed it all. Family secrets are exposed and their dynamic will be changed forever. 

A Thousand Miles is brilliantly written. This is Bridget Morrissey’s second book. I will be reading her first book, Love Scenes, and look forward to many more books by her.