Synopsis:
Ali Hazelwood’s Cruel Winter with You is part of Under the Mistletoe, a stirring collection of December romances that thrill and tingle all the way. They can be read or listened to in one swoony sitting.
For two former childhood friends, a blustery winter storm stirs some frosty—and scorching—memories in a delightful short story by #1 New York Times bestselling author Ali Hazelwood.
All newly minted pediatrician Jamie Malek wants is to borrow a roasting pan for Christmas dinner. Unfortunately, that requires her to interact with Marc—her best friend’s troublemaking brother, who’s now a tech billionaire. He’s the one who got away. She’s the one who broke his heart. Outside, a howling blizzard. Inside, a crackling fire. Suddenly, being snowbound with the man she never expected to see again might not be such a bad way to spend a winter’s night.
Review:
I picked up Cruel Winter With You as I needed a pick me up and Ali Hazelwood’s books are usually good for that. Unfortunately, this novella was not good. Firstly, it’s not even remotely festive, which you’d expect from a series titled ‘Under the Mistletoe’. Secondly, the romance was weird and didn’t have enough time to develop.
Cruel Winter With You actually felt too short. I didn’t feel like I had enough time to get invested in the characters. The chapters that explored Jamie and Marc’s past were lovely, other than the box of photos he’s had of her since he was a teenager, that was weird. I don’t feel like they gave me reason to root for them in the present. Which is a little disappointing as I always talk about how well Ali Hazelwood is at creating chemistry between her characters. I’m going to blame it on the short length.
The almost three year age gap was a little creepy when they were teenagers. Finding out your best friend’s 15 year old brother has a box full of photos he’s taken of you is strange. Also, why did adult Marc have a photo of 17/18 year old Jamie in her prom dress as his phone wallpaper? Now that’s real creepy.
I’m actually really glad that this was a novella and the idea wasn’t used for a full length book. The characters weren’t very interesting and it pains me to rate an Ali Hazelwood book so lowly. Her latest novella, Hot for Slayer, was great though. I’d highly recommend you check out that one.
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