*I was given an ARC of I’ll Be Home for Christmas in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Penguin Random House and Jenny Bayliss for my copy of the book*
Synopsis:
Fred Hallow-Hart isn’t in love with the idea of returning home to Pine Bluff. But after a bad breakup and a subsequent eviction, she’s fresh out of options. God knows she loves her mum and her eccentric aunts—and who could forget their Christmas Cracker family business?—but she’s always felt a little out of place in her small town.
Quickly roped in by her mother to help with the cracker shop, Fred decides throwing herself into work might actually be what’s best for her. Until she reconnects with her old best friend Ryan, who is suddenly making her heart flutter in ways she’s never known; and unexpectedly finds a spark with Warren, a charming journalist covering the Pine Bluff Christmas Market for the Daily News.
But as these connections slowly lead Fred back to her heart, she’s forced to confront some harsh truths, which, if she doesn’t find a way through, might just ruin the holidays for those dearest to her. Can Fred let go of the past enough to recognize real love? And when she does, how far will she go to protect it?
Review:
For some reason when it comes to the festive ARCs I read every year, I’m always reluctant to DNF them. Well, I really need to stop doing that and have done so with I’ll Be Home for Christmas. I got 55% through before deciding that not only was it taking me a really long time to get through this book, but that I also wasn’t enjoying it.
There were a few parts of I’ll Be Home for Christmas that I did enjoy. Firstly, the setting. I love a festive romance set in a small town, especially when said town has a Christmas market. The scenes at the market were so lovely and festive.
I also liked a lot of the side characters. Fred’s aunts were brilliant and hilarious. I love that they use their age as an excuse to do whatever they want such as drinking cocktails at 11am because the mint in them helps with indigestion. Honestly, they were iconic.
Ryan also earned my love. Childhood friends to lovers is one of my favourite tropes but I actually don’t think Fred deserves him. They’re not anywhere near to getting together at the point I put this down, but it’s obviously going to happen. I don’t really like Fred and I don’t think finishing I’ll Be Home for Christmas would change that.
Speaking of Fred, is it just me that thinks dating someone older than your parents is a little gross? I swear Fred says she’s 35 and was dating a guy 20 years older than her. Her mom had her at 17 so is only 52. That’s a bit weird if you ask me. The age gap wouldn’t be weird if not for the age of her parents. I don’t think a 20 year gap when you’re over 30 is bad. Also, Fred says that Liam, an old flame of her mother’s, isn’t bad looking. Which makes sense considering he’s the same age as her ex. I will stop talking about it now but it is so weird to go out with someone older than your mom. You can’t convince me otherwise.
I think if I’ll Be Home for Christmas focused on Fred and Ryan from the beginning without trying to create a love triangle with the other guy whose name I can’t remember, it would have been better. It felt like the story wasn’t going anywhere so creating this unnecessary love triangle made it so difficult to get through this book. Also, Fred literally hands the guy his divorce papers and she still thinks he’s a good idea? You don’t know why he’s getting divorced. He could be a good guy but either way he’s just got out of a very serious relationship, such a weird choice.
Jenny Bayliss is a staple in my ‘The 12 Books of Christmas’ series and it does pain me to give one of her books such a negative review. I’ve never given one of her books less than 3 stars before so to DNF one is a little strange. I think if I had more time, I probably could have pushed myself to finish this and I potentially would have really enjoyed it, but sadly that’s not the case.
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