emily_mh's review against another edition

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3.75

Overall this was fairly decent. I think I wanted more variety of romance tropes in the end, as it was all friends to lovers or second chance romance. I will say that the whiteout provided an excellent atmosphere and created a bunch of different interesting scenarios that otherwise wouldn’t have existed. As a side note, the audiobook has a full cast for each POV character and was really well done. 
Below is my review of each romance: 

Stevie and Sola: these two had such a sweet best friends to lovers backstory. Sola’s sustained reaction to their argument did feel a little dramatic. Ultimatums are never the go, and it didn’t make sense that she would ignore Stevie trying to get in touch like Sola asked. The lack of communication was certainly frustrating, but also they are teenagers. I loved the gender questioning rep in Stevie. I liked that they were such a science nerd, and how much love they had for their friends. I also think it was good we had a chapter from Sola so we could see her processing the relationship and get a feel for her character. Their reunion was cute, but I wish we had seen more of the gifts that the book is revolved around obtaining. 

Kaz and Porsha: there was a little too much of the jealousy trope here for my liking. But the connection between the two MCs was palpable and I will always love the best friends to lovers trope. I also liked their communication around Eid, and loved Portia’s passion for Christmas. 

Evan-Rose and Savannah: the love triangle in this story was in my opinion unnecessary and detracted from my enjoyment as I detest that trope (unless it ends in polyamory which this one didn’t). But I liked Evan-Rose as the MC and particularly enjoyed the themes of queer self-discovery present in her story. 
Jordyn and Omari: this was a very sweet second chance romance. The two had a believable connection, but this was definitely the point where things started feeling repetitive because every story I had read so far was a variation on friends to lovers. 

Jimmi and Taio (apologies if the latter name is spelt incorrectly; I listened to the audiobook and couldn’t find a review that spelt his name): this was again a nice second chance, friends to lovers romance, but with the repetition of the tropes it felt very samey. 

Ava and Mason: yet another second chance romance, although this one wasn’t based on friends to lovers like the others. It also had a refreshing break from format with a dual POV set-up, and I liked the aquarium setting. I also appreciated the glimpses of how their relationship evolved. 

Unfortunately there are two authors contributing to this book whom I consider problematic: Nicola Yoon and Nic Stone. Because the authors don’t clearly put their names to each story, I could not leave out my review of the stories these authors contributed. 

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betweentheshelves's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

A quick read, but I really enjoyed how all of the stories connected in this. It really focuses on relationships and friendships, and how people can come back together. It will be a great read to have for the Christmas season, even though it's not 100% about Christmas. It's still featured throughout!

I listened to the audio for this one, and what I liked is that you don't necessarily know which author is writing what until the afterward at the end. If you know teen books and the author contributors, the clues are a fun way to figure out who writes what aspects of the book. 

If you liked Blackout and you enjoy interconnected stories, you'll definitely love this collection.

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purplepenning's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

So good! Perfect for fans of Blackout and Let It Snow — I liked it even better than those — and interconnected stories that work together to tell a story of friendship and holiday love. 

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