brigid_'s review against another edition
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
So much more porny than I expected đ
sydsize00's review against another edition
3.0
This book was tough for me to get into⌠Once I got into the plot a little further I was definitely more engaged but the whole time I knew exactly how the story was going to go so I felt like I was just waiting. The big conflict doesnât come until very late in the book, so while the first 300 pages are somewhat fun, it makes me wonder why the book had to be so long.
I like the big girl representation but itâs almost as if the writers couldnât decide if they wanted her to struggle with her body image or be confident in it, and I wish they had just picked one of those routes and stuck with it.
I liked both of the main characters, but I donât feel like we really got to see them connect on an emotional level? Obviously they are physically attracted to each other but I still donât know where the emotional connection to create insta-love came in. I did however love that this book was dual POV!
Overall this was a cute, christmassy story. It wasnât necessarily a quick read for me, but it was an easy one. There are some good themes that could have been developed more if the authors just picked one instead of throwing in the whole kitchen sink. The smut was great, the banter was okay, the characters were likable.
I like the big girl representation but itâs almost as if the writers couldnât decide if they wanted her to struggle with her body image or be confident in it, and I wish they had just picked one of those routes and stuck with it.
I liked both of the main characters, but I donât feel like we really got to see them connect on an emotional level? Obviously they are physically attracted to each other but I still donât know where the emotional connection to create insta-love came in. I did however love that this book was dual POV!
Overall this was a cute, christmassy story. It wasnât necessarily a quick read for me, but it was an easy one. There are some good themes that could have been developed more if the authors just picked one instead of throwing in the whole kitchen sink. The smut was great, the banter was okay, the characters were likable.
katlinkarese's review against another edition
I felt like the main plot was lacking, I wanted higher stakes than the Hope channel finding out. The characters seemed too understanding of each other which is good for real life relationships, but makes things very boring for a reader. There were a couple of scenes where lack of communication could have added tension to the plot but it was quickly remedied so the characters never had a moment to sit in self doubt and have the reader at the edge of their seat. The ending was very predictable given our current political climate, which again, is not a bad thing but I was hoping it would be shown in an unexpected way and not just glossed over in the form of reading Twitter comments.
Overall, it wasnât my cup of tea, but I am happy to see that my favorite character Luca, is getting his own novella.
Overall, it wasnât my cup of tea, but I am happy to see that my favorite character Luca, is getting his own novella.
ninjapants's review against another edition
2.75
Surprisingly decent. Definitely could have been much shorter, but humorous, mostly lighthearted, feel-good romance. Was a bit apprehensive but (for once!) this is a successful book about a woman who is, among other things, fat, rather than a book about a âfat womanâ.Â
torilovesheas's review against another edition
4.0
An adorably quirky, spicy holiday romance featuring a porn star heroine and an ex boy band member hero!
This is forced proximity, friends to lovers in a holiday themed town on a Hallmark adjacent movie set (thereâs a strip club called the North Pole lol). Now that may sound corny and goofy. And it is. In the best possible way! I consider this a love letter to everyone that loves spicy romance but also indulges in those ridiculous Hallmark movies that get made at break neck speed each holiday season. (I watch them like a fiend because theyâre predictable fluff and I enjoy Christmas joy, okay).
Bee Hobbs (aka Bianca Von Honey on her Closed Doors account) is a fat heroine who unapologetically loves her body and genuinely loves the freedom and confidence her job as a sex worker allows her. Sheâs certainly not expecting her well meaning boss to rope her into a leading role in a âclean, family friendlyâ Christmas movie. I love that Bee was a boy band fan in her teens and had posters of Nolan in her walls as a teen. Sheâs living our dreams.
And Noah, ex bad boy trying to support his mom and sister, canât afford to have any scandal touch this movie. His only problem? Heâs Bianca Von Honeyâs biggest subscriber and knows who Bee is immediately. Both characters face to face with their fantasy humans? It doesnât take long before sparks fly. Delightfully spicy! The first sex scene is hot and I was shook.
Full of ridiculous Christmas themed stores and strippers (Peppermint is her name to be exact). I think this could have come across as hokey or cringey, but the leaning into the ridiculousness of it is what really made it so fun!
Bonus points because I LOVED that Nolan recognized Beeâs sex work asâŚ..work. A job. Thereâs no âI donât want you to sleep with anyone else so you have to quitâ. He makes sure itâs something heâs comfortable with (which is fair cause, ya know, personal boundaries) and is just like âlook sleep with whoever for work as long as Iâm the one who gets the soft, open part of youâ. No âreformed sex workerâ trope here, folks. I adored it! (While still having honest conversation about the predatory underbelly of sex work!) The sex positivity is delightful and very refreshing!
I wish Nolan had groveled a bit more (I always want broken glass, dammit) but I understood looking out for his family first!
Bonus: I want a novella at the very least about Teddy, aka Uncle Ray Ray. He seems like an absolute wild ride with his pornstache and Hawaiian shirts standing around eating whole turkey legs. Love him.
CW: fatphobia, slut shaming, parent with mental illness.
This is forced proximity, friends to lovers in a holiday themed town on a Hallmark adjacent movie set (thereâs a strip club called the North Pole lol). Now that may sound corny and goofy. And it is. In the best possible way! I consider this a love letter to everyone that loves spicy romance but also indulges in those ridiculous Hallmark movies that get made at break neck speed each holiday season. (I watch them like a fiend because theyâre predictable fluff and I enjoy Christmas joy, okay).
Bee Hobbs (aka Bianca Von Honey on her Closed Doors account) is a fat heroine who unapologetically loves her body and genuinely loves the freedom and confidence her job as a sex worker allows her. Sheâs certainly not expecting her well meaning boss to rope her into a leading role in a âclean, family friendlyâ Christmas movie. I love that Bee was a boy band fan in her teens and had posters of Nolan in her walls as a teen. Sheâs living our dreams.
And Noah, ex bad boy trying to support his mom and sister, canât afford to have any scandal touch this movie. His only problem? Heâs Bianca Von Honeyâs biggest subscriber and knows who Bee is immediately. Both characters face to face with their fantasy humans? It doesnât take long before sparks fly. Delightfully spicy! The first sex scene is hot and I was shook.
Full of ridiculous Christmas themed stores and strippers (Peppermint is her name to be exact). I think this could have come across as hokey or cringey, but the leaning into the ridiculousness of it is what really made it so fun!
Bonus points because I LOVED that Nolan recognized Beeâs sex work asâŚ..work. A job. Thereâs no âI donât want you to sleep with anyone else so you have to quitâ. He makes sure itâs something heâs comfortable with (which is fair cause, ya know, personal boundaries) and is just like âlook sleep with whoever for work as long as Iâm the one who gets the soft, open part of youâ. No âreformed sex workerâ trope here, folks. I adored it! (While still having honest conversation about the predatory underbelly of sex work!) The sex positivity is delightful and very refreshing!
I wish Nolan had groveled a bit more (I always want broken glass, dammit) but I understood looking out for his family first!
Bonus: I want a novella at the very least about Teddy, aka Uncle Ray Ray. He seems like an absolute wild ride with his pornstache and Hawaiian shirts standing around eating whole turkey legs. Love him.
CW: fatphobia, slut shaming, parent with mental illness.
lindsaylikes's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
alisonb's review against another edition
3.0
A cute story about meeting your idol/crush. This was a fun premise and a light-hearted read.
I rated it a tad lower because of the redundancy of the protagonistâs fears and goals. Plus, the romance seemed extremely lust-based rather than also incorporating a stronger emotional attachment.
Overall, I would recommend for a reader who likes the themes surrounding this story and is looking for an easy read.
I rated it a tad lower because of the redundancy of the protagonistâs fears and goals. Plus, the romance seemed extremely lust-based rather than also incorporating a stronger emotional attachment.
Overall, I would recommend for a reader who likes the themes surrounding this story and is looking for an easy read.
beckyschwartz's review against another edition
4.0
Enjoyed this very much!! Loved the characters and the positive take on sex work. Thought the story was fun and character development was enjoyable.
The authors clearly donât know what a septum piercing is but I thought that was funny!
The authors clearly donât know what a septum piercing is but I thought that was funny!
tiaschmidt's review against another edition
2.5
The concept behind this is fantastic, but it didn't work out well in execution. My thoughts are kind of all over the place, so I'll just bullet them as they come to mind.
- Why was this over 400 pages?? FOUR HUNDRED?? For a basic romance? Bye.
- I feel like it was really weird that he was subscribed to her ClosedDoors (OnlyFans) page and wasn't even planning on telling her... Something about that feels SO fucking creepy to me. Like he literally says shit like "Oh, I just jacked off to her this morning." and whatnot... Uhm... Oooookkkkkk???? I get that when you have an account like that and are putting yourself out there in that way, that's just a side effect of the job, but the way he would talk about it creeped me out. Even once they started having sex IRL he'd be like, "Oh my god, she's my favorite porn star and my biggest fantasy. I can't believe I'm having sex with her.". So it more felt like he was in it for that reason instead of actually liking HER as a person. Cause he really couldn't stop bringing it up. Wait... Did he ever actually say anything about her personality?.... I seriously can't remember.
- I personally felt weird about the fat rep. As someone who used to be fat, I feel like I have a bit of a say about how I feel about the rep in this and it felt... off. There was no subtly to it and it felt like he was fetishizing her more than any type of love or appreciation. It just wasn't great. IMO!
- So bipolar disorder just makes you an incredibly incapable human being who needs to be dependent on someone else all the time and can only make lil crafts? What the FUCK was that mental health rep?? Like what actually was the point of his mother's character? Just to show he can be a normal human being and have empathy for someone? There are a million other ways to do that than by using a mental illness. Weirdo stuff.
Ok maybe I'm convincing myself I didn't actually like this... maybe at all actually.
- Why was this over 400 pages?? FOUR HUNDRED?? For a basic romance? Bye.
- I feel like it was really weird that he was subscribed to her ClosedDoors (OnlyFans) page and wasn't even planning on telling her... Something about that feels SO fucking creepy to me. Like he literally says shit like "Oh, I just jacked off to her this morning." and whatnot... Uhm... Oooookkkkkk???? I get that when you have an account like that and are putting yourself out there in that way, that's just a side effect of the job, but the way he would talk about it creeped me out. Even once they started having sex IRL he'd be like, "Oh my god, she's my favorite porn star and my biggest fantasy. I can't believe I'm having sex with her.". So it more felt like he was in it for that reason instead of actually liking HER as a person. Cause he really couldn't stop bringing it up. Wait... Did he ever actually say anything about her personality?.... I seriously can't remember.
- I personally felt weird about the fat rep. As someone who used to be fat, I feel like I have a bit of a say about how I feel about the rep in this and it felt... off. There was no subtly to it and it felt like he was fetishizing her more than any type of love or appreciation. It just wasn't great. IMO!
- So bipolar disorder just makes you an incredibly incapable human being who needs to be dependent on someone else all the time and can only make lil crafts? What the FUCK was that mental health rep?? Like what actually was the point of his mother's character? Just to show he can be a normal human being and have empathy for someone? There are a million other ways to do that than by using a mental illness. Weirdo stuff.
Ok maybe I'm convincing myself I didn't actually like this... maybe at all actually.