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pinklilypad's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Sexual content, and Death of parent
azrah786's review against another edition
4.25
[This review can also be found on my BLOG]
**I was provided with a digital copy through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**
CW: death of parent, cancer, grief, infidelity, abandonment, alcohol, sexual content
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I’m late to the party but you bet I am now well and truly on the Lovelight bandwagon!!
Lovelight Farms was an absolutely delightful book.
This is a friends to lovers romance where two best friends pretend to be a couple for a competition in order to save a Christmas tree farm. Now friends to lovers is a trope that can be a hit or miss for me but the overall vibe of this book sounded like a fun time and I’m so glad that I gave it a chance because this was definitely a top tier friends to lovers story – I loved Stella and Luka so much!!
Plus the additional fake dating aspect, the small town setting and found family between the main group of friends all came together so well!
**I was provided with a digital copy through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**
CW: death of parent, cancer, grief, infidelity, abandonment, alcohol, sexual content
--
I’m late to the party but you bet I am now well and truly on the Lovelight bandwagon!!
Lovelight Farms was an absolutely delightful book.
This is a friends to lovers romance where two best friends pretend to be a couple for a competition in order to save a Christmas tree farm. Now friends to lovers is a trope that can be a hit or miss for me but the overall vibe of this book sounded like a fun time and I’m so glad that I gave it a chance because this was definitely a top tier friends to lovers story – I loved Stella and Luka so much!!
Plus the additional fake dating aspect, the small town setting and found family between the main group of friends all came together so well!
“And isn’t it silly, to love the way someone’s things look like next to yours? Little bits and pieces of a life lived in parallel.”
Not only does Borison’s writing easily draw you into the story and these characters’ lives but also the setting. I would move to Inglewild in a heartbeat, it seems like such a wonderful, cosy and homely place, nosy townsfolk aside. I loved that for such a short story you get to not only experience a heart-warming romance blossom between two people who love each other but for it to also happen in a town that is so lived in. Also I’d honestly say this is one of few books where I’ve felt the pacing and the overall length was perfect. It wasn’t too long as to drag the story out and not too short either as to feel like everything was too sudden.
I loved all of the characters. Stella pretty much has the whole town as a support network but the smaller more tight knit group of Beckett, Layla and of course Luka was so wholesome too. How everything played out had a sense of plausibility to it when taking into account the backstories that we are told over the course of the book and the dynamics between the characters. I really loved how threaded through everything was this message of allowing yourself to rely on those around you who care for you, to allow yourself to lean on the shoulders they put out for you.
“Leaning on other people doesn't make your achievements any less yours, La La."
Stella herself was a great character, somewhat relatable somewhat annoying in how much she second guesses everything but Borison wove her story together beautifully. It’s one packed full of emotion and will surely touch your heart too.
Coming backs to the romance side of things though, Stella and Luka were so perfect together. You can expect great banter alongside beautifully tender moments and a dash of spice but also those classic, messy moments that will have you facepalming. For the most part it’s that frustration that these two idiots are so obviously in love with each other to the point the whole town ships them but they just want to keep playing out their little game.
Anyways everything about this book had me smiling and feeling like that heart face emoji and I can't wait to get my hands on the rest of the books in the series!
Final Rating – 4.25/5 Stars
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Alcohol, Grief, Abandonment, Death of parent, and Infidelity
Minor: Cancer and Terminal illness
chronicallybookish's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Quick Stats
Age Rating: 18+
Spice Level: 2/5
Over All: 4.5 stars
Plot: 4.5/5
Characters: 4.5/5
Setting: 5/5
Writing: 4/5
Special thanks to Berkley Romance and NetGalley for an eARC of this book! All thoughts and opinions reflected in this review are my own.
This book was a ton of fun. It was such a heartwarming read and just what I wanted it to be when I picked it up. I only have one complaint—that I didn’t read it during the christmas season! Because, damn, am I wishing I could go wander around a christmas tree farm in the snow, sipping hot chocolate.
Stella is a main character you can’t help but love. She’s incredibly relatable, and her voice is distinct and engaging. I connected to her instantly, and it was all too easy to get invested in the things she was invested in: her farm, her found family, and her relationship with Luka.
I also loved Luka. He was sweet, swoony, and sexy. Everything a book boyfriend should be. Not to mention, his chemistry with Stella was visceral. I loved every interaction between them. Not only was there a playful heat, but there was a solid emotional foundation between them that only grew as the story went on.
I was a little concerned when the third act blow up went down. Stella’s thoughts and feelings on the matter had the potential to be really annoying to read about for a long period of time, but it wrapped itself up within a chapter and a half, which negated that issue.
There were a couple of inconsistencies, I suppose would be the best description, that I noticed. Stella talked constantly about how she moved around constantly when growing up and how she never set roots or made friends, yet she also repeatedly referenced growing up in Inglewild, and said in one point that when she was a kid, she and her mom often came to Lovelight Farms. Those types of statements were in opposition to each other. They could have been reconciled with a quick explanation somewhere or other—and maybe there was one that I missed, but it kept catching my attention.
The other thing that confused me was when she was supposed to have bought Lovelight Farms. For the first several chapters, I thought she’d been running the business for the past few years, at least three, no more than five. However I think she mentioned about 20% in that she had only bought it one year ago. This confused me because she references “usually running the farm was like this” or “typically, during this time of year I’d be doing that”, but that it was different this year because of money trouble. If she’d only experienced one year here, there wouldn’t really be a “usually” or a “typically”, there would just be a last year. She also just seemed to have too much experience running a farm for it to have only been going on a year.
Those are both really minor things, but every time there would be a mention of either I’d be momentarily drawn out of the story to try to reconcile it. However, it was always very easy to get drawn back in, so it isn’t too much of a complaint.
All in all, this is a sweet, feel-good read. It’s the perfect Christmas-time book, but it’s also fun any time of the year. I fell in love with the whole cast, and I can’t wait to read the rest of the series and watch all of my favorite side characters get their own happily ever afters.
Age Rating: 18+
Spice Level: 2/5
Over All: 4.5 stars
Plot: 4.5/5
Characters: 4.5/5
Setting: 5/5
Writing: 4/5
Special thanks to Berkley Romance and NetGalley for an eARC of this book! All thoughts and opinions reflected in this review are my own.
This book was a ton of fun. It was such a heartwarming read and just what I wanted it to be when I picked it up. I only have one complaint—that I didn’t read it during the christmas season! Because, damn, am I wishing I could go wander around a christmas tree farm in the snow, sipping hot chocolate.
Stella is a main character you can’t help but love. She’s incredibly relatable, and her voice is distinct and engaging. I connected to her instantly, and it was all too easy to get invested in the things she was invested in: her farm, her found family, and her relationship with Luka.
I also loved Luka. He was sweet, swoony, and sexy. Everything a book boyfriend should be. Not to mention, his chemistry with Stella was visceral. I loved every interaction between them. Not only was there a playful heat, but there was a solid emotional foundation between them that only grew as the story went on.
I was a little concerned when the third act blow up went down. Stella’s thoughts and feelings on the matter had the potential to be really annoying to read about for a long period of time, but it wrapped itself up within a chapter and a half, which negated that issue.
There were a couple of inconsistencies, I suppose would be the best description, that I noticed. Stella talked constantly about how she moved around constantly when growing up and how she never set roots or made friends, yet she also repeatedly referenced growing up in Inglewild, and said in one point that when she was a kid, she and her mom often came to Lovelight Farms. Those types of statements were in opposition to each other. They could have been reconciled with a quick explanation somewhere or other—and maybe there was one that I missed, but it kept catching my attention.
The other thing that confused me was when she was supposed to have bought Lovelight Farms. For the first several chapters, I thought she’d been running the business for the past few years, at least three, no more than five. However I think she mentioned about 20% in that she had only bought it one year ago. This confused me because she references “usually running the farm was like this” or “typically, during this time of year I’d be doing that”, but that it was different this year because of money trouble. If she’d only experienced one year here, there wouldn’t really be a “usually” or a “typically”, there would just be a last year. She also just seemed to have too much experience running a farm for it to have only been going on a year.
Those are both really minor things, but every time there would be a mention of either I’d be momentarily drawn out of the story to try to reconcile it. However, it was always very easy to get drawn back in, so it isn’t too much of a complaint.
All in all, this is a sweet, feel-good read. It’s the perfect Christmas-time book, but it’s also fun any time of the year. I fell in love with the whole cast, and I can’t wait to read the rest of the series and watch all of my favorite side characters get their own happily ever afters.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Death of parent
samone2's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Grief
Moderate: Abandonment
Minor: Cancer and Alcohol
dlrosebyh's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
Stella enters a contest with Instagram-famous influencer Evelyn St. James in an effort to rescue the Christmas tree farm she's loved since she was a child. Stella may be able to salvage the farm from financial ruin with the additional publicity and $100,000 cash reward. There is only one issue. To make the farm appear to be a romantic holiday getaway, she lied on her application and claimed to own Lovelight Farms with her partner. The only difference is that there is no lover.
This book was really terrible. The entire plot did not occur until 75% of the way through. I literally skimmed the first half of the book and understood everything, which is a shame because I am a sucker for the fake dating trope. If this book were a cliché, it would be "friends to lovers but they're actually already lovers but they're too scared to ruin the friendship" and I despise it.
The main characters were unbearable to me; the only one I liked was Beckett, but this book did not even persuade me to read his novel—and that says a lot given his book is a second chance romance, which I like.
Apart from the Christmas Tree Farm, the only "Christmasy" feature in this novel was the scenery, which I did love. Apart from that, I don't think I enjoyed anything. If I'm being honest, it was more of a Thanksgiving book. Overall, this book was simply not for me; and the fact that it had so much hype destroyed it for me; it's not a horrible book, just not for me. And if you ever intend on reading this book, please be informed that it can be quite cringy and too sweet at times.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Grief
Moderate: Abandonment
Minor: Alcohol and Cancer
100_pages_hr's review
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
4.0
I'm normally not a fan of Christmas themed books but I regret not reading this sooner! It was so good. It does have a Christmas theme...I mean it is set on a Christmas tree farm, but it isn't overwhelming at all.
I went in fairly blind and was intrigued by her predicament of needing a boyfriend. This fake dating story really worked. @authorbkborison did a great job setting it up, providing "practice" for Luka and Stella, and adding in plenty of forced proximity which led to some really steamy moments. I didn't love the fact that Stella had lied about having a boyfriend, but I guess I liked the end result.
I loved watching best friends fall in love. I think friendship is so vital in a relationship and theirs was so special. I loved how Luka supported Stella.
If you love small town, friends to lovers, forced proximity, and fake dating and haven't read this yet I highly recommend!
I received an advanced copy of this book through @netgalley and @berkleyromance (I had also previously listened to this on the @libby.app I'll be home)
This is my honest review
I went in fairly blind and was intrigued by her predicament of needing a boyfriend. This fake dating story really worked. @authorbkborison did a great job setting it up, providing "practice" for Luka and Stella, and adding in plenty of forced proximity which led to some really steamy moments. I didn't love the fact that Stella had lied about having a boyfriend, but I guess I liked the end result.
I loved watching best friends fall in love. I think friendship is so vital in a relationship and theirs was so special. I loved how Luka supported Stella.
If you love small town, friends to lovers, forced proximity, and fake dating and haven't read this yet I highly recommend!
I received an advanced copy of this book through @netgalley and @berkleyromance (I had also previously listened to this on the @libby.app I'll be home)
This is my honest review
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Cursing
Minor: Death of parent and Grief
stupidcat's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Abandonment
Minor: Alcohol and Cancer
midknytowl's review
funny
hopeful
medium-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? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief and Sexual content
Moderate: Death of parent and Abandonment
Minor: Cancer
jonezzzing's review against another edition
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Grief, and Cursing
Minor: Death of parent
theverycraftyvegan's review
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This was such an easy book to love. The characters are cute and the story was sweet. There was even a little bit of a mystery built in pertaining to the tree farm’s ongoing string of bad luck. And I loved how that was resolved!
Talking briefly about the spicy scenes in the spoiler below. No actual spoilers.
The sex scenes were written so sensually. I think they were the most tastefully romantic things I’ve ever read or listened to. No vulgar descriptive words required to convey the tension, passion, romance, and sex between characters.
Talking briefly about the spicy scenes in the spoiler below. No actual spoilers.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Death of parent, Infidelity, and Abandonment
Minor: Cancer, Cursing, and Grief