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A review by books_with_mana
In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren
3.0
Cute seasonal read. One of Christina Lauren's better books. A nice hetereosexual palette cleanser for the hellscape that is 2020.
What worked:
The whirlwind romance. These two characters grew up with each other. The fact that they moved so quickly is believable and rooted in reality.
It was refreshing to see Masie talk about her relationship with the Catholic church and its traditions:
“Mine has generally skewed more toward sentimental comfort: I love the songs, the community, the breathtaking beauty of church architecture (minus the vagina). I love the consistency of the rituals. Mom never demanded that we believed everything she believes—after all, Dad has a firm disinterest in all things religion—or do everything the church wants us to do, which is good, because I found that I was never able to accept the Bible as nonfiction. Mom only asks that we come and listen respectfully, and that we work to be good and kind, and live generous lives.
The function of Christmas in commercial fiction is usually depicted as secular. It’s as the background of gingerbread cookies, pine trees, snow, and gift exchanges. There is seldom an acknowledgment of Christian faith, even if to address the agnostic, familial, and capitalistic turn the holiday made.
The close-knit, rag-tag found family is well-done. This dynamic was believable and familiar. The history between these characters was deep and worked.
What didn’t work:
The opening was difficult to get through. I understand the intention and how a summary about the past week is integral to set the reader up for the time-traveling dejavu, but it felt a little too drawn out. There was a bit too much summary and exposition of familial ties.
I forgot that Masie had a brother. He was brought up in the beginning, but it wasn’t until 50-60% of the way through that he was mentioned after the catalyst around 13%. His character could have been omitted completely and much of the plot would have stayed the same.
The use of adverbs. I know this is typical in its genre and I don’t mean to be contemptuous, but phrases like “eyes gleam flirtatiously” never fail to take me out of a story. Just removing “flirtatiously” makes the sentence stronger and still serves the same function without the hokey cheesiness of it all, but it’s not that deep.
What worked:
The whirlwind romance. These two characters grew up with each other. The fact that they moved so quickly is believable and rooted in reality.
It was refreshing to see Masie talk about her relationship with the Catholic church and its traditions:
“Mine has generally skewed more toward sentimental comfort: I love the songs, the community, the breathtaking beauty of church architecture (minus the vagina). I love the consistency of the rituals. Mom never demanded that we believed everything she believes—after all, Dad has a firm disinterest in all things religion—or do everything the church wants us to do, which is good, because I found that I was never able to accept the Bible as nonfiction. Mom only asks that we come and listen respectfully, and that we work to be good and kind, and live generous lives.
The function of Christmas in commercial fiction is usually depicted as secular. It’s as the background of gingerbread cookies, pine trees, snow, and gift exchanges. There is seldom an acknowledgment of Christian faith, even if to address the agnostic, familial, and capitalistic turn the holiday made.
The close-knit, rag-tag found family is well-done. This dynamic was believable and familiar. The history between these characters was deep and worked.
What didn’t work:
The opening was difficult to get through. I understand the intention and how a summary about the past week is integral to set the reader up for the time-traveling dejavu, but it felt a little too drawn out. There was a bit too much summary and exposition of familial ties.
I forgot that Masie had a brother. He was brought up in the beginning, but it wasn’t until 50-60% of the way through that he was mentioned after the catalyst around 13%. His character could have been omitted completely and much of the plot would have stayed the same.
The use of adverbs. I know this is typical in its genre and I don’t mean to be contemptuous, but phrases like “eyes gleam flirtatiously” never fail to take me out of a story. Just removing “flirtatiously” makes the sentence stronger and still serves the same function without the hokey cheesiness of it all, but it’s not that deep.