A review by calamitymeat
The Nightmare Before Kissmas by Sara Raasch

adventurous funny lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

This is my third attempt at trying to find a rom com I genuinely enjoy and this is definitely the best one so far. In all honesty, that's not saying much, but while others have been below tolerable, this one was decently enjoyable. 

My biggest issues in past romance novels is the witty, Whedon-esque protagonists that cross the line from relatable and funny into miserable, snarky assholes. Coal is funny and witty, but never crosses into genuine asshole territory until the plot calls for it. 

I've read other political intrigue romances before with similar-ish premises that just weren't doing it for me because it was either an incredibly poor taste race allegory or reeked of a particularly annoying kind of millennial liberalism. The political plotline is interesting and more high stakes than I would have expected from a romcom. A little ridiculous, but who cares we're having fun. 

The ending was a little anti-climactic

and just ends with Santa having a magical complete 180 change of heart after reflecting for about a minute.

Whatever.