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A review by sarahkorn
The Christmas Orphans Club by Becca Freeman
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
4.25
As a loyal Bad on Paper listener, I was so excited to read this book! It was tender when it needed to be tender, and lighthearted when it needed to be lighthearted. Hannah and Finn's respective journeys to embrace their evolving friendships and found family was poignant and relatable.
There were times where I thought the pacing dragged slightly, and the characters, while redeemed in the end, were often frustrating. It is presented as an ensemble friendship story but Theo and Priya were definitely secondary characters to Finn and Hannah. I also personally prefer minimal pop culture references because they date the book fast. But these are merely the rough edges of an otherwise lovely debut, and I will be preordering Becca Freeman's next book.
There were times where I thought the pacing dragged slightly, and the characters, while redeemed in the end, were often frustrating. It is presented as an ensemble friendship story but Theo and Priya were definitely secondary characters to Finn and Hannah. I also personally prefer minimal pop culture references because they date the book fast. But these are merely the rough edges of an otherwise lovely debut, and I will be preordering Becca Freeman's next book.