by Jody Holford
Synopisis
Owen Burnett planned on a quiet, easygoing Christmas, hanging out with his best friend and neighbor, Gabby Michaelson. So when his mom pressures him to come home for the holidays, he tells a little white lie...that he’s spending the holidays with his new girlfriend. But when his family shows up unexpectedly, Owen pulls the best friend card and asks Gabby to play his fake girlfriend.
Gabby’s been hopelessly in love with her best friend Owen for what feels like forever, but playing his "fake" girlfriend when the entire boisterous Burnett clan visits is easier said than done. The more she tries to deny the attraction between them, the more obvious their chemistry becomes. But even though she's not the only one feeling it, putting their friendship on the line is a risk she can’t take.
I will tell you that one thing that usually makes me stray away from a book is if I learn it has a friends-to-lovers theme. I am more likely to want to read an enemies-to-lovers story. I don't know what that says about me. Let's move on.
This story is a friends-to-lovers, and its a Christmas story *sigh* It's everything youd expect: cheesy, sweet, and all things Christmassy. Gabby is in love with her neighbor/best friend, Owen, and then one day he asks her to be his pretend-girlfriend because his family is visiting - and well, maybe you can guess the rest.
Because it is a story that we can guess at and probably be right, I appreciated that the story went to the point right away. After that, there was always something happening, and because the author included dual POVs (yay!), we were able understand this couple a lot easier than other enigmatic "will-they-won't-they" stories. This was something I appreciated in a quick Christmas read.
Also - I loved the family in this book. Owen's family is warm and inviting, while also being realistic when shit goes down. That's all I'm gonna say.
This book took me a couple to a few hours to read - it was fast, and enjoyable for the season!