Love Me Merrily by Alyssa Jarrett

Rating:

4 Stars

Themes:

Christmas, Romance, Short Story

Thoughts:

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. This was my first formally atheist holiday romance (although some not declared as such also missed the overtly religious tones) and it was a great introduction to them for me. I liked the way in which such sensitive topics have been handled and it outlined the characters' behaviours early on so we didn’t need to waste time slowly digging out motives and the characters themselves were loveable. I also liked how natural the romance progression felt, despite how fast it happened it didn’t feel rushed or fake.

Favourite Quote:

“Why should Christians get to have all the fun? Yes, the chokehold the holiday has on this time of year is annoying, sucking the air out of absolutely everything else, but the Merry Masquerade is my way of reclaiming Christmas on my own terms.”

With thanks to Booksirens for my advanced digital copy of this book.

Comments

Mint and Murder by Carly Winter

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Porn is Not Sex Ed! by Jessica Melendez

Rating: 3 Stars Themes: Non-Fiction, Young Adult Thoughts: I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. In the age of lessening sex education this book could be a great tool to help bridge the gap. I appreciate the talk to an adult bits that can encourage children to start to have conversations that are important but they often think are cringy. The note to trusted adults bit at the end is great too and there’s quite a few useful activities to help the messages really sink in. Some of the points here such as fetishisation and body image are really important ones that I never learned that young (which could be the reason I had such poor body image as a teen) and for the most part the book talks to kids on their level although some areas may feel a little immaturely worded for older teens. With thanks to Hachette UK and Netgalley for my advanced digital copy of this book.

The War of Sober by Edward Rand

Rating: 4 Stars Themes: Non-Fiction, Self-Help, Addiction, Psychology Thoughts: I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. This is a great book not just for addicts trying to establish and maintain their sobriety but also psychologists, counsellors and the people working with them. It approaches the experience of addiction from the perspective of going to war and may help those who can’t get along with the 12 steps, contingency management or other forms of therapy traditionally used. It’s also helpful to have Edward detail his own experiences and approaches throughout so it feels less clinical and shows he does know what he’s talking about when he mentions the difficulties so it comes across less patronising than some self-help addiction books. Favourite Quote: "It doesn't matter what happened yesterday. Win or lose, if we are still alive, we must decide to be different today and then make the correct choices today, because friends, ...

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