Book Review | Merry and Bright | Ali Rosen

Merry and Bright (Home Sweet Holidays #2)

What starts as a Hail Mary fake romance scheme turns into the real deal in this delightful story of holiday deception from Ali Rosen, author of Alternate Endings and Recipe for Second Chances.

Miriam Brody is dreading Hanukkah with her overbearing family in Charleston. Ditto for dreamy pro football player Cal Durand and Christmas. After sharing a few flirty drinks on the flight there, the strangers conspire to tackle the holidays together, posing as a couple. But as shenanigans unfold, Miriam realizes her feelings are anything but fake. Uh-oh. Are they headed for a holiday miracle—or a holiday disaster?

Ali Rosen’s Merry and Bright is part of Home Sweet Holidays, a cookie-sweet collection of holiday romances sure to bring color to your cheeks. Read or listen to each story in a single heart-fluttering sitting. And to fully immerse yourself in the charm of the season, don’t miss a special message from each of our holiday heroes!

About Author

Ali Rosen is a bestselling author of both cookbooks and novels, and is the Emmy and James Beard Award-nominated host of Potluck with Ali Rosen on NYC Life.

Her latest novel— described in a starred review by Kirkus as “a swoonworthy romance reminiscent of a Nora Ephron movie”—is Unlikely Story. She is also the author of three cookbooks including the recently released 15 Minute Meals.

She has frequently been featured on shows like NBC’S Today Show and ABC’s Good Morning America, and in publications including The New York Times, Bon Appetit, The Washington Post and New York Magazine.

Ali is originally from Charleston, SC but now lives in New York City with her husband, three kids, and rescue dog.

Non-review Rant

Okay, another short story of the month/year. This one’s around 54 pages.

Review

Another holiday themed fake-relationship romance. This one was about Hanukkah and not Christmas. Miriam and Cal are seated next to each other on the flight home for the holidays. They got to talking, discuss how difficult their families could be during holidays (or in general), and decide to be each other’s buffer.

What follows is eight days of Hanukkah and two days of Christmas, filled with easy companionship and warmth. It’s a nice, comforting story that flows smoothly — I never felt bored and ended up finishing it in one sitting instead of the two I had planned. A cosy, feel-good holiday read that does exactly what it promises.

Notes

4%
And by tomorrow It seems absurd, but do you suppose That you and I might wake up to find we’re pros At being not alone? —Maybe Happy Ending

5%
Jason Momoa
Shabana Mukhtar
Really? I couldn’t see how he’d be considered dreamy. Giant, sure, but… that’s just me, don’t mean to offend anyone.

5%
Hot men always feel like the sun—must avert your eyes so as to not get burned.

6%
The avoiding had been easy, since I grabbed my Kindle and got pulled back into the book I was reading (yes, I am more into fi…This highlight has been truncated due to consecutive passage length restrictions.

18%
Pretending to date a man I’m wildly attracted to suddenly seems like trying to cross the street in the middle of traffic—impulsively fun but almost certainly highly stupid.

66%
And I watch as my enthusiasm loosens all three of them up, jars that needed a bit of extra force to wiggle open.
Shabana Mukhtar

The Final Verdict

Nice one, and free on KU. A bit late for the holiday romance now, though.

Stay tuned for more book reviews.

Until next time, happy reading!

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Shabana Mukhtar

The Other Me Unfolded