Author: Ali Hazelwood
Narrator: Vivienne LaRue
Publisher: Brilliance Publishing
Publication Date: November 2024
Genre: Christmas Holiday / Contemporary Romance
Buy The Book: Amazon | Audible
Description: For two former childhood friends, a blustery winter storm stirs some frosty—and scorching—memories in a delightful short story by #1 New York Times bestselling author Ali Hazelwood.
All newly minted pediatrician Jamie Malek wants is to borrow a roasting pan for Christmas dinner. Unfortunately, that requires her to interact with Marc—her best friend’s troublemaking brother, who’s now a tech billionaire. He’s the one who got away. She’s the one who broke his heart. Outside, a howling blizzard. Inside, a crackling fire. Suddenly, being snowbound with the man she never expected to see again might not be such a bad way to spend a winter’s night.
Ali Hazelwood’s Cruel Winter with You is part of Under the Mistletoe, a stirring collection of December romances that thrill and tingle all the way. They can be read or listened to in one swoony sitting.
My Thoughts: This is a great choice to add to the Christmas reading list this year if you are looking for more spice and less whimsy. Cruel Winter with You by new to me author Ali Hazelwood is a short story but packs a lot of pizazz. This is the first book in a series but each book can be read as a standalone. The audio performance by Vivienne LaRue was fantastic.
Jamie and Marc have known each other all their lives. Jamie is Marc’s sister’s best friend and Marc has been in love with her since he was fifteen. When Marc decided the time was right to declare his feelings, Jamie shot him down and wasn’t very gentle or kind about it. Now, months later, Jamie is at his parent’s front door to borrow a copper pan for her Dad’s Christmas ham. A very timely blizzard traps her there with Marc and they have nothing but time between them to clear the air and start asking and answering some long awaited questions.
I really liked Jamie and Marc and though their conflict boiled down to a stupid misunderstanding, I liked that they were willing to address it before years and years went by like so many stories with this plot device do. This story switches between the past and present flawlessly to give the reader a close up view of what transpired throughout their lives, which I really enjoyed.
My Final Verdict: Overall, this story was really good. This entire series offers up the heated side of Christmas instead of the cute and whimsical so the mandatory hot chocolate may need to be iced when reading. I highly recommend this book to readers who love Christmas themes and spicy romance.
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