The Nora Theory

I’ll Be Home… is a Christmas-themed Why Choose collaboration by Tate James and Heather Long, and it is an absolutely delightful read. I know Christmas has already passed, but just in case you’re making your ‘to be read’ list for next year, this book is so much better than any Hallmark Christmas movie.

The heroine is a journalist who can’t stand Christmas. She’s planning on taking her holiday vacation on a tropical island far away from anything festive. But when her editor approaches her with a groundbreaking story on missing kids in a Christmas village, she has no choice but to say yes.

Things are not as they appear in this Christmas village, and three smoking hot men show up to try to scare her off the story. The main character is forced to reconcile with her past, and the good news for her is she has three really excellent guys and one very awesome dog to help her through it.

This book has very dark themes but balances them with such a playful approach. All the characters have cheesy Christmas names, and the main character’s name (I’m not going to say it because it’s a slight spoiler) will make you howl with laughter when you get to it and realize what the authors did with it.

The setting is excessively Christmassy and the story is so dramatic. It’s camp and it’s perfect. Despite the serious plot lines surrounding missing kids, this book doesn’t take itself too seriously. It’s really like a Hallmark movie gone all angsty and sexy.

It’s so wildly outrageous and creative that it works. This book’s ending made me laugh so hard it was glorious and cathartic. I’ll Be Home… has just enough weight to keep it from being completely ridiculous, and strikes a perfect balance of silly and an actual story with characters you care about. I am not a Christmas person. I am kind of a Grinch. But this book just became my new favorite Christmas tradition.

Spice: 4

Writing: 4

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