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Merry and Bright – Joanna Chambers
Three seasonal love stories from Joanna Chambers
Humbug
Quin Flint is unimpressed when his gorgeous colleague, Rob Paget, asks for extra time off at Christmas. As far as Quin is concerned, Christmas is a giant waste of time. Quin’s on the fast track to partnership, and the season of goodwill is just getting in the way of his next big project. But when Quin’s boss, Marley, confiscates his phone and makes him take an unscheduled day off, Quin finds himself being forced to confront his regrets, past and present, and think about the sort of future he really wants…and who he wants it with.
Mr Perfect’s Christmas
Sam Warren’s new job hasn’t been going so well so the last thing he’s in the mood for is the obligatory office Christmas party, particularly since Nick Foster’s going to be there. Nick–the guy whose shoes Sam has been trying to fill–seems to take very opportunity to point out where Sam’s going wrong. But when Sam receives an unexpected Secret Santa gift at the party, he’s forced to question his assumptions about his rival. Could it be that he’s been misinterpreting Nick’s actions all along? And is it possible that his reluctant attraction to Nick is reciprocated?
Rest and Be Thankful
Things haven’t been going well for Cam McMorrow since he moved to Inverbechie. His business is failing, his cottage is falling apart and following his very public argument with café owner Rob Armstrong, he’s become a social outcast. Cam needs to get away from his troubles and when his sister buys him a ticket to the biggest Hogmanay party in Glasgow, he can’t leave Inverbechie quick enough. But when events conspire to strand him in the middle of nowhere in a snowstorm, not only is he liable to miss the party, he’ll also have to ask his nemesis, Rob, for help.
Three seasonal love stories that were sweet and fluffy. Joanna Chambers writes great short stories. They are usually well-written, fully fleshed out and resolved satisfactorily. Insta-attraction is the scourge of romance short stories and the author works around that by having the characters crush on each other for a long time without the other realizing then she brings them together and BAM! The FEELS.
Humbug: posted here
Mr. Perfect: What was supposedly Sam’s Kris Kringle nightmare turned out to be a sweet revelation. Nick be like, notice me, kohai! This one’s a win.
Rest and Be Thankful: Rob and Cam did their best but it wasn’t working. Sorry guys! You’re good people. It’s just that, the story is boring. I feel bad giving you low ratings.
Rating:
Humbug – 4 Stars
Mr. Perfect – 4 Stars
Rest and Be Thankful – 2.5 StarsOverall: 4 Stars – minor quibbles but I loved it to bits
Soundtrack: Baby, It’s Cold Outside
Artist: Rufus Wainwright & Sharon van Etten
Album: Holidays Rule(source: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36554036-merry-bright)
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[spotify id=”spotify%3Atrack%3A6CGdeRGSoKtrzFo5XSypid&view=coverart” width=”540″ height=”620″ /]Soundtrack to Merry and Bright by Joanna Chambers
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Our relationship felt like a Christmas gift that you hadn’t asked for and weren’t expecting to receive, but the minute you saw it, you knew it was perfect for you
Erin McCarthy -
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbyfGNdMXZ4?feature=oembed&enablejsapi=1&origin=http://safe.txmblr.com&wmode=opaque&w=500&h=281]
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Mitsuiro Pancake – Kinoshita Keiko
Salaryman Miyasaka harbors a secret love for his childhood friend, manga artist Minami. He knows that someday Minami will find a girl and he’ll have to say “Congratulations”, but so soon?!
Miyasaka’s unconditional love for Minami is beautiful but for heaven’s sake, let it get requited, the poor guy!
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Imperfect Match – Jordan Castillo Price
A man whose future is assigned – A heart that yearns to be free.
Lee Kennedy’s destiny is controlled by the Algorithm. It’s the reason he’s still in college, regardless of his good academic performance. He’s switched his major repeatedly and stalled on his Master’s thesis, but there’s only so much longer he can hold out. Because once he graduates, the Algorithm must be triggered.
Everyone in Lee’s family has allowed the Algorithm to match them with a spouse. As has everyone on his block. His neighborhood. In fact, everyone he’s ever known. Pairing with his own chosen match seems inevitable…until, at his sister’s wedding, he meets Roman.
The waiter lives in the Taxable District, a run-down neighborhood that’s only a brief train ride away, but feels like another world. The seedy District is governed by different standards—different expectations—so it’s not exactly a surprise that Roman isn’t married. But it’s definitely a shock to taste his lips.
One forbidden encounter has Lee reeling. He questions everything. His past. His future. And especially the Algorithm. He longs for the freedom to choose not only his own partner, but his own destiny.
When defying the Algorithm will cost everything—family, home, and even livelihood—is Lee strong enough to take another path?
Hmm…did I just listen to this in the wrong frame of mind or is Jordan Castillo Price off her game?
Written in the same style as Hemovore and narrated by the same person, the great Joel Leslie, Imperfect Match is a dystopian story of freedom, self-discovery and the courage to travel the road less taken.
I liked JCP’s style of avoiding info dump by delivering the information bit by bit through casual mentions or as part of a character’s thoughts or actions. This was really effective in Hemovore where the polarized world of V+ and V- cases seemed oh so real. Here, the worldbuilding was patchy. What is a boomer? What makes a boomer different from taxrats? What was that plague? What kind of government do they have? How do you tax the Taxable district when they use the barter system instead of cash? I have so many questions.
For me the Benefit district vs Taxable district conflict was just a convoluted version of your average rich vs poor conflict and I would have enjoyed the story more if it was straightforward contemporary where rich kid Lee had to slum it in some third world country. It would have made it more diverse too.
The romance was nothing spectacular. Both Roman and Lee were likable people but I wasn’t feeling too invested in their relationship. There were big chunks of the story were Roman was not even present and these chunks were the parts where Lee had his awakenings. Nothing really shocking, just a privileged person discovering that his privileges come with a price and that the other side of tracks seemed more and more appealing.
There is not much conflict. The boomers were discriminating against taxrats and Lee’s choices but Lee’s family was supportive and the taxrats were welcoming. And though Lee went against the Algorithm, there were no dire consequences.
I’d say this is okay. I didn’t hate it but this is not a JCP book I would recommend.
P.S.
Review of Hemovore here.
Review of JCP books here.
Rating:
2.5 Stars – far from hate but not quite a like
Soundtrack: Right Place
Artist: White Lies
Album: Friends(source: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/39290871-imperfect-match)
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[spotify id=”spotify%3Atrack%3A7riig57bTjRvFD7wkw4RUP&view=coverart” width=”540″ height=”620″ /]Soundtrack to Imperfect Match by Jordan Castillo Price
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They are giving us pieces of a real life instead of the whole thing. They have perfected the art of giving us just enough freedom; just enough that when we are ready to snap, a little bone is offered and we roll over, belly up, comfortable and placated like a dog
Ally Condie -
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lf1bnStn8ac?feature=oembed&enablejsapi=1&origin=http://safe.txmblr.com&wmode=opaque&w=500&h=281]
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Love You –
Munya Munya Sue (Kobato Mebaru & Ogura Muku)
The first story is by Ogura Muku sensei, and the latter is by Kobato Mebaru sensei.1. Bear-kun is always laughed at for being so clumsy and useless, despite his large size. So, he has come to hate the fact that he is large. Squirrel-kun finds him crying, and one thing leads to another and Bear-kun ends up helping Squirrel-kun using his large size.2. The eldest brother in the wolf family is actually a fox… a golden fox. He knows he’s “different” from all the rest. One day, he falls in the swamp and gets covered in mud… as a result, he is black like his brothers. When the second eldest brother sees this, he begins licking the fox to expose the beautiful fur. Together they discover the pleasure their tails can bring.
Anthropomorphic doesn’t sound so cute so yeah, furries!
