Mistletoe in Manhattan, and my weakness for Christmas rom-coms

I started reading this book just over a month after my first ever trip to New York, and I must say the highlight of the story for me was definitely how well the enthusiasm of someone visiting the Big Apple was captured by the author. I mean, LOOK AT ALL THE TALL BUILDINGS!!

Aside from that, the novella is your standard cute Christmas story. It ticks all the usual boxes - a protagonist who isn't all that fussed about Christmas (even though everyone else around her is), a hero's journey (across the Ocean to NYC), a villain (who gave me serious Devil Wears Prada vibes), and, of course, Hot Guy.

Let's stop there for a second actually - the love interest was where the book genuinely defied my expectations. Well, sort of. Having seen my fair share of Hallmark Christmas movies (and when I say my fair share, I mean A LOT), I was half expecting our girl Holly to fall head over heels for British film star Dean Layton, then realise the error of her ways and run into the open arms of her Friendly Neighbourhood Bartender.

But what with this being a short story, the author skipped all of that, made the main conflict in the love story a fairly reasonable one (which, trust me, is not usually the case with ya olde Hallmark flicks), and gave us a somewhat satisfying resolution. I mean, as much as my sappy heart wanted to see Alex move country to live with Holly, or the two of them deciding to give long-distance a go, I am now adult enough (who would have thought?!) to appreciate that leaving the romance where the characters did was the most realistic outcome. Yey for love!

The MAIN main conflict in the story, however, was not of a romantic nature - and I must say, I found that worked very much in favour of the story. The main conflict revolved around Holly being able to spend Christmas with her family - a roller coaster of changed plans, which SPOILER has a happy ending when our heroine makes it safely home just in time for all the festivities.

As someone who spends the majority of the year away from my family, and someone who was reading this from the warm and cosy comfort of my family home during the Christmas holidays, I must say Talli Roland chose her main theme well. In a pop-culture over-saturated with romantic mishaps and happily ever afters, it's both refreshing and heart-warming to watch the Hot Guy take a back seat and focus on the importance of family.

4/5 stars