This review for In A Holidaze by Christina Lauren is a guest review from Holly Engelhart Isaacson. During the daytime, Holly is a content creator and logo designer for female small business owners over at The Radiance Mindset. She runs a monthly subscription service creating done-for-you engagement posts to share on various social media platforms. Most nights and weekends, she spends time with her hubby and three kiddos (11, 15, and 17 years) in their home in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. Between work and family activities, she continues to indulge her lifelong love of reading and devours as many books as she can! Her favorite genres are historical fiction, mystery/thrillers and romantic comedies!
From Holly:
Before 2020, I rarely read a RomCom type book. Usually only if it was my book club’s pick. And I’m not sure I could tell you the last one I read before this past year. BUT, a pandemic, distance learning kids at home, and an always-traveling hubby who was suddenly ‘grounded’ indefinitely will lead you to want to read a bit frivolously. LOL!
Cozy mysteries were my previous choice for easy-going reading. And they still are. But I’ve come to learn I don’t mind a cute, fun, romantic story as well. Especially around the holidays!
I recently joined Book of the Month Club and In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren was my first pick! It was a perfect book to settle in by the fireplace with the christmas tree and its twinkling lights in the background, and a glass of wine.
This was the first Christina Lauren book (I actually had no idea this pen name was two authors writing together!), and I now have several more on my list (The Unhoneymooners, Twice in a Blue Moon, The Honey-Don’t List.)
In A Holidaze by Christina Lauren Synopsis
In a Holidaze starts off with Maelyn ‘Mae’ Jones spending Christmas with her family and best family friends at a cabin in Utah. The trip has been tradition since her parents and their friends graduated college together and started having kids. As often happens (in Rom Com fiction anyway), she becomes romantically entangled with a lifelong family friend only to wake up to regret the next day. Through awkward good-byes, her family heads off for the airport to head back to their everyday lives until the next holiday gathering. Only they end up in a car accident.
Then, Maelyn wakes up. To confusion.
Her holiday week that ended in an awful way….is all of sudden at the beginning of the week again. Though she doesn’t understand what’s happening or why, she gets a do-over!
The holiday time loop continues for Mae as she tries to figure what’s happening to her and what she needs to change in order to stop the Groundhog-Day-Movie-Come-To-Life scenario she is dealing with.
Holly’s Thoughts (may contain spoilers):
I really enjoyed this super quick read. It was the absolute perfect book to read over Christmas break. My only disappointment is that Mae didn’t have to go through one or two more versions of her week. The story contains the end of the original week and then two do-overs. It felt like it should have taken her at least one more try to switch things up enough to really utilize the time loop writing tool in the book.
I loved the story between Mae and her childhood crush and how their relationship grew throughout the book. If you like a bit of steam in your love stories, this one won’t disappoint! LOL! There’s even a twist toward the end that makes you wonder if it will all fall apart or if the story will have a Hallmark-movie perfect ending.
Thanks, Holly, for guest reviewing for me! We hope to have you back in the near future! Don’t forget to check out Holly’s Design Hack membership if you’re looking for social media help with your small business!
