Book Review #81 of 2023--

The Christmas Clash by Suzanne Park. Rating: 2.75 stars.

Read from June 21st to 23rd.

Despite the tagline on the cover, this book is in fact not an enemies to lovers story. I want that to be the first thing people get out of my review so that they aren’t let down the way that I was. I LOVE a good enemies to lovers. It just has to be done the right way. This is more along the lines of rival restaurant owners at the mall food court have kids who have hesitant romantic feelings for each other. Also, so much of this book had to be about them working together to save the mall that there was no time for an actual enemies to lovers plot to unfold. You can’t have the begrudging attraction to hesitant feelings to repressing their feelings to angst of possible unrequited feelings to romance when the book is less than 350 pages long and they have to constantly be in proximity to each other for the sake of this big giant project. I really don’t want to bash this one because it does discuss a lot of important topics. This just wasn’t a book for me personally. Especially not during my Christmas in the Summer reading since I’m almost always looking for romantic holiday themed books.

The romance itself is probably part of the reason for the lower rating. I felt like this was a contemporary novel set during the holidays about two people coming together to save a mall--and, oh, by the way, these two characters kiss a couple of times. This book discusses a lot of things we as Americans should think about and address in our every day lives, but the romance wasn’t there. We do see a well thought out book about racism, capitalism, economics, art, and other issues. I just don’t see what’s advertised in the synopsis so much. We also had characters who behaved in ways that I don’t think is realistic for normal people. The Kwons putting their head in the sand and acting like this whole thing isn’t happening makes no sense to me. I have anxiety so I understand the avoidance tactics, but at one point these people are given an eviction notice with 90 days to be out of the building so the mall can be demolished and they do nothing with that information??? You aren’t going to try to find somewhere else to set up shop? You aren’t going to discuss this issue with the other restaurant owners in the food court? You’re going to just pretend this isn’t happening until your daughter shows up with your rival’s son to fix the issue? I know this is so the plot can move forward but wow does that make no sense to me.

I liked the mall setting and I liked the jobs the two main characters have. I could see why the competition between the Mall Santa photographers and the holiday themed VR guys was a big deal in the beginning. I also really liked that Chloe was into photography and she got to do the competition for her photography. As someone who does photography for fun, it sounds like a dream come true. I even liked the part where she was forced to choose between her photography dreams and her family’s American Dream. it all worked together nicely. I just don’t know that this one was for me.

Overall, I give the book a 2.75 star rating, the romance a 1 star rating, and the Christmassy-ness 3 poinsettias.

read my full review of the christmas clash by suzanne park here.

Who’s naughty and nice at Riverwood Mall? In this hilarious holiday rom-com, two rivals get together to save their families’ livelihoods, and Christmas, too!

Chloe Kwon can’t stand Peter Li. It’s always been that way. Their families don’t get along either: their parents operate rival restaurants in the Riverwood Mall food court―Korean food for the Kwons and Chinese food for the Lis. Now it’s the holiday season and Chloe’s the photographer at the mall’s Santa Land, and Peter works at the virtual reality North Pole experience right across the atrium. It’s all Chloe can do to avoid Peter’s smug, incredibly photogenic face.

But it turns out the mall is about to be sold to a developer and demolished for condos. Eviction notices are being handed out right before Christmas. Their parents don’t know what to do, and soon Chloe and Peter realize that the two of them need to join efforts to try to save the mall. Just when it seems like they can put aside their differences and work closely (very closely) together, they discover that the Kwon and Li feud goes far deeper than either of them realize…

my review:

Yet another book that tosses “enemies-to-lovers” in for no real reason…Seriously though, this book was fine for the most part but also fell flat for me in a lot of ways. The Christmas Clash was a cute holiday romance where two teenagers whose families own rival restaurants must work together to save the mall they’ve grown up in but ultimately felt disjointed as a story.

Chloe‘s and Peter‘s families own rival restaurants in the same mall food court and have always hated each other for as long as the two of them have been alive. They also work at rival Christmas-themed shops; however, when they learn that the mall is closing, they must set aside their differences to save their families’ businesses.

I liked the characters! Both Chloe and Peter have supportive friend groups who are always there for them. I also liked reading about their relationships with their parents, where they both struggle to be the best in their eyes.

The romance was cute for the most part; I did like their scenes together and how they gradually open up to each other. However, I was disappointed with the fact that their dislike for each other faded almost instantly. At this point, I should be used to books using “enemies-to-lovers” or “hate-to-love” as a plot point and then not actually following through on that, but it never fails to disappoint. In this book, we’re told that Chloe and Peter hate each other; their friends mention multiple times that they always complain about the other person, yet we never actually get to see this in action.

read my full review here.

(via Review: The Christmas Clash, Suzanne Park)

The Christmas Clash by Suzanne Park is a Christmas rom-com that combines a family rivalry with a fight to save the local mall, all set during the holiday season. I loved the social themes the author tackles, including the importance of malls, although I would have liked to see even more Christmassy elements in the plot. This is a great book for younger YA readers looking for a more casual holiday read.

the time has come once more

"Still we walk through the gardens, stealing sun from the flowers..."

This was an older piece that I never finished. I started it somewhere in June but got burnt out attempting to finish it. So, here you go.

he loves christmas hes so happy

ten

have some gays for valentines day

andd some bonus stuff aka firesetter content i never got around to posting below

as the holidays come to a close, i'm left to wonder....

how does religion work in the pjo universe?

render of the 3 managers of Boatyard! (based on the chapter cover of Stone Ocean ch. 34)

Merry Christmas TTCC nerds!! 🎄✨️💕

June TBR--

June is going to be a mix of things for me and that makes me so excited. I’m going to have a few rereads, a book about asexuals on a heist in Las Vegas, and the start of my middle of the year Christmas reads. Why “middle of the year Christmas reads”? Because I started with Christmas in July and it has just gotten longer and longer as time has gone on. The plan is to read Christmas books for the last two weeks of June and the first week of July. Let’s get into the books:

1. Aces Wild by Amanda Dewitt-- An all-asexual online friend group meets up in Vegas to attempt to break into a high stakes gambling club. I saw this when I went to a Barnes and Noble that was moving to another location and since it was half off and full of asexuals like me I decided to give it a shot. Also, that title just got me. Happy Pride Month, y’all.

2. Artificial Condition by Martha Wells-- The second book in the Murderbot Diaries and the second book in my reread before the new book comes out this Fall. In this series we follow a SecUnit that has hacked its governing module as they explore the galaxy and spend time savings humans and watching their shows.

3.  The Host by Stephenie Meyer-- Okay. Let’s get this out there. Meyer’s books are trash. I know this, I understand this. But The Host has taken over me since the first time I read it in college. I tend to do a reread every couple of years and it’s time. I need the love of my reading life to grace me with his presence yet again. This one is about an alien race taking over the world and one of the last stands of humans who haven’t been taken as hosts.

4. Skyward by Brandon Sanderson-- I was really considering not rereading this series before the final book comes out, but I feel like so much of the tangible parts of these books have just slipped out of my brain. In the Skyward series we follow Spensa who is the daughter of a disgraced pilot in this militarized society. Her one goal is to become a pilot and she will do everything in her power to make it happen. Even if becoming a pilot forces her to face the harsh truths about her father.

5. Christmas at Fireside Cabins by Jenny Hale-- I’m starting my middle of the year Christmas reads with this one. Lila has the perfect remedy for her December blues: a blissful getaway with her closest friends to the resort of Fireside Cabins, tucked away in the snowy Tennessee hills. Once there, the group encounters grumpy coffee shop owner Theo who wants nothing to do with this holiday loving crew and their peppermint lattes.

6. The Christmas Clash by Suzanne Park-- Chloe Kwon and Peter Li are rivals whose parents operate rival restaurants in the Riverwood Mall food court. Now it’s the holiday season and Chloe is the photographer at the mall’s Santa Land while Peter works at the virtual reality North Pole experience right across the atrium. But they must team together as the mall is being sold to a developer to be demolished for condos.

7. Snowed in for Christmas by Sarah Morgan-- This is an anthology of Christmas romances set while the characters are snowed in. I don’t know a ton about this author or this collection of stories, but I always love a snowed in romance.

8. Plot Twist by Erin La Rosa (NetGalley)-- This is a contemporary romance novel about a romance author who accidentally goes viral when she’s drunk at a karaoke bar screaming into the microphone that she’s never been in love. She and her handsome landlord Dash end up devising a plan that not only handles the PR nightmare but also manages to handle her writer’s block.

9. Boyfriend by Sarina Bowen (Kindle)-- The hottest player on the university’s hockey team decides to hang up flyers around campus to help line his pockets: Rent-a-Boyfriend for the holiday. He’ll bring your mother flowers, talk hockey with your dad, wear a nicely ironed shirt and be polite. It’s hockey, it’s fake dating, it’s set during the holidays. This should be right up my alley.

I also have a whole list of books on my library app that I can add in as the mood strikes. If you’ve seen my May wrap up, you’ll know that the mood struck quite a lot last month so I want to leave some space in there for that.

merry yurimas

friends awesome toon i drew as a warm-up

this is my official PRO YULE QUEEN POST!!! if you support Saint Nick you are WRONG and you have BAD OPINIONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I forgot to post this here