Book Smart Kate

Book: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 Audiobook performance: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 Spice: 🌶️🌶️

by Ashley Herring Blake (October 1, 2024) [Thank you @berkleyromance and @prhaudio for the #gifted print and advanced listening copies of this charming holiday read! Below is my honest review] 

Charlotte Donovan and Brighton Fairbrook’s love story began as teens—best friends turned high school sweethearts, with an engagement by college and plans to marry at 23. That is, until Brighton left Charlotte at the altar five years ago. Since then, Charlotte has rebuilt her life, thriving as a member of a critically acclaimed NYC-based quartet. But between her fractured relationship with her mother and Brighton’s abandonment, she’s learned to keep people at arm’s length—if you don’t let anyone in, they can’t hurt you. However, things get complicated when her bandmate, Sloane, invites the quartet to spend Christmas with her family in Colorado—and Brighton, now based in Nashville, unexpectedly shows up as Sloane’s sister’s guest. Stuck in a small town for the holidays, Charlotte and Brighton are forced to confront the painful past they’ve avoided for years. As old wounds resurface, the pair must navigate their unresolved feelings and finally uncover the truth about what tore them apart.

This novel is very fun! With dual POVs, a quirky small-town setting, meddling family members, an adorable dog, and years of pent-up emotions, Make the Season Bright captures the bittersweetness of lost love and the journey to finding closure. Blake unpacks the deep grief of not just losing a romantic partner, but also a best friend. What I appreciated most was that their eventual happy ending didn’t come easily—Charlotte and Brighton both had to undergo real personal growth to get there.

Kristen DiMercurio’s narration of the audiobook was great, as always—her performances in Summer Romance and The Love Wager were some of my favorites, and she brings that same depth here.

If you’re looking for a holiday romance filled with heart, second chances, and slow-burn healing, this is the a fun read for the season!

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