Heidi Hart

This is Sarah Morgan's first single title romance, and my first Sarah Morgan. I was underwhelmed. I had a hard time warming up to the characters, especially Kayla, who is a workaholic ad executive who hates Christmas. She's a Brit working in Manhattan, but welcomes the chance to spend a week in Vermont over Christmas working on a new account for the Snow Crystal Spa and Resort, a struggling family business run by Jackson O'Neil, his brother (a competive skier recovering from a career-ending injury), his mother (grieving the loss of her husband), his feisty grandmother and his cantankerous, change-averse grandfather. Kayla mistakenly thinks that Vermont is somehow less "Christmassy" than Manhattan, and she'll be able to avoid the trappings of the holiday she hates most, but of course that isn't true: Sarah Morgan's fantasy Vermont is a Hollywood simulacrum of the small town, White Christmas/Holiday Inn/It's a Wonderful Life idyll (and as a born-and-bred Vermonter of 37 years, I did a lot of eye rolling and rude snorting as I read).

Morgan spent a lot of time hinting broadly (and unsubtly) about Kayla's tortured past and why she hates Christmas, but when the big secret was finally revealed, I was like, "Really? I mean, that sucks and all, but pull up your big girl panties and get over it." Jackson pursues Kayla throughout the book, but I never really understood what he saw in her. She was so emotionally stunted and cold, and his allconsuming attraction seemed to come out of nowhere and had a real Insta-Love feel to it. Kayla spends the whole book pushing Jackson away and refusing to connect with people so that she won't get hurt, and in the end when she changes her mind, it feels sudden and also unsustainable. I mean, it's all well and good for her to decide to open up and let someone into her life, but I am totally unconvinced that she has the skills to have a successful relationship after a lifetime of shutting people out, which doesn't bode well for the HAE.

There were a lot of supporting characters who I suspect are probably sequel bait, but I'm not sure I care enough to revisit the O'Neil clan in future books.