Reviews with content warning for Alcohol - In a Holidaze

Title: In a Holidaze
Author: Christina Lauren
Genre: Holiday Romance
Rating: 2.75
Pub Date: October 6, 2020

T H R E E • W O R D S

Wintry • Cozy • Unrealistic

📖 S Y N O P S I S

Maelyn is down on her luck - she's living with her parents, hates her job and has just made a mistake of epic proportions on what will be the last Christmas spend in her favourite place in the world. As she drives away from the cabin for the final time, she pleads with the universe. Next things she knows, she awakes on a plane bound for Utah, beginning the same holiday all over again.

💭 T H O U G H T S

I usually like to read a holiday romance or two during the festive season, and had seen so much love for In a Holidaze that I decided to give it a shot. Let's just say I didn't enjoy it all that much.

The writing felt disorganized and rushed. The time-loop portion of the plot felt confusing and off. The characters lacked depth to the point where I ended up liking some of the secondary characters (particularly Benny) more than Mae and Andrew. What I did enjoy was the cabin setting and all the family traditions.

This was another Christina Lauren book that fell flat for me, but I can definitely see why so many people have loved it if they're simply looking for a quick, fun holiday read.

📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• fans of Hallmark rom-coms

🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S

"'Maybe we should do things because we love them, not because we've always done them that way.'"

Content Warnings

brittishliterature's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I was pleasantly surprised by this fun holiday read! I'd nearly written it off, because, although the cover is super cute, I was pretty hesitant about the hype. The story ended up being completely different than what I'd expected, and I enjoyed it so much!

The first chapter felt a bit hard to follow, but once I got settled into the story, I was fully invested. Mae was not my favorite main character, but there was a bit of character development and growth as the book continued. I felt that the character development of those around her was a tad lacking for me. I would have liked to get to know Andrew, Theo, and the rest of the gang better. It was hard to keep them all straight and made the romance feel a bit shallow since I knew very little about most of them. Benny, however, I LOVED Benny! I pictured him as resembling Woody Harrelson haha.

The one main issue I had with the story is that I actually thought

Mae was going to eventually realize feelings for Theo and finally get over her crush on Andrew! Okay, yes, there was the drunk kiss, but they were drunk for crying out loud and he liked her. I don't know, I definitely thought there was potential there, and I definitely thought that was going to be a plot twist: finally sleeps with her dream guy and then realizes she actually loves her friend Theo. I was a bit annoyed at the way Theo's feelings and their lifelong friendship just got shoved to the side. I actually liked Theo! I think once I got past this, I was able to finally accept the ending, even though Mae's relationship with Andrew felt like it happened a bit too easily. But once I'd accepted him as the love interest, I thought it was really sweet and romantic.

Overall, I enjoyed this book and am glad I finally read it! Great holiday read filled with heartwarming romance, a very lovable group of chosen family, and sweet feelings of nostalgia. I guess sometimes it doesn't hurt to judge a book by its cover ;)

Content Warnings

tearexanne's review

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emotional hopeful lighthearted reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? N/A
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? N/A
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

2.0

I wanted to read In a Holidaze back when it was released and even more so when I learned it had a friends to lovers romance. Sadly the romance was lackluster and was pretty rushed. There was a section where it was mostly romantic scenes and I never got to breathe. The time loop was completely forgotten about and didn't seem to have a purpose, it was only shown in the beginning.

My main gripe with this book is the romance. Andrew is the main love interest but in the first few chapters were introduce to a character called Theo where he and Maelyn share a drunken kiss. Throughout the entire novel I was waiting for this plot point to come ahead and it felt like a bomb waiting to burst but it was shoved to end for an ending conflict. The moments between Maelyn and Andrew felt forced. She and Andrew are childhood friends which should have been a plus but we are not given details about their interactions in the past unlike with Theo. With Theo, passing conversations and in Maelyn's mind, we are given context clues behind their relationship in the past. We are given more moments with Theo then with Andrew. Maelyn and Theo seem more like friends then with Andrew. I even teared up because of Maelyn and Theo's friendship. In the past Maelyn and Theo spend a lot of time together but in the novel they barely spend any time together and I could understand Theo's loneliness but it was never used as an actual plot point.

Nearing the end of the novel its reveal that Theo is in love with Maelyn and he is jealous about Maelyn spending more time with Andrew. Theo explains to Maelyn that she has been "leading him on" which isn't explain but you can take it as because they spend a lot time together in the past but it is never explicitly stated. And it was not executed well. And then after a bonding moment Theo and Maelyn never interact again, not even in the Epilogue, like their relationship wasn't actually important. When they hugged I started to cry okay! And that is their last interaction.

Okay since we got that out of the way, other problems I had with the book is too many family members to keep track of and they weren't important. The time loop is only used at the beginning and becomes a problem in the ending. The only reason why I am giving it 2 stars because the atmosphere was the best part. The Christmas Vibes are off the charts.

In a Holidaze was not for me, the first half I was taking my time and then the second half I was speeding through because I wasn't enjoying it anymore.

Content Warnings

celines_schemes's review

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lighthearted slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

What can I say about this book that hasn't already been said?

Content Warnings

caitlinjadams's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

I was looking for a holiday read and found a Christmas story that I’m sure holds up any time of year. The prose is wonderfully invisible and the characters feel real, not forced. Once I was in the story, I was in the story until the last page.

Content Warnings

morganperks's review

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funny lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

cute and funny...a little strange and it kinda lost me at the scavenger hunt but I'm not picky about my Christmas reads. 5 stars from me ✌️

Content Warnings

stargirlmolly's review

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funny lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Content Warnings

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