Title: Cruel Winter With You
Author(s) Name(s): Ali Hazelwood
Published in: November, 2024
Why You Might Like This Book: Read this book if you enjoy
- childhood crushes,
- reuniting with your crush,
- contemporary romance,
- cozy and warm stories, and
- heartfelt, emotional stories.
Who Should Avoid This Book: Avoid this book if you are triggered by or dislike
- abandonment issues,
- self-doubt,
- steamy stories, or
- unhealthy parent-child relationships.
Cruel Winter with You is a romance short story by Ali Hazelwood, an author who is famous for her light-hearted romance books that often involve scientists and academics. This book is a warm Christmas-themed rom-com novella which deals with abandonment issues, childhood crushes, and second-chances. From chapter one, thanks to the author’s writing, you catch yourself laughing or at least giggling with amusement. If you’re planning to read this in a public place, you might want to be aware of the consequences!
Jamie Malek is a high-achieving, perfectionist young woman from a middle-class family. And Marc Compton, Jamie’s childhood best friend Tabitha’s brother, is a tech mogul who became rich when he was in his early 20s. These two grew up in the same neighborhood. Something went wrong, a confrontation, a disagreement or something the last time they met. And unexpectedly, they meet again on Christmas Eve. Jamie is forced to meet Marc at his place on a Christmas eve, and it is not going to be easy for her because she broke his heart earlier, so how could she face him?
From holding Marc as a little baby in her hands when she herself was a toddler, calling him “so ugly” and “unfortunate looking” a long time back to standing in front of this tall, handsome, rich man today, how quickly time moves! It’s a cruel blizzard out there, it’s Christmas evening, no sensible person would be out on the streets alone, yet she had to visit this neighbour’s house, all for a pan.
Jamie walks us through several hilarious moments and also many, many sweet moments between her family and the Comptons’. The story of how Jamie and Marc share a relationship they don’t even know what to call to being friends or something like that which turns into a romance that is not just a crush but definitely more! He’s liked her a lot. For years, all those years. The two open up to each other, the wall between them breaks, as they confide in each other, old misunderstandings get resolved, and warm love brings them together on this snowy evening, as though it was all fated to happen.
Silly jokes, sudden sex jokes, exaggerated analogies and metaphors. A guy who is not just nice but is also hot, popular, and smart. A smart girl who has little luck in romantic relationships because well, that part doesn’t need an explanation – most women can relate! The heroes in this author’s books are always just perfect, the kind all straight women would want, the kind most straight women can only dream of. All so Hazelwood-y.
If you are in the mood for a sweet dose of rom-com about that couple who were and will always be in love with each other, something that might feel like an episode out of a Netflix romance series, or if you want an evening of giggles and relaxation, pick this one! I’d give this one a 3.5-star rating.
If you enjoy this book, then you will most likely also enjoy “Love, Theoretically” – a popular romance novel by the same author.
