I am embarrassingly proud of the title of this article. It is the corniest sentence I have written in a while and I am utterly satisfied with it. Anyways, In a Holidaze, by Christina Lauren is the book to read right now. Warning: SPOILERS ARE AHEAD.
I'll admit, when I first started this book I was unsure of where it was headed. The time traveling concept felt a little outlandish to me and I was struggling to understand how it could tie into this romance novel that everyone was raving about. When I finished the book though, I honestly did not care why or how Mae was nominated by the universe to be in a time loop continuum. Truly, I forgot about the entire notion at all, I was just elated that Andrew and Mae ended up together. I was DEVASTATED when I thought Andrew was over the entire situation and was ignoring the entire family. I found myself nervously biting my lip waiting for something bad to happen like Mae being sent back or Andrew never speaking to her again. I was crying, actual tears, when Mae poured her heart out in the boathouse and gave him the picture that she drew.
At first, I was a little confused why Mae decided to tell Andrew about the makeout session she had with Theo. Mae is quite literally the only person that remembers it. But then, just as my thoughts so nervously wondered why Mae would ever jeopardize Andrew leaving, I thought about my own reaction to it if I were in her shoes. Even if I was the only person that remembered it, it would still feel real to me and my guilt ridden self could never live if I didn't tell the truth when I had the chance.
I loved the coziness that exuded from this book. The warm and comfortable cabin in the woods, surrounded by family and traditions that are corny but certainly cute. Even towards the middle of the book, I was struggling to remember who everyone was in relation to Mae. There were a lot of family member's names that were being thrown around and I kept confusing them. It wasn't a huge deal, but I think the story would have benefitted from an explanation of each person instead of just throwing the reader into the family vacation and hoping they would catch on. Again, it really didn't change my mind about the book at the end of the day.
My heart was smiling while reading a majority of this book, especially the ending. When Mae and Andrew get engaged in the renovated boathouse I nearly fainted. And then, to top it off, their family was in the house ready to greet them! I was seriously crying happy tears. Christina Lauren writes in a way that is so captivating and personal. It felt like she broke into my head without my permission and stole my thoughts for her book. I was envious of her ability to write a sentence that is so effortless while still evoking a whirlwind of emotions from me. I don't know if I enjoyed it so much because I haven't read a book in a while because of school, or because the book was just the perfect wrapped up love story that I needed to read around the holidays. I recommend this book if you need some joy in your life, especially during a time of such uncertainty. I know Christmas is in four days, but this should most definitely be on your wishlist.