[Review] Bright Lights, Big Christmas - Mary Kay Andrews

Summary: When fall rolls around, it’s time for Kerry Tolliver to leave her family’s Christmas tree farm in the mountains of North Carolina for the wilds of New York City to help her gruff older brother & his dog, Queenie, sell the trees at the family stand on a corner in Greenwich Village. Sharing a tiny vintage camper and experiencing Manhattan for the first time, Kerry’s ready to try to carve out a new corner for herself.

In the weeks leading into Christmas, Kerry quickly becomes close with the charming neighbors who live near their stand. When an elderly neighbor goes missing, Kerry will need to combine her country know-how with her newly acquired New York knowledge to protect the new friends she’s come to think of as family,

And complicating everything is Patrick, a single dad raising his adorable, dragon-loving son Austin on this quirky block. Kerry and Patrick’s chemistry is undeniable, but what chance does this holiday romance really have? (Pub Date: Sep 26 2023)

 

3+

It's a cozy Christmas romance following last year's release. Although it barely mentions the first story, as it takes place in New York City, miles and miles away, so you can read it as a standalone. I got to know Mary Kay Andrews writing rom-coms, so I was a little surprised when I found her more recent releases to be halfway thrillers (some going even farther). Thus, I'm happy to see her writing just romances again, and this is the perfect comfort read for the holidays, it's even more so than the first volume that still had an obvious mystery to solve (this second isn't free of some plot twists, don't worry).

Kerry has lost her job and had to move back home, and now her father is out of commission she needs to spend a month sleeping in a camper with her brother in New York to sell Christmas trees. There she meets single-dad Patrick and his six-year-old son, who takes a liking to Kerry and her art. 

Though we still have some elements of "too good to be true" about how Kerry deals with her situation, it was close to believable how her story develops and she manages to overcome how hopeless unemployment made her. The romance is very cute but it could have been more prominent, they're such a good couple I was left wanting more cute scenes with the two (but the conclusion is great, don't worry, I just wanted more). 

Unfortunately, I couldn't help but compare this with the first part of this series, and the previous book had that something more that this one lacked. As the story continued, despite the superb beginning, it fell into the routine of a romance book, with few parts to distinguish it from others. Of course, I mean, at a level you'd expect from the author. Her average is still very superior to an average romance.

You'll have a good time with this story, even if it's not so memorable.

Honest review based on an ARC provided by Netgalley. Many thanks to the publisher for this opportunity.

Rating: 3 out of 5.