Rating: 3.25🌈
Once Upon a Holiday Vacation by Annabella Michaels is a sweet best friends to lovers holiday romance that’s got a strong start but predictable ending that’s not as satisfying.
The boyhood friends, complete opposites , dark bookish Easton Beckett, a librarian, to his outgoing , firefighter blond best friend, Weston Holt, have been so attached to each other that their nicknames are East and West.
A nice narrative touch.
The main characters, Easton’s fellow librarian, and his family, who are all introduced into the storyline as important to Easton and also to West, as he’s been a integral member of their family as well. It’s all lovely, sweet and real.
The middle section of the story where Easton and West re-evaluate their relationship from friends to lovers while on a cruise is also a very sweet, sexy element. Michaels uses established couples around them to show our main characters exactly what their bond and relationship is like or could be. Really the cruise is just a relatable experience until the end. Then it falls completely flat for me.
The last fourth of the story just doesn’t work for me on multiple levels , and while the author delivers the anticipated happy holiday finish in terms of the romance relationship, how that was achieved felt contrived and juvenile. It went against what the author had created in terms of a long term history between the two characters and the type of unspoken communication that existed between them.
So a sweet story that was relatable most of the book only to be undone by the dramatic thread towards the end.
Nice holiday story if this doesn’t bother you.
Cover design by Kelly York
Once Upon a Holiday series – 8 books:
Once Upon a Second Chance by Davidson King
Once Upon A Mistletoe Kiss by Sammi Cee
Once Upon a Holiday Vacation by Annabella Michaels
Once Upon a Lullaby Lane by K York
Once Upon a Christmas Con by Skylar M Cates
Once Upon A Christmas Song by Mary Calmes
Once Upon a Yuletide Romance by RJ Peterson
Once Upon A Goth Dog Solstice by R L Merrill
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Blurb
One Bed, Two Best Friends.
Easton Beckett has always cherished the Christmas season, but this year, his parents are off to help his aunt in Wyoming, leaving him to celebrate alone. But his best friend, Weston Holt—his outgoing and popular opposite—has a surprise: tickets to an all-expense-paid Holiday Cruise he won through a local radio station.
Excitement builds as they leave for a week in the Caribbean, celebrating Christmas at sea and stopping in the Bahamas. Their adventure takes a turn, however, when they discover they’ve been assigned to the honeymoon suite. Easton is about to correct the misunderstanding when Weston convinces him to pretend they’re a couple.
As they navigate their week together, the tension between them grows palpable—each stolen glance and playful touch igniting a longing that neither dares to acknowledge. With only one bed and mounting emotions, both grapple with their feelings. As New Year’s Eve approaches, will they find the courage to admit their true feelings, or will fear keep them apart?
Once Upon A Holiday Vacation is part of a multi-author series, Once Upon A Holiday Story. Each book can be read as a standalone and in any order. What links these books together is The Hook’s Book Nook Traveling Library, a library on wheels owned by two old ladies in love.
- Publication date: November 22, 2024
- Language: English
- Print length: 151 pages
Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words 