Despite the wish-fillment premise of Madeleine chancing upon a gorgeous (and single) cabbie right when she needs it the most, this holiday fling manages to stay appealing with its touching focus on grief. Madeleine is still reeling from the death of her best friend, Kellie–who was supposed to meet her in London but passed away from a blood clot after the first leg of her flight–and is reluctant to open up to Julian about her grief. When she can no longer handle the pressure, Madeline’s forced to spill her feelings, prompting a deeper intimacy in her relationship with Julian and nudging her toward the first steps of healing.
Once Julian and Madeleine build enough trust to be vulnerable with each other, their fling transforms into a more solid affair. Anyone who’s faced loss will easily empathize with Madeleine’s distress, and Middleton crafts their relationship into a mutually supportive, sweet connection that will leave readers hopeful for the next stage—when the inevitable goodbye and long-distance relationship are nicely reshaped into a potential happily ever after. Any romance fan who craves real-world problems paired with the satisfying intervention of fate will enjoy this read.
Takeaway: Destiny intervenes to stir up romance in this appealing and sensitive holiday affair.
Great for fans of: Helen Hoang’s The Heart Principle, Becky Monson’s The Accidental Text.
Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A
