Review: The Afterlife of Holly Chase by Cynthia Hand

The Afterlife of Holly Chase
By Cynthia Hand
Publisher: HarperTeen
Format: Hardcover
Source: Purchased

To Sum It Up: Holly Chase is a failed Scrooge. After receiving a visit from three ghosts on Christmas Eve warning her to change her ways, Holly completely ignores them and a few days later, she dies. Then begins Holly’s afterlife as an employee of Project Scrooge, the company that tried to reform her. Holly is Project Scrooge’s Ghost of Christmas Past, a job that she’s not entirely keen on until the team begins planning for this year’s assignment: Ethan Winters, a Scrooge whom Holly takes a particular interest in when she starts to realize how much his life experiences mirror her own. As Christmas Eve approaches, Holly’s duties as the Ghost of Christmas Past increasingly take a backseat to what her heart wants.

Review: I’m a huge fan of Cynthia Hand’s angel series Unearthly, so I was very excited to read her modern take on A Christmas Carol. Hand’s version tells the story of Holly Chase, who failed to be swayed by the efforts of Project Scrooge, a secret company that tries to save one Scrooge-like individual every Christmas. After being visited by the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future à la Dickens’s classic tale, Holly ignores all of the ghosts’ warnings and subsequently dies. Her afterlife consists of being a Project Scrooge employee, as its current Ghost of Christmas Past. Holly is less than thrilled about this purgatory/hell she’s landed in and hasn’t changed much, if at all, from her days as a mortal.

It doesn’t take long to realize why Holly was selected as a Scrooge: she’s selfish, materialistic, and mean. A good portion of the novel sees Holly put her responsibilities as the GCP on the backburner as she falls for the current Scrooge, Ethan Winters. Holly’s recklessness is sometimes cringe-worthy, yet it also builds suspense. Will Project Scrooge discover what she’s up to? Will she put Ethan’s future in jeopardy by not doing her job?

I found the middle section of the book, which focuses on Holly meeting Ethan in secret when she should be carrying out her GCP duties kind of slow moving. I wasn’t really sold on the romance here. My investment was in whether or not Ethan would be another failed Scrooge thanks in large part to Holly’s egregious breaking of Project Scrooge protocol.

I admit that I was prepared to be a bit disappointed with this one until—and I must squeeze in a bad Christmas pun here—things started wrapping up. I loved the book’s conclusion; it was extremely satisfying with just the right amount of closure, yet without being hokey. Although I would have enjoyed the book even more if the middle part had been as strong as the finish, overall this was a solid retelling as well as a solid holiday read.

All in All: I struggled some reading through the romance bits, but the ending was totally worth hanging in there for.

Review: My True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Holiday Stories

My True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Holiday Stories
Edited by Stephanie Perkins
Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin
Format: Hardcover
Source: Library

Review: My True Love Gave to Me sports a cover so pretty, I want to frame it and hang it on the wall. Year-round, because I think it’s that awesome. I’m also happy to say that the dozen holiday-themed stories you’ll find beneath that awesome cover are just as charming.

I don’t read short story anthologies often; I’m more of a full length novel kind of reader. I couldn’t pass up this collection, though, because it features contributions from some authors whose novels I’ve really enjoyed in the past, like Gayle Forman, David Levithan, Holly Black, and the editor of My True Love Gave to Me, Stephanie Perkins. Gayle Forman’s “What the Hell Have You Done, Sophie Roth?” and Holly Black’s “Krampuslauf” were two of my favorite stories, along with Myra McEntire’s “Beer Buckets and Baby Jesus” and Kelly Link’s “The Lady and the Fox.” I hadn’t read anything by the latter two authors before, but I’m definitely interested in checking out more of their works now.

Kelly Link’s “The Lady and the Fox” had a very nice fantasy twist to it, and it wasn’t alone in touching upon the whimsical. These are holiday stories, after all, and is there any time of year that’s more magical than the holiday season? Laini Taylor’s closing story, “The Girl Who Woke the Dreamer,” is pure fantasy, set in a world that could only come from Laini Taylor’s brilliant mind. This tale was unlike anything holiday-related I’d ever read, and I got so swept up in the narrative of young Neve that I wished it had been a novella at the very least because I wasn’t ready to leave its world.

Almost every story excelled at drawing you into its characters’ lives quickly and leaving you with a satisfactory sense of resolution within about thirty pages. There were only one or two that I found a little meh, but even those stories still had their moments. Some requisite squealing ensued when Brooklyn, New York and New York University were referenced in not one but two stories (“What the Hell Have You Done, Sophie Roth?” and Matt de la Peña’s “Angels in the Snow”). Overall, this is a winning compilation that’s perfect for reading on a winter night while sipping some hot cocoa.

All in All: Look no further than My True Love Gave to Me for a read to put you in a festive mood. It’s a very well-rounded collection that’s sure to warm your heart over and over again.

Review: Let It Snow: Three Holiday Romances by John Green, Maureen Johnson, & Lauren Myracle

Let It Snow: Three Holiday Romances
By John Green, Maureen Johnson, & Lauren Myracle
Publisher: Speak
Format: Paperback
Source: Library

To Sum It Up: A huge snowstorm wreaks havoc for the holidays for the characters in these three intertwined short stories. After her parents are jailed under some very bizarre circumstances, Jubilee has to go to her grandparents’ house in Florida, but the storm brings her train to a halt. She ends up at a local Waffle House, which also happens to be the destination for Tobin and his friends. They brave the perilous roads to get there and have a few adventures on the way. Finally, no amount of snowfall will translate into a day off from Starbucks from Addie, who’s coping with a broken heart that may distract her from an important holiday task. It’s Christmas, though, and sometimes things have a way of falling into place.

Review: If ever there’s a time of the year for a feel-good read, I think it’s Christmas. Let It Snow: Three Holiday Romances is just right for the season; it’s a light, quick read that’s packed with humor and, most importantly, holiday cheer. It’s also quite sweet, as implied by the presence of “romances” in the title, but not syrupy.

It just so happened that I ended up enjoying the first story the most and the last one, well, not as much as the other two. Maureen Johnson’s “The Jubilee Express” kicks off Let It Snow, and let me begin by saying that I loved her novel, The Name of the Star. The plot of that one centers around a series of Jack the Ripper-style murders, and yet the book also boasts some really funny moments. Seriously—that novel manages to incorporate both humor and horror. So I was thrilled to see that Johnson had authored one of the stories in this collection, and she totally delivers on the hilarity front. Her main character is named Jubilee, and straightaway, Jubilee demonstrates a healthy appreciation for self-deprecating humor by riffing on her own name. I instantly loved this girl, and her tale only got better and better. Jubilee’s parents are avid collectors of the Flobie Santa Village and are caught up in a brawl that erupts over a highly coveted piece. They’re arrested, and that’s how poor Jubilee finds herself on a train to spend Christmas with her grandparents in Florida. Johnson’s descriptions of the fervor of Flobie fans are just riotous. There’s also a touching side to this story, as Jubilee repeatedly tries to reach her boyfriend, Noah, who’s busy at a family holiday party. Jubilee is supposed to be at that party, and she slowly realizes that maybe all isn’t as perfect with Noah as she thought. She’s a resilient character, however, and some extreme kindness from a few strangers ensures that “The Jubilee Express” doesn’t lose too much of its easygoing tone.

As you work your way through the book, names and locales start becoming familiar. Each story stands on its own, but yet all three are related to each other. Up next is John Green’s “A Cheertastic Christmas Miracle,” and though I’m not the biggest Green fan ever, I found his contribution to be a solid, entertaining read. The determination of Tobin and his friends, JP and the Duke (real name: Angie) to brave the winter weather in order to reach the local Waffle House is both inspiring and fraught with funny. Tobin and JP want to hang out with the cheerleaders who have invaded the restaurant after their train, (the same train carrying Jubilee, by the way), becomes stuck in snow. The Duke accompanies them because she loves Waffle House’s hash browns. Green fans should be very pleased with “A Cheertastic Christmas Miracle” and its wit-filled pages.

Unfortunately, I thought the book faltered a little with the final story, Lauren Myracle’s “The Patron Saint of Pigs.” It centers around a rather self-involved character named Addie, who’s just broken up with her boyfriend because he wasn’t demonstrative enough with his affection for her. Granted, this is the type of story in which the main character needs to see the error of her self-absorbed ways, but I couldn’t warm up to Addie. Call me unromantic, but I just didn’t find her troubles as tragic as she did. I also felt like the story tried too hard at times to pull all three stories together. That’s not to say that “The Patron Saint of Pigs” doesn’t have its moments. I really liked Addie’s friend, Dorrie, who isn’t afraid to speak bluntly to Addie. The story just didn’t grab me the way the other two did, though, and it was a bit of a quiet finish for a novel that began so strongly. Still, if you’re on the lookout for a good holiday read, this is definitely one to keep in mind.

All in All: “The Jubilee Express” was clearly my favorite story out of the three thanks largely to its quirky, lovable protagonist, but there’s probably a character for everyone to love here. And if you love snow, well, you’ll find lots of mentions of snow in this book, too!

Review: Dash & Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan

Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares
By Rachel Cohn & David Levithan
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers

To Sum It Up:

Dash and Lily are complete strangers to each other, but they’re about to meet in a most unusual way. Right before Christmas, Dash finds a red Moleskine notebook on a shelf in the Strand Book Store in Manhattan that contains a quest. On a whim, he accepts the mystery author’s challenge, kicking off a back and forth game of dares with the notebook’s owner, Lily. The two are sent on tasks all over the city, and with every exchange of the notebook, they seem to become a little better acquainted. Pouring your heart out to a stranger on paper is one thing, though; meeting in person is another thing entirely, with no guarantee that the person from the red Moleskine notebook is the same person outside of its pages. Both Dash and Lily realize this and wonder if it would be best to continue just knowing each other through the notebook.

Review:

Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares was such a fun read, and it’s simply perfect for Christmas. I grew up in New York City and have many fond memories of past holidays there, so the setting alone was enough to make me fall in love with this book. Rachel Cohn and David Levithan do a magnificent job of bringing the city at Christmas time to life, from the crowds at Macy’s Herald Square and FAO Schwarz to the decorated houses of Brooklyn’s Dyker Heights neighborhood. For anyone who’s never visited New York during the holiday season, reading this book is probably the next best thing to being there.

I loved the novel’s original premise and its rich cast of quirky characters. The two narrators, Dash and Lily, are brought together by a red notebook containing a dare. The scheme was concocted by Lily’s older brother, Langston, in an attempt to help push his little sister out into the world more. It’s Dash who finds the notebook on a shelf in the Strand Book Store and decides to play along. The tasks themselves are quite funny from the outset; in order to decipher the first set of clues, Dash has to find some rather eyebrow-raising titles among the Strand’s stacks. Later on, there’s a Cinderella-esque incident involving a majorette boot getting left behind that still makes me smile just thinking about it. I found this book hilarious; it perfectly suited my sense of humor. Dash’s frequent use of sarcasm was very welcome.

Lily is such a sweet, bubbly character. She exudes an optimism that is very endearing and that I would love to have. Dash, who takes a more cynical view of the world, is the perfect foil for her. Whereas Lily is sheltered by her extremely protective, extended family, Dash’s divorced parents haven’t spoken to each other in years. This story could have gone the trite, opposites attract route, but fortunately, it doesn’t. Cohn and Levithan keep the narrative fresh with an ideal balance between poignancy and lightheartedness.

I’m not big on holiday movies where at the end, everyone is standing in front of a fireplace wearing matching sweaters and huge grins while holding mugs of hot chocolate. I definitely have more of a Dash-like outlook on life, but this book really made me feel, well, happy, after reading it. There’s no need to worry that Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares is all syrup, though; there’s enough snark, especially from Dash, to prevent it from becoming schmaltzy. The novel puts you in a festive mood without giving you the sensation that you’ve indulged in eating too many holiday sweets.

All in All:

I borrowed this from the library but need to buy my own copy so that I can start a new holiday tradition of reading it every December.

Favorite Quotes:

“For me, danger might be getting out from under the protective cloak of my family and venturing into the world more on my own, even though I don’t know what—or who—awaits me.”

—Lily, Chapter 12

“‘If you tell me, I will leave you alone,’ I said. ‘And if you don’t tell me, I am going to grab the nearest ghostwritten James Patterson romance novel and I am going to follow you through this store reading it out loud until you relent. Would you prefer me to read from Daphne’s Three Tender Months with Harold or Cindy and John’s House of Everlasting Love? I guarantee, your sanity and your indie street cred won’t last a chapter. And they are very, very short chapters.’”

—Dash, Chapter 11