Wreck the Halls by Tessa Bailey on October 3, 2023
Genres: Fiction / Holidays, Fiction / Romance / Contemporary, Fiction / Romance / Holiday, Fiction / Romance / Romantic Comedy, Fiction / Women
Pages: 368
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“Love doesn’t come and go that easily, Beat. You need to believe you can lean on it, even when you have to lean really hard.”
Melody Gallard may be the daughter of music royalty, but her world is far from glamorous. She spends her days restoring old books and avoiding the limelight (one awkward tabloid photo was enough, thanks). But when a producer offers her a lot of money to reunite her mother’s band on live tv, Mel begins to wonder if it’s time to rattle the cage, shake up her quiet life… and see him again. The only other person who could wrangle the rock and roll divas. Beat Dawkins, the lead singer’s son, is Melody’s opposite—the camera loves him, he could charm the pants off anyone, and his mom is not a potential cult leader. Still, they might have been best friends if not for the legendary feud that broke up the band. When they met as teenagers, Mel felt an instant spark, but it’s nothing compared to the wild, intense attraction that builds as they embark on a madcap mission to convince their mothers to perform one last show. While dealing with rock star shenanigans, a 24-hour film crew, brawling Santa’s, and mobs of adoring fans, Mel starts to step out of her comfort zone. With Beat by her side, cheering her on, she’s never felt so understood. But Christmas Eve is fast approaching, and a decades-old scandal is poised to wreck everything—the Steel Birds reunion, their relationships with their mothers, and their newfound love.
This was a weird one for me. Beat has a particular kink (iykyk) and it’s a pretty big part of the story. Which, admittedly, I thought was lacking an Oh factor. Not to mentioned the blackmailing. It just fell short of the shock factor. This was also a bit too insta-love. Melody has been harboring a crush on Beat since she meets him as a teen. And when she sees him again all those feelings come rushing back. They do have a special understanding of the other one due to their upbringing and involuntary fame. For the length of the book I felt the actual romance development fell a bit flat for me. It was more fitting for a novella rather than a full length book. It was also missing the holiday feel. Aside of taking place in December there wasn’t much holiday feel to it. I did love the moms and their crazy wackiness added a layer of comedy that I really enjoyed. Unfortunately, while it packed the usual Bailey steam, the romance was missing that bit of oomph I was needing. But I still enjoyed it quite a bit and if you’re looking for a fun read with plenty of spice, this one will hit the spot.
I gave this one a 3.5 star rating. The plot was fun, but not particularly Christmas-focused. I’m not mad I read it, but it’s not one of my favorites. This was a fine book but I was hoping for more.