I’m a huge Ashley Herring Blake fan so I knew when there was this holiday romance, I had to read it! Make the Season Bright is for fans of second chances and music! It’s a fun and swoony romance for the upcoming cold months. Keep reading this book review of Make the Season Bright for my full thoughts.
Summary
It’s been five years since Charlotte Donovan was ditched at the altar by her ex-fiancée, and she’s doing more than okay. Sure, her single mother never checks in, but she has her strings ensemble, the Rosalind Quartet, and her life in New York is a dream come true. As the holidays draw near, her ensemble mate Sloane persuades Charlotte and the rest of the quartet to spend Christmas with her family in Colorado—it is much cozier and quieter than Manhattan, and it would guarantee more practice time for the quartet’s upcoming tour.
But when Charlotte arrives, she discovers that Sloane’s sister Adele also brought a friend home—and that friend is none other than her ex, Brighton. All Brighton Fairbrook wanted was to have the holliest, jolliest Christmas—and try to forget that her band kicked her out. But instead, she’s stuck pretending like she and her ex are strangers—which proves to be difficult when Sloane and Adele’s mom signs them all up for a series of Christmas dating events. Charlotte and Brighton are soon entrenched in horseback riding and cookie decorating, but Charlotte still won’t talk to her. Brighton can hardly blame her after what she did.
After a few days, however, things start to slip through. Memories. Music. The way they used to play together—Brighton on guitar, Charlotte on her violin—and it all feels painfully familiar. But it’s all in the past and nothing can melt the ice in their hearts…right?
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
What kind of romance story would it be without a few mishaps and disasters? Make the Season Bright is the ultimate disaster start – being trapped on a group vacation with our ex-fiance. With two musical characters, I knew I’d be falling hard and fast for this dual POV romance. And I was truly in for it. For Charlotte she’s so used to keeping everyone at arm’s length. She’s protecting her heart, but not realizing that it keeps her alienated. And for Brighton, she’s been running from the past, her mistakes, and hasn’t had the hard conversations yet.
Seeing through both of their perspectives makes us understand exactly what happened. If you’re a fan of couples who have to do the real work of being together, this is for you. As someone who knows exactly what it’s like to not be seen, to have to conceal this unhappiness in a place, Make the Season Bright hit home. It’s about someone who loves us, but cannot see us. And about someone seeing we’re in pain, but not knowing what to do or say to fix it. For both Brighton and Charlotte, my heart broke for each of them. The ways there’s this person who used to know every detail about us and now there’s only silence.
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In any other constellation it’d be a meet cute, but in Make the Season Bright it’s a hail Mary. Because we quickly realize it’s not just second chances, it’s about this experience which, individually, has shaped both of them. Make the Season Bright is perfect for the holidays and full of fun Winter activities and snowy shenanigans. Find Make the Season Bright on Goodreads, Storygraph, Amazon, Bookshop.org, Blackwells, & Libro. fm.