Ahhh this book ended in a cliffhanger?
Will there be another sequel?
Like what happens to Dash and Lily next?
I did find Lily very selfish and annoying in this book, sadly.
Let's hope some answers will come in a new book?

I enjoyed this just as much as its predecessor, which is certainly saying something! Just pure joy, and makes me feel so warm inside.

Very young audience even thought the characters are supposed to be older teens. I felt like Lily's character was lost from the first book for most of this.

Thanks to NetGalley and Egmont Publishing for the ARC of this book.

I read the first book in this series, ‘Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares’ a few years ago. I didn’t remember much about it, other than I thought it was OK. It had a pleasant, if unlikely, book-themed Christmassy romance and I absolutely loved the cover, which is beautiful, perfect for the book and so much better than the sequel’s cover (see above for the contrast). I’m pretty partial to a Christmas-themed romance so I thought I’d give the sequel a whirl.

Unfortunately, this book is not great. It falls into the trap of so many unnecessary romance sequels in that it has to create some drama/conflict between the protagonists but doesn’t want to destroy their relationship or make either fall out of love or do anything bad, so the drama comes from miscommunication. If the two leads just sat down and had an honest, candid conversation, they would realise they are both completely on the same page. That’s one of the most frustrating premises to read and is too thin to sustain a whole book.

The one thing this book does do well is to highlight how as you get older Christmas begins to lose its magic and starts to remind you of the passage of time and the people who are missing from the celebrations. This is obviously true but not really the feeling you are hoping to get from a cosy YA Christmas romance book. You want the magic and escapism. These are missing from most of the book as for the majority of the time Lily, one of the main protagonists, is thoroughly depressed about her life. She mopes and mopes and mopes; moping white, rich, privileged teenagers with loving families has to be one of the most boring thing to read about. Your life is not that bad! You have enough money and influence to organise a private skating rink party with a hot chocolate caterer and ice dancers at a day’s notice a couple of days before Christmas, for goodness sake! Ridiculous.

This book is sadly lacking in sparkle and won’t do much to put you in the Christmas mood.

Dash and Lily's Book of Dare's has always been a favourite of mine so I was thrilled when I found out there was going to be a sequel. It was lovely to catch up with old characters and find out what they were up to now. Although not as good as the first (they never are) it was a good sequel that didn't leave you feeling disappointed.

I liked this novel and having read several others by the authors it didn't stand out as much as 'Nick and Nora' for example. This is borrowed regularly mainly due to its addition to the Zoella reading group list.

A sweet, christmassy tale that sadly fails to capture the wonder of the original but works perfectly as a short, fluffy christmas adventure.