This was a really nice romance book. I liked following Summer as she navigates the changes in her life and the love triangle was actually really well done, I didn’t even know who I was leaning more towards at the start!
It was swoony but also emotional as Summer struggles with finding happiness, but also wanting to make those around her happy too.
Thank you Netgalley and Spoonbill publishing for this arc.

*** Thank you to the author for a copy of this ARC. All opinions in this review are mine and are freely given.

Ummmm Beauty and The Beast retelling + that stunning cover had me SAT!!!

I also love a Christmas setting even tho it is literally the summer time when I read it! But who cares? Christmas in the summer is IT!

And this book… well it was so good! I really enjoyed the romance!!! And the setting was realistic yet reminded me of a Hallmark movie, it was exactly what I wanted.

This was such a fun read! And I get to read a Christmas themed romance in July?? I absolutely love it. This was a very cute fun book to read. The main characters, Summer, and James, were adorable and their instant chemistry made me smile and giggle out loud. And Summer really had a knack for bringing out the best in James which made it seem very real.

And normally I’m not a huge love triangle person but in the beginning I couldn’t totally decide which love interest I liked better… Really good writing. They both seemed sweet to me.

The only thing I didn’t like how James handles certain situations but in all honesty the way the story ended was very sweet and it made me all happy and giddy inside.

Thank you so much to Spoonbill Publishing for this ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Summer in the Snowfall’ by A.E. Merriweather is magical and invigorating.

I was immediately transferred to Revel Pointe, and I enjoyed every minute of it. Furthermore, the description of the library archiving was immersive.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for the e-ARC of this heartwarming novel.

Who knew reading a Christmas romance in the middle of summer could be so charming? The story was light, heartwarming, and full of sweet moments and the book was so enjoyable to read! The characters are so well written and developed, I felt a connection with them almost immediately.

The chemistry between the main characters, Summer and James, was instant and believable. Their interactions felt natural, and I found myself smiling through so many of their scenes, because they're just so cute! Summer had this wonderful way of bringing out James's softer side, which made their connection even more genuine.

While I’m usually not a fan of love triangles, this one was handled really well. At first, I honestly couldn’t choose which love interest I preferred. Both options were appealing and well-written, which kept me invested in the story.

If I had to nitpick, there were a few moments where James's decisions frustrated me, but in the end, the resolution was so heartfelt that it made up for it. The conclusion left me with that warm, giddy feeling that you hope for in a good romance.

It's a tried and true concept to showcase fairytales in a new light, but A.E. Merriweather proves they can still be done in 2025 in unique and brilliant ways. I was bracing myself for a cheesy re-telling of Beauty & the Beast and was happily surprised with how different and well thought out this tale turned out to be! The cover really drew me in, the colors were just holiday enough without being overt and I loved how the title even wound itself into one of the pages. I will be reading more of this author in the future!

Summer's inner monologue was one of my favorite parts of this book, she was refreshingly witty, hilarious and truly relatable. She wasn't written as a pretty woman who pretends she's not pretty, she truly was an ugly duckling that became a bit of a swan and absolutely no clue because she doesn't know any different. That aspect was so unique and well done.


Some notes that would've made this read a five star:

- I went into this knowing full well it was a sequel but the background from the first book, outside of the prologue wasn't great. There's mention of Ethan cleaning up his life but would've loved more than a one sentence paragraph on it. Now that I've read the book I get the picture better but a little more context as to why James/Summer aren't close with Ethan/Marin would've been helpful as I still don't totally get it.

- This is super minor but when some character names are too similar it gets confusing at the beginning, that was the case for HR Jacob and then MMC James. I think changing Jacob's name to not start with 'j' would've helped.

- Another minor note but on page 26, James' mother is introduced as Tilda and as someone who hadn't read the first book in this series, it wasn't until the next page that she was clearly labeled as mother, her behavior had me thinking step-mother? So clarity there from the get go would've been great.

- James couldn't seem to make up his mind on page 33 whether or not he wanted a partner or not. At first he says 'the only thing missing is a beautiful woman by my side' (which doesn't totally seem accurate since James doesn't seem like the kind to only care about beauty? I was thinking more like a remarkable woman maybe? or equal partner at my side?) and then in the next paragraph says that "A life without love is a less complicated one". Just seemed a little flip floppy there.

- James wasn't my favorite but he was written well, just not as likable as Summer. I would've loved a little more depth in regards to his icy exterior taking more time to thaw to Summer and experiencing that demanding boss she was warned about. I also didn't love how he never seemed to see how his feelings for Summer might've translated to her reputation as an archivist because of his clear favoritism. I wish she had called him out on it and he learned from that to be more thoughtful towards others and that been a lesson on selfishness for him. I also think his attempts to earn her forgiveness could've been better, they lacked a bit of luster at the end. I was like that's it? One news article and all is well? I would've loved her to rebuff him and he made a month of showing her how much he cared or something to really show he learned from his mistakes.

Overall I thoroughly enjoyed this book and look forward to more by this author!