Just Like Magic - Sarah Hogle

Book Synopsis: From the author of Twice Shy comes a sprightly Christmas novel, a rollicking romp through the absurdity of family holidays and the hope of new love.

Bettie Hughes once knew the comfort of luxury, flaunting a ridiculous collection of designer shoes and a stealthy addiction to CBD oils. That is, until her parents snipped her purse strings. Long obsessed with her public image, Bettie boasts an extravagant lifestyle on social media. But the reality is: Bettie is broke and squatting in Colorado, and her family has no idea.

Christmas, with its pressure to meet familial expectations, is looming when a drunk Bettie plays a vinyl record of “All I Want for Christmas Is You” backwards and accidentally conjures Hall, an unexpectedly charming Holiday Spirit in the form of a man. Once the shock wears off, Bettie knows she’s stumbled upon the greatest gift: a chance to make all her holiday wishes come true, plus a ready-made fiancé.

But as the wiles of magic lose their charm, Bettie finds herself set off-kilter by Hall’s sweet gestures. Suddenly, Bettie is finding her heart merry and light. But the happier she gets, the shorter Hall’s time on earth grows. Can Bettie channel the Christmas spirit and learn to live with goodwill toward all men? Or will her selfish ways come back as soon as the holidays are over?

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This book was chaotic! I did not like the characters and there were tons of names to keep up with. The main character, Bettie was so selfish! Every single time she opened her mouth I wanted to cringe. I couldn't believe how into herself and how all of her thoughts were about getting petty revenge. When I started reading I thought it was going to be a cute Christmas romance with a twist of a magic element, instead what I got was a main character who was so interested in getting revenge on her "enemies" and wanted to put herself first all the time. The synopsis tricked me into believing that I was getting a twist on Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol.

Hall was just as irritating as Bettie and I spent half of the book praying that he would go away. They both acted like children. Or maybe that's an insult to children, who I think are perhaps smarter and more mature.

The reason that I'm giving this book three stars instead of one is because of the fact that I enjoyed the ending to an extent.

This book gets published on October 4, 2022. If you're expecting a fun holiday romance, you will be sorely disappointed.

Rating: 3/5 ★★★☆☆