This was a cute book. I think it did the dating coach plot well. And I enjoyed my time reading it. Some things did feel repetitive, and there is a miscommunication conflict, but for a fun holiday read that hits a lot of tried and true romance favourites for people, it was good.

Some of the development of their relationship could have been improved, though it is mostly smoothing out some bumps in the pacing. I also wished for more from some of the external conflicts that the couple faced, and that Holly had gotten some more moments to really shine on her own, where her character growth was really highlighted. But although I wish for a bit more, the book was satisfying and fun, and a nice holiday read to set the mood.

This is a weird and fucked up book, though it pushed me out of my comfort zone and really pulled a lot of emotions out of me.

Nightbitch focuses a lot on motherhood and the struggles that can come when one's life is absorbed by being a mom. Though, as someone who is not a mother, nor do I intend to be, my main takeaway and focus through the book is about how it approaches the idea of one's identity and sense of self through this dark satire.

This book is very graphic in a lot of weird ways, and although I am putting a 4 for enjoyment, that enjoyment is not quite so simple. It was not fun to read. It was compelling, and it kept me wanting to know more. At many points, I felt disgusted, confused, and angry with the main character and others in her life. I was both rooting for The Mother and wanting to shake some sense into her. And those very intense reactions and my draw into the story is what made me rate the enjoyment so high, because it drew so much out of me during the process, and that experience brings its own sort of pleasure.

Although I enjoyed the book, this is going to be a very hit-or-miss one for many people, especially due to the nature of some of the content (trigger warning at the bottom of my review). Another thing that I think might add to the emotional discomfort of the book, but also will turn off many readers, is that the chapters are marked in an untraditional way that makes the switch easy to miss, and there are no quotation marks for dialogue. I read it as an audiobook, though, so that wasn't an issue for me, and might be a workaround if that is something that might bother you. But for anyone who wants to read it, those are two important stylistic choices to keep in mind.

Trigger warning: Animal Cruelty (There is one very particular moment that is very graphic and is noted in a lot of other reviews)

This is such an interesting concept for a book, where it is set up more like a file on these characters, with evidence organized in a way that creates a narrative for us to follow. The book is filled with telegrams, letters, books within the book, maps, and much more, presented for us to understand the story unfolding. And I found these additions to be beautifully done and added many components to the story that I appreciated.

However, as beautiful as they are, this was not a book I jumped to pick up. In fact, I read it very slowly over the course of more than 6 months, reading small bits every week, and that was about it. It just wasn't super engaging for me, but it wasn't a bad story. It's this weird middle ground where I love the art, the concept, and even how they executed it, especially as the information remained cohesive even with the format changes consistently happening. I just wish the overarching story was as interesting to me as the art and supplementary information put in to push that story.

Nothing like all your family being killed one by one to really bring out the Christmas spirit 😂

I had a lot of fun with this book; I thought it blended dark humour, ridiculousness in the characters, and the tension of a murder spree well. However, this is less of an investigative murder mystery, and I think it could be a disappointment to those who are hoping for a more serious tone or a more sleuthing storyline. Don't get me wrong, Olivia tries to figure it out, but more in passing, where she takes what she knows and happens to see and makes guesses, but she doesn't go in search of any clues or information.

Overall, I kind of think that my enjoyment came from not taking the book seriously and just vibing with it. Though some things were repetitive, and I don't know if I can say there was anything new in its general concept or execution. But it was fun and entertaining for me. I also read this with my mother, so my enjoyment might have been increased because of her reactions and talking about it with her.

This is not my favourite holiday rom-com by any means, but I did appreciate the variations it made on this 'hallmark movie in a book' subgenre. Some of it is the blending of multiple holidays and religions, which, although gaining popularity, is still something that is not seen in a lot of these hallmark-esque books. I also really enjoyed the two perspectives of these women and their stories. However, I am in the camp that this could have been a sapphic romance so easily, and I hope that in some universe, that is the reality for this book.

I marked it as a three because, for the genre, I think it generally hits its mark. I do believe it could have used some more work on certain plot points and some of the characters, but it's not trying to be different than it is, and for what it is, it is an ok book. The big thing for me, though, is I couldn't figure out whether they were laughing at themselves and the genre a bit or just really leaning into it in a way that made things ridiculous. If that was more clear, and it was meant to be poking fun at it, I would have given it a higher rating, honestly. Instead, I had to question if I was being rude for laughing at some of it 😅

I will warn anyone who dislikes the cheesy and often ridiculous holiday romances that Hallmark produces: this book is not for you. It really leans into that energy, so keep that in mind if you go to read this book.

So, I liked this book more than the first. It dived deeper into Zinnia's feelings and circumstances, which is what I really wanted from the first book, so I was super happy to get that. However, I once again find myself upset by the length of the book. I wish it were slowed down and expanded on more, especially because I liked it. Take all the moments of this book and give it more time, let us sit with things, and get to know these characters, and it would have been incredible. But so much happens quite quickly, and I didn't get invested as much because of that pacing.