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I’ve been waiting for the day Ali Hazelwood wrote a best friend’s brother story. I love her STEM romances and their dynamics, especially in terms of competing researchers or people in similar industries, but I have been hopeful for a best friend’s brother to read from her, so I’m glad this seasonal novella came when it did.

Part of what I love about novellas is how quickly they can establish a story or dynamic, and that’s done well here. We are given both the necessary background information and what we need to know quickly so we actually have time to spend in the present and enjoy the story taking place. Because it is a best friend’s brother story, it certainly is easier to establish that quickly, but we go through their entire backstory in the span of about a chapter in a way that doesn’t take away from the present.

I like Jamie and Marc’s dynamic. It gives me exactly what I always expect with an Ali Hazelwood book in a smaller dose, which is what I needed to hold me over until Deep (Whet) and the next installment in the Bride universe.