Reviews

Summer Hates Christmas by Rachel Dove

adele89's review against another edition

lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.5

Dull with little plot, I didn't care much about the characters and could see the ending a mile off. Even with this type of genre I expected more interesting writing. Considered dnf. 

paular53's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny hopeful tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes

3.0

melycp's review against another edition

2.0

I was so excited to read a book where the woman is the one that hates Christmas, I thought this would be a breath of fresh air. Oh boy was I wrong. I’m still not entirely sure what I’ve just read. 

There was no need for this book to be set around the festive season other than giving Summer a reason for being a horrible person. The reason why she despises Christmas so much is never really explained other than her dad leaving and her mom throwing away the Christmas tree. I get that her dad leaving was probably traumatic but the Christmas element was definitely an afterthought as it wasn’t mentioned any of the previous times her dad leaving was brought up.

Anyway, let’s go back to the beginning of Summer Hates Christmas. My first impression of Summer really wasn’t great. There’s not liking Christmas and then there’s just being a horrible person. She shouts at Noel and calls his business “bullsh*t tat” and then kicks his Christmas tree so hard it falls over and the baubles smash. 

After this incident, they meet again at a bar that evening and he buys her a drink to apologise. For what?! She literally damaged his property. 

She’s very short with him at the bar, I’d go as far to say rude. He asks if she needs a taxi, she says no and then for some reason does a complete 180 and invites him for food and ‘giggles’ at something he says. What is going on? These characters are all over the place.

There was absolutely no build to their relationship. They both decide to hate each other, the next day Noel tell her he likes her and the next thing you know they’re kissing. I’m aware this is an ‘enemies to lovers’ book but firstly, they’re not your enemy if lasts like two days and secondly develop their relationship first. You can’t have them go from childish I hate you’s to agreeing to date within 10 pages. It just doesn’t work.

The most intricate character was Summer’s mom. She had real trauma and felt like a well-rounded character. Her chapters/scenes were quite sad, but it was great to see the perspective of an actual adult with reasonable emotions. Which is saying something because she literally has PTSD/trauma (I don’t remember it being clarified).

I was also more interested in the relationship between Summer’s cleaner (I can’t remember her name, oops) and her new next-door neighbour. They were very cute and she was by far the best character. Also, this is a multiple-POV book, but that isn’t said in the synopsis. 

Bringing back the point of this not needing to be set around Christmas. There are about 10 pages of festivities (if that) and it’s quite underwhelming. Christmas is in the title and you barely get a glimpse at it.

I think I could go on for days about the underwhelming and quite frankly confusing elements of this book, but I don’t have the energy. I did manage to finish it, but mostly because it was quite short. This wasn’t for me, sorry!

alexandriavwilliams's review against another edition

5.0

✨ARC Review✨
Summer hates Christmas and doesn’t understand why people go through all the trouble with decorations, singing, and stocking up on holiday foods and drinks. Instead, she would rather be relaxing in the sun, on the beach with a refreshing cocktail.

ashleygreenslibrary's review against another edition

Was trying to get in the mood for Christmas but it didn’t work so I moved on to something else. Plan to come back to this another time, it was good just not hitting the spot. 

smittysauce's review against another edition

I was mortified by the FMC who seems like a horrible person and kicks stuff for no reason. And the MMC was an angel and kept giving her more chances. You could tell the FMC had had a rough life but there was no explanation to make it useful and I couldn’t keep reading it to figure out why she was being so horrible. The author switches back-and-forth between POV’s with no warning. Even though it’s in third person, it was still confusing.

courtnie_jade's review against another edition

funny lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

piperkitty's review

4.0

Summer despises Christmas, although she adores the season, the beach, and experiencing her clients' holidays firsthand (as she runs a travel agency). Noel, the neighbour who works next to Summer, is hated. The last thing she wants is to be reminded of how much of a Grinch she is. Therefore she despises him because he recently established a Christmas store. Noel attempts to get closer to Summer but can't determine why she is always upset.

Summer's life is not as bright and energetic as she makes it seem to Noel, which he is unaware of. She returns home to a mother who struggles with social anxiety and hasn't left the house in years. He begins gradually demolishing the walls that Summer has constructed. Since she can be unpredictable and has such a nasty communication style, it was tough for me to appreciate Summer and sympathise with her. You only fully understand what is going on in her life and why she behaves the way she does as her story progresses. Then you start to feel sympathy for her and worry about how her future will turn out. Despite everything she says to him, Noel appears to be able to ignore her harshness and has the patience to get to know her. Family plays a significant role in the narrative, and Summer's history contains some unexpected twists that I did not anticipate.

#SummerHatesChristmas #NetGalley #RomanceMonday

butterscotchsundae's review against another edition

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

michaelarandell35's review against another edition

funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0