Madison Parker

This is an amazing, heartwarming story that embodies not just the spirit of Christmas, but shows us what love is truly about. For high school boy Ryan it doesn’t come easy, and he needs to learn to be honest with himself before he can expect to love and be loved, but once he does, the potential to be happy is as big as he's always hoped.

Ryan isn’t exactly one of the jocks, but he doesn’t want to be associated with Jamie, who only has girls as friends, and is a member of the knitting show more club. Interestingly, from almost the very start he is very aware of Jamie and does feel drawn to him, but he is afraid of becoming an outsider. When he draws Jamie's name in the Secret Santa exchange, he doesn’t know what to do. He wants to be nice, wants to do the right thing, but he has much to learn before he can truly be himself.

The pain he causes Jamie each time he pushes the boy away is what gets Ryan to think about his own actions. He feels it deep inside himself and the guilt is driving him crazy. Ryan's mother is perfectly okay with him making things for Jamie, from a sock money to a rainbow spider, and the final gift which is as much about making Jamie happy as about standing up for himself and doing what he knows to be right.

This story touched me deeply. Ryan is such a loveable character, in al his confusion and attempted avoidance of admitting that he is gay, and that he likes Jamie a great deal. The battle with himself, the struggle to be honest, all come out so clearly that I had tears in my eyes almost throughout. And the ending is absolutely perfect! If you like emotional stories about learning to be honest about who you are, if you're looking for a feel-good book that is as funny in places as it is deeply touching, and if you want to read something really uplifting, you will probably like it as much as I did. I loved it, and have put it firmly on my "to read again" shelf. show less

This was really sweet, but for my tastes, too sweet. And I'm probably heartless but Lucas cried enough in this book he reminded me of that Alice in Wonderland scene where she cries so much she floods everything. Donovan had potential to be interesting and multi-layered, but I didn't feel he was developed enough. I didn't mind the BDSM elements introduced at the end. People that are into that stuff can be of any age, and it wasn't on page so I didn't feel it was too much for the YA crowd. I show more did, however, feel it was weird in this book. This book was all Candyland and that element and storyline (with Donovan) threw the pacing and thematic elements off for me.

I liked Alex and Tricia fine, but they felt a little like place-holders than fully realized characters. The parents' relationship with Lucas could have been really explored, and I felt the author scratched the surface, but I wasn't particularily invested. I'm glad Lucas had someone like Zach.

Overall, it's a cute book and a very quick read. I didn't enjoy it as much as the author's first work, but I might be interested in reading Donovan's story, if she was inclined to write it. show less

Reviewed on Hearts On Fire... http://heartsonfirereviews.com/

High school is tough enough without the added pressure of deciding whether or not to come out. Jamie is out and proud though he pays for it by having very few friends. Being a member of the knitting club doesn't exactly endear him to many of the other high school boys either but he is true to whom he is. Ryan seems to be your average teen but is hiding out in the closet. The boy's homeroom teacher decides to have a secret Santa show more gift exchange for Christmas and Ryan winds up picking Jamie's name. It's do or die time for Ryan. This was a very well written short story that put a huge smile on my face. I enjoyed Ryan immensely and some of his panic attacks had me laughing out loud while some of his kindest things brought a tear to my eye. Jamie was the poster boy for gay youth having the nerve and strength to be exactly who he wanted to be and feeling comfortable in his own skin. Ryan's Mom was wonderful with her easy going acceptance of everything. The story flowed beautifully to its HEA ending which although I knew it was coming still touched me. The rainbow spider was just icing on a wonderful story. show less

4.5 Sock Monkeys. Aah, so adorable and sweet. I'm conflicted about the ending, it was cute but at the same time a little disappointing. Anyway, I highly recommend this Christmas romance!