Season's Heatings: Romance to the Rescue

In need of ho ho ho's?  Then call in the bros!  Yeah . . . that didn't sound right.  But it is an on-brand way to introduce Lyssa Kay Adams' A Very Merry Bromance.  It's the fifth and latest novel in the Bromance Book Club series, which features a friend group of prominent Nashville men who read romance novels to learn more about women.  Which is a very cool concept.  Because what woman doesn't want a man who's in touch with his -- and more importantly, her -- feelings?   

In A Very Merry Bromance, it's country music star Colton Wheeler's turn for a lesson in love.  And the object of his affection (and okay, yes, erection) is no-nonsense immigration lawyer Gretchen Winthrop.  Gretchen is a gloomy Gus, and Colton is charisma personified, and they lean hard into the opposites attract trope, going so far as to joke about it.  It's all very meta and exactly what you'd expect from people who read romance as -- and these are Adams' words, not mine -- (life) manuals.  Not that Gretchen's entirely on board with it.  She's downright snarky when Colton turns the tables and asks her to study a bodice-ripper, and not only that, but one set during the holidays.  The original Scrooge, Gretchen despises Christmas (again, I can't take credit for this, as there's a whole A Christmas Carol comparison thing going on in this book).  Not because she thinks it's frivolous, but because her uber-wealthy but cold family never even let her decorate a Christmas tree.  

Now, A Very Merry Bromance ranks pretty high on the scorch-a-meter.  But it's also sweet and heartfelt.  There's something sexy about a guy going into Santa in shining armor mode, especially for a woman more than capable of taking care of herself.  Because that means he's not doing it because he thinks she's less than.  He's doing it because he cares.  And because everyone -- even the biggest, baddest, on-the-right-side-of-the-law lawyer, needs a little help (and Christmas magic!) sometimes.

So if modern-yet-still-old-fashioned romance is on your Christmas list, then look no further than this fiery fairy tale.  Full of fun, family drama, and fa-la-la-la-la-ooh-la-la, A Very Merry Bromance reminds us why Christmas is the season for sparks.