September 30, 2024
McKay (Lucky, written as Marissa Stapley) delivers a sweet holiday romance focused on two best friends and how their support of each other leads each to new romance. After Holly’s fiancé leaves her the night before their December wedding, she’s too distraught to go on what should have been their Hawaiian honeymoon alone, but she doesn’t want to waste the airfare and knows some time away will do her good. She and her best friend, Ivy, agree to swap vacations: Ivy will take Holly’s honeymoon, and Holly will go on Ivy’s annual solo art retreat to the Hudson Valley. Arriving in Hawaii, Ivy finds Holly’s fiancé with the woman he left Holly for. To avoid staying in the same hotel as this duplicitous duo, she accepts hot bartender Oliver’s offer of a room in his beachside apartment. The arrangement offers ideal views to inspire her art—and a chance for a steamy fling with Oliver over the holidays. Meanwhile, Holly discovers that her high school academic rival, Aiden, runs the eco-cabin where she’s staying. With the help of his adorable small town, he sets out to change her indifferent attitude toward Christmas and show her what her heart’s been missing. McKay makes both women’s romances heartwarming and the emphasis on their enduring friendship only enhances the plot. This charms.