Alison Cochrun does it again! Kiss Her Once for Me was exceptional, from the diverse representation to the miscommunication trope DONE RIGHT to its explorations of what it means to chase career success and how that can affect how we view our place in the world. I love the way this author weaves discussions of mental health into her romances in a way that brings us so much closer to her main characters and teaches us valuable lessons along the way.

Rating: 4.5 stars

A year ago, Ellie Oliver’s life seemed to be going just according to her 10-year plan. She had moved to Portland for her dream job as an artist for an animation studio. And for one magical day and night, Ellie thought had found the woman of her dreams. After meeting at a bookstore, the women spent a wonderful, snowy day together that left Ellie falling in love. But things feel apart with Jack almost as quickly as they began, leaving Ellie devastated. And it only got worse when she lost her job at her dream company. Now, Ellie is working a job she hates with a boss she loathes. Her heart is still broken and her head is filled with memories of the woman with whom she spent that glorious day and night. And her mother continues to badger Ellie for money, when Ellie is barely making ends meet herself. In fact, Ellie is on the verge of destitution and, with her rent going up, she has no idea how she is going to survive.

Then the gorgeous and wealthy landlord of the coffee shop where Ellie works, Andrew Kim-Prescott, comes to Ellie with a proposition. Andrew’s grandfather died with a stipulation in his will requiring Andrew be married to get the inheritance. With no interest in a relationship and no one on the horizon, Andrew is looking for someone to marry him for the year just so he can get the money. He is willing to offer Ellie $200k if she will help him out and get married, as well as spend Christmas with his family in their mountain cabin. Ellie is anxious about the idea, but (with the help of copious amounts of alcohol) eventually figures she has nothing to lose. She needs the money so desperately and, while she isn’t particularly interested in Andrew romantically (aside from finding him incredibly hot), she also figures maybe there is a chance that feelings will grow. However, when Andrew and Ellie arrive at the family home for the holiday, she is shocked to learn that Andrew’s sister “Jacqueline” is none other than Ellie’s Jack, the woman who broke her heart a year ago and the woman she is definitely not over losing.

Ellie is stunned to see Jack, and Jack is equally shocked to find Ellie engaged to her brother. Ellie knows she can’t tell Andrew she slept with his sister. And Andrew has been very clear that Ellie can’t tell anyone about the fake inheritance scheme, particularly Jack. Plus, Ellie desperately needs the money that will come with fulfilling her end of the bargain. However, last year’s connection between the women never went away and being around each other day after day is incredibly difficult. Even though she has no interest in Andrew, and Andrew has no interest in her (in fact, Ellie is pretty sure Andrew is in love with Dylan, Jack’s best friend), Ellie still made a promise to both marry him and keep his secret. And when she learns more about Andrew’s motives, Ellie is even more determined to keep his confidence. But Ellie still longs for Jack, and it is clear Jack still has feelings for her in return. Things are made even more difficult as Andrew and Jack’s family is just lovely, welcoming Ellie into their lives in a way she has never experienced with her own absentee parents. Now, Ellie must decide if she is going to stick with her bargain and the safety of the deal with Andrew, or if she is willing to take a chance on love and happiness with a future with Jack.

I absolutely loved Allison Cochrun’s The Charm Offensive and it made by Best of 2021 list. So I was excited when I saw the author had a new book out, particularly one with some fun tropes, like marriage of convenience and a sibling love triangle (that ends up a “love trapezoid” as Ellie dubs it). Cochrun does this style so well, and this one has humor and hijinks and is just on the right side of over-the-top in its slightly crazy set up with Ellie finding out that “the one that got away” is actually the sister of her current fake fiance. I found this story just so much fun and really entertaining.

As I said, this one has quite the set up, and you just need to go with it, as this is definitely more rom com than real life. That said, Cochrun gives a weight to the story that takes it above the crazy premise, giving the characters depth and building a foundation that really made it all work for me. Ellie starts out the story in an awful place. She is feeling vulnerable that her mother just wants her for money (which Ellie quite clearly doesn’t have) and has no interest in actually seeing her for Christmas once again. Her boss is awful, she hates her job, and she is about $15 from being out on the street. Not to mention that Ellie’s heart is still quite sore from what happened with Jack last year. Ellie doesn’t typically find an emotional or physical connection with anyone in a day. But there was something about that magical 24 hours with Jack that affected her so profoundly, Ellie believed for a short time that things could into something real between them. That is until it all came crashing down. Cochrun does a nice job really setting the stage here for Ellie’s emotional state and why this absurd offer from Andrew is one she is willing to take (though it still takes a lot of alcohol-fueled bad decisions to get her to agree). Quite frankly, Ellie needs the money badly, and she need some hope for happiness and is willing to see where this opportunity takes her. Of course, she never expects it to bring her back into Jack’s life.

Things build well here in this complicated relationship dynamic, aided by the fact that Andrew and Ellie are never actually interested in one another. They mostly feel like brother and sister, and while the two end up forming a close bond, Andrew quite clearly has no romantic feelings for Ellie. As I said, Andrew is desperately in love with Jack’s best friend, Dylan, and Dylan quite clearly wants Jack in return. So there is no sense of cheating or of Ellie hurting Andrew when things start to move forward with Jack, which I think is important. That said, Jack has no idea about any of this backstory, so in her case, she is quite concerned about the fact that she is pining for her brother’s fiance. So Jack wants to keep her distance because she fears hurting her brother, while Ellie is still hurt over what happened last year. Even once Ellie learns the truth, she feels obligated to keep her promise to Andrew, as well as wanting to help Andrew in his ultimate goal. I will say, there is a lack of communication here on many fronts, among a variety of players. I think it mostly works, as it fits this rom-com style, but I do think a lot pain could have been avoided all around with a little more openness.

I think Cochrun does a nice job making a believable connection between Ellie and Jack, despite just knowing each other a day. We get flashback scenes of their time together interspersed with present events, so I felt brought into their journey in a way that let me feel that past connection. Even as it has been a year, both women are hurt and still missing what they thought could have been a real future with one another, so I could buy that they still have intense feelings for each other. I think this is particularly true of Ellie, who acts so out of character for herself in the way she opened up to this adventure with Jack and let herself just feel it all. So I think that helped really enhance that sense of intensity to her emotions in the present day.

Aside from the romantic relationship, a big part of the story also focuses on Ellie’s lack of connection with her own family contrasted with Kim-Prescott clan. Ellie’s father is basically out of her life and her mother only contacts her to demand money. The Kim-Prescotts have a crazy, loving family and a big holiday celebration (complete with laminated schedule of activities). They welcome Ellie into their home and make her feel a sense of love and acceptance that she doesn’t get from her own family. We get the rom com requisite wacky grandmothers (both boozy and high), but the family is sweet and it is nice to see Ellie feel so accepted and welcome. It gives the story an overall nice holiday warmth that is a nice addition to the romantic entanglements.

A lot of the story deals with Ellie’s general anxiety and her fears that have been holding her back. She has awful parents and she dealt with a lot of that uncertainty growing up by trying to rigidly control her life. She needs plans and structure and is generally risk averse and, over the course of the story, she comes to understand that these attempts at perfection are holding her back. I think it is an overall good message in the sense that it gives Ellie the confidence to reach for what she wants, not always what she thinks she should be doing. But a lot of the blame for various things that go wrong over the course of the book is placed at Ellie’s feet due to her fears, and it doesn’t always seem fair to me. At the end of the book, Ellie feels like the scapegoat for a lot of problems, particularly given that Jack omitted something super major in her own life. So I needed a little more balance here between Ellie finding her way, and Ellie’s fears being blamed for so many issues when others seemed to bear responsibility too.

Overall, I found this one really a lot of fun and just delightful. Cochrun gives us a great romantic comedy, with all the warmth, love, and hijinks that includes. I enjoyed the connection between Jack and Ellie, and I loved the side characters that round out the story. This is a great holiday book, but also just a really engaging story all around. Things end up in a great place for everyone and I love how Ellie ends up with a partner and a family who really values her.

Recent Portland transplant Ellie Oliver has had one hellish year. Last Christmas Eve, she had her dream job in animation and the most perfect night with a stranger she met at the bookstore (ie, Powell’s Books). This year, she’s lost that dream job and is this close to losing her apartment. Desperate and alone, she agrees to fake marry her landlord Andrew Prescott-Kim so he can gain access to his inheritance and give Ellie a cut of it, something along the lines of $200k. But when Andrew takes Ellie home for Christmas to convince his family of the relationship that will unlock his fortune, Ellie sees…her. Jack, Andrew’s sister (this is why last names are important!!), is Ellie’s girl, the girl she gave her heart to last Christmas.

Alison Cochrun can do no wrong in my eyes! This was another perfect holiday book… that I read it in August, so if you need to relive the holiday magic I highly recommend it. It is filled with so much of that said holiday magic: an excel spreadsheet detailing each holiday activities down to the hour (ie, family walk in the snow with matching Christmas sweaters, baking Christmas cookies, Christmas carols around the family piano, family ski trip), not one but two sangria/mulled wine/hot toddy-drinking grandmothers (who were married to the same man), a dog named Paul Hollywood, and all the Taylor Swift references (here, it was a cerulean blue scarf that was left behind in an airstream). I adored the romance between Ellie and Jack. I loved that they were messy, stubborn, insufferable, and vulnerable enough to admit that they wanted ‘monogamy, marriage, mortgage, all that embarrassing crap.’

This was such a new refreshing twist on the traditional fake dating trope. I feel like I've been waiting for a story like this.

i wish this story gave me a little bit more than what i got :( i mean i still give it like 3.5/4 stars cos i enjoyed most of the book but i didn’t melt into it like i wanted to, sadly.

let’s start off with the things that i loved:
- how FUNNY it was
- butch rep! gimme all the hot butch folks pls cos there isn’t enough 😍😍😍
- ari & meredith, pls be my bffs
- the great ‘while you were sleeping’ vibes!!!
- cochrun always adds these great conversations re: mental health in her books which is so important
- the flashback snow day scenes
- how majorly invested in the last quarter of the book despite trudging through the first bit
- the pop culture references galore!
- bringing the term ‘manic pixie dream butch’ into my vocabulary
- and how certain aspects of ellie remind me of the protagonist from my own book 🥰

now onto the things that i didn’t like and kind of took me out of the story a bit:
- how the ‘fake dating’ couple scenes between her and andrew were barely in it, leaving no ‘risk’ or tension to the book and therefore, kind of pointless?
- how the plot was a little whiplashy tbh, mainly bc of the aforementioned lack of tension
- and lastly, the Too Close To Home/#relatable/this u? conversations between ellie and her mum cos like i didn’t need to be read like this.

overall, i enjoyed the read and especially the great conversations about mental health and the friends/family that ellie is surrounded by but idk if this one is being added to the faves shelf u kno?

I absolutely loved The Charm Offensive, so I was really looking forward to this one. This was a very slow moving story, and I wasn’t super invested in the characters and story. It just seemed to drag and was way too long.

I did really enjoy the representation in the story and the conversations about mental health and anxiety. My favorite characters were the two grandmas!!

Thank you so much Atria for my gifted copy in exchange for a honest review.

Oh, my heart! I adored this queer romcom. Not only does it have a swoony love story, I really appreciated how more serious issues around anxiety and emotional abuse were integrated into the story. With it's holiday setting and "When We Were Sleeping"-vibe, Cochrun's follow up to "The Charm Offensive" is a delight.

Thanks to Atria Books for the copy to review.

Kiss Her Once for Me
By: Alison Cochrun

"A festive romantic comedy about a woman who fakes an engagement with her landlord.. only to fall for his sister."

Read if you like:
✨️ LGBTQ+
✨️ Fake Dating
✨️ Festive romcom
✨️ Marriage of convenience
✨️ Forced proximity
✨️ Mental health representation
✨️ Effective communication

Kiss Her Once for Me was the cozy holiday romcom I needed this winter season! Featuring many of my favorite tropes, this fake dating forced proximity romance was an absolute delight. I adored Ellie and Jack's love story, the humor, the representation, the romance, and the true found family and friendship between Ellie and the Kim-Prescott family. The writing was clever, I enjoyed the dual timelines, and the open communication in this book was fantastic. 👏👏

Definitely pick up this holiday romcom if you haven't already. It has easily become one of my all time favorite holiday romances. 🤍

Thank you Netgalley and Atria Books for my gifted copy in exchange for an honest review!

Alison Cochrun can do no wrong. Absolutely loved it!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced copy!

After devouring The Charm Offensive last year, I quickly added Kiss Her Once for Me to my anticipated reads list. This book was perfect to read around the holidays and had just the right amount of romance and holiday-ness to it! Overall I really enjoyed it. The characters felt flawed and authentic and loved the plot line. I did have a few issues with this book though - first being the 2 million dollar/200,000 "deal." I feel like the money needed to be higher than that to make this relationship enticing. I mean, don't get me wrong that's a lot of money, but it's not necessarily life changing money in your 30s when you have the rest of your life ahead of you haha! I also really didn't like Dylan as a character. I really appreciate the LGBTQIA+ representation but the constant reference of Dylan at them/their was a LOT. Oftentimes the word "them" would be in a paragraph 4, 5, or 6 times. I almost wanted to scream JUST SAY DYLAN. It was a little off-putting when reading because it happened SO frequently. Otherwise, this book wa great and I love a good fake dating trope and this one felt unique!

2.5 stars.

This is probably the hardest review I've ever written, or close to it. I genuinely thought Kiss Her Once for Me would be a favorite. The Charm Offensive was my favorite book of 2021 — hands down — so to think that now Alison Cochrun's sophomore novel is in the running for one of my least favorite books?? Not a happy thought.

I have a whole bunch of problems with this book, but the biggest one was the ace-spec rep. I, as someone who is ace-spec (something close to demisexual), really felt like this was one of the worst ways I've seen the asexuality spectrum addressed. The main character, Ellie, is demisexual. She says it explicitly, in dialogue and narration, multiple times, often in reference to her relationship with Jack, the love interest. And yet... she has almost immediate sexual attraction to Jack. And by that I mean a few hours, which she then holds onto for a year. And while I understand that not every ace-spec experience is the same — believe me, I know — this "representation" felt like a slap to the face.

On top of that, there's a really horrible scene, which I find honestly incredibly repulsive, where Jack is lashing out at Ellie... and invalidates her demisexuality to her face?? Here's the quote: "You know, the fucked-up irony is... that you need trust in order to have physical intimacy in a relationship, yet you violated my trust in every imaginable way." It's one thing for a character's depictions of her sexuality to not line up with the representation. It's a whole other problem when the love interest invalidates the character's identity, on page, and we are still supposed to root for them to be together. I just — can't.

I hated how every character was reduced down to Ellie's stereotypes of them. Like Jack: butch lesbian. Or her friends: just there to help her and make her happy. She did not treat those around her well, and she only kind of recognized that by the ending. She had a lot of self-growth to work on, for sure, but part of that growth has to be in the way you treat others.

Also, speaking as a Jew here: I understand that this is a Christmas-centered book, but did there have to be so many references to Christmas songs? It was repetitive and annoying, and didn't add anything to the story besides one scene that gave the book its name. It took me out of the story, just because there would be some random lyric pasted onto the page that vaguely connected to the story.

The ending also... kinda sucked? (no spoilers, but!) I finished it in kind of a mixture of shock that it happened that way and relief that it was finally over.

It's a cool concept, don't get me wrong! That's why I thought this book would be a favorite: Who doesn't love some fake dating a millionaire and falling in love with his sister?? Plus, some wintery snow magic, a love-trapezoid, and kinda a second-chance romance? Sounds great! I would be all in if the representation and execution hadn't thrown me for a loop!

So, if you enjoyed this, no hate, but I encourage you to take a look at the ace-spec representation a little closer and take that into account. I'm pretty sure Alison is ace-spec, but I still felt like the representation was dealt with incredibly insensitively. I wish I loved this! And I don't take my rating lightly, but it would feel dishonest to recommend this book to other readers.

Trigger Warnings: alcohol consumption and inebriation, sex, drug use, depression and generalized anxiety disorder, ableism (in reference to ADHD), negligent parents and familial estrangement, emotionally abusive parents, biphobia and transphobia, cheating/adultery (with a side character in addition to within the context of fake dating)

I'll start off by saying that this was one of my most antcipated reads. The authors previous book, The Charm Offensive was one of my favourite books, and I am happy to report that I think I loved this one even more!

I love a book with found family and this one delivers. My heart was with Ellie the entire time she spoke to her mother and I couldnt help but root for her to stand up for herself.

Jack and Andrew's family captured my heart and the Nana's were one of my favourite side characters!

I thought this book was sweet, tender, and emotional. I wept for Ellie at the end of the book and could feel the emotion through the pages.

Pick up this book! It will capture your heart!

I adored this one--Ellie is a flawed and interesting artistic character, who has a habit of centering her experiences and painting herself as the victim. Her recollections of her past relationship the previous Christmas clash into her present fake-fiance situation over the current Christmas. Jack I don't typically enjoy a flashback-heavy book but I enjoyed the way this one worked them into Ellie's artistic outpouring. The chemistry between Ellie and Jack was *chef's kiss* fantastic and I really enjoyed reading this f-f (with bi representation!) romance over Christmas!

Kiss Her Once for Me is a cute, holiday, second-chance, WLW romance. Ellie is lamenting that her life seems to have fallen apart in the last year. She lost the job she moved cross country for, her mother is a constant negative presence, and she has been mourning a one-night-stand from last Christmas Eve. In walks a fake fiance trope, only the guy ends up being the sister of Ellie's one-night-stand last year!.

The writing is fun, engaging, and rife with great side characters. I particularly loved the family members (pot-smoking grandmas!).

I adored The Charm Offensive, Alison Cochrun's first book, but this is a sweet romance too. I recommend for those who like Delilah Green Doesn't Care and Written in the Stars. The audio book is read by Natalie Naudus, which is another factor in this book's favor!

Many thanks to @atriabooks for the #gifted copy.

YES. I know the holidays are over. I also know this review is long overdue. But the flu completely messed up my December. And with this book deserving all the praise, I figured you’d allow one last dip into the yuletide cheer.

Full of longing and completely swoon-worthy. This sapphic romance with a fake engagement and boozy grandmas was the perfect holiday read for me.

I remember watching While You Were Sleeping years ago. There was something about that movie that resonated so deeply within me. It tapped into the utter loneliness I felt as a young person, not quite independent but also not quite included in (crazy, messy) family situations. The hope and fulfillment of seeing Lucy (Sandra Bulloch) welcomed and adored absolutely filled my heart (and gave me hope).

Years removed from that situation. Years after watching that movie on repeat ad nauseum.
Somehow, completely unexpectedly, Cocrun managed to tap into that deep connection and return me to that same place… a heart full of longing yet filled to overflowing in the end.

An absolutely perfect 24 hours… full of chemistry and connection. But just like the dream job that didn’t last, that blip of love didn’t either. Now broke, Ellie agrees to spend Christmas with her new, fake fiancé and his family. The agreement that would get her out of debt was palatable, right up until Ellie realized that her fake fiancé’s sister was also the woman of her dreams from last Christmas.

Things I loved:
*The boozy grandmas
*The obligatory, scheduled festivity
*Perfect rom-com references
*The truly horrible playlists
*An ugly Christmas tree
*Adept usage of Dolly Parton lyrics

While Kiss Her Once for Me is perfectly humorous and full of yuletide cheer, Cocrun doesn’t shy away from the fact that the holidays can be quite difficult. From messy family dynamics to a fear of failure and lack of self-worth, we see Ellie’s profound inner struggle. And it’s deeply resonant. But even more fulfilling is seeing her growth. Support (even at the hands of boozy grandmas) gives her a platform through which to believe in herself and gain confidence.

And that ending! Oh my. Don’t take my word for it. Grab your own copy. You’ll thank me.

Have I gushed to you about this book yet? I swear, these holiday romances keep getting better and better as I go. Kiss Her Once For Me has been my favorite so far--and is in the running for my Top 5 books of the year. You are seriously missing out if you haven't read this one yet. It's not too late to binge wintery romances! If you're burnt out on holiday romance since I took so long to post this, PLEASE make sure you add it to your list for next year.

I started listening to this book on the way to meet some friends I hadn't seen in a while, and when I arrived a little early I sat in the car listening because I couldn't bring myself to pause it. Everything about these characters just made me smile so hard!



I usually write longer reviews, but I'm slammed with work deadlines because everyone wants their projects finished before the Christmas-to-New-Year break that everyone in my industry seems to take off. I'll hopefully be back to writing full-length reviews in the new year!

Following Cochrun's smashing debut comes Kiss Her Once for Me, a fantastic follow-up to The Charm Offensive. Quick-witted dialogue and a few fabulously steamy scenes, this book is an absolute delight.

I gave this a 5 stars, I loved this so much! I can't wait to buy this book for my collection! I loved the marriage of convince and I loved the sapphic relationship. This is totally one of my favorite books. I loved the family in this story. I felt for the main character for what she was dealing with her own mom.

Once again I ended the year with an incredible book by Alison Cochrun! One of the last books I read in 2021 was The Charm Offensive, and I closed out 2022 with Kiss Her Once for Me.

This book has such a fantastic setup: Down-on-her-luck animator Ellie Oliver agrees to pose as the wealthy Andrew Kim-Prescott's fiancée in exchange for a tidy sum of cash. But when they arrive at his family's home, Ellie is greeted by Andrew's sister Jack, the woman she fell in love with last Christmas Eve. While struggling to keep the charade going, Ellie realizes that Andrew has feelings for Jack's best friend—making it all so deliciously messy.

Cochrun writes characters who feel so deeply human to me. Ellie is complicated, hilarious, and wildly relatable as she struggles to find her place in the world while feeling as though she's barely keeping her head above water. Though this isn't inspired directly by a holiday movie, it reminded me a lot of While You Were Sleeping, particularly the way that a lonely Ellie was so openly embraced by the Kim-Prescott clan and how much she comes to love them as she falls for Jack.

Speaking of Jack–my darling pastry chef! Though this is a single-POV romance, Cochrun does a fantastic job of letting us in on Jack's thoughts and feelings to the point where I felt like I knew her just as well as I did Ellie. I loved reading along as she shared her dream of opening The Butch Oven. Plus the flashbacks to the night they met so wonderfully connected the initial spark between Ellie and Jack as it lead up to the undeniable chemistry they have once they're together again.

If you have the chance to read this, it's a real treat! I also loved Andrew and Dylan, so here's hoping this isn't the last we see of them.

Kiss Her Once for Me by Alison Cochrun is absolutely fantastic. I cannot explain how much joy this book brought and I think it's even better than her previous work. I will never stop recommending this book, especially during the holidays.