Some like it cold and some may like this book. I wasn't the biggest fan of the writing but the story had me curious (and eventually I was hooked but it took me longer than usual to get to that point).

The writing got better or I just got used to it. Jasper and Arthur figuring out they feel about each other was definitely the pull that kept me turning the page as well as finding out how Grace’s Nutcracker performance goes. The author did a good job of embedding Jasper’s looming news throughout the story. The final delivery of this news wasn’t what I expected but it was well executed.

Overall a good book with good representation but something was still a bit off for me.

My thanks to NetGalley and Wednesday Books/St. Martins Publishing for the ARC of "Some Like It Cold" in exchange for an honest review.
Falling into (and for) this book was kind of like being enveloped in a long, loving warm hug...... or maybe binge watching multiple seasons of 'Gilmore Girls'.
Like the TV show, we're in a snow-globe, never-neverland sweet little picture postcard town, filled with quirky characters who practically all know each other on a first name basis. And so obviously well-named......Lake Pristine.
There's royalty of sorts......the well to do Montgomery clan, which include two completely opposite sisters.......the imperious, bossy (and now raging Bridezilla) Christine and the town's much beloved unofficial Princess, younger sister Jasper, just returned from college to attend Christine's grand New Year's Eve wedding.
But Neurodivergent Jasper's both exhausted and worried about all the secrets she's been keeping. The sweet-natured girl, forever fearful of people finding her autism odd and repellent, has always overplayed her role as a selfless people pleaser., hence her reputation. And she's no longer able to tolerate her parents' bullying her into pursuing law school, so she's secretly quit college and plans with apply to design school.
If that isn't enough for Jasper, there's renewing her contentious encounters with grumpy Arthur Lancaster, that one boy in town who doesn't seem to like her.......or does he? Just a little? Maybe more than just a little? Could it be he's bonkers for her?
Arthur and his brother run the town's main venue, the Arthouse multi-plex cinema and he and his cousin Marcus are filming a documentary on Lake Pristine at the very height of the town's winter activities - the 'Nutcracker' ballet, directed by Jasper and the wedding-frenzied Christine storming through town like a tornado.. Amidst all this chaos, Arthur and Jaster frequently find themselves thrown together in one situation after another..........and this is where 'Some Like It Cold' will have you in perpetual heartache, sighing out loud and cheering on these two hurting souls to reach their inevitable conclusion..
There's no other way to read this other than to surrender to it as it plays on your heartstrings with no mercy whatsoever until the end. It has the snap and crackle of 'Gilmore Girls' combined with the dreamy look of a small town in a Hallmark Christmas movie. If all that sounds enticing at all, then by all means treat yourself.. (True confession : this may be something I'd return to re-read just to re-visit and town and characters again.)

This book starts out like your typical small-town romance where you can practically feel the chill in the air and the inevitable family drama lurking. Jasper Montgomery is on a mission to leave Lake Pristine (which sounds like a bottled water brand) once and for all.

Things kick off with a good ol’ disaster—Jasper, in true hot mess form, somehow manages to tank her sister’s engagement. But instead of enjoying her final holiday there, she bumps into Arthur Lancaster, her high school nemesis. He’s now a brooding filmmaker—creating a documentary about the small town. Naturally, this sets the stage for the whole town to turn into a simmering pot of drama and festive chaos.

The first few chapters? A bit slow. It’s more like Some Like It Lukewarm. Jasper's sulking, Arthur's lurking, and you're wondering when things will pick up. But then BAM—the holiday movie vibes kick in, and suddenly, you're rooting for them like they’re the last couple left at the end of a snowstorm. It has all the small-town charm of Gilmore Girls, with just the right sprinkle of romance and humor to warm your soul.

There’s something deeply emotional about Jasper’s journey. The story touches on the weight of family expectations, the ache of old wounds, and the bittersweet realization that sometimes the place you’ve been running from is the only place you truly belong. Jasper’s relationship with Arthur is the perfect mix of slow-burn tension and heartfelt vulnerability. Trust me, you’ll want to savor every minute of the build-up, because when it hits, it’s like a wave of holiday magic crashing over you.

So, if you’re willing to be patient through the slow start, it’s worth every second of the ride: the emotional depth, the beautifully drawn characters, and a love story that feels as magical as the holidays themselves. It’ll leave you with that glowing, heart-warming feeling, perfect for cozying up with a hot beverage and a few happy tears.

Thank you Wednesday Books and Macmillan Audio for my advanced and audio copies. All thoughts are my own.

Every year when I see the holiday and Winter book covers start to drop, I add them to my ever growing holiday TBR. When I saw this book, I added it immediately! I’ve been reading less YA lately but I still love to dip into the genre. especially in the Fall and Winter.

I really enjoyed this book because as a teacher, i always want to find ways to better communicate with all my students. I think my favorite part about this book was that is brought up a lot of visceral feelings about what it means to be a teenager and part of a family.

Synopsis:

“After a long absence, 18-year-old Jasper is finally heading home for the holidays - and she's keeping secrets.Arthur, a budding filmmaker, is turning the town of Lake Pristine into a small town story worthy of the big screen. His plans are disrupted by the arrival of the town's golden girl - the antagonist of his school days; a girl he's never forgotten.Jasper Montgomery is back in Lake Pristine for one reason: to say goodbye. But before long small-town tensions start to rise, and a certain brooding film buff starts to look like a very big reason to stay . . .The perfect story to get lost in, Some Like it Cold centers Jasper as an autistic heroine in a big-hearted small-town romance that will melt your heart.” —NetGalley

What I Liked:

The Setting—I love a small town and was surprised that this was a small town in the UK! A small town setting always brings out the best side characters and they did not disappoint.

The Neurodivergent/Autism Representation—YA will always be a favorite genre of mine because it is finding more and more ways to fill the genre with diversity.

The Visceral Feelings It Brought Up—While I cannot relate to Jasper on every level, I could relate to her feelings about how her family sees her and her desire to chart her own course.

What Didn’t Work For Me:

I think I might be getting a bit too old, but there were some things that just didn’t feel grounded in reality for me. Still, they didn’t take me out of the story.

Character Authenticity: 4/5 Spice Rating: N/A Overall Rating: 3.75/5

Content Warnings:

ableism, bullying, toxic relationship

I absolutely adored Some Like It Cold.

The main character is autistic (like the author - gotta love an own voice story) and while the story is very much about her life and is heavily influenced by her neurodiversity, the themes of being yourself, loving yourself, and weird family dynamics are also applicable to neurotypical readers.

I love the idea that people with neurodivergence will see themselves in the book, and also that it will hopefully help young adults to understand what life is like for their friends and acquaintances with autism - as the main character says at one point: the world may like to think it’s accepting of neurodivergent people, but is it really?

The characters were wonderful, the grumpy x sunshine romance was adorable, and I absolutely raced through the book.

I will absolutely read more by Elle McNicoll and will be recommending this book for my neurotypical and neurodivergent friends and pupils alike!

For fans of Rainbow Rowell and "Gilmore Girls," this small-town romance features a delightful grumpy/sunshine dynamic—perfect for cozy winter nights.

Jasper, an autistic 18-year-old, returns home to find an old high school acquaintance transforming her small town into a scene from a Hallmark movie. In a place where secrets are scarce, the two confront their shared past and budding feelings.

This warm, romantic tale will thaw your lingering winter chill. Immerse yourself in charming small-town antics through this expertly crafted young adult story. Elle McNicoll distills the heartwarming, romantic essence of a Hallmark movie into this enchanting winter read.

This book was an absolute delight. I loved the quirky small town (real Stars Hallow vibes), the pining that made my actual heart hurt (which is almost always an automatic five stars), the grumpy MMC, the relatable neurodivergent rep, the character growth—it was all excellent, start to finish. No complaints. I wish I was still reading it

This is the first novel I’ve read with an autistic heroine, and I loved the neurodiversity representation. I think it’s so important for people to see themselves in stories and characters, and it makes my heart happy to know that autistic young women reading this can see themselves in this light. As a neurotypical reading this, I learned so much about masking, overstimulation, sensory needs and what it's like to experience the world from a different lens.

The love story was so sweet and endearing set against the backdrop of a winter wonderland in a small town. (It’s more of a wintry read than a holiday romance, just fyi!) Arthur truly sees, loves and accepts Jasper as she is - no masks required. It was really special to see, especially after how horrible Jasper’s family treats her.

On that note, I couldn’t stand her family. Mean Queen Christine of Lake Pristine (her sister) was just awful. The drama was spiteful, malicious and insufferable at so many points, which did detract from my enjoyment of the story. Coupled with some inconsistent characterization especially early on, the first half was a little challenging to get through.

However, the back half, which brought on more romance, was really something special. Jasper stands up for herself, the town rallies behind each other, characters we don’t love have some much needed growth and there’s of course, a happily ever after.

A charming YA debut with a main character you’ll love to root for!

Thank you Wednesday books for the review copy and MacMillan audio for the audiobook.

Book: A delightful and charming small town romance that weaves in deftly developed points about neurodiversity in females (reminded me of Lizzie Blake and Mazey Eddings work in general!) and welcome notes that honor classic romances books and tropes. A delightful YA that is perfect for a high school age but also for fans of the general!

Audiobook specific: perfect voice acting to bring to life the nuances of the main character's identity and self growth!

This book was just okay. I expected it to be more of a holiday book. I also expected the romance to be a bigger plot lines I felt like the terrible family and sister's wedding were the main plots

This was a super cute book. I really enjoyed the characters. The setting took me a little bit to figure out, but I think it’s in Scotland since the author is Scottish I could be wrong. It was a very sweet love story, although the family treatment of Jasper really drove me crazy. I know some reviews are upset with the resolution of the family and Jasper, but coming from a broken family myself. I understand the way those could be seen as all olive branches and accepted. I really enjoyed this. It brought me out of a little bit of a reading slump. It was super cute and fun.

*I received this book as an Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC) through NetGalley. I received this copy free in exchange for my honest review.*

3.5

I felt rather torn by this book. The romance in it is pretty cute, and the two characters involved and relatable and likable. However, almost every other character in this book is forgettable, annoying, or downright horrendous. It makes for hard reading at times.

Jasper and Arthur have this great "enemies to lovers" story, full of misunderstandings and wrong perceptions. However, I struggled with Jasper at times and her defensiveness over her sister Christine. It could be part of her autistic nature, but Christine did not deserve to be stood up for. She is an absolute monster to everyone, including Jasper. And even when Arthur just tried to bring up how Christine treats Jasper and how it's not okay, Jasper was immediately defensive of Christine and rude to Arthur. Like, your sister terrorizes you and everyone in town, including little kids. It's not okay. She may be your family, but that doesn't excuse her behavior.

Jasper's parents are almost as bad as her sister. Her mother is just as much of a terror, and her father cowers under her and goes with whatever she says. Her best friend Odette doesn't treat her as a best friend, which is supposedly explained as Jasper having been at college. This was understandable until you learn that the college Jasper went to was 30 minutes away from her hometown. Maybe this is a little more understandable in other places, but a 30 minute drive in the US is basically going down the street. I can't understand not seeing someone for 18 months when they only live 30 minutes away, but again this must be a geographical thing. The book never states exactly where the book takes places, but the writing and grammar feel like the UK. Grace and Henry, Arthur's siblings, are about the only other likable characters in the book. They feel genuine, and I enjoyed their family dynamic way more than Jasper's.

I'm also not a fan of this new trend where authors, especially female YA authors, try and tell women how we're oppressed and victims all the time. Yes, we have our struggles, but I don't need to be told I'm a victim in every little thing in life, and how I'm constantly oppressed when I live in a first world country, especially when there are women in this world who actually face real oppression. Women who can't drive or get a job or have a full education or even get auctioned as a child bride and can't leave their house without a male escort. So please, authors, quit comparing the two.

All in all, it's a pretty cute and basic YA romance that I think will appeal to the majority of people who enjoy that genre.

I liked this story, but never quite fell in love with it. I really enjoyed Jasper, and loved the neurodivergent rep, but the story just fell a little flat. It was too predictable and common. Would have loved something a bit more unique than the classic enemies to lovers, and classic mean sister and disapproving family.

3.5/5
I was absolutely drawn to this book because of its beautiful cover and the synopsis definitely had me sold with YA autistic MC and the small-town holiday romance. The book starts off pretty strong, Jasper finally returns home after 18 months away for school, just to drive herself into a ditch when she finds the town all watching her sister get engaged- like how Hallmark of a start is this? It then goes a little… sideways for me? You meet Jasper’s family, which are the standard rich and entitled people. Her sister is basically the beautiful town bully that gets away with literally everything. I found it so difficult to engage with the story, especially when there’s so many 𝐚𝐰𝐟𝐮𝐥 characters and comments. Sure, there’s a silver lining type ending but I still couldn’t get over how badly these characters treated Jasper and Grace (cute gem of a character). Jasper’s love interest in the story was cute, he defends her and attempts to make her see it’s time for her to stand up to her family and others. It’s definitely a slow burn/ miscommunication type built, which I enjoyed.

I did enjoy the novel and found it to be on point with a cute hallmark movie, but definitely could have used a little less of the toxic relationships and characters.

✵𝖬𝖺𝗇𝗒 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗇𝗄𝗌 𝗍𝗈 𝖲𝗍. 𝖬𝖺𝗋𝗍𝗂𝗇'𝗌 𝖯𝗋𝖾𝗌𝗌 ＆ 𝖭𝖾𝗍𝖦𝖺𝗅𝗅𝖾𝗒 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗀𝗂𝖿𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗆𝖾 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝖠𝖽𝗏𝖺𝗇𝖼𝖾𝖽 𝖱𝖾𝖺𝖽𝖾𝗋’𝗌 𝖢𝗈𝗉𝗒 𝗂𝗇 𝖾𝗑𝖼𝗁𝖺𝗇𝗀𝖾 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗆𝗒 𝗁𝗈𝗇𝖾𝗌𝗍 𝗋𝖾𝗏𝗂𝖾𝗐.✵

Super cheesy YA
Makes sense author originally wrote middle grade
Love the diversity but too cliched

4 stars

This is a really charming novel with a fantastic m.c. and an engaging love story.

While this book is labeled as YA, it reads much more like New Adult to me (with an 18yo m.c. and a character who has been away at university). This distinction might be more pronounced if the character were American, but some of these factors impacted the way I read this book versus how I'd typically read a more traditionally placed YA novel.

Jasper, the m.c., is so easy to root for, and I did from cover to cover. She's autistic and makes clear her parents' and sister's discomfort not only with her diagnosis but seemingly with everything about her. It's tough to read about how uncomfortable and out of place she feels not only within her own family but also in her small town, and McNicoll, who is also autistic, does an exceptional job of talking about the way Jasper uses masking and other exhausting strategies just to get by.

Though this is a love story - and the pairing is amazing - Jasper's life is not at all relegated to the romance. This made me like the novel - and Jasper - even more.

I love the representation here and found this to be an extremely enjoyable read overall.

Thank you Netgalley,. Wednesday and MacMillan audio for the #gifted alc and e-arc. My opinions are being left voluntarily. You can feel the authors screenwriter job in this book very knowledgeable. I love the cast of characters and the side stories. The cover originally drew me in glad I picked it up.

4.5/5☆

Here is another book that I really wanted to like but it fell completely flat. This book was just trying to do way too much. Too many layers and none of them done well.

We have a small town plot where everyone is "perfect" but they're actually awful. (Seriously, so awful. It was hard to get past to keep reading.) Our FMC, Jasper, is neurodivergent (and boy does the author like to keep telling us that over and over instead of showing us at all) and doesn't quite fit in.

There's a weird enemies to lovers thing that wasn't working at all plus a messy plot that didn't seem to have much point. An absolutely horrid sister (and mother) that I wanted to smack. A best friend plot that I couldn't figure out which way it was going. A FMC who wanted to be an interior designer for some reason I couldn't fathom because dance seemed to be her thing? Then on top of this coming of age plot, add in the neurodivergence and the entire thing just imploded. I'm all for representation, but I should be able to see it in the book. The author shouldn't have to repeatedly tell me who their character is. Nothing was working here.

Oh.. and everyone in the town LOVED Jasper. Every single person. I could not get over how much this town gushed over the main character. So unrealistic.

I really wanted cozy holiday and instead just wanted it to be over.

Jasper was a great character. She lives in a small town in which her family is looked up to by the entire town. Her parents have strict expectations for her and therefore decided where she will go to school and what she will major in if she expects them to pay for it. She tried to abide by their rules but realizes that her hopes and dreams for her future are more important than what they want. She comes home from school at Christmas with the intent to tell them her plans for her future. Honestly, I don’t know how Jasper lasted as long as she did. Her family is so demanding of her and she selflessly devotes so much of her time to the town, she never seems to have any time for herself. Enter Arthur, her arch nemesis. I don’t want to give anything else away, so I’ll just say that a spotlight is put on her family which causes changes to be made. I think valuable lessons were learned by a great number of people in this town, and I enjoyed watching them all grow and become better people.

A really cute YA story about an autistic girl trying to make her way in the world. Set in a small town where everyone knows everyone and their business. This book had a Hallmark movie feel to it.

Very slow in some spots but overall a great story.
Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's press for this ARC.