the issue with appealing to what romance readers know (second chances, only one bed, grand gestures, etc.) is that we will judge how well the trope actually works in the context of the story. i liked the meta quality of being in two writers' heads, but i didn't feel like i got to know them that deeply. the whole time, the story builds to why nick left jess (the new girl joke was also made here), but it's just miscommunication and it's not even the good kind; this kind could've been resolved with a talk and didn't feel insurmountable. however, ballard always manages to build up the emotion so that is not lost here. i just wanted more depth, but this is a great christmas read.