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I received The Christmas Yes List compliments of BookSparks in exchange for my honest review.
The Christmas Yes List is a clean, cozy Christmas read. This story is about Chloe Hollis who tires of her people pleasing ways, and seeks to receive ten rejections from strangers by Christmas to overcome them.
The story drew me in, but I found it a bit slow at times. Much of the book features Chloe’s inner dialogue, and I would’ve loved less of that and more time spent on the main characters building their relationship. I like fiction to be believable, and felt it a bit unbelievable that the main characters would develop a relationship so soon after hardly knowing each other. There’s a point in the story where Chloe assumes things about the male main character, James, and rather than having a conversation with him, she lets her assumptions drive her to some pretty wild actions. In trying to get James to reject her, she’s pretty selfish and rude. For a while, James doesn’t get upset with Chloe or ask questions about some of her demands, which felt very unrealistic.
In seeking to receive the rejections, she does some pretty ridiculous things. I think they are included in the book to be humorous, but it was another element that seemed a little odd, as most people wouldn’t go that far for the rejections. Her actions also cost the people she was using for rejections, and for me, that made it hard to respect Chloe as a character.
What I appreciate about The Christmas Yes List, is Chloe acknowledging her people pleasing tendencies and working toward change. That aspect of her character made her so relatable. I also loved that she values community and has a strong, supportive one. While this book wasn’t my favorite Melissa Ferguson book (Meet Me in the Margins is) it’s a festive read that is a good option if you’re looking for something lighthearted.
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