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I had been prepared for Leonie Mack’s debut romance My Christmas Number One to be a ‘Hallmark-esque’ holiday romance complete with Christmas tree-lighting, cookie-baking, and enough snow to cool me down during California’s heatwave. Surprisingly, the fresh plot is largely unpredictable and largely set in tropical locations. I quickly realized that this poignant, interracial love story between a Colombian superstar and a British amputee pop singer was the slow-burn romance that I did not know I WANTED.
British pop music sensation Cara Poignton works hard to advance her rising career while keeping the personal trauma of her leg prosthesis a secret. With an upcoming album and tour in the works, Cara can hardly refuse her music label when they ask her to record a Latin Christmas single with Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Javi Félix. The shy, fiercely private Cara has many reservations, but she is most worried about singing a song that will remind her of a tragic Christmas when she was eighteen.
Despite her personal concerns and the two singers’ clashing personalities, Cara and Javi collaborate long-distance on Nostalgia, a Spanish-English love song that speaks of forgiveness and hope at Christmas time. When they meet in London for the first time to shoot a music video, their powerful mutual attraction takes them by surprise. (In fact, the simmering sexual tension between them could be cut with a C-sharp.) Shortly afterward, Cara and Javi embark on a three-week, pre-Christmas promotional tour that spans Miami, Mexico, and Colombia with a detour to Javi’s hometown on Colombia’s Caribbean coast. Afraid to explore their growing feelings for each other, the duet singers try their hardest to resist each other. As they regularly perform Nostalgia and spend time together, their souls connect, making it impossible to distance their fragile hearts.
In this enemies-to-lovers romance, the ‘opposites attract’ protagonists beautifully complement each other. Cara is uptight and cynical; Javi is carefree and upbeat. Responsibility anchors her; it unmoors him. She sings British pop ballads and eschews sexy dance moves; he sings Caribbean raggaetón and moves provocatively on the dance floor. Even though their approaches to life differ, they are similarly strong-willed, deeply loving individuals who are united by the pain they hold inside. Their simpatico understanding inspires a true love that is compelling to see unfold on the page.
Javi’s ‘too smart-for-her age’ pre-teen daughter, Bea, and Cara’s over-protective and casually racist father, Gordon, are cleverly crafted secondary characters that serve as perfect antagonists to the lovers. Bea and Gordon create conflict and obstacles (at times, entertaining) that challenge Cara and Javi to face the insecurities and fears that prevent them from claiming the life and love they deserve.
Leonie Mack not only possesses a talent for writing well-developed characters, but her storytelling prowess is notable. First off, Javi’s tender response to Cara’s physical disability is written with incredible sensitivity. English and Colombian Christmas traditions and Latin culture, music, and food are described in vivid detail. Concerts and dance scenes are orchestrated with such precision that I felt as if I were sharing physical space with Cara and Javi. And, Mack creates a show-stopping grand gesture that is EVERYTHING – a sweet, touching, unforgettable ‘aww…’ moment.
Leonie Mack’s shining debut, My Christmas Number One, brilliantly portrays lovers who learn to embrace intimacy as an extension of, not as an impediment to, their emotional self-preservation. Readers who enjoy heartfelt love stories, diverse characters, and Christmassy, music-themed romances will find this novel particularly satisfying. I look forward to reading more by this promising new author.
Buy it at: Amazon or Audible
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Grade: A
Book Type: Contemporary Romance
Sensuality: Subtle
Review Date: 12/09/20
Publication Date: 09/2020
Recent Comments …
Yep
This sounds delightful! I’m grabbing it, thanks
excellent book: interesting, funny dialogs, deep understanding of each character, interesting secondary characters, and also sexy.
I don’t think anyone expects you to post UK prices – it’s just a shame that such a great sale…
I’m sorry about that. We don’t have any way to post British prices as an American based site.
I have several of her books on my TBR and after reading this am moving them up the pile.
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Somehow I missed that there was a preteen girl in the mix when I read the review. I loathe bratty kids in books. As soon as she appeared on the page all the joy got sucked out of the book. I was really intrigued with the book until then. I’ve read several scenes with her in it now and I’m not sure I’ll continue.
I loved the book—it’s one of my favorite reads of 2020–and I generally don’t like “plot muppets”, but I thought the tween daughter was presented in a way that showed her ambivalence about staying for any length of time with her father (with whom she has a rather distant relationship), his family, and the woman she perceives as his “latest girlfriend.” I’ll grant that occasionally she seemed wise beyond her years, but those flashes of mature insight didn’t bother me. However, she is, along with the heroine’s father, a major secondary character in the book, so if you don’t like the character of the daughter, be aware that she’s going to be popping up throughout the book.
I think the book is very unique and interesting, and the author does a good job with Cara’s disabilities. It didn’t grab me in an I-can’t-put-it-down way, but I was enjoying the originality of the story. I guess I’m disappointed that the author decided to use family as a conflict device. It’s so common.
The very first scene she’s in, Bea is rude and spiteful towards Cara, a person she’s never met. It’s her behavior towards Cara that I find so off-putting, not her occasional insights into her Mom and Dad. I would be irritated even if the character were an adult, but the power imbalance of a child/adult situation makes it more frustrating for me. Cara allowed Bea to keep cutting her off, but was able to defend herself to Bea’s mom. The author does a good job showing the Cara’s reticence to snap at a child, no matter how rude she’s being. I feel disappointed the author chose this route. Using a child to deliver the conflict feels too easy and predictable. Cara’s dad is equally predictable, at least at the point of the book I’m in.
I’m not a fan of manipulative friends and family plot devices and that’s just my comfort zone. I know it’s a very common and obviously popular trope.
This was great! LOVED it.
Excellent!
Slapping this onto my TBR pile.
Happy Reading, Lisa!
Lovely book!
fresh all around, Latin America convincing, story flows so well – utterly enjoyable, convincing love story. Hero’s journey as well done as heroine’s, their development really shines beautifully, they both grow up while growing to love each other and themselves.
Agree. I read this yesterday and really enjoyed it.
Excellent!
YES! So glad you agree.
I’m not usually a big “Christmas romance” fan, but, based on your review, I looked for the book on Amazon and it’s on Kindle Unlimited. Yay! So I downloaded it immediately. Looking forward to reading it.
Awesome!! I hope that you enjoy it as much as I did.
I loved it! It’s one of my favorite books of 2020.
The way things are going with Covid-19, Christmas-set books may be one of the few ways to celebrate the holidays this year. I may dig out my secret supply of Christmas anthologies and dust them off in preparation. This story sounds lovely, Liz.
Thanks, Elaine! This novel will definitely transport you to a much less troubling reality.