Reviewed by Anna Lynn
TITLE: Hometown Christmas
AUTHOR: Garrett Leigh
PUBLISHER: Fox Love Press
RELEASE DATE: November 21, 2019
LENGTH: 165 pages
BLURB:
Yani Nicolaou is sworn off love for good. After fleeing a bad break-up in London, the only blood, sweat, and tears he has left are for his gyro stall at the Christmas market. Rebound fling? No thanks. He’s sticking to one-night-stands.
Ex-army vet Gavin Richie has even less capacity for romance. Managing a homeless shelter while recovering from injury keeps him far too busy. So what if he’s often alone? He’s content being single, or so he thinks until a chance meeting lights a spark he can’t ignore.
Yani is the warmth and affection Gavin hadn’t known he was missing. As Christmas lights up the city, their lives entwine in more ways than one. Falling for each other is easy. Holding on is harder, unless a hometown Christmas proves their love can last longer than the festive season.
REVIEW:
Yani decided to go for his dream of owning his own business. Admittedly it is not much by anybody else’s standards, but for him, it’s his world. The business, though, comes with some issues. He is bone tired at the end of every day. Sometimes his mind tells him to just quit, but his resolve and determination just wouldn’t let it happen! Having OCD makes his mind work more because that is just who he is!
Gavin is ex-British military and trying to do something good and worthwhile so he has worked at a shelter house ever since he left the army. Since the day he met the gorgeous guy at the coffee shop, he hasn’t stop thinking about him. Fancy seeing him again at the shelter as their Chef for the night.
What started as a no-strings attached hook-up becomes more. Gavin has had his share of medical issues/nightmare in the army having had a really bad accident during his stint. He also visited a psychiatrist post-operation. Every day is a struggle within himself. He is still trying to grasp being alone, without his brothers in the force beside him.
There is a discussion of trauma that happened in the past which I think made these characters more relatable. Each of us had gone through challenges and trials in our lives and we have come up with our very own coping mechanism to get through our daily lives. What the characters are doing can just be what you and I are doing too. Ultimately what I am saying is that it is really up to us individually as to how we react to the different trials we encounter in our lives. Most of us would develop a stronger backbone and learn to navigate. Sometimes, some of us crumble under the pressure. We each have our crosses to bear! More importantly, we do the best we can with the resources that we have.
Meeting someone who can make what you are going through more bearable will always be worth the risk. These two men had their individual struggles on a daily basis but being with each other has shown them that having someone by your side make things easier to navigate and handle. We just need to find the courage to go for it.
The story itself is a surprisingly easy to read as I followed Yani and Gavin’s encounters and their thoughts. I don’t know if you also feel this but there are some stories that are hard to read. Maybe because of the storyline or just the way the author wrote it but this tale, even though a past trauma was mentioned is easy to follow and understand. I love the flow of thoughts that are written into it, how it blends even though at times what the characters are thinking is too painful. And the characters are quite positive in their own way, especially Gavin who feels more pain. It is ultimately a feel-good story, it makes you believe that although things might be difficult at times but there is something good coming, you just have to be patient!
RATING: 
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