Reviewed by Sadonna
TITLE: American Christmas
SERIES: Dreamers
AUTHOR: Adriana Herrera
PUBLISHER: Carina Press
LENGTH: 92 pages
RELEASE DATE: November 2, 2020
BLURB:
Denpo Myint “Yin” Thuta is living the dream. His dream. A good job, higher education, supportive community and, best of all, his live-in boyfriend, Ari. Yin has his happily-ever-after…if only he and Ari could take the time to actually enjoy it. With the holidays fast approaching, Yin’s determined to change all that and surprise Ari with an over-the-top gift that will leave him in no doubt how much he’s loved—even though they agreed to keep things simple this year.
Like Yin, Aristide “Ari” Douniama worked so hard to secure his future that he may have forgotten how to enjoy his present. Despite there being plenty to be thankful for in the moment. With big plans of his own in the works to surprise Yin, Ari may or may not have gone overboard. Or forgotten to check their respective schedules.
’Tis the season of giving, and in their quest to celebrate the “perfect” American Christmas—and failing—Ari and Yin get a much-needed reminder that they already have the greatest gift of all: each other.
REVIEW:
Air and Yin are secondary characters in the Dreamers series who are now getting their own lovely story. We have seen their relationship build through the previous books of this series – particularly in the first and the third books. They have gone from friends to lovers and are well on their way to forging their journeys together in the world. They are both immigrants who have been through some difficult and trying times. But they have built a found family of friends – many other from other immigrant communities as well. It is their first Christmas together as a couple and as they look forward to moving on with their lives – getting into the graduate schools of their dreams and moving away from their bubble in Ithaca, things have taken on a larger than life status. And although they have agreed to a rather modest gift budget, neither of them is sticking to it. And of course you know this can just go all kinds of wrong 😉
They are both anxious about the gifts and come Christmas morning, things don’t go to plan. In their zeal to make the holiday perfect for the other, they have missed the signals and communication that might have helped them avoid the crossed wires and the FUBAR situation they find themselves in. But luckily their support team comes to the rescue and much to the guys chagrin, things get “fixed” as much as they can be. <3 The bottom line is that love is the most important thing.
I really enjoyed this lovely little novella. It’s based on a beloved O Henry holiday story and it’s done beautifully. The best part of the story for me was the acceptance from Yin and Ari that they can have help in achieving their dreams and in making things nice for the other. They have done so much on their own and they have faced a lot of dismissive and unwelcoming attitudes. But beyond that, there are those who are happy to help and are so proud of them for all they have achieved and how hard they are working to make their dreams come true. It’s so sweet and so lovely to see this whole community come together for these young men. Just a sweet feel-good Christmas miracle that will leave you with a smile 😀 Recommended – as is this whole series.
RATING: 
BUY LINKS:
Carina