Reviewed by Sadonna
TITLE: Frosted Berries
SERIES: Elves After Dark
AUTHOR: Emily Alter
PUBLISHER: Self-published
LENGTH:
RELEASE DATE: November 20, 2020
BLURB:
Santa’s real and so are elves.
Ready to see what happens when love finds them?
Come and find out with Elves After Dark!
Sloan has always been conflicted, wanting to hate Christmas, but not being fully able to, his cheerful disposition winning the battle most of the time.
He does hate the people involved in it, though (cough, cough, Nicholas), but he’s been doing all right keeping his distance.
What happens when he can’t run anymore, though?
He has people to fight for –a man, and a baby (the cutest one)– but… he’s just an elf. Right?
REVIEW:
Sloan is an elf working at Macy’s 😉 But it’s not the Will Ferrell version. He is drawn to children and babies and he’s also drawn to Ray, a single dad with the most adorable baby named Tulip 😀 Ray is a nervous single first time dad and Sloan just wants to help. He flirts a little with Ray and is surprised when Ray asks him out. He doesn’t really date much.
Sloan also isn’t too thrilled about Christmas or his job or his boss Nicholas. For reasons. But he’s trying to make the best of things and Ray is for sure the best thing that’s come along in a while. They have some fun dates and although Ray is kind of curious about some of Sloan’s idiosyncrasies, he has not felt this connected to anyone in forever. And bonus: Sloan adores Tulip and the feeling is mutual.
Things are going along really really well. Until Sloan is recalled to the North Pole. Ray can’t understand why Sloan has ghosted him. Sloan is absolutely miserable. He’s also really really angry with Nicholas. He’s hurt Ray and Tulip and he can’t take it. But maybe there is a way for him to fix things 🙂
This was a cute story. While some of the dialogue felt a little forced, I enjoyed Sloan and Ray’s romance. Sloan is sweet and funny and cute. Ray is coming out of that new parent fog where he’s just figuring out a schedule as a single dad that gives him the maximum amount of time with his new baby. They just seem to fit and they really enjoy each other’s company. Ray is amused by Sloan and Sloan is a bit in awe of Ray. The conflict with Sloan’s being an elf was set up well. We discover why Sloan hates Christmas and why he just really wants to be left alone to do his job. This is a bit of a darker take on Santa and the NP however. I would have liked to get more info on that, but maybe we’ll get another story about these two 🙂 While there are a few loose ends that I would have like tied up, this is a good bet for anyone looking for a sweet holiday romance where an elf finds love.
RATING: 
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