Reviewed by Ro
TITLE: Ginger Snapped
AUTHOR: Sarah Honey
PUBLISHER: Self Published
LENGTH: 114 pages
RELEASE DATE: November 14, 2025
BLURB:
Cameron Parker has held the title of Gingerbread King for four years running. Sugar Hollow’s annual Christmas Gingerbread House Competition is the one time of year introverted Cameron comes out of his shell, reveling in the opportunity to show off his spectacular baking and decorating skills. But this year there’s a new face in town, and not only is he coming for Cameron’s crown, he’s doing it with a flirty wink and a smile. But if Finn Kelly thinks his red hair, good looks and charm will win Cameron over, he can think again.
Finn Kelly moved to Sugar Hollow for a fresh start. When he hears about the local gingerbread house competition, he enters as a way to make friends— and maybe to catch the attention of shy local, Cameron Parker. But Finn’s attempts at flirting fall flat, and it becomes clear that Cameron sees Finn as a rival, not a potential date.
When an accident leads to Finn staying with Cameron at his cabin and a snowstorm traps them there, Cameron has to rethink his initial impression of Finn. Is it possible that there’s more to this cute, cocky city boy than meets the eye?
Ginger Snapped is a fun, low-angst Christmas novella that features rivals to lovers and only one bed, and where the gingerbread’s not the only thing that’s sweet and spicy.
REVIEW:
One of my favorite things about this book is that Cameron, the Gingerbread King of four years standing, has a cat named Asshole. The name fits well. Cameron is socially awkward, introverted, and carries some baggage from his cheating last boyfriend. He bakes very well, and apparently Asshole feels the need to contribute to that by knocking the bag of flour on the floor, breaking dishes, and putting cat butt on fondant, making it garbage. I laughed because I could picture my mom’s old cat doing the same thing.
Cam is making a fondant run (after said cat butt issue), only to have the last containers of fondant taken by some cute new guy. That’s Finn, who works at the sawmill after escaping a toxic job at a bakery. He came to Sugar Hollow to start over. Of course, he ends up ramming Cam with a cart, stealing all the fondant, and laughing at him. At least, that’s what Cam thinks. Cam doesn’t have a good social cue system. “See, this is why I kept to myself. I had all the social skills of a potato – less, probably, because potatoes were universally loved.” I felt for Cam because yes, he’s awkward, but he’s also sweet and funny. For his part, Finn comes off as a jerk, especially in the beginning. He takes all the fondant, which he doesn’t need, and breezes off. “Maybe they’ll get more in.” Yikes. Luckily, Finn knows he was a jerk. “What the hell is wrong with me?” He got excited because for the first time in ages, he wanted to bake, and he just went with it. Whoops.
The two meet a few times accidentally, and it never really goes well. Awkward comments, abuse by cart (and car), misunderstandings. I did laugh when Finn asks, “What’s your cat’s name? “Asshole” and Finn is appalled. What do you expect, with a cat named Asshole? They are going head to head for the gingerbread contest, which Finn didn’t think was a big deal but to the town it definitely is.
I kept feeling so badly for Cam. I didn’t know which I hated more-the idea that he was making fun of me or that I might actually be too socially inept to see it.” I was also a little pissed at the townspeople, who jumped right into thinking the worst of Cam, even though they’ve known him forever.
This started out so strong for me, and the baking aspect was right up my alley. But the whole gingerbread contest got sort of lost. For someone who won four times in a row, Cam had a terrible entry and didn’t seem to care. Once they start having sex, I felt like that was the focus instead of everything else. So while I loved the first half, the second half wasn’t as strong for me. Definitely a cute holiday story
RATING: 
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