Title: Beautiful Temptation
Series: So This Is Christmas: Book Two
Author: Christina Lee
Publisher: Amazon/Kindle Unlimited
Length: 162 Pages
Category: Holiday Romance
At a Glance: Christina Lee’s Beautiful Temptation was such a lovely holiday novella. It was achingly romantic, and I absolutely loved Blair and Caden together.
Reviewed By: Jules
Blurb: Blair Anderson only thinks of Caden Bell as his best friend’s younger brother, a straight-laced jock still dating his high-school sweetheart. They are as different as night and day. Caden has always considered Blair an enigma, the way he lights up every room with his self-confidence and perfectly sculpted cheekbones. But since childhood they’ve drifted worlds apart.
Life as an international model isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, so when Blair escapes to his best friend’s beach house for some R&R, he’s shocked to discover Caden had the same idea. Apparently, he called it quits with his girlfriend and was looking for a little alone time too.
Instead of rock, paper, scissors to determine who gets to stay, they decide to share the house and keep out of each other’s way. Easier said than done. As they reconnect, Blair is captivated by Caden’s bald honesty. And Caden realizes that Blair isn’t a mystery—he’s genuine and funny and still utterly gorgeous.
Seeing Blair in a new light short-circuits Caden’s brain, and before he knows it, he’s confiding in Blair about his bi-curiosity. Blair couldn’t be more taken aback as advice turns to solace, then ignites into an intense spark neither man anticipated. Blair had done and seen it all, so what could it hurt to help Caden experience some new things?
After all, it’s only a holiday hookup.
Until it’s not.
Review: The last person Blair expects to run into when he pulls up to his best friend Christopher’s beach house to spend the holiday alone, is Christopher’s younger brother. But it turns out that Blair isn’t the only one looking for a quiet place to get away from it all and get his head together. Caden also has a lot on his mind—a recent breakup, and a revelation about his sexuality—and isn’t quite ready to face the family; so instead of meeting them in Tahoe for Christmas, he heads to Florida for some quiet self-reflection. Blair is in between modeling gigs and has some time before meeting his parents for the New Year, not to mention the nagging exhaustion he can’t seem to shake, so he figures a trip to the beach might be just what he needs to fix what ails him.
Blair and Caden have known each other since elementary school days, when Blair started spending tons of time with the Bell family. And, while they were all closer when they were younger, during high school the relationship became more strained, with Caden hanging out with the jock crowd, who loved to talk shit about out-and-proud Blair, and Blair and Christopher living to annoy and humiliate Caden. Now Blair spends most of his time traveling for modeling jobs and away from their hometown in Ohio, so he hasn’t actually seen his best friend’s kid brother in years. It’s safe to say it comes as a surprise to both of them when they quickly fall into such an easy rhythm together at the beach house and feel so comfortable that they begin to open up to one another.
Christina Lee’s Beautiful Temptation was such a lovely holiday novella. It was achingly romantic, and I absolutely loved Blair and Caden together. And, while there were of course other characters in the book—there are cameos from Blair’s friends from the first book in the series, and Caden’s family shows up toward the end—I loved how Lee really kept the focus on Blair and Cady, and their reconnection. They had the familiarity and comfort with each other that comes with a shared history, and they had fantastic chemistry, too! I found myself totally buying in to their whirlwind romance. Check this one out, guys! It’s well worth the read, and a great way to spend an evening.
You can buy Beautiful Temptation here:
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