A Risk Worth Taking 
Grade : B+

This is a special holiday treat from Jessica Joyce, the author of You, With a View. It’s a sweet and spicy story about Claire and Connor who meet at the latter's holiday office party.

Claire is getting ready to move to San Francisco and start fresh with a new job working for a woman-owned cosmetics company. She is turning over a new leaf after she and her boyfriend broke up a year ago. Her family nickname is Claireful because she is always so risk-averse. This approach hasn't really worked out for her. She has always stayed with safe jobs and a comfortable boyfriend until her brother asks her to consider what she might be missing out on. I really like the theme in the story about finding the courage to take risks and I was surprised how much depth there was in this story considering it’s only 78 pages!

Claire offers to help her friend bartend a holiday party to earn extra cash for her big move before Claire's flight out the next day. Connor admires Claire when he sees her making drinks at his holiday office party and he starts flirting with her. He is bored listening to his boss’s stories and Claire is the very bright spot in a blah evening. After the party he asks Claire to go out with him for a drink and Claire decides to take a risk and go for one night of fun. An ice storm is moving in and so they go to Connor’s place and things gets steamy. It felt a little rushed but I went with it. Claire's flight gets cancelled due to the ice storm and they spend the weekend getting to know each other.

They end up sharing their hopes and dreams with each other--it’s wonderful as they open up their hearts. Connor talks about how his dream job is to work for Theo Spencer from You, With a View at his new sustainable travel app, Where to Next? As they talk, it's clear Claire and Connor are perfect for each other. I don’t want to give away any spoilers by sharing more but it does have a warm and happy ending.

I fell for Jessica Joyce after reading, You, With a View, and I appreciate how she was able to develop characters that I cared about in this lovely novella. If you’re looking for a short little romance to spice up your holidays, this should work for you. I’m happy to have it to tide me over while I wait for her next book, The Ex Vows, which comes out next July!

Reviewed by Kayne Spooner
Grade : B+

Sensuality: Warm

Review Date : December 15, 2023

Publication Date: 11/2023

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Kayne Spooner

Kayne Spooner is a retired science teacher, dog owner, and proud grandma who lives in beautiful Colorado. While she's an avid reader of all genres, romances have always swept her off her feet. Kayne gravitates toward stories with humor, swoon-worthy love interests, and memorable furry sidekicks, although really, if there's a happy ever after, she's here for it! She loves sharing her passion for books with the romance community and connecting with fellow readers. https://www.instagram.com/kspoonerfish/.
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