Faking Christmas
Kerry Winfrey, 2023
This year, I'm looking at a handful of interesting retellings of holiday classics. Whether Christmas in Connecticut is a holiday classic is debatable, but it has inspired several adaptations and remakes, including this one.
Premise: Laurel didn't mean to lie to her boss. She just really needed a job, and one misunderstanding spiraled out of control. Now she has to pretend that her sister's life is hers for one memorable Christmas.
You know what? I liked this one!
Laurel is funny and relatable. She's acknowledges that she's made bad decisions and is trying to do better, gets frustrated, wears her heart on her sleeve, and is fundamentally optimistic, despite also being hugely self-deprecating.
The best parts of Christmas in Connecticut (the banter, the humor and the fun characters) are largely intact, while the occasional sexism of the original is left behind. Laurel got her magazine website job that she's thriving in partially based on the work she was doing running social media for her twin sister Holly's goat farm. When her prospective boss thought it meant Laurel herself lived on a farm with a beautiful husband, two kids, and a number of domestic talents, she just didn't correct him. Then, with Holly's help, she started writing articles about "her" farm life. This all worked fine until she accidentally managed to invite her boss over for a family Christmas.
Holly and her husband rope in Max, said husband's best friend, to play Laurel's husband for a day, and the kids are on board with the deception. The only problem is that Laurel and Max have a long-standing dislike of each other, based on their interactions at Holly's wedding.
Happily, Max is also funny and relatable. But his humor is dark and deadpan, and he's guarded and pessimistic. But he clearly cares deeply about people and is also trying to improve himself.
I laughed out loud more than once reading this book. I enjoyed the shenanigans, misunderstandings, and eventual heartfelt moments. (This book also did a better job expressing why It's a Wonderful Life is an important and compelling story than the book I read based on that movie.)
I especially appreciated the explicitly stated idea that the warm feelings many people have about the holidays are rooted in positive memories, and without those memories, there's no such thing as innate "holiday cheer." Plus, there are different ways to enjoy the season and all can be valid. Overall, a delightful rom-com in book form.
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