One Snowy Night (Heartbreaker Bay #2.5)
by Jill Shalvis
Publication Date: November 8, 2016
Source: Library E-Book

New York Times bestselling author Jill Shalvis returns to Heartbreaker Bay with a fun and festive holiday novella!

It’s Christmas Eve and Rory Andrews is desperate to get home to the family she hasn’t seen in years. Problem is, her only ride to Lake Tahoe comes in the form of the annoyingly handsome Max Stranton, and his big, goofy, lovable dog Carl.

Hours stuck in a truck with the dead sexy Max sounds like a fate worse than death (not), but Rory’s out of options. She’s had a crush on Max since high school and she knows he’s attracted to her, too. But they have history… and Max is the only one who knows why it went south.

They’ve done a good job of ignoring their chemistry so far, but a long road trip in a massive blizzard might be just what they need to face their past… and one steamy, snowy night is all it takes to bring Max and Rory together at last.

(A standalone Heartbreaker Bay novella)

We are back in the world of The Heartbreaker Bay series, taking a look at another lovable pair who find their happily-ever-after. Plus, it takes place on Christmas Eve so this story is even more romantic; at least in my eyes since Christmas time is my favorite time of the year.

Rory Andrews is the snarky, strong-minded employee of Willa, whose story takes place in The Problem with Mistletoe and who owns the South Bark Mutt Shop located in the courtyard of the Pacific Pier Building. Rory has not had the easiest life and after a horrible high school experience, she decides to drop out, leave town after her junior year, and go to San Francisco to start her life over. Now, at 23, Rory has her GED and has been working for Willa, who took her under her wing, for the last three years at her pet shop. Rory has made something of her life but she still feels regrets towards how she has left things with her family back in Lake Tahoe. Rory wants to make amends with them since she left home and never looked back at 17, so she promises that this time she will be home for Christmas. Rory just has a few problems; one, she does not have a ride up to Lake Tahoe and two, she is not particularly in the holiday spirit.

Rory’s attitude towards this whole trip home takes another plunge when she finds out who has offered to drive her up to Lake Tahoe (with a little encouragement from Willa, of course). Enter Max Stranton, who is part of Archer Hunt’s investigation team and who also has a history with Rory. Max and Rory actually went to high school together. Add to that, Rory had a crush on Max but that time of her life wasn’t the greatest so you can only imagine how things unfolded. Fast forward to now, and the two have been essentially dancing around each other with Rory trying very hard to ignore the attraction that is quite obviously between them. Add in a long car ride on the night of Christmas Eve with an impending snowstorm and you know this is going to be very interesting.

“Fate or Karma or whatever was in charge of such things was a cruel master, having her first crush of all people, the one guy on the entire planet who made her feel like that young, neglected, bullied, unwanted teen all over again, be the only smart ride home tonight.”

I have read this entire series completely out of order, which is totally fine, so I actually read The Trouble with Mistletoe before this. Now that might make no sense since this novella comes after that book which would mean that I am in fact reading it in order but my introduction to this series was the third book, Accidentally on Purpose, so I have been out of order in some aspect. Anyway, I got a glimpse of Rory and Max in The Trouble with Mistletoe and I was intrigued by their very first interaction with another that I couldn’t wait to get my hands on their story.

I was not disappointed in the least. With Rory trying to keep her distance, throwing her snark at Max whenever she got the chance and Max giving it right back while trying to figure out why Rory has such a problem with him, I was highly entertained. Add in the palpable attraction between the two of them and this novella just flew by. While the bickering was so much fun to read and definitely kept the novella light and fun,  there were also some more emotional moments. You learn more about Rory and Max’s history when they were in high school along with the struggles Rory faced when she first got to San Francisco that lead her to Willa and the life she has now. The balance of these two elements is what allowed me to really get invested into Max and Rory’s story even though this is only a novella.

One Snowy Day has only made my love for this series that much stronger. It was a perfect addition to the series and gave me all the feels especially with it taking place on Christmas Eve/Christmas Day. I honestly can’t get enough!

Go read this series!!