Review by Booklist Review
Chelsea Flint, a struggling white artist in Malibu, needs money fast to cover the taxes on her beach bungalow. So her agent arranges a Christmas housing swap with Ramona Tucker, a Black woman working at a prestigious architecture firm. Ramona needs to be out of Chicago for the holidays before it is revealed that her fiancé is actually her ex-fiancé, to the disappointment of her wedding-planning parents. Leaving her dog in the capable hands of her play brother, Carlos, she heads to Malibu, where, on her first night there, someone calls security on her. Even the overtures of neighbor Joan don't make her feel welcome. It's not until she takes a beachside yoga class with Jay (short for Vijay) that she starts to relax. Meanwhile, in Chicago, Carlos shows Chelsea the beauty of the frozen city. Readers will fall for the holiday warmth of the Tuckers in Chicago and root for Ramona in Malibu. Allen's dual romance presents the story of two women finding their way back to themselves, with a slight subversion of the traditional HEA at the end.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Two women swap homes for the holidays in this overly dense contemporary from Allen (the Black Girls Must Die Exhausted series). Malibu artist Chelsea Flint hasn't sold a painting since her parents' deaths, and her agent/friend Helena can no longer foot her bills. Helena suggests a home exchange could help Chelsea rekindle her artistic spark. Meanwhile, in Chicago, Ramona Tucker conceals her broken engagement from her family. Skipping her mother's Christmas gathering while going on a home exchange seems like a great way to buy herself more time before breaking the news. Ramona's brother, Carlos, agrees to dog-sit for her while she's away--and ends up meeting Chelsea when he sneaks into Ramona's house looking for extra dog food. Feelings soon blossom between these two, but they don't know if they could make a relationship work given the distance and Carlos's fear of commitment. On Ramona's first night in Malibu, meanwhile, she's racially profiled by the neighbors and nearly leaves. But after meeting Jay, a yoga instructor who introduces her to surfing, she finds comfort in the ocean and considers finally moving on from her ex. The layered plot puts a sensitive focus on racial issues but has little holiday cheer to balance out the heavier moments. This is unlikely to get readers in the Christmas spirit. Agent: Lucinda Halpern, Lucinda Literary. (Oct.)
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Review by Library Journal Review
A Christmas house swap results in broadened horizons for two very different women. Ramona is an accountant in Chicago who has worked hard for a condo with a lake view and a healthy savings account but finds herself unable to face reality after her fiancé breaks up with her. To avoid telling her family, she lets her best friend book her a house swap in Malibu for the holidays. Chelsea, an artist with dwindling prospects, lives in her late parents' Malibu home but can barely afford the property taxes. Her friend and agent sets up a house swap to pay the taxes, and Chelsea sets off to Chicago to a lakefront condo. Despite their differences, Chelsea and Ramona both find that inspiration and challenges await them in their new surroundings, where they find love, adventure, and inspiration in the others' friends and neighbors. VERDICT Allen's (Black Girls Must Have It All) writing explores the psychological impacts of racism and grief and celebrates new love and personal revelations in this Christmas romance that will also appeal to fans of relationship fiction.--Sierra Wilson
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