Flopping in a winter wonderland

Two teen boys who don't believe in romance experience the magic of Christmas and fall in love. Aaron Merry is on his way to Winter Wonderland, an Alaskan island town where Christmas is year-round, in the hopes that 12 days of Christmas cheer will cure his brother's heartbreak--until the cause of said heartbreak shows up as well. Kris Bright has spent all 18 years on the island, manufacturing cheer and angling to win his class' Race, a competition to get a visitor to confess their love, so he can bring his uncle back to Winter Wonderland. The two boys literally collide and forge a harebrained scheme to keep Aaron's brother away from his ex. As they coordinate shenanigans and sow chaos, their own guarded hearts start to melt for each other. Full of big feelings, quirky characters, and the perfect amount of warm fuzzies, June's latest queer YA rom-com is sure to thaw even the coldest of hearts and will leave readers craving more romance in life and fiction.

Winter heats up quickly when two gay teens find themselves falling in love. Aaron Merry is a SoCal native whose mom's sudden abandonment of the family left him cynical about love. When his Christmas-obsessed older brother, Casey, suffers a brutal breakup with his longtime girlfriend, Aaron agrees to accompany him on a last-minute, 12-day trip to Winter Wonderland, an island off Alaska with a year-round Christmas theme. Meanwhile, Kris Bright has lived in Winter Wonderland his entire life. His beloved uncle left the island when the theme park refused to feature an openly gay Santa. Now Kris is determined to win the Race, his friend group's annual competition: Whoever can make a tourist profess their love first gets to accompany Anjelica, daughter of Wonderland's founder, on her annual trip to the family's Manhattan penthouse. If he can just speak to Anjelica's dad in person, Kris is sure he can persuade him to bring Uncle Toby back. When Aaron's and Kris' paths literally collide, sparks fly. As they team up to sabotage Casey's plans to win back his ex, they start falling hard for each other. But can a relationship that began as a game survive? June's characters, both major and minor, have distinct voices and backstories, and they're easy to root for. The hijinks throughout add hilarity to the central love story, and the beautifully depicted setting immerses readers in Christmas cheer. Main characters present white. Steamier than a cup of hot cocoa--and just as sweet. (map)(Romance. 14-18) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.