My True Love Gave To Me by Various

My True Love Gave To Me by Various

Release Date - October 14, 2014

Publisher Website - St. Martin's Press/Raincoast
Publisher Social Media - Twitter
Pages - 320 pages
My Rating - 4/5
**received in exchange for an honest review**

Here is the Goodreads synopsis

If you love holiday stories, holiday movies, made-for-TV-holiday specials, holiday episodes of your favorite sitcoms and, especially, if you love holiday anthologies, you’re going to fall in love with MY TRUE LOVE GAVE TO ME: TWELVE HOLIDAY STORIES by twelve bestselling young adult writers, edited by international bestselling author Stephanie Perkins.

Christmas is my favourite time of year. The months of October through to December are my favourite. The anticipation of the holidays. Getting to see family and friends. The hustle and bustle. There always something a little magical about the first snowfall, too. It makes it seem like anything is possible. This feeling is capture in the form of 12 short stories to create a delectable holiday treat.

Like most collection of short stories, this one is a bit of a mixed bag. There were some I love to pieces, some that weren't for me, and others that I liked well enough. What this collection does really well is offer up variety. It's diverse, and as a result, there will be something for everyone.

I am not going to review each story individually, but I want to talk about a few that really stood out to me.

Midnights by Rainbow Rowell

A story that revolves around see a friendship throughout the years on midnight on New Years Eve. The tension of the 'will they, won't they' friendship combined with the heartbreak as each midnight passes by only makes this story stand out more. The characterization is amazing for short story, and Rainbow Rowell's ability to make you feel something for them in such a short amount of time is staggering. I could easily read an entire novel of Noel and Mags and their adorableness. This one floored me and was a strong way to start out the collection.

Polaris Is Where You'll Find Me by Jenny Han

Super cute and unique. Elves can be sexy, who knew?! I was enjoy things and starting to totally fall for Natalie and Flynn's connection when THE STORY JUST ENDS. This is one that I think could be a full length novel because it felt like a sample. It read like a teaser that gets released to create buzz for a book. It didn't have a definitive ending but it was fun while it lasted.

It's A Christmas Miracle, Charlie Brown by Stephanie Perkins

The Charlie Brown Christmas special is my second favourite Christmas cartoon (after Rudolph) and this incredibly sweet story takes quite a bit of inspiration from that heartwarming tale. It's a story that shows there can be beauty in the most unexpected places, and that a little TLC can go along way. The romance was cute without being too much and was filled with those little moments Stephanie Perkins is known for.

What The Hell Have You Done, Sophie Roth? by Gayle Forman

Gayle Forman has a talent for creating stories where it seems like the characters are fated to meet. From the moment a Ned Flanders references causes Russell and Sophie's paths to cross, it feels meant to be. They have an ease and connection that is immediate. A story of perception, it shows that judging someone by what you see may not be giving you the whole picture, and that sometimes finding someone you can be yourself with is the best part of the holidays.

Welcome to Christmas, CA by Kiersten White

Here is where I admit that this one took me by surprise. It light and fluffy and filled with yummy sounding food. It's exactly what you want out of a feel good holiday special complete with sigh inducing romance. It was a fun, all around happy making read that left me with a craving for cookies.

There is a mixture of holidays included so it's a perfect read for anything you might be celebrating. It's a strong batch of short stories that I think will go nicely with the upcoming holiday season.

A novel that is cozy warm blankets, perfect hot chocolate, and softly falling snow all wrapped up in a delightfully diverse package. If you're the type that curls up to watch holiday specials you will not want to miss this collection. It truly does have something for everyone, and will put you in the holiday spirit.