...Blogmas

 

Day 11

Welcome to Blogmas! Every day from December first til Christmas Eve I will post one Christmas related post, giving you gift ideas, tips, recipes, etc. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

 

 

Review

Decked with Holly

by Marni Bates

First sentences:

I looked like a skank.

Summary:
Taking a Christmas cruise with her two cousins from hell isn't Holly's idea of a good time. And when seasickness forces her into an open suite, she's pepper-sprayed by a gorgeous guy called Nick. But when Holly makes her exit, she's greeted by a horde of screaming teenage fans. Because Nick happens to be Dominic Wyatt, drummer for one of the hottest bands in America. Suddenly rumours are swirling and Holly's face is plastered all over the Internet. The band can't risk a scandal destroying their family-friendly image, so Dominic convinces Holly to be his fake girlfriend - just for two weeks. How bad could it be to be "fauxmantically" involved with a cute rock star? She's about to find out...

source: Goodreads

My opinion:

Decked with Holly is an un-christmassy Christmas story with a really nice storyline and some great characters.

Holly, who lives with the grandpa after her parents died when she was young, is not a huge fan of family time. She dearly loves her grandpa but her aunt's family is totally annoying. But for her grandpa's birthday cruise she has to try to be nice and is forced to spend a whole week with her aunt and two horrible cousins who are the devil in person (in my opinion). 

I always imagined them like the two step-sisters of Cinderella in the Disney movie, forcing her to do stuff for them, sending her out of their shared room on the cruise ship and blackmailing her with some unfortunate pictures involving Holly, Santa and a really short elf costume.

Nick, who's a musician of a famous band, is on the ship too because he decided he needed a break over the holidays to relax, refocus and try to get his grove back. Unfortunately Holly and Dominic are caught by photographers together and the story of their “relationship” goes wild on the internet. Now Dominic needs Holly to pretend to be his girlfriend.

I really liked Holly even though I really felt the need to yell at her at the beginning of the book because she's in desperate need of some backbone and needs to stand up to her cousins who clearly treat her like dirt. I also understand that her grandpa wants to have a room on his own but I found it really annoying that he never defends Holly against her aunt's attacks that happen right in front of him at the dinner table. Holly is always thinking about him, his needs, feelings and is so scared that he might die soon and he is practically non-existent on this trip. He never asks her how she's doing, shows no interest in her days or helps her when she is attacked by her won family. Also Holly's aunt is one of the most horrible characters I ever read about in a YA novel. She reminded me of Cinderella's step-mother in the way she treated her niece. Instead of trying to have a nice family holiday and celebrating grandpa's birthday she always criticizes Holly and praises her horrible daughters.

I really liked Marni Bates' writing and I also enjoyed watching Holly getting stronger and more comfortable to be herself and stick up for herself against her family. The story is an entraining read set on a cruise ship around Christmas but if you want to read it during summer you will feel the story too because tropical beaches appear in it too.

I haven't read Marni Bates' first novel Awkward but I will do so soon. If it is as enjoyable as Decked with Holly I am sure I will like it.

For more information about Marni Bates visit her Homepage and her Facebook and Twitter page.

13 Days Till Christmas Eve