Lovelight Farms by B.K. Borison

Book Review Dec 28, 2024

My review

4/5 stars

Stella tries to save her beloved Christmas tree farm by entering an influencer competition to drive attention to the farm, but has to convince her best friend Luka to play her fake-boyfriend to keep up the pretence of a romantic destination for the competition. Problem: she's been in love with him for most of their friendship and she's treading a dangerous line.

This was a very charming, cosy Christmas read. I'd heard good things about in on Bookstagram and was not disappointed. Stella and Luka had great chemistry, and I loved the sweet confusion they both felt around their faked situation. I was rooting for them both throughout and was totally invested in their relationship.

The small mystery element to the story was well built, and didn't cross the boundaries outside of cosy, and gave the story an extra dimension, but I confess to feeling slightly disappointed with the conclusion. It wasn't screamingly obvious (to me anyway), but when it was revealed, it just seemed to dissolve into the background without any real resolution.

I also would have loved to see more of the competition element of the story. Evelyn St. James (the influencer running the competition) had a very brief appearance in the grand scheme of a story that seemed to centre around her and how important she was to the success of the farm. It made the story feel quite rushed at points, which took some of the sheen off how good the rest of it was.

In short, I really liked it, I just wanted more of a few aspects of it to make it feel more complete.

Book blurb

In an effort to save the Christmas tree farm she’s loved since she was a child, Stella enters a contest with insta-famous influencer Evelyn St. James. With the added publicity and the huge cash prize, she might just be able to save the farm from its financial woes. There’s just one problem. To make the farm seem like a romantic destination for the holidays, she lied on the application and said that she owns Lovelight Farms with her boyfriend. Only . . . there is no boyfriend.

Enter best friend Luka Peters. He just came home for some hot chocolate, and somehow got a farm and a serious relationship in the process. Will their fake love affair save Lovelight Farms in time for Christmas?