A Carol for Karol by Ann Roberts

If the holidays are your thing, this book is for you. When we meet Karol, she’s retiring from her big lawyer job in New York and moving to Boca Raton with her friend and former paralegal Stella. On the way, they have to stop in Tucson, Arizona, in order to sell the house Karol inherited three years ago, after her grandmother died of covid. A grandmother Karol loved, who played an immense role in her childhood but whom she didn’t see for many many years after her father moved the family back to the East Coast. Nana Hope wasn’t important only to Karol, as she finds out when she and Stella get to JOY (yes, all caps), the neighbourhood where the house is located. As you might have inferred from the name, the area is entirely devoted to bringing joy to everyone and especially in December, around all the holidays. At the helm of the festival is CJ, the first girl Karol ever kissed, forty-five years ago.

This book feels like a whirlwind of sugar, Christmas carols, and emotions (including instalust/instalove), and should be kept far away from any Grinch. To be honest, it might also be a bit much for regular people. It’s fun, though, packed with colourful characters and good intentions. And if you end up rolling your eyes here and there, you’ll probably be smiling two sentences later. 3.5⭐️