2 Hanukkah Romance Audiobook Reviews

Lit for Him: Snowed In and Falling Hard by Lainey Davis

Narrated by Carly Robins & William Demeritt

Oh how I wish this were a full-length romance. I really loved Lit for Him by Lainey Davis, and I think it’s the perfect book to introduce Hanukkah to her current non-Jewish readers, while also appealing to Jewish readers like me who are always on the hunt for the rare Hanukkah romance.

This was my first time reading Lainey Davis, so I didn’t know any of the backstory going in. I don’t think it was necessary, but I imagine fans of her series would especially love Lit for Him. Brian Klein has apparently been a side character in two of her series as the sports agent for the Stag family. He lives out of a suitcase, making deals nonstop, with no time for anything meaningful in his personal life.

When he stops into a bookstore to buy his mom a Hanukkah gift on his way out of town, a snowstorm hits and his electric rental car dies. Luckily, Noa, the beautiful young bookstore owner, is closing up for the night and getting ready to light the Hanukkah candles. She invites him in, and the chemistry is instant, despite the age gap. He’s 45, and she’s 32.

Lit for Him was quick, and I wanted more. I loved it exactly as it was, but it was so good it deserved to be longer. I especially loved Brian’s relationship with his mother and sister, as well as his connection to the Stag family. I also loved Noa’s family. It was refreshing to see healthy family dynamics when so many books lean heavily into parental trauma.

Carly Robins and William DeMeritt were perfect narrators for this story, and I’m so glad I chose to listen rather than read it.

Now I wish I had the time to start the Stag Brothers series from the beginning. One thing’s for sure, I’ll absolutely be watching for new releases from this author because I really enjoyed her storytelling.

Rating: 4.5 Stars, 3 Flames, Narration 4.5 Stars

Purchase Lit For Him by Lainey Davis

Kindle | Audible

Cozy for the Holidays by Liz Maverick

Narrated by Andrew Eiden and Eva Kaminsky

I’ve mostly enjoyed Liz Maverick’s holiday and Hanukkah romances over the past five years. Books with Hanukkah representation, especially on audio, are few and far between, so this one already had my attention. But having Teddy Hamilton as one of the narrators made me even more excited. (Andrew Eiden is his real name, which he uses for non-smut.)

Cozy for the Holidays is the second book-related story in the For the Holidays series. In fact, almost all of my Hanukkah reads this year had a bookish theme. There are mentions of last year’s characters, but you definitely don’t need to read Booked for the Holidays to enjoy Cozy for the Holidays.

Caleb is a scientist working on a cure for cancer who has just bought his first home, a brownstone in New York City. There’s a mix-up, though. Instead of clearing out the downstairs floor for him to renovate and rent, the movers clear out the upstairs apartment that was supposed to be left furnished. The bigger problem is that the downstairs space is an old bookshop, filled to the brim with books.

He calls his best friend, who he’s secretly been in love with for years, a book cover designer, to help him figure out what to do with all the stock. She’s immediately obsessed and doesn’t want him to sell anything. As they work together to keep the bookstore open through the holidays, their feelings start to come out.

Cozy for the Holidays started strong but then lost its way a bit for me. She pushed too hard for him to keep the store, the way she ran the shop felt silly at times, and I felt like he was far more into her than she was into him. What bothered me most, though, was the lack of holiday atmosphere. Yes, it takes place during the holidays, they’re working toward opening the bookstore for the holiday block party, and the cat is named Latke, but I still found myself missing the holidays (Christmas or Hanukkah) themselves.

The narration was fantastic and honestly worth a listen just for that.

Overall, I enjoyed Cozy for the Holidays for the representation, but there were some plot holes and dangling threads that never went anywhere. I would still recommend this three-hour story to anyone looking for a Hanukkah or Jewish during-the-holidays romance audiobook.

Rating: 3.5 stars, No spice, Narration: 5 stars