I was delighted to receive a copy of Shy Girls Can't Date at Christmas pre-publication from Milly Rose for review. Check out the book below, and then scroll down to read my review!
(Shy Girls Sweet Romances)
By Millie Rose
Is the season of giving enough to bring us back together?
I wish I never saw it. But there he was, standing right in front of me, threatening other kids. Did I expect anything less from our school's worst bully? And now that the vice principal handed down his punishment, he assumes I ratted him out.
Being on the organizing committee for the Christmas dance was supposed to be fun. But now Beau Stevenson is forced to join us. We’re enlisted to teach him school spirit, but all we give him is terrified faces.
I’ve always strived to be an academically gifted good girl. My overprotective single dad warned me about bad boys like him. But now being stuck together after hours in the gym, buried memories resurface. When we’re alone, he’s no longer scary. Instead, he’s attentive and kind.
No one at school knows the secret Beau and I share. For years I’ve only seen him as a brute, but can I give this boy a second chance? There’s a deeper side to him. Is he willing to permanently become the boy I once loved?
You will love following Ava and Beau's love story. This is a high school bully redemption story, plus the story of a good girl falling for a bad boy. In forced proximity, they are both learning to love as their opposites attract. This is a young adult sweet romance set at Christmas time.
Ava’s life turned upside-down after she lost her mother. Her street no longer throws the massive festive street parties that her mother used to plan, and her father seems more concerned with her grades than her wellbeing. But as timid as Ava is at school, she refuses to let this Christmas pass her by. She has big plans for the Christmas dance, and being part of the committee is the only thing she does other than being at school, or doing homework, so it is a chance to finally make some friends, rather than just studying all the time.
There is, of course, one problem. Beau, the school’s worst bully, has been forcefully put on the committee in an attempt to teach him school spirit, as a punishment and a lesson all wrapped up in a very festive detention. Ava has a history with Beau, but now they are in close proximity, he has taken an interest in her. Not that he wants to bully her – he wants to talk to her, to get to know her. To spend time with her. And as much as Ava may be able to benefit from the fact that everyone else is so terrified of Beau they will do whatever he says, she absolutely does not agree with his violence in the slightest.
Ava and Beau’s relationship is a strange one. It is not enemies to lovers, for they were never particularly enemies, but it is also not friends or strangers to lovers. Ava and Beau were childhood friends, but their friendship fell apart with the death of Ava’s mother, when Beau’s family moved house, away from Ava. And as quick to violence as Beau is, he is gentle with Ava, kind when he is around her. It is thanks to him that the committee even gets off the ground in the first place, despite him not wanting to be there.
Beau may not be the best influence on anyone, but him being around, and taking a protective role over her, gives Ava the confidence to start to come out of her shell. She ends up in control of the committee, and takes her role very seriously, making sure everyone knows what they need to be doing, and ensuring everything runs smoothly. And as much as he doesn’t want to be there, Beau commits himself to the committee as well, for Ava’s sake, and works just as hard as everyone else to make sure her dream dance comes to life.
Ava and Beau’s romance is one that I greatly enjoyed reading about. They bring out the best in each other, Ava bringing out Beau’s gentle, caring side, and Beau giving Ava the confidence to do what she dreams of, and not being afraid to speak her mind. Together, they give each other what they need to become better people. It is not that they cannot live without each other, but rather that they can live better together, which makes it the kind of romance that utterly enchanted me throughout the book.
Ava’s Dad is a character I could not bring myself to like in the slightest. He loathes Beau with a passion, and doesn’t agree with Ava doing anything but things that are important to her education. He comes across at times like he is pleased she is making friends, but he dotes on Ava. In a way, it is almost like he is pretending she is still a little girl, like she was when they lost her mother. His moods go up and down, and he is often displeased with Ava and fully disapproving of what she does, and who she does it with. Ava finds herself having to hide things from him, just to keep the peace. It is not like he is the only dysfunctional parent in this book, but he is the one that takes centre stage, and I hated how he treats Ava.
I have not read many books based around Christmas before, for no particular reason, it is just a time of year that does not often come up in the books I read. This book made me feel especially Christmassy, especially with some of the visuals, of decorations along the street, and of the dance that Ava plans. This book made me want to put up fairy lights, and gather up my Christmas decorations. I could almost feel the frost in the air as I read. There is this magical feeling that comes with the month of December, the feeling that something special is coming, and I felt that all the way through this book, even though December is not quite here yet. I could feel the excitement, the whole magical feeling, and it felt like I was alongside Ava throughout the whole book. The author has done a wonderful job at bringing the wonder of the season to life among the pages.
This is a book I absolutely loved reading. I read it within a day, because I simply could not put it down. If you only read just one romance book this Christmas, it should be this one, because it is absolutely amazing.
Milly Rose is an animal-loving romance enthusiast with a swoon-inducing book formula. Shy girl + hot guy + first kisses. Her YA sweet romance books will have you falling in love every instalment. Milly Rose is the quintessential shy girl, who you can contact via her mailing list and reply to her monthly email blasts! Milly spends her days vying for her cat’s affection, dreaming up her next book boyfriend, and writing a fun meet-cute under candlelight with a lovely brewed cup of tea.
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