HOLIDAY HOME RUN Event planner Julia Louisa Fernandez dreams of a life in Chicago. But her family in Puerto Rico expects her to take over the catering business. Former pro baseball player Ben Thomas knows what that’s like—and when they meet, he might be the one to inspire a winning strategy, just in time for the holidays . . . Previously published in A Season to Celebrate.
Perfect Quick Escape From The Family During The Holidays. This is one of those shorter novels – 94 pages or so, per Amazon – that is great for just getting away from everyone and everything for a couple of hours or so and reading an entire book in the process. Mostly light and fun, there is next to no drama here really – more in line with a Hallmark Christmas movie, if even that much. But like a Hallmark Christmas movie, it mostly focuses on the romance of the two leads – in this case, a Puerto Rican looking to establish herself apart from her family and an ex-MLB pitching ace looking to re-establish himself. Very much recommended.
Witty and entertaining holiday romance story. The holidays always add a twist to every story. Wonderful characters to follow along through the story. Good read.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
A well written Christmas story that held my interest until the end. Event planner Julia Louisa Fernandez and Former pro baseball player Ben Thomas’ story, which I enjoyed reading. I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This book is a sweet tale about how the Christmas spirit embrace traditions and family values spreading friendship and love through a community. It also emphasizes the holiday traditions held by Puerto Rico natives while living in the US. Enjoyable reading!
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This book was a cute holiday read. I really enjoyed learning a little bit along the way about Puerto Rican customs! This is my first read from this author and I will happily look at her earlier works as a result of this book!
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
An enjoyable one sitting read. This book features an ex-MLB all-star and a Puerto Rican heroine who is going out out on her own to make her own way. The two meet in Chicago while working on a fundraising event. Holiday Home Run is a fun, warm modern-day love story perfect for curling up with a hot cup of tea under the Christmas tree for an afternoon of escapism. I really enjoyed this novella from Oliveras as I continue to enjoy her work.
This was a great holiday story with two of my favorite things – the holidays and baseball. Really enjoyed meeting and getting to know more about Julia and Ben and of course some of Julia’s family, the kids from the Humboldt Park Youth Center and the people Julia worked with. Everyone added their own flair to this book. I loved watching Julia putting her mark on the event and knowing that deep down she wanted more and to be able to stay in Chicago, yet her family back in Puerto Rico was always in the forefront of her thoughts and how to have the career she wants and the family she loves and misses. I must admit from the time Ben showed up in the story, I was smitten, just like Julia. I liked watching their story and wondered what might come of it. The event of course was a success which everyone knew it would be even with the surprise for Julia she was not expecting, but I’m glad she was able to talk and make peace. I also liked how things were progressing with Ben once she opened herself up to seeing what more could be. This was a really great story but all I can say is, I want to know what happens next.
This is a story about family, business, romance, culture, and community involvement. It’s a sweet, clean, and tender romance. I loved the family connections that Julia holds so dear.
The writing is good, and the characters and plot are believable. The characters are actually great. Each one has their flaws, but they are accepting and helpful to the others.
I especially liked how the author used Spanish words and phrases, but then clearly and cleanly worked the translations into the next sentence or paragraph. She wasn’t obvious or intrusive in doing this, not heavy-handed. This was refreshing compared to the manner in which some other authors just throw in words, phrases, sentences, or paragraphs in other languages and leave the reader on their own to figure out the meaning, or not. Ms. Oliveras seems to understand that her readers may not be fluent in other languages. She obviously didn’t want to make her readers uncomfortable or force them to keep stopping to seek out a translation online. I’m impressed by this. The manner in which she did this was gentle as she worked it into her characters thoughts or words.
I recommend this feel good novella.
I received an advanced reader’s copy of this book from the author through Booksprout. I thank them for sharing this book with me, but their generosity had not effect on this review. All opinions expressed in this review reflect my true and honest reactions to reading this book.
I can’t call this a book but i can call it a wonderful, sweet story. I would like for it to have been a little longer and have read a deeper dive into the characters. Especially since it has been a while since I have read a true Latinx romance by a Lantix. BUT as is Holiday Home Run is sweet and well wrote. It is a fast pace, a little fast for the standard in the romance genre. and it reads fast, one sitting, one cup of coffee. Ben is a true gentleman and Julia deserves to have all her grown up dreams come true, even if Chicago is a really expensive place to do it. I would love to read what is next for Ben and Julia.
I really enjoyed this arc. It was entertaining.
Julia Fernandezs mother has dreams for her as an adult. They involve her getting married, having children, and taking over the families catering business. Her brothers all played or loved the baseball game so she always had to put time for their games instead of doing what she wanted to do herself.
Ben was a baseball player who got hurt and now is a reporter for them. He met a woman whom he wanted to get to know better but she wanted nothing to do with him. He even offered to help with a choir for kids so she would talk to him.
Will Ben get the girl or will he be alone with the baseball family he has come to love?
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This is a nice sports-hero romance. Being a short story, there are obviously some bits that are shortened for brevity, but it’s a nice read with two great characters. I admired Julia for her focus and Ben is a very liable character – maybe too likable. There were some very enjoyable lines, like:
“That pause, the gentlemanly action that told her he’d do nothing without her consent, pushed her over the edge of reasons and into passion-fueled insanity.”
(Sounds steamier than it is.)
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
A wonderful short Christmas romance!
Julia Fernández is helping with a gala fundraiser for the Chicago Youth Association so she can get a job and move from Puerto Rico to Chicago without upsetting her family. The emcee of the gala was retired baseball player Ben Thomas but the first time he met Julia, he thought she wasn’t interested in him but that soon proved the attraction was mutual.
Holiday Home Run is a cute Christmas short story where the reader gets an evening gala, baseball and a Puerto Rico holiday experience.
Holiday Home Run was previously released as part of the holiday anthology A Season to Celebrate.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Priscilla Oliveras’ Christmas novella about Julia and Ben is a cute story that left me smiling and looking forward to all the Christmas celebrations with my familia.
Julia is a driven and ambitious woman trying to create a path for herself in Chicago. Ben is sweet, fun and always a gentleman. Being a novella, it’s fast paced and the story keeps moving along leading up to the big night of the fundraiser Julia is coordinating. Even though it’s only 12 chapters, Oliveras does a great job of developing the main characters and their relationship. I loved all the references to Latinx Christmas traditions, food, and music. Bonus, if you’re a baseball fan, you’ll enjoy all the baseball talk. Holiday Home Run is a cute novella to get you in the mood for celebrating the holidays with family and friends.
Thank you @netgalley @kensingtonbooks and BookBuzz for providing an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
HOLIDAY HOME RUN by Priscilla Oliveras is an adorable multicultural romance novella. Heroine Julia is is trying to escape the expectations of her loving but sometimes smothering family. Hero Ben has lost his sense of family since an injury forced him to cut his pro baseball career short. When he meets Julia, he sees in her someone who can make him feel whole again. She resists his advances, focused on getting the job that will give her the independence she craves. But what’s a girl to do when a handsome pro athlete insists on sweeping her off her feet?
This quick, light read will give you a reason to smile this holiday season. Don’t miss it!
Such a sweet treat to get you in the upcoming holiday mood. Julia (sexy event planner) and Ben (hot ex-baseball player) have a few weeks working together that culminates into a festive romance. There is a little turmoil with a surprise guest to the event that they are both working on, but for the most part this is a “get to know” you novella wrapped up in a pretty HEA bow at the end.
Fave Quote: “You’ve given me a sense of familia I’d only found in baseball. As far as I’m concerned, I want there to be a Team Us.”
Our author Priscilla Oliveras has a hit to add to your Christmas reading list this year. The characters are well developed for such a short read and lots of Puerto Rican flare. The story also takes you on trip thru some fabulous Chicago holiday destinations as a bonus. (Even shopping at Filene’s Basement!) While this story is connected to Oliveras’ “Matched to Perfection” series, you can easily enjoy the story as a standalone.
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an e-ARC for an honest review.
Priscilla Oliveras is one of my favorite authors and I was super excited to see this holiday novella coming out! As the author notes, this was previously published as part of an anthology.
I love sports, and this romance holiday novella has sports romance, holiday vibes, and the culture of Puerto Rico family. I LOVE learning about other cultures through #ownvoice stories.
Our love interests are Julia an aspiring event planner in Chicago and Ben a former Major League pitcher. The author has a fantastic way of developing characters . The characters were well developed and complex in this novella as well as if it was a full length novel.
If your a fan of this author’s work, you will notice that Julia is a cousin of the Fernandez sisters in the Matched to Perfection Series which is AMAZING!!!!!
This was the perfect holiday read and I loved learning more about the Puerto Rican holiday tradition of La Parranda. I so want to attend this party.
This story was just too cute!
Julia is striving to be an event planner in Chicago, by her mother wants her to return home to Puerto Rico and run the family business. While preparing for a huge charity event, Julia catches the eye of the event’s emcee–Ben, a former MBL pitcher, with blue eyes and a dimple to-die-for. But she doesn’t want to distract herself from her goals or get involved with an athlete after growing up in a baseball-obsessed family! But will their mutual attraction grow into something more?
I think it’s important to know that this story is most definitely a short story or novella (originally published as part of an anthology). I read this whole story in maybe an hour, perhaps less, and I probably read twice as fast as the average reader. So it’s definitely a quick read. But if you go in knowing that and appreciating the amount of depth we do get in such a short time, I think most readers would really love this story! We actually do get quite a significant amount of background on Ben and Julia in such a short time, and I honestly felt like the characters were as well-developed as in any full-length novel. I think we get a bit of an abbreviated version of their romance and there’s no rush to the alter (thank God), but it doesn’t feel like anything is missing. We get the good parts–the meet, with sparks and attraction, the getting to know each other, the promise of something more. There’s no room for stupid fights or major communications issues that often feel shoehorned into longer romances. And what’s not to love about a sports romance AND holiday romance with Puerto Rican representation wrapped in one neat little Christmas bow? This is the perfect quick holiday read.
5 stars – 9/10
Thank you to NetGalley and Zebra Books/Kensington Publishing for my free eARC in exchange for an honest review!