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A review by daphrose
Santa Cruise by Fern Michaels
3.0
2.5 stars, but I am rounding up because I enjoyed it in spite of myself.
I am perhaps as far away from the main characters in this book as I could possibly be. I am 21 years old, married, and quite settled with no great desire to travel the world other than driving around the Great Plains with my husband. That said, despite my lack of reliability to the characters, I actually found them endearing. Rachel, Frankie, Amy, and Nina felt quite real to me, and their friendship was palpable. Though they were "looking for love," the concept that they should HAVE to get a man was not the main point of the story. The romantic resolutions often fell quietly to the background, and I enjoyed that.
I actually enjoyed the non-cruise scenes the most, as the girls prepared for the cruise and we were introduced to their family (and relationship) dynamics. Once the cruise started (almost halfway through the book), I actually got a bit bored. I don't usually read escapism books such as this, so I think I was wondering where the plot could go. Nonetheless, there were some fun twists, and it was an enjoyable and inoffensive story.
There were some things that I did not enjoy as much. Though I liked the characters, I had a hard time picturing them in their 30s. They often acted like high schoolers, especially when they were together. They were wildly immature to be as successful as Michaels makes them out to be. Not that that's necessarily a bad (or unrealistic) thing, but I could not for the life of me picture them as older adults. They felt to be in their mid-twenties to me, at most, and goodness gracious, they shout and squeal and hoot and holler so much! I felt like I was watching a YouTube vlog in book form. Next, the things Michaels chooses to describe vs. those she doesn't could bother me at times. She spent several paragraphs describing the girls' apartments/homes, but she spends a single sentence describing a speed dating session. Come on! I wanted that in scene! How fun would that have been? The other part of the storyline that really bothered me was the way the girls get obsessively attached to "protecting" an older woman they meet on the cruise. After day one, they begin stalking her and trying to figure out who she's dating in order to "protect" her. I guess I get it in theory, but it comes across as creepy and breaking SEVERAL boundaries. The older woman does wind up angry at them when she finds out, but they still face no real consequences. It just felt a little off and uncomfortable to read.
My only other complaint is that for a book titled "Santa Cruise," it did not feel very Christmas-y. I've been wanting a "Christmas in August" fix, and I was hoping this book would provide that, but alas, other than some mistletoe and a brief Santa appearance, there was nothing very festive for me. Oh well!
In the end, though this book has its troubles, it's an escapist fiction piece that isn't meant to be thought about too deeply. It is about friends having a good time, working through family and life difficulties, and finding love. Though these kinds of books are not usually my cup of tea, I had fun reading this book.
(I received an ARC of this book as part of a Goodreads giveaway. Though I am under no obligation to post a review as part of the giveaway, I am providing my honest feedback to thank the publisher for the free book.)
I am perhaps as far away from the main characters in this book as I could possibly be. I am 21 years old, married, and quite settled with no great desire to travel the world other than driving around the Great Plains with my husband. That said, despite my lack of reliability to the characters, I actually found them endearing. Rachel, Frankie, Amy, and Nina felt quite real to me, and their friendship was palpable. Though they were "looking for love," the concept that they should HAVE to get a man was not the main point of the story. The romantic resolutions often fell quietly to the background, and I enjoyed that.
I actually enjoyed the non-cruise scenes the most, as the girls prepared for the cruise and we were introduced to their family (and relationship) dynamics. Once the cruise started (almost halfway through the book), I actually got a bit bored. I don't usually read escapism books such as this, so I think I was wondering where the plot could go. Nonetheless, there were some fun twists, and it was an enjoyable and inoffensive story.
There were some things that I did not enjoy as much. Though I liked the characters, I had a hard time picturing them in their 30s. They often acted like high schoolers, especially when they were together. They were wildly immature to be as successful as Michaels makes them out to be. Not that that's necessarily a bad (or unrealistic) thing, but I could not for the life of me picture them as older adults. They felt to be in their mid-twenties to me, at most, and goodness gracious, they shout and squeal and hoot and holler so much! I felt like I was watching a YouTube vlog in book form. Next, the things Michaels chooses to describe vs. those she doesn't could bother me at times. She spent several paragraphs describing the girls' apartments/homes, but she spends a single sentence describing a speed dating session. Come on! I wanted that in scene! How fun would that have been? The other part of the storyline that really bothered me was the way the girls get obsessively attached to "protecting" an older woman they meet on the cruise. After day one, they begin stalking her and trying to figure out who she's dating in order to "protect" her. I guess I get it in theory, but it comes across as creepy and breaking SEVERAL boundaries. The older woman does wind up angry at them when she finds out, but they still face no real consequences. It just felt a little off and uncomfortable to read.
My only other complaint is that for a book titled "Santa Cruise," it did not feel very Christmas-y. I've been wanting a "Christmas in August" fix, and I was hoping this book would provide that, but alas, other than some mistletoe and a brief Santa appearance, there was nothing very festive for me. Oh well!
In the end, though this book has its troubles, it's an escapist fiction piece that isn't meant to be thought about too deeply. It is about friends having a good time, working through family and life difficulties, and finding love. Though these kinds of books are not usually my cup of tea, I had fun reading this book.
(I received an ARC of this book as part of a Goodreads giveaway. Though I am under no obligation to post a review as part of the giveaway, I am providing my honest feedback to thank the publisher for the free book.)