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Cold Day in the Sun Review

Cold Day in the SunTitle: Cold Day in the Sun
Author: Sara Biren
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Trigger Warning: 
Rating:  4 Stars
Release Date: March 12, 2019



Synopsis

Holland Delviss wants to be known for her talent as a hockey player, not a hockey player who happens to be a girl. But when her school team is selected to be featured and televised as part of HockeyFest, her status as the only girl on the boys’ team makes her the lead story. Not everyone is thrilled with Holland’s new fame, but there’s one person who fiercely supports her, and it’s the last person she expects (and definitely the last person she should be falling for): her bossy team captain, Wes.

Review

A special thank you to Netgalley and Amulet Books (ABRAMS Kids) for providing a free advance digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

I love Holland and all of the things that make up her character. She is very complex and seems real because she has many interests and talents. She definitely is not one dimensional and she still seems real because she has her skills and her flaws. Like, she is not just a female hockey player on the boys team. Her role is honestly so much more than that.

The diversity in this book is absolutely fabulous, and it also did not feel like it was just for brownie points or fetishizing. It wasn't a big deal, but it was clearly there and not avoided. Sometimes I feel like side LGBTQ+ relationships in books are just included so the author can say that they included them, but they felt more real than this. It wasn't a big deal that they were included, but it still felt to be real as well.

The struggles and issues that Holland ends up facings are also extremely well portrayed because they come in multiple realms and dimensions within her life. Not everything is perfect all the time and Holland's life is both messy and well written at the same time. There are a bunch of people involved in her life and it really does seem like the life of a high schooler.

Unfortunately, there are way too many characters and I got lost in all of them. Some character serve similar roles in Holland's life in terms of mental support and it was extremely hard to be able to keep everything straight. I kept getting lost in all of it. Especially because so many characters have nicknames and it's hard to keep track of all of the different characters and all the names they go by and anything.

My one big problem, besides getting a little lost, is that Wes is just completely unrealistic, like even beyond the point of Holland falling in love with the "perfect man". The only negative thing he is portrayed as doing is so mild and it's only because he loves Holland and wants people to know it. Literally he is described as being amazing at at least 10 unrelated subjects, from hockey to academics to painting to cooking. Like, not a little skilled. It just feels really ridiculous and it irked me to no end. Wes felt like he had no depth and was only good at everything and perfect for Holland. It was annoying.

Still, I loved so many other parts of this book. It was still enjoyable and a mostly fast and easy read. Holland herself was awesome though and so were some of her friends.. I loved how everything ended up going down in terms of Holland finding confidence in what she chose to do.. It was a feel good story and I would definitely recommend reading it.


I love sports romances, like this and the Hundred Oaks series. Are there any romances involving sports that you enjoy reading? Let me know in the comments.


Thanks for reading!
Alyssa
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