Merry & Sprite

Holiday in Sunset Surf #1

by Dani Lakely

Opposites attract in this holiday rom-com with a little bit of magic and a whole lot of heart.

Jonathan’s to-do list:
1. Deck the halls
2. Throw Forrest off the nearest cliff

Jonathan Thomas moved across the country to escape his ex, only to end up planted next to a guy who drives him even further out of his mind. Forrest Wilde has no problem doing every little thing he can to work Jonathan’s last nerve, crashing into his tidy life and well-built walls with obnoxious flirtations and merry mischief.

When Jonathan is mysteriously hit with a spell that forces him to grant the wishes of the local townsfolk, he strikes a deal with Forrest to help him find a cure. As the saying goes, keep your friends close, and the impossibly hot guy who may just be an imp closer.

Toeing the line between naughty and nice, Jonathan and Forrest work together to break the spell. But as the tension between the two nears its breaking point, Jonathan is forced to decide if it’s really hate he feels—or something he’s willing to risk everything on for the greatest wish of all.

Merry & Sprite is a slow-burn MM Christmas romance set in a small beach town on the Southern California coast. The story features enemies-to-lovers, hijinks and banter, rival Christmas tree farms, and a little black cat. This warm-hearted romantic comedy is sure to cast its spell on you this holiday season!

Genres: Christmas, Romance, M M Romance, Holiday, Paranormal, LGBT, Contemporary

258 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 5, 2021

About the author

* Writer of queer romance. Poly-genre reader. She/her. Say hi to your cat. *

***

Sign up for Dani's newsletter to receive free bonus content, news on book discounts, and info on all upcoming titles: https://bit.ly/DaniLakelyNewsletter

Find Dani online:
Website - https://www.danilakely.com
TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@danilakely
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/danilakelyw...
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/danilakely/

Reviews

[☆ Todd · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was in a bit of a Christmas reading mood, so I gave this one a go and ended up liking it more than I thought I would. 🙂

I do admit, though, that I had mixed feelings at first, mostly because Jonathan came across as unnecessarily bitchy, so it took me a while to warm up to him.

[My take on Jonathan...]


As for the other MC, I absolutely loved Forrest right from the start. He was bubbly, flirty, and an all-around nice guy. And hot.

[My take on Forrest...]



And although this was technically a magical fantasy story, the "magic" was entirely passive, so don't go in expecting anyone to be able to *perform* any magical feats. A spell happened, then Jonathan and Forrest simply worked around what they thought needed to happen to break it.

The book was pretty cute, with the MC's helping people's holiday wishes come true, while Forrest kept chipping away at the ice around Jonathan's previously-damaged heart.

I loved the sunny, So. Cal, beachside setting vs. it happening in some icy, northern hellscape. And the Forrest Gump line during their trophy caper made me laugh pretty damn hard.

They were together just before the story ended, so I'd categorize this one as an HFN, but I admit that I'm scared to read book 2, where Forrest's ex returns to town.

There's very little that I hate more than a follow-up story pulling some very tiresome "fucking with their happy" bullshit, so fingers crossed that doesn't happen in the next one.

I'd rate this one at around 4 stars and recommend it for anyone looking for a touch of magic to help put them in the holiday mood.

-----------------------------------------------

This book is *FREE* with Kindle Unlimited membership.

See All My Latest Reads (Review Quick-Links)

-----------------------------------------------

[Kit (Metaphors and Moonlight) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was adorable! Not exactly “enemies to lovers,” more like “begrudging crush on someone who annoys him as much as he attracts him to lovers.” And not exactly “grumpy + sunshine,” more like “orderly and closed off + spontaneous and flirty.” It was a super cute relationship, and the build up felt so believable because they already knew each other but it still took a bit of time for the feelings to progress and change. And we really got to see them spending a lot of time together and growing closer and learning more about each other. I could really feel the romantic tension and the growing (or realization of) feelings Jonathan had for Forrest. This made me smile and laugh and gave me the warm fuzzies. There was also a bit of magic and a heap of Christmas cheer. If you’re looking for a cute and sexy queer Christmas romance with a bit of magic, I highly recommend this one!

*Rating: 4.5 Stars // Read Date: 2022 // Format: Ebook via TTS*
 
Recommended For:
Anyone who likes adorable m/m romance, holiday romances, annoyed-secret-crush-to-lovers, and a bit of magic.

Original Review @ Metaphors and Moonlight

[Len Evans Jr · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sweet, sexy and full of giggles!

Loved these two guys, they were so adorably sweet together. Also loved all the ridiculously funny stuff in this book! Most of the book was happy tears and giggles!

[Ed Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the title and the cover I thought this was going to be some silly Christmas story about elves. I was delighted to be wrong. I really enjoyed this story. It’s a sweet low angst enemies to lovers story . I loved Johnny and Forrest, but I think all the crazy side characters really made the story fun. I actually laughed out loud several times. Throw in a bit of magic and I had a great time.

[Andreas · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the story of Jonathan who comes to Sunset Surf to take care of his beloved aunt's tea shop business. And then there's Forrest, the hot owner of the pub across the street. But Jonathan is hurting from a bad breakup, so Forrest has to work hard for his way to Jonathan's heart. The classic Grumpy meets Sunshine. But there's also magic, not just Christmas magic, but real magic. Sunset Surf is best described as some sort of modern hippie commune, with a lot of nice and funny people.

I really liked the plot, the characters, the setting and the storytelling. It's a cute and funny and heart-warming Christmas romance. I loved the banter between Jonathan and Forrest and the wild stories about the other Sunset Surf inhabitants.

But… there are some things about this book that didn't sit well with me. This is one of the books where you can clearly tell which part the author really loved to write and which parts were just some kind of chore to them. This book is best when there's interaction and conversation between the characters. The worst part of the book is the worldbuilding. All the character and setting descriptions along the backstory are just info-dumped on the reader. What makes things worse, this is done in the first two chapters. The crucial part of every book where a reader decides whether to pick it up or not. Hadn't I already owned this book I'd probably given up on it at this point. It really gets better after the first two chapters. It's basically like night and day. If you decide to read this book, just skim over the first two chapters quickly.

Which brings me to another point. This book feels like it's a fanfic turned into a novel. Which is per se not a bad thing. The carelessly slapped on worldbuilding info-dump is one tell-tale sign. But there's also always the feeling of missing out. Like when you read a fanfic of a fandom you don't know. When you feel like some things would make a lot more sense or be funnier if you knew more about the original background, and so a lot of the references are lost on you.

There are also some minor things I didn't like much, but we're reaching pet peeve territory now. I somehow have a feeling that this was originally a M/F story just switched to M/M. It feels a little odd and off sometimes. Also I didn't like how romance and sexual attraction were mixed up like they're just the same thing. But that's just minor nuisances here.

All in all I did enjoy this book. I liked the romantic main story and the side characters. With a little bit of editing this could have been an easy four star book if not five stars.

[Romantically Inclined Reviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

very sweet book with lots of hilarious banter & side characters.

[Sandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Utterly adorable magical Yuletide story with a little bit of drama, a lot of snark, and a dash of Yule magic in a small town. You should read this!

[Roger - president of NBR United - · Rating 4 out of 5]

Forrest and Jonathon are cute and good together. The town is wacky. Check your reality at the beginning of the book or your head will hurt.

[Ellie · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5

[Ana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this sweet and quirky story.
There are bad puns and a lot of banter and yes sometimes the town and its occupants are a little over the top but I still enjoyed this.

[Relly · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25 stars

Holiday's are my favourite time of year and I love the holiday themed books, so I jumped on his one when offered. While it was a nice afternoons read, it didn't really blow me away.

There were some funny moments that had me laughing out loud but I felt like the humour was overused by some of the characters and maybe tried a bit too hard at being funny instead of it just happening organically.

I really liked Forrest even if his jokes fell flat at times and I felt for him trying to get Jonny to notice him. He was judged pretty early which was unfair.

Jonny was a harder character for me to like as he was so over the place. He went overboard trying to be part of the town but then became shut off and prickly when confronted with Forrest. Yes he had a past hurt but he took it out on Forrest.

Ok afternoons read

***Arc provided by GRR. This is my honest and voluntary review***

[Cindi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a nice story by an author I’d never read before. There’s just enough magic to keep it interesting, though I would’ve liked to have known more about Jonathan being a sprite. It was mentioned, accepted by all he told, and that was that.

I only had two issues with the story. One of those being how it was told solely in Jonathan's point-of-view. I wanted to be inside Forrest's head. Honestly, Forrest was the more interesting of the two. Jonathan's back and forth in his head about Forrest got tiring. Even so, they (eventually) worked together as a couple. As for the second thing, I can't really say what it is without giving a bit of a spoiler. Let's just say the ending is HFN - though the reader knows they'll have a nice HEA - and leave it at that.

I would've also liked to have seen more couple time between these two guys. There's a slow burn and there's S U P E R slow burn. Merry & Sprite definitely falls into the latter category.

Full review can be found at -

[Horror Sickness · Rating 3 out of 5]

2,5*


Jonathan is running away from his ex. So he agrees to take over his aunt’s business in a small town at the opposite end of the country.

There he will meet Forrest, a guy that drives him insane. But Forrest will be the one by his side, helping him break the spell he is under.

While I really enjoyed the enemies to lovers romance and it was a fun Christmas read, I was not truly invested in the mystery and plot surrounding the spell. So all that kept me going was the love blossoming between the two main characters.

[Teresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved it!

Funny and sweet, slow burn story with a touch of magic. There was interesting wish fulfilment capers as they get to know each other. I loved the town and those who lived there but I loved Forrest and Jonathon the most!

[Mandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a new author for me but I’m glad I gave them a go because this was a sweet, fun read.
Jonathan is looking after his aunt’s tea shop while she’s on holiday and is determined to find everything about the handsome Forrest, who runs the bar across the road from his shop, annoying. Forrest is adorable and such a fun flirt that I liked him from the start, Jonathan was a little harder to like initially, possibly because he was such a grump to start with, but he turned cute and I soon liked him too. Both are getting over previous relationships and it takes working together to finally make Jonathan see how much Forrest means to him.
The story is told from Jonathan’s point of view, which I don’t always like but this one worked for me. I loved the small-town feel to the story and the quirky other inhabitants and Lillith the cat were all delightful additions to the story.
This was a fun, sweet, slow-burn story that turned the heat way up at the end. A very merry tale with Christmas magic that was a delight to read.
I received a copy of this book from GRR to review and this is my honest and voluntary opinion.

[Drew Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute holiday rom-com - warm, fluffy, a bit ridiculous. Perfect for scratching my Xmas itch.
Opposites attract, small town, a bit of magic, etc. 3.5 ⭐

Forrest's a big goofy golden retriever. Jonathan is closed off and gets in his own way... wanted to shake him multiple times. Will they/won't they w/ Christmas spice at the end 🌶️

Might checkout the Halloween sequel next year.

[Rainbow Reads and Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a new to me author and I'm really glad that I took a chance and requested an ARC for this book.

It's a sweet, fluffy, slow-burn and low angst book. I loved the little hint of magic and the little village and it's people.

I mostly prefer dual POV books and would have loved to know Forrest's thoughts throughout the book. I do hope to read the sequel once it's available.

A fun read to get you into the holiday spirit!

[The Duckling · Rating 4 out of 5]

with this, I've read 4 holiday romcom books this weekend and this was the only one that knew EXACTLY what it was and delivered. very silly & doesn't take itself too serious. also a lot of puns, I approve.

[Jacqueleen the Reading Queen♡ · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Forrest is the most familiar thing about every day"


This was a cute fluffy read for the coming holiday season. There was minimal angst and come to think of it, minimal steam. There's only one real scene and it doesn't happen til after 75% in. This one's a slow burn people. Think more along the lines of UST. I really loved Forrest. He had such a sunny big personality that I wish I had him as my own friend. His corny jokes and innuendos just endeared me to him. Jonny was harder to like and the story was told completely in his POV. I wanted him to get over himself and give Forrest a chance. He spent way too much time overanalyzing every minute thing.

The townspeople were fun, especially Ester and Fern. I loved how those woman had been best friends for likely 60+ years. What a friendship to have lasted a lifetime. There's a Halloween book coming from Forrests POV, but you'll have to wait a year since it's slated for September 2022. I think I'd enjoy being in Forrests head. He's a big goof and can't help but make you smile.

[Fanni's So Many Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a sweet holiday story

Merry & Sprite is the perfect holiday rom com you can read! It's wonderfully sweet, deliciously funny and simply just a warm and cosy blanket to wrap you up this holiday season!

The story is about Jonhatan who is spelled to grant wishes for the townfolk and Forrest who dutifully helps him try to break that spell. Their dynamic is so entertaining full of shameless flirting and teasing and so sweet holiday non-dates that makes your tooth ache.

This book is really the best pick-me up you can get on a bad day. It made me smile almost constantly!

Loved it so much!

[Maddy · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was kind of cute, but a bit awkward. Okay, maybe a lot awkward..



It was funny, but also not. It was cute, but also aggravating. And it was definitely awkward. Their interactions and dialogues were very awkward, I would even say stilted at times. So stiff and kind of uncomfortable. In general, it was a curious story, with quirky characters and an interesting plot. It is just that the main characters were awkward with their constant jokes, and occasionally they felt very forced and like they fell flat more often than not. Like they tried hard to be funny, but maybe just too hard. It wasn't a bad story though. I liked side characters a lot, maybe even more than main characters and the idea was good. Just not sure I like the writing style. Not a bad read a for a holiday though.

**I was provided an ARC of this book from the GRR for an honest review**

[Carlos Mock · Rating 1 out of 5]

Merry & Sprite (Holiday in Sunset Surf #1) by Dani Lakely

Even though this is the first in a series, it's a stand-alone book.

Jonathan (Jonny) Jacob Thomas is a 25 y/o gay man. He moved from Connecticut to Sunset Surf, CA after a bad breakup with his ex, David. He's taking care of TranquiliTea, a tea shop on the business strip in Sunset because his aunt Kelly - the owner, is traveling.

Across the street is Forrest Oliver Wilde who works as a bartender at Be Hoppy. He is constantly and jokingly trying to bed Jonathan.

There is mutual attraction, but both men have been hurt by past love relationships and can't find a way to connect.

Will they find a way forward? Will they have a Happy Ending just before Christmas?

The book is a mess. The author has no clue how to use a point of view, so it keeps changing without warning very frequently. It gets confusing to follow the nonexistent plot. There is very little of a plot and the characters are flat. Never cared for them. By the time you get to a sex scene, you're so bored that it loses its charm.

Did not like the book. Found myself skipping by the second half. Do not recommend it and will NOT be reading any of the sequels.

[Alexis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stop this was sooooo cute!

There was magic, there was banter, there was a quest of sorts, shameless flirting to an oblivious MC, and perhaps a meddling cat???

Forrest and Jonathan were adorable. Jonathan has a case of “hot man? Flirting with me? For real? Couldn’t be!” And because of that he is completely oblivious to how serious Forrest is when he’s flirting with him, and also doesn’t respond the best way to Forrest showing interest. Both Forrest and Jonathan have had bad relationships in the past which makes Jonathan really guarded of his heart whereas it makes Forrest only consider a real relationship with someone special. (Spoiler: Jonathan is the special one he just doesn’t believe it).

I loved how at the end is was Jonathan’s wish that needed to be fulfilled and how it was probably the easiest wish to grant. I just loved these two together and am excited to read their next adventure!

[Jacquie Stewart · Rating 5 out of 5]

Plenty of UST
Cute and with a touch of magic thrown into the mix, Merrry & Sprite is a slow burn story with a frenemies vibe.
Jonathan works to keep Forrest at arms length, he doesn't want to be a one, so he's always got a caustic remark ready.
Forrest flirts relentlessly but in a really adorable and respectful way and the granting wishes pushes them together.
I loved the small town vibe and hope for other stories set there.
A lower heat book with the focus on the feelings between them

[Monika · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm starting off the Holiday Season early with a fun, sweet read.

QUICK THOUGHTS

** Holiday/Christmas (not a huge role)
** Rom Com
** There's a bit of Magic - with a little black cat ;)
** Small eccentric town
** Sweet & fluffy
** Heart warming
** No real angst
** Enemies to lovers
** Opposites attract
** Slow burn
** Lots of snarky banter
** Really light on sex
** Made me chuckle
** Loved the MCs... Jonathan & Forrest
** I was rooting for those two :)
** Comfort read

[R · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jonathan wants to want Forrest but he just can’t take a chance on a player. Then he starts granting wishes alongside Forrest and his view changes.

Slow burn/enemies to lovers. Low angst. I really liked the holiday spirit in this story. What I’ve always envisioned Christmas would be like in small town America.

Sweet storytelling, I liked it.

I received an arc of this book.

[Amber Lewis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute, Warm Vibes

4.5 stars rounded up

This story was a fun and cozy read. I laughed so many times. I really enjoyed it. If you need a quick holiday read with all the warm, fuzzy feelings and a but of spice, this might be the read for you.

[Elley Murray]

DNF - written in third person present tense (aka the Devil's tense, *shudder*)

[Candice · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars, so adorable

[Heike]

This is kiddy humor, the Jonathan guy is a prick, and Forrest is dumb. So there is that.
DNF at 34%.