Debby Caruso

Acquired Book By: I was approached about reading this holiday-themed Women's Fiction story shortly before the holidays began. The author found me on Twitter and I thought it would be lovely to combine reading this story with my holiday themed Cosy Mysteries - except that is before I fell ill this December and all my holiday readings were pushed forward closer to Christmas. I received a complimentary copy of “Merry Hanukkah” direct from the author Debby Caruso in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

We enter Rhonda's life at her wedding - where despite the festive nature of the day, there is a foreboding undercurrent of doubt in regards to whether or not her in-laws truly accept her as they're daughter-in-law; as an ill-fated scene played out at the height of the celebrations. You could gather there was something brewing in the background - perhaps, the in-laws weren't certain of their son's choice due to the combining of their religious backgrounds? As the ceremony was delightfully equally divided between both their traditions, uniting them both through love and the faith they shared between them. Yet, I could imagine this might not settle well for traditionalists who might prefer the ceremony had been singular rather than plural and spilt.

It is here where you see how Rhonda is trying to balance her life through the holidays - as we fast forward a bit to where she's bursting with anxiety about how to combine Christmas and Hanukkah - or rather, to come up with a crazy plan of action with her best friend Dez (whose never out of zingers and zany remarks!) as this is the year she wants to prove to her mother-in-law she and James can have a happily ever after as a family who celebrates both religious heritages. The irony though is that she is approaching it as if she needs to make it the picture perfect reality she envisions rather than trying to keep it a bit more real and humble, knowing not everything has to go smoothly in order to be the best holiday you've celebrated.

Before Rhonda can make her plans though, life starts to grab her at the quick! Her agency wants her to be part of the team who can deliver an ad campaign worthy of a New Year and her husband's family goes through the process of loss before the holidays even start to blink into sight. It proves that no matter how hard you try to organise your life, there are days and moments you can't plan for ahead of time. Life finds a way to unsettle your status quo and take you for a bit of a ride whenever things seem to be a bit on the quiet side.

It doesn't take long to size up where her mother-in-law stands on the issue of religion but you have to feel for James, as it didn't seem to be as important to him that Rhonda came from a different background in faith than he had himself. Dez is Rhonda's buffer - the best buddy to have as she knows how to charm her friend into a smile or a laugh, especially at moments where Rhonda is feeling super stressed and unable to focus. Whereas the large family Rhonda has married into has a few kind souls in it as well - such as Uncle Ben, who has the tendency of being the mediator of the family. He wants everyone to play fair and be kind to each other - not that they usually listen to him until a moment where everyone is at their wit's end but at least, he's there in the background trying to keep the peace.

You gather the feeling Rhonda doesn't feel as comfortable being James' family as she is never quite certain where they stand on the issue of a wife being outside their religion. It is almost like a wedge that has grown between the two families but no one wants to vocalise, address or do anything about except to talk about it in low whispers or in conversations just out of reach of ears who could take offence to the chatter about which religion is best to keep or dismiss. It has to be difficult though - especially if one side of the family is not lenient on these kinds of issues or if they aren't open to multi-religious families.

I was laughing by the time Rhonda was in full-on Hanukkah planning mode! Not only is she trying to outdo herself by preparing the foods from scratch but what really had me smiling was when she knew more about Hanukkah traditions than James! It was comforting actually because it seems like this has the tendency of being true - of my own friends who celebrated Hanukkah, whenever we would discuss our different traditions between Christmas and Hanukkah, I had more memories of both celebrations than they had of theirs. I never truly understood that in a lot of ways, as I have met with people who love Hanukkah and have a lot of rituals and traditions attached to it as much as we do with how we celebrate Christmas; so for me, it seemed strange finding some families do not focus on Hanukkah as much as others. For those reasons, this whole sequence of Rhonda and James discussing how to have Hanukkah was really a hilarious reminder that not everyone views all holidays the same!

As soon as you pick up Merry Hanukkah, you know your in for a delightful fun read - as Caruso has a natural talent for humour and wit; lacing in her style of Contemporary life with the fuell of comedy she evokes a sense of festive cheerfulness in her story. This isn't a story to take too seriously as at the heart of the story itself is the truer blissitude and purpose behind why we all celebrate the holidays together as best we can as we merge our families together. Not all families can agree on the details but for those of us who celebrated the holidays whilst combining traditions and memories, those were the holidays you remember the most. Where everyone found a way to come together uniting through the blessing of the season and finding a reason to celebrate the joyfulness of being together.

This is what you can pick up on whilst reading the story - as Caruso wants to show how even if you have a family at odds with one another on certain points, there is renewed hope in being able to come together for the special moments in life which unite us without having to worry about all the little particulars that no one will remember anyway!

Caruso has a quick style - similar to writing for screen where she places you in-scene rather immediately and lets each individual scene speak for itself. As you shift between the chapters, you notice her style as you don't wait long for embellishments on the previous disclosure and sequences, as you've found the plot has already moved forward. This works well for a short Holiday Contemporary like this one, as the pacing is matching the rush you feel at the holidays where there is never enough time to get everything accomplished you wish to get done.

// This is a quotation of my full review originally shared via jorielovesastory.com… (mehr)

A young woman's journey to find the truth about herself and how she could love again.

Danielle is a young woman who had a trying childhood. She is the product of a failed marriage and an even worse failed step father. Like many kids today, she lost her identity when her parents divorced. She spent her whole life not knowing her worth. When she meets the man of her dreams she hesitates and makes excuses for why she can't commit to a relationship. She had a difficult time coming to terms with her childhood experiences and learning how she could love and be loved again. When she finally meets the man of her dreams, her past haunts her and the future of their relationship lies in the hands of 9-11 terrorists. Although I loved Danielle's journey, and was moved by her realizations of life, I often wished she would offer more of her past life experiences instead of her day to day, minute by minute experience. The flashbacks to her childhood offered the reader a vivid picture of her upbringing and why she hesitates the way she does in love and life. I wished many of the scenes could have been elaborated on and many that were elaborated on could have been summarized. All in all, this was a beautiful story of life, love, and perseverance.… (mehr)