Canadian Boyfriend by Jenny Holiday-review

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date January 30, 2024

A charming and heartfelt romance about a woman who comes face to face with the fake Canadian boyfriend she made up as a teenager.

The fake Canadian boyfriend. It’s a thing. The get out of jail free card for all kinds of sticky social situations. “I can’t go to prom; I’m going to be out of town visiting my boyfriend in Canada.” It’s all over pop culture. But Aurora Evans did it first. Once upon a time she met a teenage hockey player at the Mall of America. He was from Canada. He was a boy. She may have fudged the “friend” part a little, but it wasn’t like she was ever going to see him again. It wasn’t like she hurt anyone. Until she did—years later—on both counts.

When pro hockey player and recent widower Mike Martin walks into the dance studio where Aurora Evans teaches, he’s feeling overwhelmed with the fact that his wife may not have been exactly who he thought she was and the logistics of going back to work. As one of the few people his angry, heartbroken daughter connects with, Aurora agrees to be a pseudo nanny to help him navigate the upcoming school year and hockey season. To his surprise, she turns out to be the perfect balm for him as well. Aurora gets him. The real him underneath his pro jersey. And yet, he still finds himself holding back, unable to fully trust again—especially when he finds out the secret Aurora’s been hiding from him.

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REVIEW:CANADIAN BOYFRIEND by Jenny Holiday is a stand alone, contemporary, adult, romance story line focusing on twenty-nine year old, dance instructor turned nanny Aurora ‘Rory’ Evans, and thirty-five year old, professional hockey player/single dad Mike Martin.

SOME BACKGROUND: Years earlier, Aurora Evans briefly met Mike Martin and his friends at a coffee shop in Minnesota, and as she struggled with high school relationships and a possible future dance career, Aurora invented a Canadian boyfriend, using Mike Martin as her model for romance and love. Fast forward to present day wherein Aurora would once again come face to face with man who inspired her hopes and dreams, a man who remembers nothing about meeting our story line heroine.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Mike and Rory) covering approximately one year in the life, CANADIAN BOYFRIEND follows the building relationship between our story line couple. Mike Martin’s hockey career is slowing down but a two year extension meant finding a temporary nanny for his daughter Olivia while his regular nanny took some personal time. Mike never expected to find help with his daughter’s dance instructor Miss Rory, the woman with whom Mike would reluctantly fall in love. As Rory grew closer to both MIke and Olivia, Aurora would realize Mike’s inability to let go of the past was about to destroy the love growing between our story line couple.

The world building focuses on Aurora’s failed ballet career; the dance mom who refused to let her daughter live the life she wanted; and a daughter’s failure to just say no. Meanwhile, we are pulled into the grief and anger that is Mike Martin in the wake of his wife’s death, and the secrets she was hoping to take to the grave. Unable to trust anyone including our story line heroine, Mike’s inability to commit, and constant need to push Aurora away would lead to a decision that made no one happy.

The relationship between Mike and Aurora begins as a friendship predicated upon a professional relationship. Aurora is Olivia’s dance instructor, soon to be temporary nanny, and Mike is a man on a mission to take more than he is willing to give.The back and forth dance between Aurora and Mike is heart breaking; neither one willing to commit but Mike’s mixed messages would become too much for our story line heroine, and in the end she would have to walk away to protect her heart. The $ex scenes are limited but passionate.

The secondary and supporting characters are charismatic. We are introduced to Mike’s parents, as well as his former in-laws; Aurora’s resentful and embittered mother; fellow dancer Gretchen; hockey player Ivan Zadorov and his wife Lauren; and Mike’s daughter Olivia.

CANADIAN BOYFRIEND is a story of secrets and lies, heart break and grief, acceptance, forgiveness, family and love. The premise is captivating; the very slow building romance is emotional and barely ignites before the end of the story; the characters are broken yet struggling to heal but Mike Martin’s reaction to Aurora’s confession about the past was unbelievable, over the top, and completely unjustified. Mike’s behavior towards Aurora was unacceptable yet our heroine was all too quick to forgive without a heartfelt apology.

Copy supplied by Netgalley

Reviewed by Sandy