To Touch the Light

Thanks goodness, finally a Hanukkah romance that is better than meh. I haven't read any of the previous books in this series (and Lindsey is a completely new-to-me author) but that didn't detract from my enjoyment at all. It was so refreshing to find a well-written holiday romance that acknowledged that not everyone is joyfully celebrating with friends and family. Watching Mario and Viktor fall in love quickly (but fairly realistically - they have known each other as work colleagues but never interacted much) and banish the deep loneliness both felt was exactly the holiday spirit that I needed. In a concrete way, Mario rescues Viktor from poverty and poor health, but Viktor rescues Mario just as much by showing that he loves him for exactly who he is, a transgender man with scars both literal and figurative. And Hanukkah is part of the story organically and symbolically but not in a way that makes it look like the author is trying to cram every detail of the holiday's origins and traditions into a contemporary romance framework.

Just lovely. I will definitely be checking out the other titles in the Irons and Works series and hoping that they are just as satisfying.