by
All Bailey wants for Christmas is the one man he can’t have—his brother’s best friend.
Turning twenty-five and still a virgin, Bailey has barely dated, let alone acted on the private fantasies featuring his brother’s best friend, newly retired hockey star, Kai. All he wants is for Kai to love him, but after a summer when Kai’s anger drove them apart, love doesn’t seem possible at all.
When Kai goes home to Wishing Tree, he knows he owes everyone an apology, not least of all to the man he loves. He’s convinced he can be the man Bailey deserves, and he needs to show Bailey how much he’s changed.
The only problem? Bailey has secrets he’s scared will drive Kai away, and Kai is running out of time to convince Bailey that falling in love starts with a wish, and can end up in forever.
The Wishing Tree is a standalone small-town Christmas MM romance with perfect snow, twinkling lights, a first real kiss, a shy virgin with a silken kink, a retired hockey player, and all the Christmas feels.
- 1 Read list
Publisher: Love Lane Books Limited
Editors:
Cover Artists:
Genres:
Pairings: M-M
Heat Level: 4
Romantic Content: 5
Ending: Click here to reveal
Character Identities: Gay
Tropes: Age Difference, Best Friend’s Sibling, Coming Home, First Time, Friends to Lovers, Hurt / Comfort, Small Town
Word Count: 47700
Setting: Vermont, USA
Languages Available: English, French, German, Italian
Series Type: Same Universe / Various Characters
4.5 Stars
The Wishing Tree is easily my favourite M/M holiday read of 2021.
I knew very early on that this was going to be a hit for me, after the characters burrowed into my heart in the span of one very sweet and emotionally charged opening flashback chapter, which set the perfect tone for everything that happened after.
This was such a romantic read, following a lifetime-in-the-making love story between small-town leads, Bailey, the shy introverted virgin, and Kai, the star hockey player returning home to build a life with the man he’s secretly loved for years.
This story was rich with emotion and wonderful character connections, not only between Bailey and Kai, who have adored one another most of their lives, but also in the connections these men had with their families, who are extremely close-knit and already linked through other married siblings.
I’m a sucker for a best-friends-brother story done right, and this one spectacularly hit a lot of my buttons. The romance was on point in all aspects for me, making me goofy smile one minute and swoon the next. Besides the slight niggle that there wasn’t more on-page sexual exploration, especially considering Bailey’s virgin status, this was otherwise pitch perfect.
I’m honestly already thinking about reading this one again, that’s how much I loved it. ❤️
