This was the queer holiday romcom I didn’t know I needed. This book started off strong, showing immediately the kind of life Matthew is used to and how he’s not happy being shipped off to a tiny town in the Berkshires after a mistake that TOTALLY wasn’t that big of a deal.

There was so much about this book that I enjoyed. Every aspect of Matthew’s character was wonderfully written. I never fully saw him as a bad person. Bratty rich boy, absolutely, and there’s no way I would’ve been able to stand him if I wasn’t in his head. The depth of his character was quite interesting and, as someone with anxiety, incredibly relatable at times. Hector was the perfect contrast to everything Matthew was. They balanced each other out perfectly as characters, and that played well into their relationship, even at the very beginning of the book. I absolutely adored the side characters as well. Everyone had their own little story going on, something to root for outside of the main goal.

This book is filled with so much love and trust it hurts (in a good way, of course). I noted with Janovsky’s last book, Never Been Kissed, the clear communication that happened between characters, and that carried over perfectly into this book, even through Matthew’s and everyone else’s personal struggles. There’s so much about this story that warms my heart, and I’m looking forward to being able to reread around the holidays.

I appreciated that we aren’t supposed to like Matthew prince to begin with but there was not a single redeeming quality 10% in. Stopped reading. Holiday books are difficult in our libraries already. This one wouldn’t likely move. It’s probably most likely to be enjoyed by high schoolers.

Thank you to NetGalley and sourcebooks Casablanca for the ARC.

Thank you to Sourcebooks Casablanca for a NetGalley ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Pub date: 10/4/22
Genre: romcom (queer, forced proximity, opposites attract, small town, Christmas)
In one sentence: When spoiled Matthew Prince buys an island, his parents cut him off and force him to spend Christmas in a small town with his grandparents - but the attractive Hector will keep these holidays ho-ho-hot.

Janosky is part of the writers' group bringing us #Holigays22, and I am here for it! I needed a fun read when I picked up his book, and Matthew Prince 100% delivered! He's like early season Schitt's Creek David Rose (but in a they'd be friends way, not a carbon copy way) and super fun to get to know. I loved his character growth as he settled into the town away from his credit cards and fancy parties. Hector was swoon-worthy and the perfect character to balance out Matthew.

Cuteness abounds (with a bit of steam too) - add this one to your TBR if you love Christmas romcoms!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC! Super cute, LGBT, A Christmas Carol inspired holiday romcom. Likable characters. Highly recommended.

I absolutely love romances that depict real mental health disorders. You’re a Mean One, Matthew Prince is an adorable rom-com that does just that!

This book gives Schitt’s Creek vibes in the best ways. It made me laugh out loud many times! A queer romance with SO much heart - This became an instant holiday comfort read for me. Trust me - you’ll absolutely love this one!

Matthew is the son of a bestselling author and spent the majority of his life in the spotlight. After a PR nightmare-in-the-making, he is shipped off to live with his grandparents and Hector, an ax (sorry, not ax, meld) chopping man.

While sharing a bunk bed with Hector in his grandparent’s basement, they start planning a gala for the small business association and learn that Christmas may be the perfect time for miracles.

I admit, I hated Matthew at the beginning of this book, but his character arc was so well done. I loved the idea of a small town with progressive, LGBTQIA+ friendly individuals, and this book expertly dealt with mental illness, specifically anxiety, and being kind to yourself and others.

I loved every character in this book, with my extra fave being Noelle. I think this could easily be a Christmas classic.

Thank you to NetGalley, Timothy Janovsky, and Sourcebooks Casablanca for providing this e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Super cute and totally put me in the holiday spirit in the middle of summer! If you liked Red, White, and Royal Blue than this one is for you! This was a really fun small-town, enemies to lovers, holiday story. I’ve always been attracted to the rich kid gets in trouble and gets sent away kind of stories, so I really enjoyed this one.I really got invested in Matthew and his future more than his love story with Hector.

Overall, super good. I cannot wait to recommend this one to all of my friends and read it again during the holiday season!

This review will be posted to my Goodreads and Amazon accounts immediately and to my instagram account (@ginganinja333), and to my newly created bookstagram (@paulas.book.nook) upon publication on 10/4/2022.

First of all, thank you to NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Casablanca for letting me read this book in advance.

I literally loved this book!

It has everything; enemies to lovers, forced roommates, opposites attract, slow burn, christmas spirit and holiday romance.

''Matthew Prince is young, rich, and thoroughly spoiled. So what if his parents barely remember he exists and the press is totally obsessed with him? He's on top of the world. But one major PR misstep later, and Matthew is cut off and shipped away to spend the holidays in his grandparents' charming small town hellscape. Population: who cares?

It's bad enough he's stuck in some festive winter wonderland-it's even worse that he has to share space with Hector Martinez, an obnoxiously attractive local who's unimpressed with anything and everything Matthew does.''

If you liked Red, White & Royal Blue, this book is for you! I would like to read Timothy Janovsky's other books in the future. It was a quick read and so enjoyable.

This book was a really fun holiday small-town MLM romance! There's nothing too special about it, but I don't think that's the reason we turn to these novels. It was comforting, fun, and enjoyable to read. The discussions of mental health were appropriate and considerate. The humor felt distinctly 'millennial tries to appease gen-z' but this seems to be the trend in contemporary romance novels anyways. Overall, I'd recommend to friends

This book was so adorable! Even though I read it in summer, it brought the warm and joy of a Christmas season to life. I thought Matthew's journey was really well done and I loved the anxiety representation. The anxiety attacks and the stigma were really well done and as someone with anxiety, I felt really seen. Hector was amazingly sweet along with the grandparents and Noelle (and other supporting characters). It was a little slow in the beginning, but I was glued to the book by 1/3 of the way in. 1.5/5 for spice. *Spoiler* Also, even if it wasn't intentional, using Cornelia Street in the epilogue when that Taylor Swift song really represented the end of the book, was perfect.

Matthew Prince believes that he is on top of the world. He's got a sizeable following on social media, enough money to do whatever he wants (and then some), and his name alone can get him just about anything he wants. After his lavish spending goes too far, his parents cut him off and send him to spend the holidays with his grandparents. This isn't the fun, rich grandmother he likes. Instead, he finds himself in a small town where everyone knows everyone else and their drama.

There he runs into two main issues: the town loves Christmas more than anything else, and Hector. Matthew has long stopped believing in the magic of Christmas, so being forced to share a room with one of the town's biggest supporters of the holiday might be more than he can handle. To make it back home to his family and his money, he has to prove to his mother that he can be selfless. So when the coordinator of the town's annual holiday gala is unable to do it, Matthew steps in to help, with Hector by his side. However, Matthew will have to learn how to enjoy Christmas again to deliver a gala that the townspeople will love, and he'll have to do it while figuring out how he feels about Hector.

I'm usually not a fan of the "rich kid goes too far, so they are sent away to some small, slow town to learn a lesson about life and learn to like it" trope, but I actually really liked this one. I felt like Matthew's character growth was genuine, and the reader can see that he truly does try. I loved watching Matthew warm up to the people in the town, and the side characters in this book made it even better. They were all well-rounded and felt so realistic. I loved Timothy Janovsky's debut novel, Never Been Kissed, and You're a Mean One, Matthew Prince, was just as good, if not better.

I absolutely loved this books, there were new approaches to different popular tropes that had me very excited. Hector and Matthew are a chaotic couple but i love them!

(review on instagram)

This was cute! It's an easy holiday read with definite Schitt's Creek vibes. I'd classify this as New Adult, the MCs are in their early twenties and read quite young at times. I appreciated one of the MCs dealing with anxiety, even though his experience with anxiety didn't have much at all in common with my own. And I was so glad to see that character seek therapy for his anxiety and for that to be on page. I also liked the quirky small town and the relationship between Matthew and his grandparents, who were sweet and adorable. While I'm not sure magical small towns like the one in this book actually exist, I loved the idea of a small town that is so inclusive and LGBTQ+ friendly. If you're gonna make some small town magic happen in a story, that's a great direction for it to go. The romance was also cute, though there were times I felt the chemistry and connection between the MCs was lacking.

While I enjoyed it, there were some aspects that weren't a great match for me. Fashion, fame and party planning are very much not my interests, and I was annoyed with Matthew at first. I think that's purposeful, but it's hard to be in the head of a character I'm annoyed with for long stretches of time. And the turnaround for Matthew and his parents felt somewhat abrupt to me rather than organic and realistic. I think the main miss for me was that the characters didn't have as much depth as I'd have liked. The story and characters felt pretty surface level. The book was very similar to a made for TV Christmas movie, and like many such movies, a lot of the characters felt more like caricatures than real people. I just wish the story had a bit more nuance and a little more to delve into with the characters and their connections. The writing style also wasn't quite my cup of tea. I didn't always connect to the emotional moments and sometimes the dialogue felt unrealistic. I also wish the third act low moment hadn't been a big misunderstanding caused by outside forces, something a bit less over the top would have had more of an emotional impact for me. And the ending and epilogue felt somewhat rushed.

I am so here for the deluge of queer holiday releases this year. If you're looking for queer Hallmark movie vibes, pick this one up for a fun, easy read.

This book sets up a great holiday romance for Schitt’s Creek fans, but for me the romance didn’t work. Matthew and Hector are great characters and were cute together, but I didn’t feel like they had any chemistry. It felt like it just happened without much build up so the relationship while I knew it was going to happen, just felt more forced than natural to me. The best part of this book though wasn’t the relationship it was Matthew and his personal growth. Matthew was a funny, charismatic, and high maintenance main character. I loved seeing the person Matthew became while planning the gala without losing himself in the process. By the end I was reading more for Matthew and his life and future than I was for his relationship with Hector.

Overall, this was a good holiday book, but I’d recommend for the character development over the romance.

After I saw Chloe Liese, one of my favorite authors, recommend this book and Alexandria Bellefleur (another one of my favorite authors) blurb it-- I knew I had to pick up Timothy Janovsky's latest novel, You're a Mean One, Matthew Prince. This book was advertised as Schitt's Creek meets Red, White, and Royal Blue and boy did it deliver! Filled with humor and heart, this holiday novel had me entranced from the first page! I thoroughly enjoyed this whole book and will definitely be recommending it to friends and family when the holiday season gets closer! Special thanks to the publisher for gifting me with an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. Timothy Janovsky is a new favorite author for sure and I can't wait to read more books by him.

Thank you Netgalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for an advanced copy in exchange for a review!

Matthew Prince believes that is on top of the world. He's got a sizeable following on social media, enough money to do whatever he wants (and then some), and his name alone can get him just about anything he wants. After his lavish spending goes too far, his parents cut him off and send him to spend the holidays with his grandparents. This isn't the fun, rich grandmother he likes. Instead, he finds himself in a small town where everyone knows everyone else and their drama.

There he runs into two main issues: the town loves Christmas more than anything else, and Hector. Matthew has long stopped believing in the magic of Christmas, so being forced to share a room with one of the town's biggest supporters of the holiday might be more than he can handle. To make it back home to his family and his money, he has to prove to his mother that he can be selfless. So when the coordinator of the town's annual holiday gala is unable to do it, Matthew steps in to help with Hector by his side. However, Matthew will have to learn how to enjoy Christmas again to deliver a gala that the townspeople will love, and he'll have to do it while figuring out how he feels about Hector.

I'm usually not a fan of the "rich kid goes too far, so they are sent away to some small, slow town to learn a lesson about life and learns to like it" trope, but I actually really liked this one. I felt like Matthew's character growth was genuine, and the reader can see that he truly does try. I loved watching Matthew warm to the people in the town, and the side characters in this book made it even better. They were all well-rounded and felt so realistic. I loved Timothy Janovsky's debut novel Never Been Kissed, and You're a Mean One, Matthew Prince was just as good if not better. This book releases on October 4, so be sure to preorder your copy now!

Matthew Prince has spent his entire life financially spoiled by his ultra wealthy family. That all comes to an end when he makes a purchase that crosses a line, a private island (but it’s okay, he has plans!)

To try and teach him a lesson - and avoid a PR disaster over the whole deal - they send him away to stay with his grandparents for the holidays. No money, credit, staff or social media. He’s staying smack dab in the middle of nowhere. In a small town and even smaller house. This is *not* going to help his anxiety (or his social standing!) To make matters worse, his grandparents are already sharing their home with local student Hector Martinez. He doesn’t want to share the space any more than Matthew does, and is the opposite of impressed with all his big city ways.

In an attempt to get back in his parents’ good graces - and hopefully be allowed back home sooner - when the original organizer falls through, Matthew agrees to his grandmother’s request to put on a charity function with Hector’s help.
Cue many disagreements and bumps along the way before the pieces start to fall into place.

-

This one could easily become a new favorite comfort read, I’m so glad I didn’t have to wait until actual Christmas to read it (now I can reread it after the trees up and decorated this year!)

There was just so much to love!
For trope fans, there’s riches to rags, some top notch forced proximity (bunk beds!), enemies to lovers - or at least opposites attract or different worlds. Strong Schitt’s creek vibes, including a cookie moment that was very ‘fold the cheese’. Agreement on the only correct choice for best Christmas Carol movie version. A grand gesture moment that had tears in my eyes. A perfectly happy epilogue.

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for the arc!

The second I saw the title of this book I knew I immediately needed to read it. However, I wish the writing was as good as the title. As much as I expected to love this book, I found it boring. I had to push myself to sit down and read it which is unlike me. I found the characters had no real chemistry, the main character was hard to listen to, and the romance didn’t seem authentic.

You're a Mean One, Matthew Prince follows Matthew who is cut off and forced to spend the holidays with his grandparents. Not only is he stuck with his grandparents but he finds out that his grandparents are letting Hector live with them. Matthew wants nothing more than to go back home. He comes up with a plan to organize the charity gala after the coordinator steps down. He figured this is the perfect way to show his parents he has learned his lesson. However, the one bright spot might just be Hector. 

Overall I thought that this was a pretty cute Christmas read. I really hated the character of Matthew though. He was just too stuck up for me through out the whole novel. I mean I know that you are not supposed to like him at the start of the novel. But I didn't even care for him once he started becoming nice. I did love how Hector was the exact opposite of Matthew. I do think that they made a super cute couple. And if it was not for Hector I do not think I would have liked this book. But I do think it is worth the read and I did find it cute. I would suggest this book. Thank you so much NetGalley, Sourcebooks, and Timothy Janovsky for the ARC of this book.

Make no mistake, this is a story for the holiday season. Christmas, holiday activities, and winter weather feature heavily, right down to baking cookies! This was all the light hearted wholesome goodness of a Hallmark movie. that is perfect for a cold winters day, complete with learning the meaning of Christmas and all.
For the big city socialite in a small town, Matthew Prince was more feel good story than comedy.
The one thing that didn't land for me here was the romance, I definitely read it as a friendship for most of the story and didn't see the chemistry.