I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. This was a current retelling of the Parent Trap and a Hallmark Christmas story. I think kids will enjoy this fun story.

I am in Love! This was so freaking cute and good wintery cozy read!I loved the story, the world building and meeting the different characters. I felt completely immersed in the story and couldn't stop reading it.

In LET IT GLOW, in a chance meeting during rehearsals for a holiday pageant at a senior citizen’s center, Holly and Aviva discover they are identical twins. They hatch a plan to swap identities with a big reveal to their families coming at the pageant performance, allowing each to experience the different holiday traditions the other’s family celebrates. Lots of hi-jinks ensue as the girls assume the other’s identity and evade close calls to try to keep the switch a secret while learning about each other’s holiday traditions and developing a greater appreciation for their own. One of the highlights of the book is the wonderful relationships the girls share with their grandparents—Aviva with her grandmother and Holly with her grandfather. Playing out from the alternating points of view of each girl, this one is a fun and cozy holiday themed twist on the classic “twins trading places” story.

A lovely holiday story with a very fun plot and relatable family and sibling dynamics! Aviva and Holly are endearing protagonists, and readers will love seeing their adventure unfold. Sweet and satisfying!

Thank you to Netgalley for the review copy of Let it Glow by Marissa Meyer and Joanne Levy. This book was dubbed "The Parent Trap, but make it Holiday themed," and it did not disappoint. I found this book to be so whimsical and fun.

Aviva Davids was adopted into a loving Jewish family, but she never feels "Jewish" enough to claim her culture. Holly Martin was adopted by a single mother and lives with her and Gramps. Neither are aware that near by, they have a twin! A chance encounter at the local retirement home changes everything. The girls decide to experience each others' lives and reveal the secret to their families at the retirement home pageant. Through the process, both girls discover a lot about each other and themselves.

It was a delightful story with a lovely cast of characters. I would highly recommend this book!

A wonderful, holiday season story with characters you can relate to. Meyer and Levy have carefully crafted these characters to make readers find commonalities with both and show that even if we don’t believe or celebrate the same things we can learn from each other.

Two adopted girls discover they are identical twins; one is Jewish and the other celebrates Christmas, so they decide to secretly swap places. This is not only a fun holiday book but gives a wonderful peek into two very different sets of holiday traditions. The authors do a fabulous job creating realistic characters with believable families, making this story one I can recommend for all middle grade readers.

This book is everything. I think it is such a fresh perspective on twins finding each other and trading places. I love that both twins have a different cultural background and ways to celebrate the holiday. That when they trade places, they get to experience each’s unique holiday celebrations is just perfection. I think that having kids see and learn different celebrations is so important. I know that my daughter last year was fascinated by Hanukkah, and while I personally am not Jewish, I tried to find different food experiences we could try and got books from the library so she could learn more about it. It can be hard during the holidays to figure out how best to celebrate your true self. Especially if the whole world is promoting Christmas, but I loved grandma’s perspective on the situation. Overall, this is a beautiful book highlighting how amazing and unique each holiday is. I think it will resonate with children who celebrate either Hanukkah or Christmas.
Thank you so much to Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this title.

Let it Glow is an adorable middle grade novel featuring two identical twins separated at birth! Though both girls knew they were adopted, somehow neither family knew there was a sister living in the same town, until the girls meet at a retirement community talent show audition. Shenanigans follow as Holly and Aviva switch families for a few days to learn about each other's religions and winter holiday celebrations.

This was a charming, feel good middle grade holiday story that sees two adopted identical tweens meeting at an old age care home and signing up for the only Jewish holiday performance. Full of a great cast of diverse characters and lots of Parent trap esque family swap vibes, this was an enjoyable story about found family, Jewish heritage, identity and traditions that was also good on audio and perfect for fans of books like Not your all-American girl by Madelyn Rosenberg and authors like AJ Sass. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!

Cute cover. It’s an easy sell from that standpoint. And it’s a cute read. Very sweet. The only problem is that it’s almost too sweet, bordering on unrealistic. Love the premise, but the writing style is just average. I had hoped for something more compelling from Marissa Meyer.

Aviva and Holly are twins, adopted to different families at birth. Aviva is Jewish. Holly is Christian. Neither family is very religious and neither family knows about the other twin. Aviva’s bubbe lives in a nursing home and Aviva, who loves to perform, is easily enticed into participating in the annual Christmas pageant. She happens to be at the nursing home auditioning on the same day Holly and her grandfather are taking a tour of the facility. The two girls see each other and figure out they are twins. Aviva wants to perform an original Hanukkah song and since Holly loves to write stories she agrees to help with it. Since each girl wants to learn about the other holiday, they decide to switch places without their family’s knowledge and keep their secret a surprise until the pageant performance.

Stories where twins switch places are always fun. The antics, mishaps, and near run-ins make for great plot pleasers, especially when the two personalities are so different. Personalities aside, it’s nice to see these girls accept and appreciate the differences, and even step out of their comfort zones. Also nice to learn a bit about Hanukkah and see both Jewish and Christian families accepting the other religion.

Not bad, but all in all, it’s an average read. Nice story, but nothing that takes it to the next level or makes it standout in an oversaturated book market.

This was such a sweet, fun and meaningful read. I loved the way that Holly and Aviva bond throughout the book. This reminded me of the parent trap and I loved it so much. I loved the relationships they both had with their grandparents and how Holly learned about being Jewish. This was such a sweet book. I loved it so much and highly recommend it for a classroom.

Let it Glow is a Parent-Trap-esque story with a holiday twist! When Holly and Aviva unexpectedly meet during rehearsal for the holiday pageant at their grandparents' retirement home, they're flabbergasted to find that they look exactly alike and have the same birthday. Though both girls have been adopted by loving families, they find that in their quest to reveal their surprise to their parents, they might have to overcome misunderstandings, cultural differences, and for Holly, her biggest fear.

I love the way that Holly and Aviva trade places to learn more about each other and their family culture. Aviva is a born performer with two brothers, a loving grandmother, Bubbe, and a desire to know more about her Jewish heritage. Holly is happy with her mom and Gramps and their simple Christmas traditions, but she finds that as she plays the role of her sister, she has to get out of her comfort zone.

This was a sweet story that middle-grade readers will enjoy. Although I found it highly predictable (and, to be totally honest, Aviva was super annoying), I can hand it to my children knowing that the story will enrich their understanding of what holidays mean to various groups of people.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sending me an early electronic copy to review. All opinions are my own.

A heartwarming story with The Parent Trap meets White Christmas vibes. Aviva and Holly are adopted and are shocked when they bump into each other at a holiday pageant audition. How could they be twins but not know about each other!? Of course, they decide to switch places in the lead up to the holidays, but that swap doesn’t come without its challenges, surprises, and unexpected love they feel for their families and each other.
I really appreciate how Meyer and Levy organically folded in traditions of Hanukkah and Christmas, offered perspective on what it’s like to be the “other” in many different contexts, and ultimately challenged readers to think about how being your true self is bravery worth pursuing.
I highly recommend this book for middle grade and early high school readers. It’s the perfect way to kick off and/or celebrate the holiday season. It would also make a great holiday read aloud in classrooms, providing conversation starters on inclusion, traditions, and acceptance.

Thank you, Netgalley and Macmillan for providing me an advanced copy for my honest review.

This was such an adorable book. It made me think of the Parent Trap but set around the holidays. I love that it centered around Christmas and Hanukkah celebrations. The twin swapping was so fun, and I thought the characters were super clever in how they continued to hide each other from their families.

My favorite aspect, however, was that both girls had special relationships with a grandparent. There aren’t enough granddaughter-grandfather and granddaughter-grandmother relationships in fiction, so it was super sweet that this book focused on that.

It did feel a little long at times for middle grade, and it wasn't super easy to tell the girls apart from chapter to chapter. I don't know if that was due to the formatting of the arc (especially for their text message conversations) or if it would have worked better if the story was told from a limited third person instead of first. I also wish there had been an epilogue to find out what was in the letter since that was one of the bigger side plots and it felt a little unresolved.

Overall, this is a super cute book about family and the holidays.

I went into Let It Glow without knowing much about it. I absolutely loved this middle grade story. It will warm your heart and have you rooting for all of the characters. I would love a sequel!

Holly and Aviva, twins separated at birth and adopted into culturally different families, reunite when they meet at a holiday pageant rehearsal. Aviva, who is longing to learn more about her Jewish heritage, will be performing a Hanukkah song. So what that she doesn't know any yet?! Holly, who is visiting with her reluctant gramps, is just trying to stay out of the way while her mom tries convincing him this is a good move.

Of course they decide to team up and switch places to learn about each other's holidays and families!

This is a fun holiday story that will resonate with all readers who have ever fantasized about having a long lost twin. I enjoyed hearing each girl's POV as they learned about the unfamiliar holidays and some of the misconceptions and stereotypes they had to overcome.

Fun middle grade novel about Christmas and Hanukah and seeing things from other people's perspective. New found identical twins with the obligatory life swap but done in a way that it felt fresh.

What a cute book. I loved the parent trap twist. This will be a fun read aloud with lots of great discussion topics. So fun.

What a very cute story! Leave it to marissa meyer to write a heartfelt story that captures everyone's interest. I loved it from the very beginning, and throughout the story there were elements woven into the storytelling that made me love it even more. Definitely a book that I can recommend, especially in the build-up towards christmas/hanukkah.