I really enjoy the nostalgic feelings Kayla Olson’s books bring me while reading. The whole time I was reading The Lodge, I kept imagining if one of the members of *NSYNC abruptly disappeared and I was the last reporter to interview him. And then went on to be hired to ghostwrite another member’s memoir years down the line. And THEN found myself wrapped up in way more than I ever anticipated when taking the job. And THEN - yeah, not done yet - add some romance at a wintry luxury ski resort into the mix. Oh what fun…

Seriously though, this is a tender-hearted romance that will make one think about the lives celebrities lead that the average person could never understand. Even those celebrities living the most public-facing lives will still always have things going on that no one outside the trusted inner circle will ever know about but *everyone* will speculate and have an opinion about. It’s amazing more celebrities don’t choose to abandon the life they know for peace and quiet. I’ve gone off on a bit of a tangent here, but the book carries a lot of depth below its surface.

The romance between Alix and Tyler amidst her writing retreat getaway is very sweet. With Hallmark-level-adorable and idyllic dates, meaningful conversations, and both learning to open up to someone else after guarding their hearts for a long while, I’m hard-pressed to describe the pair as anything but lovely. Even when chaos is thrown their way they face it and communicate, maybe not always getting it right the first time, but the effort and understanding is there.

There are a lot of side characters in the mix throughout the book. Their level of importance and necessity to the story varies. Some are definitely key and I appreciate what they added to the book. Others I could take or leave, but did see what the intended purpose was for including them.

I have been thoroughly entertained by both of Kayla Olson’s adult romance novels and look forward to reading more from her in the future. Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is THE perfect book to read in the winter! It makes you want to curl up in front of a fireplace with a hot chocolate in hand. So so perfect!

Alix Morgan is an entertainment writer and she recently got a huge opportunity at work to ghostwrite Sebastian Green’s memoir. Sebastian was part of one of the biggest boy bands in history called True North. The band broke up after band member Jett Beckett went missing, never to be seen again. So Sebastian went solo and still made it big.

Alix lives with her needy sister so she has a hard time focusing on writing the book so Sebastian sends Alix to Black Maple Lodge in Stowe, Vermont for a month to write.

During that time she befriends her next-door neighbor Tyler. Tyler is a ski instructor at the luxurious resort. They get close very quickly. Tyler is adorable and planned such cute dates for them. From ice skating to eating soft pretzels to looking at shooting stars.

The story has a great twist that will make you not want to put this book down.

I loved it so much from the boy band references to the romance between Alix and Tyler. I enjoyed this book so much that I didn’t want it to end.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for the ARC of The Lodge in exchange for an honest and independent review.

Guys..guys..GUYS!! Hand on bible, I enjoyed this book so very much! Having also enjoyed The Reunion by Kayla Olson, I was hoping I would be in for a treat, and this one did not disappoint. The storyline had me hooked from the beginning, even if I did see the plot twist coming from a mile away with blinding lights and a blaring horn. I really enjoyed that this was an adorable romance wrapped up in a bit of a mystery with an actual compelling storyline.

Alix and Tyler had such chemistry, it just jumped off the page and held on for dear life. I didn’t want to put this book down. In short summation, Alix is a ghost writer for a member of the boy band, True North, who reached peak popularity just before disintegrating into nothing after one of the two leading front men disappeared into oblivion. Alix has been tasked with writing the memoir of Sebastian Green, the second and only remaining front man of True North. In hopes of fueling her creative fires and getting some space to write, Sebastian offers Alix his penthouse at an ultra luxurious resort in Vermont for a month while she writes his memoir. Alix is off and running with zero interruptions until she meets Tyler, one of the lodge’s ski instructors and super conveniently (or inconveniently) her neighbor. Now all bets are off as Alix tries to keep her eyes on her novel and off her neighbor, but she’s fighting a battle she knows she’s going to lose.

All in all, I enjoyed this book so freaking much. Alix and Tyler are just adorable and Kayla does a great job of writing as if you’re watching a movie. I loved how easily it read, which is part of why I flew through this one. I highly recommend picking this one up this winter as it’s the perfect cozy weekend read. Coming to shelves near you Jan 7th!

This is a perfect winter read if you’re looking to cozy up on the couch during a snow storm. One part celeb gossip one part swoony romance with a side helping of some good old fashioned sister drama. I’m not a skier, but The Lodge had me wishing to get to Vermont and hit the slopes! If you prefer a low-spice romance, this one’s for you. Thank you to Atria and NetGalley for my gifted ARC!

I enjoyed every minute I spent reading The Lodge! It’s set in the winter and had all the winter vibes you’d expect. The female main character, Alix, was so likable, trustworthy, and down to earth. She made it so easy to get trapped in the story and not want to put it down. The voice recordings, social media posts, text messages, and news articles, brought it all together and made it such a fun read. I truly loved everything about this book and now I’m so sad that it’s over. Highly recommend!!

A huge thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for the advanced copy. All opinions expressed above are my own.

3.5/5 stars

This book was really cute and gave off excellent winter vibes. I want to go to a ski lodge immediately!

We follow Alix, an entertainment journalist, who has been recently asked to ghost wrote the memoir of famous ex-boyband member, Sebastian Green. Alix has extensive knowledge of said boyband because she used to cover them exclusively at the height of the bands career. The band broke up when Sebastian’s rival in the band and media, Jett Beckett, disappeared off the face of the earth. Sebastian invites Alix to stay at a fancy ski lodge in Vermont to write the book.

The mystery of what happened to Jett Beckett was an intriguing premise and I enjoyed seeing all the different media formats covered in the story. However, if the reveal was supposed to be a twist or a surprise- it did not succeed. I clocked the answer around page 50 and I started to get annoyed that Alix wasn’t picking up on it. Luckily, she figures it out about halfway through. The drama with all the band members was great and I enjoyed the developing relationship with Alix and Tyler as well. It did feel a little fast though considering there is no spice, they go from zero to 100 after like a week.

I do wish we could have seen a confrontation or even just a conversation between Jett, Sebastian, and River after it all comes out. We basically just skip to the epilogue (which was very cute though!).I also wish some sort of justice could have been served to their evil sounding manager!

Overall, I had a great time with this quick and cozy read and would recommend it!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Read this if you like:
•celebrity romance
•boy bands
•Vermont setting
•skiing

This was such a fun book. I really liked Alix. It had me wanting to take a trip to Vermont. Tyler is so special. Their relationship was adorable. Parts I guessed but that didn’t take away from the book at all. Thank you Atria for eARC!

I thoroughly enjoyed this one! It’s nothing crazy, but I really liked the cozy winter vibes of the romance. There’s not a lot of mainstream winter romances and I liked the setting of the lodge. I predicted the “twist” but I enjoyed that the author didn’t drag it until the third act to make it something crazy because I hate when authors do that. It had steady writing and pacing and the FMC and MMC were both lovely. I liked the author and boyband memoir aspect because it was interesting reading those dynamics. Also, I love puffin🐧 3.5 but rounded up on here

The Lodge by Kayla Olson follows Alix Morgan as she is trying to ghostwrite the famous Sebastian Green's memoir with almost no help from Sebastian aside from his voice notes about how much he hates his former boy band team member, Jett who disappeared. To help her focus, Sebastian sends her to a beautiful penthouse in picturesque Vermont where she meets Tyler. Tyler is her dreamy neighbor and a ski instructor who she starts developing a relationship with while trying to write the novel. And that's all I'll tell you about the book.

Okay, this book was so good but I guessed the twist almost immediately which was a big bummer. If you don't guess the twist immediately it would be sooo good though! My favorite part was that Tyler and Alix had great chemistry and their story was so sweet. However, I did not like the entire subplot with Alix's sister Lauren. Overall this closed door romance was charming and a nice cozy read. I would recommend it but don't try to be too clever and solve it because I was bummed out when I had.

Tropes: closed door romance, small town romance, cozy romance

Thank you to NetGalley, Atria Books, and Kayla Olson for giving me the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Slightly disappointed. Was really looking forward to this one for winter but so far 60% and characters feel kinda immature?
This is a fun light read but I’m struggling to finish it.

i really wanted to like this but so much of it fell flat. essentially, i could see the potential throughout the book, but every time i thought it was going to cross the finish line of quality, it didn't. even if i don't look at it super critically, it just didn't hit those emotionally satisfying moments that it should have

✨3.5 stars rounded up!✨

This was a cute story and a quick read. It takes place in march but because of the snow and being on a ski resort, it definitely gives winter vibes. The main characters were likable (especially Tyler 😍) but some of the side characters were pretty irritating. The plot twist was pretty predictable even early on but it still was exciting to see it unfold. The ending felt a little dragged on and as much as I love predictable HEA, it felt a little cliche which is not something I usually say since I love cheesy. But it is what it is. Overall, the story was cute and easy to follow along and it def had some swoon worthy moments. Romance spice level was low. No 🌶️ scenes other than some PG stuff, so if you like little to no spice, this book is for you! I can also see this becoming a series where the other books feature the side characters next. I didn’t LOVE this book but I enjoyed it and would recommend !

Thank you to netgalley and Atria books for this ARC in exchange for a honest review

This fell a little short for me. To start with the positives I enjoyed the writing and the descriptions of the scenery. LOVED Tyler (and the mystery spoiler) and all the different relationships that Alix had in her life. I also really enjoyed the bits of text messages threads, emails and articles in between each chapter! Now for why I gave it three stars… it felt it was a bit juvenile, especially for people being in their mid twenties if I’m correct. There was little to no spice, which doesn’t totally make this a three star read for me but it did attribute to the score. I just felt overall it wasn’t anything I would remember for very long afterwards. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Loved this one! Such a fun concept for a story. Who hasn’t ever daydreamed to being with a pop star or someone famous. This was so enjoyable to read. I really loved all of the characters we met for the most part. Lauren was almost too much at times. Alix and Tyler though were pretty great. I thought their chemistry was pretty solid and balanced. Nothing was to over the top or so out of the blue that made the story feel incomplete or anything. I think a dual POV could have helped get to know Tyler more. I get he was written to be a mystery but in romance I think that can make the relationship seem rushed or even a little unrealistic. I do wish we could’ve had some spice in this. Does it need it? No. Would it have hurt the story? Another no. I just think there was room to allow it if the author wanted to take it there. Overall, I really really liked this and would definitely be recommending!

The winter vibes of this book were a lot of fun, and I was interested in the overall arcs, but they didn't fully come together for me in a way that I felt super invested in.

Devoured this in one day (one sitting!). I've seen a few reviews critiquing the "twist" but I think the direction the book is going in is quite obvious early on. That is 100% not to say it's not enjoyable and fun in the slightest but I think if you're picking up a winter-y romance for the plot twist I wouldn't choose this one. If you're picking it up for some gushy fun then I would definitely recommend!

This book was so cute and made me laugh out loud and had me so giddy!
If you grew up loving boybands, you will love this one. I am a huge One Direction fan and this made 15 year old me so happy. It is exactly what I needed after the news of Liam’s passing. It took me back to when I was a teenager obsessed with those five boys but also healed that missing part of me as an adult. (Iykyk) It is a cute, cozy winter romance that will have you in your feels! As a fangirl and a writer myself it checked all the right boxes!

The Lodge by Kayla Olson
Pub Date: January 7th, 2024

Another wonderful read by @authorkaylaolson! I loved The Reunion and The Lodge has those same vibes! The setting: a beautiful, picturesque Ski Resort that is straight out of a postcard. From the mountains to the nut lattes and the bigger than your face pretzels this book has a little bit of everything you need for a cozy wintery day.

Alix Morgan was tasked with being a ghostwriter for Sebastian Green, a former member of the infamous band - True North. One of their band members, Jett Beckett, mysteriously disappears and no one knows what happened to him.

When Sebastian offers a penthouse suite at a Vermont ski resort, Alix jumps at the chance to escape her noisy New York apartment and her very needy sister and roomy, Lauren. What she doesn't expect to find is love on the slopes.

What are your favourite things to do in the winter?

While I'm not an avid skier, I'm all for chilling by a fire, sitting beside a window overlooking a beautiful snowy mountain. Snow🗻❄️☃️☕

Thank you to @atriabooks and @netgalley for the e-arc!

what a cozy romance. this is definitely a perfect read for the winter season. read if you love cozy winter rom coms, boy bands, and writer main characters with a ski resort setting!

This was such a fun and cozy read. Perfect for a winter weekend — or just when you want to live vicariously through the characters at a ski lodge!

One of my favorite parts were the relationship dynamics between all the characters. There are so many interesting conversations, challenges, and theories throughout this book that I really enjoyed!!