Received an ARC from NetGalley for an honest review.

Probably my least favorite of the Carew books I've read. I'm not sure why, but this one just didn't work for me. It felt a little forced and there was a lot going on for such a short read.

This one was really cheesy, even for me !!! I thought it stared off cute and then went off the rails!

It may be cold outside, but this book was HOT HOT HOT! The heat that came from this particular romance was seriously off the charts and the pull this story had on me was nearly impossible to resist. I LOVED the characters and the plot was breathtaking and delicious. You won't be cold reading this romance, that is for sure! An absolute must read, Opal Carew will win you over with Big Package!

Post goes live 16 |Jan
I’ve read several Opal Carew here and there over the last couple of years and always came away feeling good. Big Package is a cute, quick read set in the Christmas season. The POV alternated between Holly and Kalen, sometimes from one paragraph to the next which had the tendency to push me out of the story. The theme of a “big package” runs throughout from the supposed gift Holly’s ex gave her to Kalen’s secret angsty.



The writing was clean and error free. Holly was sweet but sometimes her inner thoughts were stuck in a loop of self-deprecation. It was sort of like she was caught in her high school thought process once she met up with Kale, especially when he was appreciative of her or gave her a compliment. That coupled with her denial that anyone like Kalen would be interested in her became slightly annoying, just too much after it was established she didn’t have good self-esteem.



Kalen was equally sweet and had his own self-esteem issues. They were of a different nature than you’d normally find in romance though it does happen in real life. People might laugh and joke, roll their eyes, but honestly, it’s no laughing matter.



The romance is quick, which I didn’t have a problem with since they had known and crushed on each other before. There was some unnecessary drama with Kalen’s ex but overall a nice story that gave me exactly what I expected.

This was a really cute winter romance that contained not too much drama but enough heat to keep you extremely warm this winter.

Kalen Welles and Holly Benson meet again after attending the same high school at a bus stop where he is dropping off his sister and she is trying to catch a bus.

One gag gift later from a rude ex and Holly finds herself kicked off the bus with no way to get home for the holidays. Luckily for her in drives Kalen to save the day. What should have been a simple ride home becomes more when Kalen and Holly get stuck in a storm.

The real question is can Kalen convince her that his big package is only for her or will Holly's insecurities keep them apart forever? Read and find out!

I voluntarily read an advanced reviewers copy of this book.

This book is a nice quick read priced just right. I always love what Opal Carew has to offer but for me in this book Holly got on my nerves with all of her assumptions but Kalen's attitude definitely saved the book big time. Overall a good book.