Canadian Boyfriend
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4.1 • 11 Ratings
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
Fate brings together a ballet teacher and a hockey player in this big-hearted novel about second chances and taking risks by the bestselling author Entertainment Weekly calls the “master of witty banter.”
Once upon a time teenage Aurora Evans met a hockey player at the Mall of America. He was from Canada. And soon, he was the perfect fake boyfriend, a get-out-of-jail-free card for all kinds of sticky situations. I can't go to prom. I'm going to be visiting my boyfriend in Canada. He was just what she needed to cover her social awkwardness. He never had to know. It wasn't like she was ever going to see him again...
Years later, Aurora is teaching kids’ dance classes and battling panic and eating disorders—souvenirs from her failed ballet career—when pro hockey player Mike Martin walks in with his daughter. Mike’s honesty about his struggles with widowhood helps Aurora confront some of her own demons, and the two forge an unlikely friendship. There’s just one problem: Mike is the boy she spent years pretending was her “Canadian boyfriend.”
The longer she keeps her secret, the more she knows it will shatter the trust between them. But to have the life she wants, she needs to tackle the most important thing of all—believing in herself.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Holiday's moving latest (after So This Is Christmas) sets itself apart through its sensitive focus on mental health. Aurora "Rory" Evans's teenage years revolved around ballet and the intense pressure to meet her abusive mother's expectations. To cope, she spent a fair amount of time fantasizing about "Mall Mike," the hunky Canadian boy she met once in passing. She starts claiming him as her "Canadian boyfriend" and using him to get out of unwanted social obligations. As an adult, she's settled into her job as a dance teacher, but she still struggles with anxiety. Then a new girl joins her class, and when her father arrives to pick her up, it's none other than Mall Mike himself. This collision of real life and teenage fantasy could add to Rory's worries, but instead Mike's presence in her life slowly makes everything better. For his part, professional hockey player Mike is recently widowed, emotionally distraught, and trying to help his daughter through her grief. Rory's dance classes give the little girl an outlet, and soon Mike realizes that Rory might be the perfect addition to their life. This love story has serious themes, but there's also a serious reward in store. Readers looking for emotionally intelligent romance will want to snap this up.
Customer Reviews
Hockey baby !!
Well written , slow burn romance wish it was longer or at least more of an in site of their future but great over all. Once I started reading I couldn’t stop, so proud of Aurora for standing up for herself !
Canadian Boyfriend
Canadian Boyfriend by Jenny Holiday
Contemporary romance. Alternating first person POV.
Rory worked at a coffee shop as a teen in the Mall of America. One afternoon she met a boy. There was something in his eyes that sparked something within her. She didn’t see that boy again, but it was a pivotal moment for her. In her busy life, with too many rules and restrictions, she decided he was going to be her boyfriend if anyone at school asked and she was going to write him letters. They wouldn’t get mailed, of course. She only knew his name. And that he played hockey.
Many years later Mike Martin brings his daughter into her tap dance class and meets the teacher, Aurora Evans. His wife has passed away and the dance class was one of the things that Olivia wanted to continue. Rory thinks he may be the same person, but she needs to teach her class and help get him away from the other dance moms. After a ride home and shared ice cream with the three of them, their outings get to be a habit and soon Rory is acting as nanny. She needs to tell him they’ve met before but it’s not the right time yet. Cue the drama card.
Ok, sure there was some drama, and I hate that she didn’t tell him earlier. She had soooo many opportunities! But it’s a romance and we don’t want it to end before it gets going! The author handled the situation well with Mike’ Martin’s self analysis and I actually agreed in the end.
Family, children, and romance troupes, all favorites and this book was sweet, adorable and a pleasure to read. All the feels.
And not knowing much about dance, I learned a few new words such as Glissades.
A quirk I found interesting - she calls him Mike Martin through the entire book. Not Mike. Mike Martin. A Canadian thing? Or a Rory thing? I don’t know but it was kind of cute.
Reading guide included at the end
I received a copy of this from NetGalley.