A Holiday Novella by Amy Ripley
Influencer Zander Maloney did not have the easiest start in life, his parents so caught up in their own issues that he was eventually adopted by his best friend’s parents. Knowing way to well what struggling to put food on the table means, and seeing today’s disparity between the rich and the poor getting wider, Zander wants to use his influence to reach out to businesses in his state to help him ensure nobody will go hungry at Christmas.
A project initially met with indifference by the establishment and all the organisations he engages with will gradually turn into a roaring success, thanks to the help of ordinary people and the online community. Zander’s journey from quasi-anonymity to influencer stardom (and the Christmas Lunch of Christmas Lunches) will be packed full of events: increasing media attention, a march on the White House to face the powerful, the rekindling of the relationship with his dying father and, most importantly, a life-altering love story with hotel owner Austin.
Well done to Amy Ripley for seizing the unique and rich storytelling opportunity Christmas offers, and for reminding us all what’s real and beautiful about humanity. This story, if you are open to it, surely evokes feelings of warmth and optimism, getting readers into the holiday spirit by dealing with themes such as togetherness, generosity, hope, and the overall magic of the season. The love/fairytale element is also a welcome addition. Ripley rightly sheds a light on what we often tend to forget: all those people who are struggling to make ends meet through no fault of their own and need as much help as they can get.
The novella itself flows well (117 pages do not make it a book), moving from one event to another with relative ease, but it does have a fundamental flaw: below par editing. Consecutio tempori is the most evident challenge of all. The story is narrated half in present tense and half in past tense, even though it all takes place within the same timeline. Unfortunately, this spoils the reading experience almost immediately. Besides, the use of CAPS when characters say something loudly or to highlight certain passages is completely unnecessary and equally bothersome. Overall, the writing is not poor as such, but it is not of the quality you would expect from a published author (this is not Ripley’s first book).
In terms of the themes within in the book, Ripley could probably have dealt with Zander’s discovery of his sexuality a little bit more effectively. Sentences like
“The fact I have never thought about men this way before is so scary. Will people judge me? I hope people will accept me this way because even though it is so new, it must have always been a part of me deep down. Luckily, in society these days, being gay is more accepted, and I am so grateful for this”
sound alarmingly naive and do make you wonder if Ripley really chose the same-sex love story just because it’s trendy and may appeal to a wider public – it genuinely would not make any difference if the main character was a woman – or she really believes in the importance of sharing somehow more unconventional love stories, especially given the audience she is allegedly targeting is the 12 to 18 years old age bracket. If that is really her target market, I strongly believe it is the wrong one: sexuality aside, would such audience relate for example to the theme of Zander rekindling his relationship with a dying father? I felt this was unnecessary to the economy of the story and not even explored deeply enough to make it worth her time.
This book was written in a rush and unfortunately it shows.
However, if you are looking for a light-hearted, quick and easy read do give it a go. It will not rock your world but will surely keep you entertained.
‘The Influencer Who Saved Christmas’ is available for purchase at: https://amzn.to/3RchABH
