Goodreads | Blackwells

Adam Stillwater is in over his head. At least, that’s what his best friend would say. And his mom. And the guy who runs the hardware store down the street. But this pinball arcade is the only piece of his dad that Adam has left, and he’s determined to protect it from Philadelphia’s newest tech mogul, who wants to turn it into another one of his cold, lifeless gaming cafés.
Whitney Mitchell doesn’t know how she got here. Her parents split up. She lost all her friends. Her boyfriend dumped her. And now she’s spending her senior year running social media for her dad’s chain of super successful gaming cafés—which mostly consists of trading insults with that decrepit old pinball arcade across town.
But when a huge snowstorm hits, Adam and Whitney suddenly find themselves trapped inside the arcade. Cut off from their families, their worlds, and their responsibilities, the tension between them seems to melt away, leaving something else in its place. But what happens when the storm stops?

Thank you to Harper 360 for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Well, this was adorable. I picked this one up as an audiobook which I really enjoyed, and it had all of the cozy winter vibes without being too Christmassy which I appreciated! This would be the perfect book to pick up a snowy winters day, and it just made me want to snuggle up in a blanket and grab some hot chocolate.

We follow two main characters, Adam and Whitney, who went from being friends to enemies (or frenemies?) and are now maybe finding their way back to being friends again. My main worry going into this story was whether this whole rift between them would feel realistic, but I was pleasantly surprised. Their friendship felt quite believable, my only complaint being that I didn’t fully understand the backstory of what caused the rift between them – so enemies to lovers might be pushing it.

Whitney and Adam were both likeable characters and I loved the nerdy parts of this book. Adam was such a pinball fanatic which was so unique and made him stand out so much. I also loved the sub-plot of Adam featuring a non-fiction pinball book, The Art of Pinball, in his chapters. There was so much depth to this book in ways I didn’t imagine, including some discussions about grief and loss, family troubles and relationships/friendships breaking down. Seeing Whitney grow as a character throughout the story was also so lovely to read about.

Although not perfect, I thoroughly enjoyed this one and if you’re looking for a book with cozy winter vibes and not too much focus on Christmas, I’d highly recommend it! The audiobook was really enjoyable to listen to as well.

★★★★
4 out of 5 stars

-Beth

May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽

Shop | Booktube | Goodreads | Instagram | Tumblr | Twitter | Facebook