Last updated on 10/20/2025
A jaded woman falls for her sunshine neighbor in this cozy Christmas romance.
Nora Blackburn is suspicious of everything she sees and hears. Is it fake? Is someone trying to scam her? God, it’s exhausting, but she can’t let down her guard again.
She’s tired of Christmas cheer as well. It’s never been her favorite holiday, and this year, she’ll have to spend it alone for the first time. Besides, Everett Sun, who lives across the hall, has more than enough Christmas spirit for both of them.
When she sees an image of an elaborate snow sculpture in a Toronto park, she assumes it’s AI-generated. But when more pictures of the sculpture—and others—pop up, she realizes it’s real. She encounters Everett when she goes to see it in person, and together, they visit the other sculptures.
Nora didn’t expect to ever fall for anyone again, and she’s startled by the feelings she’s developing for her neighbor. Why does she find his flannel shirt and irrepressible smile so alluring?
But as the city tries to solve the mystery of the whimsical sculptures, strange things begin happening with Everett, and she doesn’t know if she can trust him…
Magically Generated is a romance novella featuring hot buttered rum, festive snow animals, and a touch of magic.
Review:
This was so sweet (with a little extra not-so-innocent spice)!
Magically Generated is a grumpy/sunshine (grinchy/sunshine?) holiday novella dusted with a little snow sculpture-making magic. I absolutely adored both Nora and Everett–though, honestly, Nora had my heart with this quote:
This [playing Sudoku on her phone] would be better for her state of mind than, say, going on social media and stumbling across posts that referred to a novel set in the nineties as historical fiction. Or, worse, people who supported book banning.
Yes, Nora. Yes to all of that.
It was really easy to root for these two to overcome their (OK, mostly Nora’s) issues to come together as a couple. I 100% wish that all of Everett’s snow sculptures were real, because they sound like so much fun! I’d even consider taking a day trip to TO to see them in person 🙂
It was really lovely watching Nora find the ability to trust again, and even (eventually) celebrate Christmas with her loved ones (which in the end includes at least one more person! Spoiler?) without her ever-present undercurrent of Bah, Humbug in the way.
Even if Everett claimed to like her “cynical, Christmas-hating [butt]” all along 😉
I don’t know about anyone else, but I really needed to read this right now:
In a world of lies and misinformation, there was still hope. She couldn’t be certain that whatever they had would last, but she didn’t want to be someone who never tried anything new, who barely even talked to anyone new. She’d be careful and plan for the worst-case scenarios, but she’d also do her best to trust that things could get better.
I really, really hope so, Nora <3
Rating: 4 stars / A-
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.
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