2.5 stars
Olivia just wants to go home to her family for Christmas, preferably before the snow hits, but her boss has made her go out of her way to deliver some important papers to his son, a man she’s been studiously trying to avoid for over a year, after they kissed and he declared it a big mistake. Turns out that dear old dad had ulterior motives, and while Erik Gulbrandr does his best to get Olivia far away from him (even though he seems to be brewing on a fever or something), she’s not going to be able to go anywhere, as something has torn her car to pieces.
Erik is forced to admit why he wanted Olivia to leave and while he’s been avoiding her so aggressively. While it tends to skip every other generation, the men of the Gulbrandr family are under an ancient curse. When Erik kissed Olivia, he discovered that she was his fated mate and the curse makes him lose complete control during the Winter solstice. He’ll do anything to get to her and won’t exactly treat her gently. There is also a paranormal aspect to the curse, but I won’t reveal what exactly happens to Erik, because it’s a pretty cool reveal. They are trapped in the house, because rival paranormals have some sort of blood feud going and know that Erik is on edge just before the Solstice. They want to try to kill him, and keeping Olivia snow bound in the house with him provides them with more distraction. Erik wants Olivia to shoot him point blank in the head if the curse takes over (it’s the only way he can be stopped, he is otherwise invulnerable). She is naturally sceptical and wants to find a different solution.
Full review here.