With Love, from Cold World

With this swoony enemies-to-lovers rom-com, Thompson (Love in the Time of Serial Killers) gets in well ahead of the annual slew of Christmas romances, taking readers to Florida’s Cold World amusement park, where the winter holidays are celebrated year-round. Reserved park bookkeeper Lauren Fox, however, does not allow herself to enjoy the festive vibes. The nerdy former foster child protects herself by keeping her walls, and her guard, up. Her easygoing coworker Asa Williamson is determined to get her out of her shell, but his misguided method consists mostly of pulling her pigtails, or, as Lauren sees it, antagonizing her. When their boss asks for pitches on how to revitalize the financially struggling park, the duo develop an intense rivalry—until it becomes clear that, to save Cold World, they’ll have to work together. Over Christmas karaoke and eggnog overloads—and one memorable night trapped in the park together until morning—the pair learn they have more in common than they thought, including a drive to advocate for those whose voices have been silenced. Thompson does a fantastic job with the relationship progression, making each step forward utterly believable. This will have readers dreaming of sugarplums at any time of year. Agent: Laura Bradford, Bradford Literary. (Aug.)