Mary: It is officially the holiday season, and we’re beginning the celebrations with Whiteout, a collaboratively written novel by Nicola Yoon, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk, Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, and Nic Stone – all STARS of the YA genre! 

The novel follows a group of young adults attempting to help their overly science-minded friend, Stevie, reconcile her relationship with her girlfriend Sola, who loves romance. Each friend has a specific task to help pull off the grandest of grand gestures. I got the impression that while all the authors worked together on the broad strokes of the project, they each had a specific character to write – there’s even hints in the back of the book as to who wrote what, which I want to talk about. But first, what were your overall impressions of the structure? How did it work for you?

Emily: I really enjoyed it, but with any story collection (ultimately, this did read like a collection of linked stories) there are always some stories I enjoy more than others. And then I get a little bummed when a story I enjoy ends and I’m forced to switch to a new story that I’m not as invested in. I feel like short story collections, in general, give me a little whiplash. This is not to say I never read or enjoy them. Because I do. I just have trouble rating them fairly usually because I see them as little pieces rather than a whole story. This doesn’t end up feeling, to me, like a novel. And I don’t know if it’s supposed to. 

Mary: I both enjoyed and didn’t enjoy the structure. I guess it’s not fair to say I didn’t like it, because spoiler, I gave this book a great rating, but sometimes I also felt a little bit of narrative whiplash jumping around so much. It’s possible I felt that way because of outside circumstances, though – I listened to this book on the way to my in-laws! Sometimes when I listen to audio, things just don’t process the same. I will say, though, the audiobook narrators did a great job, and this is definitely a good pick for anyone who likes a good cozy listen.

Emily: I also read this on audiobook and really enjoyed the narration. I love an audiobook with multiple narrators. I feel like it makes for a more immersive reading experience and it keeps my ears from getting tired of listening to the same person for multiple hours in a row. Especially if, like you, I’m listening to the whole thing on a long road trip!

Mary: Absolutely. It makes me feel like the characters are actually different, because they all have their own tone and way of speaking. And if you don’t like one narrator as much, well, they’ll be done soon enough. lol

One thing I couldn’t get over was Stevie. The narrators of each chapter went out of their way to talk about what a good, giving friend Stevie is, and how she deserves to get back with Sola, but like…I didn’t see it? Stevie seemed like an absolute sociopath to me. Don’t get me wrong, I love a little one-person-loves-romance, one-person-is-a-grump type relationship, but Stevie trying to disprove that love existed when she was in a long-term relationship seemed like a bit much to me. If I was Sola, I 100% wouldn’t have gotten back with her, I think. It was just frustrating to see Stevie try to sabotage her own relationship for what seemed to be a dumb reason. Then again, it’s hard for me to think like a teenager, so maybe this is totally believable! What did you think?

Emily: I agree in some ways. I was really confused about why Stevie did what she did to sabotage the relationship. It felt totally out of left field, even for someone who doesn’t like romance. I just can’t imagine disrespecting someone you love like that. And she never really gave a satisfying reason for why it happened. With all of that being said, it’s Christmas and I still wanted them to get back together. Especially because all of Stevie’s friends were going way out of their way to help, and it couldn’t be for nothing. That would have been a truly disappointing ending! 

Mary: Right – it was disrespectful, that’s a good way to describe it. I just couldn’t figure out the motivation behind it. I guess that, after reflecting on it some more, she might have been trying to self sabotage. Being in a serious relationship, on the verge of potentially going off to college and being in the “real” world – that’s scary stuff, and it’s not unusual to question it. Still, the whole situation was bad.

Who was your favorite couple? Or what was your favorite section?

Emily: Hands down, Kaz and Porsha were my favorite. This friends-to-lovers story was super cute, and I enjoyed Kaz’s perspective. I will say Kaz and Porsha had the benefit of being right at the beginning of the book, so the story felt a little fresher to me as well. After reading a bunch of stories about couples getting together or getting back together, the pattern started to wear on me a little. But I was all in on Kaz and Porsha and rooting for them.

I also loved that this story took place in Lenox Mall, which was giving me serious nostalgia for my years living in Atlanta. I had several friends who worked at Lenox at the time, so I was there a lot. We have to talk about the setting of Atlanta, by the way, since we both have spent quite a bit of time there. But first, what was your favorite couple?

Mary: Oh man, Lenox Mall! I had so many instances where I’d stop and think, oh, I know where they are! Isn’t the Santa at Lenox kind of famous? I can’t remember.

It’s hard to pick a favorite couple, but I really enjoyed Jimi’s story. I especially liked that she was in a punk band, and I liked the whole “missed connections” vibe of her love story – I won’t spoil with who because it’s kind of built up over the novel in a fun way. The bottom line is: if there’s a romance trope you enjoy, this book has it. 

Emily: Honorable mention for me goes to the Georgia Aquarium romance, Ava and Mason. Loved that they bonded over nerding out about fish haha. And another place I’ve been to many times! I love the Georgia Aquarium. 

Mary: YES. Love the aquarium. It’s just the best, tbh.

Emily: So yeah, speaking of Atlanta settings, let’s talk about the setting. This group of authors also wrote a book set in New York called Blackout, but I was soooo excited that the “sequel” was set in Atlanta, because I love Atlanta so much. And now that I live on the opposite side of the country, I’ve been missing it even more. How did you feel about this setting? Were there any specific Atlanta references that you connected to, having spent time there?

Mary: I’m definitely not as connected to Atlanta as you, but my mom lived there for many years so I got to visit a good bit, and I enjoyed the familiarity, too! In addition to Lenox Mall and the aquarium, I enjoyed when Jordyn was trying to get to her sister’s show and kept using the Fox as a reference point. I immediately had an image of where they were and how bad traffic would’ve been. Also, I felt like I could appreciate the particular scariness of snow in Atlanta – or in the South in general. It’s not that snow itself is scary, but southern states just aren’t prepared for it. There aren’t salt trucks or snow tires down here. 

You’ve done a whole Christmas movie series the past few years on the blog, and are the expert on all things holly and jolly. How does this work as a Christmas novel? I’d say there are definitely some Christmas elements, even though the main thrust of the story is about romance! 

Emily: Well, I think romance is a key element of most Christmas stories. Because as we all know, winter is cuffing season. So if you’re not in an established relationship, now’s the time to get one, in other words. Romance and cold weather just seem to go hand in hand, no matter what holiday you celebrate. On the one hand, it seemed a little weird to me that all of these people were suddenly getting together on the same day. But on the other hand, that’s just the magic of snow. There’s something about it. 

I will say overall, I felt like this story had a lot of heart, which is an important part of Christmas stories. Not only was there a lot of romantic love, but familial love was central to the story as well. Along with friendship. What do you think?

Mary: I agree. You just want to be cuddly in winter and get cuffed up. 

You’re absolutely right that Whiteout doesn’t just focus on romantic love, though. There’s plenty of love for family (and figuring out how to love family when it’s hard), as well as love between friends. The holidays are a good time to think about those kinds of love, too, because it’s a time folks generally want to spend with people they’re close to.

I appreciated that all the relationships weren’t easy. Like, yes, we’ve got Stevie trying to patch things up with Sola, but we’ve also got Jordyn trying to find it within herself to reach out to her estranged mother. There’s more nuance than just straightforward romances. 

We haven't talked about how race works in the book yet, and I think that’s a main focus of this project. Blackout, which the same team wrote before Whiteout, tried to have a focus on joy in the Black community, and Whiteout struck me as doing something similar. It’s not all joy all the time, but it has happy endings for everyone and doesn’t engage in some of the harsher realities of the world. What do you think?

Emily: Yeah, these stories are really important because it’s important to remember that Black identity is not just about racism. Race is a significant part of these characters’ stories, but it’s not about Blackness in contrast to whiteness. Black identity exists on its own without the white perspective. Which is rich coming from me as a white person, I know. But, you get the idea.

Mary: I do get the idea! I really enjoyed the overall ~vibe~ of this book, and it was such a fun holiday read to get me feeling festive. Do we want to rate this one or just say hey! Go check it out, everyone! 

Emily: I gave it four stars. As I mentioned earlier, rating collections is always tough for me because there were some five star sections in this for me and some that were… not five stars. But I think overall, I give it four strong stars for the cozy vibes. This was such a great Christmas time read, and I definitely want to check out Blackout.

Mary: Same! I gave it four stars, but different sections definitely had various ratings. Overall I really enjoyed it though, so 4 seemed appropriate. The vibes are definitely immaculate and I adored some of the characters. I’m glad we read this one!
Next up we are shifting tones drastically to read Hell Followed With Us by Andrew Joseph White!