I’ve Got My Love to Keep Me Warm

Two Black high school seniors in Lansing, Mich., embrace the magic of the holiday season to further their own goals in this tender romance by Lockington (Forever Is Now). Influencer Lyric Watkins posts sponsored beauty and style content online and saves the money she earns to attend cosmetology school one day. Meanwhile, Lyric’s classmate, Juniper Jones, yearns to take a gap year and immerse herself in nature, traveling cross-country in an RV. While struggling to make content at a holiday event, Lyric encounters Juniper, who helps her capture the perfect festive photo. When the picture of the two girls goes viral as #couplegoals, Lyric and Juniper decide to fake-date, hoping the resultant paid sponsorships will help fund their respective dreams. As the pair become further embroiled in their ruse, the line between online performance and real-life love starts to blur. Simultaneously, both girls contend with personal challenges stemming from turbulent home lives. Via Juniper and Lyric’s alternating POVs—respectively rendered in poetic verse and intimate prose—Lockington crafts a heartwarming love story enriched by the characters’ well-rounded emotional depth. Jovial Juniper’s genuine enthusiasm for the season juxtaposed with hardworking Lyric’s more pragmatic approach to all things holly-jolly imbues the narrative with classic Hallmark movie vibes. Ages 12–up. Agent: Jane Dystel, Dystel, Goderich & Bourret. (Oct.)