Light Up by Barbara Elsborg

Two strangers. One storm. A connection neither of them saw coming.

Corey’s day has gone from bad to worse. First, he loses his job. Then his home. Now he’s crawling through a blizzard in a beat-up car, hoping to sneak into his uncle’s empty house for a lonely Christmas in front of a big-screen TV. But the universe isn’t done with him yet. He’s lost, the snow’s getting heavier—and there’s a truck riding his bumper like it’s personal.
Tal can’t escape his office Christmas party fast enough—especially after a humiliating nickname from his school days rears its ugly head. All he wants is peace and quiet at the Airbnb he’s rented for the holidays. No friends, no fuss, no festive drama. But when he sees a truck barrelling towards him, all he can do is swerve, hang on tight and hope.
The hit and run leaves Corey and Tal stranded in the middle of a snowy nowhere. With no help in sight, their only choice is to walk. Thank goodness for the isolated hotel they finally stumble across when they just can’t go on anymore. It seems like salvation. But something isn’t quite right, and that isn’t just because when the doors open, it looks as if Christmas has exploded.

Warnings
Magical realism. Age gap. Road traffic accident. Neurodivergent representation including an autistic main character. Reference to past trauma as a young adult and mental health care. Brief mention of suicide ideation. Loss of parents. Sexual assault—not rape (off page). A hotel straight out of a Hallmark movie. And snow! An amazing amount of snow, in England, at Christmas. Unheard of.

The main characters are navigating what they need in a relationship, which at times gently explores themes related to kink. There are references to BDSM labels, but nothing explicit or intense—no hardcore content, and nothing that should feel unsafe to most readers.