The alcohol-free reading-night sip for when you want the pretty glass and all of your faculties for the next chapter.
Elira Hope gave Ideally Positioned its own official cocktail.
Obviously, I approve of this behaviour.
The Open House is Elira’s signature drink for the book, made with vanilla vodka, Chambord, cranberry and fresh lime, served in a chilled coupe with a half sugar rim and three raspberries.
Very pink.
Very polished.
Very “Evie could absolutely be holding this at an open home while smiling like everything in her life is completely under control.”
You can find Elira’s original recipe on her reader extras page, and she has also given me permission to reproduce the full recipe in this week’s Sip, Snack and Smut reading-night feature.
Which left me with the next important question:
What are the non-drinkers having?
Because nobody should be handed sad lemonade while everybody else gets the coupe glass.
So I made Second Viewing.
This is my own EmberSas recipe.
It is not an alcohol-free version of The Open House, and it is not an official Ideally Positioned recipe.
I took the same broad raspberry, cranberry, lime and vanilla flavour family and built a completely alcohol-free drink that could stand on its own.
The result is raspberry-forward and tart, with cranberry underneath, lime keeping everything bright, vanilla sitting quietly in the background and soda giving it enough fizz to feel like a proper reading-night drink rather than juice wearing formal clothes.
And the name?
In property language, a second viewing means you liked what you saw enough to go back for another look.
In book language?
I think we all understand the concept.
For research purposes, obviously.
Pair it with my Gorgeous Garbo Sliders, the peri-peri chicken sliders inspired by Tristan “Davo” Davidson’s Chapter 1 lunch order, and you have the whole reading-night situation.
Make the drink. Make the snack. Open the Kindle.
More bookish drinks, snacks and completely reasonable reading-night decisions live on my Sip, Snack and Smut page.
A quick book note
Elira Hope reached out to me about her debut and supplied information for unpaid editorial coverage.
I grabbed the Kindle edition during her Australian free promotion, which ran from 4 to 8 October 2026.
I started reading Ideally Positioned on Friday, and Chapter 1 hooked me almost immediately.
I already love Evie, and Tristan has officially entered the investigation.
I am very excited to keep reading.
I am still reading, so there is no review verdict hiding in this mocktail.
No stars.
No chilli rating.
No official fictional-boyfriend ruling.
Tristan remains Under Review.
Ideally Positioned is an adult romance with explicit content as well as heavier themes including coercive control, blackmail, assault, addiction themes and violence.
Check Elira’s content note before deciding whether it is within your comfort level.
And if you want to see how I ended up this invested after one chapter, you can read Chapter 1 free on Elira’s site.
Second Viewing
Raspberry Lime Mocktail with Cranberry and Vanilla
Makes 1 drink.
Scale it up for book club, because nobody invited you over so you could spend the entire night trapped behind a cocktail shaker while everybody else discusses fictional men without you.
What you will need
- 1 lime wedge, for the rim
- About 20 ml caster sugar, for half the rim
- 45 ml cranberry juice
- 15 ml fresh lime juice
- 15 ml raspberry syrup or cordial
- 7.5 ml vanilla syrup
- Ice, for shaking
- 45 ml chilled soda water
- 3 fresh raspberries, to garnish
Method
Step 1: Give it the half sugar rim
Rub the lime wedge around half the rim of a chilled coupe or cocktail glass.
Dip that half into the caster sugar.
Only half.
You get the pretty finish, but you can still choose whether each sip gets sugar.
Tiny luxury.
Very Evie.
Step 2: Shake
Add the cranberry juice, lime juice, raspberry syrup and vanilla syrup to a cocktail shaker with a generous handful of ice.
Shake hard for about 10 seconds, until the shaker is properly cold.
If you do not own a cocktail shaker, use a clean jar with a tight lid.
I promise the drink does not know.
Step 3: Strain and fizz
Double strain into the prepared glass.
Top gently with the chilled soda water.
Give it the lightest stir if it needs one.
Step 4: Garnish
Thread three fresh raspberries onto a cocktail pick and rest them across the rim.
Serve immediately while it is cold and fizzy.
Kindle nearby strongly encouraged.
Cosy Kitchen Notes
Vanilla is not the main character. You want enough to soften the tart fruit, not enough to turn the whole drink into raspberry-vanilla soft drink. Start at 7.5 ml and leave it there unless it genuinely needs more.
Raspberry leads the group project. Cranberry supports it, lime keeps it bright and vanilla rounds everything out.
Soda is doing actual work here. Without spirits or liqueur, you lose some of the body you would normally get in a cocktail. Soda gives the drink lift and stops it feeling like dressed-up juice.
Too sweet? Reduce the raspberry syrup to 10 ml.
Too tart? Add a little more raspberry before increasing the vanilla.
Cordial can be bossy. Raspberry cordial is often sweeter than cocktail syrup, so taste before committing to the full amount.
Fresh fruit option. Muddle 3 raspberries in the shaker if you want more real fruit flavour and a little extra tartness.
Half sugar rim forever. You get a sweet side and an unsweetened side, plus it looks considerably more interesting than dunking the entire glass in sugar.
Book club batch. Mix the cranberry, lime, raspberry and vanilla ahead of time and keep it cold. Add ice and soda as you serve each glass.
Frozen berries are for inside the drink. They work perfectly well for muddling. Use fresh raspberries on top unless “recently defrosted” is the styling direction.
Quick answers
Can I make this raspberry lime mocktail ahead?
Yes, most of it.
Mix the cranberry, lime, raspberry and vanilla together and refrigerate for up to a day.
Add the ice and soda just before serving.
Otherwise your lovely fizzy mocktail becomes lovely flat pink juice.
What can I use instead of raspberry syrup?
Muddle about 8 fresh or frozen raspberries with 5 ml caster sugar.
Add the cranberry, lime and vanilla, shake with ice and double strain.
The result will taste a little fresher and less syrupy.
Can I reduce the sweetness?
Definitely.
Reduce the raspberry syrup from 15 ml to 10 ml first.
The half sugar rim also means you can choose whether each sip gets the extra sweetness.
One glass.
Two personalities.
I appreciate options.
Can I make Second Viewing for a book club?
Absolutely.
Multiply the cranberry juice, lime juice, raspberry syrup and vanilla syrup by the number of drinks you need and keep that mixture chilled.
Shake or stir each portion with ice and add the soda just before serving.
Do not add the soda to the batch hours beforehand unless flat mocktail is the evening’s chosen trope.
Can I make it with alcohol?
You could.
But for this reading night, I would not bother trying to turn Second Viewing into something it is not.
Ideally Positioned already has an official alcoholic cocktail created by Elira Hope.
It is called The Open House, and it uses vanilla vodka, Chambord, cranberry and fresh lime with a half sugar rim and raspberry garnish. The full original recipe is on Elira’s reader extras page.
I also have Elira’s permission to reproduce the complete recipe in this week’s Sip, Snack and Smut feature.
So The Open House gets to be The Open House.
Second Viewing is staying happily in its alcohol-free lane.
The Last Sip
Second Viewing is tart, raspberry-forward, fizzy and softly vanilla, with enough polish to look like reading night was an organised event rather than something that happened because you accidentally kept reading.
Which is really all I ask from a mocktail.
Make the Gorgeous Garbo Sliders.
Pour something pink.
Open the Kindle.
Pretty glass. Clear head. Questionable fictional priorities.
And if one particular paragraph suddenly requires a second viewing?
That sounds like thorough research to me.
