"I'm in love with you, in an extremely non-platonic, never-leave-me way."

Holiday Romance is the perfect holiday romance. Molly and Andrew are friends and Irish expats living in Chicago who have flown home to Dublin together at Christmas for 10 years. But on their 10-year anniversary, they have a bit of an adventure ahead to get home in time for Christmas. And a kiss under the mistletoe at the airport changes everything.

Here are the vibes:
- Friends to lovers
- It's always been you: "You have me, Moll. You've had me for years."
- Past flashbacks to their previous flights.
- She's a bit of a Grinch, he loves Christmas (ugly sweaters and all).
- A love confession that will have you tearing up (or maybe that's just me... 🥺).

"I'm glad we got to be friends first, that now I get to give myself to him fully without worrying which parts of me he might reject."

Sometimes I'm like, "do I like friends to lovers?" And then I read a book like Holiday Romance and yes, yes I do. This was friends-to-lovers perfection. Andrew and Molly had that instant banter and familiarity with each other. I loved how Andrew knew Molly better than she knew herself and always asked her what she wanted. I also loved their openness and honesty with each other.

Their romance naturally progressed as they travelled around the world to get home for Christmas. And the past flashbacks perfectly show how their love slowly developed over the decade. Their adventures along the way kept me thoroughly engaged and the events that unfolded when they made it home were the icing on the cake. I loved meeting both their families.

Add in a beautiful love confession and the perfect epilogue and yeah, you should go read Holiday Romance.

Thank you to Bookouture and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for this honest review.

I really enjoyed this fun read. What a cozy holiday read! I loved the characters and the conflict! I cannot wait to read more from this author in the future!

Perfect for fans of People We Meet on Vacation! Molly and Andrew have been meeting up every year to travel on the same Christmas Chicago to Dublin flight for the last ten years. While they got off to a bumpy start, they’ve become best friends, and definitely some more as soon as they’re willing to admit it. A perfect holiday romcom!

This book provided the relief and escapism I needed right now. Molly and Andrew first met ten years ago when they were sitting next to each other on a flight home for Christmas after Molly's friend had dumped him. Every year since then, they had formed a ritual around always flying home together and gradually sharing more of each other's lives until the present day. When one disaster after another seems to indicate they may not make it home, their friendship blossoms into a relationship. But will this be a good idea?
A beautiful story with some endearing characters.

Catherine Walsh has written a book that will give you all the feels. Holiday Romance is the sweetest read and I loved every minute! Imagine that you live in Chicago, are from Ireland, and need to go home for Christmas. Now, imagine that the trip home is made much more enjoyable when you run into someone you know, even if you know them just a little. Molly is on her way to the airport for her trip to Dublin at Christmas. Molly is not a big fan of Christmas and thinks all of the sweaters and over the top things people do are silly. Her family is not like that as they keep it low key. Molly's college friend texts her and says she's thinking of breaking up with her boyfriend, Andrew. She's met someone else who she likes better even though she's been dating Andrew a long time and he's great! Molly tells her not to break up with him now, at Christmas, that would be horrible. Molly has always liked Andrew even though she doesn't know him very well. As Molly walks onto the plane to take her seat, guess who's in the seat next to her? Yep, Andrew. He recognizes her right away and Molly recognizes him. They know each other from going to the same parties at college and from keeping some of the same company. This is how it begins.

Year after year, Molly and Andrew make their way to Dublin at Christmas on the same flight. They become friends and look forward to their 10 hour flights each year. The tenth year that they're waiting for their flight, Molly tells Andrew that she's traded in her points and gotten them both first class tickets. He feels bad as he can't afford to pay her, but Molly doesn't mind as the miles were just ready to use. The bad news is that there's a huge snowstorm hitting Chicago and flights are getting delayed and cancelled. Their flight gets cancelled after waiting at the airport for hours. Andrew is distraught as he looks forward to celebrating Christmas with his family each year. He loves Christmas, has lots of different Christmas sweaters, watching Christmas movies, and loves giving gifts to his family. Molly knows this and comes up with a plan that involves flying way out of their way to get Andrew home by any means necessary. Did I mention the mistletoe? Yep, there was a kiss under the mistletoe that changed everything for both of them!! How could you be with someone each year and just see them as a friend when one kiss changed it all? Things get very interesting and you won't be able to put this book down!

I read this book in 2 days and am still thinking of it! The characters are fantastic and I keep wondering if there could be a follow-up book picking up where Holiday Romance leaves off. I would love that! Do yourself a favor and pick up this book. It will make you smile and isn't that just reason enough? I look forward to reading the next book by Catherine Walsh. I'd like to thank NetGalley and Bookouture for an advanced copy of Holiday Romance in exchange for a fair review.

This was such a lovely, festive read. The relationship between Andrew and Molly is funny, adorable and beautifully real. It's a story of friendship and family. It's a Christmas book without being too saccharine. It's a romance that had me smiling throughout

holiday romance-book review
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨/5

10 years and 10 flights. Andrew and Molly are both from New York, and meet every year in their holiday flight home to Ireland. But this year flights are canceled and plans change. Will these two become more then friends?

This book was soooo cute. The perfect holiday romance. Only thing that would have been better is dual POV. I could not stop smiling this whole book, and I COULD NOT put it down. The banter was incredible, I found myself laughing out loud multiple times.

This is a closed door romance, which I really like. It was perfect, and amazing, and I don’t have any other words to describe it. I love the way the author tackled major issues with such Grace and vulnerability.

Ah this is fantastic! As a self proclaimed Christmas book addict, this is one of the sweetest and best I’ve read. I love the friends to lovers trope and both main characters were well written with depth and humour. It has kicked off my 2022 festive reading perfectly. Easy five stars from me!

Gah! This one gave me all the feels and had me almost ugly crying at the end. It's fun. It's sweet. And I absolutely adored it.

Molly and Andrew both travel back to Ireland every year to spend Christmas with their respective families. Molly's family isn't too sentimental about Christmas while Andrew's family is the complete opposite as is evidenced by his ugly Christmas sweaters. But both Molly and Andrew look forward to the flight and spending time together even though they mainly lead separate lives in their adopted city Chicago.

But this year is different. The mother of all storms is baring down on the Atlantic and their flight as well as many others are cancelled which threatens their yearly tradition. They end up booking a flight to Buenos Aires where they can catch a flight to Paris. Three days later after several flights and a train and ferry rides they make it to Dublin. Along the way, they both discover that maybe they want more than just being friends.

I loved this story and really enjoyed reading it. Holiday Romance should be on everyone's holiday reading list.

Rating: 4.25/5
Steam: 2.5/3
Read if you like: Lovelight Farms
Tropes: friends to lovers, dual timeline, slow burn

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for this advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion. Holiday Romance is out now!

All of the vibes, I loved this friends to lovers holiday romance! This was the perfect cozy Christmas novel to put you in the mood for the holiday season. It was definitely a hallmark movie in a book.

Things I loved: Molly and Zoe, love the twins relationship. the dual timeline. yearly traditions. both families. the simplicity of the romance, it wasn't unnecessarily complicated. the story was just so. much. fun. I loved all the antics it took these two to get home for the holidays. festive sweaters. sibling antics.

Highly suggest this holiday season!

What’s better than the friends to lovers trope? Friends to lovers AT CHRISTMAS! Molly and Andrew are Irish émigrés whose friendship is one bound largely to the flight they take home every Christmas from Chicago. In a story told flight by flight and in the present, we see their feelings develop before they become aware of them. The characters are warm and familiar while the execution of the romance is true to genre without being cliché. I loved it!

What a super cute Christmas story!!

Molly and Andrew both live in Chicago, are from Ireland, and trying to get home for the holidays but a huge snowstorm has left them stranded in the Windy City.

By chance, they have been friends for 10 years and make it a tradition to fly home to Ireland together so they have someone to make the 7 hour flight more enjoyable. When a snowstorm grounds them in Chicago, Molly does everything in her power to get Andrew back home to Ireland by taking a round about way there, and finding out that they both have feelings for each other.

I thought this story was cute and super original and not filled with spicy sex scenes as some rom com books tend to be.

I devoured this book. Love me a holiday friends to lovers romcom. It was super funny, I couldn't put it down!

Thank you Catherine Walsh, NetGalley and Bookouture for sending me an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

When you put friends to lovers and Christmas together, what do you get? FIVE STARS OBVIOUSLY!!!

Devoured. Laughed. Smiled the whole time. Wished I could have Andrew to myself. Blah blah blah. Give me more.

4.5 stars!

It’s been ten years of travel tradition for Molly and Andrew; ten years of taking the same flight from Chicago to Ireland as they trek home for the holidays. While their sky-high meetings began as an awkward accident, their plane rides formed a beautiful friendship. As they meet at Chicago O’Hare to celebrate the tenth anniversary of their unique companionship, their travel plans come to a screeching halt: a massive snowstorm has cancelled all flights headed to Ireland. Andrew, a die hard Christmas lover, is broken-hearted about not making it to his family for Christmas. And while she is a Scrooge herself, Molly is determined to get them over the pond to save the holidays. The journey home veers quickly after an accidental step under an airport mistletoe, it suddenly seems that there may have been more feelings behind these flights than either realized.

This book reads like your favorite cozy holiday movie. Like a Christmas version of “People We Meet on Vacation,” it has sweet friendships, hidden lust, and adorable flashbacks. Unique and not eye-rollingly cheesy, this may have become one of my favorite holiday reads from the last several years.

HOLIDAY ROMANCE By Catherine Walsh

For over 10 years Molly and Andrew catch the same flight back home for Christmas. They have been friends and nothing more.

😊What I liked -

✔ Christmas Romance/Friends to Lovers/Opposites Attract.
✔ I loved how the story keeps going from the past flight stories to the present.
✔ Oh my god I laughed so hard through the book, some of the instances while they are trying to get back home were hilarious.( i was laughing like a hyena, thank god i was not in public).
✔ Their chemistry, their banter was so cute.
✔ I loved all the characters, especially the main characters sisters.
✔ This book has tons of laughs, banter,adventurous journey abck home, family bonds, love and slow burniness.

🤔What could have been better -

✔ Nope it was just perfect.


📚Who Should read :

👶Beginners
💝Romance Lovers
🎄Christmas Romance
💕Friends to Lovers


📈My Rating : 5/5


Thank you Catherine Walsh, NetGalley and Bookouture for a copy.

Drop what you’re doing and read this right now. It’s the perfect holiday book. It’s warm and fuzzy and heartwarming. Definitely my favorite holiday read!!

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I couldn’t put this book down from the minute I picked it up. It was so stressful experiencing their journey home, realising the hurdles they had to overcome. I really enjoyed the dual timelines, getting to know Molly and Andrews friendship. Their relationship was so cute, I was routing for them from the start. I thought the dynamics of the families were hilarious. If you are looking for a cozy Christmas read, this one is perfect.

Chicago is a long way from Dublin for Molly. Studying abroad was her chance to start over independent from her identical twin sister and small suffocating life in Ireland. Its Christmas break and Molly’s flight is packed. Sitting in the seat next to her is none other than Andrew, her roommates soon to be ex-boyfriend. To soften the blow she knows is coming, Molly is extra nice to this adorable seat mate. Their airplane tradition begins. For ten years Andrew and Molly are terrific friends. They drink bad wine, exchange silly gifts and catch up on their latest hookups or lack thereof. Their transatlantic flight becomes a same time next year start to the holidays. A decade later, it’s their flightaversary and Molly, now a successful lawyer has secretly purchased first class upgrades! One delay after another the weather has become blizzard like conditions. Molly is stressed but Andrew is devastated. Holidays with his large family in Ireland is something he looks forward to all year. Molly cannot bear to disappoint him and vows she will do whatever it takes to get her friend home in time for Christmas. Through laugh out loud travel mishap after mishap (all too real!) the two Irish darlings try to make their way home. This completely delicious holiday friends to lovers romcom is the perfect stocking stuffer.

I loved this book. The characters, the situations, the pace, just loved it! I could not read it fast enough and miss the story already. Would recommend to anyone who wants a fun read that makes you swoon and cant put down!

Thank you to the author, net galley, and the publisher for the copy in exchange for an honest review.