My housemate would like to remind me that it is NOT Christmas and that it is only appropriate to start the countdown to Christmas AFTER Halloween. However—I don't care, I've been listening to Mariah Carey since mid-September, and I've been consuming Christmas literature way before that, first with Sarah Hogle's Just Like Magic and now with Catherine Walsh's Holiday Romance.

I've been a fan of Catherine Walsh since her first novel; her stories brim with universal nostalgia and characters with lightning-fast banter. Holiday Romance features both; Molly and Andrew volley Walsh-esque quips between them against backdrops of childhood homes and sterile airports. This book is everything quintessentially Christmas. Think When Harry Met Sally, autumn in the big city, and living as the year begins to taper off into something new.

But Holiday Romance features more clichés than its predecessors, as well as a less stable chemistry between its two lead characters. The parallel timelines yank the reader back and forth between the present day and all of Molly and Andrew's history, sometimes not in the most satisfying or useful ways. Molly's love for Andrew, and vice versa, is believable, but it doesn't quite take on the depth that the flashbacks are intended to provide. Moreover, the pacing is inconsistent throughout the novel; the first two acts are slow, carrying the reader through each unfortunate hiccup in Molly and Andrew's travel plans, but the last act races through their nascent romance, leaving the reader feeling slightly harried and robbed of true closure.

Overall, Holiday Romance is perfect for fans of People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry and people waiting to curl up with the Hallmark Channel's slate of holiday movies and a nice mug of hot chocolate. I know I certainly revel in my membership in both categories.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Holiday Romance by Catherine Walsh

I was so excited to get this ARC from NetGalley but, was slightly nervous I wouldn’t be able to get in the right mood. No need to worry! Holiday Romance IMMEDIATELY puts you in the holiday spirit! Almost instantly you feel the holiday travel rush and it sweeps you up into the excitement of Christmas!

Molly and Andrew are long time friends who barely see each other but, always share a flight home to Ireland for Christmas. However, when a big snow snowstorm cancels their flight, the usually grinch-y Molly goes through great lengths to piece together a way to get her Christmas-loving friend, Andrew, home for the holidays. Whether by plane, train, automobile..even a ferry she is determined! Their journey home isn’t direct; taking them to several different countries before eventually arriving home in Ireland. But, rather than becoming disgruntled travelers, Andrew and Molly make the most of their time together! Molly may be the logistics girl, but Andrew is the the adventurer, making sure each stop is filled with shared memories, hilarious laughs, and holiday fun! And, no holiday is complete without the family! Although never meeting each others families prior to this visit, it was nice to see this dynamic included in the story. The familiarity was obviously there, eluding to how much Molly and Andrew spoke of and meant to each other. Andrew and Molly’s families are the best; sufficiently embarrassing and encouraging as any family should be!

Told in alternating timelines from previous flights to the current, this friend-to-lovers holiday romance is rich with fun banter, awkward but, steamy mistletoe moments, and adorable realizations that the person you were meant to be with might have been sitting next to you all along!

Thank you to Bookouture and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. Available October 4, 2022

“Molly and Andrew are just trying to get home to Ireland for the holidays, when a freak snowstorm grounds their flight.

Nothing romantic has ever happened between them: they’re friends and that’s all. But once a year, for the last ten years, Molly has spent seven hours and fifteen minutes sitting next to Andrew on the last flight before Christmas from Chicago to Dublin, drinking terrible airplane wine and catching up on each other’s lives. In spite of all the ways the two friends are different, it’s the holiday tradition neither of them has ever wanted to give up.”

Full Disclosure: I’m biased towards Hallmark-type content. Things that might irk me when reading more ‘literary fiction’ bother me not at all with this type of story.

That doesn’t, at all, mean this story isn’t an utter delight. It just means that I’m aware of my candy cane coloured glasses, and Christmas is the season of Love - or is it Bailey's?

Sometimes you just need a 100% feel-good, zero angst, happily ever after.

Stamped it. No take backs.

God bless us. Everyone.

Lots to love with this plum sugary tale.

You want friends to lovers? A slow burn? Loving (if slightly sadistic in terms of gift giving) family relationships?

This book has you covered.

I particularly liked the mild-role reversal of Molly’s feelings having to play catch up to Andrew’s.

If you’re looking for some literary cheer to go with that egg nog, give this one a try.

7.5/10

Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for this holly jolly ARC.

This book was such a breath of fresh air. I haven’t read any Christmas book and I’m so glad this was my first, Catherine has such a way with words, the sarcasm, the banter and the love that developed was chefs kiss.
I loved the dual timeline that introduced the reader to the backstory of Molly and Andrews relationship, and how it developed over 10 years of friendship. I also enjoyed how this book took us on a trip with the characters to a few of our favourite cities.
I felt this book was funny and witty, had an eclectic bunch of characters that made made the book a pleasure to read. I would love to read more from Cathrine

Awww, this was such a fun, sweet, romantic read.

I love Christmas stories! It's always great to see the characters visiting their families and sharing their own traditions... and facing some awkward moments. Oh, I just love it.

But in this case, I think it's even more special because Andrew and Molly aren't just random people instantly falling in love. They've been friends for a long time. They share the same flights from Chicago to Ireland every year. At first, it was just a weird coincidence. But then, it became a special tradition. They've been through so much trouble. No matter what happens, they always go together for the holidays.

When they met, his sister was just a child. Now she's a teenager. So much has changed over the years and yet this friendship has always been a constant for them. Now it's the tenth flight and it's time to face that this isn't *just* a friendship. It never was.

I love this book! Christmas romances are always a bit cliché, but in this case I think it's a story that could actually happen. The "friends-to-lovers" gang will definitely love it. I've read another book by Catherine Walsh before, but this just became my favorite.

* I received an ARC from Bookouture in exchange for an honest review.

Holiday Romance
Author: Catherine Walsh

eARC and Book Review
Pub Date: October 4, 2022

Holiday Romance follows Molly and Andrew, and their 10 flights they have taken together over the past 10 years. Both living in Chicago, each year they make the trip home to Ireland for the holidays. How is this year any different? Maybe, just maybe, they go from being just travel buddies to something more.

I personally loved this one! Yes, it is still 80+ degrees outside but that does not mean I cannot get a jump start on holiday romcoms! This book featured adorable moments, bantering, and festive vibes - what more could you want this time of year?!

I will definitely be picking up a physical copy of this - the cover and plot are too cute not to do so!

Thank you NetGalley, Bookouture, and the author for this eARC in exchange for my honest review!

This one was a bit of a slow starter, but ended up being a very sweet romance. It is a dual timeline story between Andrew and Molly. Every year they fly home together from Chicago to Ireland, for the past decade. The first two times were an accident that they were sitting right night to each other, until it became a tradition. They’ve been a constant in each other’s lives, helping each other through school, breakups, etc.

What will happen if a ton of stress is placed on their friendship. A storm blows in, cancelled by every flight across the Atlantic. Molly’s sister is about to have a baby soon, and Andrew needs to see his family. They find a ridiculous, circuitous route, which takes a marathon of flights, trains, and boats to get them there. Molly is determined to get them there. Andrew? His plans might involve showing Molly what’s right in front of her nose.

This book was adorable. Simply adorable. It made me laugh out loud constantly--and not the extra air you breathe through your nose when you're amused; this was the full belly laugh. The friends to lovers was absolutely immaculate in this. I adored both Molly and Andrew; they were fully developed, funny. and caring. The banter throughout this book was fantastic. I think I might make this my yearly Christmas reread!

Such a warm and fuzzy friends to lovers romance! And set at Christmas even! Partially in Ireland!

I loved everything about this book. Molly and Andrew fell into their friendship ten years ago when he was dating her friend. That ended (the relationship with her friend that is) and it was awkward for a while but they managed to keep a friendship going. Every year for the last ten years, they've both travelled home to Ireland for Christmas on the same flight. This year they are set to do the same thing when weather complications occur and threaten their trip altogether. Refusing to let her friend, Andrew miss Christmas with his family, Molly enlists the help of well-connected friends and pulls out all the stops to circumvent the weather issues and get them home no matter the cost. It's a comedy of errors, but it's also a wake up call for her. Molly has never let herself take the time to look at Andrew as anything more than a friend. However, this year many things are changing for her and one of them just might be her feelings for her friend. Just maybe she feels more for him than friendship. But is it worth the risk?

I inhaled this book in less than twenty four hours. I just had to see what happened between these two potential lovebirds and I wasn't disappointed...

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. I voluntarily chose to read and review it and the opinions contained within are my own.

If anyone were to tempt me into an early festive read, it would be Catherine Walsh! Another excellent read that is full of love, laughter and life lessons. Charming, fluffy and cosy, this was a lovely read to curl up with; now the evenings are getting darker earlier, and days are colder…I loved it!

Molly and Andrew are classic characters for this genre, and if you are a member of the friends-to-lovers community, they are the perfect match to bring a smile to your face.

Per her previous releases, this author’s writing style brings humour, compassion and emotional intelligence in perfect proportions. A magnificent read to get you ready for festivities - no matter your plans!

An absolute must-read and a well-deserved five-star review!

I squealed when I got this arc! This book had me laughing so hard. As someone who has been stuck in and ran through more airports than should be possible, and LOVES holiday romance, this read made me extra happy.

This was my first Holiday read of 2022 and I flew through it. Andrew and Molly provide expert level, hilarious banter that I couldn’t get enough of.

They have the most unlikely beginning to their decade long friendship and when their flight gets canceled for their holiday trip home to Ireland, Molly will move heaven and earth to make sure Andrew gets back in time for Christmas.

Full of chemistry, travel, holiday cheer and truly exceptional banter, this was such a fun read! I loved how the story hopped back in time to give you the details of this epic relationship in the making.

Thank you to netgalley, the author and the publisher for this ARC copy in exchange for an honest review.
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"𝑺𝒉𝒆'𝒔 𝒎𝒆𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒇𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔, 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔."
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I am one of the biggest christmas movie fans, I live for the anticipation of new releases every year! So having the opportunity to read Holiday Romance is something I could not miss out on!
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This book was an absolute delight to read! Not only does it have the cutest friends to lovers trope, the most intense close proximity trope and of course, the famous one bed trope, but the additional characters used creates such a fun reading environment!

I loved seeing how the relationship between Molly and Andrew grew - Catherine managed to jump us between timelines in this book in a very flawless manner in order to show us that there is more than just an ordinary friendship between these two characters.
Zoe (sister of Molly) and Christian (brother of Andrew) are my favorite characters after Andrew himself. I loved how the reader can relate to them in every sense, and how they, together with Andrew and Molly, create a sense of reality in this book by having their own flaws and perfections.

We also come across inner character development for Andrew and Molly, this made me so happy seeing how they could turn away from their fears and embrace their hopes and wishes for the future, together.
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The challenges in this story had me on the edge of my seat with my heart racing and me screaming 'go! You'll make it, you can do this!', this really was a good element into involving the reader in his or her own way.

I honestly loved this book so much and definitely would recommend it!

THE PERFECT HALLMARK HOLIDAY VIBES

I don't mind admitting that I am a sucker for Hallmark Christmas movies. So when I find a book that gives me the same vibes I am instantly a fan! I definitely found that in this book.

👍 What I Liked 👍

Hallmark: A Hallmark Christmas movie does two things: 1) Puts you in the mood for Christmas and 2) Makes you believe that romance is always just around the corner. This book accomplished both those things and I was so here for it! Add to it the hilarity of our main characters trying to get from the US to Ireland in time for Christmas during a snow storm and you have a Hallmark banger on your hands!

Andrew and Molly: Of course I absolutely loved our main couple, Andrew and Molly. They had a bumpy start, but through both flashbacks and present day scenes we see their relationship evolve into a strong and loving friendship. They were super cute as both friends and a couple, they had so much chemistry which mainly came to show in hilarious banter and lots of teasing.

Friends to lovers: This trope is one of my absolute favourites, and I loved how well it was carried off here. We really get a chance to see Andrew and Molly's friendship before Walsh begins to tease anything more happening between them. It was obvious to me as a reader, that there was an attraction, but I love how Walsh hid it from her characters. It made the journey very believable.

Characters: Aside from Andrew and Molly this book has a host of other great characters to fall in love with. I myself was a particular fan of Andrew's siblings, Christian and Hannah. I kind of hope Walsh decides to make a series of this, because I want to read Christian's love story next!

No drama: Too often authors decide to introduce an unnecessary conflict at the 3/4 milestone to introduce drama and tension. But Walsh was smart and went in another direction. I really loved how she decided to back up her couple and support their love in stead of tearing them apart for no apparent reason. It was refreshing.

What an amazing book this is!

Molly and Andrew meet every year, a few days before Christmas, at Chicago’s airport, to travel to Ireland to spend the holidays with their families.

The book is divided into two timelines. It begins by telling us about their first travel together. Then, it goes to the present, when they are celebrating their ten-year anniversary of traveling together. In the middle of the story we get, bit by bit, year by year, to know the story of all the other trips they had. They go from very awkward to two best friends having fun.

But what makes this trip so special, besides the anniversary part? Well, the flight gets canceled and they go on a crazy journey to be able to be home in time for Christmas. But, even crazier than the trip is the change in their dynamic. The more time they spend together, the more they want to keep together.

This story will get you glued to it. I only paused reading because life got in the way. I had to eat, sleep, and be with the family, … What I wanted was to stay stuck to this book from beginning to end. What an amazing journey that had!

I almost got angry at the end when I thought they would be stupid but it quickly got worked out and I stayed happy with it.

I loved both families, and Molly and Andrew are great characters.

I’m only starting this year’s Christmas books, but I can guarantee you this will stay on my top picks.

4.5*

If you're a fan of When Harry Met Sally, this is the book for you. I did not want to put this book down, and when I had to, it was all I could think about. What a perfect holiday read. Best friends figuring out their relationship while navigating a hectic holiday travel situation. This novel was adorable, and made me laugh and "aw" several times. This was the best cute, wholesome, lovely romance book I have read in a long time. I loved it.

I will absolutely be recommending this book to all of my friends this holiday season.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of Holiday Romance.

WOW JUST WOW!!!!! I'm just mind blown by how much I loved this book. Holiday Romance by Catherine Walsh was just absolutely adorable. I'm a sucker for Christmas books as all of you know, but this is one of the best Christmas stories I have ever read. This book was just the absolute cutest, it had me laughing the whole way through, it left a smile on my face after the book ended. I want to thank one of my goodreads friend, Pink for reviewing this book because if it wasn't for her, I wouldn't have read this book. The banter between the two main characters was just absolutely hilarious, the characters were fantastic, the story was so easy to follow through with, I couldn't put it down. Once I started this book I never wanted it to end. Holiday Romance seriously had me laughing and smiling the whole time. Can we just take a minute and admire the cover? Absolutely beautiful. If you haven't read this book yet, please do yourself a favor and pick it up!!!!!

THANK YOU NETGALLEY AND BOOKOUTURE FOR AN ARC OF THIS BOOK IN EXCHANGE FOR AN HONEST REVIEW!!!!!

Molly is meant to be catching flights, not catching feelings..... Once a year for the past ten years, Molly and Andrew have spent seven hours and fifteen minutes sitting next to each other on the last flight before Christmas from Chicago to their home country, Ireland. Holiday Romance goes back to every single flight for the past ten years, then it goes to the present of this flight before Christmas. Nothing romantic has ever happened between Molly and Andrew, they're just friends, and that's all they ever want to be, but when you read this book, is that truly want they want, to remain just friends? Despite how different Molly and Andrew are, it's the holiday tradition neither of them has ever wanted to give up. On these flights, Molly and Andrew drink the absolute worst wine and catch up on each other's lives.

Molly isn't a fan of Christmas because her family never really celebrated Christmas, Andrew on the other hand is absolutely obsessed with the Christmas season, he always wears Christmas sweaters and brings on the Christmas tunes, and always wants to buy the best gifts for friends and family. Molly and her sister, Zoe have this Christmas tradition where they buy each other a small inexpensive present, Molly always buys Zoe the worst smelling perfume as a joke. In the beginning of the book, Molly is in this store looking for a perfume for her sister, but she sprays multiple scents all over her arms, this really stuck with me and made me laugh so much because it's exactly what I do when I go to bath and body works. Molly knows how much getting back to Ireland and celebrating Christmas means to Andrew, so she does something stupid and irrational.

Molly vows to get Andrew home in time for Christmas and in time for his mam's famous Christmas dinner. Molly and Andrew are just trying to get home to Ireland for the holidays, but a crazy snowstorm grounds their flight. The clock is ticking to get home, but Molly always has a plan. But as long as the combination of planes, taxis, boats, and trains all run on the same time, nothing can possibly go wrong, right? In the time that their flight is cancelled so much goes wrong, Molly and Andrew end up going to the wrong airport for a different flight, Molly ends up losing her luggage, Molly ends up having a mental breakdown, but Andrew is honestly the sweetest always trying to comfort her. All in all, I just loved this book so much. It was fun, heart warming, cute, and the best of all, a Christmas book. After reading this book and loving it so much, I'll definitely read other books by this author.

Thank you NetGalley, Catherine Walsh and Bookouture for the ARC of Holiday Romance. This is my personal review.
This is one of best books I have read in a long time. I was enjoying the book from start to finish. The story was great – the characters in the story all fit together so well.
I love a good holiday romance and this one checked off all the boxes for me.
Molly and Andrew go home every year for Christmas, but this year had a little more adventure than either of them thought there would be for them.
They interact together so perfectly. This is a holiday romance that you will be so glad to read!

Holiday Romance is the perfect story to get you into the Holiday Spirit! It follows Andrew and Molly for 10 years, 10 flights from Chicago to Dublin, all at Christmas Time. The story transitions between past and present which I loved! You get to learn so much about Andrew and Molly. There is banter and tension and I love how Walsh touches on more serious subjects like work stress and sobriety. This book should definitely be made into a movie for the Hallmark Channel. I read this in one sitting and it is perfect if you love the friends to lovers trope!

4 stars

Thank you @netgalley and @bookouture for the early copy

Molly and Andrew have been taking flights to get home to Ireland together for 10 years and their relationship has changed a lot over that time. From knowing his ex-girlfriend who dumped him over the phone on the plane to new relationships, they have experienced a lot together but this year takes the cake. A snowstorm grounds their flight and Molly knows how important it is to Andrew to get home for Christmas even when her family doesn't go all out for Christmas the same way. Molly uses all of her flight points to reroute them with the help of her boss to get him home in time. From taxis to boats to trains and planes, they finally make it to Ireland in time for all sorts of drama with Molly's family. Andrew stays with her for some and then goes to be with his family and they realize that somewhere along the way their feelings towards each other have changed.

I thought this was the perfect Hallmark Christmas movie style book. The right amount of stress and drama paired with the friends to lovers troupe.

I want nothing more than to experience Christmas in Ireland now.

𝘏𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘙𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 follows Molly and Andrew over the course of ten years as they annually meet to catch a flight bound to Ireland to visit their families for the holidays. On their tenth anniversary, however, their flight is cancelled but Molly knows just how much Andrew misses his family, so with a hundred detours, subtle flirting, mutual pining and some hesitation regarding the new developments between them they just about get home in time for Christmas.

- ~ -

Reading Molly and Andrew's story was like sitting on your cozy window seat, a soft blanket draped on your legs, enjoying the mild winter sunlight and sipping on a cup of hot chocolate.

Like all of Walsh's female protagonists, Molly is also stubborn in her ways but Andrew is always there to appease her. They make a great pair, they made me laugh, swoon and cry, so simply perfect. See below for some instances:

"...𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘬𝘪𝘴𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦."
"𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦, 𝘩𝘶𝘩?"
"𝘞𝘦'𝘷𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘵 𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘶𝘱 𝘰𝘯."
"𝘉𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘶𝘱 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯."

and,

"𝘐'𝘮 𝘪𝘯 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘺𝘰𝘶," 𝘐 𝘴𝘢𝘺. "𝘐𝘯 𝘢𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘯𝘰𝘯 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘤, 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳-𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦-𝘮𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘺."
"𝘐 𝘸𝘰𝘯'𝘵," 𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘶𝘳𝘮𝘶𝘳𝘴. "𝘍𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘴 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘭𝘭 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘮𝘦."
𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳.

Another thing I love about the author is her ability to construct pure familial settings including all the teasing, messing around and the love ofc. And her sibling relationships and banter are always supreme.

- ~ -

4.31 / 5✩

𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘉𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘨𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘱𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬, 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘐 𝘷𝘰𝘭𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 & 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸𝘦𝘥. 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘮𝘺 𝘰𝘸𝘯.