Another rom com without the rom or the com. There was really no romance or anything cute here, no comedy. Just whining from Molly throughout the years of taking flights with her college friends ex boyfriend. Yes you read that right. Nothing about this story even made sense. It didn’t work for me

In Holiday Romance, we are introduced to Molly, who is going home to Ireland for a not-so-celebratory-Christmas week. She ends up sitting next to her college roommates soon to be ex-boyfriend Andrew, who is also going home to Ireland. They agree to make it a tradition to travel back home to Ireland on Christmas Eve each year.

Over the course of 10 years and 10 flights, their friendship turns into something more, even though they are complete opposites regarding how they celebrate, or don't celebrate, Christmas. This current holiday, however, they are stuck by a snowstorm. Molly is determined to get Andrew home to his fabulous family traditional celebration by any means possible. And it is this Christmas they come to terms with what their relationship really means.

This is the perfect romantic comedy the world needs right now! It will make you swoon, possibly even cry at times. It was definitely hard to put down. This is the perfect read for this Christmas season to set your heart skipping and humming that wonderful holiday tune.

Thank you to Bookoutoure and NetGalley for the digital ARC. The opinions expressed are my own.

Holiday Romance by Catherine Walsh will rank as one of my favorite holiday romcoms. Actually, it's going to be pretty high on my list of favorite romcoms, period! A once a year Christmas trip to Ireland becomes a fabulous friendship/romance. Just enough drama, a little bit of steam, a great happily every after! 4.5 stars.

despite not yet being in the christmas spirit at all, i really enjoyed this! it’s a perfect light and fluffy holiday read, without too much unnecessary angst or pages filled with smut. it felt like a very mature romance, in the sense that it was really just two adults figuring out if they should give this relationship a chance, without making stupid mistakes or miscommunicating on every page for the drama. the pace is slightly slower and there is no insane sexual swoony chemistry, instead a really pure friendship and some fun banter. due to the travel plotline, it didn’t feel overly christmassy & i especially loved all of the family members that we got to meet in the second half!

OMG Catherine Walsh OUTDID HERSELF. This book was literal Christmas joy 🥹💚 I couldn’t put it down!

When main characters, Molly and Andrew found themselves on the same flight back to Ireland 10 years ago, it almost seemed like fate. They continued traveling together over the years as friends. After a nasty storm delayed their latest flight, they were sent all over creation and Molly made it her mission to get Andrew home in time for the holidays (like COME ON WITH THE CUTENESS! 🥹💕) They took planes, ferries, trains and cabs and as fate would have it, they made it home in time to see their families 🥹 along the way (after an adorable mistletoe kiss!!) they also realized they had caught serious feelings for each other over the years. 🫶🏼❤️💋

This is the perfect, cute Christmas read to get you in the holiday spirit. 🎄 If you are a fan of September 9 or People We Meet on Vacation, you will LOVE this novel! Very similar writing style where the characters only see each other once a year. Personally, I love that because it makes their time together so much more meaningful. 💕

Huge thank you to @netgalley and @bookouture for gifting me this ARC 💝 Be on the lookout for this release October 4th!

Nothing romantic has ever happened between Molly and Andrew. They are just two friends who sit next to each other once a year on the last flight home before Christmas travelling from Chicago back to Dublin. Except this year, when a sudden snowstorm derails all of their usual travel plans causing chaos and unexpected feels.

I loved this book. I'm not usually one to read holiday books before December, but this one was so cute! I adored both Molly and Andrew (especially Andrew). I found the book to be full of moments of humor sprinkled with sleep-deprived breakdowns (Molly) and surprise mistletoe kisses that cause confusing feelings (also Molly) during the 72 hour period of their travels in order to get home for the holidays.

For me, I usually don't enjoy the friends to lovers trope as much as I did in this book. I found the friendship between Molly and Andrew to be so genuine and watching it grow throughout the book just had me hooked. This was a 4.5 star read for me! I enjoyed it so much. Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture!

This book was SO adorable! I had laughs, sad moments, and moments rooting for them to do it. I love a good friends to lovers book!

I really enjoyed how the book went from the present to the past. The past points came in at the right time and tied into the now. I enjoyed learning about both of their families. Hannah was my favorite character. She reminded me of my younger sister and I just loved her so much even though the book wasn't surrounded around her.

Although the beautiful gift Andrew gave to Molly should have been a sign of something that was a possibility - one of them moving back. I think the story could have done without that conversation with Christian. It really just put an extra few pages and Andrew saying how much he loved Molly. But, I am also not sure they would've both ended up thinking what they did without it so I am torn.

Overall, this is a perfect holiday read!

Molly and Andrew are friends that both love i Chicago that fly home to Ireland together every year for Christmas. Once they get there, they go their separate ways to their family homes. On their tenth trip, they get grounded in Chicago and have to figure out another route to get home. Their adventure leads them to feelings they didn’t know they had. This book was so funny! I loved every second of their adventure and the positive way Molly made sure that Andrew would be home for Christmas. She tried her best to keep a positive attitude for him even though she didn’t care for Christmas nearly as much as him. What a way to kick off holiday reading this year!

A cute read. Not 'completely hilarious, 'as the subtitle claims, but definitely a holiday, warm-and-fuzzy rom com. Itll make you want your fuzzy socks, hot chocolate and a soft chair. The two characters meet on a plane every year to fly back to Ireland, and of course the ly eventually fall in love. During year 10, all sorts of issues cause grounded flights, delays, ferry rides, etc to get them home in time for Christmas.
The first half of the book moved quickly, but when they actually made it home, everything slowed way down. There was never any doubt about them staying together, and the only real conflict about it lasted about 10 pages. Pure cute fluff, perfect for the holidays.

A fun, light hearted romance. This one is very straight forward… two friends that wait ten years before they admit their feelings to one another (and themselves.)
What’s good: fun banter, interesting side characters
What’s not so good: plot is thin, and all over the place. Structure of the book was not my favorite.
For those looking for spice, there’s one scene of that.
It was good, but nothing special. It would make an interesting hallmark movie though.

I loved how festive the book was and I really enjoyed the flashbacks from years prior. With that said, the book could have been been finished around 50%. I feel like the characters got together way too soon

The title of this book is everything this book offers: a holiday romance. Snow, ugly sweaters, hot drinks, travelling, family, and friends. It’s all here!

Andrew and Molly have flown from Chicago to Dublin each December for 10 years and it is something they look forward to each other, but it is this year where they have the adventure of a lifetime. They are stuck due to a snowstorm, so while they keep changing their plans during their endeavours to make it home to Ireland for Christmas, they also experience some closeness and warm affection toward each other. It’s a sweet story of flashbacks to each of their fights and you get a sense of how genuinely they care for each other.

Catherine Wash magically brings familial characters together; Molly’s family and Andrew’s family are a hoot and a delight. Catherine also portrays her MCs with such details. It’s the little things they say and do that grab your heartstrings. Andrew is an amazing friend and the way he defends Molly or puts her on a pedestal is just…well….it just gets me. When he tells Molly how he felt for her after her break ups, I am simply taken aback at his raw honesty and gentleness: “I wasn’t so much jealous as I was happy when they made you happy…and irrationally angry when they made you sad. I may have a protective streak when it comes to you.” We all need an Andrew in our corner.

“Holiday Romance” is sweet, it’s witty, it’s mushy, and it’s a memorable story that will melt your heart.

Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was a slow burn but I loved the romance between Andrew and Molly. Andrew’s so patient and such a sweetheart!

This is a book I would love to see made into a movie! Definitely a cute holiday read.

It’s a bit slow to really get into but overall a really good story! I loved the backstory over the past Christmases and how Andrew & Molly got to where they ended up in the present.

Catherine Walsh has done it again! I am continually impressed by her ability to write meaningful, funny, smart, romance books. Holiday Romance is the perfect winter read and encapsulates the unique energy of travelling internationally to get home for Christmas. I loved seeing Molly and Andrew's dynamic develop over the course of their decade-long friendship, and the nuanced shifts that would occur between each flight. More than that, like Walsh's other books, Holiday Romance contains a well-thought-out subplot exploring the complexities of familial relationships. I truly adored this book, and am excited to reread it again when it gets closer to Christmas!

This is officially my favorite holiday romance. I loved every single minute of it, and wished it never had to end. In fact, I found myself reading it in smaller increments as I neared the end, in order to delay the inevitable.

Holiday Romance is such unique story even though it has your typical tropes such as friends to lovers, close proximity, etc. I found the dual timelines and how she presented the countdown, to be fun and easy to follow, while also helping the reader to fully understand the history of our MCs, both together and individually. I developed a very strong connection to each of the characters for different reasons and because very invested in where the story took them.

One of my favorite things about this book, is the inclusion of the two families and how we are able to visit each of them, first meeting Molly’s sister and parents in Dublin and experiencing all of their quirkiness, and then heading to the countryside for a day with Andrew’s slightly more traditional and boisterous family. In every moment, I felt a part of the story.

This will be added to my reread list to be read every December going forward. To me, it is the epitome of the Christmas Romance, with the perfect ration of love story to holiday fun. I cannot recommend this book enough. Pre-order today, and available October 4.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you so much to Bookouture and NetGalley for the opportunity to read Holiday Romance.

This book gave me so many so feels and gave me People We Meet on Vacation with a Christmas twist. I 100% think this is a perfect Christmas read for the upcoming holiday season.

Molly and Andrew met 10 years ago on a flight from Chicago to Ireland to visit their families for Christmas. They accidentally see each other the following year and decide to make a tradition out of it. The book goes through the current year and back to a previous flight. Each flight shows how their friendship grows and begins changing each year as their lives and relationship statuses change. The current timeline shows what a disaster this travel path home has become thanks to massive delays to all flights going over the Atlantic. Molly takes it upon herself to get Andrew home to his family for the Holidays beginning a Planes, Trains, and Automobiles path from Chicago to Ireland. This journey gives Molly and Andrew plenty of time to get to know each other more in-depth and may cause a shift in their relationship forever.

Molly reminds me so much of a mixture of me and my sister. She is not a huge fan of the holidays but is extremely passionate about helping the people in her life. She is unhappy with her career path at the moment and is trying to figure out what her next step will be.

Andrew is a little much for me. He is a huge fan of Christmas and all of the traditions that are involved with the Holiday. I do love how much he loves his small village. I come from a small town and can't imagine a life where I grew up anywhere but there.

I love how relatable these characters are. There is always someone in your life who will absolutely love Christmas and someone who isn't that huge a fan of them. I really hope we see a continuation of this book with Zoe or Christian finding love.

5 stars, read in less than 24 hours. Loved it! Super cute without being overly sweet. Enjoyed the story telling style of present day and back to each of the 10 years of previous Christmas flights. Would read more rom coms by this author.

Holiday Romance is a super-cute RomCom that will have you laughing out loud & cheering on these two friends turned lovers, all while enjoying the magic of Christmas. This is my first Catherine Walsh book & definitely will not be the last. Catherine is a very talented writer & her light hearted stories are true gems in the literacy world.

Holiday Romance by Catherine Walsh was well, an adorable holiday romance

Andrew and Molly are both Irish, they both live in Chicago, and every year for the last ten years they have flown back home for the holidays together.

This year disaster strikes, and all flights home are cancelled, but Molly is determined to get Andrew home for Christmas because she knows how much spending the holiday with his family means to him. While traveling through three continents, and after a spontaneous kiss under the mistletoe, they start to realize there might be more to their relationship than just friendship.

Andrew and Molly have ten years' worth of friendship so the foundation is there, watching them explore the possibility of more was so fun to read. I also appreciated that they talked through their feelings of doubt and fear and avoided the dreaded miscommunication trope.

Holiday Romance has officially been added to my list of favorite holiday reads and I am already looking forward to a re-read this holiday season.

I absolutely adored Catherine Walsh’s The Rebound, so I jumped at the chance to review her latest book. This is such a cosy, heartwarming read and has definitely put me in the mood for all things Christmassy. Molly and Andrew are just adorable, and I loved going back in time to learn about their flights back home and seeing how the friends to lovers relationship developed. There were also some interesting concepts about sobriety and unhappiness in your career/taking risks to chase your true passions, which I felt Catherine dealt with in sensitively and honestly.

Another five star read from Catherine and I can’t wait for her next one already!

*Thanks to Bookouture and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.*