Megan made a last-minute decision to be a runaway bride! And she was supposed to marry her high school sweetheart which makes her choice even juicier.
This book was so much fun to read. I read this and enjoyed every word of this book. I am a fan of rom-com books – fake romances and Christmas all tied into one book makes this one even better.
Thank you NetGalley, Catherine Walsh and Bookouture for the ARC of the book Snowed In. This is my personal review.
Publication date is November 1,2023.

Okay. So. I would say this more of a slow burn childhood acquaintances to friends to lovers via fake dating romance than fake dating but it was swoony (once it got there), very funny, a teensy bit spicy, and just a wonderful little love story.

This is actually the at least second in a series but I honestly had no idea. You can absolutely read this as a stand alone.

*I received a free ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

Catherine Walsh always writes excellent holiday romances, so no surprises that I really enjoyed her newest, "Snowed In." The author has combined classic tropes with Hallmark movie vibes to create a cozy, funny, sweet holiday romance. This is the perfect book to kick off your holiday reading list!

Because I loved Holiday Romance so much, I didn't expect this one to live up to my extremely high expectations BUT IT DID!

Catherine Walsh has done it AGAIN and has given us the perfect holiday romance novel AGAIN.

I loved Christian and Megan so much! The banter, the chemistry, those tropes! There's even the 'taking-care-of-when-sick' trope, for which I tend to turn into a puddle (and I did)!

I especially loved how Christian had Megan's back against her old friends and her ex-fiancé! We love a caring, protective MMC!

Also, we see MY BABIES Molly and Andrew from the first book and I just can't with the cuteness! Bring me all the Molly/Andrew cameos!

Obviously, I recommend this book 150%! Snowed In is a stand-alone, so you don't have to read Holiday Romance first (but why wouldn't you??).

Spicy: PG-13

Will you like this book? You might if you like:

Runaway Brides
Fake relationships
Small Irish towns
Christmas romances
Overly involved siblings and family drama
Bonus: You loved Holiday Romance and want to see what Molly and Andrew again

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

Ugh, was I in a reading rut. I was in the middle of four different books and nothing was really grabbing me. The world feels like such a scary place at the moment and everything I was reading wasn’t grabbing me enough to make me forget it all.

Then I realized I had the Snowed In ARC on my Kindle and I was ready for Christmas and longing for a trip to Ireland, so it seemed perfect. And from the Prologue it had me hooked. I couldn’t put it down. You don’t need to read anything further until you’ve gone ahead and ordered this book. Go ahead, I’ll wait…

Megan O’Sullivan ran away from her wedding 5 years ago and she hasn’t been home since. Christian Fitzpatrick, who grew up with Megan and witnessed her flight, has been home but dreads it, there are just too many questions about his love life. When Megan and Christian run into each other in Dublin, Christian has a great idea: they can pretend to be together during the holiday and help each other out. Perfect plan, no feelings will be caught, no one will fall in love. Even if they end up getting snowed in at a remote cabin.

Well it’s a romance, so it’s not a spoiler, really, to let you know of course they do fall in love. The fun is in reading how they get there. Walsh writes with both great wit and true tenderness. I’m laughing AND I’m crying; my heart is singing and it is breaking. I love a romance where the characters know each other well so they have lots of history. And Megan and Christian have known each other forever, their lives are intertwined in the small village they are from, and while they both love their families, they both feel a little bit like outsiders.

There are so many great secondary characters in this book, but not that they overwhelm the main characters. Meeting your significant other’s family is hard, even when you know them. Walsh does a great job of writing siblings that are incredibly relatable. And I am hoping we get to see more of them (I want Aidan, I want Zoe, I want Hannah!) and while I wait patiently for Walsh’s next book, I’ll be rereading this one near the end of December for all the warm fuzzies and belly laughs.

This was really cute. I love that it started with Christian finding her running away from her wedding. It was a fun little prologue. I love that they took the time to understand each other and why they did certain things. They just worked really well together and I loved both of their families.

I received an arc through netgalley.

Summary
Five years ago, Megan O'Sullivan ran away from her own wedding, minutes before it was to begin. She hasn't returned to her small Irish hometown since she left. One night in Dublin, she runs into former school classmate, Christian Fitzgerald, who she last saw when he saw her pull the runaway bride card. After catching up over drinks, and their mutual disdain for having to go home for the holidays, Christian proposes they pretend they are in a serious relationship. Megan needs support returning home for the first time in 5 years, potentially running into former friends and her former fiancé, and Christian doesn't want to be the lone pitied single in his family. When the faking feels a little too real and then add in a snowed in weekend at a remote cabin, who knows what could happen.

Review
I found Catherine on Netgalley when I got the book, The Rebound. And I've adored her ever since. Honestly, this book may be my favorite. Catherine is able to write characters who have layers and personal obstacles that are more than just surface level I loved seeing Megan and Christian open up to each other and you could feel the tension slowly building all book. She tackles the topic of a former relationship with a controlling partner with tact and respect. I would have loved to have seen how Megan and Christian did or didn't interact at children, or at least hear more about it. But overall, it was fun, funny, emotional and just perfect.

A cozy, easy read that will definitely put you in the holiday spirit and wish for Christmas to get here even quicker!

I absolutely adored Megan and Christian’s story. Everything about their growing relationship felt authentic and I was smiling every time they were together. The banter and humor throughout was great as well as every setting was described so well and so easy to picture. This book has substance and depth beyond just the normal feel good Christmas moments.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants a feel good romance with festive spirit! Also, adding all of Catherine’s books to my TBR!

I love, love, love Christmas rom coms. Walsh’s Holiday Romance was one of my absolute favorites last year so I had high hopes for this book and it did not disappoint! With excellent tropes (fake dating, forced proximity, friends to lovers), a lot of humor, and just a little spice, this was literally everything I hoped it would be! A must-read for the Christmas season!

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookoture for the ARC of this fantastic book!

Oh how I love me a good slow-burn. The title and tagline of this book is a little bit mis-leading, because I don’t think forced proximity is the main plot of this story, but that didn’t make me enjoy it any less.

The fake dating and the slow-burn in this is absolutely delicious. I truly liked Megan and Christian, as well as their respective families. They all felt very real to me, and I love that the author didn’t fall into the trap of making it all TOO MUCH.

This was one of those books that just had me grinning and squeeing all the way through, as well as hitting me right in the feels, and I didn’t want it to end. This ended up being one of my favorite rom-com books I’ve read to date, and I’ll definitely be looking up more books by Catherine Walsh!

Christian and Megan are both dreading going home for the holidays for different reasons. Megan hasn’t been back for 5 years, ever since she left her fiancé at the altar and became the talk of the town. Christian is tired of being pitied and questioned by his family as the only one who isn’t in a relationship. After growing up together and reconnecting in Dublin where they both live, they decide the solution to both of their problems is to go home together and pretend to be in a relationship. Of course, many things go wrong (and right!) as they usually do in books with fake dating, forced proximity, and family/friend/ex-fiancé drama.

This book would be a great cozy winter read and reminded me of some of my favorite romcom movies (especially The Holiday and The Family Stone). Just the right balance of light and easy moments, serious moments, witty and funny banter, and general awkwardness. I enjoyed the dynamic between the different characters, although it was a little hard to keep them all straight at times. Apparently this is a sequel to another book by Catherine Walsh which is about Christian’s brother Andrew and his girlfriend Molly and how they met. I didn’t know that before reading but I’d definitely go back and read that one too. Overall, a sweet and slightly spicy holiday romcom that felt like a warm hug. Thanks to NetGalley for this advanced reader copy before it’s published on November 1st!

While it is a standalone story, Snowed In takes place a little over two years after Holiday Romance. This is determined by Zoe, Molly’s twin sister, who gave birth in Holiday Romance. In Snowed In, the story begins with Christian (Andrew’s brother) and Zoe hanging out with her now two year old toddler, Tiernan. Keeping the same snappy dialogue and Walsh wit, Snowed In takes us back to the small town we fell in love with before, reintroduces us to the Fitzpatrick clan, and shows us that with a little Christmas magic, anything is possible. I will warn you, read Holiday Romance first; otherwise, you will have spoilers and may not understand the story of Andrew and Molly that continues in Snowed In.

Megan just needs a win! It’s bad enough that she is still deemed a social pariah for running out on her wedding day five years ago. Yes, she left the village golden boy Isaac at the alter but she just couldn’t face the rest of her life being with the only man that was her first… well everything! She figured life would be waiting for her when she finally broke free. What was waiting for her, horrible first dates and failed relationships. It wouldn’t be so bad if she was doing well in her career but, while she loves her job, saying she lives a modest lifestyle is an understatement. All of this she could cope with but the idea of returning to her village, aka the scene of the crime, after all these years away is not helping her look forward to the upcoming holiday. That has to be why she was willing to entertain Christian Fitzpatrick’s outlandish plan: Being each other’s fake date (i.e. backup) while they are home for the holidays. Christian’s family would avoid meddling in his life for once and Megan may actually survive running into Isaac, the scrutiny of her town, and her mother’s fundraiser. It’s a plan that is just crazy enough to work… or one hilarious failure to watch!

I never want Walsh’s books to end! When you hit that last page and she beautifully wraps up the story, you feel like she just gave you a one of a kind gift. Her stories and characters are so relatable! Life isn’t automatically easy for them. Things don’t just magically work out and suddenly there is a choreographed dance number. Her characters feel pain, shame, disappointment, heartbreak, and stew in self doubt. I can only assume (being from the US) that all Irish families are as close as she portrays and the support system illustrated is more fact than fiction. If so, the level of envy goes above and beyond!

While I loved everything about this book, what I loved most was that Walsh kept the evolution of the relationship realistic. The vulnerability of the characters, the sibling relationships, the parent/child dynamic and evolution of understanding - she delivered and then some! Add to it the sarcasm that only Walsh can deliver and the conversations that you swear you have heard from people around you (i.e. real talk) and you can’t help but read this book from beginning to end as soon as possible.

Humor and heat are two things Walsh does exceptionally well! While nowhere near the primary focus of the book and placed deep within the story, when Christian and Megan light the initial match that starts a smouldering fire between them, you get a glimpse at the potential intensity. When that finally turns into a full blown flame, it is hot, emotional, intense, and absolute perfection, especially for these two characters.

I am crossing my fingers and toes that Walsh writes Aiden’s story so we aren’t done with this little village just yet. Snowed In is a wonderful winter treat that will put a smile on your face, warmth in your heart, and a growl in your belly (they talk about food a lot!)

4 1/2 stars

What a wonderful, adorable, heart-warming story. Megan and Christian are so wonderful together. I'm not sure if you'd call this second chance as they both had crushes on each other back in school when they were younger, but both thought the other didn't know they existed.

Megan going on to almost marry her first real boyfriend and Christian being there seeing her at her lowest and they still get the HEA they both deserve.

The cast of secondary characters are a hoot! They really do make the story a believable going home for Christmas story. It's a really good read and pretty quick, so you know you want to pick this up for the holiday season (as you should).

Thank you, Netgally I gifting me with an advance review copy, and I am leaving this review voluntarily

A second win by Catherine Walsh! This was such a fun winter read. The setting is urban and rural Ireland. The MCs have fabulous sarcastic banter throughout the book and the supporting characters are well-rounded. There wasn't a moment that felt unnecessary or boring, instead I kept wondering "when? how? where? why?". Thanks for a great read!

I'm so lucky I got to read this one thanks to @netgalley and Catherine Walsh for the ARC. It took me a little but to get in to this one, but I'm so glad I didn't give up. This was the perfect holiday read. It's cozy, and heartwarming, romantic and fun. There's the perfect amount of banter, and family time, and holiday vibes. I really loved it. I will definitely be checking out more of Catherine's books! 100% recommend this one for a holiday romance read!

Thank you to Netgalley, Bookouture, and Catherine Walsh for an eARC copy in exchange for my honest review.

The holidays, fake dating, friends to lovers, forced proximity, small village, dual POV? Check, check, check, check, check again! An easy 5 star read with some great open door spice. I devoured this so quickly and it really set the bar for my holiday reads this year! This is an interconnected series but Snowed In can be read as a stand alone.

I fell in love with Megan and Christian and their banter and their chemistry immediately. They set some ground rules but can they or will they want to stick to them? And the grand gestures? Swoon. Being snowed in has never seemed so darn good. What sealed the deal for me? No third-act breakup. We have romance, healing, great family dynamics and well developed supporting characters. The characters truly feel relatable and realistic and I love this world. I felt the plot had great substance with the levity of a rom com.

I love love love Catherine Walsh and her writing style. This did not fail in Snowed in! A holiday read never fails to bring my heart joy. Megan's character is easily relatable, fun to read about, and overall 10/10.

When fake dating becomes all too real from the beginning, can it turn into something great or will it fizzle out fast as the fake fades!?! A delightful Christmas rom com that is a sweet romance, but also a look at being strong enough to stand up for yourself. She was known as the runaway bride, but not in a fun and loveable way. He was known as the troublemaker, yet while both pasts are somewhat true, they are by no means the whole of who these characters are. Once again, this author has delivered a wonderful romance to delight and entertain as well as provide a great message of seeing one's self-worth and not letting anyone tear it down. This is a slow burn with just a bit of spice as we near the end, but it is quality spice and fits the story well. I absolutely loved these characters and the plot which makes me even happier to find that there was a book before this one which makes me hope that there might be more coming in this series! I'll definitely be going back to snag the first book and I'll be watching/hoping for more of the characters in the future as well!

Sooooo good! The perfect Christmas romance to start your holiday season.
Not gonna lie, I’m a big fan of Catherine Walsh and I was super excited to receive the ARC for Snowed in! After reading and loving Holiday Romance last year, I knew this would be the perfect way to start the festive season (it was October 1st, but who’s counting).

Megan hasn’t been home for the holidays in years, ever since leaving the village golden boy Isaac at the altar. Meanwhile Christian is tired of his family’s sad eyes whenever he shows up home alone. When Megan literally bumps into Christian at a pub in Dublin, they come up with a pact to fake date during the holiday season. Snowed In is a fake dating Christmas rom-com set in a small town in Ireland. While it’s a stand-alone, I still recommend reading Holiday Romance (available on KU) before to meet Christian and his family. Both are, in my opinion, some of the best holiday romances out there.

Walsh wrote yet again an amazing feel-good romance. Christian is completely smitten with Megan from the moment he sees her, but the growth of their relationship is what did it for me. I loved seeing those two get to know each other and work through their past together. Megan was such witty character and we finally got to see Christian for more than the flirty brother we knew. He was sweet, supportive, and so protective of Megan. They balanced each other perfectly and I adored both. The banter was perfect, and the chemistry between Christian and Megan was enough to melt a blizzard.

A swoony, friends to lovers, fake dating for the holidays slow burn, dual POV romance. Another hit from Catherine Walsh. I loved her book, Holiday Romance last year and this was a big win for me too. Family drama, small town Irish setting and tons of feels! Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!

Steam level: open door, mild details