This author deserves all the praise people have been giving her. Her novels are sweet, emotional, and perfect for a rainy day stuck at home. This book features an older couple than ones typically seen in modern romance novels, and that's part of why I wanted to read it. While it does a fair job, I'm just not sure this one hits as strongly as her previous books, and what she has managed to put out since. That said, this author/series continues to be popular in my library system, and I definitely made sure to purchase this title.

***This ARC was provided by Netgalley for a honest review***
This book was so good! I have read her other 3 in this series and love not only her character development but the flow of the books. She does a great job of keeping you wrapped up in the story. Vivian Forest is Maddie’s mom. She’s been out of the country a grand one time. Maddie is headed to England to dress the Duchess for their Iconic Christmas walk to the church at Sandringham estate. While Maddie works away on outfits, Vivian meets Malcolm who works as the Queens personal secretary. They get to know each other better by taking walks around the grounds meeting the horses and having lunch in a pub. As their trip wraps up on Christmas Day, Malcolm invites Vivian to stay with him through the New Year. They spend tons of time together but as they’re getting ready to say goodbye, they decide that the vacation fling was all that it was. A few days after she’s home in California she received a postcard from Malcolm and their snail mail relationship begins. After lots of back and forth Vivian confesses via post card that she has fallen in love with him. Malcolm has no idea what to do in this situation. Will they be able to have a relationship an ocean apart.?

Guillory's romances are always sweet and well written. I love her diverse cast of characters and the story line pulled me in, without being too cheesy.

This book has all of the best parts of the British Royalty- prim and proper characters and of course lots of jewels and crowns. Really enjoyed this HEA. Thank you NetGalley for the Advanced Reader Copy. I will be recommending it to everyone.

I’m an elementary school librarian so obviously I cannot purchase this book for my library but if I had a library for adults I would. Love everything by this author. Love the stories & the strong female leads! Such a sweet story & I will continue to read the rest of the books in this series. Listened to this via audio and appreciated the narration.

I loved this Groundhog Day inspired story. The characters were great and her family made me laugh. She figures out pretty quickly the extreme consequence of not going along with the whatever force is making her repeat this day and I loved her giving in to that.

As with all Guillory books, this is a story about two delightful people who fall in love but with few of the usual complications. This features the mother of Maddie, the heroine from The Wedding Party, who is a stylist improbably invited to spend Christmas in Britain assisting a Meghan Markle-inspired character with her clothes. When Maddie hesitates about leaving her mother alone for Christmas, her mother is invited as well, and falls in love with an attractive man who works in a high level position in the Queen's household. A romance about two well-educated Black professionals in their 50s is appealing, although they fall into bed a little too quickly, given the potential for their relationship to embarrass their hosts/employers.

I received an eARC of Royal Holiday via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
I’ve really enjoyed all of the other Guillory books I’ve read but this story just fell flat for me on a number of levels.



I really liked Vivian as a main character, but I honestly never got the romance with Malcolm. He held back so, so much that it felt like he was barely a part of the romance. When he was part of it, he was being a massive jerk – either to his nephew, to Vivian, or to them both. Every time he fought with his nephew, Vivian was the one that fixed it by telling him to stop being a jerk and using all of her work skills to make him come out of his shell.



It was great seeing Maddie thrive in her personal life and career after spending the last book with her. I did really enjoy the tour of London and how real that felt because it made me feel like part of the vacation alongside Vivian.

You might like this more than I did, but it didn’t work for me. If you want to give it a shot, you can pick it up on Indiebound, Amazon or The Book Depository through our affiliate links.


ABOUT ROYAL HOLIDAY

Perhaps one of her best books yet, Jasmine Guillory’s Royal Holiday left me with a smile on my face and joy in my heart! Guillory continues to push contemporary romance into showcasing diversity in the genre, while still maintaining the steamy, fun, sassy, and heart-warming moments that make you forget you are also learning a valuable lesson. Lovely!

Jasmine Guillory’s books are some of the ones I most look forward to. Each book somehow ties loosely to the book before it through the characters. Last year’s The Wedding Party starred Maddie Forest, a stylist in California who is probably my favorite protagonist of Guillory’s books to date. Maddie was tough and vulnerable, and wholly easy to adore in my opinion.

In Royal Holiday, Maddie’s mother Vivian is center stage, and I didn’t realize how excited I would be to read a wonderful, charming story about love over 50. As if that is shocking? But somehow, it is. We rarely see women in contemporary romance older than mid-30s, and a black woman over the typical age range seems almost unheard of.

But as with every book Guillory writes, the diversity is as important as the romance itself. She manages to constantly remind us that love is universal, but the way society treats love stories is not always equal depending on surface characteristics. All of this combines to have me both loving the rom-com of her books, and also feeling more tolerant, accepting, and educated about the struggles faced by people of color.
Let’s get to the story!

When Maddie is hired as the stylist to the Duchess for the Christmas holidays, she and her mother travel overseas to spend holidays in royal fashion (pun intended!). The queen is also at the estate with her private secretary Malcom Hudson (whom Vivian calls “Hot Chocolate” to my delight!). When a holiday romance heats up between Vivian and Malcolm, the attraction is much deeper than just physical.

Of course, with Vivian living in Oakland, CA and Malcolm’s duty to the queen, the romance seems doomed to be not much more than a holiday fling. But perhaps, as they say, love will conquer all—even those pesky thousands of miles keeping them apart!

I felt like this was the type of book that you could love just on the surface, and also for the brilliance of Guillory’s writing. The diversity didn’t feel like it took precedence over the story, but it also didn’t take a backstage to it. It was as much a part of their identities as their hilarious banter and their hearts. I felt that the book both showcases the inherent lack of diversity in the genre, while also making it seem almost silly that we don’t see more age and racial diversity historically in romance books.

And then of course, in addition to all of that, is the message that we should always allow our hearts to be open to love!

Thank you to Berkley Publishing for my copy. Opinions are my own.

Sorry, this wasn't really for me. I wanted this one because everyone loved The Proposal, but turns out it's not my style.

This was a good book about going to England and experiencing the journey of falling in love all over again. I didn't like it as much as I've loved Jasmine Guillory's other books, but it was a good addition to the series!

If you've read Jasmine Guillory, you know Maddie. Well, this is Maddie's mom's turn to shine. Following her daughter across the pond for a holiday as Maddie becomes stylist to a Royal, Vivian Forest expects to have a delightful trip seeing the sights and catching up with her daughter. Malcolm may change all that. He works for the queen, but his attentions to Vivian spark something in both of them. The catch, though, is it's not easy to keep control of a spark that threatens to become a huge blaze. This is just a fling, right? Vivian's as smart and funny as her daughter, and Malcolm is a charmer, and this absolute fantasy of a romance is a wonderful escapist episode in Jasmine Guillory's expanded universe.

3.5 stars!

What a easy, fun read. I just adore romances between "older" characters since I fall into that older catergory :) This gave us the story of Vivian and Malcolm who met in England during the Christmas holiday. I loved watching them fall in love and try and traverse the idea of dating and how that works since they've been out of that scene for a while, not to mention living on separate continents.

I went back and forth between reading and listening to this one, so I feel I need to touch on the audio. I really enjoyed the narrator. She did a great job distinguishing voices and accents :)

Jasmine's book are one of my favorite. The story never fails to disappoint! The charm in this book is off the charts and I enjoyed every minute of it. I love how the characters are interwoven throughout the titles, but you don't have to read all of them to be able to understand whichever one you picked up. If you love romantic comedies, then you definitely need to read Gullory's books!

Love Jasmine Guillory and this one did not disappoint. This was a great addition to her series, and I appreciated that the protagonist was over 40. This is too rare in the romance world, and I loved that Guillory added this to her series. It has all the hallmarks we've come to love from her novels, and romance fans will not be disappointed. Plus, I'll never be let down by a Christmas travel romance, especially in the UK!

Special thanks to Berkley for providing our copy of Royal Holiday by Jasmine Guillory in exchange for an honest & fair review.

Oh, this book is light, refreshing & the audio is very enjoyable. Maybe Royal Holiday by Jasmine Guillory just hot me at the right time. Honestly, it's a breath of fresh air.

Vivian is long overdue for some romance. She heads to England with her daughter Maddie (from The Wedding Date) & low & behold she meets Malcolm. He works for the Queen of England! Instantly, Vivian intrigues him. Surely this is just a Royal Holiday, right? Not something tangible & real.

Luckily, I met Jasmine back in October & heard her speak about her inspiration for this book. Much inspiration came from the marriage of Megan Markle & Prince Harry. Even better, Jasmine had this vision of Doria Ragland (Megan Markle's mother) traveling to London. Thus, this story was born!

Even though I have this on Kindle I opted for the audio. Royal Holiday by Jasmine Guillory is cute, heartwarming & a great whirlwind romance story. For me, it's a realistic whirlwind romance. Is that even a thing? Well, it is now!

OK so, Jasmine is an auto buy for me but this definitely did not disappoint. No I love all her books each one feels fresh and new and is equally as exciting. I love how strong the female characters are and this one was particularly interesting :-) as well written and cute as always… With some hot elements as well

I loooooove anything written by Jasmine Guillory, but this one wasn’t my favorite. Malcolm and Vivian were likeable characters and their whirlwind romance was fun to follow, but the plot felt a little choppy and didn’t hold my attention as easily as Guillory’s other books. It won’t stop me from reading anything she releases, but this wouldn’t be the first I would recommend to a friend. Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC!

Guillory's royal-adjacent novel is a real Christmas treat. Guillory is a fantastic author, and I've adored each of her books. This one, with its cameos by real life royals, is especially delicious.

ROYAL HOLIDAY is the fourth book in THE WEDDING DATE series, and this time we’re off to England from not-so-sunny California. Maddie has a job filling in as the stylist for the Duchess and has to go to England to fulfill her obligation. Maddie jumps as the chance and brings her mother, Vivian, along with her since they will be gone for Christmas.

Their trip is a whirlwind. While her daughter is working, Vivian is being entertained by Malcolm, the Queen’s private secretary, after a chance meeting in the kitchen of the cottage where they are staying. There’s an instant attraction between them, and it’s lovely watching them get to know each other.

Malcolm is very thoughtful and always has Vivian’s best interests at heart. He wants to make her first visit to England very memorable in more ways than one. The interactions between the characters were terrifically fun, and it all seemed real. The author brought England alive with her vivid descriptions. The reader gets to play tourist with Vivian and watch her enchantment with all things English, especially with Malcolm as her tour guide!

The story seemed choppy at times but overall was an enjoyable read. I wish some of the previous characters we’ve met had at least a small role in this book, but that in no way took away from the romantic storyline. There is nice closure especially with the epilogue which takes place nine months after the story ends.

I’ve read all four books in the series and hope there will be more. I look forward to reading what Ms. Guillory writes next.