The Christmas Swap by Sandy Barker 🎄⠀
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Thoughts: I was initially intrigued by this because the movie The Holiday is one of my all time favorite movies! And it read very similar to it ❄⠀
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In The Christmas Swap they basically do the same thing but instead it's 3 friends switching locations for the holiday ☃️⠀
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It felt like a bonus becuae there are three Christmas romances, in one book! When they swap homes for the holidays, they end up meeting new people and having a bit of fun. ⠀
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I’d recommend this if you're looking for a fun and lighthearted Christmas romance, with humor and life long friendships. 🎅⠀
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Thank you to NetGalley, Sandy Barker, and One More Chapter for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

This was such an adorable read. Such a heartwarming and feel good novel, the perfect Christmas romance ! The Christmas Swap is a light-hearted read about three best friends swap their Christmas holidays, I loved all these women and their friendship , so relatable, such a friendship that most women would want. It’s low on drama, which I enjoyed (don’t like getting too stressed in a Christmas read 😊), full of lots of romance, just a great Christmassy story

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

Thank you to One more Chapter for my copy of this book via Netgalley and to Rachel for letting me be part of this tour. I love a good Christmas love story so I was excited to jump into this one.
The Holiday Swap follows 3 women who have been best friends for 22 years. Each one lives in a different part of the world. Chloe lives in Melbourne, Lucy lives in London and Jules in Colorado. The girls decide to switch places for Christmas. Chloe goes to London, Lucy goes to Colorado and Jules goes to Melbourne. The girls have such a close relationship for 3 that live so far apart.
I loved all three girls. They each have their own little quirks but I was so rooting for all of them. They are good genuine people who deserve to be happy.
Each chapter is about one of the three girls’ stories. I really liked that each chapter switched stories. I really got into each story and I was sad to switch stories but eager to carry on with each one too. It really kept me stuck in the book.
I whizzed through this book in under 24 hours. I just couldn’t put it down. I loved each of the girls Christmas’ but I think I liked Lucy’s the most. I would probably detest the cold but the big family with all the hot chocolate sounds right up my street. I’d love to spend time in a cabin with a real snowy Christmas. Snuggled up inside with my book and a hot cholate sounds perfect.
The joys of having 3 female leads in this story is that we got 3 gorgeous men for them to fall in love with. I’ll be honest I loved all of them. They were all so damn romantic that Sandy made it easy for me to fall in love with all 3 of them.
I so enjoyed my first book by Sandy and I will be looking up more of them. Sandy’s writing is full of heartwarming romance that we all definitely need in our lives.

Having known each other for 22 years, childhood friends Chloe, Lucy and Jules agree to swap Christmas's this year to break out of the rut they all feel they're in. Little do they realise that hilarity and romance will follow wherever they are, and ultimately their friendship is what will make their Christmas.
This is a fun and festive read. The beautiful descriptions of Christmas in Melbourne with shrimps; in England with old fashioned decorations and fruity Christmas cake; and in Colorado with the snow, are just the right mix for the girls to find fun and love.
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Three friends decide to sway their Christmas homes but not just that but in three different countries. There is of course plenty of romance in the air but what will happen to the friends and their lives. Read and you will find out. 4 stars for this novel that has been very well written.

Thanks to Netgalley and publisher for this ARC in return for an honest review.

What a lovely idea for Jules, Lucy and chloe to swap homes for Christmas. This means plenty of scope for romance in England, Australia and the US, and of course three very different Christmasses. It really does feel like three stories in one as the romances overlap and obstacles emerge. However, it may mean putting love before friendship and breaking up the happy trio who have always been there for each other. A great festive story, or three, for putting you in a Christmas mood - very enjoyable.

If you liked the movie The Holiday, then you will absolutely love the book The Christmas Swap by Sandy Barker. From the first page, where we first meet the Lucy, Chloe, and Jules, who label themselves The May Ladies Club, when they meet each other while on holiday (Vacation) in Hawaii when they children, and then a quick jump ahead to just before the Christmas season, where they are facing another tough Christmas when they all need a break from real life. And after a recollection of the movie, they decide to do it! Swap their Christmas with each other, giving them their dream Christmas.

To say I really enjoyed this book may be an understatement! I loved the very different personalities the girls had, and you can't but help but find your favorite "May Lady" and my favorite was Lucy, the British girl in America (haha! Being one myself, how can I not relate), dealing with all the snow, and fully embraced the wacky American Christmas.

And although I have related this book to the movie, in parts it more like Hallmark movies, and honestly, this one should be made into a Hallmark movie, as it's truly perfect, especially as it's not only set in Colorado but Melbourne and England too.

I only found one drawback to this book, and that is (for me) it finished too soon, so I'm hoping (well, more like begging) that this book turns into a series, where we can continue each girl's story.

This book was great. An easy, uplifting, hopeful read in these crazy Covid times.
Three best friends, who met as kids while they traveled with their families, decide they each want something different than their normal Christmas this year. They choose to swap houses for the holidays. Between Colorado, London and Melbourne, this was honestly the best way to travel while it’s forbidden to physically traversing across the globe. The descriptions of the surroundings were striking and I found myself googling them so I could feel like I was actually a part of the scene.
I had so much fun reading this. It was super cheesy in the best way. I found myself grinning silly and trying to hide it while I read in public. 🙈☺️
The writing flowed really well as we journeyed through the three perspectives. It was like watching a hallmark Christmas movie with a glass of Pinot in hand, smelling the turkey cooking in the oven all day. So cozy.
I loved that the characters were introduced at surface level and then became so much more than they seemed. I was totally immersed in their lives and the lives of the secondary characters. Barker wrote these personas effortlessly and their growth throughout the book was enchanting.

However, I was a little disappointed that the 3 stories were so similar.
Girl travels, girl meets hunky man, girls falls for hunky man, drama of some sort unfolds, Happy Ending. Each drama was different, but I wish the stories were a little more distinct beside the obvious setting.
There were also a few body image comments that stood out and had no place here. They didn’t add to the story and could be interpreted negatively.
Other than that, this was wonderful. I really enjoyed that Christmas wasn’t the grand finale. That the stories continued past the Christmas events and went more in depth into the budding relationships.
I will definitely be recommending this as a warm and fuzzy read for the upcoming season.
Thank you NetGalley and publisher for a copy of this book. All thoughts are my own.

This sweet holiday story had me totally hooked! I loved that each chapter alternated characters’ perspectives to bounce between the very different Christmas celebrations, and also enjoyed the distinct and dynamic personalities of the three main characters. It was fun to read a Christmas novel with a new take on what Christmas can be, let alone multiple takes! I also loved how Barker wove in Christmas traditions from the different countries featured in the book. And then the romances - oh my goodness, so adorable! It was fun to watch each girl develop her own feelings, each at her own pace and in relation to her own stage of what she was looking for in life. I loved that their thoughts about their careers, love lives, and families were real and relatable and made each of their stories unique. If you’re looking for a fun, romantic, different take on a Christmas novel, you should absolutely pick this one up!

***Plot Synopsis***
Chloe, Lucy, and Jules are three best friends from three different countries who are each looking for something different out of this Christmas season, a bit tired with life and the status quo. So they decide to swap Christmases - Chloe off to a small English village to experience a traditional, cozy British Christmas with Lucy’s parents, Lucy off to Colorado for a big, crazy Christmas with Jules’ extended family in the mountains, and Jules off to Melbourne to take Chloe’s place for a sunny summer Christmas with friends. Three very different kinds of Christmases, three new and life-changing experiences, and three men who unexpectedly catch their eyes... this will be one Christmas to remember!

Thank you to One More Chapter and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I love holiday romances, but oftentimes they are good not great. Luckily, The Christmas Swap was GREAT! I was hooked right away, because Barker did a wonderful job at building out her characters. They all felt so different and it felt like I got to join a new friend group and enjoy their lives. Barker also made me feel like I was truly experiencing the different locations she featured. This was truly the Christmas romance of my dreams and I can't wait to read her other books.

This story was everything I want is a holiday read; think The Holiday (the 2006 movie), only with life-long best friends! You see Christmas traditions in three different countries, from large family gatherings, to a family you choose celebration to a small village with a charming Christmas festival! It has lighthearted adventure, relatable characters that you love immediately and want to have as your best friends, and love interests to swoon over. Things weren't too complicated or complex, but there was a splash of drama here and there to keep you from getting complacent. The writing was excellent; light and fluffy and would be a wonderful edition to anyone's holiday season. I give it ⭐⭐⭐⭐.

Best friends Chloe, Jules, and Lucy arrange to swap homes for Christmas, Australian Chloe goes to a sleepy village in Oxfordshire, English Lucy goes for a white Christmas in Colorado and American Jules for a summer version in Melbourne. There is, of course, romance involved for each of them.
This is definitely a pumped up version of the film "The Holiday", but with a fresh slant. Sandy's books are great for taking you to amazing locations and this is no different. The way that the friends react to their Christmas location are all different, the Oxfordshire village brings up a surprise resident, in Colorado there is a large family gathering and lots of snow. Melbourne is a city break with Chloe's friends, of the three I would fancy the Colorado one. There are touches of humour to go with the sweet romance and overall this was a book that kept me hooked all the way through and can highly recommend it.
I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley, however this did not influence my review of the book.

Lucy, Chloe, and Jules aka the May Ladies have been best friends since they met on their Hawaii vacation when they were 11 years old. Now 22 years later, the May Ladies have decided to swap Christmases and take the Christmas they’ve been longing for. Jules, who dreams of a warm Christmas, decided to go to Melbourne and stay with Chloe’s friends. Chloe, who dreamed of a Christmas with family, decided to stay with Lucy’s family in London. And Lucy, who dreamed of a white Christmas, decided to head to Colorado and stay with Jules’s family.

The Christmas Swap is a fun-filled, heart warming, Christmas romance that will definitely get you in the spirit of the Holidays even in October. It’s such an easy, well-written read and I instantly was able to immerse myself into the story. Even with three POV, Baker was able to flawlessly execute this story and make me love all three May Ladies. If you loved THE HOLIDAY, you’ll definitely want to pick this one up.

Thank you to One More Chapter and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily

Anyone else love the movie The Holiday? I adore it and watch it every year around Christmas. So take that concept, and add a third person into the jolly switch up, and you have an idea of what went down here!

Chloe, Jules and Lucy are three girls who meet at the age of 11 while on vacation with their families. One is from Australia, one from England, and one from America. They vow to be best friends forever.

Flash forward 22 years, and they are all still best friends and living on their respective continents. All are single at 33 years old and facing different circumstances that make them want to get away for the holidays, so they agree to switch places. Chloe, the Australian, heads to England...Lucy, from Britain, heads to Colorado...and Jules, the American, heads to, you guessed it, the land down undah! It took me literally the entire book to keep that straight. I’m not exaggerating. Make flash cards. Or a web map of some sort.

So while on holiday, they each meet fantastic men within 24 hours of stepping foot off the plane. The story continues and we watch all three women start to fall madly in love.

Look, I get how far fetched this novel is, but I couldn’t help but love it! I’m a sucker for Hallmark Christmas movies, and this gave me it. AND I didn’t have to wait until the end of the book for one measly kiss!! There’s even S-E-X. Don’t tell Hallmark. They won’t option this book for a future movie.

If you are like me and enjoy a good cheesy holiday romance, this is a great choice!

Three women, friends since they met on holiday as young girls are all living good lives, but when it comes to Christmas they all feel it's time to shake things up a little. Chole, Jules and Lucy agree that a house swap at Christmas will meet their needs and what follows is festive, fun and full of romance.

The characters are relatable and the plot peppered with Christmas activities and memories,
vivid locations and love. There are three romances, all different, but equally believable and heartwarming.

If I had to pick a favourite it would be Lucy and Will, she's introverted and doesn't realise how lovely she is, and Will does. The glamour of Archer and Chloe's romance is good to read. Jules and Matt's relationship is less romantic than the other two, but it's realistic and has its moments. The three stories bound together by the three women and Christmas make this an engaging festive read.

I received a copy of this book from One More Chapter via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

The majority of Christmas romance/romcom novels I read are from the UK or the US, so I am always on the look out for Aussie authors and stories. The Christmas Swap was one of the books I highlighted in my post about the 2020 Christmassy releases I was most excited to read, and it did not let me down! It was fun and funny (there were a few laugh out loud moments for me), and the alternating perspectives meant I kept on wanting to read ‘just one more chapter’.

I loved the premise of this one – three close friends all wanting to try something different than their usual Christmas. This also meant we got three sweet festive romances in the one book, as well as the friendship tying them together. The couples that emerge, and their respective Christmases, were all fun and enjoyable to read. Each woman has only a few days to spend in their Christmas setting, so there is a bit of instalove, but I really felt like this worked. I think my favourite story was Lucy’s – Christmas in snowy Colorado sounds absolutely divine to me, and there was something charming about the description of Jules’s big chaotic family.

I really liked, that we got to see people celebrating Christmas in different ways – the ‘orphan Christmas’ in summer-time Australia, a huge, noisy family celebration in freezing Colorado, and something between those two in Oxfordshire. I love that this draws upon the fact that everyone has their own way to celebrate, and that there is no one right way to Christmas, and there was no focus on ‘the perfect Christmas’ – everyone was having fun doing something different to usual.

I know this is a big call, especially in mid-October, but I feel like if you are going to read one fun Christmas romance this year, then The Christmas Swap is going to be the one to pick up – it has all my essential Christmas bases covered, with snow and Christmas cake and the beach, and three lovely love stories in one, which makes it an absolute Christmas star for me!

The book wasn’t for me,I liked the premise and reminded me of ‘The Holiday’ but some of the word choices by the author were plain odd and for me detracted from the story

The Christmas Swap was sweet and lovely romcom that revolved around three friends and their Christmas Swap. It was about friendship, family, love, and Christmas magic.

Writing was engaging and magical that transported me in lives of The May Ladies- Chloe, Jules, and Lucy. It was third person narrative from Chole, Jules and Lucy perspective, each telling their part of stories and their feeling for each other. There were chapters titled ‘The May Ladies’ that showed their conversations through video chats which I loved most.

Book started with three best friends- Cloe, Lucy, and Jules- at age 11 years were making their The May Ladies group in childhood. Now 22 years later, three BFFs were living in different counties. Chloe was living in Melbourne with her roommate, colleague and bestie, Ash; Lucy in London with her flatmate; and Jules in Colorado. Chloe has a thing for traditional family Christmas. When she found her parents were off to cruise holiday for Christmas, she didn’t want to spend her holiday all alone. On their group video chat Lucy offered her to come over Oxfordshire for Christmas, village with proper traditional Christmas with her parents but they don’t have snow during Christmas. Jules spend her Christmas in Breckenbridge with her big family but she doesn’t like big, crazy family Christmas that can be intense sometimes but they have snow so she asked her to come there too. Turned out Lucy loved snow Christmas and she jumped at chance while Chole liked the idea of traditional Christmas in English village, and Jules would love the quiet, summery beach Christmas for a change. And that’s how started a movie like Christmas Swap that changed their life.

All characters were lovely, likable and realistic. I loved Chloe most and so her story which was exactly like movie with drama and scandal as she met love of her life that happened to be famous film star, Archer Tate. I loved how she helped in village fair, won the formidable mother of her hero, and found what the true love is in the story of lovely village couple, Mr and Mrs Capel. Chloe was lively, caring, and super organised person. She knew how to handle people because of her experience in event management. She can be formidable and bitchy when she wants to be and that came handy when her first shitstorm arrived. This part was predictable but I liked the way she faced things. I loved Chole and Archer’s time together.

Lucy was sweetheart. She was timid, caring, and most beautiful but didn’t believe it. She was not good at confronting people but was most enthusiastic person and made everybody around her happy. When she arrived Colorado and met Will, Jules’ younger brother, attraction was instant. I enjoyed reading her time with Jules’ family. Jules’ family was adorable and so like Indian families- loud and without filters. Company of Will and his family brought Lucy came out of her timid shell. By the end of the book she was brave, confident and learned to confront problems head on.

Jules was straightforward, a person who always had solution for everything, didn’t believe in love and hated winter. Australia was best place for her. I liked how quickly she blended with Ash and Chloe’s orphan Christmas friends. Their preparations were amazing and I liked how slowly but strongly she started liking Matt, her Aussie winemaker. It was clear she had fallen for the guy and unlike her friends she was taking things slow and was defusing her feelings when Chloe and Lucy asked. Her reaction about Lucy and Will was surprising and I couldn’t understand her at this point. But as the story progressed and her and Will’s tough time was revealed, I could see why Jules was the way she was. I loved how she developed and started believing in love once again. I also admired her decision and not just for a guy but for herself.

Best part of the book was bond between friends, setting and Christmas vibe. I loved how strong their friendship was even though they lived in different continent and knew each other like family. All three places, Oxfordshire, Breckenbridge, and Melbourne with their different weather and different Christmas tradition were amazing and author described them so well that I wanted to pack my bags and visit these places. I loved reading characters enjoying skiing, snowmobiling, village fair, horse riding, and wine tasting. Christmas food was cherry on the top.

All turns were good. Some I could see coming (to be specific in Chole’s story) while other were unpredictable (specifically Matt’s story). It was interesting to see how Christmas Swap turned out and brought amazing life changes for all of them and brought three friends even nearer to each other. End was perfect.

Why 4 stars-

All three girls finding love instantly and falling in love in just few days was bit unbelievable. In combining three stories in one book, each three main characters got only few chapters to tell their story and that’s why I felt romance was wrapped too fast. It left me feeling I wanted a bit more in their stories.

Overall, The Christmas Swap was fun, entertaining and very Christamasy romcom with amazing setting, lovely characters, and 3 in 1 story- a holiday offer you wouldn’t want to miss. I’m definitely going to read more books by Sandy Barker.

The Christmas Swap is a delightful rom-com about three best friends who met on vacation in Hawaii when they were eleven. Lucy is from England, Chloe from Australia and Jules is from the the USA. Now they are in their early thirties and decide to swap Christmases with each other. Jules goes to Melbourne to spend Christmas in the sun, Lucy goes to Colorado to have a real snowy Christmas and Chloe goes to England to have a typical English Christmas. All three women end up finding romance during their holiday.

I loved this book. I thought the relationships between the friends was wonderful, supportive and real. They were kind to each other and they were able to talk about any issues that might arise. I loved that the book was set in three different “Christmasy” locations that were so lovely.

It was an easy reading, feel good story and I am definitely going to be looking at Sandy Barkers back list to find more books. I would highly recommend to anyone who wants a good read during the holiday season! I have already recommended this to my best friend even before I finished it!

Do you like the movie The Holiday? If so, then you are going to love Sandy Barker's The Christmas Swap.

Best friends since they were 11 years old, Lucy, Jules, and Chloe are not really looking forward to their respective Christmas holidays. Chloe's parents have decided to take a cruise and while she is welcome to the orphan's Christmas party her roommate is hosting what she really wants is an old-fashioned, traditional Christmas. Lucy loves spending the holidays with her parents, but her hometown village only promises dreary gray slush (at best). What she really wants is the white Christmas Bing Crosby croons about. Jules is sick of winter and cold and while she loves her crazy family she isn't really feeling like dealing with the craziness this year. There's a light bulb moment where each realizes another has their version of a perfect Christmas. So Chloe heads to Lucy's parents for a traditional English Christmas, Jules head down under to enjoy sun and sand with Chloe's friends, and Lucy gets her white Christmas in Breckenridge, CO with Jules's family. They all get the Christmas they want and perhaps find a surprise they weren't expecting.

The Christmas Swap was a cute story. In theory, it would be fun to go someplace different for Christmas but I think I prefer to live vicariously through fictional characters. And the girls, aka May Ladies (because they all have birthdays in May), definitely have fun on their holiday exchange.

In beginning, I had some trouble keeping the girls straight. Each chapter focuses on a different girl but it would take me a few pages to remember which girl was from where. Lucy was the first that I got straight in my head, but that is probably because I identified most with her. I was well over halfway through the story before I remembered Chloe was Australian and spending the holidays in England and that Jules was from Colorado and holidaying in Australia. But the end though I was attached to all three girls and I really hope there are more stories about them.

Of course, there is unexpected romance that is all sweet and fun. The Christmas Swap is a clean read where adult activities are only referenced but the reader doesn't get any details. There are some pretty big decisions made by the characters in the end and I would love to see how those decisions play out in 6 months. I really want this to be the first in a series though I can't find any indication that it isn't just a stand-alone, feel-good holiday story.

This is my first book by Sandy Barker, and while romance isn't my usual genre I wouldn't hesitate to pick up another one of her books when I need a light, "pick me up" story. I would definitely read another book featuring the May Ladies (have I hinted enough about wanting more?).

My review will be published at Girl Who Reads on Friday, October 16 - https://www.girl-who-reads.com/2020/10/the-christmas-swap-by-sandy-barker.html