4.5 stars. The sapphic Jewish Christmas tree farm enemies to lovers holiday romance you didn't know you needed. Artist Miriam is estranged from her family, but comes home when her great-aunt dies, to discover that she's been left a quarter stake in a Christmas tree farm and holiday wonderland. Together, she and her cousin and tree farm manager Noelle have to rally to save the farm from development. This is complicated by her strained relationship with her family, and the open hostility from the adorable, plaid shirt-wearing Noelle, who seems to resent Miriam despite never having met her before.

A very charming holiday read, although the content warning at the beginning is definitely needed. There are some serious reasons why Miriam isn't in contact with her family, and Noelle has some skeletons (dead Christmas trees?) of her own.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for the ARC to review. All opinions are my own.

Even though this is about Christmas. I think this is a beautiful book about being Jewish, grief, love and how we heal our trauma. Greer took the tropes of traditional holiday romcoms and made them a new and I loved it!
Also being Jewish I particularly loved that the younger generation of Jews talked about having Tattoos.

cw
Greif
alcohol
emotional abuse
domestic abuse
toxic relationship

I went into this book expecting a Rom Com based on the cartoon cover. However, I am surprised to find a more in depth and serious book. This book tackles issues of alcoholism, trust issues, trauma, and other more serious topics that I was not expecting. Although I was hoping for a sapphic holiday rom com, I still enjoyed the book and how it set up for the next book.

Thank you Forever for providing me with ARC to read and review.

Season of Love is a holiday read with a few different twists than the typical romcom. It's a story that takes place on a Christmas Tree farm run by a Jewish Family. Miriam has been avoiding going to her Aunt's Christmas tree farm for the past ten years because of something her father did to her. She's been avoiding her family for many years now. Her beloved Aunt Cassie has passed away and Miriam decides it's time to face some of her demons and be present for the funeral service - she had no idea her Aunt was even sick.

This is a holiday romance, with a sapphic romance. I enjoyed reading about Miriam's backstory about her family getting together. The book mostly focussed on her relationships with her cousin Hannah and her relationship with Noelle. The story definitely has the Hallmark feel and didn't get too heated. It was a comfortable read that deals with some difficult topics surrounding bullying and verbal abuse.

I would recommend this book to people who enjoy holiday reads. I would rate it a 7.5/10

Okay so this is the most delightful holiday book oddly published in October. But it was nice to mix up the fall books with this one.

This book has romance, a Christmas tree farm in a small town run by an eccentric aunt, family drama and childhood trauma, grief, and a bunch of lovely misfit characters.

The villain is the evil bug business dad who caused the childhood trauma, the misfit characters have to save the Christmas tree farm with new events and art auctions, the main character gives up her life and her fiancé in the city for the small town life with a new love and her family she abandoned. It’s Hallmark-style and adorable.

The story may be predictable, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a fun and cozy read. It’s a lot more drama and some heavier topics than your typical rom-com, but the romance is there and Noelle and Miriam are so cute 🥰.

And the epilogue clearly sets up a sequel, because there is a character that’s CONSTANTLY talked about in this book and he NEVER shows I’m until the very last page 😂.

Despite this book being about the holidays, I think it’s a book you could read anytime of the year for all the little holiday/winter feels. This one is a big recommend from me! 📚

This was a perfect read for us Jewish folks who love a good Christmas romance. Since my family celebrates Chrismakkuh, the premise of a Jewish family who owns a Christmasland getaway felt very familiar, as did the blend of holidays that occur over the course of the book. Miriam Blum is an artist and influencer who's been running from her abusive father for her entire adult life, and unfortunately that's also caused her to distance herself from her best friend/cousin and her aunt's magical Christmas tree farm/hotel that she grew up exploring. When her aunt passes away, Miriam is left a portion of the estate alongside her cousins and attractive farm manager Noelle. While Miriam has to face her past by returning home, Noelle grapples with her difficulty to trust in the pull she feels toward Miriam. This book has a fun, "we all need to band together to save Christmas (while still enjoying Hanukkah!)" plot while still managing to delve into deeper emotional issues. In that sense, I think it would work for those looking for a book that feels like a Hallmark Christmas movie but wanting more depth. Highlights for me included the side characters (will any of them be getting spin-offs?) and Miriam's art; I did struggle somewhat with the arguments between Noelle and Miriam. While they eventually have really positive emotional discussions, I was frustrated by how often Noelle was willing to see the worst in Miriam.
I received an ARC of Season of Love from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Miriam Blum is an ultra-successful artist and Instagram star who used to spend her days at her great-auntCass’s Christmas tree farm until family issues forced her to hightail it out of there. Years later, after her great-aunt passes away, she returns to the farm and the family she left behind, only to discover that she, and three others, have inherited the farm. She also discovers that the business is going under. Feeling guilty over missing the last years of her aunt’s life and how things went down with her family, Miriam is determined to turn the business around, much to the chagrin of Noelle Northwood. Noelle is the manager (and part-owner) of the farm and despises Miriam for leaving, ultimately breaking both Cass and cousin Hannah’s hearts. But…it doesn’t take long for the chill between Miriam and Noelle to thaw, for Noelle to realize that she may have misjudged Miriam, and for the undeniable attraction between the two of them to *ahem* Blum. Will their love be enough to save Cass’s beloved business, and will Miriam resolve her daddy issues? You’ll have to read to find out.

This book was a cute, sapphic romance, but it had so, so much filler. It was entirely too long with not that much story. Parts seemed to drag and were repetitive. I swear to God, if I had to read will-they-or-won’t-they any longer, I was going to lose my effin mind. And don’t even get me started on the issues with Miriam’s father. Dude was a ghost with a huge grudge. And by that I mean, you only heard of his cruelty but weren’t introduced to the man. Not that I wanted to be, but still. However, I will say the characters were very well-fleshed-out and believable. I loved the diversity, the LGBTQIA+ and Jewish representation. A Jewish family owning a Christmas tree farm is pretty humorous.  And despite my minor gripes, I recommend this story for those looking for a sweet Christmasy, closed-door romance with a happy ending.

Absolutely adorable! It's so fun with a big jewish family and the black sheep of the family running a Christmas Tree farm and then throwing everyone for a loop by leaving it to Hannah, Noelle, Miriam, and Levi. The farm is failing and it's up to Miriam to save it. Noelle is lumberjack butch and I love it! The third act break up had me in tears. but it is my favorite holiday read so far.

I’m a bit torn in how to rate this book if I’m to be honest. I liked the overall story and how the characters are depicted so reliable when it comes to expressing their emotions and feelings.
But they are also annoying many times. A lot of repetition and stalling on the same issue had me stop and say just get over it already.
That doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate that it takes time to overcome heartbreak of any kind in real life and time to heal and trust again.

Overall it’s a good story, great writing and interesting read but for me not one that I will think too much about in the future unfortunately

Thank you @readforever for a copy of this book. I was drawn by the premise of the book with f/f romance, a Jewish family that runs a Christmas tree farm. Overall, I enjoyed the book. I liked how mature Noelle is and how she managed her attraction to Miriam while saving a failing Christmas farm. There was a lot of characters and I am very curious with Hannah and Levi's story. I wasn't very vested in Miriam and Noelle's story, I just there wasnt enough to lead to a romance.

Don't let this cute holiday cover fool you. This is not your typical holiday romance novel. There are layers and layers of emotions in this one.

Overall, I really enjoyed this one. THANK YOU, HELENA GREER, for having your couple communicate. Honestly, the communication between the couple and even a few of the side characters is EVERYTHING!! I am so tired of couples NOT talking to each other.

My only real issue with this is it was fairly repetitive in parts. It could have been 50 pages shorter, and it would have still delivered the goods.

If you are looking for steaminess, look elsewhere. This is a closed-door book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an opportunity to read this early. My opinions are my own.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC of this book. I love queer romance, and this one was pretty good on the whole. The characters spent a LOT of time being caught in their past traumas and it got a little repetitive. I think the book could have been about 1/4 shorter, and still enjoyable. They also built up a lot to the return of Blue, and just shoved that in at the end which was weird. That said, I want to go visit Carrington's!

Well, I think it's officially safe to say that I love heartfelt, sapphic, rom-coms with a Christmas theme - and more specifically, set at Christmas tree farms. I absolutely devoured this book in one night.
Greer wrote believable and lovable characters with realistic trauma and life experience without making it too heavy. My only complaint is, I want more. I want non Christmas stories about these characters. I want to know more about Noelle and Miri. I want to know about Hannah and Blue. I just want so much more!
Thank you to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for this eBook ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Cute sapphic enemies to lovers romance. Miriam comes back to her Jewish family's Christmas tree farm (defintely some irony there, but the family also 100 percent embraced it) after her great-aunt passed away and left Miriam as one of the partial owners of the farm. I loved how the enemies to lovers trope was done between Miriam and Noelle, especially since there was the element of forced proximity tied in.
The book was a good mix of romance as well as real life problems/family trauma. And yes that makes it sound like a lot but Helena wrote the book in a way that even when tackling difficult subject the book never felt overly heavy or depressing. The way the family trauma that more than one of the characters were handling was done quite well and carefully.
The only thing that really threw me off was that it didn't totally feel like a holiday book to me. Most of the book takes place between thanksgiving and new year's and it definitely felt like a book to read in the fall versus spring or summer, but I didn't get the holiday feel like I tend to get with other Holiday books. I also don't think it needed to feel more festive for what the book is. I think making it more festive would've taken away from the life issues that the characters were dealing with.
I did definitely enjoy the outcome of the book and think everything wrapped up quite nicely. Nothing about the ending felt overly rushed. I will also say I'm excited for Hannah and Levi's story next year.
Thank you to netgalley and Forever/Grand Central Publishing for the arc. 3.75 stars

Another book to file into “it’s sapphic and it slaps” y’all! This book has all you need to get into some festivus feels — Christmas tree farm setting, found family, and some just hot romance!! I loved Miriam and Noelle, who meet each other after the loss of Miriam’s great aunt Cass brings her home after ten years.
While this does have a great romantic plot (enemies to lovers woop) it also has an amazing story of a woman (Miriam) who tries to help save a farm she initially doesn’t want all to grow closer to who she once was.

Do not let the cover fool you. This is not your average holiday rom com. This is deep and emotional!
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Miriam is an artist who left her past behind her but when her favorite great aunt passes away leaving her part owner of her beloved Christmas tree farm she knows she needs to face her demons and return home. Carrigan’s was her happy place growing up. It didn’t matter that she was Jewish. The Christmas spirit made her heart happiest there. “Carrigan’s has a way of making you be honest with yourself, and feel all your feelings, for better or worse. It’s magic,
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After ten long years away she reunites with her cousin and sparks fly with Noelle. As a team they must figure out how to save the farm.
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You know how there’s always a villain trying to buy the Christmas tree farm, toy store, or town? You get the drift. Well, I have never met a bigger villain than Miriam’s father.
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I really enjoyed this one and let me tell you I grew to love these characters (except for her dad of course) but Cole is the real MVP! Oh and that ending! There better be a book two!
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Huge thank you to @readforeverpub and @netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I totally fell in love with this adorable queer holiday romcom! The characters all had so much depth and the setting was downright cozy. This is a must read for this holiday season!

Lovely romance story. Goes by fast and perfect for the holiday season. I’m A sucker for grumpy trope. And loved the Jewish rep . I hardly come across those these days.

3.5ish

Season of Love was an entertaining read. It definitely has all the makings of a Hallmark-y type movie, with all the best tropes-small town, grumpy/sunshine love interests, prodigal daughter returns "home", must save the family business.

Miriam's return to Carrigan's doesn't go quite the way she hoped, after finding out her beloved aunt left her part ownership in the business. Planning on making her escape after sitting shiva, she now has to pretty much rethink her life's plan- does she stick around and give up everything she was working towards? Or does she say good-bye once again to the people who were most important to her, the ones she left a decade ago and never looked back?

I have to say, I was very happy with her choice. I really never understood why she closed herself off from her cousin/best friend and the rest of the crew at Carrigan's. I know it had to do with her father, who was a complete piece of shit. I just wish we had gotten a clearer picture of the way everything went down with him- things were alluded to, and we did get some details, but I still felt like there was something missing there, like why he was such a jerk about her art. Maybe it's just me, but for him to be the reason she stayed away, I didn't feel like there was closure to that part of the story.

The romance with Noelle was the epitome of a slow burn. These two did not get off on the right foot- Noelle has some preconceived ideas about Miriam, without ever having met her. But you could tell right from the start they were intrigued with each other. There was a lot of back and forth with these two, and I wish we had just gotten a little more on page interaction of them together. I did enjoy their banter, and how things worked out in the end for them, and for Carrigan's!

I have not been able to stop thinking about Season of Love by Helena Greer since I finished it last week. This is my third queer holiday romance read of the year and I truly cannot get enough of them.

Miriam Blum is a free spirit with a traumatic past. She’s a talented artist with a large and supportive online community, the sweetest golden retriever of a best friend, and a fiancée that she has built a carefully curated life with. On the cusp of fulfilling a lifelong dream of opening up a shop for her art, she finds out that her beloved great-aunt Cass has passed away and she must return home to Carrigan’s, Cass’s Jewish-run Christmas tree farm, for the first time in a decade to sit shiva and face her family again.

Noelle Northwood is the manager of Carrigan’s, who— despite being around for years— has never met the infamous Miriam. Miriam ,whose long, continued absence broke the heart of her best friend, and Miriam’s cousin, Hannah. She’s a recovering alcoholic who found a tremendous amount of solace and a home at Carrigan’s with Cass and Hannah and feels immensely protective over the farm and everyone in it. Because of these circumstances, Noelle is immediately resentful of Miriam’s presence and makes a lot of unfair judgements upon their first meeting.

On what should be the last day of Miriam’s trip home, the three of them find out that Cass has left a quarter of the farm to each of them along with Hannah’s long lost ex Levi. Despite having a life she is eager to return to, Miriam feels called to stay at Carrigan’s with Hannah and Noelle to make a plan for the failing farm. At this point, Noelle has realized her initial judgement of Miriam was wildly unfair and inaccurate, and is nursing a very big crush on her. At one point she’s discussing it with Hannah and it made me LOL: “I don’t want her to stay, because I’ll want to date her and I can’t. I do want her to stay and be single and make out with my face.”

The love story that unfolds between Noelle and Miriam is so beautiful and I kept a few lines that I really loved of each of them describing how the other made them feel:

Noelle: “Noelle watched Miriam first get excited and then even out her face, like she was trying not to seem too enthusiastic. Noelle was almost glad for the respite because Miriam geeking out was so luminous, she could hardly look.”

Miriam: “Being around Noelle felt like pulling on a new pair of jeans that unexpectedly fit perfectly.”

And some other lines that really just stuck out to me:

“It was strange, how well Miriam understood things that Noelle had never even articulated to herself.”

“That familiar ritual, done without thought, opened a door inside Miriam she’d even forgotten existed in the past decade.”

I highly recommend this grumpy/sunshine, femme/butch, sapphic holiday romance. If Carrigan’s were a real place, I would move there in a heartbeat and if Cole were a real person, I would unapologetically beg him to be my best friend. I’m finding words especially difficult right now, but I hope some of these lines I’ve shared from the book are enough to convince you to pick up a copy. Thanks so much to forever for this gifted copy! I cannot wait to return to it again and again. Out now!