4.5/5

This has the perfect amount of drama, humor, and romance that I could ever want from a book of this genre. The characters are so well fleshed out and even though I'm picky about romance I fully believed in the relationships that were featured. It got quite deep as well, which really added to the intensity of the story, and I absolutely devoured it. I think I could read a hundred more of these books with these characters just getting into different shenanigans and falling in love. Doesn't even have to be Christmas themed.

Thank you, NetGalley for a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is a pretty great novel that centers around winter holidays, but it's decidedly not a romantic comedy from beginning to end. It deals with a lot of trauma, and so I appreciated the introductory author's note.

This book was so cute. I loved the Christmas Tree Farm/Inn setting. I really loved the relationship between Miriam and Noelle. I loved hearing about Cass and how much the family loved her. I really liked the elements of the holidays added throughout. Just a fun book that was very easy to read!

we really don't see enough jewish publications, let alone queer jewish publications. and let me say, this one truly hit it out of the park. it was a fun hallmark-esque, shenanigan™️-filled adventure that filled my heart whole.

as a queer jew myself (albeit non-religious), i loved seeing this representation. seeing characters that appreciate and practice these aspects of my culture and ethnicity. we follow miriam and noelle and hannah from pretty much the beginning of the high holidays in mid-october through to new years. we see them observe these holidays. we know that they all take pride in their heritage. and i truly just love that. genuinely, words cannot describe how happy that makes me.

as for the romance, i loved seeing this sapphic take on city girl ends up in small town to save the farm (and in tandem, the whole town). it was so well done, and not as cheesy as you'd think. i mean, we do follow some heavy topics of childhood trauma and abusive/toxic parents. resulting in many important discussions about unpacking and unlearning trauma responses as well as discussions of therapy. it was handled so well.

i think, just overall, this his so many beats that i love in a romance. can someone point me to the nearest noelle, please.

NetGalley ARC Educator 550974

This is a wonderful holiday romance with surprising cultural nuances. Miriam's lost her aunt, is dealing with a narcissistic family dynamic and needs respite. Enter Noelle and the sweetest farm and town you'd ever want to read about. I hope this finds itself becoming a holiday film icon.

Story

I was really looking forward to this one and it did not disappoint. When Miriam heads to "home" after her great-aunt's passing, she finds herself completely changing the course of her life. Cass has left her a portion of Carrigan's Christmas tree farm, along with her cousin, her cousin's ex-fiance, and Noelle, who she brought on to manage the farm at some point. This is honestly a tough story with some abuse elements and a lot of trauma to unpack - it's not a light and airy holiday book, but I still found the romance to be swoonworthy! The story is really addicting and enjoyable, with everyone's issues feeling real and fleshed out.

The back-and-forth was often annoying but not to the point where I wanted to put the book down. I could see the conflicts and their reasoning, so it was valid!

Wintery Setting & Holiday Feels

Excellent Christmas tree farm setting with Jewish main characters, Christmas vibes, and a plot that stretched to New Years. It hit on many  holidays throughout the end of the year and brought a lot of diversity to the usual plain-ol-Christmas-book TBR I have each December.

Overall

I really loved this one. This band of misfits was so real and charming! Like I said, it's not a light holiday story but still had lots of holiday vibes across the board. Now give me a Hannah/Levi companion book RIGHT NOW. And a book about Cole. And Tara! I want it all.

Where to start with Season of Love by Helena Greer? For one, I thought this was going to be a light and fluffy romcom based on the cover, and while it did have a lot of Hallmark Christmas movie qualities, it definitely brings weighty subjects as well. There is a content guidance page at the beginning of the book, and if you are a sensitive reader with triggers, I highly suggest checking that out before starting. The romance between Miriam and Noelle is super sweet and a little messy, just like love is IRL, and the characters and their issues were both very relatable and realistic. I actually just watched a Hallmark movie with Jewish rep while in the middle of Season of Love, and though I am not Jewish myself, I love seeing it in books and movies. And what a better setting than a Christmas tree farm?! This is also a debut novel, and I would never have been able to tell had it not been mentioned in the letter from the author at the end.

The romance and banter between the characters (especially Miriam and Noelle) were fantastic, and I loved the humor that Greer provided as well. PLUS, there is an enormous tortie (tortoiseshell cat for you dog people) that was described in such detail that I wanted to be there so I could hug it. Season of Love is incredible on audio as well, and having Barrie Kreinik & Emily Lawrence narrate was the icing on the cake. They voiced Miriam and Noelle so well that they made them feel like living people that I could reach out and touch if I wanted to, and who doesn't love that. The romance in the book is pretty closed-door, which is actually what I prefer, so I was really happy with how that played out. I loved the storyline and basically all of the characters as well and was incredibly satisfied with how it closed out. Also, the sober old ladies!! They were the best and provided some lovely comic relief as well as sage advice. In other words, if you want to get into the Christmas mood but want some meat to your story as well, Season of Love is for you! Looks like Greer’s next book will be based on 2 of the characters that are in this story, and I already can’t wait to read it.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Season of Love by Helena Greer is a beautiful and lovely holiday romance. I really enjoyed the obstacles the main character has to overcome and deal with in order to find their own happy ending. The side characters are what truly make this story SHINE. I love Hannah, Blue, and the friend groups that cheer these two on. Give this one a read. You'll want to spend a holiday at Carrigan's, too.

Miriam Blum is an artist who takes discarded antiques and decoupages them back to life. She has a huge following and is engaged to a society lawyer in Charleston who she may not be in love with but is a useful relationship for both women. Miriam’s world is turned upside down with the death of her beloved Aunt-Cass, the owner of Carrigan’s Christmas Tree Farm. When Miriam goes to sit Shiva she finds out she is now part-owner of Carrigan’s with her cousin Hannah, the caretaker Noelle, and her childhood partner in crime, Blue. Miriam has to decide if she can face her past, reconnect with her Carrigan’s family, and maybe allow herself to fall into the wild, life altering love her Aunt wished for her.

This was the perfect book to start my holiday-binge reading, it begins just before Thanksgiving and ends at Passover. There’s family drama and childhood trauma (be mindful if parental emotional abuse may be triggering for you, especially around the holidays) that is deftly written and seeing the characters grow and work to overcome their past is done really well. The romance is just what I want for the holidays (although it’s closed door so don’t read this for spice) and I loved all the characters. Miriam’s story is wrapped up nicely in this book but I need another one for Hannah and Blue.

I would like to thank NetGalley, Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and the author Helena Greer for an advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

A Jewish, queer, holiday romance that takes place on a Christmas tree farm!! This included heavier topics such as abuse, addiction recovery and grief. Suspend a bit of belief for a Jewish family living in a town called Advent and running a Christmas tree farm because you won’t be disappointed by this closed door romance with substance.

Season of Love would make a great movie! I loved the dynamic between Miriam and Noelle, the side characters were great, and I couldn't put the book down until I learned the future of Carrigan's. The characters were all so well written, flawed yet lovable. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for early access.

this book is the biggest of sapphic wintery hugs :) told in alternating POVs, "season of love" by helena greer follows miriam, an eccentric artist, and noelle, a fat butch who grows christmas trees. said christmas trees just so happen to be at the miriam's aunt's hotel / christmas destination. when her aunt dies at the beginning of the novel, miriam returns to Carrigan's Christmas for the first time in about a decade. romance ensues when she and noelle meet! also, while it centers a christmas destination, miriam and her family are jewish, which is central to their lives.

there's a lot to love about this novel!! love of all kinds is explored throughout. miriam has a deep friendship with the lively cole and she works through family dynamics that range from cousins who were close as children to abusive parents to alternate parental figures. in terms of noelle, she relies on a group of old women at her Alcoholics Anonymous group for support, which is a beautiful part of the novel as well. i appreciated that love beyond romance was valued by these characters even in the end :) another cool thing is how miriam processes her emotions through art! i loved reading about her creative decisions.

i waaaaaaaaaas deeply irritated by noelle a lot of the time. one of the issues in this novel is that both women have deeeeeep relationship trauma that needs processing,,, BUT noelle is always invalidating miriam's (and other people's!!!!!) deicions/trauma without even talking to them first. she is very immediately accusatory. while in the end she does grovel (they both do), i was so irritated during the extended conversations where noelle was just an angry brick wall that it affected my reading experience.

also! there is no steam in this book, which for me is sad :( they would make innuendos and then the scene would END like queen PLEASE WHY (but i'm not having this affect my rating much b/c i understand that it isn't a quality/objective thing!).

overall, i loved reading this although noelle sometimes annoyed me! i am definitely going to reread this in future winters when i want a sweet holiday romance:) highly recommend checking it out if this sounds like your type of book!!

(thank you to netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a free eARC in exchange for an honest review).

"Carrigan's isn't just a Christmas experience. It's a place to heal, to find yourself, to become."
The holiday reading has officially begun!
Season Of Love successfully combines Christmas and Hanukkah in Helena Greer's seasonal rom-com.
Thank you to Netgalley and Forever for the eARC for review!
Miriam Blum moved from her hometown a decade ago, leaving behind damaging family drama. After her beloved great-aunt Cass unexpectedly dies, Miriam returns home where Cass ran Carrigan's Christmasland tree farm.
It is there she turns her attraction away from fiancée Tara, to Noelle, one of Cass's loyal employees.
Season Of Love features an appealing cast of characters, a melding of traditions, closed-door LGBTQ+ romance, all alongside grief, sobriety, friendship and family dynamics.
Recommended!
Released on Oct. 11.

This is a very very cute book with a very very cute cover. I love the pace and the characters so much. It was such a joyful read for a joyful season. This is a highly highly recommended read.

This holiday romance wasn’t just fluff and at times it dealt with heavy trauma from both characters. There were some funny moments as well to balance out the heaviness at times. Noelle & Miriam are such opposites, but it works and I enjoyed how their relationship progressed. I’m really hoping we get Hannah and Levi’s story soon. I just know the angst is going to be next level!

She brushed her fingers over the mezuzah for strength.
Next year at Carrigan’s.

Do you want a sapphic love story set at a Christmas tree farm with a healthy dose of Jewish chutzpah? Season of Love will make your holiday wishes come true.

Miriam Blum is a kitchy artist with a huge cult following. She’s not met an antique she couldn’t glitter glue or modpodge into a masterpiece. With her business booming, she find out that her favorite Aunt has passed. She goes back to her aunt’s Christmas tree farm, Carrington to sit shiva (the Jewish tradition of mourning). While listening to Cass Carrington’s will, Miriam finds out that she is gifted a portion of the farm with her cousins Hannah & Levi and the farms’ arborist Noelle.

The writing is superb. Thank you for making this Jewish girl see herself in a book.

Thank you Forever Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC. This is my honest review.

DNF at 50%

I have been eagerly anticipating this sapphic holiday romance since I first read the blurb. I mean, come on! A Jewish artist unexpectedly inheriting what amounts to a Christmas theme park and falling in love with the butch farm manager? It's Hallmark, but more representative!

However, for me, the execution of this was just not living up to the premise. While there are content warnings in the beginning of the book, I felt like they did not adequately prepare me for just how heavy this book was going to be. The author also demonstrated a tendency to skip over plot points that were fairly relevant to the story's progression with just a few sentences in order to hammer certain emotional beats over and over again. On top of that, there is surprisingly not a lot of holiday feels to be found in a book that covers several Jewish holidays, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. I think that there is a lot of promise in Greer and the representation in this book is handled incredibly well, but this is just not what I want to be reading during the festive season.

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for an ARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Honestly all the stars in the world to this queer, Jewish, holiday romcom which is an absolutely stunning debut from Helena Greer. When her aunt Cass dies right before opening season of the Christmas Tree Farm & Inn she runs, Miriam heads to New York to sit shiva and confront family and feelings that she has avoided for over a decade. When Cass’s will is full of surprises, several lives change course and sooooo many hijinks ensue. I loved this book, I got so invested in every single one of the character’s storylines, and was rooting for them to save the farm and find love. Also, all the representations? Fat rep, queer rep (in many forms), Jewish rep, people of color, and I’m probably missing more. It was wonderful. Also, the front of the book has content guidance was so nice to see and I included that on slide 2 of this post! This is such an excellent book and I really really truly recommend! I sometimes get teased that I give out five stars pretty freely but take my word on this one and read this book.

I really enjoyed this book! I went into it thinking it would be a rom-comish light and romantic book, and while there is romance it was a lot heavier than i expected it to be! The cover is perfection but it gives different vibes than the book did, in my opinion. With that, while the book did deal with heavier topics - alcoholism, mental and psychological abuse, and grief it didn’t feel depressing.

I really enjoyed the character development that our MC, Miriam had throughout the book. She went from emotionally turned off to letting it all in and dealing with those traumatic past experiences.

I did feel some parts of this novel were pretty repetitive and made certain sections of the book seem slow or that they were dragging, but overall this was a quick, enjoyable read.

You’ll find:
-F/F Main Characters
-Enemies to Lovers
-Found Family
-Setting: Christmas Tree Farm

Thank you Netgalley & the publisher for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I wanted to like this so much but it unfortunately fell flat for me. The synopsis promised comedy but the majority of the book felt a lot more like a drama which I didn't love. I also thought that the main relationship of the book wasn't as well developed as I hoped.