I thought this was a fun, sweet romance book. Enjoyed the sweet story and.the book has likeable characters. Five stars!!

Despite it being the middle of the summer, this book was just what I needed! From the first chapter I was pulled into the story. The premise of the story and execution of the first chapter set the book up to be an easy five stars. The author did an excellent job with the timelines in this book, which can sometimes get confusing or jumbled- but not here! Overall a great romance, even outside of the holiday season!

Look, I know it's early to start talking about Christmas. I mean Halloween hasn't even arrived yet. But trust me, you'll want to read this one!
You're basically reading a Christmas movie, with less cheese and a more believable plot, but with all the warmth and fuzziness you find in these! It's the perfect pick me up for whenever you need one. It found me at a perfect time, when I was stressed about going back to school, and honestly, I plunge deep into the story and it made me forget about all my stress.

There's romance, banter, holiday spirit, family time. It's amazing, ADORABLE, extremely cute and so, so funny 😂😂 I seriously laughed out loud many times 😂

It's a friends to lovers, which I'm generally not a huge fan of, but this one felt a bit different; the characters are around their 30s and are actually mature for their age. I mean, I love morally grey characters as much as the next gal, but it feels nice to sometimes have a truly beautiful and healthy relationship!

I won't say more as to not spoil the story, but seriously, buy this one when it comes out on October 4th (my bday, yay 🎉) and read it when you're feeling stressed or over the holidays! You will not regret it ❤️
And now, I'm off to go read Catherine Walsh's backlist!! Byyyyye

💁🏽‍♀️Read if you like: new adult romance, friends to lovers, holiday romance, Christmas movies, comfort reads

Spice level : 🌶️/5

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Bookouture and the author for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I want to thank Netgalley, Catherine Walsh, and Bookouture for this ARC. This is my honest opinion.

One thing you should know about me before reading my review is that I am not a fan of romances in a book, I always find that the feelings of the characters are too fast, the story botched because it goes too fast.

Now that I’ve told you this
I LOVED this book! the author wrote us a real nugget in terms of Christmas romance.
The story is original, the characters endearing, with moving scenes, hilarious scenes, and a Christmas spirit as we like it.
I loved that Andrew was the one who was in love with Christmas while Molly was pessimistic and against the very idea of Christmas.
The flashbacks of their previous flights bring depth to the story and their relationships that allows the romance to be logical and natural.
I read this book while at the airport and waiting for my late flight and I exploded with laughter several times, people must have taken me for a crazy person but impossible not to laugh at certain scenes.

The only negative point for me was that I would have liked some chapters from Andrew’s point of view, to know his thoughts.
But otherwise, I highly recommend this book if you want to spend a good time under your plaid this winter !!

This was a GREAT holiday romance! I loved it from the start and could totally see this becoming a movie
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

When I first started reading this, I was a tad apprehensive that this would get a bit repetitive- same people, same flight, same time of year. But the creative way in which this is portrayed is anything but, and I was bought in rather quickly.

Rich, warm characters that will definitely help you stay cosy on any cold winter nights.

Joyous.

This is my first book ive read that Catherine has written. I needed something light and cheery to clear my head after reading an extremely heavy triller and this book did the trick. It was extremely humourous aswell as interesting and i flew through it in one day. I really enjoyed the link to christmas also as it is my favourite time of the year. I will be reading more of Catherines books real soon and i was delighted to have been selected for an ARC of this title.

ℍ𝕠𝕝𝕚𝕕𝕒𝕪 ℝ𝕠𝕞𝕒𝕟𝕔𝕖 𝕣𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕖𝕨 📖

Rating 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Spice 🌶🌶

Is it September? Yes. I’m getting a head start just for you guys. 🎄

I love a good holiday book and Catherine Walsh delivered. This was such a sweet, fun, and chill read. Not overly dramatic and I felt both Molly and Andrew were realistic, rational, mature adults! I feel the need to say this cause it isn’t always the case with romcoms. Does NOT have the miscommunication trope and for that I am grateful 🙏🏼.

Molly and Andrew have a unique friendship. Both from Ireland, and both living in Chicago. After they’re introduced through Molly’s roommate, every year they fly back to Ireland together to see their families during the holidays. It’s their 10th year when they hit a snag in their tradition: a massive snowstorm grounds the majority of flights. This affects Andrew more as Christmas is big for his family and so Molly makes it her mission to get him home.

Holiday Romance is a fun romcom that is PERFECT to get you in the mood for Christmas. Comes out October 4th so keep an eye out!

Thank you NetGalley for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Holiday Romance is, in fact, a great little Holiday Romance novel very reminiscent of a Hallmark movie but a little less predictable. Molly and Andrew both live in Chicago and find themselves on the same flight home to Ireland at Christmas. After the first couple of years that it happens, they end up planning to be on the same flight and build a budding friendship. The story mostly takes place in present day but does flat back periodically to each of the previous 9 flights. The present day flight has them almost missing Christmas with their respective families back home due to a storm. As luck would have it, they find a flight that while taking them very far off course, manages to get them back to Ireland just in time for the holiday, and a long the way with all the extra time spent together, the two grow closer.
I really enjoyed this book. Nice and lighthearted and a fun read. Thanks to NetGalley, Bookouture and the author for access to this ARC!

I found this to be a lovely friends to lovers Christmas story with many very likeable characters.
With the author including moments from Molly & Andrew’s previous Christmas journeys home to Ireland it shows the growth of their friendship and helped with the flow of the story.
I felt it moved at a good pace as we travel the world with them and it was good to see Molly start to enjoy some more aspects of Christmastime as time passed.
With how much I sped through this story and enjoyed it, I’m going to have to look out for more books by this author in future.

This was such a heart warming read for me , equal parts funny and romantic and I really enjoyed it . Andrew and Molly have made great travelling partners ever since they were sat next to each other on a flight home to ireland 10 years previously , with each year they get closer and closer , best friends . When their flight is grounded because of a storm Molly vows to get Andrew back to his family in time for Christmas . As their long journey progresses she wonders if the feelings she has for Andrew are really just platonic and him for her . I loved this and found myself smiling most of the way through . Brilliant

Ok, give me a sweet romcom and I’m delighted…add in Christmas and I’m in heaven! This book was such a great read. I immediately fell in love with Molly and Andrew and their relationship. What started out as a friendly yearly meetup grew into this playful and fun relationship with the banter back and forth to make it flirtatious. I absolutely adored the storyline!

Holiday Romance is one of those books where you read first 10 pages and then say to yourself ‘ooooh this is going to be good.’ I LOVED this story. The grumpy sunshine + friends to lovers tropes are two of my favourites and are so well written in this book. And the banter was 10/10! Now I must go read everything else Catherine Walsh!

Such a good book. Interesting mix of past and present with some great humor. Friends to lovers with an amazing male mc you'll swoon for.

The holiday book to add to your reading list this season!!!

For the past nine years, Molly and Andrew took the same flight from Chicago to Ireland for the holidays. Through these flights, they have become the best of friends. When their tenth and current flight gets canceled due to a storm, the two decide that they will do anything to get back home for Christmas and what follows is one long and unexpected travel journey.

I read Catherine Walsh's The Rebound earlier this year and loved the Ireland set romance, but her upcoming release totally exceeded my expectations and ticked all the boxes. It's hilarious, lighthearted, uplifting in every way and has only a tiny conflict at the end, which was refreshing. I loved Molly and Andrew's friendship and how open and honest they were with each other throughout the book. Plus, all of their adventures as they traveled led to some great shenanigans, banter and humor.

Read if you like:
-Holiday adventures
-Best friends to lovers
-Irish wit and humor
-Low conflict and lighthearted stories
-Family bonding moments
-Hallmark movies

Pub date 10/4!!

Five twinkling Christmas stars for this happy lil Christmas gift in a book that made me feel all kinds of happy! Catherine Walsh has such a way of creating realistic worlds that keep me hooked without any unrealistic or infuriating drama. Her characters actually… communicate?? Work through their issues as adults?? Don't create more problems for themselves for the sake of a good story?? Weird, I know. But Walsh doesn't need it. She takes us into a world where all we need is to watch these two friends/airplane buddies fall in love. Even the promised travel shenanigans to get Andrew home to Ireland for Christmas never cross over into the unrealistic or absurd (something I was dreading, if I'm honest).

I love both Molly and Andrew and their mature and realistic confrontation of their issues. It's so refreshing when you finish a book and actually believe the pair is going to make it because they can communicate properly! Their banter and comebacks had me actually laughing out loud more times than my husband appreciated at 1am, for some reason. Walsh also knows how to write the best secondary characters; Andrew's family, in particular, reminded me of the crazy family in While You Were Sleeping (which is, dare I say, a top romcom of all time?) and that just made me even happier.

Anyway. Please do yourself a solid and indulge in this cup of holiday cheer. You won't regret it.

I absolutely devoured this. It’s 3 am. We’re in the midst of another terrible heatwave, and sleep seems utterly out of the question. The solution? A Holiday Romance novel! Literally. Very fitting and very aptly named indeed. Needless to say I stayed up till 7 am reading this and the birds are now chirping outside my window as I type up this review.

Molly and Andrew are two unlikely friends who have a longstanding tradition that started by accident of flying from Chicago to Ireland every Christmas. Due to a cancelled flight they have to race around multiple countries and different connecting flights to get home to their families before Christmas. These two were a delight to read. I loveeee the ‘friends-to-lovers, mutual-pining-but-neither-wants-to-ruin-the-friendship’ trope. And this one was done extremely well. The banter between Molly and Andrew really give off the impression that these two are good friends who genuinely enjoy each other’s company. The chemistry is also great, and I love that we get to see snippets of what each flight together over the 10 years was like.

Overall, I can’t recommend this book enough if you are in the mood for a swoony, funny (lil bit steamy) romance novel! 5 stars!

Molly and Andrew have a long standing tradition of sharing a flight from Chicago back to Ireland and on their 10th anniversary a freak snowstorm derails their plans. What follows is a dual timeline tale, chronically both their previous flights as well as as today.

A friends to lovers story that is full of friendship, comedy and a good dose of Christmas - perfect for the festive season!

Removing a star for a personal pet peeve of mine which is Irish (or British) characters using American English, I find it incredibly jarring and kept pulling me out of the story at random points.

This is the story of Molly and Andrew and how they find love in each other during a very long journey to home for Christmas. The story switches between present and past 10 Christmas holidays. Initially I was a little wary of the plot because I don’t like the idea of MCs pining for so long. But this two only had platonic feelings for each other(most of the time!!). This actually made the story very realistic because they don’t put their lives on pause for each other.
At present, the flight to their hometown is canceled and as Andrew loves his family, Molly thinks of every way for them to reach home. She also gets confuse about her feelings for Andrew because of their first kiss!
The only complain I have is that I did find a good enough grasp on Andrew’s personality. I know he is funny, sarcastic and loves his family. But that’s it. I would have liked a little more insight on his side of story but sadly the book is only in Molly’s POV.
This is a short friends to lovers holiday rom com with witty banter!
Thanks to Net Galley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

Holiday Romance was every magical bit of banter, lovable characters, and romance I could’ve hoped for. Catherine Walsh has won my heart yet again with these genuine main characters. Her balance of present and flashbacks to previous flights set up a beautiful narration to really understand and get to know Andrew and Molly. This is a book with light spice and more of the wholesome holiday “Hallmark movie” feel.

Molly is so relatable and I really saw some of myself in her decisions and hesitancy of change. Risk, whether a job or relationship, is a difficult thing to navigate. Andrew and his entire family was so pure and funny. They are the golden retrievers, the cinnamon rolls, the wholesome Brady bunch of the book. The character growth for Molly and Andrew is both astounding and believable. The romance flowed naturally and didn’t feel forced. Friends to lovers has never been my go-to trope but Walsh might have set the bar pretty high for all following books with how well this was done.