Holiday Romance was one of my most anticipated holiday reads of 2022. After reading and loving Catherine Walsh’s The Rebound earlier this year, plus hearing great things about Holiday Romance, I was excited to dive in, and it didn’t disappoint. It was laugh-out-loud funny, swoony, heartfelt, and it stirred up my wanderlust, all with a backdrop of festive fun.

This book reminded me why I love friends-to-lovers so much. I loved watching Molly and Andrew’s relationship evolve over the span of a decade. Their interactions ranged from cringeworthy to hilarious to sweet to romantic and everything in between. I loved their connection and chemistry, and it was so much fun watching their friendship progress and turn into something more. I also appreciated that within the whirlwind trip, flashbacks, and witty banter, Molly and Andrew dealt with some realistic, life-changing issues. I adored both of these characters and Andrew is officially my newest book boyfriend.

Holiday Romance is an absolute delight. I’ve read almost two dozen holiday romances this year, and this one is easily in my top three.

Holiday Romance by Catherine Walsh
Genre: Holiday, Romcom
Publisher: Bookouture

I recommend you read this book if you are looking for a unique take and setting for your festive reads.

~ Brief Synopsis~
Molly and Andrew have been catching flights home for the Christmas holidays for the last ten years. Each year they meet at the airport and catch a flight together from Chicago to Dublin. When a freak storm grounds their flight, Molly decides she will do anything and everything to get Andrew home in time for Christmas, including catching planes, trains, taxis and even boats.

~ Review ~
What an adorable holiday story, one of my favourites I have read this year. This one had me hooked from the beginning with its unique premise – what a fun idea for a Christmas novel (even if it would be my worst nightmare). The romance was everything I had hoped for and more. I loved the alternating past and present chapters and watching Molly and Andrew’s relationship grow and develop over their ten years of flights. This is another book just begging to become a movie! Because of the plot, this one wasn’t too heavy on the Christmas so perfect for those wanting a fun romance with only a dash of holiday season thrown in.

This was such a cute holiday romance. I read it so quickly and was engrossed the entire time by the plot and the chemistry. Loved it!

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for a copy to review.

The best Christmas themed romance I've read this year by a country mile!

Imagine being the person that just has a "person" that you travel home with every year :( :(

This is an ADORABLE story, with a wonderful and whimsical background. Yes you have to kind of suspend life and jsut lean into it a bit but it's truly a love story for the ages :)

This was completely adorable. Like a sexy, romantic Planes, Trains & Automobiles. And, much like that movie, with properly charming and funny banter between the two main characters. It made me laugh out loud more than once and I was bereft when I finished it. Can't wait to read more from Catherine Walsh.

Such a cute holiday romance to get you in the Christmas spirit. I really enjoyed this one and would recommend.

I loved this one! Friends to lovers is my favorite. molly and Andrew don’t realize they like each other until they have no option to explore their feelings. Add in a little spice and it’s the perfect holiday rom com.

Esse livro é um romance natalino perfeito, eu li ele inteiro imaginando como ficaria ótimo como um filme. Durante a leitura, a autora leva o leitor pelos outros nove voos, mostrando algumas cenas importantes que dá uma visão melhor do relacionamento que eles construíram durante esse tempo. A leitura é muito divertida, e eu amei ver um enredo em que a protagonista não é a que ama o Natal, porque normalmente é ao contrário.

Molly e Andrew são apaixonantes como amigos e mais ainda como um casal, eles tem uma dinâmica muito boa e uma química perfeita. Se você gosta de romances natalinos e está a procura de algo para ler, recomendo demais Holiday Romance fiquei até com dó de terminar de tão apegada que fiquei aos personagens e a história

Catherine Walsh is being a favorite author of mine! I really enjoyed her novel One Night Only a few years ago and Holiday Romance was such a fun, perfect holiday read! The two main characters were so wonderful and I loved their shared experience of the flights back home all those years. The flashbacks for the flights really brought a lot to the story and shared cute details that really had me shipping these two! The present day storyline was entertaining and had a lot going on between the two family Christmases and the romance piece. I laughed aloud a few times and had a smile on my face for the majority of the rest! Definitely will be purchasing a print copy of this one!!

If you're looking for a feel-good holiday romance read, look no further ! I absolutely loved this darling book, filled with heart, humour and Irish charm. A perfect book for rom-com lovers. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

For the past 10 years, Molly and Andrew have spent every Christmas flying home together from Chicago to Ireland. They’re friends, though their lives don’t cross that much throughout the year. However they look forward to their flight home together & have grown closer with each one. When a big storm grounds flights, Molly is determined to get Christmas loving Andrew back to his family. What follows is an epic detour with several stops & means of transport. This longer journey causes Molly to look at Andrew in a different light & assess their relationship

I loved the premise of this book, a whirlwind of flights & feelings. We get flashbacks of all the previous flights together, which was cute to see how their feelings changed over the years. Despite being a Christmas book, with all the travelling it’s not hitting you over the head with Christmas tropes until you get further into the book. It’s all about the adventure, so if you don’t like books too cheesy, this one is great!

Catherine has superb wit, I laughed several times during the book. It’s very Irish at times & that’s so refreshing to read! The book touches on some tougher subjects, like alcoholism, but all with a light hand so it doesn’t bring the mood of the book down

The romance was cute, I liked how the story progressed and had feel good it was. One of my favourite festive reads so far this year!

I absolutely loved this book so much. Every year for the last ten years Molly sits next to Andrew on the flight from Chicago to Dublin as they head home for Christmas. The first two years started off rocky but little by little each year they look forward to catching up with each other on this flight.
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This year, on their tenth anniversary of flights, Molly upgrades them to first class and is ready to celebrate their friendship in style but the weather has other plans. Molly is determined to get Andrew home to his family no matter what, including many layovers, train, ferry, bus, cab, whatever it takes. Molly is even more determined to forget that kiss under the mistletoe at O’Hare that is meant to be friendly, but felt so very real.
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Told in dual timelines from the present tense to the past flights we could see them grow from college students to adults and how their relationship develop.
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I loved both of them, especially their witty banter and I loved their families. I just really loved this book! It needs to be a movie immediately!
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Huge thank you to #bookouture and #NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

I adored this book. It’s the perfect combination of escapism and friends-to-lovers romance. I wish I could transport myself to Cork at Christmas time. I read this quickly and I just think it’s begging to become a movie. I would watch it every Christmas. Thanks to Net Galley for providing this ARC!

The BEST holiday rom-com. I loved it so much.

Molly and Andrew meet while on a flight from Chicago to their home-town Irish towns (Dublin and Cork), and end up sharing the same flight for ten years in a row. The story features a dual-timeline that goes back in time to each flight over ten years alternating with their tenth flight.

Seriously, if you need a holiday rom-com READ THIS ONE. I loved it so much!

A great light-hearted read to add to your December TBR list. Told from 2 time periods, current, and then 10 years worth of trips back to home to Ireland from Chicago for the holidays, the "will they won't romance" between Molly and Andrew progresses.

It was charming, adorable, with a background cast of characters (their families) who were also entertaining.''
Cute and festive read!

I read this book on the plane over to Ireland for Christmas. Thankfully, my travels were a lot less chaotic than Molly and Andrew's. I enjoyed reading their adventure, but some of the mishaps were a little too far-fetched at times.

It's a closed door romance, which aren't my favourite these days but the chemistry between Molly and Andrew more than made up for this. Their charm and humour was incredible, and you can see just how their relationship grew thanks to the ten or so years of friendship behind them.

Anything Catherine has written has turned to gold for me, I can't wait to see where she takes me next.

Super cute friendzone story, will make you laugh & cry. Nothing worse than airports but this story gives you hope!
Thanks #netgalley for the advanced copy.

I sadly didn’t love this one…the planes, trains and automobiles got old. I appreciate the opportunity to read and review, but I don’t think this was a good fit for me.

This is a nice romance story to read over the holidays. It is about friends who become romantically involved.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

4.5- A perfect holiday friends-to-lovers. Typically, there is a certain amount of cheesiness that accompanies Christmas romances, but this one was a fantastic romance on its own. I loved the characters' shared history and they had great banter. The sprinkling of Christmas magic in Ireland was just an added bonus. My only criticism is that it felt longer than it needed to be.