I love Christmas romcom season. It always falls during the stressful beginnings of school, and I get to escape for a bit.

This is not Andrews’ first Christmas novel; I reviewed The Santa Suit—which is briefly mentioned in this book—here. https://biblioquacious.blogspot.com/2021/11/cuddle-up-with-holiday-romances.html

As with that book, the romance develops rather quickly. I’m not sure I catch the whole motivation for it, but it’s cute. It also lacks the typical conflict characteristic of most romcoms. Yes, there is a threat of separation for the couple, but they overcome it and we get our happily ever after.

We never really look very deeply into Kerry’s personality or thoughts. We know she has lost her job and her boyfriend. We watch her gain confidence in a new endeavor. But it sees like all we see is the surface, nothing very deep. Her character changes little.

Don’t get me wrong—it’s a satisfying story. It’s just that it ends up more on the Christmas fluff side of things.

Possible Objectionable Material:
Some drinking. Implied sex, closed door. Mild cursing. Some characters are gay.

Who Might Like This Book:
If you like Hallmark Christmas movies, this book will fit very well!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book is also reviewed at https://biblioquacious.blogspot.com/2023/09/an-assortment-of-new-releases.html

This was the perfect holiday read for me. A mix of small town and big city. The Tolliver family may be from small town NC, but they have been known for their superior quality Christmas tree stand in NYC each winter. This book mixes holiday cheer, some family angst, and some unexpected love stories into a sweet bingeable Christmas read. Mary Kay Andrews is able to create the small town feel with a close knit cast of characters, in a city known for it's holiday charm. I definitely recommend this book by MKA if you are looking for a cozy winter/Christmas read.

One can never have too much Christmas in one's life. A heartwarming Christmas tale is perfect for any day in any season, and Bright Lights, Big Christmas delivers both charming North Carolina fraser fir coziness with the magic of a NYC holiday. The characters were a warm cup of cocoa to soothe one's mind and spirit. MKA delivers a perfect tale to boost your holiday mood whether you are just settling into pumpkin spice and spooky season or jumping right over to gingerbread spice and Mariah Carey on replay.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

Every year, the Tolliver Family Tree Farm has a Christmas tree lot on the same corner in Greenwich Village. The neighbors there are like a second family to them. This year, Kerry has to go in place of her dad, since he just had heart surgery., so she will join her brother Murphy and his dog Queenie. They spend the entire Christmas season selling trees, and living out of Spammy, the decades old camper that the family has always used. Kerry forms deep friendships with several of the locals especially a man named Patrick & his young son Austin, and an elderly man named Heinz. When Heinz goes missing right before Christmas, Kerry is determined to find him and make sure he is ok. Also, the closer it gets to Christmas Day, and time for Kerry & Murphy to head back home to the mountains of North Carolina, the deeper her feelings for Patrick become, & the more certain she feels this is right where she belongs.

This is another great Christmas story by this talented author. She has a way of making you feel like you are there in the midst of it all, watching it unfold. I could almost smell the pine trees. This has all of the earmarks of a great Christmas novel - a captivating storyline, a little bit of romance, snow, Christmas trees & decorations, .and friends & family gathered together to celebrate. I loved it, and if you are like me and always read a stack of Christmas-themed books around the holidays, then you will want to add this one to your TBR pile.

This is a delightful feel-good book that puts me in the mood for Christmas! I like the characters and how they help and support each other . I always look forward to the next MKA book.

What starts as a bit of Christmas misadventure in Bright Lights, Big Christmas by Mary Kay Andrews, turns into caring, love, romance, and family togetherness.

There’s something so magical about Christmas in NYC. ✨
This was such a charming holiday story!
I often tend to find Christmas books on the corny side, but I loved this one! I enjoyed how the story was centered around Murphy and Kerry working the Christmas tree lot in NYC, but that it had quirky and lovable characters woven in. The short chapters made it easy to pick up and I loved escaping into their daily life. The ending was emotional and perfectly captured the warm and fuzzy Christmas vibes. I was laughing and tearing up throughout.
Add this to your holiday TBR list!

Another pitch perfect Hallmark Holiday movie style Christmas story from one of my fav authors! This was a feel-good small town, Christmas tree farm girly falls for a big city single Dad romance that sees Kerry Toliver traveling to NYC in a beat up vintage trailer to help her family and sell Christmas trees in the city. Charming with tons of feels and a cute story in a story with a fun nod to last year's The santa suit. I adored this one from its cute cover to the heartwarming, kissing only holiday romance! Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for early digital and audio copies in exchange for my honest review!!

Die tiger dads recent heart attack, Kerry must make the trip from he family Xmas tree farm in NC to NYC with her older brother to sell the trees and get the farm back in the black. Kerry and her brother but heads but she comes up with ways to earn them more money. I really enjoyed how Kerry and Patrick come together and also how Kerry struggles with what to do with her life. Great Xmas book.

I received this ARC from St. Martin’s Press through NetGalley. My review is still exactly how I would review this book if I hadn’t received an ARC. I definitely enjoyed reading this and it was a quick slip into the Christmas spirit before I go back to Halloween. Okay so there were positives and negatives to this ARC for sure. There are simply too many story lines occurring. A whole new story like gets introduced in the last hundred pages. I don’t know it seems like I’m getting too much of everything that I feel like in being cheated on the main plot. Now the positives, it was a heart warming read. There was a big Christmas theme, so it wasn’t like a Christmas book with a very small part of it being Christmas. It was overall a fun read.

Bright Lights, Big Christmas is a sweet, heartwarming holiday read. Siblings Kerry and Murphy Tolliver travel to New York City to sell Christmas trees from their family farm in North Carolina every year. This year, their father isn't able to make the journey so Kerry travels in his place. The siblings meet lots of new folks in the community in NYC and learn a lot about themselves in the process. One highlight of the book is the travel camper, Spammy. It is a character all its own! If you enjoy Mary Kay Andrews's books, especially the seasonal ones, you'll love this one! I am hoping to see it as a movie in the future.

I love this author-every time! This book was a ight hearted, wonderful, holiday read. The descriptions of life in NYC, selling Christmas trees on the street corner, was so real. I read this in Sept. and shivered with the cold of the holiday season in NYC. I loved the characters and wished to read more about them, so in other words, I didn't want to read the last page!

This was a sweet Christmas story! I could see myself sitting by a fire on a winter weekend reading this while the snow fell. Kerry and her brother leave their Christmas tree farm in North Carolina to travel to NYC to sell trees on a corner in Greenwich Village. Everyone in the neighborhood knows the family and Kerry meets Patrick and his son Austin. Sparks fly between Kerry and Patrick, and she knows she needs to make some decisions on what to do about her future. I hope Kerry's brother, Murphy gets his own story next Christmas!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. This review is based on an ARC from NetGalley, courtesy of the publisher.

This is my first May Kay Andrews read and I really enjoyed it! I never used to be a big fan of Christmas stories/movies, but I've been coming around to them over the past few years. This one definitely had that sweet, Hallmark Christmas vibe. The story is about Kerry and her brother, Murphy, and their trip to NYC to sell Christmas trees grown on the family farm in NC. Kerry and Murphy aren't exactly estranged, but they weren't close over the years, so they have a lot of catching up to do - especially when their living quarters is a cramped, old school camper. Murphy is no stranger to the city and has his regulars who help him out every year during the tree selling season. Kerry has the pleasure of meeting all of these wonderful people for the first time (so many great characters!). This was a cute story of new beginnings, friendships, love, and the spirit of Christmas.

Kerry is between jobs so she is living back home in North Carolina at her family's Christmas tree farm. When her father becomes ill she packs up trees with her brother Murphy and drives the camper, Spammy, up to New York City for a month.

This isn't great literature but it was the right book at the right time. I loved all the characters so much and wished I knew more about Claudia and Murphy. Even Spammy was somewhat of a quirky character and New York seemed magical with the hustle and bustle. I could almost smell the pine trees.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with a digital copy.

I loved the Christmas feel and I'm happy more people are using the Christmas tree farm vibes more! It makes it feel more Christmas-y

Loved reading the newest by Mary Kay Andrews! This book has a small town feel set in NYC. Kerry is unexpectedly ends up helping her family’s Christmas tree farm sell trees in NYC and in the meantime she finds new friends, of all ages, and even love. This was a great read to start the Christmas season!

Thank you, NetGalley. What a cozy read! This is the perfect soul cleanser if the news gets you down. I couldn't be side by side with my sibling for many weeks selling trees from the family Christmas farm. Get out the hot chocolate, put on the fireplace and dig in. You might find yourself singing carols after you read this book.

I love a feel-good book for the Holidays and Mary Kay Andrews has not disappointed in the past and she doesn't this time either. The East Village neighborhood in New York Andrews depicts seems to come straight out of the 1950's. Everyone is happy and generous and kind to the Christmas tree vendors who have been coming to their small enclave for years. Not quite believable for New York, but I wanted to believe, and this is a Christmas book after all.

Kerry Tolliver has been downsized from her job as a graphic artist and has moved home to the hill of North Carolina. Her father and brother run a Christmas tree farm and this year due to her father's heart attack, Kerry is needed to help work the lot in New York City. Since this is the farm's income for the year, she really has no choice. She finds herself sharing Spammy, a tiny vintage travel trailer with her gruff brother, Murphy, and his Irish Setter, Queenie. It's cramped and cold but the neighbors are super nice, and a girl has to do what a girl has to do.

Kerry finds herself attracted to a single dad, Patrick and his adorable almost 7-year-old son, Austin. While entertaining Austin with a charming story she and he are creating an elderly man, Heinz, stops and adds to the illustrations. The whole neighborhood comes to be like a family to Kerry and when Heinz hasn't been seen for several days, Kerry starts looking for him.

As the time comes for close the Christmas tree stand, Kerry must make some tough decisions. She has no job back in Tarbutton, South Carolina, but her family is there. What is happening between her and Patrick could be something special, but after only three weeks it's hard to know. She loves the neighborhood but can't even imagine being able to afford to live here or anywhere in the city. Christmas is a special time of year and miracles do happen.

My thanks the Publisher and the Author for providing a complimentary digital Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of this novel via NetGalley. This is my fair, honest and personal review. All opinions are mine alone and were not biased in any way.

Bright Lights, Big Christmas by Mary Kay Andrews was absolutely delightful.

Here is my recommendation: go ahead and order yourself a copy as a gift to yourself (because let’s be real, we all deserve early Christmas gifts). And then, as you are putting away your Halloween decorations later, take a break and open this little holiday treasure. Your heart will thank you.

I read this in two days, finishing one night with just a happy grin on my face. Clocking in at just 288 pages, this novella is filled with wonderful characters, Christmas magic, and a whole lot of found family. If you’re a fan of feel-good Christmas movies, grab this. You’ll laugh and sigh and feel the magic of the season on every page. 5 sparkly Christmas trees for this read. Many thanks to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for the arc.