Thank you to the publisher and @netgalley for a copy of this holiday romance. This feels very Hallmark starring, Haddie, a widow running an Air BnB and raising her little daughter. I love the small town vibe and how supportive the town was with her. A group of friends books a week there and they form a friendship with Haddie. I love the strong female friendships and the twist in the story as well. I do wish we got to see more romance between Haddie and the Christmas tree farmer.

Great story of four women who are together at a hotel where they learn to come to grips with their current situations in life. I received an ARC from NetGalley and Canary Street Press for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this Advanced Reader Copy, in exchange for my honest review.

The story of a group of friends that has been through all that life has to throw at them. And they come together a week a year to discuss their book club selection. This year the setting is The Maple Sugar Inn in Vermont.

What I loved about this book was the bond of the three friends. And even though they are each going through their own struggles, they are there for each other.

The setting was quaint and very Hallmark Movieish. But added to the overall charm of the story.
The writing really developed each of the characters well. Sarah Morgan is a new author to me, but I am definitely going to check out her bibliography.

This was a little heavier than the other holiday rom coms that I like to ready this time of year, but this was a lovely story.

I felt transported while reading this book. I loved the hotel’s atmosphere; it really shined through the book.


I received an advance copy. All thoughts are my own.

This book was the definition of a "warm and fuzzy" wintry read, and I loved that. It was many more feels than I anticipated in the best of ways. Erica, Claudia and Ann schedule a meet-up at the Maple Sugar Inn run by widow and single mom Hattie. They're each carrying some "stuff" from life, so the getaway is a chance to clear their heads/hearts, discuss their read, and just spend needed time together as friends. Except, there's a bit more to each of their stories and even some connections to where they find themselves. This was just a delightful cast of characters as each of their arcs were explored and detailed, and I loved getting a window into the lives of each of them. This is a great holiday season read, especially if you're wanting to be all up in your emotions. Thanks to NetGalley for the look at this recent release!

This book appealed to me immediately as a festive and cozy read, which wasn't all romance but focused on friendships too. It's set in the picturesque Sugar Maple Inn, which twinkles on the outskirts of a quaint little town in rural Vermont, and it's told from the perspectives of four women. Three are in a book club, on the cusp of 40, and are each at a crossroads in their life. The fourth is a young widow juggling the demands of owning and running the hotel and raising her 5 year old daughter on her own, and she is at a crossroads too. The story is about how they intersect.

There was a lot that I enjoyed about this book. First, it definitely delivers on the cozy holiday vibes. The setting and the descriptions of scenes and foods are as Christmassy as the Hallmark Channel from September to January. If that is your feel-good jam, then you'll probably have a good time with this book. I liked the genuine and supportive friendships the story portrays, both old and new, and the way the characters grow and help each other. The writing is clear and descriptive, the stakes are high enough to give the story some tension but low enough to stay solidly in cozy territory. However, I'm actually not a Hallmark Christmas movie person, and there are also a few elements of the book that struck some discordant notes for me.

The biggest one is that the story is set in Vermont, all of the characters are American except for one, but everyone sounds very very British. It's always a bit jarring when an American author writes British characters who talk like Americans, and it's equally off-putting when British authors write American characters who speak like Brits. I'm never sure why they'd choose to set their stories on the opposite side of the pond if they can't write dialogue authentically for the setting they chose. In this instance, American characters say things like queue instead of line, surgery instead of clinic, cookery instead of cooking, round instead of around, "down to" something instead of "due to" something. When asked if they'd feel a certain way about something, they reply "I might do" instead of "I might". Anything good is "brilliant". Which would all be fine if the story was set in the UK, but it's supposed to be the US. It felt like the equivalent of watching the US version of The Office with the UK audio dubbed over it, and every time Michael Scott opens his mouth David Brent's voice comes out. The dialogue just doesn't ring true, and it kept pulling me out of the story.

Aside from this, something about the writing just seemed a little bit off. The dialogue sometimes felt stilted, and not how people naturally speak - eg. characters frequently referring to the innkeeper's daughter as "the child" instead of using her name. Positive emotions big or small are ubiquitously described as "pleased" instead of glad, happy, etc - I'm pleased we are finally together, she's not pleased to see me, I'm pleased you still love me, I'm pleased I never married that creep. It reminded me of Raiders of the Lost Ark when Sallah said to Indiana Jones "I'm so pleased you're not dead!" And if you tried to make a drinking game out of every mention of the book club ladies turning 40 you'd end up really wankered.

To explain any further I might give away spoilers, so read past this point at your own risk.

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Hattie is a 28 year old widow raising a 5 year old daughter on her own, and also the owner of the hotel. I'm very curious how she and her husband managed to afford to buy an entire hotel fresh out of college at 22 with no jobs, renovate and tastefully decorate it, and hire a multiple Michelin star chef for the attached restaurant from day one (but he put brains on the menu so of course the restaurant is an instant success). Hattie doesn't have any family around to help - her husband was killed by a random falling brick, and her parents have both passed away - her mother when Hattie was born, and more recently the Perfect Dad who raised her all alone. She's still grieving the losses, and there's a hole in her heart that can only be filled by a rugged man in plaid flannel who smells like pine and obsequiousness and drives an American made truck. She is lusting after the Standard Outdoorsy Guy from the farm next door, but she's conflicted, overwhelmed, and exhausted to the brink of narcolepsy, as well as embarrassed because they drunkenly made out at the town Halloween party. She's also trying to manage the terrible emplyees her domineering late husband insisted on hiring, including a cranky housekeeper and a star chef prone to violent outbursts, as well as accommodate the demands of nitpicky guests right down to custom bed sheet color requests. It's odd that she's so unsupported in a town full of people who will show up at your house with brownies and casseroles if you so much as sneeze. (Is there such a place? I've lived in the US for years and I'm more likely to get shot than ever given a pan of brownies.) When she takes a booking for an unspecified date in the middle of December from a trio of almost-40 (did I mention they're almost 40?) college friends for their annual book club meeting slash girls' getaway trip, things are about to change for all of them.

Erica is a single successful professional who doesn't think she needs a man in her life to be happy, but she's characterized as broken and in need of fixing, so you know the book is setting her up to learn how wrong she is. Her friends keep pushing her to have a more traditional relationship with her NSA FWB "Sexy Jack" (who probably smells like whiskey, leather, and red flags) because how could anything else be fulfilling? She has "daddy issues" because her father abandoned her and her mom 8 minutes after she was born, so of course her life has been bitter and joyless and completely devoid of any softness or fun. But he's not a Bad Guy. He was just a poor frightened lad who bolted from the delivery room, moved to a different continent, and made no attempt to contact them for over a decade, but he felt remorseful about it the whole time (but not remorseful enough to pay child support). The book wants you to know that he was a Good Guy, because he sent a card once and Erica's mom was the big meanie who wouldn't let him drop back into their lives on a whim. He married someone else, had a new baby, and became The Perfect Dad - to Hattie. (But probably not enough of a Good Guy to include Erica in his will.)

Anna is a trad wife and mother to 18 year old twins set to leave for college the following year, and she's struggling to deal with the prospect of an empty nest. I get it - you can celebrate your babies growing up and becoming independent and still feel sad about the swift passage of time and miss having them at home. Anna is married to Perfect Pete (who probably smells like stale coffee, takeout bags, and entitlement). He doesn't want to ruin her week-long girls' book club trip to the hotel, so he has a passive-aggressive phone tantrum while she's away because he's tired of her having silly feelings that aren't centered on him, and if she's sad about the prospect of the kids leaving home she obviously doesn't love HIM. He refuses to say "I love you" back to her, and proceeds to go radio silent for the rest of the week, ignoring all of her calls and texts, which definitely doesn't freak her out or spoil her trip at all. Anna is consumed with guilt for not putting his feelings first, and is worried their marriage is in serious trouble, until at the end of the week she learns that he had perfectly good reasons for giving her the silent treatment - he' wasn't sulking, he's just an incompetent clown. The very first time he attempted to do laundry on his own HE FLOODED THE ENTIRE KITCHEN (note to Brits: American homes don't typically have laundry appliances in the kitchen), and then on a completely different day he LOCKED HIMSELF OUT OF THE HOUSE and couldn't get to his phone. Of course this meant that for the entire week he couldn't call or text her back. (Is she really buying this silly BS? My bet is he spent the week on dating apps pretending to be divorced.) Anyway, she apologizes for being so busy being the only one carrying the load of childcare and domestic labour for all these years that she didn't make him feel special enough, and they both sing the praises of their traditional gender roles and traditional relationship. Cleaning up after Pete for another 40 years sounds like bliss.

Claudia is a chef who is still reeling after being unexpectedly dumped by John, her mediocre live-in boyfriend of 10 years (who probably smells like too much cologne, breath mints, and desperation), and being laid off from her hellish job. She's not sure she can afford the annual trip to see her college BFFs this year, but she's able to make it work. On the day of their arrival, the hotel's chef, who is prone to random fits of rage, assaults the sous chef with a frying pan and drives off into the sunset without even giving 2 weeks notice. Where is the hotel going to find a classically French trained chef who's willing to step in and work for free to fill in for him and save the day? Remy the Rat was not available, so Claudia jumps at the opportunity to spend her vacation working without pay. She brings calm and skillful guidance and some sorely needed sanity to the restaurant, and also rediscovers her love of cooking. (I enjoyed her story arc much more than the others, and I would have liked a whole book about her.) When John predictably calls to try to weasel his way back into her life, she kicks him to the curb and blocks his number, which I loved, but the only thing that bugged me was that she blamed Erica's mom for doing exactly the same thing to her deadbeat dad. Go figure. Anyway, the book club friends spend their vacation week doing free cooking, managing, and babysitting for Hattie, and Hattie pays them back by letting them. It's a win/win/win/win situation.

Based on my long, rambling, occasionally-snarky review, you might get the impression I didn't like the book, which isn't entirely true. In general I enjoyed it, but I didn't like everything about it. The British phrasing was a weird fit, and the characters' identities were mostly defined by their relationships with men (good ones, bad ones, absent ones, and incompetent man babies). But I liked the festive vibes. I liked the friendships between the women. And if I could write my own ending, Erica would tell her friends to back off about "Sexy Jack" and keep him around for casual fun while she keeps living her unapologetic best life, and Anna would tell Pete to grow up and stop whining, and to learn how to be a functional and responsible adult who won't destroy the place every time she goes away. Maybe read Fair Play.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with a free advance reader digital copy of the book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

3.5 stars rounded up for Netgalley. This was a perfectly fine Christmassy book with a bit too sticky sweet of an ending. I don't want holiday turmoil, but a bit less tied up in a perfect bow would be good. All in all, an enjoyable, fluffy read.

I really enjoyed this book so much. It was so touching with the friendships, family, and love. There were some mysteries and great characters. The description of the inn and the little town really made you feel like you were there or you would like to visit it. Thank you so much to Net Galley, the publisher, and Sarah Morgan for the ARC for an honest review.

A heartwarming Christmas story of friendship and hope. I loved the setting and the characters. I wish I could become one of their group. I recommend this story, as I have for other books by Sarah Morgan. She really gets you into the spirit!

This novel was written pretty well. A story about friends and all of their trials and tribulations talking about books and being there for each other. This was my first read by this author and I thought it was super cozy.I liked that it gave moments of hope and friendship and comfort and romance but it was more focused on friendship and you don’t always see that a lot in books. This was an easy read and it was perfect for this time of year with winter and Christmas right around the corner. The only things I didn’t like was each character story was a little much and sometimes hard to follow and I personally love romance and smutty reads so I would’ve loved more of that. If you like books about friendship or holiday reads this is a great read. I was given this book as an arc by Netgalley for my honest review.
#netgalley

This setting was straight out of a Hallmark Channel Christmas movie and I loved the descriptions of the cozy Maple Sugar Inn. This is a lovely story of friendship with a cast of eclectic characters with a side of Christmas romance. As these types of novels usually go, it was a tad cheesy at times and had a too-perfect ending but it is to be expected if you are going to pick up this hot chocolate-type of novel.

There are to many characters for my liking and I didn’t really like any of the characters.
This just wasn’t for me .

The Book Club Hotel
Sarah Morgan

Climb into your favorite comfy chair, near a cozy fire with hot mug of cocoa and get ready for another one of Sarah Morgan’s heartfelt, magical Christmas tales. No one does Christmas novels better and she outdoes herself with The Book Club Hotel where she shows four women some real Christmas magic. Her stars Hattie, Erica, Anna and Claudia are all so different, so genuine and so likeable and women who are looking at 40 through both rearview and front-view mirrors will be able to relate to at least one of them. The audience will be hard-pressed to find a favorite character as each one shines in her own way and isn’t afraid to be vulnerable to her friends. The costars are also incredible especially the dinosaur and shark loving sprite, Delphi, what a charmer she is. Sarah’s storytelling is unmatched, her backdrops will make her readers want to book a Vermont Inn and she’s not afraid to get emotional, so you’ll need a tissue or two but not too many. Lovers of unforgettable Christmas stories and any one of this incredible author’s work will not be able to put this down.
Hattie loves and hates running the Maple Sugar Inn the quaint Vermont boutique hotel that was her husband Brent’s dream. But ever since his tragic death two years ago she’s been so focused on raising their five-year-old daughter Delphi and keeping his dream of running the inn alive she’s kind of lost herself in the chaos. She loves having a full house, having Delphi close by and keeping her guests happy but dealing with the high-strung chef and pompous housekeeper Brent hired is almost too much for her to handle. But it’s Christmastime and the Inn is looking its festive best, she’s all filled up and just booked three besties for their annual book club getaway, so she’ll muddle through.

BFFs since college and all just about to be or already 40 Erica, Anna and Claudia have managed to keep their friendship a priority by dedicating one week a year to each other and since they’re all book lovers pick a book to discuss that week and call it their book club holiday. But this year each woman is facing a challenging turning point in her life, and she’ll need her friends even more.
Erica, crisis management guru usually books them into 5-star hotels for their annual week but this year has picked a quaint Vermont Inn, she has her reasons for going to this particular locale but she’s not ready to share it with her friends and may never be.
Anna has always just wanted to be a wife and mother and her dream came true, but now her twins will be leaving for college soon and she’s just not sure who she’ll be when they’re gone and she’s not sure it’s a good idea to be away from the family this near to Christmas.
Claudia has had two consecutive blows, first her partner of ten years John left her for a younger woman then she loses her job as a Chef so she can’t wait to get to Vermont.
Over one December week in Vermont these three besties and one stranger will be forever changed.

Sarah Morgan never disappoints. I loved Hattie’s story and how she makes that second chance work after a devastating loss. Her bundle of joy, Delphi, her daughter, helps her keep her eyes on the future that she needs to make for them both. This story will inspire everyone. Don’t miss this special story.

The Book Club Hotel by Sarah Morgan unfolds a heartwarming tale as Hattie, a resilient young widow managing Vermont's Maple Sugar Inn, crosses paths with lifelong friends Erica, Claudia, and Anna during the Christmas season. Amidst the challenges of running the inn and navigating personal struggles, the women's lives intertwine, fostering transformative journeys. The narrative beautifully explores the dynamics of friendship, resilience, and the magic of new beginnings against the backdrop of a charming winter wonderland. The novel skillfully blends romance, mystery, and bibliophilia, offering a delightful mix of personal growth, unexpected romance, and the cozy allure of a bookish haven. While pacing nuances may arise, The Book Club Hotel stands as a heartwarming celebration of love, friendship, and self-discovery, making it a perfect read for those seeking a feel-good escape during the holiday season.

I just finished The Book Club Hotel by Sarah Morgan. I rarely award five stars, but this was a keeper! Three friends approaching age forty also encounter crossroads in their lives. When they get together for their annual book group week, they confront issues from the past and make plans for exciting new adventures in the future. It does have a happy ending! When kids, dogs, and Christmas are involved, there is a lot to love. This is a clean read without strong language, descriptive intimacy, or graphic violence. This book is a wonderful Christmas read and full of warmth and love.

I received this novel from the publisher and from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

The Book Club Hotel is, at its heart, a story of enduring friendship between three college roommates approaching their forties, but it’s also about the power of love in all its forms: romantic, platonic, maternal, and familial. As a bibliophile, I also appreciate that it’s about sharing books and how an annual tradition that Anna, Claudia, and Erica share began twenty years before when they decided to swap books of their preferred genres and then discuss them.

For the first time, after postponing their summer gathering due to the devastating break-up of Claudia’s 10-year relationship, they decide to meet close to Christmas. The surprise is that take-charge Erica has chosen a quaint Vermont Inn run by the young widow and single mom Hattie rather than the typical urban boutique hotel, and this uncharacteristic move has her friends worried. Claudia has just lost her job as a chef in CA and Anna is feeling anticipatory grief about her twins leaving for college, so it’s inevitable that their week will be full of some hard conversations, surprising revelations, and much soul-searching. Morgan deftly juggles all four women’s stories and the emotions they struggle with while navigating the unpredictable path of love.

Morgan is always dependable for gifting readers with a Christmas story with warmth and heart. In The Book Club Hotel, she’s offers up three different romances including friends-to-lovers and a long-term marriage that affirms that enduring love does exist while also acknowledging, through Claudia’s story, that there is power in loving yourself and focusing your attention on your passion rather than on a person. Treat yourself and pick this one up.

I received this ARC from Canary Street Press through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are strictly my own.

The Book Club Hotel is a heartfelt and charming book filled with Sarah Morgan’s signature warmth. The setting was just perfect for a cozy-christmas read. I wish the Maple Sugar Inn was real because I’d love to go there!

The story is about friendship, love, and books. Each year Claudia, Anna, and Erica reunite for their book club holiday. The three friends are very different in personality and how they live their lives but are brought together by their friendship and love of books. I loved their stories and the development of the characters.

The friends meet up at the Sugar Maple Inn for their annual book club meeting. Unknown to them, one of the friends has a connection to the owner of the inn.

Hattie is a widow with a young daughter who is trying to keep the inn running while being a single mother and is close to breaking point. Hattie wants to make everything perfect for her guests but when Claudia, Anna, and Erica arrive things begin to fall apart quickly.

I have loved all of Sarah Morgan’s books and especially loved The Book Club Hotel. I loved the relationship between the friends and how they all helped Hattie when they saw she needed help. Hattie’s daughter was an absolute delight!

Where there is romance in the story the focus of the book is on the friendships of the women and their journeys in discovering their paths.

I highly recommend adding this heartfelt book to your holiday reading list.

Thank you Netgalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for the advance copy. All opinions are my own.

Review will be posted to Goodreads, BookBub, Amazon and Pinterest on 11/13/23

Three friends travel to a copy hotel in Bermont at Christmas. The three usually met up in the city like Boston but this new location was picked for a very specific purpose. Hattie is running the hotel on her own after losing her husband. A wonderful touching Christmas themed novel.

I was happy to be approved by NetGalley, the publisher and author to “finally” get to read this wonderful book. I had actually given up hope of being approved. All opinions expressed are solely my own.

I really enjoyed this holiday book by Sarah Morgan. The setting of Christmas at Maple Falls,Vermont sounded so inviting. I want to go there!
The story just pulled at my heartstrings in so many ways.
The characters are likeable after you get to know each and every one of them. A favorite amongst them was certainly Delphie. If you read the book, you will know what role she plays in the story.
You get old and new friendships, Christmas, reunited family, clean romance along with a love for books.
A must read!