When her kids want to skip family Christmas, this mother is happy to comply. She is secretly seeing a man and wants to be with him for the holiday. However, the kids change their mind, and the mother is suddenly surrounded in the family cabin.

This was a cute, cozy holiday read and everything I expect from a Susan Mallery book! Good characters and an easy story to lose yourself in. Thank you netgalley for this arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

This one is cheesy and corny and may be just what you need as the stress of December hits. Wrap some gifts and listen to this at warp speed because not much happens other than One Big Family meeting for Xmas, and well the one character with IBS who has to keep using the bathroom.

Cringey sex mentions from the lead matriarch and her new boyfriend or a mother-daughter combo make it next level corny, but you will feel the cozy family Christmas vibes as they bake cookies, decorate and chop down a tree that a cougar peed on (and I don’t mean Julia, the matriarch) and come together as one big family to celebrate Christmas, even if they aren’t all related.

Pick this up for some cheesy Christmas cozy vibes

Julie had decided this year to not do the huge Christmas celebration at the family cabin when her kids have other plans for the holiday. In the end her kids decide they want to celebrate together to honor their father who recently passed away. Julie takes it all in stride and decides to make the Christmas a wonderful one. The crowd just keeps growing! Even though some of the additions could make things a bit awkward, she takes in stride and welcomes them in.

This was a sweet Christmas story, highlighting family and togetherness during the holidays.

This was a DNF for me. While I know this was supposed to be light and cheery, I found it hard to get through. I thought Julie was whiny and annoying and her being embarrassed about her younger boyfriend was kind of silly. I also don't enjoy sexy time in holiday books so that also was an check in the DNF column (not tons but enough to make it not my cup of tea). I know I've seen some great reviews for this so I think I'm the outlier for sure. Thanks for the opportunity!

A wonderful tale of family, friendship, and love of all sorts, focused around the Spirit of Christmas -- with a little bit a drama and heartbreak thrown in for good measure. One Big Happy Family is a great read for the holiday season -- very much recommended!

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. It was cozy and heartwarming and delightful!

Not a gripping as I’d hope it would be but I still enjoyed it well enough. I enjoyed how many people were in one cabin. and the joy they shared with each other (and the craziness).

THE GOOD:
A perfect, light, minimalist read that’s just the right fit for drinking a cup of cocoa while around the Christmas tree.
Happy endings all around.

THE BAD:
Not a steamy romance, but several of the scenes referencing sex are just a bit too graphic.
The ending seemed a bit rushed.

CONCLUSION:
A feel good Christmas tale.

This wasn't my favorite Christmas romance read. I liked the characters and the storyline about the family spending Christmas together at their cabin, but there was too much family drama and a lot of spice! I'm glad the book included a shortbread cookie recipe and discussion questions for book club groups. I'm not sure I would recommend this book to my audience.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

From the book blurb, it sounds as if, one by one, a dozen people are crammed into a one house for a day or two around Christmas. It's actually a "cabin" that rivals the mansions on The Bachelor. There are at least six bedrooms, three floors, a screening room, AND a present wrapping room. It's easy to co-exist when everyone gets a room with a real bed and a door.

While the characters do have some challenges, the conflicts in the book felt manufactured and minor. Maybe it was because for the first 2/3 of the book it was constantly talking but not doing anything about age gap, the mother-in-law, and the serial dumper guy. Realistically, there could have been so may chaotic and comedic moments with that many different personalities in one (gigantic) house. Instead there are very well-behaved children, polite and helpful house guests and not one, but two!, sets of extraordinarily cordial ex-spouses.

Overall, the book just didn't resonate with me. For that reason, I could not give it a rose. Please say your goodbyes and leave the mansion.

Thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing | Canary Street Press and NetGalley for the advance reader copy. I am required by law to disclose this. #OneBigHappyFamily #NetGalley

What a fantastic holiday read.

Just when Julie's kids won't be home for the holidays she's excited to have time alone with her new man.

But, as life usually throws us unplanned events and issues, so does her adult children.
They decide they want to spend one more Christmas at the family cabin in honor of their deceased dad and Julie's ex-husband.
Of course, she can't say no.
Hilarity ensues when more and more people, friends and family, decide to join them.
I loved this book.

If you love books that center around family, this is one you're going to enjoy. I've enjoyed this author's books in the past and I'm glad I read this one this holiday season! It's about a big family, a mother and her two older children. They all had their own plans for Christmas, but following the death of their Dad, these adult children wanted to honour him by going to their big family cabin. Their mother, newly dating a younger man, wanted to spend a quiet holiday with just him, but obviously wanted to give her children what they wanted. So with her relationship finally out in the open, they head to the cabin. Throw in her boyfriends children, his ex wife, her children's partners, some exes, an overbearing mother in law and it quickly becomes a very full house.

There are plenty of Christmas activities leading up to the big day, some holiday mishaps, some funny moments, some tender moments, a few secrets, a dash of chaos but overall it's exactly as the title suggests...one big happy family, together for the holidays!

It was a really enjoyable and quick read. I loved that it dealt with family. Another thing I found interesting is that one of the characters has IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) and it was actually discussed quite often...how she felt, how she dealt with her symptoms and how it impacted her life. IBS is something I have suffered with myself for many years. It's so unpredictable and this is, I think, the first time I've read about it in a book in detail. I was really able to relate, which was cool.

I'd recommend adding this one to your holiday reading list!

A Holiday book revolving around family, Christmas and drama... yes please. I absolutely love the cover of this book so I was thinking this would just be a fluffy read.... yea, I was a tad bit wrong but not in a bad way. I had a good time while reading, enjoyed the family aspect and how crazy a family really is, watching all kinds of drama unfold but in the end they all loved each other and spent the holidays together. Definitely a good time and would recommend it.

Once again, Susan Mallery did it! One Big Happy Family is a sweet, heartwarming romance with just the right balance of humor and emotional depth.

"One Big Happy Family" was such an entertaining read. Centered on a slightly dysfunctional family, Susan Malley's story brings the fun.

Christmastime can be stressful for anyone but when a sudden change in plans occurs, chaos ensues for Julie and her family.

It was also a story about working through the dysfunction for a greater good as well.

Thank you NetGalley and Canary Street Press for gifting me this ARC. It was a fun way to start the holiday season.

Julie and her boyfriend, Heath are looking forward to a very quiet Christmas together, their first. Her grown children don’t even know she is dating him. He is 12 years younger than her and she is nervous to tell them. But now her kids want to have a family Christmas at their cabin and she can’t say no. She also can’t say no to everyone else who is apparently coming!

ONE BIG HAPPY FAMILY has the warm cozy Christmas feels, until a lot of things change!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book although it wasn't quite what I expected. It was lighthearted and showed how families can be different. I loved reading this to help me get into the holiday spirit.

A sweet book about second chances and the power of family. Some of the characters seemed a bit too 'perfect,' but overall it made for a great read!

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion.

It is a lovely, hopeful book about family, Christmas, and all the things that we need to let go of to move on into our futures. I love books where the main character is a bit older and getting a second chance at love.