What great laugh out loud family Christmas drama! Families are always a challenge, especially during the holidays and this family brings all of their hurts, their joys and their secrets to a chaotic Christmas family holiday. Grab your favorite glass of Christmas cheer and settle in for a great read! Thanks #NetGalley #Harlequin

Family Christmas drama/dysfunction that keeps the pages turning towards a happy resolution.. Perfect for a cozy weekend read.

Julie Parker is excited to spend the holiday with her new younger boyfriend and skip a big family Christmas. But when her grown children decide they want to spend Christmas together at the family cabin, she knows she will have to introduce them to the man she has been hiding. Soon the guest list starts growing and so goes the drama. From exes to mother-in-laws and even some unexpected kids, the house gets fuller with each passing day and secrets can’t stay hidden with so many people lurking around.

Why Kirsten loves it
Here’s the thing about miscommunication book tropes, I usually hate them! But I was so refreshed by how the conversations in this book were all so adult. Differences were worked out, if someone did something that mistakenly hurt another it was talked out with grace, and secrets weren’t kept for malicious or stupid reasons!

In addition, the holiday antics of the whole crew put me in the Christmas spirit and I loved each new guest that arrived and was folded in. My only complaint is that I wish I could have actually been part of this big blended family.

I do like Mallery's writing and was looking forward to a sweet Christmas story with One Big Happy Family. I did really like the main character, Julie and enjoyed the family interactions. Unfortunately, this book used one of my least favorite tropes - the fake boyfriend that everyone lies about, but that's a me thing. I will still recommend this book to patrons who are looking for a cozy holiday romance, it just wasn't for me. Thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing and NetGalley for the early access in exchange for my honest opinion.

A Christmas story full of family conflict and so much drama.
There are soooooo many characters to keep track of!
Overall, an enjoyable read with a theme of forgiving and loving no matter what happens.
Thank you NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read this book for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

3.5 Stars

This story revolves around a family and friends who gather together with mom Julie, her younger, and ‘secret’ boyfriend, Heath, his children, as well as his ex-wife (who had other plans that fell apart and so she was invited to come, as well) at the family cabin as Christmas approaches, which is large enough to fit in everyone, well, sort of.

As various family members and guests arrive there’s a lot of gathering together to get ready for the big day that all the youngest ones are eager for. There’s finding the right tree, and cutting it down, and all that follows - the decorating, cooking, and wrapping of presents as Christmas draws near.

There’s nothing in this story that feels beyond belief, but it never managed to pull me into the story completely. There is a lot of drama, which seems to weave in and out, much of it coming from past resentments that were never truly shared before, and so they hold onto them, rather than addressing them - until they finally do.



Published : 01 Oct 2024

Many thanks for the ARC provided by Harlequin Trade Publishing / Canary Street Press

Julie Parker planned a quiet Christmas with her new (younger) boyfriend, Heath, since her adult children had plans of their own, But when Nick and Dana struggle with it being the first Christmas without their father, they beg for a family holiday at their "cabin" in his memory.

What starts as a small gathering quickly turns into ALL the people. It is a series of perfect storms but Julie manages it all... until she is blindsided by a revelation and has an accident.

There are several characters in this story, but Julie is by far my favorite. Her attempts to balance new love with old family dynamics are both funny and touching. She gives new meaning to “the more, the merrier”! Susan Mallery's Christmas books are definitely good reads.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Publishing for a digital ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Best Christmas book that I have ever read!!!!!!! Amazing, lovable characters, real situations. Everything a great book needs.

A Christmas love story with some major twists? Sign me up! I LOVE me some Susan Mallery and her Christmas book did not disappoint!!

It's going to be a different Christmas this year for Julie Parker. Her son, Nick is taking a belated honeymoon with his wife, and her daughter, Dana is trying to forget all about her boyfriend that has dumped her again. Now she will be able to spend quality time with her secret younger boyfriend, Heath. But, things change and now everyone wants to be together for the holiday at their family cabin. As the guest list keeps growing, the family learns that it can keep up with the changes and grow from the true meaning of Christmas.

Great plot and great characters! This was such a fun book to read! Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC in return for my honest review.

The chaos that is family, love, and Christmas Spirit make for a fantastic read!
With the holidays upon us, this is a great story to delve into. The characters and the storyline will have you hooked. The chaos covers realistic and unrealistic scenarios. There are moments and scenes that will leave you an emotional wreck. But then again, that’s how you know it’s a good book!

Thank you #SusanMallery #NetGalley #CaneryStreetPress for this ARC for an honest review.

4.5* Such a fun holiday read. This had holiday beauty and fun with so much more. There were many issues faced in this book; estranged loved ones, illness, injury, divorce and so much more.

One Big Happy Family by Susan Mallery is a super sweet Christmas romance that I enjoyed as my second holiday book of the season. It is the story of Julie Parker unexpectedly hosting Christmas for her family and a few others, including her much younger boyfriend. The book held my attention and kept me intrigued throughout with interesting characters and a charming storyline that had me laughing out loud on occasion.

Thank you Net galley and Harlequin for allowing me to read and review One Big Happy Family. I enjoyed this book immensely one I was able to keep track of all of the characters. I love holiday books and this one was one of the best that I have read in a long time.

Very sweet holiday story. There is a LOT going on in this one - lots of characters to keep track of, lots of story lines. People just keep coming to this cabin… It certainly has Christmas charm and is a cozy holiday story to curl up with. Not a lot of depth and predictable but too be enjoyed none the less.

I haven’t encountered any other author than Susan Mallery, who has the gift to create a story with so many storylines, but still a consistent story.

Her characters are real, with flaws, insecurities and quirks. You can’t help but fall in love with them. And their interactions and discussions are sometimes bittersweet or just plain funny.

And yet, there’s always that second layer: the topics of parentage, self confidence and betrayal. With traumas, conflicts and secrets. I highly enjoyed One Big Happy Family and I do hope that my family will turn out, just as Julie’s. Wonderful story. Five out of five stars from me and a special thank you to Netgalley for providing the arc.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Julie, with her generous spirit, made the story heartwarming as she welcomed everyone to the cabin for Christmas. Each character brought a unique story, and it was a pleasure to learn about their journeys in life and love. This cozy, feel-good story captures the warmth of the holiday season and the joy of bringing people together.

Entertaining and heartwarming! Susan Mallery is a master storyteller, and this year’s Christmas tale, One Big Happy Family, is a fine example of her ability to craft relatable, well developed characters with complex emotions and storylines, and present them in an often humorous, compelling manner. In this instance, she has particularly excelled at managing the many members of the “big happy family” she has created and their various and sundry newfound and historical relationships. The Christmas holiday is the reason for the gathering and the backdrop of the story, and Mallery weaves in a myriad of merry traditions to make it sparkle all the more.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Canary Street Press / Harlequin for a complementary ARC. Opinions are my own.

As a long time Susan Mallery readers, One Big Happy Family does not disappoint. When Julie plans a low-key Christmas with her new boyfriend, Heath, she doesn't anticipate her plans changing to include her children and her son's mother-in-law. As with most families at Christmas, there's plenty of tension/drama to navigate: Heath, the secret boyfriend, being 12 years younger than Julie, Blair's relationship with her mother, Blair, Dana's relationship with her ex - who just happens to be Julie's employee, and Nick's desire to not carry on the family business. One Big Happy Family is a sweet, cute, simply read. There's plenty of love, fighting, laughter, compromising, forgiveness, and sadness for any reader wanting to get a head start on their own family dysfunction or those wishing that their family was dysfunctional.

This isn't my typical type of read so I took a chance on it. I'm so glad I did, it was a great palette cleanser, it had all kinds of family drama, age gap romance, it has so moments that made me laugh out loud and then it had moments where I rolled my eyes at some characters stubbornness. Although the setting in the book is Christmas time, I'd recommend reading it any time of it. Such a fun relatable read!