The best friend we all want and need. I love the friendship in this book so much. The vibes were perfect for a cozy holiday read!

It’s harder than it should be to find a holiday themed book that is cute, but not cringy. The Holiday Honeymoon Switch beats those odds! It’s a delightful novel that pays homage to female friendship and the belief that quality love exists for all of us. Loved this!

This was a cute and fast Christmas romance. I really liked the The Holiday vibes of this book and I adored Holly and Ivy's friendship. Both of the relationships were cute and I really liked that any miscommunications were very quickly resolved.

I think one of the drawbacks of this book for me was the fact that there were two relationships so I wanted more from each of them.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for this earc in exchange for my honest review

In "The Holiday Honeymoon Switch" by Julia McKay, best friends Holly Beech and Ivy Casey switch their holiday plans after Holly's fiancé jilts her. Holly heads to Ivy's rented Hudson Valley cabin to heal, while Ivy takes Holly's nonrefundable Hawaiian honeymoon. Holly's wallowing is interrupted by her rugged Airbnb host, her high school academic rival. Meanwhile, Ivy's art retreat is disrupted when Holly's ex-fiancé arrives with a new woman, but a hot hotel bartender comes to her rescue. As they navigate these unexpected turns, both friends might find love they weren't expecting.

This book is a delightful holiday romcom that perfectly captures the magic of the season. The dual storylines of Holly and Ivy are engaging and heartwarming, with each friend finding unexpected romance in their swapped vacations. McKay's writing is witty and charming, making the characters' journeys both relatable and entertaining. The festive settings of a snowy cabin and a tropical paradise add to the holiday cheer, making this book a perfect read for the season. Highly recommended for fans of holiday romances and feel-good stories!

Thanks to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was the Christmas rom-com I needed. It was low-stress, high-fun with interesting characters and two beautiful locations. The premise was clever and honestly, I’d watch this as a movie in a heartbeat.

Both couples had such good chemistry, in totally different ways. Oliver and Ivy were all flirty fun and banter and challenging each other to examine what they really wanted in life. Holly and Aiden were the kind of romance where there’s just an instant level of comfort and ease. I thought both were really well done, and I totally recommend this book.

4 stars = Great!

This is a predictable but fun holiday story - like a Hallmark movie with a Happily Ever After for everyone. Great settings and dreamy relationships. Be sure to put this on your list of cozy holiday reads! (Language, sex)

I loved this book. The friendship, the banter, the way they each found love that they weren’t looking for. Absolutely obsessed. I also love that Holly kept a card that meant the world to her and it turned out to be from Aiden, reconnecting years later and finally figuring out who she held dear for years

A sweet, Hallmark, Christmasy rom com with precious characters! If you love Lifetime and Hallmark Christmas movies or the movie, “The Holiday” then this book will be right down your alley! One little spoiler and the weird reason that I can’t give it 5 stars is that for some reason it bothered me that if Holly’s parents paid for the honeymoon- why did Ivy not kick Matt and Abbey out of the hotel room and use it herself? That seemed more than fair! Thank you for the ARC of this cute Christmas book!

Friends since college, Holly and Ivy had been through it all together. These doppelgänger best friends have one more big event together, Holly’s wedding. After being together for years, Holly’s fiancee surprises her the night before the wedding and informs her that he has met someone else and can’t marry her. He also leaves her with a nonrefundable honeymoon in Hawaii and told her that she should take advantage of it and go. Holly can’t stand the idea of going, so instead she swaps with Ivy’s rustic art retreat and plans to escape to a remote cabin in Hudson Valley to watch holiday movies and start healing. Things take a twist in the Hudson Valley when she meets the host, who just happens to be her high school academic rival. Meanwhile in Hawaii, Ivy seeks to enjoy her art retreat, but hits a snag when Holly’s ex checks into the hotel - with another woman. Both on their own journey’s, this Christmas season might bring them the most unexpected in the best way.

This was a fun one. I thoroughly enjoyed all of the characters and the settings. Can I go to Hawaii now? Despite the beginning, this was a great holiday romance to get you into the Christmas spirit. With the 2 guys, Oliver and Aiden, I was getting Bromance Book Club vibes. It’s not too late to add this one to your holiday reading list.

Cute! A fun read about two best friends finding love over the holiday season. If you're looking for an easy holiday romance, this one is for you.

2.75

Got it! Let me rewrite it to sound more conversational and like something you might naturally say.

I was really excited about this book based on the description, but it just didn’t work for me. The romances felt way too rushed—both main characters fall in love in just nine days. One of them had literally been dumped the night before her wedding, which made it even harder to believe.

The writing also didn’t click for me. It felt a little repetitive, like I was just getting a play-by-play of everything that happened instead of being drawn into the story. A lot of sentences started the same way, which made it feel flat, and the way emotions were described didn’t really capture the depth I wanted.

Big thanks to Julia McKay, Putnam Books, and NetGalley for the ARC. While this one wasn’t for me, I’m sure it’ll appeal to other readers.

This is such a fun holiday romance! Two best friends swap vacations and find love where they least expect it! I loved following two love stories as the book unfolded and would recommend this to anyone looking for a fun take on the holiday rom-com.

Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin Group Putnam, and Julia McKay for the advanced copy of The Holiday Honeymoon Switch!

I loved this book. The best friends, the switching places only to find a love where you least expect it. Just. Ugh.

Holly and Ivy are so similar and yet different, it definitely leads to some chaos in the book. I really loved the settings and scenery described. It definitely gave off those cozy Christmas vibes I want in a Christmas romance.

A fun holiday romance!

What I really enjoyed about this book was that it catered to different holiday tastes- we had a tropical setting, plus a small-town, Gilmore Girls-esque setting.

The romances and writing were average, but I truly think the settings made this book.

Thank you for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

I liked Holly and Ivy and the friendship they shared. The romance read like a cheesy hallmark which I mostly loved. The conflicts were silly and seemed not needed

I loved this book! The story deviated from the "usual Christmas romance" but that is one of the things I loved about it. You get two wonderful romance books in one with this heartwarming, funny holiday romance, plus they take place in two separate climates. An amazing, engaging romance for anyone who love adorable meet cutes and HEA.

I was so excited for this book but it pretty quickly became a disappointment to me and I ended up DNFing at 33%. I could not, for the life of me, tell the two main characters apart. They were both bland and offered nothing to the story, and the insta-love on both of their ends (especially when one of them was just dumped the day before her wedding...) didn't make much sense. I just had a really difficult time understanding who was who and finally gave up around one-third of the way through the book. Thanks anyway for the ARC.

Thank you to @netgalley and @putnambooks for a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

A Sweet and Cheesy Escape

The Holiday Honeymoon Switch is a delightful and heartwarming romantic comedy that embraces its cheesy charm. With its familiar holiday tropes and predictable plot, it's the perfect comfort read for the festive season.
Holly and Ivy, two best friends who could be twins, find themselves in an unexpected situation when Holly's wedding is called off. Their impulsive decision to switch honeymoons leads to unexpected adventures and personal growth.

While the story may be predictable, it's the characters and their heartwarming journeys that make this book truly special. Both Holly and Ivy undergo transformative experiences, learning valuable lessons about love, friendship, and self-worth. The supporting characters, from the quirky locals to the charming love interests, add depth and humor to the story.

If you're looking for a cozy and feel-good read, The Holiday Honeymoon Switch is a perfect choice. It's a lighthearted escape that will leave you smiling and ready to embrace the holiday spirit.

4 stars

#books #bookishlife #booklover #readingisfun #iowabookstagrammers #iowabookstagram #netgalley #putnambooks #theholidayhoneymoonswitch #juliamckay

This was honestly a really fun and quick read. I mean it, I absolutely flew through this one. I also just overall had a really fun time reading it. It definitely gave me the Christmas vibes I was looking for, but ultimately I just kind of felt fine about it. I don't think this is one that's going to stick in my head for very long.
Let's start with what I liked about this book! I loved the friendship between Holly and Ivy. I just loved how their friendship was the centering force behind this book. I also just think it is a really strong friendship in general, and I truly loved it. I also loved the contrast between the two different vacation settings. I just loved going back and forth between them. I also really liked the cast of characters, and Larry in particular stole my heart (need a book about her and her fiancéé asap).
Now, what I didn't like about this book was the romances. To be fair, I also didn't really dislike them. I thought they were cute enough, and the set ups for them was quite interesting as well. My problem was more so that in between all of that I just thought they were extremely underdeveloped. That made it so I could never really get fully invested in them, and also just made this book fall a bit flat for me. I don't know.
I definitely would still recommend it for those who want a really fun, quick, palet cleanser this Christmas season. It's great for that. However, don't expect too much from this, I guess.

The Holiday Honeymoon Switch is a fresh take on a festive holiday read, reaching levels of hallmark-esque cheesiness that I only reach for around the holidays!

Holly Beech and Ivy Casey are the best of friends of near a decade, so in sync they even look almost identical. The night before Holly's wedding, her fiancé calls it off saying he's found someone else, leaving her in complete shock and stuck with a nonrefundable honeymoon. The girls come up with the brilliant idea to switch places - Ivy will go to Hawaii on her best friend's honeymoon and Holly will escape to the remote cabin in Hudson Valley.

I absolutely adored both main characters, as well as the supporting characters that are mixed in on both of their trips. I loved that both girls had such different journeys on their trips and were so perfect for what they needed (and didn't know they did) for their time away from their day-to-day life. The story also had more depth to it, mixing in new beginnings, introspection, drama, humor, and most importantly - the power of friendship. I found it to be the perfect intro into my holiday-season reads, not being overly Christmassy but still having some elements sprinkled in! I absolutely recommend people check this one out!