Member Reviews
Such a cute book for the upcoming holidays. I could not put the book down once I began reading it. Cannot wait for it to be released. I will recommend it to everyone I know!
McKay gives you an engaging, quick, fun read with The Holiday Honeymoon Switch. Main characters and best friends Holly & Ivy could be you and your bestie. Give yourself a couple of hours and just read this book!
I do love this author and her style of writing! Ivy and Holly become best friends by fluke at a frat party and the bond stays strong from that point on. Holly has a task list that she is ticking off - college check, serious boyfriend check, career check. Ivy comes from a family that barters everything and doesn't believe in capitalism. Ivy wants a serious job and stable life. Holly's check list is finally getting check off to get married to her college sweetheart, but the night before the wedding Matt cancels it. This upends her whole life. Ivy and Holly switch vacation spots with Ivy taking Hollys honeymoon and Holly taking Ivy's artist retreat.
Get ready for a ton of surprises during this story.
Thank you #NetGalley for the advance copy!
The perfect book the read around the holidays! Especially if you want a hallmark influence type of book. Was such a quick and easy read! I loved the concept of this book! I’m usually not a huge fan of books set around Christmas but this one I was obsessed with!
If you’re a fan of the classic romcom The Holiday, this book is for you. This modern take follows two best friends, Holly and Ivy as they swap trips with each other following a devastating breakup for Holly. Ivy takes on Hawaii for her art trip while Holly nurses a broken heart in snowy Hudson Valley. Along the way, both women meet new friends and love interests and overcome personal barriers. Very entertaining!
Thank you Penguin Group Putnam for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
Best friends Holly and Ivy swap holiday destinations after Holly is dumped by her fiance the night before her wedding. Instead Holly will head to an eco cabin in the upstate New York town of Krimbo, while Ivy takes her 'art honeymoon' to Hawaii where Holly was supposed to be honeymooning. Holly will soon realise that everything happens for a reason after running into her old high school academic rival, while Holly meets a a laidback bartender who will inspire her to take the less safe option with her art.
This was a sweet, fun holiday romance that I breezed right through. It almost gets near Hallmark cheese levels, but luckily veers away from it (I don't like cheese with my romance). What made gave this story a bit more of an edge was the third love story, the deep friendship between Holly and Ivy. Like the two distinct settings Holly and Ivy are immersed in, this book could be enjoyed either by the beach or the fireplace.
Thanks to Putnam/Penguin Group and NetGalley for the ARC.
Who wouldn’t want to have a ride or die best friend. Holly and Ivy met in college and were so much alike it was a no brainer to become besties. The only thing Ivy has always kept from Holly is that she can’t stand her fiancé. When things don’t work out Ivy is there for Holly with a plan. Swapping Christmas vacations apart so Holly can regroup and mourn her almost wedding. As they say everything happens for a reason! Thank you to NetGalley for this free advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion
I loved reading about these best friends! This was a new and unique concept to me and it was refreshing and fun. This was charming and hallmark-y and I ate it up.
I was struck by how much I loved these two best friends! It was a pleasure to read about their adventures and experiences. I was invested immediately and I think the author crafted a familiar but entertaining book for them. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.
Holly and Ivy are best friends. Yes, they know. They met during college through their respective boyfriends. Ivy's relationship did not last. Holly's did. The Friendship however is going to last forever. On the eve of Holly's wedding, her fiancee suddenly breaks it off. Shocked and heartbroken, Holly trades her Hawaii honeymoon for Ivys yearly two week art retreat, this year in the PNW. Ivy can paint the beauty of Hawaii and Holly can be alone and to nurse her broken heart.
Through a series of mishaps, Ivy and Holly both end up meeting men on their respective getaways. Ivy, a hot bartender/photographer and Holly, an eco- conscious Superman look-alike. Yes, it is a little The Holiday-esque, but that's the absolute beauty of this read!! It's such a simple concept yet done so perfectly! Considering I'm not huge on holiday romances to begin with, the fact I'm madly in love with this one is a testament to how good the writing is! The Friendship is absolutely wonderful! I've always wanted a friendship as closw as theirs, and this book is a perfect example of how sweet having such a close bestie can be! All the relationships are realistic and believable, and the descriptions of the different areas bring you right into the story! This was my first by this author but I promise you it won't be the last!
🌟 🌟🌟🌟🌟/5
I received an advanced copy for free and am leaving this review voluntarily. Thank you to NetGalley, Julie McKay, and Penguin Group Putnam.
Cute easy read rom com. I loved the characters. The storyline worked for both main characters and their new romance. The friendship was sweet. It was a simple entertaining read.
This book was okay. If you're in the mood for a Hallmark-esque romance that celebrates friendship, this may do it for you. Normally, that's my comfort go-to. This one missed the mark for me.
Unfortunately, I didn't connect with the characters. Holly and Ivy are both sort of bland, and don't do much over the course of the story that made me go, "Wow, I understand why they're the main characters!"
(Is that too lit-snob of me?)
From a technical perspective, the writing is great, particularly in regards to the settings. If Krimbo were real, I'd live there! A snowy forest of Christmas trees? It sounds magical. However, I found the choice of third-person present a little weird. I haven't read a ton of books written in that tense with dual perspectives, and after reading this, I kind of get why. It sounds good in theory; you're right alongside the character as they make their crucial decisions, rather than lagging behind them in an awkward, borderline voyeuristic way. However, shifting the perspective to present makes every emotional decision a little too rational, a little too quickly.
And for the record, I can't believe I'm saying this because I enjoy characters acting like adults and talking through their problems, but Holly and Ivy are too... level. There's little emotion and very little drama, and though that can be realistic, most people's emotions are messy when they've been jilted, or when they find out their best friend's ex-fiancé was having a full-blown affair.
So anyway, the main characters are a bit flat, but ironically the love interests are pretty well done. You can how they would be charming. Although... I admit that the celebrity comparisons were pretty weird. (Describing your main characters as resembling Rachel Bilson or Eva Mendes feels more suited to a Wattpad story than a romance novel to me.)
The dialogue comes off very robotic, too. Dialogue is a tricky thing to nail down, and I'm not sure McKay quite gets it right.
In a few months, I'll see this on my Goodreads and I'll go, "Wait, which book was that again?" I hate to be that blunt because I know how much love and care probably went into this, but unfortunately, it's true.
A charming read about two best friends finding love when they least expect it.
Holly has just been dumped the night before her wedding. Ivy is devastated for her and agrees to swap vacation plans to comfort Holly. Ivy will enjoy Holly’s honeymoon suite in Kauai and Holly will enjoy Ivy’s cabin in the Hudson Valley before they meet up for New Year’s Eve. While trying to find peace and relaxation, both Holly and Ivy are pleasantly surprised by their new surroundings and the people they meet.
This was an enjoyable easy, breezy read with holiday vibes. Conveniently, there are incredibly handsome, accomplished, and single men for Holly and Ivy to meet. There are a lot of feel-good moments and it was sweet to see both Holly and Ivy meet their matches. 3.5 stars.
Thank you to Putnam and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a copy.
I read this book in less than 24 hours. While some of the story line was predictable, I found myself very easily invested in the characters and each of their stories. An adorable story of both love with a partner and love in friendship. I highly recommend this book!!
This was a really sweet story. I enjoyed the vivid nature descriptions of Kauai as well as the cute woodsy town. The holiday vibes were delightful even though I read in February.
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Books Putnam for providing this book, with my honest review below.
The Holiday Honeymoon Switch was a cute book that brought me back to the Christmas season (even in March). We see the friends meet cute between Holly and Ivy when they are in college and then jump forward to current day, at Holly’s rehearsal dinner. Things quickly go wrong for Holly, with her finance leaving her for another woman, kicking off the holiday honeymoon switch.
This was a very easy read and I enjoyed the premise. Past that it was a bit simplistic be twee (very much a hallmark or lifetime movie in book format), but I see that appealing to many younger adult readers. I say younger adult but I don’t meant teenagers, as this book has some light spice, rather those in early 20’s. Definitely very feel good and heartwarming, though nothing really stood out for me. I’m giving this a 2.8, rounded up to 3, for being so well written and for having a well contained plot.