The story centers on Nina Thompson, who plans to enjoy a peaceful Christmas with her family, diving into a good book, indulging in her favorite snacks, and drinking endless cups of hot chocolate. However, her plans take an unexpected turn when she learns that Tristan, her brother Dylan’s best friend and roommate—whom she not-so-affectionately calls the "Prince of Darkness"—will be joining them for the holiday. His flight to San Diego is canceled due to bad weather, leaving him stranded and now part of her Christmas.

Nina and Tristan have known each other for nearly 15 years, with a history full of insults, revenge schemes, and endless pranks that keep their mutual irritation alive. Nina despises the nickname "Gremlin" that Tristan has used for her since childhood, while Tristan remains clueless about how deeply his words affect her or how his actions are perceived negatively by Nina.

The moment Tristan arrives, the prank war is back on—let the games begin! But as their bickering escalates and threatens the family’s peaceful holiday, Tristan starts to realize that Nina has been on his mind ever since the day she boldly dropped a towel in front of him. Nina, too, begins to notice that her childhood crush, now her greatest adversary, is sending mixed signals that leave her confused. Their animosity starts to shift into an intense attraction, sparking the idea that maybe they just need to get each other out of their systems. But can one night together really solve the problem, especially when they risk being caught at a family gathering? And what if one night isn’t enough—what if their connection runs deeper than either of them anticipated?

I'm absolutely obsessed with the enemies-to-lovers trope, and this book delivered everything I love about it. The well-crafted tension, the sizzling chemistry between the main characters, and the forced proximity all heightened by sharp, witty banter made this a truly irresistible read. Add in the holiday spirit, the best friend’s little sister dynamic, and some hilariously clever pranks involving glitter and Casio watches, and I was hooked!

In conclusion, this book is a steamy, entertaining, and humorous read that brilliantly combines some of my favorite tropes. I had a blast reading it, and I wholeheartedly recommend it! So, grab your margaritas, daiquiris, or whatever your preferred drink is, and settle in on the couch to fully enjoy this delightful experience!

A big thank you to NetGalley and Bollywood Books for providing me with a digital reviewer copy of this highly entertaining romance in exchange for my honest review.

I always enjoy Camilla Isley books. They are sweet, quick predictable rom-coms and that is exactly what I need sometimes. I loved Tristen and Nina and was rooting for them. This book wasn't overly-Christmas themed, at all, but did take place at Christmastime.

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Nina and Tristan have been at each other’s throats since they were thirteen and eighteen years old, respectively, when Nina’s older brother brought Tristan home from college one holiday. Fast forward fifteen years, and they’re still pranking and insulting each other at every turn. Thank goodness she’s going home for Christmas and he won’t be there. Until his plans unexpectedly change.

Forced into family activities and close quarters, it starts out ugly. Really ugly. The pranks continue and while Tristan can stay mostly calm, Nina can’t and seems determined to ruin everyone’s holiday with her spoiled brat behavior (I get her frustration, but come on, girl, grow up just a little bit). Still, lots of fun to watch them carry on.

And, since we know this is an enemies-to-lovers romance, we know they find a way through their supposed hate and delve into each other’s feelings, insecurities, and misunderstandings. It’s a really quick about-face, but it mostly worked and I loved how they tried to figure out how to be together, what was going on between them, what they wanted, and how sweet they were at times.

Overall, This Is Not a Holiday Romance was a fun, easy, and really enjoyable holiday read. Read this if you want:
• Enemies to Lovers
• Close Proximity
• Sibling’s Best Friend
• Christmas Romance
• Clever Pranks
• Low Spice
• STEM heroine (not a focus of the book, but I love a smart STEM FMC)
• Great Chemistry

Thanks to netgalley for allowing me to review this book. This was a cute and light-hearted romance book which I enjoyed from the first page. I read this within 24 hours which is always a great sign. It was entertaining and the execution of the enemies to lovers storyline was good. I liked how Tristan & Nina threw jabs at each other and their pranks were also very amusing. I liked the characters and enjoyed the book.

I finished this book in a single day, and it was a delightful read. The interactions between the main characters were both entertaining and amusing, even if they occasionally pushed the envelope. That was part of the charm, though. Nina kept Tristan on his toes, and Tristan did the same for Nina, creating a dynamic that was both engaging and fun. The tension between them built up beautifully, leading to a satisfying payoff when they finally gave in. The character growth was really gratifying to witness. Despite their earlier pettiness, it was refreshing to see them find common ground. Nina came to understand the reasons behind Tristan’s behavior, and Tristan, in turn, recognized his past mistakes and made a conscious effort to change.
The slow burn wasn’t the central focus here, but it worked well within the story. I’m a big fan of the enemies-to-lovers trope, and this book delivered it with humor, sweetness, and wit. I felt like I was right there with the characters, fully immersed in their world. Overall, it was a funny, charming, and cleverly written book.

This was a cute and light-hearted romance. It was entertaining and the execution of the enemies to lovers storyline was good. I liked how Tristan & Nina threw jabs at each other and their pranks were also very amusing. But there's one thing that puts me off in any book and that's insta-love and it's exactly what this book had. Which is why I felt like Nina & Tristan after a point, just had a physical relationship and not emotional connect. And I didn't like how Tristan was so oblivious about how his words affected Nina in the beginning and Nina was also kind of immature. Still, I liked them as the story went forward. So overall, this was an easy read but the romance part should've been developed well.

I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review

This was hands down the cutest Christmas romance book. Such an entertaining enemies to love read. I only wish it wasn’t such a insta-love story. The pranks were enjoyable to read

This was a fun, light hearted romantic read. It was well written, cute and enjoyable.

A little predictable, yes but it didn’t matter at all.

It was still fun to watch the story of the two main characters pan out.

Thanks for the opportunity to review.

Nothing about this isn’t fun— it’s atmospheric, funny, steamy, and a really good time. These two (Nina and Tristan) had insane chemistry and I love a good best friends brother. It was so Christmas-y, it put me right in the holiday mood. I absolutely tore through this and had fun too!

A romance where the "the little sister of my best friend" trope is added to the "enemies to lovers" ? great. I enjoyed it quite a bit.

Un romance dove il tropos "sorella del mio migliore amico" si aggiunge a quello "da nemici ad amanti"? fantastico. Mi sono divertita parecchio.

I received from the Publisher a complimentary digital advanced review copy of the book in exchange for a honest review.

I LOVE Camilla Isley. Whenever I need a happily ever after I know that she will not disappoint. This Is Not a Holiday Romance is perfect! I loved this novel a perfect enemies to lovers romcom. The story grabbed me and had me reading as fast as I could. This is a fun, quick, engrossing read. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the free advanced readers copy. All of my opinions expressed are mine and mine alone.

This is Not a Holiday Romance is a cute read. Following the enemies to lovers trope, it tells the story of Nina and her brother's best friend Tristan. Considering that they're both grown adults, they both play pranks on each other which were quite amusing. However, when they actually got together, it was all very sudden which I found quite unrealistic.

I do hope that there is a follow up to this book which follows the lives of the other characters.

Also, if you've watched the Cdrama Hidden Love, you will love this book.

Nothing but the best feels from one of my favorite authors. Even in my dark romance era she gives me all the tingles in my chest. I do not even miss the raunchy over the top “romance” because she has such a way with her stories and instilling the same vibes without being explicit. Not to mention the banter. Always with the best banter. I felt a connection to the MCs even without it being 300+ pages. I read and rate on vibes and this one sure had them all.

Yes, I know we all shy away from the festive C word, especially when it’s meant to be a sizzling summer, but come on, a festive rom com with ALL our favourite tropes? We’re sold.

With all the best tropes, including sworn enemies to lovers, forced proximity and brother’s best friend, This Is Not a Holiday Romance by Camilla Isley will get you wanting to dig out those stockings and all the tinsel, August or not.

This Is Not a Holiday Romance was my very first read from Camilla Isley, and I am telling you know, she’s not a bestselling author for no reason. Move over classic Hallmark Christmas films and hello hilarious steamy firework romances such as this one. The point of vies flick between our two sworn enemies, Nina, sister of Dylan who lives with the devil incarnate, according to Nina, Tristan. Our two protagonists have a rocky relationship, which includes pranking each-other and throughout the years they’ve become more and more competitive, solidifying that distaste one another feels for their opponent. After years of winding each other up, is the world’s longest foreplay battle about to come to a head (*winks*)

When Nina and Tristen are thrown together in a close proximity situation, the chemistry levels spark up a whole new level. I was already smiling and invested post chapter one, but by act 2, I was so hooked that I knew I was not going to put this book down until the final page.

The way Camilla Isley drew me into the characters lives and the batting of insults, we knew where this was going but it was such a great journey getting there. Camilla kept me gripped, smiling and needing more. If you’re a reader in the market for a Christmas-in-summer romance, you NEED to put This Is Not a Holiday Romance at the top of your pre-order list, you will not be disappointed!

3.5🌟
Tropes:
●Brother's best friend
●Enemies to lovers
●Pranks
●Christmas themed
●One house

I liked this book but i didn't love it. It all felt very insta-love-y and i don't like that. The connection felt too physical and i couldn't connect to the characters since it was a shorter book.
Still, it was simple, fun and easy read

This was a sweet read! A little trope-y at times but not painful to read because of it.
Nina was well thought out and the interactions with Tristan believable.
3 stars

I absolutely loved the story of Nina and Tristan. It was a believable hate to love story and I enjoyed reading about Tristan and Nina’s war against each other since they were young.
There was some character development with them both and it was nice to follow that journey with them.
It made me feel pretty Christmassy even though I read it in August!
The ending set up some other romances with the other characters, and I am definitely going to read the other books when they come out.

Super cute and fun read for Christmas in July! There was a lot more emotion than I expected to read which was such a pleasant surprise!

Rating: 4 ⭐️
Spice: 1.5🔥
Tropes: brothers best friend, holiday romance, forced proximity, childhood enemies to lovers

Thank you NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the eARC in exchange for my review <3

This is the first book I’ve read by Camilla Isley and I was not disappointed!

It’s the perfect book to gear up and add to your holiday szn collection/TBR. And there were definitely some hints at sequels that I’m excited for.

There is something that really gets me about a good enemies/rivals/prank war trope, and Tristan and Nina did not disappoint. I really don’t have many notes or specific things I can point out as elements I enjoyed, because I just felt that the whole SYNERGY of the story was there and worked for the holiday romcom perfection that it was.

The only thing I wish was… and I have never said this before… that I wish there was MORE!!!! More time to draw out the tension, or their honeymoon phase, or more background behind Dylan and Tristan. MORE EVERYTHING! But again, I fully understand the reason for how it was paced and if it was any longer I very well may have found myself saying “less”

This is a very intense love story but had some funny moments with the pranks that were played. A brother’s best friend realises he has fallen for the brothers sister. Wow fireworks happen. But mother knows best. It was a lovely read with a very neat ending. A perfect Saturday afternoon read.