most enjoyable book to read telling of two doctors both having heartaches in their lives they have had a short affair but uncertain of both themselves in different ways but the joy of christmas brings them both together and a few years down the line they are happily married with children and life is brill for all

I've read several books by Miranda Liasson, so it was great seeing a new series starting off with a Christmas book. Mia D’Angelo, is a third-year pediatric resident. She shared with her mom how she finally met the perfect guy and how happy she was. Then, they found out that they would be working together, and were competing for the same position. He broke it off, and there she was, dumped again. Her mom had been so happy for her that she couldn't tell her yet. Her mom was undergoing treatment for cancer and Mia was worried stress would cause her to have a set back. Now it's Christmas and her family is expecting her to bring her boyfriend home. Mom's health crisis is over, but she still hadn't told her the truth. She asked every eligible guy she knew if they would go with her and pretend, but with no luck. When Dr. Braxton Hughes gets wind of what is going on, he says he will go with her. The problem is, Braxton is the ex. She has to keep it professional while they are there, but it is harder than she thought, especially when she sees a totally different side of the hard working doctor.

This was a fun forced proximity/fake dating story. Mia is so insecure about a lot of things. Her twin sister died when she was young and the guilt that she didn't save her was buried deep inside. That was why she wanted to become a doctor in the first place. Brax is a wonderful, swoon-worthy character. He was kind, charming, handsome her whole family loved him, even her dog. Brax has a painful past and lots of secrets that kept him from commitment, but as he gets to see Mia with her family and learn more about her past, he begins to thaw. Can the fact that they are still both after that coveted job in the pediatric practice in town keep them apart? This was a fun story, full of festive moments, family times and sweet growing care and affection. It had lots of warm, fuzzy moments and I highly recommend this one if you enjoy Christmas romance.

This is a short and sweet romantic story with its own little spin on the fake boyfriend trope.

Mia and Brax get alternating chapters to narrate throughout the book. We get to see the different versions of the same events as they progress. I think the first few chapters had me expecting a different type of story, but once the plot began in earnest, the book flew by.

Mia needs a fake boyfriend to bring home to her parents, especially her mother. This turns out to be the once real boyfriend, the name Mia’s been using to tell her mother she is happy – Brax. The rest of the narrative follows the hallmark style while actively acknowledging the fact, something I appreciate.

The one issue I had with the book was that there’s a lot of trauma in both their lives and although there are trigger warnings, I felt like we don’t get enough time to feel the depth of their impact. It feels a little too rushed for all the stuff we are told has happened in the past. I understand not lingering, but I expected a little more time to get a feel for the characters before the happily-ever-after.

I would recommend this book to fans of the genre. I especially think people who like to read Christmas themed books in the season.

I received an ARC thanks to Netgalley and the publishers but the review is entirely based on my own reading experience.

Mia and Brax had a very brief romance. He called it off but wanted to stay friends since they work closely together. They are both denying their feeling for each other supposedly moving on. Mia is expected to bring the boyfriend she's told her mom all about (Brax) home for Christmas but seriously, how can she ask him. She had it all planned out, her best guy friend was going to do it but at the last minute had a change of plans. Brax finds out and volunteers to go with her. They had completely different childhoods and there's secrets in that past that they have kept from each other. Now they're forced to spend time together and get to know each other better than ever. Can they put their pasts behind them and move forward together? Such a cute story with all the feels. Ms. Liasson has done a great job developing her characters and you feel like they are people you know or would want to know. I received an ARC an am voluntarily leaving my review.

Mia thought her life was going so well until she realizes the man she is dating is now her competitor. It doesn't help that instead of trying to work things out the man dumps her. One good thing was that Mia's moms health scare has ended and she was going to be okay. Now her family wants her to come home for Christmas and they are excited to meet her new man. She ends up asking her friend Brax even though he is the most commitment-phobe man she has ever met. Can she make it through the holidays with her heart intact or will this.whole farce ruin her friendship?

4.5

I really enjoyed this second chance holiday romance. Mia and Brax were both somewhat broken in their own ways from their childhoods and they both weren't sure how to really move on and had to work that out on their own to truly be able to be together. This was definitely a more of a hard hitting emotional type of read but was still sweet, cute and somewhat Christmasy especially when they both go back home to Mia's family. I really enjoyed it and would recommend it.

This was such a cute and heartwarming read! Perfect to read right before the holidays, because it just gave me such a happy hallmark feelig throughout it. This “fake boyfriend” rom com book was such a quick read because I thoroughly enjoyed it! You won’t want to miss this read before winter is over!

Take Me Home for Christmas is a complete standalone, small-town, holiday-themed novel. The characters were likable, if not a bit quirky (mostly Mia’s family). While sweet, a bit funny, and a little sassy, too, Mia and Brax’s journey to HEA wasn’t without some heavy emotions for them to deal with. Tempered with some light-hearted scenes, this sweet, heartwarming second-chance, lovers-to-friends-to-lovers romance is the perfect read to get you in the holiday spirit.

NICUnurse’s Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Really liked this holiday read!

This was like a Hallmark movie and had all of the holiday feels. Honestly, it could be a Christmas movie. I really like Mia and Brax. Their story was charming. I liked the slight hint at the next book too. Looking forward to reading the next!

Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Such a heart warming feel good Christmas novel. Mia's family are absolutely adorable and the snowy setting of their farm seems so idyllic for a Christmas based storyline.
We follow Mia and Brax who are Paediatric Doctors and work together, they had a fling during the summer but Brax pulled away when he realised they would be working together.
Mia needs a fake boyfriend to take home for Christmas, her best friend can't help and she is about to ask the biggest flirt and creep when Brax steps in and offers.
I love a good fake dating, second chance romance and this was done so well. Its packed full of family love, hope with a sprinkle of snow, cookies and snowglobes.
Perfect for this time of year.
Thank you NetGalley, Miranda Liasson and Hawthorne House Press for providing me with a copy to read, all opinions expressed are my own.

This was such an adorable, cozy, and semi-spicy Christmas novel!! This is definitely cute, exciting, and should be made into a Hallmark or Lifetime Christmas movie someday.

I really enjoyed this book! I found the authors voice to be funny, sincere and authentic, she wrote tenderly and I loved how the fourth wall was broken.

Mia and Brax navigate Christmas and a second chance at love. This book touches in a few heavy subjects, but the crux of it was familial love, the beauty and miracles of Christmas, and the hope that comes with finding and being brave enough to accept true love.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this book! I have been reading Miranda Liasson’s books for years. She has a great talent getting the reader hooked into her stories. I know I always am!

I voluntarily reviewed this book.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of Take Me Home for Christmas. I loved this book and I look forward to reading more about Oak Bluff. This is the perfect story to read as winter is starting. I liked watching the relationship between Mia and Brax evolve as well as watching them grow and evolve as people. You don't want to pass up this amazing Christmas story.

So. Many. Feelings. Miranda Liasson is an author who always takes me on an emotional journey but even in the midst of many keepers, this book stands out. It has so much heart, so many tender moments. I laughed out loud, shed tears (both kinds), and fell head over heels in love with…well, pretty much the entire cast of characters. Okay, there are a few exceptions but everyone else.

I want to hang out with Brax, Mia, Sam, Gage, and the rest of their hospital friends. I want to spend Christmas with Mia’s fun-loving family, join in all of their traditions, make cookies with her mom at daybreak, read The Night Before Christmas with her adorable niece, and tackle the scream-inducing sledding hill behind their house. I love the way Liasson portrays the love, support, teasing, and complications within this close-knit family that has suffered a grievous loss. I wanted to gather them all in and give them huge hugs, including Brax, who has never experienced a Christmas - or family - like the one gifted him by D’Angelos.

Liasson tackles some tough topics in this book - including sick kids, grief, and cancer - handling them with thoughtful, hopeful, but also realistic care. It adds additional emotional layers to an already heart-tugging story and extra depth to the characters. I especially enjoyed the look forward six years into the future in the Epilogue.

Take Me Home for Christmas launches Miranda Liasson’s The Amazing Doctors of Oak Bluff series and sets a high bar for the rest of the books. I feel like these characters have become my friends and am eagerly anticipating (hopefully) catching up with them again in book two.

Hey Hallmark, here is your next sweet Christmas romance with a hefty dose of tears! Seriously, if you love a good tearjerker written to be the Christmas story that you need to kick off your holiday reading with! I personally love a sweet romance any time of year and don't care if it is holiday themed or not, but this one is the perfect book to get you in the mood for the Christmas season. You have wonderfully written characters with flaws that are realistic and humanizes them even more. The setting is in a children's hospital with travel to a small town for a family Christmas. The book is a bit of fake dating, instant attraction, second chances, holiday themed mixed with a hefty dose of family drama and work competition. You will need a big box of tissues to get through the book, but it's the perfect tearjerker to really sink into and let the world fade away. You can't go wrong picking this book whether you go audio, ebook or physical book....just make sure you get the book, so you don't miss out on this fabulous story!

This is the kind of holiday read that everyone looks for. It has all of the emotions you have come to expect with a Christmas story and the characters and setting is so likable. This is the first book in this series and I will definitely want to read book 2. This is a great Christmas read to pick up, climb into your favourite reading chair and immerse yourself in the story.

Take Me Home for Christmas by Miranda Liasson, book one in The Amazing Doctors of Oak Bluff series, is wonderful, heartwarming, sweet, emotional, fake dating, second chance story about family, tragedy, and loss. Trigger warning: childhood cancer loss and current children cancer patients in treatment, and childhood abandonment. Tissues might be needed.

Mia D’Angelo, a third year pediatric resident will do just about anything for her family while Dr. Braxton Hughes grew up without one, but against all odds he became a doctor. This is so much more than a fake boyfriend romance. Mia’s journey is about finding the courage to step into her own destiny and Brax’s path to a career he is passionate about. As Mia and Brax work through their pasts, they support each other as they figure out how to deal with their hurts and baggage; sharing a magnetic attraction and chemistry that sparks a forever love. This amazing Christmas story takes you on a magical journey of love, loss and how family and finding your true love.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.

Take Me Home for Christmas is a sweet story of homecomings and belonging as well as finding one’s place in the world. Mia D’Angelo will complete her residency in six months and is vying for a highly sought after position with one of the top pediatric groups in Milwaukee. Her competition is Braxton Hughes, chief resident of her rotation.

While Brad was briefly a romantic interest, he nipped it in the bud when he learned Mia would be in his rotation by truthfully telling her he didn’t do relationships but he wanted to be friends. This was about the same time her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. Her family has already lost so much to cancer with her twin sister Grace when they were only nine. In fact, it is because of Gracie that she became a pediatrician. Since tales of Brax seemed to brighten her mother’s mood, Mia continued to regale her with stories of things actually happening at the hospital, just leaving out the detail that they were no longer together.

When her family insists Mia bring Brax home for Christmas she begins with a ruse to bring her best friend Gabe home to act the part. When Gabe backs out for personal reasons, Brax steps up leading to a perfect family homecoming. Told with heart and humor, Ms.Liasson has penned a dynamic story of two people, both deeply wounded in childhood, finding their way to each other. This was such a good book, filled with laughter but allowing some tears to sneak in. I very much enjoyed this book and I do recommend it!

Second chance, fake dating romance, the story of Mia and Brax. A fab festive read, I liked how it was told from both points of view. Emotional at times as it deals with some sad events.