Christmas, family drama, age gap romance- who could ask for more? One Big Happy Family was so different than the typical holiday/Christmas trope. I loved this storyline & the characters are so lovable. Lot of humor in this - literally leaving me laughing out loud. I will definitely re-read this one closer to the holiday season- I absolutely loved it. I’ll be checking out more of Susan Mallery’s books & you should too.

Thank you NetGalley & Harlequin Trade Publishing | Canary Street Press for an ARC copy of this book.

Susan Mallery is a wonder! This is the second novel I have read this month with the same title. But this isn’t a mystery but a Christmas novel. The Parker family have decided to gather at the family’s “cabin” (you’ll find out) for the Christmas season. Add a bitchy mother-in-law, a younger boyfriend along with his ex-wife, their two kids and a dog, a family friend/co-worker and the ex-boyfriend no wants there. Mix in a fall down the stairs, a gunshot victim, cougar pee, pain meds on an empty stomach and more secrets and surprises and you get MERRY CHRISTMAS! I laughed out loud several times! I hope you enjoy it!

This is such a heartwarming book. It has humor and lots of family antics. Families can be complicated and I loved how this family dealt with their issues. The characters were wonderful. A simple quiet Christmas turned into a huge event with melodrama. It’s a fun book that I really enjoyed. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced free copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I received a copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Christmas is certainly a time for families to come together and set aside their differences to celebrate with respect to the true holiday spirit. Yet this particular story embodies the fact that family can certainly be more than blood relations as a true hodgepodge of people gathered at the cabin to celebrate. A reader must admire the strength of Julie to not only welcome her boyfriend Heath but also his ex-wife and their kids. Dana and Nick wanted everyone to come together to celebrate their father and his passing. What happened as the book evolved was as they celebrated their father was what they truly celebrated was love. Gwen and Blair forgave each other and started over. There was much happy news by the end for both Dana and Nick and their choices personally and professionally were the right ones. This us truly a feel good book and how there are multiple ways to celebrate during the holidays.

Everything you want in a Christmas story, Family, Love, Forgiveness and stress. After Julie finds out that Christmas won't be with just Heath, she does everything in her power for everyone she loves to have a wonderful and loving Christmas. And it is in the doing that Christmas becomes something special for everyone involved.

I don't want to give to much away, but what starts out as just a Family gathering for Julie's adult children, Nick and Dana who miss their father, ends up being a gathering of all sorts of family members that no one expected. And it's the extra members that make the Christmas special and more important because forgiveness is very much about Christmas.

I loved all the typical Christmas events that made up this story, cutting down the Christmas tree, making Christmas cookies, playing in the snow and having a lovable dog to share the day with, but I especially liked the surprise events that made Christmas more special. Blair has an unexpected gift for everyone, Julie has to learn to accepted help from others, Dana and Blair have to learn to forgive other and finally there are those invited just so they aren't alone for Christmas and all of it made this Christmas story wonderful.

I want to thank Harlequin Trade Publishing | Canary Street Press and NetGalley for an advance copy of a story that is all about what makes Christmas special.

Julie is looking forward to a quiet Christmas with her new boyfriend Heath. However, her adult children recently lost their father, her ex, and want an old fashioned family Christmas at their cabin. Julie agrees to host a large Christmas like she has done every other year. Surprise guests, family drama and love make this story a fun holiday read!

4.5⭐️ This was very Family Stone-esq with multiple storylines with the members of the family. It is a cozy holiday read that is quick paced and very entertaining!

I love this author and I don't need to wait until Christmas to get into the spirit of this fun story.

Julie is a strong, independent woman who runs her own business and loves her adult children with fierceness. She also has a new love interest who is younger than she is. While she enjoys the excitement of the relationship, she has not shared this with her children. Julie and Heath are planning to spend Christmas together until her children, Nick and Dana, want to continue their holiday tradition of spending time together in her very large cabin. She is reluctant as it is a lot of work to create the "magic" of the holiday. Julie has been divorced for many years but shared the holiday with her late husband and family at the cabin. Nick and Dana are still feeling the loss and want "one more" holiday to honor their dad. She agrees, but soon learns that Nick's mother-in-law, who is a bit cantankerous, and his wife's uncle will be joining them. Julie also invites her employee so he won't be alone on Christmas, and soon learns that Heath's kids will be joining them, too, along with a few other surprises.

The title says it all. It was one big happy family that oozed with humor and joy. I read this book in one sitting and wished for more. The characters were so entertaining, and the different storylines intertwined seamlessly.

This is a story about one big happy family dealing with various struggles over their Christmas holiday. Julie's adult children, Nick & Dana, are dealing with the loss of their father and eager to keep their unconventional family Christmas tradition in place for one more year. That throws a kink in Julie's plans to spend a quiet holiday with her new boyfriend Heath, Nick needs to postpone his honeymoon with his new wife Blair, and Dana will be distracted from her latest failed relationship.

The closer to the holiday, more events happen which cause the cast of characters invited to Christmas at the cabin to grow. The group dynamics continually shift, but ultimately everyone is happy to be together for the holidays - despite what crazy events may happen.

I read this book as an ARC. The story follows the perspective of three women.

Julie (54, divorced, mother of two adult children) is dating a man twelve years her junior(with two much younger children of his own) and has complicated feelings on the matter.

Dana, Julie’s younger child, is recovering from repeated heartbreak by one of Julie’s best employees.

Blair, Julie’s daughter-in-law is struggling with her mother moving to be closer to her, despite them never having had a relationship.

Despite the original Christmas plan being that Julie and her new beau would spend the holidays together, her kids decide they want to have a big family Christmas in memory of their father who died earlier that year. With the whole family and a few surprise guests, the holidays turn to chaos.

The story itself is decent and I wanted to know what was going to happen. That said, I knew what was going to happen; this book was incredibly predictable. The dialogue was painfully robotic, almost as though it was written by AI.

I’m not sure I was the correct audience for this book, despite loving the cover and the blurb. I was expecting a little spice from other reviews, but that wasn’t delivered. A lot of talk about sex having happened, but nothing really open door.

You might like this book if you’re a white woman in your 40s-60s; not looking for anything complicated, and you enjoy realism in your romance.

📚 2/5
🌶️.5/5

“One Big Happy Family” by Susan Mallory is aptly named. Julie, the main character, had decided to scale back this Christmas season, yet her children wish to honor their recently dead father’s memory and celebrate at the cabin they’d spent numerous Christmases. I lost count of how many characters end up in the cabin by the end of the book - but it’s a lot! While every character does have some part in this book, the main focus is on Julie and her children. If you know the Enneagram, Julie is a two - so she’s busy making lists ranging from Christmas decorations, to food plans, to meal prep, to where to put people in the cabin, to trying to be helpful, kind, and have things run smoothly. Once everyone’s under the same roof, the story really gets rolling. I’d really call this book more a family drama-comedy because there were some amusing bits, but there’s also a lot of family bits needing to be hashed out, though often in a constructive way (thank you Ms. Mallery!). I give a shout out to the artist who created the adorable cover for this book - right up my alley and it conveys the craziness of the story inside this book. I cannot say that I liked everyone in this book, even after some secrets were exposed, but overall this is a feel good family book. 3.75 stars rounded up to 4.

Susan Mallery always strokes the heart strings, no exceptions here and this newest. Christmas story fits perfectly into the seasonal theme. There is a lot going on and the characters are interesting, fun and emotionally intense. “Cougar pee” lol…. Loved this one. Definitely add to your reading list. Do not miss this one.

I’ve read several Susan Mallery books over the years and have always enjoyed her writing style. This book was no different and was such a heartwarming read with multiple storylines. Loved how everything wrapped up at the end. Highly recommend!

This book was another first for me. I have never read any of Susan Mallory’s books and this one was so enjoyable. I loved all the different personalities in the books. And Julie was my hero! As a mother of two adult children, running her own business, and having a younger boyfriend, Julie liked to always be in control of everything. What was supposed to be an intimate week together with Heath, her boyfriend, at her cabin, turned out to be a huge family gathering. Julie had such a big heart and it showed when her boyfriend’s children ended up staying with them at the cabin. Not to mention, her two children changed their plans and wanted to spend Christmas at the cabin since that had been the place they always stayed before their father died. Then, along came the ex-wife, whom Julie welcomed with open arms since she believed no one should be alone on Christmas. But that wasn’t enough, along comes her employee and daughter’s (Dana) ex-boyfriend who worked for Julie and had been shot on the job, to throw in the mix. But, in the end, everything worked out the best for everyone and they all had a great Christmas. This was a really fun book to read and, I will definitely, look for more books by Susan Mallory to read.

Thank you so much NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book, in advance, and find a new author to follow.

Every book Susan Mallery writes is relatable. Her characters aren't rich and they don't always live in a big house on the hill. You will laugh and cry root for the underdog.

Julie is a successful businesswoman, a kind and gracious hostess, a supportive mom, and a keeping her younger boyfriend a secret. When her kids Dana and Nick decide that they need a family Christmas after the death of their father, she has no choice but to tell them. Dana is hurt that she didn't know, and Julie feels guilty. She decides that Heath should join them and since his ex-wife is going on a trip his young children will as well. Nick and his wife Blair also bring Blair's estranged mother even though Blair is so angry at her for abandoning her as a child after the death of her little brother. Next comes Heath's ex-wife who is dumped by her boyfriend. The group continues to grow. Dana's on again off again boyfriend works with Julie and when he is shot at work, he also joins the crew. Susan does an incredible job of making this "family" come together. It isn't easy with all of the twists, but it is an amazing story of love and forgiveness. I highly recommend this book.

This was such a fun read! Family dynamics, surprises, and chaos. It was a fun holiday read! I highly recommend and will check out more deli this author.

Julie planned a quiet holiday with her significant other only to have her kids and a whole cast of others want to celebrate at the family cabin instead. ARC from NetGalley

If you think your holidays are crazy, get ready for #OneBigHappyFamily. Instead of getting swept away in the usual Christmas shenanigans, Julie decided to scale back this year and spend time with her boyfriend. Her children are grown and will be out of town for the holidays affording a more relaxing experience.

Unbeknownst to Julie, her stress-free holiday is unraveling. Her children want to honor their father's passing at the cabin and even though they were exes, Julie always puts her kids first. A low-key holiday turns into exes, step-children and a house filled angst and adventure.
Will they survive unscathed until the new year?

Thank you to #NetGalley and the publisher for the early edition of #OneBigHappyFamily in exchange for an honest review. When I first started the book, I wasn't sure it was for me but I'm a fan of the author so I kept reading. Once everyone is under the same roof that's when the story turns into a page turner. Filled with Mallery's quirky characters and situations, readers will fall in love this year.

Oh my goodness! This is my new all time favorite read. It is such a heartwarming and heartbreaking good read. I love the characters. They play off of each other well. The storyline just keeps getting better. Julie is my person to strive to be like. I love this book! I was given an advanced reader copy of this well written book by NetGalley and I am freely sharing my review.

It is Christmas time and Julie expects to spend a quiet time with her boyfriend Heath. Plans change when her children want to spend Christmas at the cabin since it is the first Christmas after their dad died. Julie divorced their dad years ago but decides to make Christmas a little easier for them. This is a great book with Christmas guests expanding at every turn. There are a lot of firsts such as Heath meeting her children and Julie meeting his children. I loved the organizational skill of Julie and her take charge attitude. Lots of surprises, humor, and love.