A must read! Susan Mallery sure knows how to create One Big Happy Family🤶🏻. It becomes painfully obvious that there are no secrets in this cabin as family takes on an expanded meaning. You may laugh or cry but will definitely love this Christmas story!

Julie has planned a quiet Christmas holiday with Heath, the younger man she’s been keeping a secret from her adult children. But plans change, and soon she and Heath are spending the holidays at her family’s cabin with an ever-growing group of relatives, including his two young children. It’s all too easy for the various adults to fall into familiar roles and expectations, until everyone is forced to rethink and reframe long-held narratives. Despite being one of the oldest in the room, Julie has some growing up to do of her own if she wants to truly have one big happy family.

The latest from Susan Mallery delivers everything her readers have come to expect, and it is a solid entry for a holiday read.

One big happy family by Susan mallery was a great read. Julie wanted a quiet Christmas at home but when her children come to her and tell her they need Christmas at the cabin as it’s their first year without their dad she jumps right in to plan Christmas at the cabin. It ends up being a big celebration with so many people at the cabin. Lots of drama happening. Some forgiveness, and of course some love along the way. I’d definitely recommend this book

Yet another fabulous read by Susan Mallery! I loved this book, every bit of it. I felt as if I was part of the family and experiencing their quirky, funny, loveable, real-life family myself. There was romance, comedy, drama and many realistic scenes included. I was able to connect with every character, even the difficult Gwen. There were so many personalities to keep straight, yet each one was captured well! So well done!

I would definitely recommend this book for your next Christmas season read. I was so pleased to have the opportunity to read and review this one even though Christmas is still a long way away!
Thanks for the opportunity Netgalley and Harlequin!

For me, Mallery books are either hit or miss. And when they miss, I find that they go down in flames for me and make it hard to trust that the next book won't be the same. I read this one because the story sounded nice - family at Christmas - and with only a little bit of Hallmark. I did realize that it could really backfire in that this could turn into one of the Mallery books that just doesn't catch my attention and then becomes a bit hard to get through.

I am pleased to report that this one was a good fit for me and my taste. I liked all of the characters from the outset. Sure, Julie is a bit too good to be true, and her family and friends seem to be very mature and able to talk things out which is not my own experience. But all in all, they felt like people who could exist in the real world without too much stretching of reality. And the story moved along well. This was more of a character study really than anything else, because there is not a lot of plot and it centres around a few days rather than years or months. I will say that there were very few surprises in the book itself. Every great reveal was pretty much something I had already figured out at the start of the story. Is that because I'm a super savvy reader? Not really. More that the story does pull in a lot of tropes.

That being said, this is still a good book. Light reading. Great for going into or over the holiday period. Not too much Christmas if you aren't someone who celebrates. And also if you decide to pick this up outside the season for a trip or while sitting on the beach. This was IMO a good Mallery addition. True to her strengths of writing about the small moments. And just a good story overall.

A quiet Christmas for Julie, is upended when her grown children decide on a family Christmas at a cabin. Plans change and relationships form over a holiday involving a growing number of guests and various relationships. A fun quick holiday read, perfect for fans of cozy Hallmark Christmas movies.

Fun, engaging, family drama romp during a Christmas to remember. I enjoyed this book and all of it's eccentricities and crazy fun. Sometimes it felt that the coincidences just kept on coming but this added to the endearing story of family plus more family plus other people that used to be family. A few things were a bit far-reaching but didn't detract from this book. I received an ARC in exchange for my opinion and I thank the Author, publisher, and NetGalley for this opportunity.

One Big Happy Family by Susan Mallory is an odd book. Not really a romance as much as a family comedy. Through a series of life twists, a woman her two adult children, her daughter in law, that DIL’s monther and Uncle, the woman’s boyfriend, his kids and ex wife, and two of the woman’s employees (one of whom is her daughter’s on again off again boyfriend) all end up in a very large “cabin” for Christmas together..All because Julie (the woman) invites them all (when she was going to have a quiet Xmas with her boyfriend). The over under is a lot of working through various old traumas which is nice. It is a solidly nice book. Fans of the movie ‘Home for the Holidays’ will love it. It was a few too many characters and Julie’s ultra people pleaser characteristics that kept it for being my cup of Christmas, but it was a well written romp. Great for passing around to the romance reading cousins at thanksgiving.

Overall, this was a nice heartwarming story about family and romance with a couple of cute kids and a dog thrown in for good measure. I wasn't quite sure when I started reading this book if I was going to like it as the multiple plot lines seemed a bit complicated. However, I soon warmed up to the characters, especially Heath and Julie., with Blair and Nick running a close second. I liked most of the rest of the supporting cast of characters as well.

***SPOILER ALERT*** The one aspect of the book that I just couldn't buy into completely was Axel and Dana's story. I mean, I could understand him leaving her once but three times??? I found his explanation to be pretty lame and just couldn't believe in their HEA.

Some R-rated love scenes.

Susan Mallery hooked me with the premise of a family at Christmas and the dynamics of the family relationships when everyone is together.

When her children urge a family Christmas to honor her ex-husband, their father, Julie is reluctant and doesn't really want to bring her new, younger boyfriend to her big family. Add a lot of fun secondary characters, the usual craziness of the holidays and everyone dealing with their own feelings and you have a great book.

I really enjoyed that Julie was an independent woman in a field normally occupied by a man and that she was basically a great role model for her children.

Add in Susan Mallery's usual charm and fun storyline and I really enjoyed this book.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this in lieu of an honest review.

Great book by Susan Mallery. It was a fun,different kind of twist on characters and their extended families. Very unique and fun to read !

What a fabulous read One Big Happy Family is!. Susan Mallery captures the multitude of personalities as friends, family and Rufus gather athe cabin to celebrate Christmas together and remember Elden, Dana and Nick's late father - who tended to get lost as the story progresses. Brother, sister, sister in law, former boyfriend, are among the cast of holiday guests along with the mom her boyfriend and yes, the boyfriend's children, dog and former wife. It makes for a very interesting gathering.
I very much enjoyed this book and it will be on my holiday reread list for years to come.

My thanks to #NetGalley and #Harlequin for the chance to early read One Big Happy Family. I am One Big Happy reader!

I loved this book. It was a hard one to put down. It definitely was One Big Happy Family. I loved all the characters and their stories. It brought lots of laughs and a few tears. I highly recommend.

Another heartwarming, romantic family story from Susan Mallery! Julie Parker inherited Parker Towing from her father. There's nothing she can't do, and being a woman in a traditionally male business doesn't stop her from being financially successful. After her ex-husband dies, her two adult children convince her to spend another Christmas at their luxurious, roomy "cabin" in the woods. Julie had been hoping to lay low over the holidays with Heath, her younger new boyfriend, getting to know one another better. But she goes to the cabin, and before long what was to be a small family gathering gets much bigger, as she ends up inviting in-laws, old friends, and even the ex-wife and children of her boyfriend. Each person she invites has their own story, so there is a lot going on, but Susan Mallery manages to make us care about each character and want to know how their story ends. I look forward to recommending this great title to romance readers who enjoy good family oriented stories with appealing characters.

A favorite author has written a page turner about a family wanting to spend Christmas together to honor a deceased father. A mishmash of characters, somewhat like a soap opera, keep this novel moving quickly. It is somewhat confusing...trying to keep the characters apart...which ones are the moms...which are the kids...adult kids at that...throw in a cabin at Christmas...along with some family members who don't get along...and there you go...a story that is quirky yet poignant. Curl up in a cozy chair...grab a cub of steaming herbal tea...enjoy an afternoon with these characters. Thanks Netgalley.

This was such a good book! I loved the characters, and their story. The dialogue was realistic and enjoyable. I was very surprised by the ending!

I enjoyed this book. It was fun to read. It was romantic and funny. I had tears in my eyes from the laughter and because it was emotional. I'm grateful that netgalley and the publishers let me read this in exchange for an honest review.