I'm not entirely sure what my real problem with this book was beyond the fact that I was bored. And I'm quite certain that I do actually like holiday romances but somehow, this one fell a little flat for me.

First of all, is it too much to ask for a contemporary hero in 2020 who doesn't freak out at the mere mention of the word "tampons". The hero, Leo, has taken on new single-father (figure) status as he is the sole guardian of his younger sister, after their parents passed away a couple of years ago. When she announces to him that she has begun her period, he is understandably taken aback and mildly terrified. However, his reaction to the word "tampon" is kind of ridiculous and annoying.

Ultimately though, the best thing I can say about this book is that it wasn't bad, which is really damning with faint praise. I was far more interested in the secondary characters than I was in the romance between cabbie Leo and princess and heir to the throne, Marie.

The author's inspiration came from the Hallmark Christmas movies her father loves to watch and there were a lot of winking nods to the Hallmark movies, from the fictional country of Eldovia nestled in the Swiss Alps to the ideal and picturesque village with it's quaint and charming holiday traditions, complete with a Cocoa Ball. (If you've seen even one royalty adjacent Hallmark Christmas movie, you know it's not complete without a ball). The book read almost like a checklist of the necessary components of a Hallmark movie except with more kissing and actual sex on the page.

If you love a good Hallmark Christmas movie and just wish it was a tad bit more racy, this is just the book for you! For me, it was fine, nothing special, just ok.

4.5 Stars - Top Pick

This book was amazing! If you love a good rom/com this book is for you. For the readers that enjoy reading the Laurie LeClair you will enjoy this book. Jenny Holiday’s attention to detail was amazing. Her characters were beautifully written. Especially taking place at Christmas time in New York and in the country of Eldovia.

The story takes place in New York for the first half of the book and we meet Leo and his sister Gabby. He is raising his younger sister by himself after losing their parents. He does as much as he can to give her a somewhat normal life but being a brother and parent put his life on hold.

Then we meet Marie who is a princess that doesn’t feel elegant and graceful-like royalty especially like her mother portrayed. She feels awkward in most social situations and she is tightly wound trying to prove something to her grieving father the sad king. She’s also experiencing a sense of loss of her own.

Leo sweeps in like a night and shining armor in a yellow taxi to take her to a party she must get to at any cost. Leo thinks her to be prissy, uptight and entitled with her demands but she’s a nice break from reality. He actually listens, inspires her to be more bold and makes her laugh. She then asks that he drive her places while she is in New York. She eventually has to go back home to her life of royalty. I kept turning the pages, excited to see what happens next.

This book contains some very cute and innocent flirting and a few hot and steamy moments. It will give you the feels for all the characters and hope for the HEA they all deserve. I did finish the book but I don’t want to give away anything that I think will give the important parts away.

~Brooke

I really loved this book! Christmas? Check. Princess? Check. Cute taxi driver who takes care of his little sister? Check. I love the royal/commoner trope and this was well written and and super cute. It also kind of gave me Princess Diary vibes which is always a plus. Great holiday read by an author whose work I've always enjoyed and this one didn't disappoint. Leo and Marie have good chemistry and I really enjoyed the side characters was well. Highly recommend!

I give this novel 4.5 stars.

This was my first Jenny Holiday novel, and I must say it did not disappoint. What a wonderful romantic novel. I honestly didn’t want it to end. Even now I’m wanting to pick up my Kindle to continue reading about Leo and Princess Marie.

This fairytale takes us through a by chance meeting between Leo and Marie. His little sister is a huge part of the story, and to see her excitement when she realizes she has met a real life princess. A trip to Eldovia leads to Leo and Marie’s romance, and then the story really unfolds. So much more than a romance. It has family dynamics as well. Witnessing how family bonds, although tested, can overcome anything.

The perfect Holiday read!

This is a hilarious and self-aware ode to all of those campy and sweet Hallmark holiday movies, with the addition of sex in the woods and a lot of f-bombs.

In the two years since his parents died, Leo’s dropped out of college and is struggling to raise his eleven-year-old sister Gabby. He’s constantly worried that he’s doing it wrong – that not knowing what kind of pads to buy or how to braid her hair is going to irrevocably damage her. Leo’s a regular joe, juggling taxi driving with being his building’s super, a born-and-bred New Yorker who loves the Islanders and architecture. The last thing he expects is that the woman he picks up outside the UN at the insistence of his sister – “she looks like a princess!!!” – is a princess who’ll pay him $5k a day to drive her around NYC.

Marie’s not her mom – she’s not graceful, poised, perfect like her. She feels that in most aspects of her life, but most acutely in regards to her father, the king, who’s always been prickly but in her mother’s absence has become more angry and withdrawn from her and the day to day operations of the kingdom. Her trip to NYC is supposed to prove two things: that her work with the UN on the European refugee crisis is worthwhile, and that she’s capable of helping to shore up her country’s luxury watchmaking business. While things go well on the first front, the second is… not going well, though Leo and Gabby are proving to be a good distraction for taking her mind off that – in more ways than one. But nothing could ever come of a relationship between a princess and a cabbie, right?

“Christmas is big business in Eldovia. We have an annual Cocoa Fest on Christmas Eve day. Restaurants and pubs participate, and so does the palace. We make big cauldrons of different kinds of cocoa and serve them outside on the grounds.”
“Are you kidding me?” Gabby demanded.
Marie laughed. “I am entirely in earnest. And there’s a Cocoa Ball in the evening—though that’s not for children.” She wasn’t sure why she added that qualifier. It wasn’t as if Gabby, whose eyes had grown comically wide, would be around to be told she couldn’t attend the ball.
“Oh my god, you are from a fake Hallmark country,” Leo deadpanned.


This book has nearly every trope from a Hallmark Christmas royalty movie. There’s the snooty royal of a tiny alpine monarchy who just wants someone to love them for themselves and not their title, plus the salt-of-the-earth commoner who wants to show them how normal people live. They both tragically lost parent(s) around Christmas (why is this always a thing in the movies anyway?). There’s the stern butler/equerry/whatever who actually has a heart of gold. The aloof/heartless/sad king. The over-the-top “traditional” Christmas celebrations in Eldovia – Cocoa ball! Snow globe dude! Giant Christmas trees! – plus the stereotypical NYC sightseeing stuff (the Flatiron building! skating at the Rockefeller Center!) round it all off nicely. And then there’s the sex.

“If no one ever danced with the princess of Eldovia like no one was watching, it was safe to say no one ever talked dirty to the princess of Eldovia like no one was watching.”


Leo and Marie have great chemistry. While Marie’s prissy princess manner initially puts him off, Leo’s too much of a softie to not want to help her out, and once Leo realizes it serves the same purpose as his constant grumpiness, he’s pretty much a goner. Marie’s not sure what to do with someone who pays more attention to her as a person than a princess. The banter is hilarious, though I do think Leo was quite a bit kinder than I’d expect a NYC cabbie to be! For the most part, Marie and Leo communicate well with each other and it’s overall rather lighthearted and low conflict – perfect for a Christmas romance.

The side characters were well drawn as well. Gabby was just delightful, a good representation of that awkward tween state where they’re still full of childlike wonder but also gaining some of that teen awareness of the world. The MCs each had their own opposite-sex best friend (and who are obviously going to be a couple later in the series) who was the right mix of supportive and “get your act together”ness. There’s also a local Eldovian pub owner, plus a taciturn artisan. Sure, they’re all a bit true to trope, but the author knows exactly how to play to them perfectly.

Overall, this is just the sort of sweet and a little bit spicy Christmas romance that I love watching around the holidays!

I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

I love a good holiday romance, and A Princess for Christmas truly does seem like something you'd see on Hallmark for the holidays. (Well, maybe with the dirty parts omitted, haha!) I loved the repeated poking fun at how "Princess Marie of Eldovia" sounds like something from a Hallmark movie, and there must be, gosh, half a dozen references to situations/events in the book being like a Hallmark movie. It's even got tragic pasts for both leads that happened at Christmas, and a "Christmas miracle" transformation, so... Hey, Hallmark - actually this WOULD make a really great movie, so could you please...?

Leo is caring for his younger sister so this book gives off vibes that are adjacent to the single dad trope. I love his stubborn working-class New Yorker pride, his anxiety over being a good brother and also good parent figure to his sister, and his quiet and sort of gruff kindness. His little sister Gabby is also a great character, right in that limbo between girl and woman at 11 years old, and I just want to hug her and feed her cake.

I adore Marie. She's such a complex character, at times bold and commanding and at others unsure of herself and her place. She's definitely going through a growth and transition period in her life, and I'm so proud of her for the amount of growing she does in this book. (Which is maybe silly, since she's a fictional character and not a real person, but still - SO PROUD.)

The chemistry between Leo and Marie is - oof. There's definitely some sexy heat there, but at the same time their attraction is so tender, especially on Leo's part. He really SEES Marie - even when he really doesn't want to, haha. I think what I truly LOVE about this book - and Jenny Holiday's writing in general - is that it is so lighthearted and fun with plenty of great laugh-out-loud moments, but at the same time both Marie and Leo are deeply lonely people struggling with very real problems. While finding each other doesn't solve all those problems (it in fact causes some new ones), they are able to join forces and help each other stand a little taller and face the scary and unpleasant things, which feel a little more conquerable with the person you love's hand clutched in yours.

A Princess for Christmas by Jenny Holiday // ❄️❄️❄️❄️

Thank you @avonbooks for the eARC via @netgalley. A Princess for Christmas comes out 10/13! ✨

If you’re looking for a Hallmark-style Christmas book, but with extra steaminess and self-awareness, then A Princess for Christmas is absolutely perfect. Princess Marie of Eldovia meets Leo Ricci, a grouch with a heart of gold, as she hails his taxi cab outside of the UN in New York. She is instantly welcomed into his small family, and Leo and his younger sister are invited to spend the holidays with her back in Eldovia. As Christmas and Eldovia’s Cocoa Ball draw near, the two realize there is an undeniable spark between them.

Immediately this book reminded me of one of my favorite Hallmark movies, a Crown for Christmas, which I watch several times a year with my grandma who eats, breathes, and lives Hallmark movies. This genre definitely isn’t for everybody, but it checks all the boxes and more for those who enjoy a classic royal holiday romance movie. There is:

- copious references to Hallmark movies
- a princess from a small European country in the mountains that nobody has ever heard of
- instant family bonding
- a Christmas ball at the palace
- Christmas magic and love
- the extra bonus of steamy romance scenes you definitely wouldn’t find in a Hallmark movie 🔥🔥🔥🔥

What more could you want?

This was such a fun read! It is basically a sexy Hallmark Christmas romance, exactly what it was designed to be. We get to see Princess Marie meet and engage with the hero Leo in New York before he and his sister (Gabby) are swept off to Marie's kingdom.

I can't decide which part I enjoyed more. I loved Leo showing Marie around New York, and she even invites Gabby to tea at the Plaza (though we don't get many details about the tea time itself). There is a nice mix of Christmas elements with real character development and a great love story. Leo and Marie are three-dimensional characters with good back stories and great chemistry. We get to see things from both perspectives, which really helped me enjoy the novel. I like knowing when the hero is falling in love.

I liked that Gabby had a real personality and some adventures of her own. The secondary characters were introduced well, and I look forward to them getting their own books in the future.

Thank you Harper Collins for granting my wish to read and review A Princess for Christmas. I truly enjoyed reading this holiday story. I loved Marie’s innocence and vulnerability, and Leo’s protectiveness as she is basically a fish out of water. Trying to keep her family’s business afloat while navigating a new city, in a foreign county. Thanks to Leo, he might be her Prince Charming after all.

Grab your cocoa mugs! Thanks to Avon Books and Jenny Holiday for my gifted copy of A Princess for Christmas. This Hallmark movie-esque book tells the story of Leo Ricci, a cab driver in New York who is just trying to get by while raising his younger sister, and Marie, princess of Eldovia. Leo spots Marie outside of the UN, dressed to the nines, and in desperate need of a cab. Leo picks her up, and the two strike up a friendship by the end of the evening. I’ll let you read it to learn the rest!

I loved this sweet romance! Leo was so likeable, Marie was the sweetest princess, the supporting characters were all very dynamic and entertaining, and the chemistry between Leo and Marie was off the charts! Jenny Holiday’s writing is so vivid as well, that it makes it easy to picture what’s happening. She’s very descriptive, and the dialogue is quite funny at times (and swoon worthy). It never seemed like the action lagged or stalled either - things were continuously moving along in the plot, which I definitely appreciated.

A Princess for Christmas is out on October 13th. Don’t miss this one for your holiday reading!

As someone who usually really likes Jenny Holiday's works and Hallmark movies, I was expecting to love this one. Unfortunately, I thought it was actually pretty boring. I seemed to lack some of the sparkle that her other novels have and Hallmark movies are a little too light on the conflict to make good books apparently? I'm not sure what was missing, but I never really had the drive to finish this one. That said, obviously, your mileage may vary so I hope if you pick this up, it goes better for you!

This is about Leo Ricci, who has custody of his younger sister, Gabby, because their parents died in a car accident a few years ago. One day they're driving around in NYC and see Marie, aka a princess, standing outside of the U.N. in a gorgeous dress. Conveniently, Leo is driving a cab and Marie needs a ride. They wind up giving her one and things sort of go from there.

Easily the best part of this book are the side characters, which is why I will probably pick up the next book from Holiday set in this world (Eldovia). Kai and Imogen are Marie's old friends who she no longer really keeps in touch with. Imogen runs the bar in the villige right below the castle and Kai carves snow globes and builds log cabins. He also doesn't talk much so I love him. Dani is Leo's best friend and she's fantastic. She's a little snarky but affectionate and is writing a book on Kate Chopin. Then there's Max, who is Marie's best friend, and he's affectionately called a slut, which is interesting. I loved that Marie and Leo challenge the whole notion that men and women can't be just friends.

Otherwise... this would definitely make a cute movie, but it just didn't work for me in book form. Thanks to Netgalley and Avon for the review copy!

Cab driver Leo, guardian of his younger sister, decides to make the rash decision to pick up a well-dressed woman outside the UN at his sister's urging because "She looks like a princess!" Turns out, she is, in fact, a princess! Leo becomes her driver during her trip to the U.S. but the two begin to form a friendship, with perhaps a current of attraction running beneath the surface. But a princess can't marry a cab driver... right?

I had a really hard time gathering my thoughts on this book. It's basically a Hallmark Christmas movie but with sex and swearing--so a Jenny Holiday version of a Hallmark movie, which is exactly what she set out to do! So the author accomplished her goal. It had the adorable cutesy holiday and royal scenes straight out of A Christmas Prince or The Princess Switch. And then BAM halfway through the book it gets steamy. I don't hate the juxtaposition of holiday wholesomeness and intimacy, I think I just could have used more integration of the two halves of the book--perhaps some more lustful language in the first half? This book was overall a HIGHLY enjoyable read, though--it has everything your could want: royal romance, holiday romance, New York classic scenes, castles, single (quasi) parent romance, steamy scenes. I really loved how self-aware the book was, with it's references to Hallmark movies and fake-sounding countries (I burst out laughing when Leo said "This Hallmark movie is about to get a lot more interesting."). It didn't hide what it was trying to be. I think the shift from pure Hallmark to classic Jenny Holiday was a bit sudden for me, though. I still recommend this as a great holiday romance!

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon for the free eARC in exchange for an honest review of this book!

4 stars - 7/10

Heat Factor: Holy arm porn, batman! Plus: 🍆🍆🍆
Character Chemistry: Checks every box
Plot: Hallmark Christmas Special, complete with twee alpine monarchy
Overall: I am cackling with glee

I am the perfect audience for this book. I occasionally watch a Hallmark Christmas Special - but I swear to myself that I’m watching it ironically. And then I still get all emotional at the emotional parts. If that describes you: welcome to the club! Read this book! You’ll love it!

Here’s the set up. Marie, the princess, is in New York speechifying at the UN about the ongoing refugee crisis in Europe and also visiting high-end watch sellers. As one does. There’s a party on a boat she desperately needs to get to, but her hired car has broken down, so she hails a cab. Leo, the cab driver, is off duty, but Gabby, his 11-year old sister is in the back seat, and is like, “You have to pick up that lady in the ball gown, she looks like a princess!!!!!!!!!” So he does. And when Leo discovers that he does, in fact, have a princess in the car with him, he puts his head on his steering wheel and groans. Relatable.

What follows is utterly tropetastic but also so so charming and often hilarious. Because of course Leo and Marie strike up a friendship, mainly because Leo is utterly unimpressed by her princess-ness, but rather sees her for who she really is. (And brings her bagels.) Of course, having adventures in NYC is not twee enough for a Hallmark Movie Special, so halfway through the book Marie invites Leo and Gabby to come spend Christmas in her alpine micro-nation.

Of course, this is a Jenny Holiday romance, so it’s not all hijinks all the time. Both Leo and Marie are deeply lonely people who are doing their best to just hold it all together. Leo especially is struggling: after the untimely death of his parents (at Christmastime) a few years ago, he became the guardian for his much younger sister. Which meant dropping out of college and working multiple jobs while also constantly worrying that he’s getting parenting wrong. So he doesn’t have a lot of free time for leisure activities. Like dating. Marie’s mother also passed away (at Christmastime) a few years ago. In the years since, instead of dealing with his grief, her father built a hard shell of anger around himself and also started neglecting his royal duties - so Marie has found herself increasingly shouldering his burdens. Because Leo and Marie are so lonely and so responsible, I was really rooting for them to not only build an emotional connection, but also to be able to have a little fun, and Holiday delivers on both counts.

Please also note that this book is sexy, in the best way. By which I mean: consent, safe sex, and the sex scenes (including a doozy of a sex scene that doesn’t happen) work to advance the relationship between the characters.

Here’s the TL;DR version of my review: I loved it and have zero complaints. And it’s the first in a trilogy! So excited to see The Rake and the Woman Who Has Sworn Off Love Forever get it on in book 2!

I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. We disclose this in accordance with 16 CFR §255.

This review is also available at The Smut Report (Oct 13 2020)

A Princess for Christmas is a Hallmark type story with some additional and unfortunate vulgarity and fairly steamy sex scenes added in, which for me, detracted from the magical, fairytale-esque feel of the story. It’s your typical trope and story line of common girl saved by a prince, defies the odds of family and expectations and lives happily ever after, but in reverse. In this case, the wealthy, optimistic, European princess meets the poor, grumpy and disillusioned New Yorker boy and they forge a friendship as they drive through the streets of the Big Apple. Though opposites in almost every way, they have bonded over their mutual loss of significant people in their lives and decide that after days spent together in New York they need more. So they travel to her kingdom in the Alps to celebrate the holiday and prepare to battle it out with her infuriating father.

I enjoyed the detailed touristy descriptions of New York sites and the festive, wintery European scenes. I also appreciated the fact that the female protagonist stood up for herself while maintaining her commitment to her duties. It had humor and some deeper discussions about loss and moving forward with your life and the related struggles. It was admittedly, rather cliched and predictable, and lacked finesse, but added perhaps a bit more modern day realism. I know it will be a hit for some, combining a more steamy romance with a holiday story, but I just wasn’t as captivated by it as I have been with other Jenny Holiday books. A Princess for Christmas felt felt a bit crass and lacking in the inherent sweetness that I was hoping for in a Christmas book.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

3.5 stars. A Princess for Christmas is yet another Hallmark-esque romance, tapping into the recent trend of Hallmark-esque holiday movies with princesses in them that have come out over the past few years (although I was surprised to realize the Vanessa Hudgens film I was thinking of when I first saw this book was actually from Netflix…I still don’t watch TV much, but absorbed a lot of the references to it from social media, so pardon my ignorance). Yet, despite having a somewhat cliche concept, Jenny Holiday brings her own charm to the genre with this lighthearted contribution. Not enough to really rock my world or anything, but enough to warm my heart, in a similar way the other holiday books I read recently have, with this one being my favorite so far.

I liked Leo and especially Marie. While each embodies fairly common archetypes (grumpy hero or dutiful heir), I feel like they worked well off one another, and each had enough grit below the surface that they weren’t just one thing. Their pasts are always explored in a fairly poignant way that doesn’t take away from the lighthearted nature overall.

The political stuff with her country is fairly standard, like being reluctant to take on the role of heir and an undesirable arranged marriage, and I did feel it all went in a fairly predictable direction at times. However, I did like the world building of Eldovia beyond that, from its homages to other fictional royalty stories (hello, Princess Diaries!) to the general holiday spirit the place exudes.

This book is a lot of fun, and while I’m not the biggest holiday or Hallmark movie fan, I still enjoyed it for what it is. If you’re looking for a fun meta read about Hallmark/Christmas/fictional royalty, then you’ll adore this one.

Every Christmas, there’s a Hallmark movie where an ordinary girl meets a prince and by the end she’s in a ball gown and on her way to becoming a Princess of a small fictional country. This story is similar, except a Princess meets a guy from the Bronx. And this story definitely has parts not appropriate for family tv. The first part of the book takes place in New York City. I enjoyed reading about the sights of NYC and their adventures in the city. The second part of the book takes place in the fictional Alpine country of Eldovia. There is of course the expected Christmas festival and a royal ball, but there is also plenty of steam. Unfortunately, the rough language distracted me from the story pretty often. This is not a cute fluffy Christmas story. However, it is funny. It’s also somewhat predictable but it was still fun to get to the end I knew was coming. Leo’s 11 year old sister is a fun character because she’s still a child but trying to be grown up. I found the side characters really added to the story and made it feel a little more relatable. According to the acknowledgment, this is a series of 3 books and the ending introduces 2 characters that I’m assuming will be in the next book. If I’m correct, that should be a fun book!

Honestly, I liked it. It's a fine read, and hits all the rom-com buttons. Leo and his sister Gabby is sweet; the fish-out-of water scenes (first for Marie in NYC and then Leo and Gabby in Eldovia) are quite charming. It's sweet and swoony, and then there's some pretty hot sex just after the half-way mark.

As other reviewers have said, if you like Hallmark Christmas movies, you'll like this. I don't think it's Holiday's best, however. Infamous is by far my favorite, and it felt much deeper than this one.

Plot: The plot was really fun! Anytime royalty is mentioned in a summary, I know I have to add it to my TBR list. And I'm happy I did!

Characters: Marie and Leo were great main characters! I really, really liked all the side characters, too! (Also, I *think* I know who the next book will be about based on things that happen at the end of the story and if I'm right? I'm happy about who they are!)

The Cover: I love this cover!

Overall: This was such a fun read, that I really enjoyed! If you're looking for a fun book to read for the Christmas season this year, I would definitely recommend trying it!

This is an adorable, Hallmark movie style romance set at Christmas. Leo, a 20 something cab driver and building super from the Bronx who has been raising his teenaged sister since the death of their parents, happens to be in the right place at the right time to give Marie, princess of a fictional European country, a ride from the UN to a boat party. They strike up a friendship and Marie ends up inviting Leo and Gabby to Eldovia for Christmas. Jenny Holiday notes in her acknowledgments that she purposely wrote this in the Hallmark movie style for her dad, who loves them. There are definitely some non-Hallmark but very Jenny Holiday sex scenes, and overall this was just a cute and satisfying romance. I can definitely imagine re-reading during the Christmas season.

A Princess for Christmas
A Novel
by Jenny Holiday
Listen to an Audio Excerpt
HarperCollins Publishers
You Like Them You Are Auto-Approved
Avon
General Fiction (Adult) | Romance
Pub Date 13 Oct 2020 | Archive Date 08 Dec 2020

Very enjoyable book to read. Love the holiday romances. Thanks to Harper collins and NetGalley for the ARAC.
Will recommend this to our patrons.