Thank you to @netgalley @bookouture and @catwalshwriter for an advanced reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

It’s another edition of Christmas in August with Chloe 🤣 Ho Ho Ho!!!🎅🏻🎅🏻🎅🏻

I recently read The Rebound by Catherine and I absolutely loved it so when I saw that Holiday Romance was on Netgalley, well I pounced at the chance!! And to my absolute delight, I got approved for it in seconds 🤩

This book 😍😍😍😍😍 I had the warmest, fuzziest feeling all the way through reading this. It was honestly such a joy to read. A friends to lovers story laced with humour. The banter between Molly and Andrew is top notch and I loved their conversations. Their back and forth banter had me laughing out loud, so witty.

The book alternates from past Christmas flights to their current Christmas where Molly and Andrew are desperately trying to make it home for Christmas, despite the odds being stacked against them. This is the Christmas that they realise that they could perhaps be more than friends. Seeing the two of them fall for each other was just magical. I honestly couldn’t think of two characters who would be more perfect for each other than these two.

As well as humour and light-heartedness, this books explores the topic of sobriety and feeling unhappy in your career. I feel that the author tackled these issues perfectly and in a realistic but sensitive way.

I can’t urge everyone enough to buy this book when it is released. It’s a little piece of Christmas magic and you don’t want to miss out on it!

I have loved Catherine's previous two books and have been so excited to read this one, and it did not disappoint.

The organic nature of their friendship felt real and believable. Their rocky start all the way to their ultimate romance was smooth and entertaining to read.

One of the things I have always loved about Catherine's writing is the dialogue and utterly hilarious conversations the characters have with each other. No matter where you are you can't help but laugh out loud at the witty banter between Molly and Andrew was endearing and a joy to read. Molly's exchanges with her sister reminded me of conversations I have with my own sister, in that no-one other than us really understands what we're talking about.

Once again and absolute JOY to read and will be filling everyone's stockings with a copy this year!

Thank you to Bookouture and NetGalley for the ARC! 4/5
Such a fun book - and I don’t even like the holidays! I was in desperate need of a palette cleanser, and this was perfect for it.
One of my must-haves in a romance book is good banter, and this one delivered. The MCs were genuinely lovable and funny. And I got to imagine Irish accents for most of the characters, which only added to my enjoyment. A couple of the relationship scenes at the beginning seemed a little forced, but the book as a whole was more than worth it. I highly recommending picking this book up when it comes out October 4th.

Review posted to Goodreads and will be posted to Amazon when it is available for reviews.

Thank you Bookouture and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. IYKYK, my reviews are always honest.

SOUND THE ALARM!!! IT'S A BANGER ALERT!!!!🚨🚨🚨🚨

SYNOPSIS

10 years. 10 flights. Andrew and Molly both live in Chicago and take a yearly flight to their mother country Ireland. But this year, will Andrew and Molly go from plane friends to naked in love friends??
Ho ho ho!

MY OPINION

AIHNWUTWTBOWOVMOWV!!!! THIS SHIT RIGHT HERE IS THE CUTEST AND FUNNIEST ROMCOM I'VE EVER READ!!! I literally was smiling when I put it down... Imagine THAT!! (kinda scary thought isn't it?)

The bants? Bantering. I literally laughed out loud multiple times. It was genuinely funny, not pander express humour.
The chemistry? Even Marie Curie couldn't handle it.
The sexual tension? Me outside of a Krispy Kreme when they light the sign up.

This is "closed door" steam (am I using that correctly?), which is my jam. I don't ever wanna read about slop top even in a romance book. Just a personal ting. I like my romcoms more com with a splash of earnest rom.

I appreciated the serious life issues Walsh incorporated like Molly's career crises and Andrew's journey with sobriety. It may come as a surprise, but I am a sober gopher who raw dawgs life. There's a lot of societal pressure to drink (which I def contributed to on $1 drink night at Moose's Bar) so I like to see some sober rep in books instead of liquid courage leading to a drunken first bang. No shade to that either.

Lastly, MY HEART (or the lump of coal that stands in for a heart)!!!!!! I don't wanna give any spoilies but it was possibly the cutest thing I've ever heard.

Overall a hilarious, well-written novel that I will recommend to everyone who dares to make eye contact with me. Congrats Catherine Walsh on the perfect Christmas romcom! READ THIS!!!!

PROS AND CONS

Pros: genuinely funny, no pander express boo boo, great characters, fantastic chemistry, closed door romance, serious topics incorporated and well-handled

Cons: NADAAA!!! ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS FOR THIS BOOK TO GET THE RECOGNITION IT DESERVES!!!!!!

Loved this holiday romcom!! This is the perfect book to read while curled up in a blanket with a steaming mug of hot chocolate :) Sprinkled with just the right amount of flashbacks, Molly and Andrew's journey took us all around the world...of course with a few shenanigans in between! 5 stars - this is one you don't want to miss!

Molly and Andrew have been catching the same flight home for Christmas for the last 10 years. On their 10 year "plane-aversary", a storm threatens this tradition. Will Molly and Andrew make it home? Only time will tell, but it's PLANE to SEA there might be something more between these two.

I flipping adored this book and the friends-to-lovers plot really had me hooked. I was genuinely rooting for them the whole time.

Thanks so much to Netgalley, the publisher and Catherine Walsh for the advanced copy.

Holiday Romance by Catherine Walsh❤️🎅🏼

🎄‘It’s Dublin at Christmas and there’s excitement in the air’🎄

Molly is a high powered lawyer working in Chicago, a little cynical, a little hopeful, and insistent that Christmas isn’t really for her. Andrew is a homebird, in love with Christmas, Ireland and his family💚

Molly and Andrew fall into an accidental tradition of taking the same flight home for Christmas every year - until one year, a storm wrecks their plans but brings them closer together as they embark on a 3 day odyssey to make it home for Christmas✈️🎅🏼

This book was like a hot chocolate on a winter’s evening☺️a total comfort read, this one has it all - romance, wintery Christmas vibes, an Irish family scene to rival the Walsh’s (#MarianKeyes), even a Christmas baby❤️

Do yourself a favour and soak up all of these gorgeous Christmas vibes, preferably in front of a roaring fire, hot chocolate in hand🔥

*I will post this review to my Instagram @cliona_reads in late November*

Catherine Walsh is the author of several fun romance novels, so I was excited to see that she had a new one coming out, entitled "Holiday Romance." This new book centers around Molly and Andrew, both Chicago residents who travel home to Ireland each year for Christmas. After several years of running into each other at the airport, they finally develop a friendship and look forward to these flights each Christmas. Now ten years running, their friendship is starting to go deeper. When their flight home gets canceled due to a huge snowstorm, they have to be creative in their attempts to make it home to Ireland. What's starts with an unexpected kiss under the mistletoe all of a sudden has them both seeing what's been right in front of them this whole time.

Molly and Andrew are so lovable and you just want to root for them. I also really enjoyed the easy rapport and quick humor between the two of them, as well as their easy chemistry. This was a really fun book to read and I greatly enjoyed it! Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

Molly and Andrew are best friends for a few years now. Although they only see each other once a year - on their way from Chicago to Ireland to spend the holidays with their families - they developed a really special friendship.
But then there's this heavy snowstorm on their tenth flight back home... and spending more time together to find a way to celebrate Christmas home can be so confusing... or enlightening?

OH MY GOODNESS!
Reading a Christmas love story in summer sounds like a joke, right?!
BUT IT WAS THE BEST DECISION EVER!
When I read The Rebound by Catherine Walsh I fell in love with her writing style - and of course I HAD TO read Holiday Romance too!
I looooooved this special love story so much! It puts you in a certain and wonderful mood that you never wanna leave... that's why I had to stop myself from devouring this story much faster! I wanted to enjoy every moment of Molly and Andrew's journey.
I felt with them along their way and totally fell in love with them too!
They deal with a lot of things and it's not that easy to travel home when there's this snowstorm!
But thanks to this storm Molly and Andrew have to spend more time together and... awwwwwww!!! Their chemistry! Their hidden attraction to each other!
Sizzling and palpable!
And there's this special friendship! Awwww!

Although Holiday Romance is a really funny and heart-warming romantic comedy, it also deals with more serious themes like recovering from alcoholism.

So all in all I ABSOLUTELY FELL IN LOVE WITH A HOLIDAY ROMANCE IN SUMMER!
PERFECTION!

Thanks a lot to Bookoutore and Catherine Wals for this ARC via NetGalley.
This is my honest review in my own words.

For ten years, Molly Kinsella and Andrew Fitzpatrick have flown home to Ireland from Chicago, USA. While Molly doesn't really care about Christmas and makes a point of buying her sister the worst perfume she can find in duty-free, Andrew is dedicated to the holiday, turning up every year in full festive attire. All of it is their tradition.

Except this year there's a storm making it impossible to take the seven-hour direct flight home. Seeing the devastated look on Andrew, Molly becomes determined to help him get home, even if it will require numerous flights, trains and ferries, a lot of money and very little sleep to do it.

These two have always viewed themselves as friends but now they're forced to question whether that's all they are to each other.

'When this man became my weakness, I do not know. But tonight, it’s like he’s got me wrapped around his little finger.' (21%)

Since her last book, Walsh has transformed from a good contemporary writer to a great one. Following the festive adventures of Molly and Andrew, and looking back on some of their preceding ones, is a heart-warming, ridiculous and delightful experience. It's also funny, really funny, like 'laugh out loud and be told to stop' funny.

The chemistry between the protagonists is clear from the beginning and this joy is shared with the side characters, with everyone feeling like a person you've known for years. This light tone is balanced with deeper, introspective moments, such as Molly poignantly expressing her career doubts in a manner that will resonate with many people reading.

'It was like the shower in my first apartment, warm and normal one second, icy cold splinters the next. Don't get me wrong, it was a relief to finally acknowledge it, but ignorance is bliss, and when my next stage of enlightenment didn't come, when I didn't suddenly realise my passion for salsa dancing or my hidden dream to become an accountant, all I was left with was this sick, twisted feeling in my stomach while two little words echoed in my mind, over and over and over again.
Now what?' (6%)

The original synopsis emphasises the travel for them to get home and the difficulties associated with that, and while this is a key part (the catalyst) of the story, it spans roughly 60% of the book. Initially, this is jarring as one expects these events to take longer. But it's so enjoyable to realise that you get more time with Molly and Andrew- getting to see them after their spark and not feeling rushed. The pair are lovely and it's a treat to continue with their story.

On that point, this book has a sensible epilogue for which I shall be eternally grateful.

I LOVED THIS. I’m a Christmas fanatic and this book put me in the holiday spirit, even though we’re only halfway through August. I normally hate the friends to lovers trope but Catherine Walsh wrote this book so amazingly that this trope didn’t even bother me.

"He grins up at me with those hazel eyes as if I’m the best thing that’s happened to his day. I know he’s the best thing that’s happened to mine."

This one was such an entertaining, heartwarming, lovely and feel-good holiday romance book! I enjoyed it through and through, there was never a dull moment and Andrew & Molly's chemistry just won me over. Molly & Andrew have been friends for over ten years and they somehow develop a tradition of going home to Ireland by a flight together during the Christmas holiday. Although this year, an unforeseen storm disrupts their plans but seeing the disappointment in Andrew's eyes, Molly is determined to somehow get him home so that he could spend the holiday with his family. Throughout the journey, they go through some entertaining situations and we also get to see their equation being slowly developed in the past in some chapters which made me connect with their story even more. Seriously the things they did for each other were so cute and adorable. Andrew was the funny one and Molly was equally his match. Their banter was top-notch and in addition, the side characters were hilarious and well constructed. Especially the back and forth bickerings between the Fitzpatrick siblings and also between Molly and her sister Zoe were very amusing. If you want to pick up a light-hearted, hilarious, friends to lovers book with a magical touch of the holiday feels, this book is undoubtedly the best choice!

“You’re a good friend, you know that?” He eyes me suspiciously. “You need a kidney or something?”

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

I absolutely loved this book. I am a sucker for a good Christmas time romance and this was a great one. The relationship buildup between Molly and Andrew over the last 10 years on their travels home gave such a good understanding of these characters and you can really see just how perfect these two are for each other. Loved the adventure these two went on getting home for Christmas on their 10th year and the stress to making their flight on time, not going to lie I felt a bit stressed out myself that they weren’t going to make it in time. Really enjoyed reading this and will be checking out Catherine’s other books next!

Thank you NetGalley & Bookouture for giving me an ARC copy of this book to read!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this eARC of 'Holiday Romance' by Catherine Walsh.

I wish I could tell you what happened in this book but sadly, I got no clue. All I can tell you is that the MC is called Zoe and she was a pretty lovely MC and I did enjoy the writing of the book but the story felt lost and empty to me personally. Not my cup of tea.

Ich hatte mir nich viel von diesem Weihnachtsliebesroman erwartet, die üblichen Klischees. Aber Cathrine Walsh hat mich mit ihrem heiteren und leichten Schreibstil vom Gegenteil überzeugt. Definitiv eine Autorin, die man sich merken kann! Für Fans von Sophia Kinsella, Jenny Colgan, Mharie Macfarlane, Beth O'Leary.

What a delightful read! I love LOVE friends to lovers and the added mix of traveling home to family AND Christmas made this book speak right to my heart. The characters' falling for each other felt so organic and realistic with just a touch of Christmas romance magic and I am here for it. I am very much looking forward to reading more by Catherine Walsh!

• Holiday Romance
• RomCom
• Friends to Lovers
• Travel
• Ireland

I honestly don’t even know where to start – this is my third Catherine Walsh book and they have all just been amazing. I absolutely loved this one – and I totally binged it in a day, I did not want to put this one down! I’m not usually one to read a holiday / Christmas book in August, but I honestly couldn’t wait to try another by Ms. Walsh – and it did not disappoint, it was everything I could have hoped for.

This book made me feel the holiday cheer (in summer no less!), it gave me all the warm fuzzy, holiday feelings and I found it heartwarming, charming and delightful. Get ready for some cozy blanket and curl up with a hot cocoa vibes when you read.

I loved both Molly and Andrew and I don’t think I can name another book where I enjoyed the whole past / present flashes more. I loved hearing about their annual tradition, and getting a glimpse to each year throughout the book. I thought they were so wonderful together, I’m not even a big fan of the friends to lovers trope really, but I was obsessed with this one. The book definitely brought back flashes of my own worst airport experiences / anxiety, but it was just so good.

A wonderful romcom filled with holiday cheer, that had me laughing, crying (happy tears) and left me smiling and wanting more…perhaps a story for Christian? I would love to see this one as a holiday film adaption too, it really hits all the right notes.

Thank you to Catherine Walsh (who has totally become an autobuy author for me) for this fantastic holiday read and to NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read an early copy. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own and freely offered.

I was so excited to get my hands on this book early and it did not disappoint! Catherine Walsh has become a new auto-buy author for me.

Molly and Andrew's annual tradition of flying home for the holidays together started on a sour note but grew increasingly cuter as the years progress. Not gonna lie, this book gave me some serious airport anxiety, but it was such a sweet relationship between the two main characters and I SWOONED when Andrew rattled off his summary of all of their flights over the past 10 years. I've come to expect top notch banter from Walsh's characters and Molly and Andrew certainly delivered.

A great holiday romcom read for anyone looking for a little cheer!

Ughhhhh I loved this book! Which does not shock me at all because I loved both of her other books so i knew before going into this book that it would already be a 5 star read and it was!

Literally everyone go read this book! It’s giving me friends to lovers and I am HERE FOR IT!!!

I will never stop recommending Catherine Walsh’s books. They are ridiculously underrated and deserve all the love in the world <3

There aren’t many writers who would have me reading a Christmas story in August, but Cat Walsh pulled it off. Her third novel focuses on Molly and Andrew, two Irish emigrants who forge a friendship over the course of ten flights home to Ireland for Christmas. This is, without a doubt, the author’s swooniest and most compelling novel yet.

We first meet Molly and Andrew on the eve of their tenth flight together - which has just been cancelled due to a massive storm. And so begins a massively entertaining (and slightly stressful) jaunt across the world to get home for Christmas - think Catherine O’Hara’s odyssey in Home Alone. Over the course of the trip, Molly and Andrew’s close friendship begins to develop into something more… cue the fireworks.

I could not put this one down. Molly is a hugely relatable and warm character to have as a point-of-view - she’s a hotshot lawyer who is sick of the grind, and this thread of career frustration adds a compelling richness to the character. I found her hilarious; too often I find romantic comedy novels lean too far one way or another, but Walsh has cracked the blend of the two so that it’s equal parts hilarious and hot. Molly does a great job of bringing the humour, and, well, Andrew brings the spice.

Let’s be real here. Andrew Fitzpatrick is HOT - to the point that I wanted to yell at Molly for being so hung up on their friendship. He’s beautiful! He loves his family! He’s obsessed with you! Get it together!

But when they do get it together - spoiler alert, I guess? - it’s so satisfying, the culmination of ten years of close friendship becoming something new. It’s such a gorgeous romance to watch blossom, despite Molly’s own worries and overthinking patterns, it just works. You know when you meet someone in real life and you just click? Holiday Romance is a novel that allows you to immerse yourself in two people doing that exact same thing.

The romance is - obviously - the meat of this story - but the side characters are deeply enjoyable, too. I loved spiky Zoe, Molly’s twin sister, and would read a full length novel about Hannah, Andrew’s younger sister. What an icon. Credit, too, to Walsh for handling a tricky topic - recovery from alcoholism - with a light touch, never feeling heavy handed.

Catherine Walsh has released three books since 2020, and she just keeps getting better - Holiday Romance is her best yet, a fantastically cosy, surprisingly hot, Christmassy romance that I’ll be adding to a lot of stockings come December.