When Julie and Heath's plans for a peaceful Christmas getaway are unexpectedly disrupted by Julie's adult children, Nick and Dana, the holiday season takes a chaotic turn.

Nick and Dana, still reeling from the loss of their father earlier in the year, want to spend Christmas at the cabin with Julie to celebrate his memory. Julie, who had a good relationship with her ex-husband, is initially open to the idea, but things become complicated when she realizes her children are unaware of her new and younger boyfriend, Heath. To make matters more complicated, Julie doesn't want Heath to spend Christmas alone, as his kids are spending the holiday with his ex-wife.

As a result, Julie, Heath, Dana, Nick, and Nick's new wife, Blair, embark on a festive adventure to the cabin. However, the group's numbers quickly swell as a long-time employee, Heath's kids, Blair's mom, Heath's ex-wife, and Dana's ex-boyfriend join the mix. With so many personalities and relationships in the mix, it's only a matter of time before things start to go awry.

You will enjoy this fun Christmas novel that is full of twists and truths!

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin for a chance to read an advance copy in exchange for my opinion.

If you love family drama books, Mallery is the go-to author for these types of stories.

I’ve read so many of her works and they always leave you with a smile on your face even though you’ve been through the ups and downs any family goes through.

Whether it’s growing pains or happy times, Mallery is an expert storyteller in this genre. One Big Happy Family is all about a quiet Christmas that explodes into crazy situations.

From adults to children, ex-wives, and new loves (and don’t forget the dog) we experience a wild, wacky holiday. We are loading up on a bit of drama, a lot of love, happiness, and a few tears as the author takes us on an unforgettable storybook holiday in the perfect cabin we can only dream about. Building memories that are expected, and some unexpected too.

This book is a wonderful escape from the day-to-day as we dive into a delightful story of family ties with stand-out characters and locales. Wild and crazy with great dynamics!

(3.5) If you're looking for a Christmas story that makes you feel like you're living day by day at a wintery cabin with family and friends — and all the drama that comes with it — then One Big Happy Family is for you. A very relatable aspect of this book is how plans can snowball from cozy to chaotic before we even know what hit us. But just like Julie Parker, one of the main characters and matriarch of the family, we can do our best to take it all in with grace.

Most characters are well-introduced with their own distinct personalities, which makes it very easy to imagine a sequel or spinoff centered around any of the characters. There were some characterizations that seemed exaggerated and exasperating — for example, Gwen's lack of social awareness but sudden character shift 3/4 of the way through, or Julie's obsession with the age gap between her and her boyfriend, Heath. One character who really deserved more development and justice was Dana, from her self-image concerns to the sudden development with her untrustworthy ex-boyfriend, Axel (to avoid spoilers, I will not say more). Hopefully, if there ever is a sequel, it can offer deeper development into each character.

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Thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing who provided this ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Every family has dramas especially around Christmas time. This somewhat described that and it’s a cute Hallmarky movie!

Susan Mallery is one of my favorite authors. I’m glad she writes so fast. I really enjoyed this book. I hope I am able to read other advanced copies of her future works.

I enjoyed this book quite a bit and would love to see it turned into a series or even a second installment when they all get back together again. The characters were interesting to get to know and they all have things going in their life that I would like to follow. The only reason it did not get a 5 star from me is because some of the Christmas events/fun were glossed over. When I read a Christmas book I want to have all of the warm Christmas feelings and I feel like this could have taken place at a Summer getaway without very many things needing changed.

Thank you NetGalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to read this book.

Christmas is coming, and 54-year-old Julie Parker is looking forward to spending two weeks with her much younger boyfriend, Heath. But when her two adult children, Dana and Nick, want to spend the holiday at the family's 6000-square-foot "cabin" in memory of their recently deceased father (Julie's ex), she can't say no. Little does she know that ultimately there will be a dozen or more people--family and others--living together for 10 days. And most of them have issues.

Julie hasn't told her children about Heath. Dana is still recuperating from her third (!) breakup with Axel, an employee at Julie's towing company. Nick is recently married to Blair, whose long-estranged mother suddenly moves nearby and manages to alienate everyone, and he hasn't told his mother he doesn't want to take over the family's towing company. Heath's ex-wife wants to go on a vacation with her boyfriend, so their two young children also need a place to spend Christmas. And that's just the beginning!

Even with the many featured characters, Mallery does an expert job at making each one distinct, detailed, and even relatable. And most of them undergo significant development during that 10-day period. Are things tied up too neatly at the end? Possibly, but I wouldn't have wanted it any other way. This is a Christmas-adjacent book, but it's really all about family dynamics and what really matters. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

My thanks to Harlequin Trade Publishing/Canary Street Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and provide an honest review of this book.

A fun Christmas read from Ms. Mallery. I enjoyed all the characters in this book and the relationships between the couples and watching them change. Take Julie and Heath, Nick and Blair, Dana and Axel and their relationships, throw in Blair's mother Gwen (who's a bit of a curmudgeon in the beginning), Heath's ex, their two kids and dog and several other characters all gathering in a cabin for Christmas and sit back and enjoy the ride as you read through this one. It all adds up to a wonderful Christmas for everyone, at least in the end. Pick this one up asap, you won't be sorry.

Wow,, this boom has it all. I wondered how it could have so much going on and fit it into one book but she did and she didn't leave a single thing out.
I highly recommend this book.

One Big Happy Family was the latest and cutest rom-com by Susan Mallery! In it, we find Julie Parker getting ready to enjoy a quiet low-key holiday season with the younger man that she was dating in secret. Her plans got upended at the last minute when her two adult children sprang their plans of a family Christmas at their family cabin on her, assuming that she would love to be with them as they all grieved the passing of her ex-husband, their father that year.

What was assumed to be a gathering of only 4-5 people quickly grows and grows, as Julie brings her date, Heath, and his two kids and their dog Rufus. And then, circumstances change, and suddenly, there are 11 set to stay for the holiday week together.

Life got out of control, in the best way, and a lot of healing, loving, bonding, and great memories were made for all of them, even for the grinch, Gwen.

But can Julie ever get over Heath’s age? Will she be pushed over the edge and break up with him, like she has done with her past relationships?

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this wonderful ARC!!

One Big Happy Family by Susan Mallery gives giggles on family drama and Christmas time fun. The characters and story pull you in and make you feel being right there and involved. Thank you Net Galley for my advance read! Highly recommend this during the holidays. #OneBigHappyFamily #SusanMallery #NetGalley

This is a wonderful holiday read about family, friendships & letting go. This reminds me of a Hallmark Christmas movie! Full of fun, chaos (I will never think of a fresh Christmas tree the same way again!!), food, family & "talking it out", One Big Happy Family made me laugh, cry & cringe!

I love this author and I love the way she tells a story. Just enough juiciness to keep it interesting, without going down a rabbit hole.

Julie’s attempt to have a simple, quiet Christmas with her boyfriend quickly spirals out of control in this heartwarming tale about the power of family and friendship.

Not to sound cliche, but I laughed, teared up a little, and then laughed some more. Seriously, it’s a rare thing for me to laugh out loud while reading a book, but I did multiple times while reading this one.

Sometimes, in books with so large a collection of characters, some characters can seem extraneous. No so, in this case - they all seemed well defined and purposeful. I’d also like to commend the author for ratcheting up the tension of each plot line without making the book feel stressful and maintaining a lighter tone. If I have any complaints at all, it’s that the ending felt somewhat abrupt. It’s always sad when a good book comes to an end, but especially so when the end feels sudden.

Thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin for the advanced reader copy of this book, provided in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion.

One Big Happy Family by Susan Mallery This heartwarming holiday story is filled with humor, family drama, chaos, romance, Christmas traditions, and surprises. The characters are wonderful and the story highlights the complexity of families, how they handle their personal issues and the joy and love they bring to the holiday season. Highly recommended.

Thank you to the author, NetGalley and Harlequin Publishing- Canary Street Press for the opportunity to preview the book.

"One Big Happy Family" by Susan Mallery is such a wonderful story of family. Julie is an amazing organizer and loves to be in control. Julie wanted a smaller more intimate Christmas with her younger boyfriend. However, what she gets is totally different and she opens her home and heart to many. Julie also has to give up her control due some circumstances and she has a hard time relinquishing the control. I loved this story and the characters. Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC>

Has Susan Mallory ever written a book you didn’t love? Well this is another well written story that brings you right in. You won’t be disappointed when you choose this one!

Such an interesting and challenging title for a book, but as usual Susan Mallery delivers an amazing tale of a family that is exponentially increasing right before our eyes. People are popping out of the proverbial woodwork right into the midst of a Christmas gathering of an amazing family. The mother Julie and her adult children Dana and Nick are the core characters of the Parker family. All have hearts of gold and as would be considered usual a habit of bickering amongst themselves. This would be their first holiday season without their father. Hence the need to be together at the family cabin, and I use that term very loosely. Of course Nicks new bride Blair is also there. As is Julie’s new boyfriend Heath.

But the fun really starts when characters with connection to various members of this family start popping up, or should I say in. I guarantee that you will have random moments when you laugh aloud, after all it is a work of literary art by one of the best. And of course there will be tender moments that will reach out to your heart making each character so real.

ONE BIG HAPPY FAMILY is built around a smorgasbord of characters. Each is an essential element of the story. As with any family tale there is angst, regret, tempered with sass, humor, devotion and love. Some of the absolute best conversations. I especially love Julie and just about any object of her attention going at it. I would include an example of any one of a slew of exchanges but that would spoil your fun. Suffice it to say, ONE BIG HAPPY FAMILY is a joyous romp by the prolific, imaginative, enormously talented Susan Mallery. Definitely add this to your must-read list. It’s a gift from Susan Mallery, her way of saying have a happy holiday - whatever that might be for you.

Thanks so much for the opportunity to read One Big Happy Family by Susan Mallery, an author I can count on. This was a perfect book for me.

I always enjoy reading Susan Mallery's Christmas novels, and her latest, One Big Happy Family, did not disappoint! This heartwarming story revolves around Julie Parker and her family, both immediate and extended, as they come together unexpectedly for a big Christmas gathering. With so many different personalities mixing, I found myself laughing out loud and cringing in equal measure. As someone who grew up in a large blended family, I found this novel hilariously relatable. I finished reading this book in one sitting, and I highly recommend it to everyone during the holiday season. One Big Happy Family is a 5-star book that I will be rereading in December!