Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for the ARC of Holly Jolly July.

I have to admit that it took me a few chapters to really get into this book, but once I did, I had a great time reading this story. I especially enjoyed the development of Ellie and Mariah’s relationship. That progression of going from mere co-workers to friends and then more was nicely done and didn’t feel forced as it sometimes can in these types of novels.

The book contains Interstitials that show us the script of the holiday movie that is being filmed. At first, the Interstitials seemed to get in the way of the main storyline of the book, and I was annoyed by their presence although once I started nearing the later chapters, these sections actually added to our understanding of the main storyline between Ellie and Mariah, as well as give a different perspective on what Ellie’s role in the move actually was because that role was much more significant than she was giving herself credit for.

Holly Jolly July was a fun and sometimes emotional ride where I rooted for these opposites to attract and get the love story they deserved, as well as the careers that they could truly shine in.

Solid read. Great bisexual representation, and I enjoyed the revenge plot. I love a grumpy vs sunshine relationship, so I enjoyed the dynamic between the two female MCs. There are both MF and FF spicy scenes. I am not a fan of the MF scenes, but can't fault the other for including good bisexual representation!

In the beginning this book didn't have me, I was a little too annoyed by Ellie and was only invested in Mariah and Jax's storyline. But then EVERYTHING CHANGED with that freaking plot twist! I'm not going to spoil anything but wow. I think the marketing is a little shady but I'm not mad about it. I'm glad I kept reading because the more I read the more Ellie grew on me. She's not my favorite character but I do understand how/why Mariah fell for her. The setting was adorable and I liked that the characters had their own depth. I also really loved the fact that we got to see the script for the movie that Ellie was acting in, between every few chapters. And of course, it mirrored their lives as art typically does.

I love watching the hallmark movie marathons in the summer, so I was excited to see that this book existed & was sapphic! Though, unfortunately, the book ended up falling flat for me.

This book does deliver spice - but I was genuinely shocked when shortly into the book that there was spice that was not sapphic. In seeing the title I didn’t think that would happen. Both (? at least one) of the fmc are bisexual, but I didn’t realize that until reading.

The plot follows two women who are working on the set of a Christmas movie during the summer. They both end up hooking up with the same guy & when they realize they start “Home Alone” level pranks on the man to punish him and develop feelings for each other in the process.

It is dual point of view but when the point of view switches suddenly the other fmc feels really 2D and shallow? genuinely I did not like one of the fmc through the others eyes.

There are a few scenes where I feel like the book is poking fun at what typical straight romances do (especially in regard to spice) & there are discussions between the characters regarding this. But then later in the book they do that anyway?

The chapters are broken up by the cheesy script scenes from the movie being shot & at one point I looked forward to that plot line more than the main one (until the end where I didn’t like that one either).

Overall, I think the book is fine. It’s not a bad read but I didn’t find myself invested in the characters & the dual point of view didn’t help it at all for me.

3 stars.

Thank you so much to @netgalley and @harlequinbooks for giving me an ARC of this lovely Christmas romance story! @lindsay.maple.author this brought joy to me during the right and wrong time of year! This story is set in July in a small town in Canada where a fuck boy brings two women together as they get revenge on him. There is good spice and great romance in this small town romance. The main characters Ellie and Mariah both are flawed and wholesome in their journey for revenge and love. The ending had me annoyed briefly but ended the way it should have. Overall I give it ⭐️3.75/5 ⭐️ and highly recommend.

Holly Jolly July follows the story of Mariah and Ellie who are complete opposites and are stuck working together on a film set of a cozy holiday movie. This book was the perfect rom-com and had me wishing for my own Christmas-in-July miracle!

Reading this book felt like Christmas morning!

Spicy: two peppers

Thank you Canary Street Press, Harlequin Trade Publishing, Lindsay Maple, and NetGalley for this eARC. I am voluntarily leaving a review, and all thoughts are honest and my own.

This novel had an interesting premise for me. Two women, Ellie and Mariah, are working together on a Christmas movie. They each find this seemingly great guy that they're dating. The twist? They find out they're seeing the same guy, and that guy is cheating on them with the other woman! Naturally, they want to get some sweet, sweet revenge on this cheater. Along the way, these two women, opposites in many ways, start to become friends, and maybe something more.

This book has a lot of Christmas references, as seen by the title, "Holly Jolly July". This story starts out with the two women as co-workers. One is a chipper, chatty actress who LOVES Christmas! The other is a grouchy makeup artist who is NOT a fan of Christmas. I appreciate the fact that the two women team up to prank the guy once they found out that he was two-timing on them. I also really enjoyed seeing the shift from dislike to friendship between the two characters. The second third of the book was where the chemistry between our leads really took off, at least for me!

That being said, there were some things I wasn't a fan of. I personally wished that the F/F romance had had more time to develop, as the romance seems to have developed within two to three weeks, a very short amount of time. I also wish that we had seen more of the characters' pasts rather than just being told. For example, Mariah and her mother have had a strained relationship. Yet when we see Mariah's mother, we only see her trying to make amends. It would've been nice to have had a reference to an argument between the two, rather than just being told that the two had argued about certain things.

Even with these issues, I still found this book to be an enjoyable read, especially once Ellie and Mariah decided to team up! There were times where readers were able to see the plot of the movie being filmed, which I found to be a complement to the main plot. Both Ellie and Mariah were able to grow as characters for the better within their relationship, which is something I enjoy seeing. Specifically, Ellie learned that it's okay to be sad, and Mariah learned that it's okay to be vulnerable and honest in relationships. Both characters are bisexual, Mariah having known for awhile, and Ellie having discovered this withing the story. I enjoyed seeing a couple of twists near the end, as well. Lastly, the plans to prank the two-timer were ultimately harmless, and I enjoyed seeing the conclusion of the pranking plot.

Fans of Christmas, Christmas novels, revenge plots, co-workers romances, dislike to lovers, grumpy x sunshine, lots of spice, and a story within a story should give this novel a chance.

Note: this book for those who like both M/F and F/F spice. The M/F spice is in the first third of the book, and the F/F spice and chemistry are in the rest of the book.

A feel good story with multiple twists, laugh out loud moments and genuine human dialog.
This was a good book, and I liked the building of the characters, the little moments that snowballed (yes Christmas pun) into the big story.
I found the small roadblocks the characters faced were realistic, handled well, and navigated in a way that seemed like people would actually handle them.
This is a great way to move into an LGBTQIA+ book without a lot of fear, the details were approached in a way that was not overwhelming, or overly detailed for those new to same sex intimate moments.

This was a playful and spicy romance with a ton of heart and humor. Set against a well-drawn film industry backdrop, it delivers both on drama, hijinks, and fluttery feels.

I loved the dynamic between the grumpy bi lead with a complicated past and the sunshine-y character who is her total opposite. They start off bristling with tension but by the halfway point, they're catching feelings and I was cheering them on.

There were so many spicy scenes in ALL flavors. I skipped past some that weren't for me, but appreciated the sex positivity and bi for bi rep. Highly recommended for a lighthearted, steamy, emotionally satisfying summer read! I've recommended this one already to friends who can handle the heat level.

the way this was so good and cute and adorable and laugh out loud funny. definitely would recommend for a romance reader!

Thank you to Lindsay Maple and Harlequin Trade Publishing for the gifted copy. All opinions are my own.

Oh yall I absolutely loved this book! A Christmas feeling sapphic romance perfect for the beach?! I'm in heaven! First we meet Ellie, who's giving strong always the bridesmaid never the bride energy right out the gate. Pigeonholed as a Christmas movie supporting actress who strongly believes in method acting, she's living her best Christmas life in the dead of summer. Think watching Home Alone with a cup of hot cocoa under the Christmas tree with the AC on high.

And Mariah. A snarky makeup artist trying to find her big break in the movie makeup biz, and just so happens to be back home in her small town to shoot said Christmas movie. She's bringing all the black cat/grumpy vibes and I love her for it. After finding out they're both dating the same guy, they come up with a plan of revenge. Hijinks ensue, and sparks fly. This was one of the best sapphic romances I've read in awhile! The banter. The storyline. The spicy scenes! After such a strong debut, Maple is going places. I'm just glad to be along for the ride!

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟/5

first of all, thank you to netgalley and the author for letting me read this book in advance in exchange for an honest review.

i was very excited to read a bi4bi book that was sapphic, so i jumped into it very happily! i love a good grumpy x sunshine trope, and the fact that they were teaming up against a fuckboy made it much sweeter.
i liked how ellie and mariah grow during the events of the book, how they feed off of each other and learn how to become the best version of themselves; but (this might be my mariah side jumping out) the speed with which they develop feelings for each other felt like it was a bit too much, and the epilogue was a bit too cheesy for me.

overall it was a fun, lighthearted read and there's nothing wrong with that!

Thank you to NetGalley, Harlequin Trade Publishing and Canary Street Press for this E-Arc. All opinions are my own.

Holly Jolly July was such a such a great beach read! We meet Ellie who is a supporting actress in a Christmas movie being shot in a small town. A bubbly Christmas movie veteran who's never been the leading actress, she tries her best and absolutely loves the holiday. Working makeup is Mariah who is back in her hometown after a few years away. She is trying to break into the movie world and brings the black cat energy.

Going into the story I was curious on how everything would be handled. The answer is funnily and in a cute way. Mariah and Ellie find out their crushes are cheating on them and hijinks ensue bringing them together. I thought the spice scenes were well done and I appreciate their candor with each and other and communication through the book. Communication is a major theme in this book with many situations being resolved in a believable way. I appreciated the ending and was cheering during the epilogue.

I recommend this book this book if your looking for bi-girl energy and want a fun read of two girls letting their revenge plot help find who they are along the way.

This book is a great little summer escape and perfect for those of us that read holiday romances in the summer. Our leads have fantastic chemistry and their banter is so sweet. I absolutely love how their initial friendship is set up without developing into competition. I eagerly await to see what Lindsay Maple writes next.

very well written romance with some good vibes but the script excerpts in the middle were a little bit meh. 4 stars. tysm for the arc.

This was like an LGBTQ+ Hallmark movie, or a fun, cheesy romcom, which was perfect for pool reading! Mariah and Ellie meet on a small town movie set, where Ellie is trying to be the best supporting actress ever and Mariah just wants to do make-up anywhere else. They soon connect over a shared problem and work to solve that problem while also getting to know each other in fun and silly and real ways. This was sweet and fun!

Wow! An unexpected love for me; but i mean the classic holiday lover x grinch who fall in love (and make it sapphic?!). What isn’t to love! While this isn’t holiday centered in terms of the time of year, we have two characters who meet creating a holiday movie in the middle of summer, falling in love the most perfect way. This is spicy, sweet and overall a great time with characters who progressed in a realistic way; while giving us all the laugh, tears and moments to be giddy.

I wanted to like this book. I wanted to feel the holiday cheer! Instead, all I wanted to put it down and DNF it. The story is a bit disjointed, in that I wasn’t sure who I was supposed to root for until nearly 200 pages into the book. Mariah is unlikeable, and Ellie is insufferable. And putting them together just didn’t feel right. There was soooo much dialogue around “Does she like me?”, but not enough around the side story with Mariah’s parents, her obvious baggage, and Ellie’s own past experiences. Even the spicey scenes weren’t enough to save the plot. My favorite part was the movie script - where is that book?

Book Review: Holly Jolly July by Lindsay Maple

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins for this advanced copy!

Set on a Christmas movie set in Chilliwack, this rom-com follows Ellie, a bubbly method actor, and Mariah, a horror-loving makeup artist. Their personalities clash at first, but things get interesting when they realize they’ve both been seeing the same man—Jax, aka Matt. Cue the hilarious revenge plot!

As sparks fly between Ellie and Mariah, they navigate new feelings, past heartbreaks, and family tensions. Packed with humor, heart, and holiday magic, Holly Jolly July is a fun, well-written sapphic romance that’s equal parts sweet and spicy.

Before I get into my review of “Holly Jolly July”, I’d like to thank NetGalley and Canary Street Press for the eARC!

Sometimes you just need to read a Christmas(-ish?) book in the middle of March. This book was so funny, it had me laughing out loud in the middle of a coffee shop.

Ellie and Mariah, the duo that finds out they’re sleeping with the same man, decide to get “Home Alone” level revenge on the man.

This book was seriously a blast, sweet and spicy and also had its fair share of emotional moments.

I will recommend this book to anyone who will listen. I hope to read more from Lindsay Maple in the future!