Curated by Ashley Dickson-Ellison (@ashley_dicksonellison)
During this holiday season, we're sharing some holiday books that we've loved and reviewed on the blog. I'm pretty selective when it comes to holiday reads, but I've found over the last couple of years that I do enjoy reading some holiday-specific books as we approach different seasons. Maybe I'll try a couple of the ones below that I haven't read yet!
For each book, I'll share an excerpt from our full review. All of these reviews were written by us, and you can click the links to dive deeper into each book. If you decide to purchase any of the books, our affiliate links to Bookshop.org and Libro.fm are in the full reviews. We earn a small commission if you shop through those links, and we truly appreciate your support!
Jenny Bayliss's A SEASON FOR SECOND CHANCES - Romance at Its Best (Sara's review):
"I just devoured Jenny Bayliss’s new book, A Season for Second Chances. I cannot tell you how much I adored this book. Last year, I reviewed Bayliss’s holiday romance, The Twelve Dates of Christmas, for the blog (see that here), and I really enjoyed that one too.
"In A Season for Second Chances, Annie Sharpe, a successful chef and restaurateur, finds her adulterous husband in a compromising position with one of the staff from the restaurant they run together. This isn’t the first time he has cheated, but it is the first time she has walked in on him with another woman, and it is the straw that breaks the camel’s back." Click to read the full review.
ONCE UPON AN EID - A Beautiful and Sweeping Collection Celebrating the Joy of Eid (Ashley's review):
"I absolutely loved this beautiful collection of short stories, Once Upon an Eid, edited by S. K. Ali (author of Saints and Misfits) and Aisha Saeed (author of Amal Unbound, a podcast favorite!). I listened to this one on audio, and the narration was outstanding!
"This collection is a gorgeous middle-grade work, and it conveys a wide array of different experiences, all of which center on Muslims celebrating Eid. I thoroughly enjoyed the stories in this collection as individual works, but I also really appreciated the way that they functioned together as a whole. They work together by showing just how different the experiences of the characters around the world can be—and yet they are all united by the joy of celebrating Eid, no matter how vastly divergent those experiences might otherwise be." Click to read the full review.
Maggie Knox's THE HOLIDAY SWAP - A Charming Holiday Read (Sara's Review):
"I don’t know about you, but I love a nice, cozy holiday book that I can snuggle up and read with a nice cup of coffee or hot cocoa. The Holiday Swap did not disappoint. This charming tale is about Charlie and Cass, two identical twin sisters whose lives are in need of a little holiday magic.
"Charlie is a well-known television host of a competition baking show. She is vying for a solo hosting gig with her biggest competition being her current co-host and nemesis. Cass works in her family’s bakery in a small town. She is trying to exit a longtime relationship with her boyfriend who is just not getting the hint. So, when Charlie loses her sense of taste and smell because of a freak accident at work, it seems like the perfect time for Cass and Charlie to switch lives just until Cass can secure Charlie the hosting gig." Click to read the full review.
Talia Samuels' THE CHRISTMAS SWAP - A Fun Twist on Fake Dating (Ashley's review):
"What happens when fake dating looks a lot like being a gold digger? Sleuthing and misunderstandings ensue, which brings plenty of amusement, awkward moments, and fun.
"In Talia Samuels' The Christmas Swap, Margot Murray agrees to join one of her clients, Ben Gibson, for a getaway at his family's mansion turned hotel that promises to be luxurious.
"Despite Margot's trepidation, she's on the heels of a very hard breakup with her girlfriend and is dreading her other holiday prospects. When Ben admits that he cannot face another year coming home single and dealing with endless questions from his parents, Margot takes him up on the offer to enjoy a bit of luxury." Click to read the full review.
"Samantha Silva's Mr. Dickens and His Carol is a delightful imagining of how Charles Dickens's iconic Christmas classic, A Christmas Carol, came to be. The story follows Dickens in the weeks before Christmas as he struggles to write a Christmas-themed story to satisfy his publishers, who are dismayed at the dwindling sales of his latest book. As the pressure mounts to meet the Christmas deadline, a cast of recognizable, yet not quite totally familiar characters provide inspiration and at times trepidation for Dickens.
"I thoroughly enjoyed this charming novel. A Christmas Carol is one of my favorite classic fictional Christmas stories. (The Gift of the Magi is my other one!) Samantha Silva's portrayal of the Christmastime streets of London during the 1800s is magical. She writes, "The air smelled like it had hailed nutmeg and snowed cinnamon." Be still my heart. Her skill in transporting me from 2020 in the rural U.S. to the London streets of Dickens's time is considerable. The smells, the sights—all of the sensory details assist in creating this lovely setting." Click to read the full review.
(A note to our readers: click on the hashtags above to see our other blog posts with the same hashtag.)
Interested in what else we're reading? Check out our Featured Books page.
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