Holiday Romance by Catherine Walsh: Book Review

Holiday Romance is a fun romance about two people who travel together from Chicago to Dublin each year over the course of a decade. I really enjoyed it!

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From The Publisher:

Molly and Andrew are just trying to get home to Ireland for the holidays, when a freak snowstorm grounds their flight.

Nothing romantic has ever happened between them: they’re friends and that’s all. But once a year, for the last ten years, Molly has spent seven hours and fifteen minutes sitting next to Andrew on the last flight before Christmas from Chicago to Dublin, drinking terrible airplane wine and catching up on each other’s lives. In spite of all the ways the two friends are different, it’s the holiday tradition neither of them has ever wanted to give up.

Molly isn’t that bothered by Christmas, but—in yet another way they’re total opposites—Andrew is a full-on fanatic for the festive season and she knows how much getting back to Ireland means to him. So, instead of doing the sane thing and just celebrating the holidays together in America, she does the stupid thing. The irrational thing. She vows to get him home. And in time for his mam’s famous Christmas dinner.

The clock is ticking. But Molly always has a plan. And—as long as the highly-specific combination of taxis, planes, boats, and trains all run on time—it can’t possibly go wrong.

What she doesn’t know is that, as the snow falls over the city and over the heads of two friends who are sure they’re not meant to be together, the universe might just have a plan of its own…

Book Review:

I enjoy books that show how a relationship progresses over time and Holiday Romance does it well. What begins as two young adults heading back to their homes in Ireland for Christmas end with a whirlwind adventure as the two make the journey home despite plenty of obstacles.

The book is told in alternating then and now time frames. Molly comes from a family where Christmas isn’t any special but she makes the effort each year to spend time with family. Andrew’s family, on the other hand, celebrates the season in a big way. Molly realizes the importance of getting Andrew home for Christmas Day and goes all out to get him there.

What is normally a single transatlantic flight turns into a wild adventure involving many modes of transportation over several continents and multiple days. It is on this journey that the two realize how their relationship has evolved. But would they risk this friendship in the hopes of something much more?

There are some very romantic moments and plenty of humour as the reader is invited to watch this relationship flourish. I loved how the families knew of their friendship and welcomed them like they’d known them a long time despite never having met them. Both of the protagonists are highly likeable and I couldn’t help but cheer this relationship on. Those of you who love older romantic comedies like Sleepless in Seattle will particularly enjoy this story.

I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys romance, particularly with a holiday setting.

What I Liked:

• The alternating then and now time frames
• The ability to observe this relationship grown over the course of a decade
• The emphasis on family within a romance novel

Acknowledgments:

Thank you to Bookouture and Netgalley for the eARC of this book in exchange for this honest review.

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