One Big Happy Family by Susan Mallery Published by Harlequin on October 1, 2024
Genres: Fiction / Family Life / Marriage & Divorce, Fiction / Family Life / Siblings, Fiction / Holidays, Fiction / Romance / Contemporary, Fiction / Romance / Holiday
Pages: 320
Format: ARC, eBook, Paperback
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Susan Mallery, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Boardwalk Bookshop, returns with the joyful and utterly irresistible story of a mother who couldn't love her kids more but hopes that, just this once, they please don't come home for Christmas. Perfect for fans of Mary Kay Andrews and Julie Murphy!
Julie Parker’s kids are her greatest gift. Still, she’s not exactly heartbroken when they ask to skip a big Christmas. Her son, Nick, is taking a belated honeymoon with his bride, Blair, while her daughter, Dana, will purge every reminder of the guy who dumped her. Again. Julie feels practically giddy for one-on-one holiday time with Heath, the (much) younger man she’s secretly dating.
But her plans go from cozy to chaotic when Nick and Dana plead for Christmas at the family cabin in memory of their late father, Julie’s ex. She can’t refuse, even though she dreads their reactions to her new man when they realize she’s been hiding him for months.
As the guest list grows in surprising ways, from Blair’s estranged mom to Heath’s precocious children, Julie’s secret is one of many to be unwrapped. Over this delightfully complicated and very funny Christmas, she’ll discover that more really is merrier, and that a big, happy family can become bigger and happier, if they let go of old hurts and open their hearts to love.
One Big Happy Family is a great holiday read which will have you laughing at times, crying from the heartache, and hoping that it won’t end. ~ Amanda – Simply Love Books
What could be more entertaining than a holiday for two going to 10+ in a matter of days? Julie Parker had plans to spend Christmas with her much younger boyfriend, which she’s been keeping secret from her adult children. Now her adult children, Dana and Nick, want to have Christmas together one more time at the family cabin to honor their late father. Before she knows it, Nick’s mother-in-law, uncle-in-law, are coming, her boyfriend’s young children, and a few other surprises. That means she needs to come clean about Heath and come to terms with her dating a younger man in her own mind. Secrets have a way of coming out when you least expect them, especially around the holidays. This story has it all and some much-needed healing for the broken hearted.
One Big Happy Family is a great holiday read which will have you laughing at times, crying from the heartache, and hoping that it won’t end. Julie Parker is truly an amazing individual who can open her heart and home to strangers for the holidays, and show you that no one should be alone at Christmas. She’s a force of nature and I love a strong woman who knows how to make a holiday into a wonderful holiday spectacle. It goes a little bit sideways when secrets are revealed and the past hurts need to be reconciled once and for all. Susan Mallery is a talented writer and she can tell a holiday story like no other. There are multiple storylines weaving together and they all get equal attention and resolution. I adore her storytelling and it was such a fantastic read.