Hannah’s Holiday Fiction Round-Up

Season’s Greetings! The holidays are upon us, and with them, all sorts of new holiday fiction for 2023: romances, mysteries, and thrillers (I still consider Die Hard a holiday film). Want to dive in but don’t know where to begin? Check out these hot titles to kick off your winter TBR!

Three Holidays and a Wedding by Uzma Jalaluddin and Marissa Stapley

Considered by Carley Fortune to be “the most festive book you’ll read this year,” Three Holidays and a Wedding is three times the holiday magic and three times the holiday mess. Seatmates and strangers Maryam Aziz and Anna Gibson find themselves pouring out their deepest secrets to one another as severe turbulence to Toronto leads to an emergency landing, stranding them, Maryam’s sister’s entire bridal party, and Maryam’s long-time crush Saif in a scenic inn. As Anna starts to feel the magic of being snowbound with a surprising new love, with Maryam find the courage to tell Raif how she really feels? With romance, family antics and a snowy scene, this book is sure to please!

You Make It Feel Like Christmas by Toni Shiloh

Next up, we have a sweet inspirational holiday romance with family drama mixed at the center. As if going home for the holidays jobless and single wasn’t bad enough, Starr Lewis is dragged into a holiday season full of activities leading up to her sister’s Christmas Eve wedding…to Starr’s ex-boyfriend. But when her brother’s best friend, Waylon Emmerson, attends their family Thanksgiving, she starts to wonder if maybe coming home for Christmas isn’t so bad after all. With the holidays fast approaching, Starr must decide what she wants out of life after the gifts are unwrapped and the ornaments are put away. A wholesome novella from award-winning Christian contemporary romance author Toni Shiloh!

The Ex-Mas Holidays by Zoe Allison

For our third pick comes this second chance, enemies to lovers, winter romance! For a recently laid-off Maya Bashir, the only thing worse about having to move back home for the holidays is taking a temporary job as a ski instructor working alongside Sam Holland, who dumped her on the slopes eight years ago. But between Sam’s side hustle as a “naked butler” or Maya’s ongoing career battle with her father, the two realize that their reason for heartbreak so many years ago wasn’t entirely as it seemed. If you’re looking for something witty and wintery but not overly holiday-centric, this may be the romance for you!

The Christmas Appeal by Janice Hallett

Let’s end our list of festive reads with an immersive holiday caper from Janice Hallett. Hallett, known for such mysteries as The Appeal and The Twyford Code, has brought a novella perfect for some seasonal sleuthing. It’s Christmastime in Lower Lockwood, and the Fairway Players theatre group have their hands full with rehearsals, rivalries, and a dead body on stage. Who had the victim on their naughty list? Find out with lawyers Femi and Charlotte as they pour through police reports as they’re pouring out eggnog – a fast and fun hunt for the killer as can be!

There are plenty of more holiday titles to go around; see some honorary mentions below!

Need more recommendations, or wondering what other delights lay in store in our Holiday collection? Stop by the Reference Desk at either of our locations or go online to cooklib.org/bookies to receive your own personalized reading list! And don’t forget to check our library newsletter for all sorts of great events to keep you reading all season long.