10 Holiday Books To Help You Get Into The Christmas Spirit
You’re probably already watching Hallmark movies on repeat — but you should get some reading in this holiday season, too! These books are perfect to read while you’re sipping hot cocoa by the fire:
1. One Day In December by Josie Silver
“Laurie is pretty sure love at first sight doesn’t exist anywhere but the movies. But then, through a misted-up bus window one snowy December day, she sees a man who she knows instantly is the one. Their eyes meet, there’s a moment of pure magic… and then her bus drives away.
Certain they’re fated to find each other again, Laurie spends a year scanning every bus stop and cafe in London for him. But she doesn’t find him, not when it matters anyway. Instead they ‘reunite’ at a Christmas party, when her best friend Sarah giddily introduces her new boyfriend to Laurie. It’s Jack, the man from the bus.”
2. A Christmas Promise by Mary Balogh
“Weddings are supposed to be joyous occasions—especially when a couple seems as well matched as Randolph Pierce, Earl of Falloden, and his bride-to-be, Eleanor Transome. Ellie brings to the marriage a vast dowry, while Falloden, though distant, is handsome, tremendously desirable, and possessed of a title most young ladies can only dream of sharing.
Yet Ellie is not most young ladies. She knows that she must honor her dear father’s dying wish for her to wed the proud earl, but she dreads a lifetime in a union without love—and how can Falloden claim to love her when he married her only for her fortune? As Christmas descends upon the Falloden manor, the warmth of the season may yet melt away the trappings of duty and wealth, leaving behind only a man and a woman destined for each other’s arms.”
3. Tangled Up In Christmas by Lisa Renee Jones
“I haven’t been back to Sweetwater, Texas, in years but somehow, here I am―back where it all started. I’m still trying to figure out how. And of course, I don’t even make it out of the airport before I run into my ex―the entire reason why I left Sweetwater in the first place.
Horse wrangler Roarke Frost’s shoulders are just as broad as I remember, that crooked smile of his still in place, and my heart is melting like chocolate in the sizzling Texas sun. Stupid heart. But worse, we’re supposed to play nice together to pull off a Christmas festival in record time, which is the key to launching my new business.
Now we’re working side by side to save injured animals, setting up a bid-on-a-cowboy auction, and he’s pushing for a second chance. But I know he’s still keeping a secret that could tear us apart if I give him an inch.
I’ll definitely need to dodge the spiked eggnog if I want to stay tangled up in Christmas, and not tangled up in Roarke again…”
4. Catching Christmas by Terri Blackstock
“As a first-year law associate, Sydney Batson knows she will be updating her resume by New Year’s if she loses her current case. So when her grandmother gets inexplicably ill while she’s in court, Sydney arranges for a cab to get her to the clinic.
The last thing cab driver Finn Parrish wants is to be saddled with a wheelchair-bound old lady with dementia. But because Miss Callie reminds him of his own mother, whom he failed miserably in her last days, he can’t say no when she keeps calling him for rides. Once a successful gourmet chef, Finn’s biggest concern now is paying his rent, but half the time Callie doesn’t remember to pay him. And as she starts to feel better, she leads him on wild-goose chases to find a Christmas date for her granddaughter.
When Finn meets Sydney, he’s quite sure she’s never needed help finding a date. Does Miss Callie have an ulterior motive, or is this just a mission driven by delusions? He’s willing to do whatever he can to help fulfill Callie’s Christmas wish. He just never expected to be a vital part of it.”
5. Twelve Days Of Christmas by Debbie Macomber
“Friendly and bubbly, Julia Padden likes nearly everyone, but her standoffish neighbor, Cain Maddox, presents a particular challenge. No matter how hard she’s tried to be nice, Cain rudely rebuffs her at every turn, preferring to keep to himself. But when Julia catches Cain stealing her newspaper from the lobby of their apartment building, that’s the last straw. She’s going to break through Cain’s Scrooge-like exterior the only way she knows how: by killing him with kindness.
To track her progress, Julia starts a blog called The Twelve Days of Christmas. Her first attempts to humanize Cain are far from successful. Julia brings him homemade Christmas treats and the disagreeable grinch won’t even accept them. Meanwhile, Julie’s blog becomes an online sensation, as an astonishing number of people start following her adventures. Julia continues to find ways to express kindness and, little by little, chips away at Cain’s gruff façade to reveal the caring man underneath. Unbelievably, Julia feels herself falling for Cain—and she suspects that he may be falling for her as well. But as the popularity of her blog continues to grow, Julia must decide if telling Cain the truth about having chronicled their relationship to the rest of the world is worth risking their chance at love.”
6. All He Wants For Christmas by Lizzie Shane
“Be careful what you wish for…
Heartthrob Ty Walker always gets what he wants. So when he announces on a press tour that he’s ready to give up his playboy ways and start a family, he’s confident the universe will provide him with the fairy tale future he’s envisioned – and completely unprepared to come home a week before Christmas to find an eleven-year-old girl sitting on his doorstep with a note claiming she’s his daughter.
Ty has never been on close terms with responsibility, but even his oh-so-capable assistant can’t wave her magic wand and fix this one for him – not when she’s about to fly home for the holidays for a family wedding.
Taking her movie star boss and his potential daughter home for Christmas isn’t on any of Andi Cooper’s carefully crafted agendas. She knows Ty is nothing more than an overgrown child who uses his heart-melting smile to get away with murder and she’s immune to that smile…until she sees it on the face of a vulnerable little girl.
Clement, Minnesota, here they come.
But when they arrive in her small town, Andi begins to see a different side of her boss. Could there be more to the playboy than she thought? Could he actually become a good father? And could a movie star really be interested in his glamour-less assistant?
Could they actually become the family he was wishing for all along?”
7. The Party by Mona Ingram
“He’s the town’s most eligible bachelor. But he’s more than that… much more.
Exhausted after catering a high-profile company Christmas party, Paige accepts an invitation to relax with the man in charge of the clean-up crew. He’s handsome and intelligent, but most of all he’s a good listener. When they say goodnight, she has no idea that the meeting will trigger consequences that will change her life.”
8. The Christmas Eve Letter by Elyse Douglas
“30-year-old Eve Sharland is browsing a Pennsylvania antique store when she discovers an old brass lantern tucked away on a shelf. She picks it up and sees something behind one of the sooty glass panes. To her surprise, she finds an unopened letter stuck inside.
The letter is postmarked December 24, 1885, and it is addressed to Evelyn Sharland in New York City. Eve gasps and drops the letter. That’s her name! The letter is addressed to someone with her name in 1885: Evelyn Sharland.
Eve purchases the lantern and the letter, and returns to her New York City apartment. Later that evening, she opens the letter and reads it, astounded by its contents. She stares at the lantern in wonder and alarm, deeply moved by the story of a tragic romance.
A few days later, following a request in the letter, Eve cautiously lights the lantern. To her utter shock, she finds herself in the past—in 1885 New York City. Eve is thrown into a life far beyond what she could have ever imagined, as she gets involved with one of the richest families in New York City, and meets the handsome Patrick Gantly. She must struggle to survive and return to her own time, even as her destiny is changed forever.”
9. A Lake House Holiday by Megan Squires
“Jolene Carter lives in Merrylark Lake, a quaint town where neighbors are like family and vacationers become fast friends. With her dream of opening a downtown storefront on hold, Jolene volunteers wherever she can, whether it be at Cat’s Coffee Cart or the town’s annual tree lighting. It is while she’s tending to her neighbor’s vacation rental that Jolene meets Luke, a cowboy with a mustang rescue and a past he’s hoping to leave back at the ranch.
Luke Handley isn’t one to believe in holiday magic. That disappeared when his winter wedding was called off and his honeymoon was canceled. But the more time he spends in Merrylark, the more he’s convinced this magic exists. When Luke’s ex unexpectedly shows up as the other half to the lake house reservation, things get complicated. Luke knows all the magic in the world won’t clear up this misunderstanding. If he’s learned anything from Jolene, though, it’s that helping others is the most effective way to show love. With a surprise up his sleeve and a little help from his new Merrylark friends, Luke hopes he’s able to do just that.”
10. A Tiara Under The Tree by Carolyn Hector
“Former beauty queen Waverly Leverve can barely show her face in public after an embarrassing meme goes viral. But now fate and a misdelivered pizza have brought her dreams back to life. Gorgeous bad boy turned business mogul Dominic Crowne wants to sponsor Waverly in a pageant scheduled for Christmas Eve. Waverly vows to keep their arrangement purely professional—but soon their arrangement quickly takes a sensual turn…
Dominic knows that his golden touch can fix almost anything—including Waverly’s tilted tiara. Against his own will, Dominic is mesmerized with his stunning new client. He’s falling for the pageant princess and the vulnerable yet sexy woman within. But when Waverly’s ultimate goal finally comes within reach, can he help her achieve professional redemption and find his Princess Charming under the mistletoe?” 
