Home Sweet Christmas

May 1, 2022

Backman's The Winners revisits the small but tough rural community first seen in the multi-best-booked Beartown, inspiration for the HBO original. From Cousens (This Times Next Year), Before I Do features Audrey, who's about to marry dependable Josh when his sister turns up with the guy Audrey always wanted. With Thief of Fate, Deveraux and Sheets wrap up a trilogy about an 1840s Irish thief in contemporary Providence Falls, NC, who is tasked by the angels with righting the wrong of having lured away Cora from her intended (75,000-copy paperback and 10,000-copy hardcover first printing). Hilderbrand's Endless Summer offers nine stories serving as prequels, sequels, and interim chapters illuminating her beloved novels (375,000-copy first printing). In Edgar-nominated Kennedy's Billie Starr's Book of Sorries, down-on-her-luck Jenny Newberg (mother of the eponymous Billie) unwisely accepts money to seduce the so-called Candidate (75,000-copy first printing). Macomber gets us in The Christmas Spirit with the story of two friends, a bartender and a pastor, and what they learn when they trade places for the holidays. Second in a series set in Wishing Tree, WA, Mallery's Home Sweet Christmas features two women--one a town newbie, another home temporarily--with Christmas surprises in store (250,000-copy paperback and 10,000-copy hardcover first printing). Bringing together stay-at-home witch Lucy Caraway and merman Alex, out of his element in Freya Grove, NJ, Martin's Witchful Thinking launches a series featuring Black characters with books already slated for publication in 2023 and 2024 (45,000-copy first printing). Nigerian British Nwabineli debuts with Someday, Maybe, about a young woman struggling to recover from her husband' suicide (75,000-copy first printing). Thanks to Patterson and coauthor Safran, lonely widower Henry Sullivan and children Will and Ella end up welcoming a raucous bunch of animals and houseguests to their Harlem brownstone during The Twelve Long, Hard, Topsy-Turvy, Very Messy Days of Christmas (125,000-copy first printing). Picoult and Boylan's Mad Honey stars a wealthy wife returning to her New Hampshire hometown after discovering her husband's ugly side. In Steel's latest, a sensational young singer who hits all The High Notes must wrestle freedom from those who would exploit her, including her father.

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Starred review from August 29, 2022
Interweaving two heartfelt love stories, Mallery expertly captures a festive yuletide spirit in her sparkling second Wishing Tree novel (after The Christmas Wedding Guest). Camryn Neff left her life in Chicago to return to small-town Wishing Tree, Wash., and take care of her teenage sisters after their mother’s death. While running her family’s custom gift-wrapping business, Camryn is selected by local matron Helen Crane as one of the candidates for “Project: Jake’s Bride,” a mission Helen’s embarked on to marry off her son. Camryn quickly rejects the idea of being involved—and spills the beans to Jake
about his mother’s scheming. As their friendship blossoms into love, Camryn must question her life plans, having never intended to settle in Wishing Tree for good. Meanwhile, River Best, a transplant from Southern California who’s turned her computer hacking skills into a legitimate business, is chosen at an annual festival to be the town’s Snow Queen, and is drawn out of her shell by Dylan Tucker, the newly crowned Snow King. Love soon follows, but a secret Dylan’s keeping may threaten their happiness. Mallery highlights the charm and community of her inviting small-town setting while still exploring grounded real-life issues. Add in undeniable Christmas cheer, and this feel-good holiday romance proves irresistible. Agent: Annelise Robey, Jane Rotrosen Agency.

September 1, 2022
After her mother died, Camryn Neff stayed in Wishing Tree, Washington, taking care of her teenage twin sisters and running the family business, Wrap Around the Clock. But she still plans on moving back to Chicago, no matter how much she likes Wishing Tree. Resort owner Jake Crane is fed up with his mother's Project: Jake's Bride, and he likes Camryn, so they decide to date just until she moves. Meanwhile, reformed hacker River Best is doing her best to fit in, so her friends convince her to run for Snow Queen, who, along with the Snow King, oversees Wishing Tree's cookie tasting, tree lighting, and other festivities. Handsome Dylan Tucker is the perfect Snow King--patient, kind, and funny--but he's hiding something, and River can't stand secrets. Mallery's second book set in Wishing Tree (after The Christmas Wedding Guest, 2021) is just as charming, with two gentle romance story lines and a reminder that family ties can bind a little too tightly, but it's still family. The perfect holiday confection for fans of Jill Shalvis and Sarah Morgan.

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September 1, 2022

Mallery's second installment in this heartwarming and humorous holiday romance series (following The Christmas Wedding Guest) brings readers back to Wishing Tree, WA. Camryn moved back home to Wishing Tree to take care of her younger sisters and the family business, but she has every intention of heading back to Chicago to resume her life. When she meets Helen Crane and is blindsided by the matriarch's plan to find a wife for her son Jake, she feels she has to warn him, but spending the holidays with Jake makes her reconsider staying in town. Meanwhile, River Best has always wanted to belong, but trusting and making connections has never been her strong suit. She takes on being the community's Snow Queen as a challenge to help her fit into the town she's chosen to make her home, although her Snow King, Dylan, makes her wish for more. VERDICT Hand to readers who enjoy romances featuring tight-knit small-town communities with heartfelt holiday traditions and friend groups that are more like found families.--Morgan Lockard

Copyright 2022 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.