A charming queer holiday romance about three adult siblings, each at a personal and romantic crossroads, who reunite at their larger-than-life mother’s Catskills manor for an unforgettable Christmas, from the author of It Had to Be You.

It’s the most romantic time of the year.

The holidays are fast approaching, and the Belvedere siblings are a mess. Liz, a Hollywood showrunner and responsible eldest, has no idea how to follow up her hit show’s first season, or how to deal with her giant crush on its star, Violet Grace. Birdie turned her chronic middle child syndrome into a career as a stand-up comic, but since she spends more time wooing women than working on new material, she’s facing one-hit wonder status, especially once she gets axed by her manager. And Rafi, sensitive romantic and the baby golden boy, proposes to his coworker girlfriend in front of his entire company, only to be turned down by the woman he thought was the love of his life.

Born to three different fathers, the three adult children share one mother: famed actress and singer Babs Belvedere. Seeking direction and holiday cheer, all three siblings head up to their mother’s house in the Catskills, determined to swear off love and focus on themselves and their work. But the spirit of the season seems to have different plans for them, and their best intentions are quickly derailed in the most delightful and festive of ways.

Emotional, smart, and sexy, this queer holiday romcom celebrates love, family, and the wild creative life, and is perfect for fans of Emily Henry and Casey McQuiston.

I received an advance galley of this book courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley. All thoughts are my own.

I absolutely love the holiday season, and you can guarantee that as soon as I’ve put away all of my Halloween decor and shelved the horror books, I will switch on the Hallmark channel and binge all of the Christmas movies I can before December 25. I’m also going to read several Christmas-themed books while sipping hot chocolate and cuddling with my dog. When I read the synopsis of this one, I thought for sure I was going to love it. Not only was it a Christmas rom-com, but it’s also LGBTQIA+ focused, and I love seeing my community repped in a holiday book. Sadly, this book didn’t quite hit the Christmas magic mark for me.

The book focuses on the lives of the three Belvedere siblings during the holiday season. Liz, Birdie, and Rafi have all come home to spend the holidays with their famous actress of a mother, Babs.

Liz, the eldest sibling, is a successful Hollywood showrunner but finds herself at a crossroads as she tries to come up with a follow-up to her hit show’s first season. (A show based on Sweet Valley High – a book series I LOVED as a kid.) However, her biggest challenge may be her feelings for the show’s star, Violet Grace. Birdie, the middle child, has found success as a stand-up comic but risks losing it all due to her constant pursuit of love interests and her love for drinking. Meanwhile, Rafi, the sensitive baby and only boy in the family, was rejected by his girlfriend after a public proposal at work. When his gay childhood best friend comes home to visit over the holidays, he finds that old feelings have resurfaced and that maybe he’d be better off with him instead.

Honestly, I loved the concept and all of the characters (though I did find Rafi kind of boring.) I could easily see Jean Smart playing Babs (the mother) were this to be made into a TV movie. Her character was practically a carbon copy of Deborah Vance (Smart’s character from “Hacks”). I also really liked the love interests the siblings were involved with, but I also think this is what ruined the book for me. It felt like there was way too much going on.

Also, while I appreciated that the author included LGBTQIA+ rep – and several different sexualities to boot – it felt like overkill. Had the author picked one sibling and made their relationship woes the focus and had the other siblings be there as support, I think it would have felt less overcooked. I especially felt that Rafi’s story wasn’t fully realized and that his character was kind of thrown in to hit some sort of quota. That said, I thought the family relationship was strong, and I loved the siblings’ bond and their connection with their mother.

Another gripe I have is that this didn’t feel like a Christmas novel, aside from the fact that the siblings had all come home for Christmas. There was one Christmas party, but aside from that, the book severely lacked the holiday magic I love from this type of book. This is more of a predictable rom-com with lots of (sometimes very awkward) sex scenes. Oh – and if I never hear the phrase “It’s a vibe,” “You’re a vibe,” or any other iteration of that sentence using the word “vibe” ever again, I will be a very happy reader.

While I didn’t hate it, I also didn’t love this book. On the plus side, I adored almost all the characters, and the witty dialogue was a lot of fun. On the downside, there was little to no “holiday cheer,” and it felt like the author tried to squeeze way too much into the plot. Overall, it was just okay.