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.
Don’ t miss Susan Mallery’ s brand new novel, BEACH READS, a dazzling, clever and poignant story about the family we’ re born into— and the one we create for ourselves, coming March 2025!
