Best Holiday Books to Read this Christmas

Fair warning: This book is more “A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens than the Hallmark-movie-like choices on the rest of this list. But if you’re in the mood for something a bit darker, you’re in for a treat!

In this spine-chilling novella written by bestselling author Peter Swanson, an American art student studying in London receives an invitation to spend the holidays at Starvewood Hall, a picturesque Cotswold manor house owned by her classmate’s family.

However, amidst the festive decorations of holly and pine, dark secrets begin to surface, uncovering the grim history of this seemingly charming English village.

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Despite running a lively knick-knack shop, Augustus was a beloved yet mysterious figure to all, including his own daughters. Now, many years later, the three estranged half-sisters find themselves summoned for the reading of Augustus’s will.

They soon discover that he has set up a series of challenges that they must overcome in order to inherit his fortune. Reluctantly, they agree to participate.

Amidst comical adventures, mishaps in a small town, and a heartwarming celebration of the winter solstice, love, hope, and reconciliation fill the air. The only question is whether the three sisters can open themselves up to embrace it.

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In this sweet story, four friends form a “family” in the absence of their own. This year, they’re celebrating their last Christmas together before their lives take each of them in different directions.

Will their unconventional bond withstand the test of time and distance?

Ultimately, this holiday tale will unravel the true meaning of friendship, love, and the value of embracing change. One reviewer wrote, “I loved this book so much. It feels like a warm hug.”

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Five characters leading different lives filled with angst and difficulties spend Christmas together in a sprawling, forsaken mansion situated close to the fishing village of Creagan in Scotland. This unlikely gathering of strangers soon forms a newfound bond of friendship amid the Christmas season.

This British fiction novel is a cozy read that’s perfect for a chilly winter evening!

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What starts as a quiet and sad Christmas of missing a loved one eventually becomes a crazy yet joyful celebration. This clever holiday novel follows the Twelve Days of Christmas song, giving new meaning and a fun story to the lyrics.

Add this heartfelt, touching novel to your list of Christmas classics. You may want to read it every holiday season.

Get ready for a fun holiday rom-com!

Kate Turner lives in the sleepy town of Blexford, England, where her prospects for finding love are dwindling. However, after her friend signs her up for a dating service, she suddenly has twelve dates in the 23 days leading up to Christmas. Will she find love, or will each date be more disastrous than the next?

Newly divorced Ivy Perkins is looking for a fresh start and to be left alone. However, as she cleans up the piles of junk in the old farmhouse she bought, sight unseen, Ivy makes a fascinating discovery. She finds a decades-old Santa suit with a letter in its pocket asking Santa to bring her father home from the war. Soon Ivy involves her new community to solve the mystery of this letter.

I love how Mary Kay Andrews writes with heart and humor. No doubt The Santa Suit will be an enjoyable holiday read!

Carmen is down on her luck, single, and out of a job right before Christmas. Although she’d prefer not to take help from her perfect sister, Sofia, she has no better prospects. Sofia has a client who needs help cleaning up and organizing his old bookshop in Edinburgh, Scotland. Carmen is intrigued by the charm of the old bookshop and by a famous author who stops by the shop.

This Christmas book sounds like the perfect escape from holiday stress!

This holiday story begins with a love-at-first-sight encounter. One December, Laurie is on a bus when she locks eyes with an unforgettable stranger. Though she searches for him through the following year, they won’t meet again until a Christmas party.

But this heartwarming story doesn’t end there. Their love story of ups and downs continues to unfold for the next ten years.

Read it if you love a charming holiday-themed romance!

It’s the last year for Mae’s family to celebrate in her favorite place, a snowy cabin in Utah. As she drives away for a final time, Mae doesn’t want to return to her failing life. She makes a plea to find her happiness right before getting into a car accident.

When she awakens, Mae is in a time loop. Like in the movie Groundhog’s Day, she can’t escape the same day until she finally gets it right.

In a Holidaze seems like a cute story with a fun, familiar premise.

Oswald T. Campbell has gotten a devastating diagnosis from his doctor. Rather than spend what may be his last Christmas in gloomy Chicago, he travels to the southernmost town in Alabama, Lost River.

What follows is a magical and unusual Christmas. Fanni Flagg writes in a distinct and charming voice as she introduces an eclectic cast of characters.

A Redbird Christmas has been a classic since it was first published in 2005.

The middle sister of five siblings, Everly Lancaster, is a workaholic who missed Christmas with her family last year. As December approaches, everyone in Everly’s life agrees she needs a vacation and no excuses for missing Christmas with her family again this year.

Everly begrudgingly agrees to a trip cruising the Amazon rainforest. What she thought would be torture turns into so much more, including a new love interest.

Debbie Macomber is no stranger to weaving delightful Christmas tales. She’s written five Christmas novels that have become hit movies on the Hallmark Channel.

Winter Street is the first of a series of five novels following a family celebrating Christmas in Nantucket.

At Nantucket’s Winter Street Inn, Kelley Quinn, the owner, is looking forward to reuniting his four grown children, who all live in different states. But each child has their own issues, and the holiday season soon turns chaotic.

Fans of Elin Hilderbrand beach reads can rejoice that summer isn’t the only time readers can enjoy her entertaining storytelling!

The Miller siblings, Ross, Alice, and Clemmie, have one goal this Christmas. They don’t want to answer prying questions about their personal lives from their family.

However, when Lucy, an uninvited guest, stops by to share a business proposal with Ross, she becomes mistaken for his girlfriend. When the confusion is finally cleared, Lucy discovers she’s snowed in at the Miller’s Highland home.

Let the holiday fun begin with this hilarious and heartwarming story.

While Nory made life-long friends while attending a private school on a scholarship, she never felt like she fully fit in with her wealthy classmates. Now, running a second-hand bookshop in London, Nory would prefer to spend Christmas there rather than joining her former classmates on holiday in the English countryside.

However, Nory succumbs to peer pressure and joins the reunion of friends. Soon, she finds herself falling for the last man she thought she’d ever consider dating.

Meet Me Under the Mistletoe promises to be a fun holiday read from the setting to the premise.

Bee Hobbes is a successful plus-size adult film star with no intention of starring in a Christmas movie on an uptight, “G-rated” network. However, despite her protests, she’s been cast in the role by her favorite producer.

On the set in Christmas Notch, Vermont, Bee discovers that she can still have a fun time engaging in a fling with her attractive “bad boy” co-star, Nolan Shaw.

This steamy rom-com will surely warm up your cold December nights!