These New Holiday Romcom Books Will Warm Your Heart

If you enjoyed Alison Cochrun’s debut novel The Charm Offensive, then you’ll be excited to know she’s back with a cute holiday romance. One year ago, Ellie Oliver had recently moved to Portland, was working her dream job in animation, and she even met a woman at a bookstore with whom she immediately felt a romantic connection. The next day, all of that was undone with a betrayal and the loss of her job soon after. Now Ellie is working at a coffee shop and living in the tiniest apartment imaginable. That’s when her coffee shop’s landlord approaches her with a plan: a marriage of convenience that will give him his recent inheritance and help alleviate some of Ellie’s financial stress. The two plan to spend the holidays in a cabin together to really solidify the “relationship” and make it seem real. But then Andrew introduces Ellie to his sister, who happens to be the woman she met a year ago at that bookstore.

This steamy holiday romcom stars plus-size adult film star Bee Hobbes. Bee has a huge following and two supportive moms, but her career is on the verge of taking a turn when her favorite producer casts her to star in a Christmas movie. And no, it’s not an adult film. It’s for the family-friendly Hope Channel. Even better, her leading man is going to be her childhood crush and ex-boy band member Nolan Shaw. All she has to do is keep her adult film career under wraps. But that’s a lot easier said than done.

For Sonia Gupta, there’s nothing like being in New York City for the holidays. But for country boy Beau Abbot, a country Christmas can’t be beat. He’s pretty much against everything in the city — except for Sonia. The two are in completely different worlds with two very different ideas of what makes the perfect Christmas. But will they be able to embrace the best of both worlds and find a place for each other in their otherwise completely opposite lives? This is the second book in a series, but it reads just as well as a standalone if you want to skip to the Christmas fun!

This is an opposites attract romance about the three C’s: Christmas, coffee, and cats. When Kara Ingalls opened the Meow and Furrever Cat Café, it was a dream come true. But the café has been slow lately, and if she can’t find some way to get it out of the red before the holidays, she’s afraid she’ll have to shut its doors. Enter marketing guru Ben Reese. When he hatches the perfect plan to get the café back in the green, she knows she would be a fool to stay no. But will the two be able to keep things totally professional?

In the first book in Reese Ryan’s new Valentine Vineyards series, Chandra Valentine somehow agrees to pose as Dr. Julian Brandon’s girlfriend. Even though he’s far too young, the successful bachelor has rescued her more than once, and she owes him. But is this just a fake relationship, or does Julian have plans to take things further? When he does attempt a sweet seduction under the mistletoe, he’ll have Chandra questioning everything she thought she knew about love.

Gwen Baker is newly single and her career is hanging on by a thread. The only thing that can make things better? A perfect family Christmas. But everyone else in her family seemingly has their whole life together. And Dev, her boy-next-door crush, has grown into a handsome stranger with a fiancée. Gwen can’t help but wish her own future was a little brighter. And then something strange happens. She wakes up and it’s Christmas all over again. It’s like Groundhog Day, but with eggnog.

This LGBTQIA+ romcom takes readers from a cozy New England haven to the heart of New Orleans. Greta Russakoff loves her tight-knit family in Maine. But it’s hard being a lesbian in such a small town, and she’s realizing that she desperately needs some space to find herself. Meanwhile, Truman Belvedere has just discovered that his boyfriend has a secret life, including a husband and a daughter. Heartbroken, he’d do anything to get out of Louisiana. That’s when a mutual friend comes up with a plan: Truman and Greta will swap homes for the holidays and maybe find the love of their lives in the process.

Season of Love is a queer, Jewish holiday romcom that follows Miriam Blum. Miriam’s great-aunt Cass has just passed away, leaving Miriam part-owner of Carrigan’s, a Jewish-run Christmas tree farm. The business is at risk of going under, and if Miriam wants to have any chance at turning things around, she’ll have to learn how to work alongside the farm’s grumpy manager Noelle Northwood. Noelle just wants Miriam gone. Even if Miriam is completely charming and has really good ideas, saving the Christmas tree farm will require trust and a willingness to risk it all. Will Miriam be able to prove to Noelle that she has what it takes?

A Holly Jolly Diwali is a delightful holiday romantic comedy that sees type-A data analyst Niki Randhawa discover her fun side after being laid off and realizing that being practical and responsible isn’t working out for her like she thought it would. And so she books a last-minute trip to Mumbai for her friend Diya’s wedding and arrives in India just in time to celebrate Diwali, the festival of lights. There, she meets Sameer Mukherji, a free-spirited London musician who helps Diya get in touch with her creative side as well as her Indian roots.

Amor Actually is a charming holiday romance anthology featuring seven short stories from seven acclaimed and bestselling Latina authors. These stories will show readers that anything is possible on Christmas Eve. For the couples in these stories, the holidays are a chance to find true love, reconnect with old flames, make big leaps of faith, discover that missed connection, and most importantly, find a happily ever after. And if you were wondering, yes, these are fun retellings of the stories in the popular Christmas romcom movie Love, Actually.