Holiday Book Review: Yours for the Season

Yours for the Season by Uzma Jalaluddin is the perfect holiday romance!

Sameera is a workaholic lawyer with no time for romance, and she misses the close relationship she used to have with her family. When she meets a cute chef at a work event, she can’t imagine how he (and both of their families) will change her holiday season, for the better.

It all starts when Sameera and chef Tom record a video together. A misunderstanding quickly forms as his online fans and her mom both believe she and Tom are a couple. Tom and Sameera decide to engage in a fake relationship for the holiday season. The deal sounds simple: Sameera helps Tom record videos with their clear chemistry and cute banter; Tom helps Sameera bag a millionaire client, his college roommate Andy, so Sameera can save her job.

Everything sounds perfect until Sameera’s mom, Tahsin, announces that her whole family is headed to a small town in Alaska to visit Tom’s estranged family for the holiday season!

‘Tis the Season for Family Drama

 In the past, Sameera has lied to her family about her relationships. She hopes this holiday season can help her to heal her relationship with her family. Her past relationship with ex Hunter left her with a pile of debt and trust issues. Meanwhile, she’d been estranged from her family for three years. Recently, Sameera is back in touch with her mom Tahsin, dad Naveed, sister Nadiyah, and brother Esa. She missed her siblings and wished her parents could understand and accept her true self, even if she isn’t a practicing Muslim. It won’t be easy for her to forgive her parents, because once her mom assumes that Sameera is dating Tom, she messages Tom’s stepmom on Facebook and plans a whole trip to Alaska to visit his family.

My Thoughts

Throughout the book, I really enjoyed the storyline of Sameera becoming more confident in sharing her true feelings with her family and communicating better with them. Other aspects of Sameera’s journey, like navigating her own faith and strengthening her relationships with her siblings, will resonate with a lot of readers.

Yours for the Season was not just a romantic love story, but it had a “love story” for building relationships with her sister, brother, and parents in new ways.

Lots of Humor

I loved the humorous voice in this book! One of my favorite parts was when Sameera’s family watched Home Alone and tried to figure out what makes a Christmas movie vs. a holiday movie. There were also some funny mishaps as both Tom and Sameera’s families try to navigate new cultures and buy each other gifts for each unique holiday and culture.

Warm and Fuzzy Holiday Romance

I have read a lot of Christmas romances, and I was grateful to read a book that shows the Christmas holidays in America from a different perspective. It made me think about my family’s own traditiosn and things I take for granted about Christmas movies, traditions, and the holiday seasons. I also enjoyed learning about the Eid holidays. Yours for the Season delivers a cute romance and all the feel-good warm and fuzzy feelings and cheer that you would want from a holiday romance!

Thank you to Mindy's Book Studio and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.