Spend Time With Feel-Good Book Familias This Holiday Season

Happy Holidays, from my book familias to yours!

It’s that time of year when we gather for the holidays. If your family is like my familia, your celebration probably involves favorite activities, traditions, and customs.

In casa Oliveras (aka, my family home), November, December, and January are a mix of giving thanks, lighting candles, cooking together, eating delicious food, sipping tasty beverages, building gingerbread houses, leaving cookies and milk for a red-suited gentleman with a white beard, setting out carrots for the Three Kings’ camels, singing favorite carols, laughing and dancing and memory-making. 

No matter how you celebrate over the holidays, or whether you’re surrounded by blood family or found family, time together is a cherished blessing.

As a Latina contemporary romance author, my novels always revolve around a core Latiné familia that, much like the rest of us, is comprised of people of all ages living, loving, working, playing, facing conflicts, and enjoying good times. Just like my real-life family. And, I’m guessing, just like yours. 

This holiday season, I invite you to get to know some of my book familias along with a few of my favorite family-themed books by some of my favorite authors. Amid all the holiday hullabaloo, treat yourself to a little quiet time to seek out a cozy spot and curl up with these “must read” books and series.

Big Chicas Don’t Cry by Annette Chavez Macias

Oh, the way Annette’s heartfelt novel made me wish I could call my abuela just to hear her voice one more time and had me wanting to plan a reunion with my primas (cousins). Be sure to pick up this women’s fiction novel that shares the tale of four cousins and all they experience over the course of one year as they face love and loss and come to understand the true value and meaning of family.

A Proposal They Can’t Refuse, A Dish Best Served Hot, and Sleeping with the Frenemy (Vega Family Love series) by Natalie Caña

When I say all three books in this series had me swooning over the romance, laughing at the antics, and fanning myself during particular scenes (you know which ones I’m talking about—grin)…I am not kidding! Natalie hits it out of the ballpark with all three books in her series!

It Started with a Secret (bk 1, Spirit of the Shenandoah series) by Tif Marcelo

Are you a sucker for small-town contemporary romances featuring tight-knit communities, family secrets being revealed, and love that can’t be denied? If so, Tif Marcelo’s It Started with a Secret is the book for you! Tif has a talent for writing emotional stories with characters you love and happily-ever-after endings that have you sighing with satisfaction.

Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors; Recipe for Persuasion; Incense and Sensibility; and The Emma Project (The Raje series) by Sonali Dev

If you haven’t already guessed by the titles, the books in Sonali’s series — beloved by many, including me — are re-imaginings of Jane Austen’s classic novels. However, while Sonali pays homage to works by the author she says she has long admired, her stories take on a life of their own. Her recipe for success starts with one big Indian family descended from royalty and now living in California. She mixes in a cast of characters each with their own dreams and goals and past hurts and present issues, then she blends in four swoony romances with an intriguing dose of women’s fiction themes to create four emotion-packed, unputdownable novels!

The Boyfriend Project, The Dating Playbook, and The Hookup Plan by Farrah Rochon

This series may not have an “official” title, but all three books revolve around three women who form a tight bond — think: instant besties! — after finding out that they’ve been catfished by the same jerk! If you’re a fan of books featuring smart, driven women intent on working hard to make their dreams come true and the partners who support, sometimes challenge (in a good way), and love them…this series is for you! Farrah writes about characters we can relate to and want to befriend. Let me tell you, the number of times I found myself thinking, I wanna join these women for one of their happy hour, let’s-unwind meet-ups. And don’t get me started on their swoony heroes!

Amor Actually: A Holiday Romance Anthology by Adriana Herrera, Alexis Daria, Diana Muñoz Stewart, Mia Sosa, Priscilla Oliveras, Sabrina Sol, and Zoey Castile

This NYC-set, Latiné holiday romance anthology has nine happily-ever-after novellas featuring characters in a range of ages with heat levels ranging from simmering to spicy. Our stories involve a cast of characters that are connected in some way—best friends, siblings, cousins, co-workers, and more. The first eight novellas in the anthology lead up to an all-cast Nochebuena (Christmas Eve) party you’ll experience in the last novella. It’s a Nochebuena HEA for everyone! Writing this anthology with six of my closest author amigas was a labor of love—emphasis on the “love” part!