The Holiday Mix-Up by Ginny Baird | Book Review

I received this book for free from Publisher, Won In A Contest in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

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While You Were Sleeping meets The Wedding Date with a fun Puerto Rican holiday twist in NYT and USA Today bestselling author Ginny Baird's latest sweet romance, in which a diner waitress agrees to be her patron's fake date...only for him to land in a coma and her to be stuck playing his sweetheart with his family all week long.

Lonely-hearted waitress Katie Smith has nowhere to go for Christmas, and a huge crush on her gorgeous diner patron Juan Martinez. So when Juan asks Katie to pose as his girlfriend for holiday festivities at his family's winery, Katie leaps at the chance...that is, until an accident lands Juan in a coma right after giving his folks the "news." Katie knows she should tell the Martinezes the truth, but when they immediately embrace her, Katie is reluctant to let her fantasy of a family holiday go. And then there's Juan's brother, Mateo, whose smile tugs at her heartstrings just right—and who tells her perfect Juan might not be everything he seems.

Second son Mateo Martinez loves his brother, but Juan's plan to "rebrand and expand" Los Cielos Cellars has cost their family too much and put its entire tradition in jeopardy. Katie seems to understand, but she's still committed to Juan...even when Mateo starts to wish her gentle heart and beautiful smile were committed to him instead. With the winery at stake, secrets on all sides, and Juan due to wake up any day, can Katie and Mateo follow their hearts to a Christmas miracle, or will this mix-up ruin their chances?

Praise for The Holiday Mix-Up:

"Fans of Hallmark movies and authors Sophie Cousens and Lia Louis will appreciate this wholesome holiday offering from Baird." —Library Journal

"Baird excels at capturing the Martinez family's warmhearted and somewhat kooky dynamic, adding to the cozy, homey atmosphere. This is a delight." —Publishers Weekly

I love a good holiday themed book – particularly when it is a loose retelling of a movie I enjoy. The Holiday Mix-Up by Ginny Baird echoes While You Were Sleeping very loosely. It follows Katie who works as a waitress and has no family. She is asked by Juan to be his fake date at his family’s Christmas to get his aunt off his back.

However, Katie has had a crush on Juan for a very long time. Anyways, prior to the event, Juan is hit by a truck and goes into a coma. Katie saves him from dying and goes to see him at the hospital. While there, his family assumes the two are engaged, even though they barely knew each other and had only planned the fake date.

So, much like the movie, in The Holiday Mix-Up everyone just falls for Katie and in turn she falls for the family. She also ends up getting pretty close to Juan’s brother, Mateo. As it turns out, the two are quite similar in their values and what they want out of life. Slowly, Katie and Mateo fall for each other. However, they can’t act on it because Mateo truly believes Katie is Juan’s fiancé.

Overall, Ginny Baird’s The Holiday Mix-Up was a cute story. I ended up rewatching While You Were Sleeping because I liked the plotline of this story. It is very chaste – there’s absolutely no spice and barely even any kissing. So, your mileage may vary if that is something you look for. Katie and Mateo are good and nice people but not especially memorable.

On a Scale Of One To Buddy The Elf, How Much Christmas Spirit Does The Holiday Mix-Up Have?

I would say that The Holiday Mix-Up has an uplifting amount of Christmas spirit. There is volunteering. Cookies are baked. Family gathering occurs. Oh, and we even get to go to a Christmas tree farm. I liked that this story was thoughtful in different aspects of celebration. It is a book that ultimately does uplift and there is no villain. I just liked how low stakes and low stress it was.

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April (Books&Wine)

April is in her 30s and created Good Books And Good Wine. She works for a non-profit. April always has a book on hand. In her free time she can be found binge watching The Office with her husband and toddler, spending way too much time on Pinterest or exploring her neighborhood.

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