Brown House Books

Tropes: Small Town, Family, Friends, Ensemble Cast, Blizzard, Confronting Choices
Intimacy Level: Kissing only
Formats: Ebook, Kindle Unlimited
Release date: October 2025

All they wanted was a quiet Christmas. Fate had other ideas.

After the emotional upheavals of the past year, best friends Amy and Charlotte are ready for a peaceful holiday season in their small Colorado mountain town. Amy dreams of cozy evenings with her new boyfriend Mack, while Charlotte looks forward to a simple Christmas with Cole, the first love who recently returned to her life.

But nothing goes according to plan.

Like an advent calendar in reverse, family members start arriving in Cottonwood Springs—each bringing their own complications. Amy’s son shows up unexpectedly. Mack’s parents need a place to stay. Charlotte’s adult daughter Madison arrives with her husband and two small children. Cole’s son Liam comes home for the holidays. And Amy’s ex-husband appears on the doorstep desperate and broke.

Then the blizzard hits.

Trapped together without power in the worst snowstorm in decades, these imperfect families must navigate old wounds, new relationships, and the messy reality of belonging. Because sometimes the most meaningful Christmases aren’t the ones we plan—they’re the ones that force us to figure out what family really means.