Book Review - It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas by Hayley Dunlop

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Title: It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas

Author: Hayley Dunlop

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Netgalley

Publisher: Hera

Publication Date: 14th August 2025

Rating: 5 Stars

Can life be like a made-for-TV Christmas movie?

Mally Allister prides herself on being nice and predictable, just like the trope-filled festive films she turns to for comfort every winter.

But when she faces the prospect of spending Christmas alone in her London flat, Mally is sent on a writing assignment to try to recreate the cheesy Christmas movie experience in her humdrum British hometown.

With the help of familiar faces from her formative years, including her teenage crush Tom, Mally starts ticking off the classic holiday romance movie tropes in unexpected ways.

But can real life ever live up to the magical movie experience?

A gorgeously warm, engaging festive romcom perfect for fans of Catherine Walsh and Josie Silver.

This is an ode to the Hallmark / made for TV Christmas movies.  It's a total love letter to the film genre, and given I have watched a fair few of those in my lifetime (well every year in amongst other festive films), this book appealed to every part of my being. 

And I was totally right that it would appeal, I absolutely adored this book, and am already keen to see what this author will write next. 

I loved Mally's devotion to these films and her bingo cards of things to tick off while watching. So when her best friend commissions her to write an article about going to a small town and seeing how many real life ticks she can get, this is where the story starts to get going. 

She returns to her home town, which she hasn't been to for 20 years, and the reasons for it, and her whole family dynamics are heart-breaking.  But she does almost instantly bump into her teenage crush Tom, and it becomes apparent there is something there. 

I really loved Tom, whereas I didn't really think much of Mally's best friend Elle. And Tom's mum is wonderful too, and I loved their home, and the wonderful cosy feelings it was giving me. 

This just hit all the right marks for me, there is a lovely gentle romance, there is character growth, and there is big time festive feels.  Thoroughly enjoyable from start to finish. 

Thank you to Hera and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.