The Holiday Swap

The Holiday Swap is a sweet, easy-going RomCom that has a delightful holiday Hallmark movie feel. The story focuses on identical twin foodie sisters who swap lives for a week and learn that the sourdough isn't always as tangy on the other side, but sisterhood is forever.

This is the first book by Maggie Knox, the pen name and first book of the Canadian writing duo of Karma Brown and Marissa Stapley. This is a cute but predictable story that will satisfy the romance lover and the foodie that dwell within you in equal measure. It is also the perfect bookish pick for those who are in the Christian holiday spirit who like a romance that is lower on the sassy/saucy scale (aka a 'clean' Romcom).

Will you have to suspend disbelief since love happens faster than a falling soufflé? Sure, but I enjoyed that love wins out and the verbal comeuppance is extremely satisfying. This is a Parent Trap meets MasterChef with not one but two romances for readers to swoon over. There are characters you'll love and those you'll love to see get their just desserts (see what I did there?).

So, grab a coffee and your favourite baked good and settle in for a festive feel-good, romantic holiday story about the bond between sisters, finding love and fighting for what makes you happy. Beware of the urgent need to bake delicious treats after reading this book. The foodie descriptions are the icing on the proverbial cake.

Disclaimer: My sincere thanks to G.P Putnam's Sons (Penguin Group) for providing me with a complimentary digital copy of this title in exchange for my honest review.

My Rating: 3.5 stars

Author: Maggie Knox (aka Karma Brown and Marissa Stapley)

Genre: RomCom, Romance, Canadian

Type and Source: eBook from publisher via NetGalley

Publisher: Penguin Group - G.P Putnam's Son's 

First Published: Oct 5, 2021

Opening Lines: Charlie Goodwin drew a shaky breath and 

tapped furiously on her phone, the screen illuminating 

her face in the otherwise dark storeroom.

Book Description from GoodReads: A feel-good, holiday-themed romantic comedy about identical twins who switch lives in the days leading up to Christmas--perfect for fans of Christina Lauren's In a Holidaze and Josie Silver's One Day in December.

All they want for Christmas is a different life.


When chef Charlie Goodwin gets hit on the head on the L.A. set of her reality baking show, she loses a lot more than consciousness; she also loses her ability to taste and smell--both critical to her success as show judge. Meanwhile, Charlie's identical twin, Cass, is frantically trying to hold her own life together back in their quaint mountain hometown while running the family's bustling bakery and dealing with her ex, who won't get the memo that they're over.

With only days until Christmas, a desperate Charlie asks Cass to do something they haven't done since they were kids: switch places. Looking for her own escape from reality, Cass agrees. But temporarily trading lives proves more complicated than they imagined, especially when rugged firefighter Jake Greenman and gorgeous physician's assistant Miguel Rodriguez are thrown into the mix. Will the twins' identity swap be a recipe for disaster, or does it have all the right ingredients for getting their lives back on track?