Kick the holiday season off right with Grace & Henry’s Holiday Movie Marathon! This beautiful romance about grief, new beginnings, and holiday movies is an easy 5 star read and perfect for getting into the holiday spirit! Read below for more on Grace & Henry’s Holiday Movie Marathon!
What’s Grace & Henry’s Holiday Movie Marathon About?
Grace and Henry both lost their spouses at the beginning of the year. As the holidays approach, the two are introduced to each other and quickly recognize that their shared grief could connect them. Their friendship grows over a love of holiday movies as they both come to terms with loss and their potential future happiness.
Here’s an official description:
The new year had barely begun when Grace White and Henry Adler both lost their spouses. Now, nearly a year later, the first holiday season since their "Great and Terrible Sadnesses" approaches. Although their mothers scheme to matchmake the two surviving spouses, it’s clear that neither is ready to date again. Yet no one understands what they are going through better than each other, and a delicate friendship is born.
When Henry sees an ad for a Christmas movie marathon—once an annual tradition for him and his wife—Grace offers to watch some films with him, despite her aversion to a few of his picks. Her two young kids, Ian and Bella, also join in whenever possible—bedtimes permitting, of course.
With each movie, Grace and Henry’s shared grief eases as they start to see a life beyond the sadness. But as they draw closer, other romantic possibilities leave them uncertain about their future together. Is their bond merely the result of loneliness and shared circumstances, or have they found something that’s worth taking a shot at . . . again?
Grace & Henry Details
Pages: 298
Genre: holiday romance, grief romance
Tropes: holiday romance, friends to lovers, single mom, grief, starting over
Setting: Baltimore
Spice level: Love Actually is spicier than this book
My Review of Grace & Henry’s Holiday Movie Marathon
5 out of 5 stars
I’ll keep this simple–Grace & Henry’s Holiday Movie Marathon has quickly become one of my favorite holiday romances of all time and was one of my absolute favorite reads of the year! I absolutely loved this book.
Grief romances are, I think, probably the trickiest genre to pull off. It’s so hard to do it in a way that feels honest, genuine, and still allows the reader to root for the possibility of something new coming along. It’s such a delicate balance because if the main character doesn’t have ‘enough’ grief, they feel callous. But on the other side, if they’re spending the entire book wallowing, it’s depressing.
Matthew Norman manages to deal with the loss of both Henry’s dead wife who died unexpectedly in a plane crash and Grace’s dead husband, whose death was more planned for as he passed from cancer, with grace and humor. He uses humor so effectively to keep things light here, and I was crying and laughing with this story in equal measures.
He also has such a measured and authentic approach to both Grace and Henry–I loved them both! Grace is a single mother, and it’s hard not to fall in love with her in the opening scene when she takes her kids to adopt a dog right after the funeral of her husband to cheer them up. She has an unexpected sense of humor, and it’s easy to root for someone who is trying so hard not just for herself but for her kids as well.
Henry, on the other hand, is lonely. He and his wife Brynn did not have kids and, after a year of grieving, his parents are encouraging him to get back to work and start building his life again. He is such a sweet guy, and Henry’s relationships with his family and eventually with Grace and her kids are really genuine, grounded, and emotional.
The romance here is slow paced, but it has to be given that neither Grace nor Henry is ready to date when they meet each other. I absolutely loved the use of the holiday movies here to connect them. Some of the movies they watch together, some they just discuss. But the device helps show how right they are for each other and is just fun because as the audience you know exactly what they’re talking about with each movie.
There are also so many memorable side characters here including potential love interests for both Grace and Henry, their passed spouses who are brought to life through flashbacks and imagination, Grace’s kids and coworkers, and Henry’s brother and baby niece. All of that leads to an epic ending to this book, which I feel like is more important in a holiday romance than in any other type of romances.
I loved Grace and Henry’s Holiday Movie Marathon so much and just never wanted it to end. I was really rooting for these characters to heal and help each other. What a wonderful way to kick off holiday reading!
Romance Recipe Pairing
Enjoy Grace & Henry with a Cherry Chocolate Chai Granola Parfait! Warmly spiced, sweet, and good for you, it would be a perfect treat for Grace and Henry to enjoy while watching holiday movies together.
Buy Grace & Henry’s Holiday Movie Marathon for Kindle here!
