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The Holiday Stand-In
He's everything I've ever wanted. Too bad he's my boyfriend's twin brother.
When my boyfriend says he’s too busy working—again—to spend the holidays with me and my family, I’m sure Christmas is ruined.
Not only will I be alone, but my family is convinced he doesn't love me.
So when his identical twin comes to town, I realize a swap could be the perfect way to reassure my family and give me a date for the holiday season.
But our fake-out quickly goes from the solution to THE PROBLEM.
Because falling for your boyfriend’s twin brother is never a good thing.
And when my real boyfriend finally has time for me, things get confusing.
I'll need a Christmas miracle to get out of this twin-brother mess.
◆The Holiday Stand-In is a closed-door romantic comedy that brings all the sizzle, tension, and chemistry without explicit scenes or language.
Tropes in the
• Love Triangle
• Falling for the wrong "right" brother
• Fake Dating
• Christmas Tradition
• Small Town
• Snowed In
• Mistletoe Kiss
• Closed Door (nothing beyond kissing)
When my boyfriend says he’s too busy working—again—to spend the holidays with me and my family, I’m sure Christmas is ruined.
Not only will I be alone, but my family is convinced he doesn't love me.
So when his identical twin comes to town, I realize a swap could be the perfect way to reassure my family and give me a date for the holiday season.
But our fake-out quickly goes from the solution to THE PROBLEM.
Because falling for your boyfriend’s twin brother is never a good thing.
And when my real boyfriend finally has time for me, things get confusing.
I'll need a Christmas miracle to get out of this twin-brother mess.
◆The Holiday Stand-In is a closed-door romantic comedy that brings all the sizzle, tension, and chemistry without explicit scenes or language.
Tropes in the
• Love Triangle
• Falling for the wrong "right" brother
• Fake Dating
• Christmas Tradition
• Small Town
• Snowed In
• Mistletoe Kiss
• Closed Door (nothing beyond kissing)
350 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 20, 2023
483 people are currently reading
3834 people want to read
About the author
Kortney Keisel
21 books1,426 followersKortney graduated from the University of Utah with an English degree and spent a few years before motherhood teaching 7th and 8th graders how to write a book report, among other things. But after a reading slump, where no plots seemed to satisfy, Kortney pulled out her laptop and started writing the "perfect" love story...or at least she tried. Writing love stories is her job...just kidding. Her real job is taking care of her five awesome kids and spending time with her husband.
Kortney loves a good romance movie or book, warm chocolate chip cookies, and traveling the world.
Connect with Kortney at www.kortneykeisel.com
Kortney loves a good romance movie or book, warm chocolate chip cookies, and traveling the world.
Connect with Kortney at www.kortneykeisel.com
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 608 reviews
December 7, 2025
This book was really cute and sweet. It was also funny and emotional at times. I loved the sloooow burn and all the holiday traditions. It’s definitely a book worth reading, but you need to DNF at 98% (before the last chapter of the epilogue), unless you want to get really mad (if you want to know why read the next paragraph).
(SPOILERS)
The main reason why this book wasn’t 5 stars are Justin and Caleb both proposing on the same day (Caleb proposed one year after Justin), and that day being not only Christmas Eve, but also Summer’s birthday… Justin proposing on Summer’s birthday was bad enough, but Caleb proposing the same day his brother did the year before was UNFORGIVABLE.
Another thing I didn’t like was Summer not having an emotional growth and learning to be alone, I also think she should’ve taken a little time to be alone after breaking up with her boyfriend and before running to his brother. Also, both the mmcs and fmc’s families were totally ok with the twin swap thing and it was an unrealistic reaction. Lastly, I didn’t like Justin and Jordan as a couple, the world is big and they could have found someone else; it felt to me like they had settled for that relationship because the other option was to be alone, while, personally, I would rather be single forever than be with a man I don’t love.
I previously read “One Foggy Christmas” by the same author and in both books we have:
(SPOILERS FOR BOTH BOOKS)
1. a love triangle,
2. the fmc wants to get married really bad,
3. the love interest is super rich,
4. the mmc who isn’t the love interest propose to the fmc and then gets rejected,
5. the fmc wants to travel the world with the love interest,
6. the couple goes on a trip to Switzerland,
7. the love interest hides his ring in his sock and proposes.
I felt like these are too many things to all be causalities, but maybe I’m wrong, and, if I’m not wrong, she’s totally free to copy her own work, I just didn’t like this choice
(SPOILERS)
The main reason why this book wasn’t 5 stars are Justin and Caleb both proposing on the same day (Caleb proposed one year after Justin), and that day being not only Christmas Eve, but also Summer’s birthday… Justin proposing on Summer’s birthday was bad enough, but Caleb proposing the same day his brother did the year before was UNFORGIVABLE.
Another thing I didn’t like was Summer not having an emotional growth and learning to be alone, I also think she should’ve taken a little time to be alone after breaking up with her boyfriend and before running to his brother. Also, both the mmcs and fmc’s families were totally ok with the twin swap thing and it was an unrealistic reaction. Lastly, I didn’t like Justin and Jordan as a couple, the world is big and they could have found someone else; it felt to me like they had settled for that relationship because the other option was to be alone, while, personally, I would rather be single forever than be with a man I don’t love.
I previously read “One Foggy Christmas” by the same author and in both books we have:
(SPOILERS FOR BOTH BOOKS)
1. a love triangle,
2. the fmc wants to get married really bad,
3. the love interest is super rich,
4. the mmc who isn’t the love interest propose to the fmc and then gets rejected,
5. the fmc wants to travel the world with the love interest,
6. the couple goes on a trip to Switzerland,
7. the love interest hides his ring in his sock and proposes.
I felt like these are too many things to all be causalities, but maybe I’m wrong, and, if I’m not wrong, she’s totally free to copy her own work, I just didn’t like this choice
December 12, 2024
I want to start by saying that I absolutely love a good love triangle. But in this one, there were too many red flags. With two of the three characters already in an established relationship, I'm not sure how I wanted it to play out, but I just couldn’t get past the blatant cheating.
Summer Stanworth is addicted to Christmas. But unfortunately her workaholic boyfriend, Justin, refuses to find the time to celebrate with her, leaving the Stanworth family very suspicious that he is the right man for her. Enter Caleb, the reckless, athletic twin of Justin, and the perfect replacement to accompany Summer this holiday season and win over her family.
You'll need to suspend your disbelief to accept that this situation could realistically work—especially considering the brothers have obvious differences—but the setup was undeniably fun and cute. I particularly loved seeing Summer and Caleb interact with the Stanworth family; their traditions were an absolute blast. I genuinely laughed a few times (the turkey spanking!).
There is no denying which twin was the better choice for Summer, but given the forbidden feelings between Summer and Caleb, it made me uncomfortable how often they repeatedly placed themselves in situations outside of their fake-dating arrangement. I often found it hard to escape in those sweet, intimate moments because my brain was constantly screaming BUT YOU HAVE A BOYFRIEND.
(heat level: kissing only)
Summer Stanworth is addicted to Christmas. But unfortunately her workaholic boyfriend, Justin, refuses to find the time to celebrate with her, leaving the Stanworth family very suspicious that he is the right man for her. Enter Caleb, the reckless, athletic twin of Justin, and the perfect replacement to accompany Summer this holiday season and win over her family.
You'll need to suspend your disbelief to accept that this situation could realistically work—especially considering the brothers have obvious differences—but the setup was undeniably fun and cute. I particularly loved seeing Summer and Caleb interact with the Stanworth family; their traditions were an absolute blast. I genuinely laughed a few times (the turkey spanking!).
There is no denying which twin was the better choice for Summer, but given the forbidden feelings between Summer and Caleb, it made me uncomfortable how often they repeatedly placed themselves in situations outside of their fake-dating arrangement. I often found it hard to escape in those sweet, intimate moments because my brain was constantly screaming BUT YOU HAVE A BOYFRIEND.
(heat level: kissing only)
December 4, 2023
Not Okay.
Since I won’t review this book on my page, I shall go ahead and post my full review here.
First the positives, this had the holiday vibes I have been SEARCHING for. The family gathering, decking the halls, and all the merry, wintery feelings I wanted.
The book is extremely well written. It pulled me in and was complete bingeable. Not to mention the awesome kissing scenes.
Caleb was stinking swoony and I loved him a lot. He gave grace in unfair circumstances, he championed a girl who was being forgotten, he let his heart be trampled on, and he showed up. A gem of a man.
POSSIBLE SPOILERS
Now, to the problems. This is a cheating book. Plain and simple. If my boyfriend did any of the things that our FMC did, I would be DONE. Absolutely not. Zero chance. Not only is it emotional cheating, but physical as well.
Then we have the FMC. I didn’t love that we didn’t see any growth from her. She just wanted a boyfriend to avoid loneliness and I would have loved to see that emotional growth into more of an adult relationship
Since I won’t review this book on my page, I shall go ahead and post my full review here.
First the positives, this had the holiday vibes I have been SEARCHING for. The family gathering, decking the halls, and all the merry, wintery feelings I wanted.
The book is extremely well written. It pulled me in and was complete bingeable. Not to mention the awesome kissing scenes.
Caleb was stinking swoony and I loved him a lot. He gave grace in unfair circumstances, he championed a girl who was being forgotten, he let his heart be trampled on, and he showed up. A gem of a man.
POSSIBLE SPOILERS
Now, to the problems. This is a cheating book. Plain and simple. If my boyfriend did any of the things that our FMC did, I would be DONE. Absolutely not. Zero chance. Not only is it emotional cheating, but physical as well.
Then we have the FMC. I didn’t love that we didn’t see any growth from her. She just wanted a boyfriend to avoid loneliness and I would have loved to see that emotional growth into more of an adult relationship
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 21, 2023
'It's everything I wanted. It's just with the wrong brother.'
Okay, how do we feel about a love triangle?
I'll be honest, for a good long time I always said I hated them, like the 'loathe entirely' kind of hate on the triangle, but turns out-I don't hate it...at least in the literary world AND when you can clearly make a judgement call on who is the right option for the main character to be with.
One of my favorite things about Kortney's books is she writes what she wants to write. There is something amazing that happens when an author isn't trying to please readers only. That love she has for romances comes straight through the pages; and I am convinced makes them an even more entertaining read for the reader.
Back to the book.
Honestly? What is not to love about this one? It's got 'While You Were Sleeping' Vibes with a mix of 'Parent Trap' and 'The Proposal' and so much holiday cheer that even the grumpiest of scrooges will be wanting to deck the halls.
The connection between the main characters is electric. The banter/flirting/sarcasm/romantic tension are top notch throughout this entire book. I uncontrollably laughed out loud so many times that I've convinced multiple people already to pick this one up ASAP.
If you read Faking Christmas by Cindy Steel and loved it-this should be your next read.
Thanks to the author for the copy. All thoughts in this review are my own.
Content: love triangle (give it a chance in this one!!), family pressure, Christmas galore, fake dating/twin swap, mild innuendo, kisses/makeouts.
Okay, how do we feel about a love triangle?
I'll be honest, for a good long time I always said I hated them, like the 'loathe entirely' kind of hate on the triangle, but turns out-I don't hate it...at least in the literary world AND when you can clearly make a judgement call on who is the right option for the main character to be with.
One of my favorite things about Kortney's books is she writes what she wants to write. There is something amazing that happens when an author isn't trying to please readers only. That love she has for romances comes straight through the pages; and I am convinced makes them an even more entertaining read for the reader.
Back to the book.
Honestly? What is not to love about this one? It's got 'While You Were Sleeping' Vibes with a mix of 'Parent Trap' and 'The Proposal' and so much holiday cheer that even the grumpiest of scrooges will be wanting to deck the halls.
The connection between the main characters is electric. The banter/flirting/sarcasm/romantic tension are top notch throughout this entire book. I uncontrollably laughed out loud so many times that I've convinced multiple people already to pick this one up ASAP.
If you read Faking Christmas by Cindy Steel and loved it-this should be your next read.
Thanks to the author for the copy. All thoughts in this review are my own.
Content: love triangle (give it a chance in this one!!), family pressure, Christmas galore, fake dating/twin swap, mild innuendo, kisses/makeouts.
December 3, 2025
Okay, move over all my favorite romcoms! Because The Holiday Stand-in just made it into the top 10 favorites of all time!
How has it taken me sooo long to read this one?? I seriously loved everything about this book. The forced proximity in the cabin--delicious! The fake dating--oh my gosh, seriously loved it so much! Doing Christmas/winter activities! There was so much to love about this book.
I definitely need a copy for my trophy shelf and to mark up when I do a reread.
This is a standalone novel.
Content Guide:
Language: none
Sexual Content: Closed-door: Mild to moderate innuendos, steamy kissing, physical attraction
Violence/gore: none
Substance Use: none
Prejudices: none
Religious Content: Celebrating of Christmas
Other: I don't remember anything major.
How has it taken me sooo long to read this one?? I seriously loved everything about this book. The forced proximity in the cabin--delicious! The fake dating--oh my gosh, seriously loved it so much! Doing Christmas/winter activities! There was so much to love about this book.
I definitely need a copy for my trophy shelf and to mark up when I do a reread.
This is a standalone novel.
Content Guide:
Language: none
Sexual Content: Closed-door: Mild to moderate innuendos, steamy kissing, physical attraction
Violence/gore: none
Substance Use: none
Prejudices: none
Religious Content: Celebrating of Christmas
Other: I don't remember anything major.
December 31, 2023
RED FLAG.
BLOG || INSTAGRAM
When I read a book with a love triangle, I give some grace to the fact that the FMC might kiss both love interests at some point during the book, BEFORE any true relationship boundaries have been created.
THIS THOUGH. Already had a committed (9 month long) relationship going before the book even started. Hence where I’m going with this. I became increasingly more frustrated as this book went one and hit that rage read level by the end. Summer was way too forgiving for way too much over and over and over again.
What I did like? All of the holiday traditions. I liked Summer’s family a lot. I did also enjoy Caleb’s personality and general demeanor. I can easily say there’s a few good things in here, but the overall story made me want to throw something.
Overall audience notes:
- Contemporary Holiday Romance
- Language: none
- Romance: kisses
- Trigger/Content Warnings: cheating, loss of a friend (briefly mentioned)
BLOG || INSTAGRAM
When I read a book with a love triangle, I give some grace to the fact that the FMC might kiss both love interests at some point during the book, BEFORE any true relationship boundaries have been created.
THIS THOUGH. Already had a committed (9 month long) relationship going before the book even started. Hence where I’m going with this. I became increasingly more frustrated as this book went one and hit that rage read level by the end. Summer was way too forgiving for way too much over and over and over again.
What I did like? All of the holiday traditions. I liked Summer’s family a lot. I did also enjoy Caleb’s personality and general demeanor. I can easily say there’s a few good things in here, but the overall story made me want to throw something.
Overall audience notes:
- Contemporary Holiday Romance
- Language: none
- Romance: kisses
- Trigger/Content Warnings: cheating, loss of a friend (briefly mentioned)
November 12, 2024
THIS IS A CHEATING BOOK. The main characters are cheating 95% of the book, and I cannot get behind that. Summer only realized it over halfway though, but had barely any remorse.
Caleb would deliberately put them in compromising situations. That doesn’t reflect well on him.
Poor Justin. Was he kind of a jerk who was leading Summer on without even being present? Yes. Was the plan his idea? Yes. Did he deserve to be cheated on? No.
Summer. Oh Summer. What she really should have done is taken a year off dating and get comfortable doing things by herself. She only really dated guys because she couldn’t stand to be alone. Hence the plot, and therefore, the cheating.
Summer and Caleb could have at least given themselves a year between breaking up with Justin and getting together themselves, but they didn’t even wait 5 minutes.
And her family. I didnt have a problem with them until they totally brushed off the fact that their daughter cheated on her boyfriend. There was not even a second of disappointment before they said, “Let’s go get Caleb back!!!”
Justin and Caleb’s parents barely batted an eye too.
literally everyone in this book was crappy, and every situation was crappy. The chemistry was good, I’ll give it that, but I couldn’t enjoy it because of the CHEATING
PS. Looking at all the positive reviews that don’t care about the cheating at all makes me lose a little faith in humanity.
Caleb would deliberately put them in compromising situations. That doesn’t reflect well on him.
Poor Justin. Was he kind of a jerk who was leading Summer on without even being present? Yes. Was the plan his idea? Yes. Did he deserve to be cheated on? No.
Summer. Oh Summer. What she really should have done is taken a year off dating and get comfortable doing things by herself. She only really dated guys because she couldn’t stand to be alone. Hence the plot, and therefore, the cheating.
Summer and Caleb could have at least given themselves a year between breaking up with Justin and getting together themselves, but they didn’t even wait 5 minutes.
And her family. I didnt have a problem with them until they totally brushed off the fact that their daughter cheated on her boyfriend. There was not even a second of disappointment before they said, “Let’s go get Caleb back!!!”
Justin and Caleb’s parents barely batted an eye too.
literally everyone in this book was crappy, and every situation was crappy. The chemistry was good, I’ll give it that, but I couldn’t enjoy it because of the CHEATING
PS. Looking at all the positive reviews that don’t care about the cheating at all makes me lose a little faith in humanity.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 2, 2023
Ok, so this book could have been a 5 star read, because the chemistry between main couple was magnificent, the dates, the crazy family, there was so much to love, but it failed miserably. I would understand this, if Summer and Justin already broke up, then Summer would fail to mention the break up to her family and would need Justin for all the xmas stuff and then Caleb showed up and had to play her boyfriend. That scenario i could get behind, but this, no matter the chemistry, no matter how charming Caleb was, it still was cheating and with your boyfriend's brother. If you are not in a happy relationship, if you do not love each other, then break up. Toward the end of the book Summer was starting to be a bit annoying. But still i enjoyed this book, so will be looking into this authors other works.
November 27, 2023
Writing was good but I really couldn't stand Summer and the whole falling for one brother while being in a long term relationship with the other brother was just wrong. She seemed spineless, flighty and codependent while the author was trying to make her seem adventurous and independent at the same time.
January 14, 2024
I wasn't sure how I was going to feel about this one given there's a clear love triangle but Ms. Keisel did a great job creating the plot around it as opposed to just having this trope as part of the story. There were fun moments throughout and I loved the family settings especially when Mr. Right was a part of it. Overall a fun, Christmas story!
Want to read
December 11, 2024Without explicit spice or language?
Sold
Sold
December 20, 2024
This book altered my brain chemistry . The way I gaped….. need a walking red flag, meet Justin. I felt so so so bad for Summer.
Caleb was such a softie and I love him.
Only Kortney Keisel could pull off this situation
Caleb was such a softie and I love him.
Only Kortney Keisel could pull off this situation
December 10, 2025
I’M FLOORED😍
This is one of my new favorite books - between my favorite holiday, favorite movie, and one of my favorite authors? It was a recipe for success🤩
The nods to “While You Were Sleeping” made my heart SO happy - this book was filled with so much fun and laughter; Summer’s family was just like Jack and Peter’s family from the movie! Kortney genuinely made me laugh out loud multiple times in this book; whether from hilarious quips from the family, or in the banter between Summer and Caleb🤣
The tension between Summer and Caleb was just oh so good - I got butterflies so many times and was just so engaged in their story 🫠❤️ There was a perfect balance between the way they cherished and loved each other while still making things so fun and flirty! I was so gripped by every page!!!
Their story is the epitome of - “you are so easy to love, and I hate that someone ever made you feel like you weren’t or that you were too much” 😭🥹❤️🩹
Kortney Keisel is honestly the greatest - no notes
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
This is one of my new favorite books - between my favorite holiday, favorite movie, and one of my favorite authors? It was a recipe for success🤩
The nods to “While You Were Sleeping” made my heart SO happy - this book was filled with so much fun and laughter; Summer’s family was just like Jack and Peter’s family from the movie! Kortney genuinely made me laugh out loud multiple times in this book; whether from hilarious quips from the family, or in the banter between Summer and Caleb🤣
The tension between Summer and Caleb was just oh so good - I got butterflies so many times and was just so engaged in their story 🫠❤️ There was a perfect balance between the way they cherished and loved each other while still making things so fun and flirty! I was so gripped by every page!!!
Their story is the epitome of - “you are so easy to love, and I hate that someone ever made you feel like you weren’t or that you were too much” 😭🥹❤️🩹
Kortney Keisel is honestly the greatest - no notes
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
December 4, 2023
There was so much about this book that I loved, but I personally couldn’t get past the fake dating trope being with the boyfriend’s identical twin brother. It really gave me the ick for some reason. I *almost* stopped reading this book about 70% of the way through when Summer started to get jealous of Caleb flirting with another woman while she was sitting next to her boyfriend, who was Caleb’s brother. I just didn’t like it. At all. So that’s why I’m giving the book only 2 stars.
I did really love Summer and Caleb together, but I wish it was under different circumstances! For me, the book would have been a 5 star read if Justin wasn’t in the picture at all and Caleb was some cute new single in town that Summer met while giving him a tour of an apartment that she was managing. Then their fake dating adventures would have been more enjoyable to read about and get on board with.
I did really love Summer and Caleb together, but I wish it was under different circumstances! For me, the book would have been a 5 star read if Justin wasn’t in the picture at all and Caleb was some cute new single in town that Summer met while giving him a tour of an apartment that she was managing. Then their fake dating adventures would have been more enjoyable to read about and get on board with.
December 24, 2025
By the end, I didn’t even want them to end up together. A happy ending would’ve been if they both died.
4 stars though because it’s well-written and actually funny. -1 star because fmc is an idiot and we shouldn’t be normalizing cheating.
Just a small percentage of what I found wrong with this:
- summer realizes her feelings for her bf’s brother and then instead of: a)breaking up w her bf, or b) setting boundaries, she decides to cheat on him instead and then act like the victim
- caleb tricks her into spending the night w him despite her dating his brother
- she gets jealous of caleb going as someone’s date to an event even though she has her own boyfriend
- she talks about how she has a fear of being alone and then ends up falling for someone else when she’s feeling neglected by her bf….. big surprise.
- she tells justin that she loves his brother instead of him, and they just hug it out and he gives them his blessing. on the night he was going to propose.
- the day she confesses her feelings to caleb (they don’t wait a single day to give justin time to move on) they’re already talking about spending a lifetime together!!!!! And then like 3 months later he buys a house there because he is just that committed.
- caleb proposes to summer on the anniversary of his brother’s rejected proposal to her
They can’t make me think Justin was the villain!!!!! He was the only victim in this. Summer is bad
4 stars though because it’s well-written and actually funny. -1 star because fmc is an idiot and we shouldn’t be normalizing cheating.
Just a small percentage of what I found wrong with this:
- summer realizes her feelings for her bf’s brother and then instead of: a)breaking up w her bf, or b) setting boundaries, she decides to cheat on him instead and then act like the victim
- caleb tricks her into spending the night w him despite her dating his brother
- she gets jealous of caleb going as someone’s date to an event even though she has her own boyfriend
- she talks about how she has a fear of being alone and then ends up falling for someone else when she’s feeling neglected by her bf….. big surprise.
- she tells justin that she loves his brother instead of him, and they just hug it out and he gives them his blessing. on the night he was going to propose.
- the day she confesses her feelings to caleb (they don’t wait a single day to give justin time to move on) they’re already talking about spending a lifetime together!!!!! And then like 3 months later he buys a house there because he is just that committed.
- caleb proposes to summer on the anniversary of his brother’s rejected proposal to her
They can’t make me think Justin was the villain!!!!! He was the only victim in this. Summer is bad
December 1, 2023
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 (3.5)
Steam Level: 🔥 (kissing only)
Trigger Warning: cheating
The holiday season is about to begin, and Summer is excited to celebrate her birthday on Christmas Eve along with all the holiday traditions her family has scheduled. The only problem? Her boyfriend Justin is too busy with work to make time for her. Luckily, Justin has the perfect solution. He'll have his twin brother Caleb go in his place and win over Summer's family until the busy season at work is over. As Summer and Caleb fake their relationship, real feelings begin to grow. Will Summer end up falling for the wrong brother?
I have very mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, I liked Summer and Caleb together. As the story progressed, it was clear that these two had chemistry, and Caleb showed he was the attentive and fun man that Summer needed. The things he said to her in the end were really sweet and romantic. If this had simply been a fake dating story, then I could have rated it higher. My problem is that even though Justin was a terrible boyfriend and set himself up for failure, I still wasn't okay with Summer and Caleb flirting and cheating. It was also weird that the family didn't notice the switch, despite it being pointed out that Justin and Caleb had physical differences. The whole situation just left an awkward and uncomfortable feeling that dampened the overall vibe of the story. I still look forward to trying Kortney Keisel's next book, but this was a bit of a miss for me.
Steam Level: 🔥 (kissing only)
Trigger Warning: cheating
The holiday season is about to begin, and Summer is excited to celebrate her birthday on Christmas Eve along with all the holiday traditions her family has scheduled. The only problem? Her boyfriend Justin is too busy with work to make time for her. Luckily, Justin has the perfect solution. He'll have his twin brother Caleb go in his place and win over Summer's family until the busy season at work is over. As Summer and Caleb fake their relationship, real feelings begin to grow. Will Summer end up falling for the wrong brother?
I have very mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, I liked Summer and Caleb together. As the story progressed, it was clear that these two had chemistry, and Caleb showed he was the attentive and fun man that Summer needed. The things he said to her in the end were really sweet and romantic. If this had simply been a fake dating story, then I could have rated it higher. My problem is that even though Justin was a terrible boyfriend and set himself up for failure, I still wasn't okay with Summer and Caleb flirting and cheating. It was also weird that the family didn't notice the switch, despite it being pointed out that Justin and Caleb had physical differences. The whole situation just left an awkward and uncomfortable feeling that dampened the overall vibe of the story. I still look forward to trying Kortney Keisel's next book, but this was a bit of a miss for me.
December 10, 2025
Well that was fun!
December 14, 2025
This was a perfect quick Christmas Rom-com.
If you like While You Were Sleeping, you’ll like this book. Both of their families are great and it takes place in Telluride, CO, the main character is named Summer and someone nicknames her Sum-Sum! Too funny.
A lot of fun and like a PG film.
If you like While You Were Sleeping, you’ll like this book. Both of their families are great and it takes place in Telluride, CO, the main character is named Summer and someone nicknames her Sum-Sum! Too funny.
A lot of fun and like a PG film.
November 21, 2023
I love this book soo much!
Summer's story is:
🎄Christmas time!
🎄Wrong 'right' twin brother!
🎄Excellent tension!
🎄While You Were Sleeping vibes!
🎄Sunshine-Sunshine trope!
🎄One Bed!
🎄Twin-swap shenanigans!
This book is SO GOOD!
Going into it, I was like twin swap? She falls in love with his brother?? How will it work?!
BUT KORTNEY CRUSHED IT!
•The characters!! I absolutely love the Sunshine-Sunshine trope, I think its very underrated and it's SO GOOD!! All the fun they have together, and the laughing together and flirting!😍😍😍 *the cutest*
•The brother's relationship🥹 They were both awesome through-out the story/playing their roles perfectly and I was so satisfied with how everything ended between everyone!
There's humor and heart in abundance in this story, so well done, and a swoooony forbidden romance complete with love declarations and I loved ALL OF IT!
I binged this book, didn't ever want to put it down, each scene was so well done, I was constantly rooting for Summer and a certain twin, and I couldn't wait to see their HEA!
If you enjoy romcoms, you don't want to miss this one!
Summer's story is:
🎄Christmas time!
🎄Wrong 'right' twin brother!
🎄Excellent tension!
🎄While You Were Sleeping vibes!
🎄Sunshine-Sunshine trope!
🎄One Bed!
🎄Twin-swap shenanigans!
This book is SO GOOD!
Going into it, I was like twin swap? She falls in love with his brother?? How will it work?!
BUT KORTNEY CRUSHED IT!
•The characters!! I absolutely love the Sunshine-Sunshine trope, I think its very underrated and it's SO GOOD!! All the fun they have together, and the laughing together and flirting!😍😍😍 *the cutest*
•The brother's relationship🥹 They were both awesome through-out the story/playing their roles perfectly and I was so satisfied with how everything ended between everyone!
There's humor and heart in abundance in this story, so well done, and a swoooony forbidden romance complete with love declarations and I loved ALL OF IT!
I binged this book, didn't ever want to put it down, each scene was so well done, I was constantly rooting for Summer and a certain twin, and I couldn't wait to see their HEA!
If you enjoy romcoms, you don't want to miss this one!
December 8, 2025
4.5/5 ⭐️ this was the cutest little holiday read :”) literally felt like a hallmark movie threw up into a book HAHAH I loved it. PLUS it’s clean/no spice
December 6, 2025
Soooo good! While you were sleeping vibes!
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December 12, 2023I thought this book was very well written, super funny and a really cute holiday themed story. I felt it was written much better then a lot of the rom coms I’ve read, even. However, I could not get past the cheating. Summer was in a relationship with Justin and even if it was his idea of swapping with his brother, it was inappropriate the staying over night together, the kiss at the dance and all the lustful thoughts. I couldn’t fully enjoy it even though there was such great chemistry and tension between Caleb (who I genuinely liked!) and Summer (also loved!) I just can’t get behind glorifying their relationship while Justin was still in the picture and had no idea. 😞
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November 6, 2024I hate love triangles, BUT
This love triangle was handled so well! I loved that the dual POV and her early doubts made it abundantly clear which twin was the “right” one for her (ergo, no spoilers), and that they fought to have integrity despite the pull of feelings. So sweet, and I love how Summer and Caleb get each other so well. It was very hard to put this one down. Excellent balance of the push-pull between them and trying to do the right thing.
This love triangle was handled so well! I loved that the dual POV and her early doubts made it abundantly clear which twin was the “right” one for her (ergo, no spoilers), and that they fought to have integrity despite the pull of feelings. So sweet, and I love how Summer and Caleb get each other so well. It was very hard to put this one down. Excellent balance of the push-pull between them and trying to do the right thing.
December 19, 2024
Delightful! The perfect holiday escape!
December 21, 2025
It took me way too long to figure out that this is essentially the story of While You Were Sleeping (one of my all time favorite movies).
I loved the audiobook narration. Duet style is my favorite type of audiobook and this one was done really well. Both of the readers were excellent. The guy read all the male parts and the woman read all the female parts.
A lot of people have disliked this book because of the cheat-y vibe but I thought it was cute and funny overall. I think it being in dual perspective made it feel more cheat-y because you are in Caleb’s head and hearing his thoughts. Had this been only in the FMC’s POV i think it would have lessened the cheating vibes somewhat.
I loved the festive vibes and all the fun activities. I also loved Aunt Karma (not sure if that’s how her name is spelled because I listened to the audiobook). Overall really cute!
I loved the audiobook narration. Duet style is my favorite type of audiobook and this one was done really well. Both of the readers were excellent. The guy read all the male parts and the woman read all the female parts.
A lot of people have disliked this book because of the cheat-y vibe but I thought it was cute and funny overall. I think it being in dual perspective made it feel more cheat-y because you are in Caleb’s head and hearing his thoughts. Had this been only in the FMC’s POV i think it would have lessened the cheating vibes somewhat.
I loved the festive vibes and all the fun activities. I also loved Aunt Karma (not sure if that’s how her name is spelled because I listened to the audiobook). Overall really cute!
December 3, 2025
A perfectly cozy, fun holiday read with While You Were Sleeping vibes!!!
Love triangles are always tricky and I never quite know how I feel about them, but this one was done so well. I loved this story. The main characters, the family side characters, the traditions, and all the Christmas vibes, this book was an absolute delight. Clean language. No spice. Just cheesy, but not cringey moments and plenty of LOL moments.
Love triangles are always tricky and I never quite know how I feel about them, but this one was done so well. I loved this story. The main characters, the family side characters, the traditions, and all the Christmas vibes, this book was an absolute delight. Clean language. No spice. Just cheesy, but not cringey moments and plenty of LOL moments.
December 25, 2024
I have mixed feelings about this fake dating with your boyfriend's twin brother holiday romance. It was cute and had lots of small town charm, I was rooting hard for the twin brother but I wasn't the hugest fan of the female lead falling for someone else while still with his brother. Good on audio but overall not my favorite Kortney Keisel book.
December 8, 2025
3.5⭐️ I loved Caleb & Summer… but didn’t quite understand what took so long. At no point was Justin a redeemable character in my mind. Didn’t love the “jealousy” section. Caleb’s declaration was beautiful. The ending, while sweet, was also a bit awkward IMO with Justin’s attendance. 🤷🏻♀️ What are you gonna do with a brother love triangle. This is the global question of 2025 😅
December 11, 2025
Cute quick holiday book. Summer was such a fun spunky girl. The love triangle was interesting and probably not realistic with brothers but I loved it anyways. It made me happy reading this. The audio was okay. Caleb’s voice was not what I had in mind and Justin’s voice was way too robotic but Summer’s was great.
December 17, 2024
Ah! I loved this one so much! This love triangle between Caleb, Justin and Summer was so well written and tastefully done. The adventures and all the Christmas activities were so much fun.. Summers big family was a riot and had me laughing so much!
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