'Tis the season for cozy reading: 10 festive books to curl up with for the holidays

Feel that nip in the air? It's the perfect time to snuggle up with a warm mug of tea and a good book.

And why not make it a festive read? Whatever your preferred genre, there are plenty of options to pick up this holiday season. Some readers fill their shelves with as many punny Christmas romances as they can while others turn to dark academia and wintery vibes for their December TBR.

Between buying gifts for the bibliophiles in your life and stocking up on the year’s bestsellers, make sure to snag a cozy read for yourself.

Christmas romance books to read this winter

If you’re looking for a kiss under the mistletoe, here are some of the best Christmas romance books to read.

‘Royal Holiday’ by Jasmine Guillory

A holiday romance at Buckingham Palace? Yes, please! “Royal Holiday” by Jasmine Guillory follows Vivian Forest, a not-so-well-traveled woman tagging along on her daughter’s work trip to style a royal family member in England. When she meets Malcolm Hudson, a private secretary for the Queen, the two begin a whirlwind romance. But as the new year approaches, will Vivian and Malcolm really be able to say goodbye to their fleeting holiday fling?

‘How My Neighbor Stole Christmas’ by Meghan Quinn

A new release from the USA TODAY bestselling author, “How My Neighbor Stole Christmas” is a steamy enemies-to-lovers holiday tale. This romance is appropriately set in Kringletown as Christmas fanatic Storee Taylor moves in next door to Cole Black, the town’s resident Scrooge. Storee is determined to win the town Christmas Kringle contest but Cole won’t give her the satisfaction – he’s going to enter the contest too, pretending he’s fallen in love with her to thwart her chances.

‘Bright Lights, Big Christmas’ by Mary Kay Andrews

In “Bright Lights, Big Christmas,” Kerry is headed from her family’s Christmas tree farm in North Carolina to New York City for the first time. Sleeping in a tiny trailer and selling trees on a street corner with her older brother, Kerry quickly makes the neighborhood feel like home. It helps that she has undeniable chemistry with Patrick, a cute single dad who lives on the block. But when an elderly neighbor goes missing, she’ll do everything it takes to search for him and protect her newfound family.

‘Kiss Her Once for Me’ by Alison Cochrun

This queer holiday rom-com is about a Portland transplant who fakes an engagement with her landlord only to fall in love with his sister. A year after a betrayal and job loss, Ellie is passing her days by working at a local coffee shop when her landlord drunkenly proposes a fake marriage plan. It seems too good to be true – if she plays her cards right, Ellie will get a major payout from his inheritance. But then she meets her fake fiancé's sister, realizing there’s something all too familiar about her.

‘Winter Street’ by Elin Hilderbrand

Romance regular Hilderbrand brings us to Nantucket at Christmas in “Winter Street.” The novel follows Kelley Quinn, the owner of the Winter Street Inn, and his four grown, dysfunctional children. Each of them harbors secrets and guilty consciences, which spill over when they reunite on the island. This chaotic coming home involves a love triangle, a federal crime, an unplanned pregnancy, a house fire and plenty of other Christmas shenanigans.

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Holiday books to pick up this season

If romance isn’t your thing or you’re looking for a holiday book that isn’t centered on Christmas, we’ve got recommendations for that, too. Here are some genre-expansive holiday books to check out.

‘Three Holidays and a Wedding’ by Uzma Jalaluddin and Marissa Stapley

In “Three Holidays and a Wedding,” two strangers bond on a plane with dangerous turbulence in a year where Christmas, Eid and Hanukkah overlap. Maryam is on her way to her sister’s impromptu wedding and Anna is flying to meet her boyfriend’s wealthy family for the first time. In a moment of panic, the seatmates confess their hopes and fears to each other, never expecting to cross paths again. But their secrets quickly tangle when they discover the love of Maryam’s life is sitting two rows behind them and an emergency landing strands the entire group in a quirky town. Can Anna and Maryam find the courage to voice their deepest confessions aloud?

‘Blackmail and Bibingka’ by Mia P. Manansala

In this cozy mystery novel, cafe owner Lila Macapagal’s life is starting to go right until her cousin Ronnie returns to town. He hasn't spoken to the family for 15 years and Lila just knows trouble is coming. And it does, when Ronnie is suspected of murder. Can she put away her family grudges long enough to help prove he’s innocent? “Blackmail and Bibingka” is part of Manansala’s “A Tita Rosie’s Kitchen Mystery” series, but can be read as a standalone.

‘Love You a Latke’ by Amanda Elliot

Amanda Elliot brings small-town Vermont holiday romance in “Love You a Latke.” Protagonist Abby has a lot grinding her gears these days yet her most annoying customer, Seth, comes in every day with a too-sunny attitude she can’t stand. And as the only Jewish person on the town’s tourism board, she’s in charge of planning a Hanukkah festival that none of the local vendors will make an effort to understand. When she desperately searches for Hanukkah event planning help, she realizes that there's only one other Jewish Vermonter within a hundred miles – it just so happens to be Seth.

‘Small Things Like These’ by Claire Keegan

This bite-size holiday historical fiction story is newly adapted into a film starring Cillian Murphy and Emily Watson. Keegan’s novella is set in a small Irish town in 1985 as coal merchant Bill Furlong faces the busiest season of the year. One morning, he makes a discovery at a local church that forces him to reckon with his past and the secrets of a complicit Catholic-run town.

‘A December to Remember’ by Jenny Bayliss

“A December to Remember” follows three estranged half-sisters as they reunite for a will reading for their recently deceased eccentric father. Maggie, Simone and Star are all categorically different from each other and prone to bickering, but they’ll have to come together if they want to solve the wild goose chase set up by their father to unlock his inheritance.

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Still looking for the right book? USA TODAY Books has you covered.

Taste is subjective, and USA TODAY Books has plenty of genres to recommend. If dragons are your thing, check out books we suggest reading after "Fourth Wing" by Rebecca Yarros. If you're into mysteries, try these titles similar to "Verity" by Colleen Hoover or see if you’re brave enough for one of our favorite horror novels. If you want something with lower stakes and loveable characters, see if a "cozy mystery" or "cozy fantasy" book is for you. If you want the most popular titles, check out USA TODAY’s Best-selling Booklist.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 10 Christmas romance books, holiday novels to read this season