Yours for the Season: A Novel -

Author: Uzma Jalaluddin

Genre: Contemporary Romance / Holiday Rom–Com–Cross-Cultural, Fake Dating, Family Drama

Book Rating: ⭐9/10

Spicy Rating: 🌶️🌶️ 2/5

Description:
In Yours for the Season, ambitious attorney Sameera Malik is grinding long hours at her Toronto law firm, nursing fresh heartbreak, and trying to reconnect with her family after a painful estrangement. Viral chef and content creator Tom Cooke is juggling online fame with pressure from his family to give up his dreams and move back home. When they meet at a boring holiday party, they share a few laughs, a samosa-making lesson, and zero plans to ever see each other again.

But one of Tom’s posts accidentally sparks a viral rumor that they’re dating. To spin the chaos into an opportunity, they agree to a fake relationship: Tom gets a PR boost, and Sameera gets help landing an important client. The plan goes off the rails when Sameera’s very Muslim parents insist on spending Christmas with Tom’s very not Muslim family in rural Alaska. Trapped together amid snow, aunties, auntie-level opinions, and clashing holiday traditions, Sameera and Tom start to realize that beneath the staged selfies and pretend affection, something real—and very inconvenient—is growing between them. 

Trope/Mood:
Fake dating → real feelings; cross-cultural holiday romance; big Muslim family meets white Canadian family; forced proximity in a small town / snowy Alaska setting; grumpy-stressed career woman × charming chef; viral social media drama; family expectations vs personal dreams; cozy, funny, heartwarming, and emotional with light-to-moderate spice and lots of food and family vibes.