Must-Read Magical Realism Books for Christmas
By: Angela & Melissa
Updated:
As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, we may earn a referral fee from qualifying purchases.Christmas is a magical time of year, but some holiday-themed books lean into that aspect more than others. From the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future in A Christmas Carol to stories of Santa guiding his reindeer to every chimney around the world and even the toys coming alive in The Nutcracker, stories from the holiday season have always been all about believing in a touch of something magical.
In honor of these classic tales, we have a full list of novels and novellas that incorporate a magical realism element into the plot. They are a perfect escape into a cozy world where anything is possible.
Christmas Books Featuring Magical Realism
Below you’ll find our favorite magical realism Christmas novels and novellas, from time loops to ghostly visits.
Good Spirits
Book Summary
Nolan Callahan is the Ghost of Christmas Past. He assumes this holiday haunting season will be just like every other. But then he’s faced with Harriet York, and he suddenly finds himself wishing for a future.
Harriet has always tried to be a good person, so she has no idea why she’s being haunted. She’s a people pleaser who has always done what’s expected of her.
As Nolan guides her to examine her past, they discover that there are threads binding them together. With a Christmas Eve deadline fast approaching, will they find the key to their futures in each other’s pasts?
Why We Think You’ll Love It
Readers describe this as a surprisingly emotional, swoon-worthy magical romance filled with great banter and cozy vibes.
The Toymakers
Book Summary
By 1917, London was in the shadow of WW1. But in the Mayfair neighborhood, Papa Jack’s Toy Emporium is a place of hope where children’s dreams come true. Papa Jack has sold magical toys for years, including patchwork dogs and bears that seem alive, toy boxes bigger on the inside than out, ‘instant trees’ that sprout from boxes, and even tin soldiers that can fight battles on their own.
Jack’s sons, Emil and Kaspar, are now old enough to work in the family business. When 16-year-old Cathy arrives, homeless and vulnerable, they take her in, and she discovers that while all toy shops are places of wonder, only one is truly magical.
What to Expect in This Novel
The Toymakers is told from Cathy’s perspective from the time she arrives until the 1950s, spanning both World Wars.
Readers note that when WW2 begins, the tone of the book gets darker and drifts into more of a fairy tale. Some enjoy the book even more after this point, while others prefer the first half. If you’re looking for a light Christmas read, consider skipping this one.
Book Summary
Mae has spent every Christmas since her birth at the same snowy Utah cabin. Knowing it’s the last year they’ll spend at the cabin, feeling trapped in a job she hates, and having just made a big mistake in the romance department leaves her feeling totally hopeless.
She makes a Christmas wish for clarity on what will make her truly happy, setting in motion a Groundhog Day-like experience of reliving the same day until she finally gets it right and connects with her true love.
Our Thoughts About This Book
In a Holidaze is one of our favorite holiday reads, despite it having a lower Goodreads rating than we would expect! Don’t worry, the time-looping repetition doesn’t go overboard. Soon, the story will continue moving forward, and you’ll find yourself very invested in Mae’s romantic fate.
Highland Hearts Holiday Bookshop
Book Summary
When Rosie unexpectedly inherits a bookstore in Scotland, she leaves behind a bland relationship to relocate across the globe. Imagine her surprise to learn that the Highland Hearts bookstore is hiding a surprise. In addition to selling books, the shop runs an underground magical matchmaking service. And as the new owner, Rosie is expected to deliver on those matches with the help of a meddling book club.
It would be much easier if Rosie believed in love. But she doesn’t. Or so she thought before she found her heart all aflutter for a local bird nerd named Alexander MacTavish. He’s tall, dark, and grumpy, and like her, he seems to be determined to avoid love. Nonetheless, Rosie finds herself wanting to read up on birds to catch his attention.
As her newfound magic falters and she is forced into a cutthroat Christmas window decorating competition, Rosie finds herself working side by side with Alexander and questioning if one of the matches she’s meant to make is for herself.
Thoughts On This Book
Come for the Christmas magic and stay for the adorable rescued puffin and all the accompanying puffin puns!
This novel is told in a dual first-person point of view. One reader compares the story to the movie Practical Magic if it were set in a bookshop, but other readers say they wish the novel had featured more matches being made.
The Twelve Topsy-Turvy, Very Messy Days of Christmas
Book Summary
At the Sullivan’s Harlem brownstone, Christmas doesn’t exist. The family has suffered a devastating loss, so this year, there are no Christmas trees, cookies, gifts, or invited guests.
But then guests and gifts related to the Twelve Days of Christmas begin arriving. The happenings in the book follow the classic “Twelve Days of Christmas” song.
Reader Thoughts on This Book
If you’re looking for a wacky take on a classic Christmas tale filled with British humor, this one is for you! Readers say it manages to balance silliness and poignancy, as well as being magical and real.
Note that the US version of this novel is set in Harlem, New York, while the UK publication of the book is set in a neighborhood in London.
Book Summary
Most of us will be familiar with the tale of Ebenezer Scrooge, a grumpy and selfish man who is visited by the ghosts of his former business partner, as well as the spirits of Christmas past, present, and yet to come.
These magical and mysterious visits help him embrace a kinder approach to life and Christmas.
Why This Book Made the List
This book made the list of our readers’ all-time favorite classic novels. The magical realism elements of this story have resulted in many modern retellings, a couple of which you’ll find right here on this list.
Here’s what some of our readers said:
The message is timeless. The characters are timeless. And the season of the year is timeless. Sure, I have no clue what is in most of the food mentioned, but I don’t care because it teaches a lesson I want to hear every year. -Jessica F.
This book greatly influenced the modern US celebration of Christmas and has been adapted hundreds of times in every manner and format. It is enjoyable to read the original. -Jen R.
The Afterlife of Holly Chase
Book Summary
Like Charles Dickens’ Scrooge, seventeen-year-old Holly received a Christmas Eve visit from three ghosts who showed her how selfish and spoiled she’d become. Unlike Scrooge, she was unconvinced, and she did not change her ways. Then, she died.
She’s now stuck working for the top-secret company called Project Scrooge, where she serves as the new Ghost of Christmas Past. Each year, she helps the company as they attempt to save another miserly grouch. Despite helping many people, she remains miserable – watching as her family and friends go on living while she stays frozen at seventeen, unable to interact with them. But the Scrooge she’s been assigned to help reform this year may change everything.
Why You Should Consider This Book
Although it’s a YA novel, this modern retelling of A Christmas Carol offers ample depth for a great holiday-themed book club discussion.
The Christmas Chronicles
Book Summary
In 1343, Klaus was orphaned and adopted by a craftsman’s guild. As he grows up, he becomes a master toymaker with an infectious laugh. His talent and generosity led him to give gifts to hundreds of children at Christmas and make Anna fall in love with him.
Unfortunately, he is envied by Rolf, who will do anything to subvert Klaus’s goodness. Then one day, Klaus unleashes the full magic of Christmas during a battle of good and evil. With the aid of flying reindeer, the legend of Santa is born.
What to Expect in This Read
This magical read imagines the beginning of Santa Claus within a broadly Christian context. Reviewers often note that it “maintains a Christian connection without being evangelical.” You can expect gentle faith elements woven into a family-friendly legend.
Book Summary
Libby left her cozy, holiday-obsessed hometown for her career as an ER doctor in Toronto. But after a painful break-up, she decides that the festivities of Harmony Hills might be just what she needs this year in order to regain some holiday spirit.
Upon her arrival back in her hometown, she bumps into Liam, the dreamy green-eyed owner of the local bakery. But when a run-in with him and his excitable pet potbellied pig knocks her unconscious at the town’s rumored-to-be-magical tree-lighting ceremony, she wakes up to find herself exactly one year in the past.
As she relives last Christmas, Libby begins to wonder if this is just the second chance she needs to set her life on a better track. But if she wants to rewrite her future, she has to figure out what changes to make.
Thoughts On This Book
The magical realism element of this book sounds perfect for fans of Christina Lauren’s In a Holidaze, so it’s at the top of our holiday TBR!
Note that there is also a 2017 Hallmark movie with the same title, and which also features a big-city doctor returning home for the holidays, but the plots of the movie and the book are otherwise unrelated. This Christmas novel is a brand-new, unique story.
Kristine Winters is a pen name for author Karma Brown, who wrote Recipe for a Perfect Wife, which we’ve previously featured on several book lists, including this one.
The Christmas Dress
Book Summary
Hopeful fashion designer Meg has to put her dreams on hold to return to her hometown of Chicago to manage her father’s apartment building. The residents are an eclectic group, and all seem to need her right away.
One of the residents, Ellie, is having an equally bad season as she’s being forced to leave her apartment and move into a nursing home. As she packs, one dress brings back the most memories, both good and bad.
When she reveals the dress’s important history to Meg, Ellie decides to gift it to her, with the caveat that it must be worn to the building’s holiday party. Will the magic of the dress strike again for its new owner?
What to Expect in This Read
This charming Christmas book brings together two generations of women and exemplifies the magic of the holiday season with the help of just a touch of magical realism.
Book Summary
Ben loves the month of December, but this year everything feels different. His marriage to Daphne has become very strained. They bicker and snip at each other constantly, making it hard for him to feel the usual magic of the season. When he gets a call from his old friend Alice, his mind starts racing with questions. He’s always thought of Alice as the one who got away, but now he wonders how things might have been different if he’d ended up with her.
After purchasing a watch on Christmas Eve, Ben wakes up the next morning to discover that it’s December 5th – but he’s back in his college dorm room in 2005. This was the very day that, fifteen years earlier, he first kissed Daphne. But what if he’d kissed Alice instead? Now he’ll have the chance to make that decision all over again. What if he chooses differently this time?
Reader Thoughts About This Book
Set during the holiday season, this book is like The Midnight Library meets A Christmas Carol. While it’s set at Christmas time, it’s more of a story of self-discovery. Like Scrooge, Ben gets to revisit pivotal moments in his past, but this time he can see them from a different perspective.
Reviewers warn that Ben is not always a likable/sympathetic character, so skip this one if that’s a deal breaker for you.
The Merriest Misters
Book Summary
This fun twist on The Santa Claus brings us into the home of Patrick and Quinn, who have been married for only a year but are struggling to keep their relationship afloat under the weight of daily life. Then, on Christmas Eve, Patrick hears a noise in the middle of the night and attacks an intruder.
When they go to investigate, Quinn discovers that the ‘burglar’ turns out to be Santa himself. An elf insists that he put on the red suit and take the reins of the reindeer-guided sleigh up on the roof in order to save Christmas.
After the dream-like evening, the couple is taken to the North Pole. They learn that they must take on the roles of Santa Claus and the first-ever Merriest Mister, or Christmas will be cancelled forever.
The Greatest Gift
Book Summary
We all know the classic Christmas movie, It’s a Wonderful Life, but did you know that it’s based on a short story published in the 1940s?
The story came to the author in a dream one night. He wasn’t able to find a publisher at first, so he self-published the story as a pamphlet that he sent out as his Christmas card in 1943. One of those cards found its way to Frank Capra, who shared it with Jimmy Stewart, and It’s a Wonderful Life was born.
Today, the original story is available in a beautifully illustrated edition that includes an afterword by Van Doren Stern’s daughter and tells the complete backstory of how his Christmas card became one of the most popular movies in the world.
Novella
Almost Like Being in Love
Book Summary
Maren Kelly is far from her Ohio home this Christmas. It is her mom’s dying wish that she experience the magic, mystery, and whimsy of Scotland, but now Maren and her friend Penny are lost in the Scottish Highlands and stuck in the blizzard of the century. They are lucky to be rescued by the dashing Duncan Campbell, but his mannerisms seem to be straight out of the seventeenth century.
Duncan takes them back to his castle in Highglen, a quaint village that feels somehow familiar to Maren, as does Duncan himself. The castle, it turns out, is stuck in 1647. Ultimately, Maren will have to decide whether to return to her own time or stay in the past forever.
Our Thoughts on This Book
Sariah Wilson has written many cute rom-coms that we’ve both enjoyed (and it’s a bonus that all of her books are currently available with Kindle Unlimited). This is a clean romance, but if the insta-love trope isn’t your thing, you might want to choose a different book from the list.
This time-travel Christmas novella is only available in ebook and audiobook formats. Readers who have listened to it say the Scottish dialogue and narration make this story even more enjoyable. It’s perfect for fans of Outlander!
The Christmas Wish
Book Summary
Gwen is newly single, and her career as a lawyer is hanging by a thread. She hopes that returning to the countryside for a family Christmas will be just the reset she needs to get back on track at work and in love.
The day after Christmas, she wakes up to discover that it’s Christmas again. The same eggnog and family arguments are stuck on repeat. As she tries to navigate this bizarre situation, the boy next door is the bright spot each day with his humor and kindness. But how do you make a relationship with someone who forgets you each time the day starts over?
Through the Snow Globe
Book Summary
What if you could have one more day with someone you lost? That’s the underlying premise of this novel that blends It’s a Wonderful Life and Groundhog Day into a compelling holiday read.
Diana is no longer looking forward to Christmas. Her fiancé, Linus, was critically injured in a bike accident, and she’s losing hope that he’ll ever open his eyes again. The night before Christmas Eve, she finds a hidden snow globe of their small town and realizes that Linus bought it for her before the accident. The next day should have been Christmas Eve, but instead, Diana wakes up on December 4th, the day of the accident.
She soon realizes she’s in a loop of that day, experiencing a different set of events each time. Along the way, she uncovers startling truths about herself, her relationship, and even her career.
Another Time Loop Option
Fans of time loop novels may also want to consider One Christmas Morning by Rachel Greenlaw. In this book, Eva has buried herself in her work as a way to hide from the real world – the world in which her family was ripped apart on Christmas. She is reluctant when her husband insists that they drive to Cornwall for a holiday party, and she tries to sneak home to London in the middle of the night. But when the clock strikes midnight, she’s visited by the ghost of her grandmother, who warns her to stop pushing her loved ones away.
She wakes up on Christmas morning to find that she’s no longer in her own life but rather that of her assistant, Diana. The next day, she wakes to another Christmas morning, but this time in the body of her sister, Natalie. Again and again, she relives Christmas through the eyes of another person she’s been pushing away.
The Nightmare Before Kissmas
Book Summary
Nicholas “Coal” Claus is Santa’s son, and he used to love Christmas. But now his dad has turned the holiday into a PR façade, and he’ll do anything to escape it. Unfortunately, the time has come for him to fulfill his duty and marry his best friend, Iris, the Easter Princess, and his brother’s not-so-secret crush.
But then Hex, the Prince of Halloween, comes to challenge Coal for the princess’s hand. Except like Coal, he’s not really interested in the princess either, beyond a marriage of convenience. Instead, Coal and Hex can’t keep their hands off each other.
Genre Notes
While the other books on this list are more squarely magical realism, this selection is for our Fantasy readers. While it still features human main characters, it takes place in “The Christmas Kingdom,” in a world where each holiday has its own monarchy.
It will be a better fit for readers who enjoy fantasy already, rather than some of the other titles on this list, which will have broader appeal to those unfamiliar with magical realism.
A Time-Travel Christmas
Book Summary
It’s Christmas Eve 2022, and things aren’t going well for Elizabeth. Her job has been downsized, and her boyfriend has broken up with her. Things go from bad to worse when she learns that her beloved grandmother has passed away unexpectedly. Now she’ll be spending the holiday season planning a funeral. Broken-hearted, Elizabeth makes a wish on the brightest star in the Christmas Eve Sky to see her grandmother one more time.
On Christmas Eve 1957, Dodie is at home taking care of her sick little sister while her mom picks her dad up from the airport. Betsy’s fever suddenly spikes to a dangerous high, and the snowstorm knocks out the power and phone lines. When her parents are late returning home and Betsy becomes non-responsive, Dodie begins to panic. Then a woman appears at the front door, saying she’s lost. She feels vaguely familiar to Dodie, and Dodie certainly needs help, so she opens the door and lets Elizabeth in.
Themes in This Book
This time-travel Christmas novella focuses on family and togetherness rather than romance.
Boyfriends of Christmas Past
Book Summary
Emma Wallace is a digital designer who has always lived by the work-before-play mantra. This year, though, she’s promised her ever-patient boyfriend that this year she’ll spend Christmas with him, rather than in the office.
But that was before she learned that she had a chance at winning the account for a huge corporate rebranding. As Christmas Eve draws near with her deadline still looming, Emma debates breaking her promise and jeopardizing her relationship with Sam.
She is visited by three boyfriend “ghosts” of Christmases past, who come bearing the gift of hindsight.
The Book Girls Say…
There is a Hallmark movie adaptation of this book by the same title. Check your local listings to see if it’s airing this year, or stream the movie anytime via Amazon Prime (availability may change).
Join Our Christmas Reading Mini Challenge
Can’t get enough seasonal reading? Neither can we! We have a self-paced Christmas reading challenge just for you. To make it easy and fun, we include highly rated book recommendations for each Christmas reading prompt.
More Christmas & Winter Books
