I loved this book! It was a fun "chick-lit" read that was well-written and more thoughtful than a lot of books of the genre. Laurie sees a man sitting at a bus stop while she's on a bus and they have an instant connection.

Unfortunately, the bus pulls away before either of them can move. Laurie dreams about "bus boy" and doesn't see him again until he turns up as her roommate's new boyfriend. That begins years of unrequited love soul-searching.

A great book about love and friendship!

Thanks to Crown Publishing/BroadwayBooks for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was a very enjoyable read. It kept you on your toes, wondering where each character was going to end up (and with who). There were several times I thought it would go one way and it went the complete opposite direction. This page turner will make you believe in love at first sight. I would give this book 4 stars.

Every New Year's Laurie makes a few simple resolutions revolving around her love and work life. She loves her life at Delancey Street with her roommate and best friend, Sarah, but dreams of a proper job and some romantic prospects. One day in December (get it?), she locks eyes with Jack, handsome fellow as she rides the bus. Could it really be love at first sight? They'll never know, as their moment of hesitation means their paths aren't destined to cross. At least that's what they think, until one day Sarah brings home her new, wonderful boyfriend: Jack. As the years pass, Laurie, Sarah and Jack continue to be important to each other. But no matter how lovely things seem on the surface, the lingering effects of that first glance lurks just below. Can Laurie and Jack truly find happiness in others without letting go of what might of been? For fans of "Sliding Doors" and "One Day" by David Nicholls, Silver's novel is a treat to cozy up with this winter.

"One Day in December" is a love story about two people destined to be together, but only after their lives twist and tangle into complicated patterns first.

Laurie is riding the bus one evening in December when she happens to look out the window and locks gazes with a man standing at the bus stop. For a moment it appears as if he is about to board the bus, for the express purpose of meeting her, but unfortunately he doesn't make it in time. Laurie spends the next year searching for this mysterious stranger, but to no avail, until they cross paths unexpectedly at a party when he is introduced to her as her best friend's new boyfriend, Jack.

The book takes place over the course of ten years, during which time Laurie, her best friend Sarah, and Jack (the man they both love) have to find their respective places in the world and determine where they fit into each other's lives.

I don't often read romance books, and this is the first new adult book I have read, so I struggled to gather my thoughts about this book. It was just the light, fast-paced, sweet book I was looking for at the time. If you are a romantic at heart than this book is for you, otherwise I would skip it.

3.5 Stars.

Thank you to NetGalley for the free galley.

When I read the description of this one I knew I would love it and it completely exceeded my expectations. As explained in the blurb, Laurie is riding along the bus one evening after work, looks down from the bus at a stop, and sees the "man of her dreams." The man sees her also and looks ready to try and hop onto the bus when it pulls away. After a year of hoping to run into this man again, she finally does. Unfortunately, the "man of her dreams" is on the arm of her best friend Sarah and is the new boyfriend Sarah has been raving about. From there, the author takes us through various stages of Sarah and Jack's relationship, Sarah and Laurie's friendship, as well as, other relationships that develop throughout their lives over the following years.

First of all - Laurie and Sarah. I want to be friends with them both, drink wine with them, and eat Sarah's amazing sounding sandwiches. Besides being amazing friends to one another, they both just seemed extremely relatable. Although best friends, they had many differences, flaws, faults, and strengths that truly set them apart. Their major flaw, however, ended up being the inability to truly and honestly communicate when necessary and giving the strength of their friendship too much power.  All friends fight eventually, but I feel as if Sarah and Laurie thought themselves unbreakable, which made any disappointment detrimental. And I think it wasn't until the last 1/4 or so of the novel until Sarah truly opened her eyes and truly saw Laurie.

I loved Jack just as much as Laurie and Sarah - but not the entire time. Like anyone he had flaws, but what I loved about Jack was his own inner dialogue when he would start saying ridiculous or offensive things to people. He knew he was talking like an idiot, yet couldn't stop himself. His self-depricating humor saved him with me several times, but as a whole, I just appreciated what a flawed character he was in general. From his "not obvious" good looks to his, at times, poor social skills, Jack was just Jack from beginning to end and that, I loved.

Initially, I was crazy about Oscar, but at some point, Laurie makes a comment about Oscar still being the same person that he was when she met him, and I adamantly disagree with that statement. I don't want to give any spoilers, but I did not think that the Oscar in Thailand was anything like the Oscar towards the end. Or maybe it was sort of like Laurie said about him trying on different lives for a while... 

I'm already looking over this review thinking that it sounds odd, but I'm not sure how to review this without giving spoilers while still expressing my thoughts! To summarize things, I fell in love with this book, was completely sucked in from the first page, and was sad to see it end. Josie Silver blended the perfect amount of realism with dreamy "what-ifs," she created and developed characters that were fabulous and flawed all at once - much like us real people, and above all, she wrote about a kind of love that withstands numerous obstacles, years, people, and living in different parts of the world. I wish I knew what happened next after the end of the novel, but for now, I'm just extremely happy to have read it. Kudos to Josie Silver and I cannot wait to read what she releases next.

P.S. - this should be a movie!!!

*Many thanks to NetGalley and Broadway books for providing this review copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

One Day in December by Josie Silver was an engaging story about true love with many twists and turns before its conclusion finally played out on a way I couldn’t be sure it would. ( The author did a great job at not being predictable. ). And along the way, she made me truly care about the protagonists.

Here’s the publisher’s blurb:

“Two people.

Ten chances.

One unforgettable love story.

Laurie is pretty sure love at first sight doesn’t exist. After all, life isn’t a scene from the movies, is it?

But then, through a misted-up bus window one snowy December day, she sees a man who she knows instantly is the one. Their eyes meet, there’s a moment of pure magic…and then her bus drives away.

Laurie thinks she’ll never see the boy from the bus again. But at their Christmas party a year later, her best friend Sarah introduces her to the new love of her life. Who is, of course, the boy from the bus.

What follows for Laurie, Sarah and Jack is ten years of friendship, heartbreak, missed opportunities, roads not taken, and destinies reconsidered. One Day in December is a joyous, heartwarming and immensely moving love story to escape into and a reminder that fate takes inexplicable turns along the route to happiness.”

From the first chapter:

“There’s a guy perched on one of the fold-down seats in the bus shelter. This can’t be his bus, because he’s engrossed in the hardback book in his hands. I notice him because he seems oblivious to the pushing and shoving happening right in front of him, like one of those fancy special effects at the movies where someone is completely still and the world kaleidoscopes around them, slightly out of focus.

I can’t see his face, just the top of his sandy hair, cut slightly long and given to a wave when it grows, I should imagine. He’s bundled into a navy woollen reefer jacket and a scarf that looks like someone might have knitted it for him. It’s kitsch and unexpected against the coolness of the rest of his attire – dark skinny jeans and boots – and his concentration is completely held by his book. I squint, trying to duck my head to see what he’s reading, wiping the steamed-up window with my coat sleeve to get a better look.

I don’t know if it’s the movement of my arm across the glass or the flickering lights of dandruff-woman’s earrings that snag in his peripheral vision, but he lifts his head and blinks a few times as he focuses his attention on my window. On me.

We stare straight at each other and I can’t look away. I feel my lips move as if I’m going to say something, God knows what, and all of a sudden and out of nowhere I need to get off this bus. I’m gripped by the overwhelming urge to go outside, to get to him. But I don’t. I don’t move a muscle, because I know there isn’t a chance in hell that I can get past anorak man beside me and push through the packed bus before it pulls away. So I make the split-second decision to stay rooted to the spot and try to convey to him to get on board using just the hot, desperate longing in my eyes.

He’s not film-star good-looking or classically perfect, but there is an air of preppy dishevelledness and an earnest, ‘who me?’ charm about him that captivates me. I can’t quite make out the colour of his eyes from here. Green, I’d say, or blue maybe?

And here’s the thing. Call it wishful thinking, but I’m sure I see the same thunderbolt hit him too; as if an invisible fork of lightning has inexplicably joined us together. Recognition; naked, electric shock in his rounded eyes. He does something close to an incredulous double take, the kind of thing you might do when you coincidentally spot your oldest and best friend who you haven’t seen for ages and you can’t actually believe they’re there.

It’s a look of Hello you, and Oh my God, it’s you, and I can’t believe how good it is to see you, all in one.

His eyes dart towards the dwindling queue still waiting to board and then back up to me, and it’s as if I can hear the thoughts racing through his head. He’s wondering if it’d be crazy to get on the bus, what he’d say if we weren’t separated by the glass and the hordes, if he’d feel foolish taking the stairs two at a time to get to me.

No, I try to relay back. No, you wouldn’t feel foolish. I wouldn’t let you. Just get on the bloody bus, will you! He’s staring right at me, and then a slow smile creeps across his generous mouth, as if he can’t hold it in. And then I’m smiling back, giddy almost. I can’t help it either.

Please get on the bus. He snaps, making a sudden decision, slamming his book closed and shoving it down in the rucksack between his ankles. He’s walking forward now, and I hold my breath and press my palm flat against the glass, urging him to hurry even as I hear the sickly hiss of the doors closing and the lurch of the handbrake being released.

No! No! Oh God, don’t you dare drive away from this stop! It’s Christmas! I want to yell, even as the bus pulls out into the traffic and gathers pace, and outside he is breathless standing in the road, watching us leave. I see defeat turn out the light in his eyes, and because it’s Christmas and because I’ve just fallen hopelessly in love with a stranger at a bus stop, I blow him a forlorn kiss and lay my forehead against the glass, watching him until he’s out of sight.”

Sounds like a great movie script to me. In the meantime, it is the perfect escape feel-good reading this December!

Thank you Broadway Books and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader’s Copy of this book and for allowing me to review it

Having read several heavy books recently, I was in need of a few light, fun, romantic, and positive stories. This book hit the nail on the head. It was such a fun story and kept me on the edge of my seat wondering what was going to happen in Laurie’s love life. In the beginning I didn’t love that each year was only a few chapters, but as the book went on I started to enjoy it. Overall a light and fun read!

This book was very engaging from the beginning. A love at first sight experience ends up to be the new boyfriend of her best friend. The book takes place over the span of 10 years piecing together key events from the character’s lives. Loved this book and stayed up late to read and see how it all fit together in the end. Super cute and sweet!

This is a perfect book to curl up with over Thanksgiving or Christmas Break. It will let you escape and believe in love again (if that is what you need).

This book!!! Girls sees boy, boy sees girl, it's love at first sight! This book took me on an emotional roller coaster and sometimes I wanted to throw it away and then I couldn't wait to get back to it. I love a book set in England and all the humor and descriptions of the places. I was of course rooting for Laurie and Jack throughout the whole book which made it all the harder with the amazing side characters that appeared along the way. One thing for sure is that I will be reading more of this author and this book is a prize as not only a Christmas story but as a heart treasure. Read it, you won't be sorry you did.

4.5 stars

This book is all about fate, timing, and star-crossed love, told with a side of humor and a lot of heart. You’re not a romance reader? Neither am I! But this book melted my non-romance reading heart into a puddle.

In short, I loved it. It turned out to be so much more than I expected. I loved the characters of Laurie, Sarah, and Jack. I also enjoyed how the author explored the friendship between Laurie and Sarah, best friends for life, through thick and thin.

We follow these three through ten years, 2008 to 2018. Each year starts off with Laurie’s New Year’s resolutions and we hear both Laurie and Jack’s POV. Honestly, I couldn’t decide how I wanted this messy situation to end up and I changed my mind several times throughout. Things are not always how they appear and there are a few surprises in store.

The book ends in the year 2018 and you won’t read any spoilers here. I closed the last page with a tear in my eye and a smile on my face. 

Don’t let your dislike of the genre miss this gem! Do yourself a favor and pick up a copy of this book that will warm your heart on the coldest of days. It would also be perfect for the booklover on your gift list.

I loved this book. I was hooked after the first section and dying to know what would happen between these two strangers. I found myself rooting for them the entire time. I felt the disappointment, sadness, happiness all along. Excellent story to get into the holiday spirit.

Do you believe in love at first sight?

I finished One Day in December in just over three hours one night! I opened the book and found myself immersed in Laurie and Jack's story. It was exactly what I needed - the kind of book I couldn't put down. It was an addictive, angst filled love story that filled my heart with a solid dose of romance.

The story is told from both Jack and Laurie's perspectives, starting from the snowy December day they find themselves on opposite sides of a misty bus window, inexplicably drawn to each other. The moment is brief but the bond it forms within them is strong and leaves them both marked. Can they find each other again or was this doomed to be a missed, fleeting moment in both their lives?

This is not a typical love story. It unfolds over the course of ten, angst filled years! In the decade following the moment they first laid eyes on each other we follow Laurie and Jack's ups and downs, their heartaches and relationships, misunderstandings and of course their friendship and undeniable connection. They may have the world's worst timing and a seemingly impossible road to love and happiness together but you can't help but root for them while wondering - will they ever actually get to be together?

Do you believe in destiny? That we all have that one perfect match - the person we are meant to be with!

One Day in December was charming, complex and romantic. Laurie and Jack are perfectly flawed and the kind of well written characters that feel like friends you want to shake and yell at for not being honest about their feelings. Every romantic at heart needs this book in their life!

I read this book in one sitting! I could not put it down! I had to know the how, why, who of it all immediately. It's like this book was written with me in mind. A snowy London evening, love at first sight and a torturous 9 years of what if. All of which are totally in reading wheelhouse. Josie Silver manages to capture the agony and ecstasy of it all seamlessly and the plot moves along at clipped pace without losing any of the character detail. I'm already telling everyone I know about the book and I am planning to include it on a NYPL booklist that I am writing.

Oh boy I loved this book. One Day In December is the perfect cozy Rom Com in book form. It’s Love Actually and Notting Hill and When Harry Met Sally and Briget Jones’s Diary rolled into one while still being creative and original.

One day on the bus, Laurie sees a man through the window and falls completely head over heels for him, a complete stranger. He’s outside, she’s inside. They don’t exchange words, they don’t wave, but they lock eyes and there’s an immediate spark. The bus pulls away, but she never forgets that man. She searches for him and longs for him for a year until one day, he’s right in front of her being introduced as Jack...her best friend’s wonderful new boyfriend. Excellent.

I don’t want to say too much about the plot and give anything away, but it tells a story of love at first sight, missed opportunities, friendship, loss, unrequited love, and growing up over the course of a decade. The characters are so relatable and vibrant and well-developed, and I genuinely cared about all of them and was sad when I had to say goodbye.

I recommend this book to anyone who loves a heartwarming love story and/or Nora Ephron movies, It’s the perfect autumn/winter read, but despite the wintry title, it’s not a Christmas story, so it’s appropriate any time of year!

What a cute romance book! This story gave me major Love Actually/Sophie Kinsella/Emily Griffin vibes. While it’s not technically a holiday book, this is definitely a good winter read as so many of the major moments of the book occur in December.

One Day in December actually takes place over the course of several years, showcasing a few key moments from each year in the main character’s lives. I loved this approach, and the opportunity to see their love and friendship grow and change over time. If you’re looking for a light-hearted romantic book this winter season, definitely give this one a read!

I am so conflicted over this book. On the one hand, there are moments of deep and very real pain that are written so beautifully that I couldn’t help but cry. Laurie is a fascinating and full character who is kind and good and generous, but who has made mistakes and can be selfish. We get to see her thoughts and hear who she is in an intimate and personal way. I really enjoyed her story and seeing the world from her perspective.

However. On the other hand, we have Jack. Jack is a jerk. Jack sucks. He does so much in this book that is mean and selfish and bad and very little that is kind or loving. There are certainly moments where he looks like a better person (really only where Laurie is involved), but I couldn’t get past the overwhelming tide of his terribleness. I so wish I could have liked him better because I think this book had a really interesting concept and set up, but from the very first time he’s narrating, I felt like he was both a caricature and just a bad person. I understand that his position is morally fraught (as is Laurie’s), but he does not change his attitude toward women until the very end of the book, about nine years into the story.

I think I would have enjoyed the book so much more if Jack were different. I thought the emotions that were written really honestly, but I just could not get past Jack. He was a misogynist and he does not deserve Laurie.

Warning: A box of Kleenex is required!



Seriously, some books need warning labels for tissues!



Again, I normally don't care for romance. But....Oh My Goodness! This isn't really a romance but yet it is.

Oh! Who am I fooling?

I WANT that kind of love!!

This is the best love story I've read this year. I'm going to rank it #1 of the year 2018. I know 2018 isn't over yet. But I'm saying this is the best romance of the year for ME!

I love how it started out. I smiled, I cringed, I laughed, I frowned, I muttered jerk, you fool, I cheered, I exclaimed, I cried and I bawled!

This started out as a love at first sight setting which bounded three people together down the road. This is the story not just between a girl and a boy but the special friendship between three friends during 10 years. Oh, how those relationships grew and made them strong. I love how it ended. It was just perfect.

This story will stay with me for a long time.

I wouldn't be surprised if this was made into a movie and no, it had better not be Netflix or Hallmark because this novel deserves much better!

You have GOT to read this. You'd be glad you did. I'm giving this book a 5 star rating!

I recieved this beautiful ARC from Crown Publishing Broadway Books through Net Galley in exchange for my unbiased and honest review. Thank you!

This title is reminiscent of several others of a similar vein. I kept reading to see how it ended. Would they EVER come clean and tell the truth and make things work? Would the friendships survive? Is there such thing as love at first sight?

Loved the story and first time reading this author. Laurie falls in love quickly and then has to hunt him down. The story takes you through the friendship, it’s a heart wrming story that you want to share with others.