Great Christmas read. I love Hallmark movies and stories and this is no exception. Truly wonderful story and writing. Thank you Alys Murray.

The Christmas Company
By Alsy Murry

The Christmas Company draws the reader into the story right from the start, is a welcome addition to anyone’s holiday reading list. The author, Alsy Murry has masterfully created a story that has it all; a touch of mystery, a bit of pain, a whole lot of: love, joy and celebration of what Christmas really means. Deep down in everyone’s soul, there is a love for the Christmas season and holiday. But for some its hidden; finding it easier and less painful to say that they do not like Christmas, only to find that they truly do love the season and have been missing that joy. Sometimes all it takes is that one special person to help them find the love and the joy they have been missing, this is just that story.

The Christmas Company is story of one person’s love for Christmas, that they lived in anticipation all year, filled with joy and excitement. Of another’s, deeply rooted dislikes of the holiday, that they want to put a stop to the celebration; misjudging the whole town. Only to finally realize their mistake, when it might be too late and causing someone they love to loss their love for Christmas. Sparks of interest, simmer below the surface for both main characters; they find love in the end. But, it comes close to never happening all for a misjudgment that almost costs the love of Christmas to be lost. The community shares the love for the holiday by coming together in a whimsical reenactment of The Christmas Carol by Dickens, to reopen a wounded heart.

A fantastic book, I love the characters that the author has created in The Christmas Company. Showing that it is possible to change a person’s heart and not only to love a holiday; but, to truly love another and showing that love by sacrificing everything they have. One person can have such an effect on another to change the way they feel for the holiday, that it is not about the money; but, the love that is shared during the season. Learning the love, and to trust another; sometime comes with a cost, too rich to understand until it might be too late. For everyone that loves Christmas; The Christmas Company opens our hearts and minds to the wonderful possibilities. Just the right story, helping everyone that reads this book to get in to the spirit of the fast approaching season. Alys Murry’s, The Christmas Company is such a wonderful book; that deserves to get a 5 star rating out of 5. Keep up the wonderful work, I will differently volunteer to read more of your work.

Such a fun and sweet Christmas romance!
Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author. All opinions are my own.

I love everything about the holiday season, and Christmas stories that warm my heart are near the top of the list.


The Christmas Company is such a story. Just like the Hallmark holiday movies, this stirring story gave me all kinds of winter chills. I'm so glad to be introduced to Alys Murray's writing. I enjoy her writer's voice and the delightful characters she's created for Miller’s Point, Texas.


Kate and Clark are not a likely pair, which makes their journey all the more enjoyable. And the Christmassy Texas town is an integral part of their relationship as their chemistry is. If you enjoy the classic Charles Dickens Christmas Carol, you’ll love this one too!

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley. All opinions expressed are completely my own.

A fun, heartwarming story and a perfect book to read during the Christmas season, I loved the variation of “A Christmas Carol” in the storyline. A clean sweet book that will have you smiling when you finish it. It’s the perfect length for a busy holiday time. I’d love to read another story by this author.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher. All opinions are my own.

I love books that grab me and makes me feel as if I'm an actor and watching the story take me to a place that is a forever place. Thank you Hallmark for bringing some wonderful stories to us.

Magical festive read for all to enjoy. It’s perfect for those long winter nights in front of the fire. Lovely characters and a magical storyline to boot

This book tells the story of a small town that transforms once a year into a Dickensian holiday paradise. Kate, a young woman who assists with the running of the festival is shocked to learn that the festival is being canceled. Clark, a big city cheapskate (like for real, he’s annoying) tries to close the festival after inheriting it.

But Kate and the town aren’t going to let the festival go without a fight.



I really wasn’t a fan of The Christmas Company. Mainly because Clark, the male protagonist, is so mean and so cheap and so annoying, I just couldn’t find it in me to have sympathy for him. Even after he revealed some very painful and sad things in his past, he continued to frustrate me to the point that finishing the book felt tedious. I enjoyed the yummy biscuit recipe at the end, but I wouldn’t read this book again.

What a fun Christmas romance book! The Christmas Company tells the story of the small town of Miller's Point and their annual Christmas festival. When a business man threatens to shut down the annual event, Kate steps up to do everything in her power to convince him to keep the event. Romance, friendships, betrayal and forgiveness all intermingle in this sweet, clean-cut Christmas novel.

This was a very sweet romance between an unlikely couple: a miser who didn't love Christmas and a woman who dedicated her life to spreading Christmas Joy. As a reimagining of A Christmas Carol, I was drawn to Kate's intense desire to make Clark change his views about Christmas. One of my favorite things in Romance, especially sweet Romances, are the friendships and support from the secondary characters--and even the town itself. The Christmas Company had an abundance of supportive friends who tried their hardest to understand Kate's need to save the town's Christmas company.
There were a lot of funny elements and a lot of sobering elements. I appreciate the mixture in the two, making it more realistic for the reader to latch on to the lead character's reasons for their actions. Clark was a bit of an enigma. I finally understood why he was against the customs and traditions of the town, and it was a relief to read how he hoped to win over our dedicated heroine, Kate.
I recommend this book to readers of Sweet Romance. Thank you to Hallmark Publishing, the author, and Netgalley for a copy of this book for an honest review. It brought me out of a Romance reading slump.

I think no one does Christmas and romance as well as Hallmark. Besides its magical movies, the books are always a delight to read. And once again it delivers on its promises of feel-good and Christmas cheer. Let’s also point out that the cover is absolutely gorgeous!

If you enjoy Dickens’s classic tale, A Christmas Carol, you will surely find this festive romance to your liking. It is infused with it! From the richly decorated small town reminiscent of Victorian England to the cast of colourful characters. Well, it wouldn’t be Christmas without a proper Scrooge and a happy ending, right?

The Christmas Company has all the ingredients of a pleasant holiday romance: an endearing female lead, a lovely small town, a Christmas festival and a grumpy male character in dire need of Christmas spirit. Even though there were a few lengthy parts, I thought it was a nice, well-written storyline guaranteed to offer you a lovely moment of escapism.

For once, this book is not based on an actual Hallmark movie, but could it be that it is a project in the making? (fingers crossed!).

The Christmas Company written by Alys Murray is a wonderful new holiday book for 2018. If you love a good holiday romance, you are going to love this book. If you are not a huge fan of romance, I'm betting you are going to love this book just as much! The writing is so funny, smart, emotional and memorable all at the same time. It's hard to put this book down.

Set in the small Texan town of Miller's Point, an annual Dickensian Christmas festival makes this place something special to everyone that visits for the holiday celebration. The people who live in Miller's Point KNOW how special this place is, and how the entire community can pull together each year to make holiday magic happen. Kate Buckner takes her role in the celebrations very seriously, so when she hears that Christopher Woodward has passed away she is truly saddened. Mr. Woodward was a good, kind man who lived in Dallas, and he was the CEO of the company that funded The Christmas Company and made this town celebration possible.

Now the town is meeting the new CEO, Clark Woodward, who is the nephew of the late Christopher Woodward. He has decided that he will be shutting down The Christmas Company subsidiary effective immediately. The town is shocked, and Kate makes it her mission to make things right. Christmas is Kate's favorite holiday and she simply can't understand how Clark can't feel the same way. Kate's first attempt to make Clark see the special side of the holidays, is to decorate the building that he is staying in with all the decorations that he had ordered to be taken down around the town. His sentiments include wanting to puke chestnuts and digging deep for an appropriate word from his grandfather's vocabulary, frippery, to describe the frivolous sight surrounding him.

Is Kate ever going to be able to get through to Clark? Or will the town's celebrations be lost forever? More importantly, when Kate really pushes hard to understand Clark's point of view, is she going to be able to hold on to her love of Christmas? This book takes the reader on a journey that really makes you think about the holidays and what makes them important. This book even includes a special treat of an original recipe for Sweet Potato Biscuits with Country Ham to add to your holiday menus. I hope you'll take some personal time to enjoy The Christmas Company this holiday season!

A modern day A Christmas Carol, The Christmas Company satisfies on many levels. The main characters, Kate and Clark, seem very different at first, but as the story unfolds you find out they have much in common. I loved the many quirky town people, especially Miss Caroline and Emily.

Stuck in Texas, the little town of Miller’s Point is a company town, most people are employed by the Woodward family in ranches and other places: there’s just one twist. On Christmas the town turns into a slice of Victorian England with decorations, reenactments and tourists galore, and is special, oh so very special to Kate Buckner. The town took her into it’s heart, and she’s completely full of Christmas spirit and the potential of the season – loving every moment and recognizing that the celebrations for the town also supplements the incomes of those who are living on the edge of survival, struggling along throughout the year. But, when Clark Woodward, new CEO arrives and shuts down the celebrations because of their detrimental effect to the bottom line, Kate is determined to change this ‘Scrooge’ into a fan of the holiday.

An intriguing set-up and some truly clever moments as Kate uses her knowledge of the townspeople and their investment in the festival, dragging Clark around to meet people, sharing her delight in the town and it’s spaces, she’s determined to find out just why Clark won’t celebrate, doesn’t celebrate. And while the story roughly follows the sensibilities of the original, there was something missing here. Kate was far too OTT, and Clark was so very repressed and stiff that her initial challenge to get him to ‘admit’ the specialness of Christmas was just not believable for me. And sadly, the instant connection from someone so unaware of his own emotions and out of touch with anything that doesn’t fit his very narrow visions of the world, combined with his rather cold and impolite persona just didn’t work. Sure the town loved Kate, perhaps more for her willingness to cling onto the rather naïve belief that there is sunshine everywhere, but it was more that they were caring for someone who couldn’t’ look out for herself.

I found myself skimming frequently, the emotional draw that should have had me wondering just what next, and the quick, near instant about face from Clark was just too pat and too convenient, with actual snow falling, a caroling town and some rather poor recitations of the Dicken’s text. Sadly – this one is a miss for me, and I just didn’t find any development of the characters that felt plausible, giving me a reason to want more.

I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

Review first appeared at <a href=” https://wp.me/p3OmRo-a9K/” > <a> I am, Indeed </a>

🌸🌸🌸🌸 out of 5 🌸s for The Christmas Company by Alys Murray. I received an ARC in return for an honest review.

This book swept me up in its charm from the very first page, and didn't let go of me for an instant.

The town of Miller's Point, TX, is steeped in Victorian Christmas charm. The Christmas Company operates an annual festival that is every Christmas lover's dream. But Scrooge, in the form of it's new CEO Clark Woodward, is intent on destroying that dream by closing down the Company.

Kate Bruckner, energetic and determined, decided to save the Company and by extension the festival.

This is a truly Hallmark story, filled with the sights, sounds and scents of Christmas. It's a story all about never, ever, giving up.

The Christmas Company is a contemporary retelling of A Christmas Carol and The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, if that doesn't peak your interest then let this heartwarming story do it . This story is so good. You will not want to stop reading until you see how the hero transforms. This is a book you dont want to miss.

Absolutely beautiful modern day retelling of the Christmas Carol and The Grinch! Couldn't put it down because I needed to see the hero's transformation. Heartwarming, fantastic love story. Wow! Well done Alys Murray!

Just like a Hallmark Movie, this Hallmark book gave me that same warm fuzzy feeling inside my heart. The authors writing style was so descriptive that you could almost feel like you were within the pages of this book seeing the sparkly light, fake snow and smelling the Eggnog while enjoying the lovely story.

A modern-day take on classic “The Christmas Carol”.

Kate Buckner lives and breathes Christmas it is her favourite time of year in Miller's Point with its Christmas festival. But this year, the festivities are cancelled when a new arrival comes to town. Will, she just stand still and watch as the town loses it’s most popular and financial event.

Clark Woodward a wealthy businessman who has taken over his Uncles business “The Christmas Company “ he doesn’t believe in the extravagance of such an expense to the company to continue with the Christmas celebrations. Clark reminds me of Scrooge and the Grinch with no personal interest in the holiday or the effect this holiday has on the people of Miller’s Point.

Can Kate save her beloved town and Christmas and give the wonder of the Christmas spirit to someone that needs it most?

Will Clark learn there are things more important than business and money?

I received a complimentary ARC e-book copy from the author, Hallmark Publishing and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Publisher's Description:
She's out to save her town
from a real-life Scrooge...
The small town of Miller’s Point is known across the country for their annual Dickensian Christmas festival. When the celebration is threatened by Clark Woodward, a miserly, big-city businessman, Kate Buckner steps up to save her hometown, their traditions, and her favorite holiday. But, along the way, she realizes that the man she’s trying to protect her town from might need some rescuing of his own.

With a lot of heart and a little Christmas magic, Kate is convinced she can teach Clark to love her favorite holiday. But can such different people learn to open up and love each other?

My Thoughts:
This is a feel good mixture of a modern version of Charles Dickens "A Christmas Carol". and Dr. Seuss the Grinch. Like all of the Hallmark stories it is both sweet and a little sad.
This delightful Christmas romance is sweet and consuming.
I gave this book 4.25 of 5.0 stars for storyline and characterization. It is after all somewhat predictable being based on beloved Christmas tales.
I received a complimentary digital ARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley to read.
This in no way affected my opinions which were freely given and my own.

Kate Buckner lives and breathes Christmas, so it’s a good thing she lives in Miller’s Point Texas. Each year, the tiny town hosts a massive Dickensian Christmas festival, culminating in a town-wide recreation of A Christmas Carol. This year, though, there’s one problem. Clark Woodward, the new CEO of Woodward Enterprises, has no taste for Christmas and, as the primary source of the festival’s funding, calls for its immediate cancellation. However, Kate’s not about to watch her town’s spirit be destroyed without showing Clark the beauty of the holiday.

This book is bursting with Christmas cheer and really highlights everything that can be great about the season. Author Alys Murray has crafted Kate Buckner as a bursting-with-optimism heroine whose world is dominated by Christmas. This could easily slam the novel firmly into sappy and melodramatic, but Murray manages to drive wonderful realism into the story. Kate Buckner is fighting for her home, something so easily relatable, and it’s completely believable how far she’s willing to go to make Clark change his mind.

And Clark is the perfect foil. He’s easy to dislike. After all, he’s quite literally painted a Scrooge attempting to cancel Christmas. But it’s also apparent that he’s much deeper than what’s on the surface.

A Christmas Carol plays heavily into the plot, but Alys Murray hasn’t created just a rehash of the classic tropes. The supernatural elements have been replaced by more emphasis on romance, but the classic ideas of a second chance and finding the best in people are all present with an updated twist. It’s all aided nicely with a quick pace, fun dialogue, a great cast of characters, and unapologetic sentimentality.

If you’re looking for a great holiday read, I cannot recommend this book enough.