Thank you to Netgalley and Transworld for the ARC of this stunning story.

I fell in love with Jo Thomas's writing when I read Escape to the French Farmhouse and now I'm well and truly hooked.

If you are a fan of romance, or perhaps a lover of the festive season then you will adore this novel.

It has just the right mix of emotion and excitement.

Connie is a woman that after failing at love in the past is now using a tick list system (a girl after my own heart) and online dating to choose the perfect man for her.

The trouble is even with all the right ingredients a recipe doesn't always come out how you think it should - not very pinterest worthy.

A trip to Germany, a minibus filled with eccentric old people and maybe the ideal man waiting..... just perhaps not the one Connie had originally pictured.

Finding Love at the Christmas Market ticked all those boxes that for me a novel should have:

A good set of characters
A range of emotions.
Enough drama to keep you turning the pages.

But most importantly ...

All the feels

You may think it is too early to be thinking about the C word but let me tell you, this is the story that you want to be reading when curled up next to the Xmas tree this year.

Now that is what I call a Christmas book. I've just devoured this wonderful festive story, in 33 degree heat in Malta, and now want to go around wishing everyone a merry Christmas.

This is a book that just oozes festive feeling, and I love how it's also allowed a group of pensioners to rediscover their love of Christmas too.

Between two German Christmas markets, two very different German men, a deaf dog, Christmas jumpers, a donkey, gingerbread, singing, dancing and a big bake off between the two towns you have all the ingredients and more for a fabulous festive book.

I had such a great sense of place from this story, and I adored all the characters. This has all the heart and love I've come to expect from a Jo Thomas novel, and so much more besides.

This will easily be one of my favourite Christmas books of the year. I could have kept reading it for so much longer had i not run out of pages.

Read in one sitting over about 3 hours this transported me to the German Christmas markets, made me remember my own visit to them, and generally had me grinning like a loon throughout.

If you read one book this Christmas then make it this one!

Thank you to Transworld and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

I love this author and this book was fantastic from the first page and the characters were brilliant along with the story plot. It’s full of romance and travelling and friendship and such a magical read and so warm and you will get sucked into the story straight away.
Connie who is a residential home caterer has had to many failed romances and decides she has to consider her son but one of the residents sets her up on a date at a German Christmas market but she has to promise to take a mini bus of pensioners with her. They head off in the mini bus and when they get there she has a check lists of what she wants in a partner and the market has twinkling lights and smells of gingerbread but she meets her date hendrich who rocks all the boxes but then she meets his rival William and she wonders if he ones tick all the boxes but who will she go for and will she come home with her residents single or will she choose the right person. Will they have fun in Germany and be happy coming home or will they come home and have to work things out and will it be to late or not.
Perfect read and worth far more than five stars.

A very christmassy story . I loved the story. It was a feel good book. Pearl was a great character. The story of the two christmas markets was lovely. It was a love story too and had a happy ending

A lovely feel good story with a lot about friendship, family and most importantly love. The characters are mostly likeable albeit frustrating (intentionally) at times which makes for an easy read.

Unputdownable and read within a day! No other way to describe the frivolity and mischief the residents and their good friend Connie get up to at a German Christmas Market. However, there is a very deep message attached to the story and this comes through by way of conversations and actions to bring tears to the eyes. Jo Thomas, once again, writes a meaningful and heartfelt story that will bring Christmas happiness to those that read it. Brilliant!

Another gorgeous love story from the author of Escape to the French Farmhouse. Jo Thomas's books always evoke the lovely sight and smells of their setting. Instead of lavender and new-mown hay, this time it's gingerbread, spices and twinkling shop lights in a small German town. When kind-hearted Connie takes a few elderly but sprightly friends for a 'down memory lane' Christmas break, she doesn't expect to have a choice of two handsome men to fall in love with. William and Heinrich are rival bakers. Heinrich has a modern factory bakery, while William's is a small, traditional one in the Old Town. Both are desperate to win the annual Christmas cake competition, which will give great kudos to their particular part of town. While the oldies each start ticking off their special Christmas wishes, Connie tries to sort out her love life. A lovely, heart-warming story full of Christmas cheer. Love a book with added recipes!

What a delightful book! With wonderful scenery, Christmassy surroundings and romance of a certain kind. I've been to German Christmas markets, and the atmosphere is captured beautifully in this story.
Connie has had no success in online dating but thinks that Heinrich might just be 'the one'. Her adventures as she drives a busload of lovely pensioners to Germany are indeed funny and touching. It was so good to see the 'old people' as Heinrich referred to them, come out of their shells and find fun and laughter.
William, who was not in the dating plan, came across as a sweet character, showing Connie that love comes in all shapes and sizes.
Thank you NetGalley and the publ;isher.for a review copy of a book that is heartwarming, without too much sentiment, but with plenty of loving warmth.

What is your Christmas wish? Such a simple but poignant question. This is the question running throughout this book, the answers are so heartfelt and moving, and all revealing a beautiful Christmas memory of love and belonging.

One of the things I loved most about this book is that even though the main premise of the book is Connie and finding love again, it’s the beautiful friendships of all her ‘pensioner’ friends. Society and family have pushed them to get be side and told them they are too old and insignificant for anything, but through a little Christmas magic they discover they have so much life still in them, and they still know their own minds. Together they are a strong and formidable group. They even managed their own little romance too.

The descriptions of the markets were stunning and I really felt I was there joining in the festivities. The view from the bridge looking at Old Town and New Town, amongst the swirling snow was beautiful.
William and Connie were perfect for each other and the bakery, decorated in gingerbread hearts was beautifully described and reminded me of an image of a Christmas chocolate box. Christmas perfection.

As someone who has been to the German Christmas Markets in Frankfurt, the author definitely transports you there with the descriptions and you can almost smell the aromas.

This is a story of a group of friends who go to Germany to celebrate the life of a friend passed away as well as for one to meet an online date.

The story is heart warning, cosy and despite being predictable, it was still
Enjoyable. Who doesn’t love a cosy Christmas love story?!

I am very excited that this is my first Christmas book for 2020. I absolutely love Christmas books and films, and look forward to this time of year when the new festive books begin to appear. It’s nice that it is by Jo Thomas, an author who I have really only discovered this year, and who has quickly become one of my favourites. When picking up one of her books, I always feel assured of a powerful storyline, interesting location and lots of delicious food. That is certainly the case with this Christmassy story.

The story revolves around Connie, a caterer who at the beginning of the tale is driving a group of elderly friends to Germany. The purpose of the journey is two-fold: to scatter the ashes of another resident of the retirement flats where they live, whose wish was to be returned to the country of her birth, and for Connie to meet up with Heinrich, who she has met on a dating site and has been messaging for some weeks. Connie also hopes that the trip may help to lift the spirits of her friends, who have become unhappy with their living conditions. When the party arrives at the quaint little town of Alte Stadt in time for the start of the Christmas market, they find themselves in the midst of the annual competition with the neighbouring new town, the winner being awarded money to stage the market next year. The bigger town has won for many years in a row, and this is last chance for Alte Stadt to survive. Connie finds that Heinrich lives and runs a bakery in the larger town, while the old-fashioned, traditional bakery in the small town is run by his once friend, William. Connie finds herself becoming torn between allegiance to the man she has come to love and another, who is quickly also finding a place in her heart.

I loved this heart warming Christmas tale filled with friendship, romance and lots of humour, the smell of gingerbread wafting through the pages. As usual, Jo Thomas expertly set the scene for me; even though I have never been to a Christmas market in Germany, I could imagine myself there in the square with the smells and sounds typical of the Christmas setting. I felt for Connie, travelling such a long way with hope for romance after a long search for the right man and then beginning to doubt whether she had found him after all. The competition between the two towns added extra interest to the story. I thought the humour provided by the party from the retirement flats was great. I could just imagine what the conversation must have been like in that minibus on the way to Germany. This is definitely a story I would recommend for reading in the run up to Christmas; it’s guaranteed to get anyone into the Christmas spirit.

You can't go wrong with a Jo Thomas book. You know what you are going to get and she never disappoints. Finding Love at the Christmas market does exactly what you would expect - likeable characters, romance and a warm feeling when you get to the end.
The author clearly always visits the places she is writing about, and this helps transport you to the setting, the German Christmas markets in this case. I could smell the gingerbread and mulled wine as I was reading the book.
If you want the literary equivalent of delicious comfort food (apple crumble and custard?) this is it. I definitely recommend it.
Thank you to Jo Thomas, the publishers and #NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review #FindingLoveattheChristmasMarket

Finding Love at the Christmas Market - Jo Thomas

I was given a copy of this book in exchange for a fair review thanks to Random House and Netgalley.

This is the first book that I have read by Jo Thomas, and honestly I was a little disappointed.

Connie is on her way to Germany, accompanied by the residents of Lavender Hill Retirement Flats, who are off to scatter the ashes of their late friend Elsie at a German Christmas Market. Whilst in Germany, Connie is planning to meet up with Heinrich, who she has been chatting to online for the last few months.

Jo has managed to get the level of detail perfect, I could honestly picture myself in a handmade Christmas jumper with a mug of hot chocolate and some homemade gingerbread at the Christmas market.

Rating: 3/5
I have read a lot of great books recently and unfortunately this book just didn’t seem to grab me. It is your typical feel good Christmas story and won’t disappoint in giving you that cosy feeling you associate with Christmas books/films.

A brilliant book by author Jo Thomas. She never failed to make me happy. Her words in the book filled me with the goodness of love, and the descriptions transported me right into the middle of the German market.

Connie was unsuccessful in finding love. Supported by her elderly friends she decided to meet up the new love interest in Germany. All the seniors too joined her.

Worderfully warm characters, a sweet plait, this book was a light delightful read, just appropriate in the present times.

Jo Thomas' books are the best therapy to make me happy.

I feel like the descriptions of the German Christmas market was so amazing and vivid that I was transported there. I had on my scarf, Christmas jumper and in my hand was a hot chocolate, I swear I was there.

The story was sweet, lovely and light and while this was the first book by Jo Thomas that I have read it is most definitely not going to be my last.

Thanks to Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for a review.

A perfect little Chrismassy book. Singleton Connie hasn't had much luck in the romance department and has even tried online dating.Encouraged by her elderly clients, that have also become her friends, she agrees to meet up with her latest online interest, in Germany. With one of the group recently passing away and wanting her ashes to be returned to Germany, the group decide to make a trip of it and support Connie in her journey to find love again.

A cosy story about friendship, fulfilment and love in unexpected places. Plenty of cake, hot chocolate and senior capers.

The perfect read to snuggle up with on a winter's evening. I devoured it in one go!

Connie is a single mum who's had disastrous dates. She decides to take a group of pensioners that she delivers meals to to Germany to scatter their friends ashes. Pearl sets her up with a Heinrich online and he seems to tick all her boxes.

With thanks to netgalley for an early copy in return for an honest review
Having read all of this author's books I was delighted to read this one we all love a good xmas market and great company a lovely feel good factor book.

After the year we’ve had this year with lockdown I so can’t wait for this year to be over so jumped at the chance to read this Christmas book. It’s another great book from jo. I know feel all warm and cozy and can’t wait for warm nights in front of the fire. A great big warm hug of a book.