The Christmas Dress is the perfect poignant story for the holiday season. Courtney Cole takes a lighter direction in this new novel but it is no less engaging nor emotional. It's a book full of surprises and even a bit of magic as a dress seems to offer up a bit of hope and love for those who are lucky enough to wear it. With Meg Julliard having to return home to Chicago after her beloved father's sudden death, she is thrust into the job of caretaker and owner of a run-down building filled with elderly tenants. Right from the start, the feisty Sylvie sets the stage as Meg's seemingly uphill battle to figure out what to do with this relic of a structure is only more difficult as a bit of mistrust is tossed at her almost daily from her dad's former 'assistant'. But perhaps it's the need to prove herself, that Meg begins to take the reins, and finds herself amongst some of the most wonderful people she never even dreamed she'd have the good fortune to meet. And as she excepts help from all who inhabit this unusual residence, it was incredible to see how one small gesture eventually leads to new discoveries and a life laid out for Meg she never dreamed possible.

Cole allows Meg to wax poetic a bit thinking of the memories of her and her sister growing up in the Parkview while she toils away at keeping her former and now somewhat permanent home afloat. There is a melancholy that can be felt as Meg remembers the pain regarding her family combined with some sweeter thoughts when she had all of them by her side. And now as she starts to meet and mingle with the eclectic group of tenants, it's the grand dame in Ellie who helps Meg turn things around. With a little bit of that afore-mentioned magic, their burgeoning friendship seems to truly be the catalyst to Meg finally being on the right track to not only save the Parkview from ruin but continue her dream of becoming a well-known clothes designer.

With love as a subtle knock on Meg's hapless world's door, Logan Scott proves himself as just what our girl needs even when she may not have been looking for it. He's such a great character and endears himself to everyone who comes in contact with him. He gives our girl the attention and care she deserves and together with his gift of Winter, Logan becomes the man clearly made especially just for Meg.

There is a certain sense of reliability in this book that had me turning the pages in a flurry because I honestly could not get enough. I read it within a day and was thoroughly enamored with each new person that was introduced while cheering Meg on to find her way through all the indecision and doubt laid at her feet. I simply had the absolute best time as the Parkview, its residents, and a certain dress seemed to cast a spell on me as well while reading this delightful story.

The Christmas Dress is clearly a departure for this author but she delivers matters of the heart for everyone involved within the pages of this well-written and magnificent book beautifully. A true heartwarming read, I happily give this superb book a huge 5+ stars!

Thank you so much for an advanced copy of The Christmas Dress. I enjoyed this book a lot, and it was the perfect read to get me in the holiday spirit!

I'm a sucker for a story centering around a vintage piece, and I think I fell in love with the dress in this story. It was really perfect how important a role the dress played in several people's lives. I read this book curled up with a hot coffee or a hot chocolate, and it was perfect. The only thing that would have made it better was a snowy view outside my window.

I loved these characters. The MCs were well-written and realistic, and I found myself wanting to crawl into the pages and be friends with them. That's truly the hallmark of a great book!

Thank you again for a DRC of The Christmas Dress!

This is not a genre that I usually read. I'm guessing it would be women's literature? Basically, to me, it's the written equivalent of a "chick flick". That said, it was an enjoyable easy read that I finished one a lazy Sunday. Would be a great winter "beach read". It held my attention and I liked the various characters. It was somewhat predictable but then, I find most books are. My only complaint to the story was the relationship dithering near the end by the heroine. I felt it was unnecessary. Overall, I give it 4 stars. Thanks to Netgalley for the chance to read it.

This book was so cute and had all the fun holiday goodwill I love!

Meg Julliard is in fashion in NY but after her father's death she has to return to Chicago to take care of the building he owned that is now hers. The building needs so much help. But there is a hottie handyman that helped out her Dad and is kind to all the retiree tenants.

She is trying to find a way to keep the building from falling apart and keep the tenants there. Surprisingly, they find out this building has an interesting history and might be saved as a historical building.

All the while there is a dress that was shared by a tenant named Ellie with a one that got a way story. She gives this beautiful dress to her hoping she will make good memories with it since she thinks it's magical.

I just loved Ellie's love story as well as Meg's.  They were so sweet. Meg had a lot of decisions to make and needed to learn to trust. Ellie ran away when she was young and wanted Meg to learn from her mistakes.

I would love to see some classic 1930s-40s dresses of great quality being mass produced for evening wear instead of disposable few time wear clothes, no offense. (I break things easily, if you ever need anyone to test durability send it to me, I unreasonably break things, esp when I'm careful)

I can't wait for the holidays and the crisp air, Sylvie's Christmas sweaters and hot cocoa.

I hope to find a magic dress this holiday season. Do you believe in holiday magic?

Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫

Thank you williammorrowbooks and netgalley for the e-ARC for my honest and voluntary review.

This was a heartwarming and uplifting Christmas themed romance. Meg has moved back to Chicago to take over managing her fathers apartment building after he passes away. She hasn’t been home in years and has a lot of memories to face. The building is in bad shape but Meg falls in love with the residents and creates friendships with many of them. Handyman Luke is doing his best to keep up with repairs but Meg decides to try for a grant to help restore the building.

Overall I enjoyed this book, the romance between Luke and Meg and the various characters.

I enjoyed this read. It kept my attention and I really found myself connecting with the characters. Make sure you read this one!

Thank you Avon and William Morrow for an early copy of The Christmas Dress. I really enjoyed this sweet story! I loved Meg, Logan, Sylvie, and Ellie!

This was a heart-warming Christmas read.

After her father dies, Meg moves back to Chicago to take over running the apartment building they lived in. Meg hasn’t returned home in years because of the memories it holds. When she comes back, she’s not expecting to fall in love with the building, the residents, or Logan.

I loved the concept of the building housing an old speakeasy and the unique connection the ballroom has to one of the residents. The concept of the “magic” dress was enjoyable to read. I thought some of the conflict a d the twists were kind of Meg. However, the descriptive nature of the writing made the apartment, dress, and characters come to life.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for an advanced copy!

This book was really good. Heartwarming and uplifting. Lots of heart for the Christmas season. I adored the characters. This book was well written with good character development. I would love to read more from this author. Huge thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

On the one hand, this was a cute Christmas-themed romance, On the other hand, there were some things that definitely disturbed me a bit- Meg repeatedly talks/thinks how manly Logan is, that is he is a "real" man unlike her former boyfriend, which is reductionist thinking, and the repeated mentions of dressing modestly, and implying that the "old days" were better than today grates- the notion that the "old" days were better than today ignores all of the atrocities in our country's history. Also the subplot where the ex-girlfriend tries to entrap her old bf with a fake pregnancy?? I think this author is a bit out-of-touch and anti-feminist based on my reading of this book. But, maybe other readers would not even pick up on or care about these things

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow and Custom House for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

One Dress. Two Women. The Magic of the Holiday Season.

When hopeful fashionista Meg Julliard must return to her hometown of Chicago to manage her late father’s apartment building, she thinks her dreams of making it in the fashion business are over. Add in her father’s eclectic roster of tenants who all need Meg’s attention (ASAP!), a host of building related disasters, and a handsome handyman she keeps embarrassing herself in front of, and this has all the makings for the worst Christmas she’s ever had.

Ellie Wade, one of the building’s longtime residents, is also not feeling the Christmas Joy this year. She is preparing to move into a nursing home (reluctantly), and is in the process of sorting through her belongings to downsize. Every corner of her apartment holds memories, some good, some bad. But there’s one dress she hesitates to pack up as it represents both the best and worst night of her life.

Ellie and Meg strike up an unlikely friendship and the story of Ellie’s dress comes out. Ellie gifts the gorgeous dress to Meg, hoping that it will bring her more luck, on the condition that she wear it to the building’s Christmas party.

The dress magically fits, and while it eventually leads to the best night of Meg’s life, it also acts as inspiration for Meg to follow a life-long dream of her own, a dream that will help save the crumbling Parkview West, and restore it to its former glory, and keep it as a safe home for all of the current tenants.

The dress and the magic of the holiday season helps both Meg and Ellie find their own happy endings.

This book was like a Hallmark Christmas movie wrapped up in a book. It has a girl who’s life is at a crossroads, a handsome boy with a past, a snarky best friend and an older woman full of wisdom.

I loved every bit of this book. After losing her Dad, Meg Julliard moves into the old, dilapidated apartment full of senior citizen formerly owned by her Dad. The building needs an overhaul and of course, money is in short supply. She meets Ellie, one the residents, who gives her an old dress full of magic. A little magic plus a stubborn “concierge” and a hot handyman who likes to donate his talents and time to anything Meg needs makes for a perfect Christmas romance.

One of the first things I loved about this book is the romance is just that - romance. Not sex. I’m sure this is an unpopular opinion but I don’t need a bunch of sex or steamy scenes in order to make a book romantic for me. Innuendo goes a long way for those of us more old-fashioned readers.

Every single character right down to the cat was interesting. I loved each one of them! I loved their stories and how they created a family atmosphere within the building. Each one had their own stories and what I really loved was how the author touched on each story without allowing the story to lag and become inundated with details.

The main character, Meg, sorta comes of age in this story. But so does the building. As Meg grows and grieves and remakes herself, the building undergoes the same, revealing some life saving history that actually probably exists in many of the older Chicago buildings downtown.

It’s true there were some cheesy moments and, like any good Hallmark movie, it’s totally predictable but there were some nice surprises along the way. All in all, this was very enjoyable. A very nice Christmas read for the upcoming season.

Meg is trying to live the life of her dreams in NYC as a fashion designer until the day she gets a phone call telling her her father is dead and has left her a run down apartment building/retirement home in Chicago. So she leaves everything behind to go to Chicago and fight her demons. She despises the building as it contains nothing but memories of loss and pain for her from her childhood and is basically a money pit with everything run down and breaking. With the help of some of the residents and a dress from a different era that she finds, she begins to shift her life into restoration of the building all while still trying to chase her dreams of becoming a fashion designer.

This was my first book by Courtney Cole and while I wouldn't say that I didn't like it, it left something to be desired for me. It definetely read like a Hallmark movie, which, eh, are not my favorite. I had a hard time with the development of most of the characters. Meg seemed very spoiled and whiny and honestly helpless even for the most simple of tasks. Logan was sweet but kind of came out of nowhere and then all of a sudden was one of the main characters in the book. The only characters I really enjoyed were the residents, Ellie and Sylvie, but I felt like their stories got passed over a little bit too much. Then the book wrapped up all of Meg's problems with a neat and tidy bow in the span of 2 chapters. Was it a feel good book? Yes. Did it have some sweet moments? Most definetely but it was lacking in places as well.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC in exchange for my review and honest opinion.

The Christmas Dress is such a sweet read. I loved this one so much. You feel for Meg and all the changes and road bumps she goes through once she moves back to her childhood building. Meg is sweet and driven and once she gets her feet under her she is simply wonderful with her elderly tenants. You will giggle and swoon a little along the way when it comes to the different characters that live in the building. I love the chemistry with Meg and Logan. Logan is a wonderful handyman and is an all around amazing guy. You have this fabulous generational friendship that grows with Meg, Ellie and even Sylvie. Lets not forget this one magical dress that has a timeless piece. There is so much love, friendship and finding yourself in this one that you will just love. I could not put this down.

2.75/5⭐️

Judging from other reviews I’ll be in the minority here. The premise of this book is good, and I had high hopes based on that, but unfortunately it just didn’t deliver for me.

Meg is a 30-year-old making her way into the fashion design world in NYC when her dad dies suddenly, leaving her the Chicago retirement home (housed in an historic building) that he’s owned since Meg was a young girl. She’s all that’s left of her family and has sad memories of her old home as she lost her mom and sister while living there and hasn’t been back since her sister died.

The building is falling apart, but she falls in love with the residents (especially feisty Sylvie, her helpmate and Ellie, a former attorney with a sad romantic past) and decides to try and secure a grant for restoration as well as win a $300,000 design contest in NYC. Oh, and she also falls for the building’s handyman, Logan.

All of this sounds great. But the characters felt underdeveloped and too-good-to-be-true, Meg struck me as too immature for her age and never seemed to be able to handle anything on her own (Logan was constantly called for the over-the-top building calamities that seemed to take place every 5 minutes and even for a runaway rat), and the wrap up gave me whiplash. The three main conflicts (trouble with Logan’s ex, getting the grant and winning the contest) all ended happily within 24 hours.

So while again the premise was good, the development of the characters and the plot just wasn’t there for me.

My thanks to #NetGalley and #WilliamMorrow for providing me the free early arc for review. The opinions are strictly my own.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC for an honest review.

This book if full of Christmas magic as you might imagine. It's a pleasant read about a single girl who soon realizes that she should have visited her dad more often. He was in Chicago and she was in New York chasing a dream. This story points out that it is the lesser things that become the most important in our lives. When you recognize that, you will reap many rewards beyond your wildest imagination.

This was a adorable feel good romcom. I enjoyed the history and all the holiday spirit. I loved how strong the female characters are in this book.

Courtney Cole’s The Christmas Dress, an uplifting, feel good book, is about second chances and the magic of a Christmas dress. Meg Julliard leaves her fashion career and returns to her hometown to manage her late father’s historic apartment building. Little does Meg know that this building along with its residents and history will help her as she finds her happily ever after. I simply adore this book and the characters in it!

This book was one of the sweetest books I have read in a long time. NOT sappy sweet, but uplifting sweet. Yes, there is a HEA, and well, there should be. But, no, there are no steamy sex scenes-none at all! And I didn't miss it one bit. The story was just that good that it didn't need sex to 'pep it up or 'keep it real.'
I will not give you much of a description of this book since the recap does it so well. I will just say that if I were Meg Julliard's age and confronted not only with the death of her last relative AND inheriting a crumbling building that currently houses only older people, I might lose it totally. Meg makes a few mistakes at first but then pulls up her big girl panties and does what needs to be done.

I admit, luck (as well as talent), but mainly fate, has a huge thing to do with this story's HEA, but that's okay. After the last year that we've had, we need a little sweetness, don't we?

*ARC supplied by the publisher, William Morrow, the author, and NetGalley. My thanks to all.

If you only pick up one holiday-themed book this year, make it The Christmas Dress. Although it is undoubtedly a story that will warm your heart, no matter the season!

The story centers around Meg, who just lost her father unexpectedly and inherits the building he owned. It's not in great shape and she's quickly over her head. She can't do this alone and gets help from some pretty incredible tenants.

I consider a book 5 stars if it moves me to tears or I don't want to put it down. With that said, I should be giving The Christmas Dress 40 stars! This gave me all the feels and I didn't want it to end.

The beauty in this story lies in the characters, the romance, the friendships, the season...I could go on and on. But I especially loved that this book is not all peaks, there are real valleys here--and it made for such an authentic, heartwarming story. Can't recommend this one enough!

Thank you to NetGalley, Avon Books and William Morrow for an advanced copy of this and the opportunity to share my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Enchanting Christmas rom-com with a strong female protagonist and a male protagonist that is there just enough to put a romantic spin on the tale.
Inheriting the apartment building she grew up in, Meg returns home to Chicago. With a comedy cast of residents and several dire building mishaps later, she has to decide to stay or return to NYC.
Fast read. Loved it almost immediately.