Every December, Josie sends a letter to the parents she lost on Christmas. On the way to the mailbox, she has a collision with Max. Josie and Max end up spending Christmas together, and he ends up disappearing without saying goodbye. However, they keep bumping into each other over the course of the next year.

I couldn’t put this down - I just had to know why Max disappeared and if they would end up together. It was so good but so devastating. This is a book that will make you cry!

Thanks to @NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for my ARC!

This book started off SO strong. I was so excited about it for the first 20 percent. I loved Josie and Max together. They were so sweet and their adventures around the city kept me thoroughly entertained. I will say around 30 percent I predicted the ending and then became extremely bored. Once Max left, and the story followed him. I was no longer interested in what was happening. I gave up and stopped reading around 45 percent and looked up a spoiler about the end. My prediction was correct and I am glad I didn't continue reading to experience it. I think if this book had cut out a lot of the extras and just strictly followed the main characters and how they relate to each other it would have been much more enjoyable. I would try something from this author again, but this book just wasn't for me.

Always, in December by Emily Stone
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
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Wow
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This book did not go the way I had thought. I went in blindly and I recommend you do the same.
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Everything I thought would happen, did not. Everything that happened left me super shocked and heartbroken.
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I would not describe this book as a feel-good Christmas story. But this book was still a masterpiece that left me with all the feels.
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This book centers around themes of self growth, family, grief, and love.
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I’m glad I read this book, I just wish I would’ve read it at a different time!
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Always, in December by Emily Stone

If you’re looking for a solid tear-jerker, festive rom-com, then this one is for you! When the novel begins, we meet Josie, who was recently cheated on by her boyfriend with a mutual coworker. To make matters worse, it’s nearly Christmas, a time that is already heavy with grief for Josie. One day while running an emotional errand, she embarrassingly meets a handsome stranger and thus, the story begins.

What I really loved about this one is that it’s easy to be engaged and react to the plot. It has some deliciously awkward and complicated social situations. I wouldn’t describe the interactions as entirely realistic, but it works very well for what it is. The plot line feels predictable, but does a decent job of diverting your attention. I just happened to catch what was going on, but I suspect some readers might miss it and be totally shocked.

This is definitely a dreamy little story. I’d recommend to anyone who wants their Christmas season with a side of tears.

Always, in December is not your typical Hallmark Movie Christmas novel. Every year Josie posts a letter to her parents who died on Christmas night in London many years ago. This year she rides her bike along the busy streets of London to post her annual letter and accidentally collides with a handsome man who is trying his best to leave the city. Feeling obligated to spend time with her stranded vicitim - he missed his plane home to America - they find more in common than a dislike for all things Christmas. Josie soon feels herself falling for the mysterious Grinch only to wake up and find him gone. Throughout the next year fate keeps throwing them together in Scotland, New York and other unlikely places. As Christmas approaches will fate allow them to be together for real? Emily Stone has written a lovely, poignant first novel. Fans of Jennifer Colgan, Christina Lauren and Rosie Curtis will love this as will anyone who wants a good, sad, Christmas love story. Thanks so much to Net Galley for the chance to read the ARC.

I am not okay. It seems fitting that I would read this particular book this holiday season when I dreaded Christmas and wished more than ever that I could just skip over it. Like many, Josie the female lead had suffered a horrible and terrible loss as a young child during Christmas & as such dreaded the holiday season. Rather than spending it with her loved ones, she decided to essentially hunker down and hide away from the world which I could totally relate with. But when a crashing encounter leads her to meet Max, a man who seemingly seems rude and standoffish at first but who ends up spending the holiday season with Josie… leading Josie to once again feel happy during Christmas.

This of course changed when Max up and leaves Josie in the middle of the night on Boxing Day with nothing but a letter saying goodbye. As this book is separated into four parts, in part 2 we get Max’s point of view and this is when as a reader, you can’t help but hate Max for leaving the female lead during the one time of year that is so hard for her to get through. But.. along the way while we get to know Max, we start to realize why this book was labeled as a “heartbreaking book”. As part two ends when fate once again brings Max and Josie together then again in part three you start to hope that maybe the clues along the way were wrong and this will end in a happily ever after because.. if fate wants two people together so badly.. just how could anything bad happen?

Sadly, something bad does happen but, as you reach the ending and your tears have begun to dry, as you’ve caught your breathe from sobbing into your blankets.. you realize that sometimes, some people come into your life for a short while to make you realize who you want to be, to force you to take a chance on yourself whether it be an experience half way around the world or anything else. This book is a heartbreaking tear-jerker that for sure did not lift my non-existent Christmas spirit but, it did make me realize that you have to live, truly live despite the world trying to knock you down a few pegs.

Always, in December is a beautifully crafted novel by Emily Stone. Josie’s life has been anything but easy and Christmastime is the worst! Her parents were killed in an auto accident on Christmas Eve when she was but a child and this has colored every aspect of her life. Her loving grandparents raised her from that point and they have a close personal relationship even though Josie always has an excuse not to come home for Christmas.

This particular holiday much has happened to bring Josie down. Her longtime boyfriend admittedly cheated, breaking them apart. Her best friend and roommate has booked a Christmas vacation in Argentina leaving her alone for these dismal days. And to top it off, she has been made redundant at her job. As Josie is out on her bicycle on a gloomy night to mail her annual letter, which will never be delivered, to her parents, she encounters a taxi parked in the bike lane and, as she swerves to avoid the vehicle, she sends the fellow getting out flying as she whirls through space herself. Luckily, no one is injured but Josie is overly apologetic. When the fellow says he could use a beer, Josie takes it upon herself to take him to a local pub. There they connect, setting the stage for the upcoming holiday as well as the next two.

This is such a good, albeit sad, story. In this time period Josie finds herself and her future even though it turns out differently than she had hoped. I very much enjoyed this book and I certainly do recommend it!!

Sob. That's all I can say. Thankfully I read enough other reviews so that I didn't go into this expecting a romance.

*Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an e-galley in exchange for an honest review.

Not a light hearted Christmas book but I loved it none the less. Moving, 2nd chance, destiny story that I fell in love with. Loving characters and big hearted.

This book threw me for many loops, but overall I really enjoyed it. I was looking for something similar to One Day in December (an all-time favorite) and while this wasn’t that, it was still a solid read. The story ran darker than I had initially anticipated but it was done well and Josie and Max were great characters.

Engaging story that would appeal to romance lovers, I thought Nicholas Sparks when I finished this novel. That being said, Emily Stone is a better writer and this novel had some great aspects to it. Nonetheless it wasn't completely compelling to me - some of the drama and action is a bit too contrived. The sudden death of Max seemed very dramatic and I had a little trouble accepting that he wouldn't have exhibited signs of illness in any of their prior meetings. The death and ties to loved ones was a great idea, just felt a bit artificial and forced at times. Overall, I enjoyed it but it was not one of the better works I've read this year.

5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. Oh my gosh this book!!!!! I literally just finished it 3 minutes ago and should probably give myself time before writing my review but it’s one of those books that as soon as you finish it, you need to tell someone how awesome it was. Unfortunately my husband is working and my daughter is sleeping so I feel the need to immediately write my review. I guess you can already tell that I LOVE this book so much! It is definitely in my top 5 of 2021…quite possibly a contender for “favorite book of the year”. I am not going to go into detail about what the book is about because you can read the description for that. I will say that I LOVED all the characters and I mean ALL of them!! Max and Josie of course being my favorites. This book made me smile and this book made me ugly cry. There were times it totally ripped my heart into pieces. Yes, it was THAT good…I laid on my couch literally in tears. If I can make a recommendation to end the year with an amazing novel, that you are guaranteed to love, I would absolutely pick this one!!

*UPDATE (added AFTER my review was posted): WHAT?! This is a debut novel?! I clicked on the author to make a list of other books of hers to read, and noticed this is her first!! Well, let’s just say that I predict we have a future “Best Selling Author” here!!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

To see other reviews I’ve posted, please check out my Instagram and Goodreads profile:
*Instagram - bookworm_traveler808
*Goodreads - Cherihy808

4,5 🌟 Get ready to get your heart stomped on. This isn’t just a sweet holiday read, it is a sad love story.

The right person, the wrong time, all of the almosts, and what ifs this story is full of them.

I immediately fell in love with the characters, their journeys together and apart, and their development throughout the book.

I did anticipate how it was going to end, but I still loved it as a whole.

Would recommend for fans of One Day in December and In Five Years.

Thank you NetGalley and Dell for this eARC in exchange for an honest review! ✨

I did not expect to like this book as much as I did! I was looking for an easy Christmas read and instead I fell in love with the relationship between Josie and max. This book was heartbreaking but also uplifting at times. It’s just what I needed

Josie just wants a quiet Christmas, alone. But when she accidently runs in Max, everything changes.
What I thought would be a cute Christmas romance, turned out to be a lot different than I expected.
Although there are some romance elements, it deals a lot with tragedy, trauma, and complex relationships. Definitely not the light holiday read I was hoping for. But I liked the characters and it's a very interesting story. Filled with hope, heartbreak, and triumph in a young couple's life.

What a precious Christmas time read! It was lovely, it was hearbreaking, it was heart warming and it was a tear jerker....all in under 400 pages. I loved the story, and loved the characters even more. I wasn't sure I was going to fall in love at first, I was enjoying it and had no idea the love that was about to appear for this book!

Never in my life did I read a scene, which shocked me to my core and made me have to walk away from a book for a few moments while I absorbed what just happened - until I read Always In December. While I could predict the twist early on, how it was executed and portrayed came as a total emotional surprise to me. Always In December is a beautifully written story of love, loss, friendship, family, and the holidays.

*May contain spoilers*

Well, this one will tug those heart strings even in spite of yourself. I haven't cried reading a "romance" since "Me Before You." This book invokes similar emotions. I've seen several people comment that this shouldn't be listed as a romance but I disagree. Sure it's not entirely "fluff" as most Christmas romance novels are but I liked that it took me by surprise with it's real life subject matter.

Josie character development for one is the girl growth story we all want! From fearful and defeated she rises from her life ashes strong and determined while embracing weakness in a new way.

So no, don't pick this up as a fluff piece - although there are the stereotypical fluff in there - but it doesn't stay there. Which is what I appreciated. Great storytelling, plot twists, character development, people you want to root for. All in all that's a win for me...now I will need to go read something "fluffy."

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read in exchange for my honest review.

Simultaneously light-hearted and completely devastating, Always in December is the emotional read you need this year.

MV rating: 7/10 so bittersweet
•Fans of “Me Before You” and “In Five Years” will definitely enjoy this one.
•When Josie runs into Max (literally), she has no idea what’s in store. A few passionate days later, he disappears on her. Over the next year, they bump into each other at the most inopportune times, and Josie can’t help but think that Max is hiding something…. Are they in love? Do they hate each other? Who knows how this ends.
•The book is very Hallmark, but in the least cheesy way.
•I read the story in one sitting, and it was truly a sweet and endearing book. Perfect for your holiday break this year.

Thank you so much to NetGalley for the ARC access!

I went into this excecting a cute, feel good Christmas read... and that's not entirely what I got.

*****Stop reading here because I have a few spoilers below*****

Holiday reads are supposed to be HAPPY!! This book was not entirely that. Be aware that you will probably shed a tear or several with this read.

Josie and Max meet in when Josie quite literally runs into him with her bike. What seems like an unlikely friendship begins to bud into something more when the two of them bring out the Christmas spirit in one another.

Throughout the year Josie and Max seem to keep running into each other, and there's definite chemistry. It has everything set up for a happily ever after.....

Over all I did very much enoy this story, however usually when I pick up a Christmas read I'm hoping for a light read and this was a bit heavier.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy - I will pick up more from Emily Stone in the future.