Christmas on the Island by Maggie Miller is the sixth novel in the series following 5 grown sorority sisters and their sorority mom. This novel takes them to Mothers Resort, an upscale Island resort that is trying to rebrand as a family friendly destination for the Christmas holiday.

Join Amanda, Grace, Olivia, Katie, Leigh Ann, and Iris as they anticipate the most joyful season of the year. There's a party, gifts to buy, and plenty of guests to take care of. Christmas brings all kinds of wonderful surprises and a chance for the women to take stock of all they've done so far.

This was a fun story with solid character development however I would highly recommend readying the previous novels first as pieces are definitely missed without. That being said it is a beautiful novel.

I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. I could not get into this story or connect with the characters and ended up not finishing it.

This is the final book in a series and I think the reader would benefit from reading the other books before this one as I don't think it works very well as a stand alone

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Just started/finished listening to “Christmas on the Island” by Maggie Miller.

I started this book about four different times and really struggled to get into it. Personally I was not a fan of the narrator.

I also found out that this is the final book in a series and I did not read any of the previous books so it was difficult to follow all the characters.

Unfortunately it was a DNF for me.

This book is the sixth installment in a series and one that appears to be possibly wrapping up the storyline. As such, it doesn't work as a standalone book. There's not enough backstory given for many of the characters. And there's a good deal of redundancy. (One character--no idea who--is routinely introduced by how lucky she was that she had invested in bitcoin or some such.)

I can see how, if you've been reading the series, it would be nice to revisit all of your favorite characters for a "where are they now" story to wrap things up. But other than lots of Christmas Day engagements and family reconciliations, there's not a lot that happened.

There was a secondary storyline of an influencer who came to the island and how demanding (and idiotic) she was, but I honestly can't even recall how she exited the story. I think that thread may not even have been tied up. But I'm not positive.

That said, I did find the characters and locale interesting and kept thinking it might be nice to go back and read the earlier books to see how this all came about in the first place.

Thank you to Maggie Miller, Spotify Audiobooks, and NetGalley for an advance review copy.

I was new to this series, jumping in with book six. Typically, authors give a bit of background as each character appears to help new readers acclimate and remind returning readers what happened previously. This book assumes we know who all these people are and which employee on the resort they are dating. A little more description in the beginning to establish XX, who is in charge of YY on the resort early in the book would have helped a lot.

There are six (I think?) main characters who were all sorority sisters, plus the matriarch figure and her housekeeper, and all the various love interests. In the first chapter, there is a mention of Katie and Olivia's daughter, so I thought Katie and Olivia were a couple. Later in the book I learned they are sisters.

Then because it is the holidays, all sorts of family are coming to town and the new readers only get a passing mention about all those past feuds. There are so many people in this book.

I also didn't love all the fat shaming in this book. Every single character mentions their weight and most of them are on some special resort diet. It was jarring.

I never did learn how Iris came to own an island in the Florida Keys which is the whole setting of the book.

Thank you to Spotify Audiobooks and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy. I am required by law to disclose this.

Christmas on the Island is the sixth book in Maggie Miller’s Compass Key series. Once their sorority house Mother, Iris and her five “girls: Amanda, Grace, Olivia, Katie, and Leigh Ann and their significant others as well as their extended families have gathered at Mother’s Resort on Compass Key. Although a resort set up more for the rich and famous, they are expanding to attract and accommodate families and looking forward to so many new things in the new year.

With so much to be grateful for, including the near completion of family bungalows as well as employee accommodations, Iris and her girls are entering the holidays on a high. However, with the holidays there comes some positive change of heart that will add so much more to the holidays.

I did enjoy this book and do recommend it!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 5 Stars
Happy publication to Maggie Miller and Christmas on the Iskand! Thank you to Maggie Miller, Spotify Audiobooks, and NetGalley ( @netgalley ) for allowing me to read an ALC (Advanced Listener 🎧 Copy) for an honest review!

📅 Tuesday, October 24, 2023 was the pub date for Snowy Serendipity. The narrators🎙️for this audiobook 🎧 are Vivienne Leheny, Laura Jennings, Allyson Voller, Cindy Kay, Nancy Wu, Sara Morsey, Suzie Althens. 📅

What a fun, cozy, Christmas read! 🎄📖 This book gives off Hallmark Christmas Movie vibes! Especially when it comes to a community of women supporting and genuinely caring for one another. 💕 There are signs of love with engagements, acts of service, and gift giving. The setting is on Compass Key Island at Mother’s Resort as opposed to a Swiss chalet, a bakery, a family homestead, or a Christmas Tree Farm. Instead of a snowy small town, there is constant sunshine, sand, and surf.

This book is the sixth in a series but can be read as a standalone. However fair warning, once you read this book you’ll end up with one big problem…the desire to read them all. The characters are warm, charming, and realistic. The storyline is wholesome. And, you’ll be left in the holiday spirit albeit you’ll also be left wanting a cold fruity drink, a book, and a beach chair near the approaching salt water tide!

The characters and the relationships felt real, but otherwise, I wasn't a fan of Christmas on the Island. In fairness, I hadn't read the first 2 novels in the series, so maybe that made a difference. My main issue with this novel was that nothing memorable happened, yet mundane moments seemed to garner so much narrative (moments that in most novels would be a blip in the paragraph). The narrators of the audiobook were also not my favorite.

I wish I had read the other books written prior before starting this one. There are so many characters and I didn’t know any of them from previous books. I never felt like I fully got to know them in this one either and it was hard to keep track with so many characters that I didn’t know.

This is apparently the last book in a series. I’ve not read any of the other books in this series but have loved other Maggie Miller books. I had a very hard time following all of the characters because there were a lot. This felt more like a tie it up in a nice bow book rather than having an in-depth story on the beach at the Holidays . . Unfortunately the narrator wasn’t to my liking and I felt that took me out of the story more times than I’d like.

Amanda, Grace, Olivia, Katie, Leigh Ann, and Iris reside on an island off Florida. They all live at a resort where they also work.
Christmas on the Island is about the six women and their significant others preparing for Christmas. I typically don't mind multiple point of views; however, having six different POVs was hard to follow. The narrations by Vivienne Leheny, Laura Jennings, Allyson Voller, Cindy Kay, Nancy Wu, Sara Morsey, and Suzie Althens were good. I did like that each character had a different narrator. For me, this would have been better as a physical read.

This was a lovely romance. While listening to the audiobook, I imagined overflowing pink balloons and hearts all the time.
All characters were so good intended, everyone was so thoughtful and respectful. Even Yolanda managed to get pinky with only a short conversation with a person, she just met and belittled through their entire interactions.
The resort gets the best employees, even if they have a history with the owners.
Christmas presents are springing out of everywhere. It is mandatory that the presents are all thought of thoroughly and very specific to the person.
Engagement rings fly around, just stretch your arm and one can hit your finger.
I realize that this is the 6th book of a series and it was already late when I realized that I start a story from its very end. However, this fact did little to convince me that everything is so smooth and care free in an island where only women are owners and manage the resort together in full alliance and understanding. Not a single voice was raised, not a single misunderstanding or difference in view happened, which might cloud the sunny island.
Was not this a little bit exaggerated? Just asking.

Where do I sign up for Christmas on the Island? My only regret is that I haven't read the other books in the series but that is something that I will be correcting!

Christmas on the Island
Compass Key #6
Maggie Miller
This is the first book I have read in this series. There are elements of family, friends and second chances. Follow a group of college friends Amanda, Grace, Olivia, Katie, Leigh Ann, and Iris. The women are able to reflect on what life has been so for and what they want out of the rest of it. A fun and cozy trip to Mother’s Resort! It’s Christmas time and everyone is excited. The island is a vacation retreat for the well to do. I liked the characters; they are sweet and nice.
I will be going back to read the other books in the series .

Christmas on the Island is the last book in the Compass Key series. Although this book is part of a series, you can read this as a standalone. The author does a great job of giving the background for each character and the events that lead them to the current book. I enjoyed the full cast of characters in the audiobook and loved the description of Mother's Resort. However, I felt that this book was uneventful. I kept waiting for conflict or for something to happen. I understand that this is the last book in the series and the author wanted to wrap up everything for the characters. I highly recommend the audiobooks for the readers who have been with Compass Key since book one.

The Audiobook for Christmas on the Island comes out on October 24th.

Thank you to NetGalley and Spotify Audiobooks for the opportunity to review and advanced copy of Christmas on the Island.

So apparently, this was the last book in the series…which kind of makes sense. I just came here to write this (Goodreads) and saw that it’s part of a series. Which is good, because I felt totally lost throughout. I did NOT know, so I did not read any of the others. And although I enjoyed this, I had a really hard time keeping up with ALL of the characters. (There are a lot!)

That being said, this takes place on a tropical island, at Christmastime, where several friends get together to celebrate at Mother’s (a resort).

As I mentioned, there are a bunch of characters, and it was hard to keep track of who was who (unless maybe you write it down…but I did not do that.)

Sweet, somewhat predictable endings… but still, enjoyable!

Thanks to #NetGalley and #SpotifyAudiobooks for an ARC of the audiobook which releases 10.24.23.

#ChristmasOnTheIsland by #MaggieMiller.

3 ⭐️⭐️⭐️ for me.

Check out all my future book reviews on Instagram @ #BookReviews_with_emsr

Thanks for reading! 📚📖

Thank you to NetGalley, Spotify Audiobooks, OrangeSky Audio and Maggie Miller for the early release copy of Christmas on the Island in exchange for my review.
This is a fun and lighthearted book. I really enjoyed the audio version and the performers did a great job.
There are elements of family, friends and second chances. Follow a group of college friends Amanda, Grace, Olivia, Katie, Leigh Ann, and Iris. The women are able to reflect on what life has been so for and what they want out of the rest of it. A fun and cozy trip to Mother’s Resort!

Mother’s Resort is located on a private tropical island and Christmas celebrations are about to begin.
You’ll meet a cast of characters that all come with their own stories: Amanda, Grace, Olivia, Katie, Leigh Ann, and Iris. As they prepare for Christmas and the time they’ll spend with each other and their families, they also find time to reflect on all that they’ve built here in Compass Key.

I really enjoyed listening to this novel and can’t wait to read or listen to others in this series. I’ve listened to other books written by Maggie Miller and this one did not disappoint. I also enjoyed that multiple narrators were used to tell the story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Spotify Audiobooks for allowing me to listen to an ARC of this novel. #NetGalley #ChristmasontheIsland

Christmas on the Island
Compass Key #6
Maggie Miller
This is the first book I have read in this series. The story revolves around six women and Mother’s Resort on Compass Key. It’s Christmas time and everyone is excited. The island is a vacation retreat for the well to do. I liked the characters; they are sweet and nice.
I kept waiting for something to happen, but it didn’t. There was no conflict. There was nothing that would keep me interested. This book got a lot of good reviews especially from fans of the series. I wish I could say more but for me it was a 3 star.