I am a sucker for a holiday romcom with all the hallmark movie vibes. This was a heart warming story where the MFC rediscovers herself and her love of Christmas with them help of her sister after a breakup. I could totally see Netflix turning this into a movie that I’d watch every year. If you’re looking for a cheesy romance with puns, I think you’ll love this book!

📖: The Christmas Countdown- a standalone

✍️ By: Holly Cassidy- new to me author

📃 Page Count: 316 e-ARC

🗓️ Publication Date: 10-22- 24 | Read: 10-20- 24


🙏🏾Thanks to NetGalley, G.P. Putnam's Sons, and Holly Cassidy for this ARC 🎄! I voluntarily give my honest review, and all opinions expressed are my own.

🌎Setting: Fallbrook, NY and Pineville, VA

Genre: Adult Fic, Contemporary Romance, Holiday

Tropes: matchmaker, pet friendly, LGBTQIA+ rep, sisterhood, book lover h

☝🏾POV: 1st person, single

⚠️TW: H cheated on by ex,

💭Summary: Callie is heartbroken over being dumped by her boyfriend Oliver. Callie doesn't want to go home for the holidays or even celebrate because she doesn't want to run into her ex whose family lives next door. Callie's sister Anita wants to bring her out of her comfort zone and have some holiday cheer, so she enacts their family's Christmas Countdown. She arranges treats and tasks for Callie to complete for twenty-four days until Christmas. When Callie goes Christmas tree hunting, she meets Marco. They hit it off with corny jokes and puns, and later agree to help each other. Callie will help with his taxes and business bookkeeping in exchange for him doing the Christmas Countdown with her.

🚺 Heroine: Callie Meyer (27) an accountant @ Whitlock & Blake Recruitment firm

🚹 Hero: Marco -a chef w/ a pastry business Dessert Dudes

🎭Side cast:

• Anita-29, Callie's sister who gifts her w/ Christmas Countdown to cheer her up. She gives her Advent calendar treats and tasks for the 24 days until Christmas.

• Vince-Marco's business partner and BFF

• Oliver-Callie's ex-boyfriend who dated for 10 years. Their mothers are BFFs and next-door neighbors. He and Callie still work together.

•Ruby Rowlinson-Marco's ex-girlfriend

• Sarah Barratt-Oliver's media famous fiancée

• Hazel-Callie's coworker and friend

• Joe-firefighter Anita tried to set Callie up with

•Dazey Rocket-Anita's cat, hilarious roof scene w/Callie

🤔My Thoughts: I loved the concept of the Christmas Countdown. Anita really came through for Callie during her time of need. My older sister has done similar things for me showing unconditional love and support. Both Callie and Marco were nursing broken hearts, and they met at the right time. I loved how Callie changed from being a recluse to taking on adventure and standing up for herself. Marco was a sweet guy, a little naive about Vince but encouraged Callie to have some fun.

Range of emotions: 😬🤔🙄
🌶️: Spice 2/5-kissing and off-page hook ups
😭: Emotion 4/5
❤️: Couple 4/5
⭐️: Rating 4/5

Callie has changed her job and life for her lifelong love Oliver.
Oliver breaks up with her and Callie is in mourning for months.
Her sister Anita develops an advent calendar to buoy Callie’s spirits and bring her back to the land of the living.
An entertaining story of relationships and changes that we all go through in trying to make sense of our own lives.
Marco is a delightful man brought into her life with ups and downs.
Loved the realistic tone of family and their interfering ways.

Callie has had a rough year. Her long time crush turned 10-year boyfriend, Oliver, dumped her earlier in the year. To drive the knife deeper, he quickly moved on with a local news correspondent. To boot, Callie and Oliver work in the same office. Her sadness, although understandable, has resulted in a lack of social life and complete absence of Christmas spirit. Her sister, Anita, sets up a holiday advent mixed with gifts and tasks she must complete. Callie agrees to whole heartedly throw herself into the tasks on the condition that her sister stops trying to set her up with people and also accepts her refusal to go back home for Christmas. (Did I mention that she and Oliver’s families live right next to one another and their moms are besties??).

In the first task, at a tree farm, we have a sweet meet-cute with Marco. He becomes her task companion when Anita needs to leave unexpectedly for business. Together, Cassie and Marco find their Christmas spirit and begin to defrost their frozen, break-up hearts.

Although this Hallmark movie worthy story is all sorts of holiday season fun, at its heart it’s about growing up, losing yourself in love, finding yourself, and letting go of what no longer serves you.

Grab this one for the holidays!!! @hollycassidyauthor I am a fan!!!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you @netgalley and @putnambooks for this #advancedreaderscopy it was a perfect pre-holiday read. Pub date is 10/22/24.

#2024bookchallenge95of75
#thechristmascountdown
#netgalley

Thank you to PRHAudio for the ALC and Holly Cassidy and GP Putnam and Sons for the ARC! We are super excited at The Buzz for our first Christmas novel!!

Callie is far from being in the Christmas spirit this year. She is still heartbroken from her childhood sweetheart, Oliver, dumping her and the last thing she wants is to spend Christmas at home with both of their families. So when her sister tasks her with an advent calendar filled with treats and fun activities, she is hesitant but really has nothing to lose. Her meeting a charming baker is just icing on the cake.

This story was just what I needed! I could relate so much to Callie, in how she was learning to stand up for herself. Like Callie, it took me some time to realize my own worth and to stand up to people who don’t value you. I wanted to cheer for her by the end, because she had grown so much and figured out she was deserving of true happiness. Overall, this was the perfect holiday read! A sweet small town, a beautiful relationship between sisters and a little romance too. If you enjoy feel good holiday stories, don’t miss this one!

“The Christmas Countdown” is out now! This review will be shared to my instagram blog (@book_by_the_bottle) shortly :)

Growing up I loved doing an advent calendar, so the premise of this book really drew me in. I enjoyed the tasks that Callie had to do and how her sister reminded her of past family fun with each task.

I am not a huge fan of the instant love trope, but in a way Marco and Callie’s relationship didn’t feel too fast. The third act breakup was an interesting twist.

This book is a fun holiday read that will get you in the mood for baking cookies, ice skating, singing carols and all the holiday activities.

Thanks to @netgalley and @putnambooks for providing the ARC.

The Christmas Countdown was a cozy, hallmark-style Christmas novel. While I enjoyed the puns, the main characters personalities fell kind of short for me.

A holiday novel about finding happiness and love again. Callie, who has been dumped by her childhood sweetheart, just wants to spend the holidays alone. Her sister, Anita, has other plans and stages an intervention in the form of an Advent calendar. The Advent calendar tasks push Callie out of her comfort zone in a good way. She (of course) meets Marcus, the super handsome baker, who (of course) volunteers to complete the Advent calendar tasks with her.

I loved this book. The Christmasy vibe, from the ugly sweaters and sledding to the hot cocoa and holiday baking, was perfect. The story line kept me interested and the romance was super sweet without being cheesy. The perfect comfy, cozy, Hallmark-ish read for the holidays!

This was seriously one of the most fun holiday reads I’ve experienced. I absolutely loved the Advent tasks of this one! It was a fun holiday read that will be one of my favorites for a while! Such a fun and cute romance!

Thanks Penguin and NetGalley for this ARC opportunity!

In this charming holiday romance, heartbroken Callie plans to skip Christmas to avoid her newly-engaged ex-boyfriend, but her determined sister Anita has other ideas. Reluctantly, Callie joins in on Anita's custom Advent calendar for December, leading her on a journey that helps her open not just presents, but her heart as well.

The book is filled with cozy Christmas traditions, from sledding and ugly sweater parties to cookie baking and ornament making, capturing all the festive feels. The romance is sweet and wholesome, with relatable characters that are easy to root for. Callie’s character growth shines throughout, and the loving (if somewhat nosy) family dynamics add depth and warmth to the narrative.

Overall, this delightful holiday read is perfect for curling up by the fire on a cozy winter night in anticipation of Christmas day!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam | G.P. Putnam's Sons for the opportunity to read this advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest opinions!

After being dumped by her long-term boyfriend, the last thing Callie wants to do is celebrate the holidays. When her sister, Anita, comes up with a fun advent calendar to distract her and add some holiday cheer, the last thing Callie expected was for it to bring her holiday spirit back. She also didn't expect to find love again but when she meets a handsome and funny baker and starts doing the advent calendar activities with him, will she be able to resist his charming self and how he makes her feel?

This was such a fun twist on a holiday romance and I really enjoyed it! The advent calendar of treats and activities was such a fun idea and Callie and Marcos's chemistry was immediately obvious. I also loved how Callie gained her confidence throughout the challenge and finally stood up for herself and what she needed. This was the perfect read to start getting into the holiday spirit!

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the ARC!

Leading up to this year's Christmas Day, Callie's sister has decided to give her an Advent calendar with 24 days of tasks and treats. Hopefully, this "Christmas Countdown" will help Callie overcome her heartbreak from the previous year. The holiday-themed tasks include cookie-baking, snow-sledding, and donating food and gifts to the poor.

I loved the idea of an advent calendar filled with merriment for the holiday season. I could see implementing something similar with my own family. The two main characters were a bit too much of a Mary Sue and a Marty Stu as her romantic interest. Both characters lacked flaws and seemed a bit too picture-perfect. Otherwise, it was a cute read for a lighthearted Christmas romance.

*** I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. ***

This was so sweet! Callie is going through a tough time with romance, so her sister lovingly creates a challenge to help her find love! This has holiday hallmark movie vibes, and is such a sweet, feel-good, pleasant surprise of a book that leaves you with a smile!
Thank you to Holly and NetGalley for letting me read this adorable holiday romance!

I love Hannah Mary McKinnon’s thrillers so when I learned through THE BUZZ that she released a Christmas novel, I jumped at the chance to read it! Thank you for the free/gifted book Putnam Books!! The Christmas Calendar did not disappoint and definitely got me in the festive spirit!

Callie is still reeling from a breakup as the holidays approach. When she learns her ex partner (and hometown neighbor) of ten years is now engaged just mere months after their split, Callie knows there is no way she can face her family or hometown for Christmas. To get her in the Christmas spirit and bring back an old tradition, her sister creates an advent calendar alternating treats and tasks.

I loved the advent calendar concept, the treats and tasks Anita came up with, and that Callie put herself out there to complete the activities and find her festive joy. The love interest(s) were great - if not a little too good to be true! - and the connections felt authentic. Callie was a good person and it was easy to root for her. I also appreciated that she had so much personal and professional growth during the book that took place outside the romantic interests.

If you’re looking for a clean romance to help you get in the holiday mood, I can’t recommend this one enough!

Callie has given up on love after a bad breakup with her childhood sweetheart (and now colleague). She plans to spend the holidays in isolation, but her sister Anita has other ideas. Determined to lift Callie's spirits, Anita creates an Advent calendar filled with cheerful holiday challenges to push her out of her comfort zone - alternating treat and task days. Despite her reluctance, Callie agrees to participate and meets charming baker, Marco. As they complete the tasks together, Callie’s attitude toward love and Christmas begins to change, leading her to wonder if the Advent calendar might open both their hearts to new possibilities.

4 stars

Now this was a cute one! Aside from Anita and her coworker Hazel, Callie doesn't have much of a community yet in her new hometown, so the idea of her staying alone for the holidays just to avoid her ex at her family's annual gathering feels super lonely. Insert Anita's clever and heartwarming Advent calendar and this story had its own unique path to the holidays. This book gave me great ideas for new traditions to start with my own kids! The alternating and related treat and task days were such a fun idea and Callie's new baker beau Marco made for a perfect activity partner. There were various twists and turns of the story that kept my interest and I enjoyed the festive feels! Be warned though: it will make your sweet tooth itch for all the goodies!

Thank you so much to Putnam Books, Holly Cassidy and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this early copy of The Christmas Countdown in exchange for an honest review of the novel.

Recently dumped Callie wants to ignore Christmas this year but her sister won't let her. She arranges a series of Christmas countdown challenges and treats and implores Callie to find someone to help her with them when she can't do it herself. Enter baker Marco who enthusiastically volunteers to help Callie with the challenges. The more time they spend together, the closer Callie and Marco get learning to take a chance on love again together. A cozy, Hallmark Holiday movie style romcom with a bit of closed door spice and lots of charm. Highly recommended for fans of authors like Jenny Bayliss. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!

A fun christmas scavenger hunt read! Callie's sister set up an advent adventure to help get her out of a funk. Along the way she meets her new bestie turned something more, Marco, as the two check off all of the holiday related tasks (cookies and caroling and polar plunge and sledding and more!)

This was a fun read, a little tooo insta love for my taste (I normally don't mind but it was hard to see because Marco and Callie were such good friends that the chemistry just wasn't there) and a little too many side plots (his and hers work drama, ex drama, multiple iterations of family dynamics issues) that kind of took away from some of the story. That aside though everything was so festive and this is definitely a great read to get into the holiday season!!


Thank you Netgalley and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam for the ARC in exchange for my review!

The Christmas Countdown was as cute and holiday cheery as they come!

The advent calendar was a clever twist on your typical holiday romance and I was always on the edge of my seat trying to guess what the next task would be. Callie’s holiday fun made me want to go have some holiday adventures of my own!

Our FMC Callie and MMC Marco were both very likable and that nerdy type of cute. They complimented each other well and I loved that they started more as friends. I wouldn’t call this a slow burn, rather a realistic getting to know you and falling for you as we build a friendship type of love. Definitely satisfying!

The book was easy to read and I felt like the book went pretty quickly. I enjoyed the pacing a lot. This was great writing and I was just able to sit down and enjoy this story.

Definitely hallmark level cute, but I enjoyed it! I would definitely recommend this for a little bit of a unique story and Christmas twist!

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam- G.P. Putnam’s Sons for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

This book was super cute! Callie has had a bit of a rough year. After her boyfriend of 10 years has her move for his job, he breaks up with her. Callie moves in with her sister, Anita and now it’s the holiday time. She really just wants to forget Christmas and hibernate. On top of it all, she works for the same company as her ex, Oliver. Anita is determined to get Callie back into the Christmas spirit. She does this by creating her own Advent calendar, something their mom did for them as kids. Every other day is a treat, and every other day is a task. Callie decides to play along, and Anita rigged it so that Callie would be seeing more of a baker who she ran into one day. As they come to a deal that she would help with accounting for his business, and he would accompany her on tasks. He’s been hurt by someone too. But can these two closed off hearts open up?

This book was so sweet, and I loved the plot. This was nothing like I have ever read before. The idea of the homemade Advent calendar full of tasks and treats is really genius (and honestly, something that I may not implement with my own kids!)

I loved Callie. You can see her growth throughout the book. She went from kind of timid and grumpy to more assertive, sure of her self, and happy. I really loved her sister too. A little overbearing and meddlesome, but clearly she loves her sister and she only means well.

Now, the chemistry between Callie and Marco was fantastic. You felt the instant connection when they started talking about Switzerland. I liked the cute little moments when they were painting – the giggling, the flirting. It felt like I was reading scenes from a movie. Speaking of which, this book would make a really great movie!

I truly enjoy this author, her Christmas romances and her thrillers – I can’t wait to read more by her!

Rom-com readers are going to LOVE this book!

All Callie wants for Christmas is to hibernate. She's still reeling from being dumped by her childhood sweetheart, and under no circumstances will she go home for the holidays considering her ex will be right next door with his new, perfect partner. Callie is officially in grinch mode, but her meddling sister, Anita, won’t let her give up on life, love, and Christmas quite so easily.

Anita stages a Christmas intervention for Callie with a homemade Advent calendar challenge—cheerful tasks to push Callie out of her comfort zone and into the holiday spirit, inspired by a childhood tradition. Callie reluctantly plays along, but when she comes face-to-face with a charming baker who just might be the spoonful of sugar she needs, her strict rules on love and the holidays are tested.

Adorable Christmas story! We've all had those holidays when we just want to hide and someone tries to pull us out of that dark place. This was delightful to read. I especially loved Anita and how she brought Callie to a place where she allowed herself to meet the right person. I love the idea of the Advent calendar for this! Cute holiday read!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced digital reader's copy (ARC) in exchange for an honest review!