Such a fun and festive story! The advent calendar her sister makes her to follow each day is a clever idea. Lots of cute romance and fun in this holiday story.

Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my opinion.

Callie gets dumped not long before Christmas, and decides not to go home for the holiday or even celebrate at all. Her sister makes her a “treats and tasks” advent calendar to get her out of her comfort zone and into the festive mood, and Callie ends up having a pretty good Christmas after all (and maybe finding love along the way)! This was a cute little festive romcom, and I liked the advent calendar idea. Overall, nothing crazy or spectacular, but fun and festive nonetheless!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Putnam Books for the opportunity to read before pub day! ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. THE CHRISTMAS COUNTDOWN is out now!

Thank you @putnambooks and @hollycassidyauthor for the @netgalley ARC of #TheChristmasCountdown! I was in the mood for a fun holiday read and this was such an adorable closed-door romance. ❤️

Callie is feeling like a grinch due to being dumped by her childhood sweetheart (and boyfriend of 10 years!) earlier in the year and is not in the mood to celebrate the holidays. And is especially not planning to head home to her parents with her ex and his new, gorgeous girlfriend right next door. Her older sister, Anita isn’t letting her sister give up on Christmas so easily and recreates a homemade advent calendar challenge from their childhood, filled with both Christmas treats and tasks to complete to try and get Callie back in the holiday spirit. Callie is reluctant to participate, but both the fun and nostalgic challenges and the handsome baker she meets at a Christmas tree lot bring Callie the Christmas cheer and love she was missing. 🎄

This was truly adorable! I loved the premise of an advent calendar challenge and the love between the two sisters. It had everything you would want in a holiday book with immaculate Christmas vibes, a sweet romance (a hot man who also bakes delicious treats?, SOLD), and some growth and healing for our main character. Highly recommend for anyone in search of a Hallmark movie in book form! 🎄

3.5 rounded down

Was able to get an early copy in exchange for a review.
Loved the premise of the Christmas advent calendar & tasks but the other parts fell flat.

Oliver irked me, as well as most of the MMC's other than Marco.

Anita was also very meddling and though she meant well was trying to get Callie out of her comfort zone for the wrong reasons.

This was good in the beginning but slowed in the middle. Paused reading this to read some Christmas novellas

This is a story about love. Love for a sister. Love for family. Love for the holidays. And finding courage to love yourself. It’s also a story about healing.

Don’t worry, this is not just a marshmallowy feelgood book, there’s also a lot of Christmas tomfoolery going on, too!

The Christmas Countdown encapsulates everything you love (and don’t love) about the holiday season. It also runs the gambit of emotions from heartbreak to joy and everything in between. Callie is so easily relatable and I wanted to encourage her as much as I wanted to wring her neck! She was so stubborn but I’m so glad that Anita was too.

Callie’s sister Anita is outgoing, boisterous, and does everything she can to help Callie start her healing journey. Everyone needs a sister like Anita.

I thoroughly enjoyed the story and recommend it to anyone who needs to smile this season.

The Christmas Countdown by Holly Cassidy is a charming and festive read about a woman’s journey to regain her self-confidence, and also finding a new romance too.

Another holiday book read, and this is definitely one of my favorites. It really has everything I look for in a holiday story: scenic and descriptive Christmas vibes, a compelling protagonist, a sweet romance, and more. I also like the focus on family, especially sisterhood. All around just a wonderful read.

A great romance, mixed with some humor and lots of character growth makes this one a must-read holiday book. If you have time to read just one holiday book this year, I highly suggest you pick The Christmas Countdown!

Thank you to NetGally for letting me read this book! This was such a cute story! It gave hallmark vibes but in the cutest way possible! I love this take on a Christmas story with the advent calendar! I think that’s why I gravitated towards this book as a holiday read that was going to be different than the others! Marco and Callie’s relationship was so cute, I love how they really helped each other through out the book and each had personal growth!

It’s hard to write a Christmas story with a new plot that hasn’t already been written by other authors or Hallmark, at this point. But Holly Cassidy managed a fresh idea and did so with perfection. I loved the advent calendar idea and I really loved the twist that Anita wasn’t around to complete the task, making room for Marco. I didn’t like Vince and but I liked his character giving some friction. It’s not a love story without some right? Great read. Hope to read more from Ms. Cassidy.

Thank you Penguin Group Putnam for my copy! All thoughts are my own.

I feel like it’s a personal mission of mine every year to read and enjoy as many holiday romances as possible. I just love them and my holiday reading guide is one of my favorite things to put together year after year. I’ve read books by this author before, and I think this one was cute. It definitely was the one that held most of my interest and I enjoyed dipping into the audiobook when I couldn’t eyeball read it. It was relatively light hearted and festive, perfect if you like your Christmassy books on the Hallmark side of things.

Also, I was totally caught off guard by Buffalo and the Buffalo Sabres being mentioned so much. I mean, they’re not even good this year!

Synopsis:

“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. As they strike a deal to do the activities together, could the twenty four little doors on Callie’s Advent calendar not only open up one, but two closed-off hearts?” —NetGalley

What I Liked:

The idea of the Challenge—I love the premise of a grumpy person who isn’t feeling the holiday magic having to do something festive every day. It’s something I like to challenge myself to do! And I liked the balance between treats and activities.

The Romance—I really liked Marco! I thought their chemistry was natural and I liked how they were able to help each other with their trust and worth issues.

What Didn’t Work for Me:

Overall, a little cheesy for me and oddly, I felt like there should have been a bit more meddling from the people around them!

Character Authenticity: 3/5 Spice Rating: 0/5 Overall Rating: 3.5/5

Content Warnings:

gaslighting, infidelity, misogyny, emotional abuse

Thank you NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review. I LOVED this idea that Callie's sister puts together for her during the holidays. As kids, Callie and Anita had a tradition of doing an advent calendar together. This year, with a hard breakup, Anita creates advent calendar of tasks and gifts for Callie to do to get her in the holiday spirit. During the days, Callie is able to open her heart up to the handsome chef Marco and they end up doing most of her tasks together. Callie helps Marco with his business finances and she discovers a big financial discrepancy that will change his business. This book made me want to create an advent calendar to do every year!

This was such a sweet and fun holiday romance, and it got me right into the Christmas spirit!

Callie wants to hibernate while she nurses her broken heart, but her sister Anita has other plans for her. She created an advent calendar full of treats and tasks to get Callie in the holiday spirit, and hopefully convince her to go back home for Christmas.
I loved the introduction to Marco, and their chemistry was off the charts right from the start. It was fun to watch him complete the tasks along with her, and see their feelings grow.

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for my ARC in exchange for my honest feedback!

This was such a fun book to get me in the holiday mood! I picked this one as my first holiday read and it did not disappoint!

I adored the sister relationship and the fun daily advent activities/treats Callie's sister created for her to get her into the holiday spirit. Some cookie baking and snow sledding is just the recipe for a sweet Christmas romance too!

Loved it and definitely recommend

In The Christmas Countdown, Callie’s sister Anita creates an advent calendar challenge to get her in the spirit and out of a post-breakup slump.

The countdown alternates “task” days with “treat” days. And on Callie’s first task day, she winds up at a Christmas tree farm where she meets pun-loving chef Marco (the ultimate treat).

As the Christmas Countdown progresses, Callie confidence grows and she discovers that her future is more than just a “foregone conclusion”. Especially when it’s one she shares with Marco.

All the feels! All the love! I think I may have been a bit Grinchy myself before picking this one up. But the Christmas Countdown was just what I didn’t know I needed. Excellent plot. Excellent storytelling. Chef’s kiss.

Holly Cassidy’s "The Christmas Countdown" is a delightful holiday romance filled with charm and festive cheer. The story follows Callie, who is trying to heal after a painful breakup. To help her rediscover the joy of the season, her sister suggests she complete an Advent calendar packed with fun, seasonal activities. During this journey, she meets Marco, a kind-hearted baker who becomes her partner in the holiday challenges. Their shared adventures gradually build a connection that grows into a sweet and heartfelt romance.

The characters are easy to root for and feel genuine. Callie’s transformation from heartache to happiness is relatable, while Marco’s warm and caring nature adds a layer of comfort to the story. The plot keeps a nice rhythm, with each activity from the Advent calendar bringing new opportunities for Callie and Marco to bond. The festive backdrop and unique use of the Advent calendar bring a refreshing twist to the typical holiday romance. "The Christmas Countdown" is a wonderful choice for anyone looking for a feel-good, holiday-themed escape.

I really enjoyed the other holiday themed novel by Cassidy and highly recommend readers who enjoy romances set during the holidays, check it out. The Christmas Countdown is available now so grab a cozy blanket, a warm tea, cocoa, or coffee, and snuggle in with this one now!

The Christmas Countdown by Holly Cassidy is a sweet and sassy Christmas romance that is sure to put you in the holiday spirit. It centers around Callie, semi-recently dumped by her long-time boyfriend, who has no Christmas spirit this year. Her sister Anita decides to help her get it back by bringing back one of their favorite childhood traditions, the advent calendar. There are gifts and challenges with some of the challenges being pretty wild (I.e. doing a polar plunge sort of dunk in freezing cold water), but some of them lead her to friendships and possibly love. I found the book to be a bit slow toward the beginning, but as the gifts were opened, I was anxiously awaiting them right along with Callie.

The Christmas Countdown is my first book by Holly Cassidy and I absolutely loved it! It's a perfect book to get you into the Christmas spirit! The Advent calendar was so fun and I could not wait for the next task or treat to be revealed, which some had me laughing. I thought the cat was funny too and how she didn't like Callie. Marco was such a sweet person and how his and Callie's relationship developed was cute. Overall, I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend it if you like Christmas Hallmark Rom-coms with a bit of closed door romance.
Thank you NetGalley, Holly Cassidy, and G.P. Putnam's Sons for my advanced copy!

Callie wants to hibernate and mend her broken heart through the holiday season, but her sister has other plans. Anita refuses to let her sister give up on love and creates an Advent calendar for Callie, with one challenge a day to get her out of her comfort zone and into the holiday spirit. Callie is reluctant but participates, and when one challenge leads her to a charming baker, she might rethink her stance on love.
I loved the premise of the Advent calendar filled with fun challenges and holiday adventures! It was easy to root for Callie as she went through all of her challenges and I loved seeing her find joy and love again. This book has all of the fun holiday vibes and felt like a Hallmark movie in book form. This is a good one to read under a cozy blanket, by the tree/fire, with a cup of hot chocolate.
Thanks to Putnam Books and NetGalley for the advance copy.

What a delight! This story about a woman who had been getting over a breakup, and her sister creat d an advent calendar for the holiday was truly fun! The taste in the advent were both thoughtful and fun, and of course all the coincidences that happen along the way were so enjoyable!
I thoroughly enjoyed this book!

What a wonderful book!! I could not put the book down once I began reading it. I was so happy when it was released. I have recommended it to everyone I know!

2.5 ⭐ rounded down

Thanks to NetGalley and Putnam for the eARC!

When it's Christmas, I'm always a sucker for seasonal/holiday romance novels. However, I will also admit that I judge romance novels very harshly. I understand it's a bit of a dichotomy, but it's just how I am. 🙃

This novel started off slow for me, ramped up in the middle, but let me down in the end. It was a rollercoaster, but the rushed, cliche ending where everything worked out too well with no effort really just took this down for me. I appreciated the unique approach of Anita to bringing Callie into the Christmas spirit with the cute advent calendar countdown with tasks and treats every other day. It's not something I've seen in a Christmas novel before, but it was super fun! The tasks weren't incredibly outlandish and the treats weren't wildly extravagant. It made the whole thing much more believable.

The "plot twists" (if you can call them that) were very predictable, but somehow, that's part of the appeal of a romance novel, I guess? I liked Marco, but I LOVED John and I wish we got more of him! I'm 100% invested in the little looks that happened between John and Hazel. If the author writes a spin-off about them, I will 100% read it, but other than that, I don't see myself picking up another Holly Cassidy book.