Thank you for the opportunity to read this novel. Unfortunately, I was not able to get into the story so I did not finish.

I listened to this one on audio and overall it was a good time!!

A Winter Wish is like if an Emily Henry book birthed a little English baby. There were so many moments of grief and banter and joy that brought me back to PWMOV and Beach Read.

I really enjoyed the narration and I loved the English accent throughout. I really transported me into the world of the story.

I did really enjoy Lexie's character arc and the way that she dealt with her emotions following the death of her father. It all felt incredibly realistic and I liked that she had a lot of honesty to her point of view.

I will say that most of the two MCs problems would have been solved by communicating with one another but that's just the way life is bahaha.

Overall, a good time! Not completely life changed but I enjoyed it!

Thank you Dell Romance, Emily Stone, and Netgalley for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to PRHAudio for a free audio and NetGalley and Random House for an eARC.

I enjoy this author and have loved previous books.

This one missed the mark a little for me. I enjoyed it enough to keep reading. And enemies to lovers is usually a favorite.

I didn't find myself fully invested in them as a couple and at times didn't really care if they worked out.

I really enjoyed this one. It was a beautiful story about grief. It showed how grief can be complicated and different for everyone. I loved Theo and Lexie. I thought that they had great chemistry and really challenged each other. The growth between Lexie and her sister Rachel was one of my favorite parts of this book. They could both recognize that their were parts of their dad that were good and parts that were bad. The way they were able to become a family was really sweet. I also really enjoyed all of the travel stories and the business aspect. I think that made the book very engaging.

Although I had always heard that Emily Stone's books were absolute perfection, I had never had the privilege of reading her work until A Winter Wish—and now I’m officially a fan! This book exceeded all my expectations and left me with a warm, contented feeling that lingers even after finishing it.

From the very first page, I was captivated by Stone’s writing. A Winter Wish is the perfect blend of thoughtful, magical, and romantic. It transports you into a world where emotions feel deeply real, yet there’s a lightness to the story that makes it impossible to put down. The magical elements—both literal and metaphorical—added an enchanting touch that made the whole experience feel like a gentle, heartwarming escape from everyday life.

What truly sets this book apart, however, is the depth of its emotional exploration. While A Winter Wish is certainly a holiday romance, it’s so much more than that. The underlying theme of complex family dynamics and the struggle to process grief, especially within those relationships, is handled with such nuance and care. Stone doesn’t shy away from the emotional weight of these themes, but she also doesn’t make it overwhelmingly heavy. Instead, she strikes a delicate balance between exploring personal pain and offering hope, showing how healing often comes in unexpected forms.

I found myself especially drawn to the way Stone explores the idea of family—how we inherit not only our genetic traits but also our emotional baggage. The protagonist’s journey of navigating strained family ties, understanding past hurts, and slowly rebuilding fractured connections resonated deeply with me. It felt like a reminder that sometimes, the most complicated relationships are the ones that are most worth working through.

Of course, the romance itself was delightful! The chemistry between the leads was undeniable, and their interactions were brimming with warmth and genuine emotion. Stone weaves the romance into the story so seamlessly, it enhances the deeper themes rather than overshadowing them. It was exactly the kind of romance I craved—a perfect balance of sweetness and depth.

Overall, A Winter Wish is a beautiful and emotional read that offers so much more than a typical holiday romance. While it definitely scratches that itch for romance and festive cheer, it also dives into more profound, thought-provoking themes. Emily Stone has truly created a story that will stay with me long after the holidays are over, and I’m eagerly looking forward to reading more of her work in the future!

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC. Emma Stone is the queen of a heartfelt, heart tugging, holiday story. I loved this one and couldn't put it down.

“A Winter Wish” is a charming, transportive romance, perfect for the Christmas season. Lexie has been spending Christmas abroad for the past couple of years; it has been difficult being home with her mom, knowing her dad left them many years ago to start a new family. While living abroad as a nanny, she receives dreadful news about her estranged dad and that he left her partial ownership of his traveling company. And to add some fun, the other owner is a single, attractive guy - but they don’t get off on the best start. I loved the traveling aspect in this book, and the acclimation to the new work position. The romance was sweet and slow.. There is a lot packed into this book, and the pacing was really well done. This story covers some really encouraging themes.

For those who enjoy:
🗺️ Traveling Abroad
🗺️ Workplace Romance
🗺️ Forced Proximity
🗺️ Christmas Romance
🗺️ Difficult Family Dynamics

TW: Death of a parent.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

Emily Stone's books always leave me sobbing and speechless for a few days. This one was maybe my least favorite but still very good. I think it was because I'm not a fan of the enemies to lover's trope as much.

However, the exploring grief topic, Emily always does such a great job with that. It was so beautiful to see how each character deals with grief in such a special way. The dead person almost becomes a character in the book and all these people knew them differently and they're all able to learn from each other. It was another Emily Stone classic.

Thank you to Penguin Random House for the EARC in exchange for an honest review as always, all words are my own.

A beautiful, heartwarming, yet complex story about family, love, and Christmas. I loved this book and can’t wait to reread it! Thank you for the advanced read!

Lexie and her father were close when she was a child. Until her parents divorced and her father seemed to forget about her. So she can't understand why he left her half his holiday travel company. The other half he left to her his executive assistant Theo. From the beginning, Lexie and Theo clashed Only the will stipulated they needed to run the company together for a year before any decisions could be made about its future. Lexie fully intends to walk away at the end of the year. Yet, the business speaks to her wanderer's soul. And a year is a really long time. Things can change.

Despite their constant confrontations, there was chemistry between Lexie and Theo from the start. Their developing relationship begins with a growing respect for each other's strengths and ideas. As the business takes them to a variety of romantic spots and share some spectacular sites the feelings slowly morph into something much more.

I have a growing sense of wanderlust, so one of the things I really enjoyed was the premise of the business. Reading this book was like taking several short jaunts to far off places. I would love to visit all of the cities that were mentioned in the book. How much fun visit hidden gems, to experience holiday events and learn new customs. I've made a list and someday I may just have the opportunity to cross them off.

This was a quietly encourage story of family, of self exploration and finding your place where you never thought to look.

I have loved Emily Stone’s previous holiday romances! They are always so emotional and really bring the holiday magic! So I was really excited to read her newest one! Though this one was good, it just didn’t have the same Emily Stone magic! It took me reading more than 50% of the book before I felt invested in the story. I thought the buildup was a bit slow and I never really connected to Lexie!

I did feel for Lexie and her and unresolved feelings relating to her parents divorce and subsequent damaged relationship with her father. I never fully appreciated her dislike of Theo and thought it felt very immature. She definitely needed some counseling to deal with her past. It felt like Theo and Lexie moved from enemies to lovers in a way that just didn’t feel natural to me. I think enemies to lovers is a hard trope to write well.

Overall, it’s an okay holiday romances. It just doesn’t quite live up to previous books from Emily Stone! I’ll still be fangirling for her though!

Emily Stone writes romances that take place with a more realistic timeline than many other romance authors. Rather than characters falling in love in the course of weeks, it is a more drawn out process, helping the reader find it more realistic.

Lexie travels the world doing odd jobs along the way. When her estranged father dies unexpectedly, she returns to the UK for his funeral. Then she discovers that she inherited half of his business along with the grumpy and judgy Theo. As they spend more and more time together, their animosity disappears and other feelings emerge.

The characters are well rounded with real life ups and downs. The story takes place over the course of a year and yet moves along at a brisk pace. The conflict makes sense with character development. An enjoying read!

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group- Ballantine, Dell, and Net Galley for the DRC! All opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for an advance copy of this book.

There were some moments where I was really happy to see the characters set aside their assumptions about one another so they could advance their relationship. I found the premise of this book intriguing at first!
And while I enjoyed the premise of this book, I felt like the plot got caught up in itself and became too...involved in the details of running a business while grieving the loss of a parent and colleague, so there was less whimsy of a winter romance than I'd anticipated.

I'd recommend this book for people who enjoy a slow burn.

I’ve tried to read this one twice and it has pretty meh reviews online, I don’t think I’m going to finish, I really am not enjoyed the FMC or MMC energy at all.

Lexie hasn’t been close to her father since he left her mom for another woman, but now after his death and an unexpected inheritance Lexie feels like she’s finally getting to know him again whether she wants to or not. Her inheritance comes in the form of half ownership in the travel company her father had started and their are stipulations. Lexie must stay with the company for a year in order to get any of the proceeds if they sell, that doesn’t sound too hard except for the fact that her co-owner is someone Lexie has clashed with since they met. What they say about a fine line between love and hate might just prove to be true. As Lexie gets to know Theo, the chemistry and attraction between them is undeniable. Will Lexie be able to stay with the company for a year? If she does, what will happen between her and Theo?

I have been meaning to read this book for awhile and finally got around to it just in time for the holidays. The enemies to lovers trope intrigued me and I loved Theo from the beginning, but Lexie just didn’t do it for me. There was just something about her that I couldn’t connect with. The story was well put together and I enjoyed the different travel destinations in this book. I did find the middle of the book to be a bit slow for me, but I really loved the ending and the way everything came together over the last few chapters. Overall this was a decent holiday romance read, but I just couldn’t connect with Lexie the way I wished I could.

This book was perfect. I loved the characters. I loved the story. The book was lighthearted and fun, while also being serious and full of emotion.

Was this really a holiday romance? No, but it was a good workplace romance. Emily Stone knows how to work grief and family conflicts into her romances which gives the book a more serious feel. This one lacked a bit of a spark and I wasn’t that invested in the main characters. The ending was heart warming though.

I look forward to an Emily Stone holiday romance every year. And much like the others, this one delivers a gut punch, but it happens right at the beginning. I’d call this one enemies to lovers light - it’s really more of an “I don’t like you bc I don’t know you” to lovers. The first kiss had me swooning and my goodness does Stone know how to write sexual tension. She really knows how to drag it out in the best way. I also really liked the relationship that built between Lexie and her half sister, Rachel. While I did enjoy this one, it wasn’t my favorite of her holiday books. It’s written in third person, which I typically don’t mind. But for some reason I had a really hard time getting into the characters, especially Lexie. She makes a lot of snap decisions and it made her somewhat unlikable for a lot of the book. And something about the way the third person perspective was written made me feel like I wasn’t in the room, but more so being told a story. It’s hard to explain, but it didn’t “feel” the same. That said, this one was still enjoyable!

Read if you like:
🎄 Holiday coworkers romance
🤝 Building trust and learning to forgive
🏡 Family
✈️ Travel

Emily stone just *knows* how to write a cozy, heartwarming/heart wrenching seasonal tale. Each one of her books leaves me ready for the next and A Winter Wish is no exception

I didn't love this one. I could empathize with the main character's struggles, but that was about it for me. The MMC seemed very lackluster for me and kind of blah. Wish I had enjoyed it more.