This was a sweet romance with likable yet flawed characters and an original plot. The story centers on Lexie who inherits half of a travel company when her estranged father dies - on the condition that she runs it with the other co-owner, Theo, for a year. They clash but sparks eventually fly.

The setup of the story was original and different, despite the travel aspect being a bit far-fetched. The writing was easy to follow and the banter was fun. This is also a closed-door romance but was written in a way that still made it seem spicy without the sex. Overall, it was a fun book that I enjoyed reading.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my review. All opinions are my own.

Heartwarming story that I needed to read. Lots of feels for Lexie as she navigates her father’s death after so many years apart from one another. And Theo… he is a patient soul!

A big “thank you” to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group: Ballantine for an advanced read copy of this book.

Lexie is living life traveling around from one short term job to the next as a nanny. After receiving news of her estranged father's passing, Lexie is thrown into life changes she never expected. Not only has this spurred a reconnecting with her half sister but she also has been left with shared ownership of her father's travel company. With no desire to set down roots and a bad first impression of the company's other co-owner, Theo, Lexie returns to her old lifestyle only to be summoned back to help with the company's needs. Over time, she discovers she is skilled and passionate about the company her father started with her in mind. Lexie begins to think that maybe setting down roots isn't such a bad thing as a growing friendship and passion for Theo emerges as well.
This book was a nice post holiday read with touches of Christmas elements but it did not overly emphasize the holiday season. While I feel the character and life story of Lexie was detailed, I really wish there was more of a romantic and relational depth and development between Theo and Lexie.

Emily Stone’s A Winter Wish starts with an intriguing premise: Lexie, a free-spirited nomad, begrudgingly inherits her late father’s travel company and is forced to settle down to run it alongside Theo, her unexpected co-owner. The dynamic between Lexie and Theo had potential, and the small-town setting provided a cozy backdrop.

However, while the book is marketed as a festive read, it didn’t entirely deliver the Christmas magic I was hoping for. The story often felt repetitive, with the characters’ emotions and dialogue circling the same issues without much growth or resolution. Lexie and Theo could have been more fleshed out as individuals, as their depth seemed lacking, which made it harder to connect with their journey.

That said, there were cute and heartfelt moments sprinkled throughout, and the overarching theme of finding home—both in a place and in people—was touching. But overall, I wanted more complexity in the characters and a stronger sense of the Christmas spirit to truly immerse me in the story. If you’re looking for a light and easy read with a hint of holiday charm, A Winter Wish might be worth picking up, but it may not leave a lasting impression.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book a lot. The author did a great job of balancing the festive parts of the book with deeper issues.

This was a great story full of emotion, grief and loss, and huge life changes/decisions. I enjoyed that the characters felt realistic and their journeys - both separate and together - were emotional and kept me invested. Overall an enjoyable read!

Many thanks to NetGalley, Random House Ballantine, and Emily Stone for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!

This is my first book by Emily Stone and it was so cute!! I really enjoyed the characters and the enemies to lovers trope! I also appreciated Lexie's feelings about her father and how she worked through the sad parts.

Overall this was a great read that brought up strong emotions in me! I will definitely look at this authors backlist to explore more of her work!

I recommend this book to any rom-com and women's fiction lover.

When an unexpected inheritance forces two total opposites to work together, Lexie must decide if Theo is going to push her out—or pull her in for the kiss of a lifetime—in this heartwarming holiday novel from the author of Always, in December and One Last Gift

When Lexie learns of her father’s death, she doesn’t know how to feel; they’ve barely spoken in the last ten years. And she’s even more confused when she discovers he’s left her half of his holiday travel company, a successful niche business specializing in trips that explore the holiday traditions of cultures all over the world.

Meanwhile, the other half of the company has been left to her father’s handsome but bad-tempered young executive, Theo. And the will stipulates that the two of them must find a way to run the company together for a year before they decide its fate.

Lexie intends to leave once the year is over, even though, as a wanderer herself, she finds the company’s mission more compelling than she first thought. And a work trip to sizzling Spain reveals a chemistry between Lexie and Theo that is impossible to deny.

There may have been some snap judgments made about each other. But mixing business and pleasure isn’t always a good idea.

This was a cute and generally enjoyable read, great for when you’re in the mood for a touch of holiday romance without too much weight.

Thank you Emily Stone, Dell, and NetGalley for providing this ARC for review consideration. All opinions expressed are my own.

Following the death of her estranged father, Lexie is surprised and slightly agitated that her father leaves her *half* of his travel company in his will. She is expected the help run the agency for a year, with Theo – an employee who is begrudgingly left the other half of the company. Neither Lexie nor Theo is happy about this situation, and it shows. A Winter Wish follows Lexie and Theo over the course of the year, running the business together and possibly finding a little more common ground than they initially expected.

The positives: A Winter Wish follows our characters all over the world; Austria, England, Ireland, Spain, Iceland, Italy, etc. The various settings and travels are interesting and fun to read about, and it helps move the book along in a pleasing way. Lexie’s special “wish jar” is a nice sentimental touch. The “enemies to lovers” trope feels very authentic and realistic here – it’s easy to believe Lexie and Theo as enemies, and their transition into lovers feels organic. All of Emily Stone’s books are tinged with sadness/loss, but also show life moving on in the wake of heartbreak. It’s a refreshing take when most other books on the market seem to be devoid of real sadness and tougher topics.

The negatives: Lexie had a complicated relationship with her father, while many people in his life loved him and only have positive things to say. Lexie continually grapples with seeing her father as someone who continually let her down while also helping and supporting so many others. While this feels like a raw and real feeling, it is beat to death in this book. Every meaningful conversation Lexie has (with any character) revolves around this exact same thing and it becomes tiring and repetitive. The pacing overall slows down considerably in the middle, and it becomes a little less enjoyable to read as it goes on.

Recommendation: If you’ve liked Emily Stone’s other books, I would recommend you read this one as well. Her signature writing style is unique and gripping. If you haven’t read any Emily Stone books before, I would not recommend that you begin with this one. Her other books are more enjoyable in entirety.

Emily Stone has given us another stellar romance that is both uplifting and poignant at the same time. Lexie and Theo are wonderfully written. I enjoyed this book and highly recommend it.

Ⓑⓞⓞⓚ Ⓡⓔⓥⓘⓔⓦ⭐⭐⭐⭐

𝔸 𝕎𝕚𝕟𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝕎𝕚𝕤𝕙
𝗘𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗻𝗲

This story is Christmas themed, but hits on abandonment, death, and parental issues pretty strongly. The emotions are pretty raw as the MC works her way through her feelings.

Strong judgments toward each other come and go as Lexie and Theo move forward, trying to figure out how to run a business together while having an aversion to each other. Aversion or attraction, which is it? Confusion ensues.

This story addresses serious issues but also has lighthearted parts and romance. I connected with Lexie right away. She is genuine and has raw emotions. All in all, it is a well-written book.

Lexie and Theo inherited a business from Lexies father after he passes. They must make a profit the next year to be able to sell it. The business is a travel company. Theo wants to keep the business but Lexie wants to sell it. What will they decide?

Emily Stone had become a must read for me each winter after loving Always, In December. Sadly, A Winter Wish isn’t my favorite from her. Before I say anything, I want to say that it wasn’t a bad book and I did enjoy it overall. I loved the idea of a travel company that wanted to create experiences and memories for people while learning different cultures and supporting local establishments in those areas. It was really cool. There was a lot of personal growth in Lexie which I appreciated…but I just didn’t love her in the book so it made it hard to connect. She was a bit immature and flakey. And while I do enjoy a well done enemy to lovers, I didn’t feel that magic spark between Theo and Lexie. Perhaps it was because we didn’t get to know Theo as well as some of the other characters in the book?

Bottom Line: Overall, I enjoyed the storyline. It was well developed, but maybe a bit too long and drug out. The different locations for settings was fun and I loved the travel company. It was well written, just not my favorite from the author.

*I received a copy of A Winter Wish from Netgalley and am leaving this review voluntarily. All opinions are my own.**

Slow start but still a worthy holiday read! I always enjoy Stone’s books and A Winter Wish delivers on all the coziness!

The pacing of this book was kind of slow. There's barely any romance at all. The family dynamic seemed to be the main part of the story. I don't think I'll read a book by this author again. Thanks, netgalley.

A Winter Wish is about a woman named Lexie whose estranged father passes away, leaving half of his travel agency business to her. The story follows along with Lexie as she processes her feelings around her father's death and must decide whether she wants to keep the business, the other half of which is left to her father's right hand man, Theo.

I appreciate Emily Stone's books because while I love lighthearted Christmas romances, her books typically address grief and loss around the holidays, which are difficult for many people. I really liked the premise of A Winter Wish and enjoyed the book, but it felt like there was something slightly missing in the development of some of the characters and relationships. I would have liked to have seen more develop between Lexie and Theo, as well as her sister. While they took a couple of trips together, I wish Lexie and Theo would have gone on at least one more, since travel can be such a powerful way for people to become closer. I also think the wish jar/concept could have been a little stronger of a through-line in the story, but did like how it was incorporated.

Overall I really liked the book, and Emily Stone will continue to be a staple in my holiday book TBR. 3.5/5

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the eARC.

CW: Death of a parent, Parental abandonment, grief/complicated grief, complicated family relationships

I love Emily Stone. This one took me a bit longer to read. It was slightly slower than her other books, which I really adored.

A Winter Wish by Emily Stone is a charming holiday romance. Stone’s writing is warm and the winter setting creates a cozy atmosphere, perfect for the season. It's an enjoyable, light read for those in search of festive cheer, but will play on your emotions as every Emily Stone novel does!

"A Winter Wish" was not all that I wished for. First, this is not a holiday romance - while it opens and ends during the Christmas season, there is very little to do with the holiday in book. Second, it is about 100 pages too long. Much of the book feels so slow, and cutting some extraneous stuff would have helped this tremendously. Third, Lexie's issues with her dad and how they manifested in her life - things she talks about or thinks about ad nauseam for like 90% of this book - are suddenly all or mostly solved. All on her own. No therapy, or really even talking to anyone, involved. Nope.

2 stars. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a complimentary copy of this book. These opinions are my own.

It took me a bit to get into this book, but I ended up really enjoying it. The main characters, Lexie and Theo, grew on me and I was rooting for them in the end. I also love the idea of the travel company! I want to go on all of the trips that they planned/took! Lexie's half-sister Rachel was also a really interesting character and I'd love to read a book that focuses on her.

Overall, a nice winter read and I would definitely pick up another book from Emily Stone.