I loved Falon Ballard's first two books, but unfortunately her third (and now fourth) have fallen short for me.

ALL I WANT IS YOU follows Jess and Nick, exes who are both writers, who find themselves trapped in a snowstorm in the same hotel room--with only one bed. When they realize they're writing similar books, their agents suggest that they write a story together, forcing them to work through their differences and find some common ground.

I'll say it: I didn't like Nick. Which, with him being the love interest and all, was an issue. He was self-centered and didn't have many redeeming qualities, and all of my complaints about him were made even worse when it comes out that the reason Nick originally broke up with Jess was because his friend, who works in marketing but not in publishing and knows nothing about the industry, tells Nick that being a single man would sell more copies of his books. So, instead of proposing to Jess, he breaks up with her. And then, when he's looking back on that decision, he has the audacity to blame his FRIEND instead of blaming himself for being stupid enough to listen to him.

The icing on the cake was when Nick decided to make his "grand romantic gesture" to win Jess back at the end of the book. I thought it would be a bound version of the manuscript they were working on, with the sweet ending Nick wrote. INSTEAD, he rewrote the endings to all of his published books to give them happy endings, had them printed, and gave them to Jess. Granted, their manuscript was also included, but the gesture felt undermined as being "forgive me--I brought you rewritten copies of my books."

The story was a quick read, which both helped and hurt it. I flew through it quickly, but I think the book needed at least another 100 pages to truly flesh out this story. At the halfway mark, Jess and Nick were barely speaking; it wasn't until the last 40% that they were even starting to resolve their issues with each other, which meant the ending was paced at breakneck speed trying to fit in their reconciliation, unpacking why they broke up in the first place, breaking up again, writing their book, Nick's romantic gesture, and them getting back together.

Because of the quick pacing, the ending was extremely fast and honestly unsatisfying for me. And, once again, I will say: Not every romance book needs to end in a proposal. Especially when it doesn't feel earned, and I'd argue that this was one of those times.

Finally, based on the synopsis of the book (and the cover & chapter art), I thought this was going to be a Christmas story (don't ask me why I'm reading a Christmas story in June--I'm doing my best over here), but it was more of a story that happened to take place a few days before Christmas. The only mentions of Christmas in this book were when Jess and Nick were boning down in Ghost of Christmas Past-style flashbacks, which, interspersed with the many chapters where they were barely speaking to each other, was a bit jarring.

Though this review may sound harsh, I really am a fan of Ballard's writing; I'm just frustrated because I've seen what she's capable of, and this book didn't live up to that.

Thank you to Netgalley and G. P. Putnam's Sons for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you PENGUIN GROUP Putnam and NetGalley for the complimentary e-ARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Jessica and her ex-boyfriend are trapped in a hotel room during a snowstorm. Both are romance writers that are in a slump. Will this encounter have a happy ending or will it be an another heartbreak.

It was a good holiday romance with perfect settings as well as great writing.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for providing an eARC of All I Want Is You in exchange for this honest review! And now to the super delayed review...

If you think a lesser-known romance author getting snowed in with her ex-boyfriend (who is also a romance author) in a Christmas / holiday setting sounds like a delightful little read... well. It should have been! This had all the potential to be a cute little winter treat to curl up by the fireplace with but instead had me pissed off at Jessica for giving her piece of crap ex a second chance. For anyone that is considering giving their terrible ex another shot, just a reminder that you deserve better.

Imagine you believe you have found "the one" and they gaslight you to no end, use your help to make BANK, then immediately break up with you so they can make even more money because "the ladies will buy my books if they think I am single". My guy, you are trash.

Can people learn and grow from their past? Sure thing! Does that mean the people you hurt (repeatedly!!) in the past need to forgive you?? No. It is also BS to say "ex-lovers-to-enemies-to-lovers". I will 100% always stand by "enemies-to-lovers" should be only for fantasy books and require a real knife/sword/weapon to the throat (preferably while straddled) at some point! You are not enemies even if your ex was a gaslighting asshole that left you because he was greedy.

So why am I giving this 2 stars rather than the 0 stars my above rant may lead you to think? For how terrible of a man the love interest was, I personally did not mind the writing itself. I could have loved this even if Nick actually deserved a second chance. It feels like it is trying to be Beach Read but make it Christmas, in which it failed spectacularly since (again) Nick sucks.

All I Want is You had all of the tropes you could want out of a holiday romance. Last room at the inn/only one bed is a classic trope that I really enjoyed in this one. The tension of the leads being exes also really added to that dynamic. The main thing I thought needed more development was their backstory, and the breakup felt a little annoying.

Overall, it was a fun, cute, and very quick read. It only took a couple sittings to finish. This would be a very fun holiday movie.

This is a fun premise with both main characters being romance novelists at Christmas. I felt like I was in a cozy Hallmark movie by reading it. Very cute and sweet, though a tad predictable. Fun and easy holiday read.

Exes to lovers.

Big issue here is the male is just a straight up no for me. He doesn’t actually love or care about her. So many red flags and icks!
It’s frustrating for a woman to get back with someone like this. Big NO!!!

If you’re into that sort of thing, it’s for you!

Easy read.

Thank you to netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Christmas is Jess’s favorite season and Nick, well Jess doesn’t see him as Saint Nick anymore. When Jess gets an email basically telling she needs to attend this award ceremony where she will be presenting the award to her ex-boyfriend, Nick she decides to get in and get out while looking as sexy as possible. Nick on the other hand has been wondering about Jess and her whereabouts since they split. This second chance romance leaves Nick and Jess sharing one while they try to workout what really happened between them before. Could they turn this ceremony into happily ever after?

I loved this book. Christmas, second chance romance and plenty of wit and humor had me feeling in the Christmas spirits even though it’s spring!

Thank you Falon Ballard, Penguin Group, Putnam and NetGallery for the eARC!

This is my first Ballard book and while I did enjoy it, there were moments that I were a bit meh/bored with. But I do have more of her books on my shelf and am looking forward to reading more from her.

Jess and Nick, both romance writers, had great banter. I loved their interactions but struggled with the miscommunication trope. The dual POV and tales of Christmases past made for a fun read.

I will say this one seemed a bit short and could have been flushed out a bit more.

Absolutely loved this one! Second chance romance is hit or miss with me but this one worked so well! I loved the forced proximity and the one bed trope and just everything about this book.

All I can say is that I’ve been DUPED. I love Falon and I’ve loved literally every book and every character. But Nick????? deserves jail time. I do appreciate the new girl character names tho.

I liked how Nick and Jess are both romance writers and also exes bc who doesn’t love a second chance. Except when one ex is lowkey terrible, then there are no second chances. honestly - Jess is stronger than me bc there’s no way in HELL would I give my ex and award. but the reason he broke up with her???? Was so he could be more attractive to readers bc he’s single??????!!?!?! Like how do you even come back from that. The answer is, you DONT. I couldn’t even enjoy this as a holiday read bc I was seething. Nick was giving “I’m a nice guy I swear” as I actually ruined your life for my benefit. I also feel like the flashbacks didn’t add anything to their relationship. Purely physical and nothing for their emotional side which added to my hatred of Nick.

I still love Falon but this book was not it :(. Thank you NetGalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

A really good feel good Christmas romance. Would recommend this over and over again to anyone who wants an easy read for the festive season, or any season really. For fans of Emily Henry and Carley Fortune.

Jess and Nick are both romance authors for the same publishers. Jess wtites HEA and Nick's characters never end up together. They are exes that still have undeniable chemistry. They get snowed in at a work holiday party and are forced to room together and you can imagine how that plays out.

Loved this sweet and quick romance. I'm a sucker for second chance romances and this one did not disappoint.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

With a delightful blend of humor, heart, and holiday magic, this story delivers a perfect slow-burn romance that’s as much about healing and second chances as it is about chemistry and conflict. Fans of Christmassy rom-coms and rivals-to-lovers tropes will find this one irresistible. Cozy, clever, and full of heart.

A second chance romance, the story of Jessica and Nick, set 5 years after they broke up. They are both authors, stuck together in a hotel because of a show storm, so will the she give him a second chance? I liked how it was told from both points of view.

3.25 true rating
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I ended up listening to this book and I really enjoyed the narrators. I did not get the NetGalley audio, so I'm not reviewing the audio --- just thought I'd mention that it was well done.

Falon is one of my auto-read authors and I haven't been disappointed by her yet. Her books are totally bingeable and this one was filled with tons of yearning ---- it was hard to put down. I don't know that I really liked the MMC, but I enjoyed going along for the ride of this story.

Already looking forward to Falon's next book.

I discovered shortly into this book that I am not its target audience, and almost DNF’ed.

I was pulled in by the title and book cover as I was gearing up for the holiday season, aware of the author but unfamiliar with her work. The premise, though, was familiar: exes thrown together for a work obligation that ends up forcing them to confront “what went wrong.” So far, so good. But I found the writing choppy, the main characters immature, and the “spicy exploits” simply added for shock value and not necessary to the story itself. Boring,

Now I know better. Should have DNF’ed.

Thank you to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam’s Sons for the advance copy.

Great enemies, rivals second chance romance set during the holidays. Great angst and chemistry, witty banter. Good read

Thank you for the advanced copy of this book. My reviews can be read on my GoodReads account here: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1335387-kelly

I love a good second-chance romance with witty banter and this book deliveredddd!!!! I absolutely love Falon Ballard books and this was a fun read :)

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Falon Ballard, PENGUIN GROUP Putnam, and G.P. Putnam's Sons for an e-arc!

Jess is a romance writer who loves writing Happily Ever Afters and Christmas. Nick is her ex and rival who writes "romance" books without HEAs, and who broke her heart a few Christmases ago. Though neither would admit it, they're both currently experiencing writer's block. When they end up snowed into an inn just days before Christmas and have to share a room--and there's only one bed!-- they realize that working together will help their writing start to flow again and may even help them process what happened to end their own romance a few years ago.

Falon Ballard is an absolutely amazing writer. After Just My Type, I realized she is one of the only people I trust to pull off the second chance romance trope, and All I Want Is You cemented it. This is also one of my new favorite Christmas reads! The holiday vibes were immaculate, the banter was hilarious, and the spice was spicing. Jess and Nick both felt so real and although Nick definitely made some mistakes in the past, I loved them both and was rooting for them to work things out. I loved every second of this fun read and I even bought myself a physical copy after finishing the e-arc!

If you like banter and tension in your romances, you should check this out--even if you don't always love Christmas romances! I also think if you like Beach Read by Emily Henry, you'll like this one.