BOOK CLUB AUDIOBOOK REVIEW 🎄🎧✨

A big thank you to PRH Audio for the free audiobook and to Putnam and NetGalley for the advance e-galley!

For the last three Decembers I’ve been part of The Read Rovers Book Club (3!!! How is that even possible?!? 🥹🥹) we’ve read a new holiday-themed release from Jenni and got to Zoom chat with her every year without fail!

This year we read her September release of “Kiss Me at Christmas” which was just so incredibly delightful 🥰!! I was truly taken with Harriet and her ragtag group of misfits who had so much potential but needed an incredible human, teacher, mentor, and amateur play manager like Harriet to give them that opportunity to shine. And shine they do! 🎭✨

Although I have no experience with the foster care system, a lot of people in book club who do said the representation was very realistic and respectful, which I absolutely appreciate. I loved the found family around Christmas being part of this story and it was heartwarming to watch Harriet and the kids quickly melt the cold hearts of those around them. Harriet and James were also able to warm up to one another in the process of creating a safe haven for the community and producing a Christmas play at the famous but many years defunct Winter Theater 💕

I elected to listen on audio 🎧 on 1.5x speed while I completed other tasks (chores, walking, etc.). It was easy to follow along with and I really enjoyed the narrator, Caroline Fantozzi, who stayed true to Harriet’s Brit character but wasn’t too heavily accented to understand!

Read if you enjoy:
✨ older empty nester MCs
💕 mid-life awakening (its not a crisis if you come out the other end with something much better right?!)
✨ amateur theater
💕 light holiday romance
✨ mixed and found family plots

Kiss Me at Christmas is OUT NOW! 🎄✨

Jenny Bayliss delivers a heartfelt holiday romance with Kiss Me at Christmas, a charming riff on A Christmas Carol that’s as much about personal growth and community as it is about festive love.

Harriet Smith is always the dependable one—whether it’s for her students, her daughter (spending her first Christmas away), or her overbearing boss. But when she takes the fall for five misfit students caught trespassing in a crumbling theater, Harriet’s life takes an unexpected turn. The theater’s eccentric owner, Evaline Winter, demands Harriet clean up the building and organize a Christmas play to make it attractive to buyers. Enter James, Evaline’s lawyer, and Harriet’s mortifying one-night stand from the night before.

The story blossoms into a delightful mix of holiday magic and found family. The students, whose backgrounds are less than ideal, find confidence and pride as they take ownership of the play and the theater’s revival. Harriet, meanwhile, learns to set boundaries, embrace the messiness of her own needs, and rediscover joy—with a side of romance, of course.

While some plot points are resolved a bit too conveniently and certain adult characters’ choices feel immature at times, the warmth and genuine care between the characters more than make up for it. Bayliss captures the messy, magical spirit of Christmas with humor, heart, and a bit of holiday chaos.

If you love found family stories, festive romance, and a bit of theater magic, Kiss Me at Christmas will leave you smiling. A sweet and cozy pick for your holiday reading list!

Though I typically feel like its not Christmas without reading a Jenny Bayliss book, Kiss Me at Christmas wasn't my favorite of her catalog. It felt as if the story could have done with a faster pace but I very much look forward to next Christmas and another Bayliss book!

This book was more fun than I expected and I really loved getting to know ALLL of the characters. While not a Christmas book really, this was a fun winter setting.

I just couldn't get into this book for some reason. Harriet was annoying and I just didn’t care enough about any of the characters.

A chance to save the local theater and a home for the community. It's a 10/10 Hallmark vibe cozy holiday read! Thank you to Netgalley, Jenny and G.P. Putnam's Sons for the eARC!

What to Expect:
⭐ Forced Proximity
⭐ Found family in community
⭐ Single mom looking to find herself
⭐ Empty Nester
⭐ Power of community in saving a theater
⭐ 10/10 Hallmark vibes!

My Thoughts:
Harriets story was heartbreaking at the beginning. I can't even imagine how difficult being a single mom at Christmas was for her. Having her daughter grown living her own life in New York is awesome but alone at Christmas is so hard! That plus being a struggling people pleaser and a doer at work where you're being taken advantage of, not being appreciated and over worked.... she needed a desperate coming to life moment.

This story was full of amazing sub characters who help her on her journey, become deeply bonded and connected through saving the theater, but more than that they all play a part in the overarching story of family. Seeing Harriet come back to life through the work she does in the community is so delightful. She deserved a life full of love and color! She was living so drab! Also getting a second chance at love...although it started as a one night stand... the forced proximity of them being forced to work together on the project really set off the story of their relationship. I enjoyed though it wasn't the focus of the story but a parallel one.

Overall I thought it was delightful and cozy! Perfect for a holiday season read!

Synopsis:
Christmas can officially get stuffed because Harriet Smith is not feeling bright and merry this year. She hasn’t for a while. So when her college-aged daughter opts for Manhattan’s winter wonderland instead of Christmas at home, Harriet finds herself seeking solace in a wine-soaked one-night stand.

But how Harriet will spend the holidays is swiftly decided for her after she takes the fall for some students who break into the town’s old Winter Theater. To get the students off the hook, the theater’s elderly owner requests that Harriet direct the washed-out stage’s final Christmas performance. And Harriet will do anything to help the kids . . . even work with the owner’s lawyer who, as it turns out, is her less than impressed one-night stand.

Directing the play with him won't exactly change her life. But it might just reignite the Christmas spirit and remind her what makes life merry and bright again.

This was excellent! Everything I’ve come to expect from a Bayliss holiday romance: a very heartwarming and feelgood story filled with holiday cheer and found family coziness.

Harriet is a lovely main character to follow, she is such a genuinely good person and I loved exploring all of the relationships with and around her.

Highly recommend for anyone looking for a Christmas romance that feels like a hug and who doesn’t need smut in their romance.

Set in the idyllic small town of Tipperary, the story centers on Holly, a woman who’s recently come out of a long relationship and is trying to navigate the holiday season with a sense of independence and newfound purpose. When she agrees to take part in the town's Christmas event, she never expects to find herself caught up in a romance that seems straight out of a holiday movie. Enter Jake, a charming, yet somewhat mysterious man who seems to bring both joy and complication to her life in equal measure. The chemistry between Holly and Jake is undeniable, and their slow-burn romance is filled with moments of tension, humor, and undeniable sweetness.

The secondary characters are equally well-developed, bringing a richness to the story that goes beyond the central love story. Whether it's Holly's supportive friends or the quirky townsfolk, each person adds a touch of warmth and humor to the narrative.

Bayliss also does a wonderful job of exploring the idea of personal growth and the importance of embracing change. Holly’s journey is not just about finding love but also about rediscovering herself and what truly matters in life. The novel is full of moments of reflection and warmth that make it more than just a holiday romance.

With her signature blend of wit, warmth, and delightful characters, Bayliss crafts a story that will leave you with a smile on your face and a full heart. If you’re looking for a book that will fill you with festive joy and remind you of the magic of Christmas, this is one you won’t want to miss.

Thank you so much to the publisher for my ARC!

In true Jenny Bayliss style, this is a sweet Christmas romance with tons of heart. Harriet is a 40-something single mom who is spending her first Christmas without her daughter. However, rather than having time to mope and feel lonely, she gets roped into putting on a play for the community at the long-shuttered local theater. This book is full of themes of found family, learning to love and prioritize yourself, and finding love in unexpected places. I loved the character of Harriet, who was so relatable as the mom who did for everyone else, but was learning to love herself. I also loved James, her love interest, who was determined to better himself.

It's maybe not as cozy as some other Jenny Bayliss books, but it's a cute, light Christmas read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this digital ARC. opportunity to read and review this digital ARC.

I've come to look forward to Jenny Bayliss' books every year, and Kiss Me at Christmas didn't disappoint. As usual, it was set in a small town, and I loved spending time with her characters. I'd recommend it to anyone looking for a cozy holiday book, and I'm excited to add it to the others on my bookshelf. Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the eARC.

This book was a warm cup of tea, cocoa, toddy, nog—whatever you’d like. I love how there is attention for all ages and all races and all stations of life in this story, and everyone in the community is brought together by their creative comforts in this old theater. There is art, theater, writing, music, baking, construction, and a general lesson of love for others and yourself. I really enjoyed this one. Bonus points for the staging of A Christmas Carol AND The Sound of Music - two absolute favorites of mine. Hats off!

Sweet Holiday romance that centers around Harriet a divorcee that is coping without her daughter for the first time during the Holidays. She usually is all in during Christmas, embracing everything that the Holiday has to offer but this year she is depressed and finds herself without the Holiday spirit. She accepts responsibility when a group of her students break in to an abandoned theatre. When the theatre owner’s lawyer shows up Harriet is dealt another blow when he is the man she hooked up and left without as much as a goodbye. She agrees to enlist her students to help clean up the theatre and perform a last performance of a Christmas Carol.

This was cute and has several heartwarming moments. I loved the family that the theatre creates among the community. That to me was the best part and the most beautiful part of the story. A great Christmas read

4 ⭐️

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

✨KISS ME AT CHRISTMAS ✨
Rating: 4 ⭐️ - I Liked It

Jenny Bayliss is by far one of my favorite holiday authors & her latest release was a lot of fun! There was some things I loved about this one and some that missed the mark.

KISS ME AT CHRISTMAS follows Harriet who take the fall for the 5 kids from her school after they broke into the town’s theater. The owner of the theater gives her an ultimatum - either she’ll press charges or direct one last production at the theater before she sells it.

❤️ for my LOVERS of a sweet holiday romance with lots of cozy winter vibes, SECOND CHANCE romance, FOUND FRIENDSHIPS, Christmas plays, and happy endings!

❤️ A Muppets Christmas Carol is by far my favorite holiday movie so this story centering around the towns production of this play was everything!

❤️ loved the different FACETS of this story - romance, found friendship, lots of character development, etc!

💔 at times this one felt a little long and think could have been pared down a little - so many plot lines going on at once!

Overall this was a cute holiday read. I enjoyed the storyline of the students putting on a play of A Christmas Carol. I liked the main character Harriet and how much she cared about her students. I also liked how she learned to take time for herself through self-care. I expected the romance to be more of the story than it was but once I realized it was secondary to the main plot I was okay with it. However I didn’t really care about the relationship between Harriet and James. I found the relationships with her students, daughter, and friends to be more interesting.

I thoroughly enjoyed this unique, sweet Christmas romance. I read the digital ebook and also listened to the audiobook—and I have to say, the narrator was fantastic! Her use of different voices and accents truly brought the characters to life. I highly recommend experiencing this story through the audiobook if you can.

Set in England, the story exudes a wonderfully British charm. While I occasionally had to look up certain words, phrases, or slang, which pulled me out of the story a bit, I still found it to be a fun and enriching cultural experience. Learning about other countries and traditions added an extra layer of enjoyment.

Although this book is categorized as a romance, I appreciated that the love story wasn’t the sole focus. Instead, it’s a rich ensemble story with a wide cast of characters. Admittedly, keeping track of everyone was a little tricky at times, but I loved watching the story unfold and seeing how the theater brought people of all ages together. The themes of growth, bonding, and forming lasting relationships were beautifully heartwarming. Some scenes were so touching that they brought me to tears, while others had me laughing out loud. The emphasis on the found family trope—a personal favorite—made this story all the more special.

As for the romance between James and Harriet, it was sweet but didn’t quite sweep me off my feet. While I enjoyed getting to know their characters and was rooting for them, I found the chemistry a bit underwhelming. There were some cute moments, but it lacked the spark that makes a romance truly memorable. Still, it was lovely to see their relationship blossom in its own understated way.

The story does feel festive and wintry, but I would have loved more vivid holiday descriptions to really immerse me in the Christmas spirit. While there were a few holiday touches, it leaned more toward a general wintery vibe rather than a fully festive one.

Though this isn’t my favorite book by this author, I still recommend it for its heartwarming themes and charming setting. I look forward to exploring more of her backlist and eagerly await her new releases!

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. These are my own thoughts and opinions.

Loved this, really gave the Christmas feels. Would recommend to anyone.

Felt like it was so costly written

An enjoyable Christmas read that didn’t read like so many holiday romance books. I liked the famous five and the community aspect.

I unfortunately really couldn’t get into this. I saw the potential Harriet and James had but I never felt quite invested in their journeys - I felt like they didn’t quite match the age they were supposed to be.

I really enjoyed this Christmas novel, another good one by Jenny Bayliss! It was light on the romance and more about found family, middle age, empty nesters, and self-care. I could relate more to this as I approach middle age than a younger reader, which I appreciate. Main character Harriet was funny-- if she was a real-life person I would want to be friends with her. A few scenes/characters felt a bit cliché, but overall I liked the story.

A sweet winter story! Jenny Bayliss knows how to capture the magic of the holiday season, and I always enjoy reading her books.