This cozy holiday romance is perfect for fans of Love Actually!

If you enjoy the “hates Christmas” trope than this one is for you!

I’ve been a fan of Waters since her historical romance coms and all her strengths show through in this contemporary holiday romance! Hope it’s one of many to come!

This was such a fun and joyful holiday romance! Charlotte and Graham are delightful grumps within their respective families of holiday obsessives and their chemistry together is electric on the page. I found the surrounding cast of characters very funny, and while there were some elements that felt underdeveloped I thought overall this book really hit the perfect balance of nods to Hallmark Christmas movies and something a little deeper. Recommended for anyone who loves holiday rom com movies!

I am such a sucker for British holiday romances. There is something about them that is just cozier than a book set anywhere else. And this book also has a giant, old country estate (I was picturing the house in Downton Abbey) and a handsome, bespectacled Brit (a la Jude Law in The Holiday) who appreciates snarky wit.

I think this was the perfect wintry read. It is Christmas -adjacent but that is not an overwhelming part of the plot. Readers who don’t love an overpowering Christmas book would still enjoy this.

I am so happy I read this!

Hallmark vibes! One bed and forced proximity! Fun easy bingeable read. Not too spicy which was great

This was a great little holiday read about Charlotte who's a Christmas Grinch and she encounters Graham who had a different outlook in the holiday, her life might be able to change in that perspective.

Charlotte once stared in a Christmas film as a child and when word of a reboot comes out and people just ASSUME Charlotte will want to do it (she hasn't acted since), she goes to spend time with her sister in England but gets involved with Graham who owns an estate that was a location for that movie.

I did think the romance was cute and Hallmark-y but what I really enjoyed was the sister relationship. Ava as a new mom was so relatable to me. She was fresh and funny.

This is for you if you like cheesy, cute hallmark movies!!

Grab a cup of hot cocoa and get snuggled into a blanket to read this cute Christmas book. ❤️💚

Add it to your holiday TBR ASAP!

Charlotte hates Christmas. The whole Christmas season.
Sound familiar anyone???? Anyhow, she hates it partially due to her parents and her upbringing but then the other part is because she was a child star in a Christmas movie & her fans won’t let her move on from that. She heads off to London to spend Christmas with her sister & her family. Along the way, she meets Graham. This is where things get interesting IMO. It’s like grumpy x grumpy or in this case, grinch meets grinch. Graham hires Charlotte to paint Christmas movie themed estates & while spending time together, they both sense a spark igniting between them. Graham just MIGHT be the one to change Charlottes mind about hating Christmas. Maybe, just maybe…

I enjoyed Charlotte, though at times I felt like she was a complainer about certain things. Graham was a great MMC & I really liked the sweet banter between him and Charlotte. I disliked the third act breakup, but that is again, just my opinion.
Read this if you enjoy:
One bed
Holiday romance
Forced proximity

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for a copy of this ARC! All opinions are my own.

While I have enjoyed Martha Waters in the past, I think I prefer her historical romances and ones that have a dual POV. This is charming enough for a holiday romance that is riffing on famous Christmas films (Love Actually in particular) but it isn't anything special. Charlotte is a once child star famous for being in a Christmas film and recognized everywhere, so much so that she flees NYC to visit her sister, brother-in-law and niece in London for the holidays. There are fans online upset that she's not a part of a reboot of the film 20 years later. She doesn't care for the holidays but she manages to end up going to plenty of events throughout December with her family. One of those events is at the very house that some of her pivotal scenes from the film were shot, Eden Priory, where she meets Graham. Graham's family owns the place and is trying to keep it afloat (taking a historical romance hero problem and bringing it into the 21st century). Sparks fly between Graham and Charlotte as they work together. Charlotte is an artist doing sketches and water colors of scenic holiday places from films.

The third act break up was just not reasonable. A situation of the heroine getting in her own way. Thankfully she figures it out pretty quickly. I give this points for having a happy for now ending (no engagement or wedding epilogue here). The friends and side characters are all pretty charming. Thank you to Atria and NetGalley for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

As a fan of Martha Waters by way of her witty and sly Regency rom-coms, I was just a slight bit worried that those elements might not translate to 2024 United Kingdom. Fear not, gentle reader – Ms. Waters’ sparkling wit has usefully been leavened by lashings of 21st century humor and snark, without leaving out a particle of the tropes of the genre. Except of course, where she gives ‘em a hearty twist.

Charlotte has long since relegated to the dust heap her childhood brief bloom of fame in a Christmas movie she’s spent two decades trying to forget. If only her more dedicated fans (and in her darkest mutterings, she might be overheard to say ‘rabid' fans) would leave well enough alone. But no, since she declined to participate in the planned reboot of "Christmas, Truly" and the word leaked out, she’s had DM’s from hell cluttering up her feeds and even a pissed off teen confronting her in Central Park.

Enough! She flees New York for an extended visit to her actress sister and family in London, rationalizing that she can do her artwork, which has become her livelihood, anywhere. Just so long as no one drags her into Christmas activities, especially in London, which seems to have become a hub of festivity. Fat chance on that score, especially when she’s dragged along to visit a classic country home for a Christmas lighting ceremony and finds to her horror that she recognizes it from all those years ago as the setting for some of the movie’s scenes.

From there the pace moves briskly along, including a meet-cute with a handsome Brit (with glasses – an extra kick to her kink), who she found stripping off a felt reindeer costume in the very nook she retreated to in order to flee the room with the huge Christmas tree that was giving her those unwanted flashbacks.

There's also her infant niece, whose default mode is pitching a fit and frazzling Charlotte’s sister and brother-in-law, to the requisite/inevitable falling in love with said Brit., misunderstandings, and even....ta da.... a Grand Gesture. Which I have to confess was a bit less than I thought it would be but no less satisfying.

If you are in the mood for something that’s both festive and a palate cleanser for all those ‘cut from the same cloth’ TV holiday movies, Ms. Waters has you covered. Now I want to go back and revisit her Regency Vows books to compare and contrast – but I fully expect that her signature wit will be the throughline. Highly recommended. Advance reader copy provided by Netgalley, which has not influenced this review.

Sassy and festive, I loved the juxtaposition of Graham being the sexy British sunshine to Charlotte's grinchy grump. Honestly, I empathize with Charlotte dealing with complicated family issues that magnify around the holidays. I also wouldn't want to be identified as "that kid in that Christmas movie" for my whole life, I think others were a bit put off by her but I could relate.

Who wouldn't want to get escorted around London by a super cutie pie and be able to do art? There was also some sizzling banter, which I always appreciate.

The little story was flat in places, and I would have loved an Epilogue, but over all its a cute Christmas read perfect for lovers of Grumpy x Sunshine.

While I didn't personally love this one even though I loved the premise. What's not to love about a heroine who hates Christmas and all things Christmas movies. I can't relate at least for Hallmark channel movies. And the England setting was to die for as well as the Graham. But Charlotte the heroine got on my nerves and I never warmed up to her. But most Christmas rom com readers who don't mind annoying heroines will enjoy this one.

An easy breezy, fun holiday read! It’s short, under 300 pages with parts that are laugh out loud funny. I loved the descriptions of baby Alice and the commentary of all the real life craziness and cringe moments that come with being a first time parent (or aunt in out FMC’s case). I so enjoyed the banter between characters, not only the FMC and MMC but also the FMC and her sister. I loved that relationship. The overall theme of gratitude was so heartwarming. I did hate that this one ended so quickly. I wanted an epilogue!

This story was so incredibly fun! The fact that this was about a former child star from a Christmas movie who hates Christmas was the perfect premise. Also her visiting her sister who has a screaming new baby and her in laws staying with her just added so much comedic relief. Then of course the husband British love interest made this a sexy, heart warming story.

This book was actually painful for me to read. I enjoyed the first half of the book, but the back half was seriously so insane. The characters had no chemistry. I didn’t really want them to be together. The plot made no sense to me the whole drama with her being a star and hating the movie all of it just made no sense and really felt overall like a giant mess.

I finally finished my first book post-baby! This ended up being one of my favorite Christmas romances I’ve read. Cheesy without being TOO cheesy, romantic without being TOO romantic, and funny without trying TOO hard to be funny. I really liked Charlotte and Graham and their slow burn romance, and I think Waters did a great job adding a hint of spice without being too gratuitous. A solid holiday-themed book, and I especially loved that it was set in London because I absolutely fell in love with London during Christmastime when I was there last year. 🎄🎅🏼✨

I loved this anti-Christmas Christmas romance. It was amusing, swoony, and fun.

Charlotte Lane is not a fan of Christmas. She is a former child star of a beloved Christmas film and would love nothing more than to escape that notoriety. Graham is the owner of a historic British estate, that happened to be the place that a scene from Charlotte's movie was filmed at. He is struggling to keep the aging mansion afloat. They team up to make the most of the Christmas season, but end up falling in love along the way. But when drama comes up, can they work it out?

This was so cute. It had such iconic Christmassy scenes. Carolers? Christmas markets? Tree lighting? All here. I loved Charlotte's dismay of the cheer of the season. I liked she maintained that core skepticism while learning to appreciate the season. Graham was sweet and totally British. I loved the romance tropes that were featured. I also enjoyed the siblings and their antics, although the baby screaming got a little repetitive. One thing I think this book could have used was an epilogue. These two were signing up for a long distance relationship across the pond. That's a lot. Give me more wrap up!

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the e-book in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to Atria for the copy of this book!

CHRISTMAS IS ALL AROUND was a super cute and quick holiday romance. I loved the inclusion of a holiday movie within the storyline and how it connected our characters and drove the plot. Really unique idea and well done!

This one was charming! I'll admit I was skeptical at first. For some reason Christmas romances just haven't hit me in the feels as much as they used to but this one grew on me. And had me trying to figure out a way I can plan a trip to London at Christmas time.

Charlotte starred in a Christmas movie as a child but really wants nothing to do with it as an adult. Graham owns the home used in the filming of the movie and the two have their own meet cute. Romance ensues around a charming cast of characters in the picturesque London and surround English countryside.

I enjoyed this story and they even poked a little bit of fun at the cheesiness of the holiday season.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is delightful and such a fun Christmas time story! I was surprised given the other books by Martha I’ve read but this was a delight. I liked the characters and the plot was interesting and the seasonal Christmas adventure in England is perfect for my Christmas vibes!

Love, Actually, though at times problematic, is one of my favorite Christmas movies, so the fact that this is based around a reboot of a fake movie called Christmas, Truly is amazing.

I thought this book was well rounded with lots of characters surrounding the two MCs.

The main character was a little annoying. I get you didn’t love your childhood stardom, but you gotta move past it! It also took me too long to feel the connection between the MCs. I wanted more pining and tension cause once it happened it was great!