I fully admit to having gone into this book expecting a mindless holiday read. I could not have underestimated it more if I tried. It's whip smart and laugh-out-loud funny, filled with swoony moments, and it's so incredibly meta. A Christmas romcom about a FMC who starred in a Christmas romcom and HATES Christmas romcoms? Yes, please! We get allll the tropes. Grumpy x sunshine, so much banter, an adorable meet-cute, charming support characters, there's ONLY ONE ROOM (alas, two beds). The third act does its thing, but the story moves along at a great pace. Consider me a fan!

This author's regency series has been on my list for years and one of these days it'll make it to the top of my TBR but for now, this was a lovely hallmark esque holiday romance to kick off cozy season!

Charlotte heads to London to visit her sister for the holidays and to avoid the reckless when she answered no to a call for a reunion of a movie she started in as a little girl. Early on in her visit, she meets Graham, who's family happens to owns the house at one of the filming locations of the movie. When the two connect and start spending time visiting locations from other holiday movies in the area as part of a ploy to save his family home, sparks fly right into the ultimate holiday romance.

While I wanted more depth to a few of the sub plots lines and an epilogue to see how they navigate the fact that she technically lives across the pond, I loved watching their friendship grow into more, the English setting, and all the magical holiday tidbits! This was a fun one sitting read and i do want to dive into more from this author!



Thank you Netgalley and Atria Books for the ARC in exchange for my review!

🎄 Christmas is All Around 🎄

An absolute delight, this follows Charlotte, who starred in a timeless holiday film a la Love, Actually as a child but actually hates Christmas as an adult. In an attempt to escape from the NYC holiday cheer, she stays with her sister and family in London for the holidays. Unfortunately, there are many, many holiday festivities planned for her niece’s first Christmas. In an attempt to escape, Charlotte finds herself spending more and more time with Graham, who hired her to do some commissioned art while she’s abroad. While trying to avoid holiday cheer, Charlotte just so happens to find herself living out a holiday romcom.

Cute and packed with hilarious, dry Bristish humor that I could not get enough of, I highly recommend!

I listened to the audio, which narrated the characters and accents fabulously. I highly recommend a listen! Thank you to @atriabooks for the ARC and @simon.audio for the ALC! Christmas is All Around is on shelves October 22, 2024! My opinions are my own.

2⭐️ Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for an advanced copy of Christmas Is All Around.

Charlotte hates Christmas and even more hates Christmas romance. She has to get out of the city so she goes to visit her sister for the holidays. The world seems to hate her because she refuses to do a sequel to a movie she stared in as a child and she goes into hiding. Until she meets Graham. Will she end up having a Christmas romance of her own?

This book was so boring. I was not a fan of the characters or the writing. It just seemed to not really have a full story and it just seemed to not really have a point to the story at all.

4.5 stars! This was a really, really cute Christmas romcom. Charlotte, the FMC, is a Christmas grump who incidentally starred in a Love, Actually-esque Christmas movie when she was a child. (She does not learn the true joy of Christmas by the end and remains a Christmas hater/tolerator.) Graham, the MMC, has a family home that was used in Charlotte’s film that he is trying to save. The book was truly a romcom, and both the romance and the comedy were a hit for me. I think the book would be a good choice for both Christmas lovers and Christmas haters. My only quibbles are with the third act conflict pacing and with the lack of an epilogue, but these were minor.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria for the ARC!

Charlotte starred in a popular Christmas movie as a youngster. (I bet you can figure out which one it was based on if you read the title of this book again.) When she meets a hot English guy who just so happens to live in the house where the movie was filmed, at first she just wants to forget it ever happened (the movie, the meet cute, and all). But Graham is kind and snarky and thinks she's really great, and Charlotte soon realizes that they might have a future beyond Christmas...

Martha Waters really knows how to write a romcom. Her first series was a historical take on the romantic comedy, but her style works at least as well, if not better, in contemporary. I especially liked reading a Christmas romance featuring an FMC who doesn't like Christmas for non-angsty reasons (no, her parents did not get a divorce at Christmastime). I also like the specific elements of Charlotte's job as an artist. This romance works on a lot of levels (sure, it's a cynical take on Christmas joy, but as Waters points out in the book, it hits all the Christmas romcom beats). Definitely worth adding to your holiday lineup.

This objective review is based on a complimentary copy of the novel.

I love Waters’ historical novels so when I heard she was releasing a Holiday Romance I was ecstatic at the opportunity to read her newest book. This cozy read can best be described as Christmas in a cup. Readers follow the main character, Charlotte, who despises all things Christmas even though she is the former child star of a beloved Holiday film that everyone loves. Determined to get away from home she heads off to London to spend the holidays with her sister and ends up meeting a handsome stranger, Graham, who needs her help saving their family business. But what turns into a new acquaintanceship may lead to something more with the spirit of the Holiday season.

What I loved the most of all about this book besides how cozy the reading experience was for me was how self-aware the story is. It made the novel entertaining to read as it pokes fun at the over-the-top cheesiness that comes with the traditions, films, and ugly holiday sweaters mentioned within it. I thoroughly enjoyed Charlotte and Graham’s banter over what can be described in this book as a Hallmark Christmas. They aren’t afraid to poke fun at all of the seasonal tropes as well as the Holiday activities they participate in. They recognize how silly they must look, but also indulge in these things that make this time of year so special which makes the novel very heartwarming.

Even though I’ve read a ton of holiday romances over the years this one was a definite standout for me. It also gave me the vibes of one of my favorite seasonal films, The Holiday. The novel is so much fun and lighthearted overall only becoming serious when the main characters are faced with some harsh truths of overcoming their pasts and tackling grief. I felt that the romance between Charlotte and Graham was authentic and the way their relationship progressed over the holidays was natural. They managed to bring out the fun in each other (especially with Charlotte being the more cynical of the two) while also having open and honest conversations. Their swoon-worthy romance along with the scenic holiday movie locations featured and the ensemble of characters made this novel a joy to read.

I highly recommend picking up Christmas Is All Around for a sweet and humorous holiday read for the festive season!

I want to thank @atriabooks and @netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This is a delightful holiday romance set in London. This book invokes all the great things I imagine Christmas time in London to be. The only catch is Charlotte, the FMC hates all things Christmas. I will admit I couldn’t relate to that aspect of her personality, but the reasons for her dislike of the holidays are well founded.

She starred in a very popular holiday movie as a child and she cannot get away from it. Fans are angry with her because she refuses to sign on to a reboot, which stopped the movie from production. So she leaves the US to escape and visit her sister.

Unexpectedly, her sister plans for them to visit an English manor house only to realize that this was a filming location for her movie Christmas,Truly.

Graham’s family owns the estate and she meets him in an unusual, funny, festive meet-cute which leads to one of my favourite lines from the book, “if I’d known that stripping out of that reindeer suit would have this effect on you, I’d have been more careful not to to inflame your lust.”

I love the witty banter between Graham and Charlotte. She is the black cat to his golden retriever and I love that combination. There are a lot of tongue in cheek nods to romance tropes which added a flair of fun. One of my favourites was “But if they only have one bed, all bets are off. I am not romance novel-ing this sh$t.”

I also enjoyed that this book had a sprinkling of holiday spice that was very nice. This book provides the perfect Christmas escape, and feels like a mini holiday in London. Christmas is All Around comes out on October 22 and I highly recommend it!

A tongue-in-cheek love letter to Hallmark Christmas movies, this book is HILARIOUS!!! I have not laughed so much while reading in a long time. Charlotte is the perfect blend of charming and snark. Graham is delightful. The "supporting characters" are all entertaining, and the self-awareness of some of the absurdity of the situation at the end is pitch perfect. I can't believe I'm giving a rom-com 5 stars, but if you love Hallmark Christmas movies, OR love to make fun of them, this is the Christmas book for you!

"Charlotte hates the holidays. As a former child actress, she starred in a modern classic of a holiday movie, and its fans won’t let her move on. When a piece revealing that her reluctance nixed plans for a reboot, she flees to London to spend the five-week countdown to the holidays with her sister.

But the ghosts of Christmas past follow her there when she ends up at Eden Priory, a filming location for the movie she has never visited. There, after being recognized by a fan while viewing the extraordinary holiday decorations, she’s accidently left behind, forcing her to accept a ride back to London by Graham, the son of the owners. Their family business—and the funds to keep their historic house running—relies on holiday cheer, and Graham knows a visit from a holiday star would bring in more visitors.

Now an illustrator, Charlotte accepts a commission illustrating iconic holiday movie scenes in London and its environs. Graham offers to help escort her, as long as she’ll commit to an art workshop at Eden Priory. But as Charlotte’s chaotic family holiday goes awry, she begins spending more time scouting locations with Graham. Charlotte may not love Christmas, but is it so bad if you’re also falling in love?"

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for the free ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed herein are my own.

Had I read Christmas Is All Around before Katherine Center’s The Rom-Commers, I would’ve deemed it delightful, engaging, hilarious, thematically rich, and original. Waters and Center play with the genre’s conventions in a hyper-conscious way, but Center came first; Waters, a close second. My enjoyment of the two romances? A tie!

Waters hits the right notes to elicit pleasure and thought in the reader, my two romance measuring rods: can I lose myself in the story, delight in the characters, be agape at the plottish shenanigans and think about what it says genre-wise? Yes for Waters, even if The Rom-Commers beat her to it. In this case, though, Waters also takes on that cloying holiday favourite, the Hallmark movie. She pokes at it with a fun-stick, but never puts it or its viewers down: it would be silly, no?, to do that when you WRITE ROMANCE. Way better Christmas romance than Hallmark offers, but still. To get to the details itself, let the blurb do some work:

Charlotte hates the holidays. As a former child actress, she starred in a modern classic of a holiday movie, and its fans won’t let her move on. When a piece revealing that her reluctance nixed plans for a reboot, she flees to London to spend the five-week countdown to the holidays with her sister.

But the ghosts of Christmas past follow her there when she ends up at Eden Priory, a filming location for the movie she has never visited. There, after being recognized by a fan while viewing the extraordinary holiday decorations, she’s accidently left behind, forcing her to accept a ride back to London from Graham, the son of the owners. Their family business—and the funds to keep their historic house running—relies on holiday cheer, and Graham knows a visit from a holiday star would bring in more visitors.

Now an illustrator, Charlotte accepts a commission illustrating iconic holiday movie scenes in London and its environs. Graham offers to help escort her, as long as she’ll commit to an art workshop at Eden Priory. But as Charlotte’s chaotic family holiday goes awry, she begins spending more time scouting locations with Graham. She may not love a Christmas romance…but what if she has one of her own?

This blurb is the queen of moot because it semi-describes the set-up, but leaves much of the deliciousness out. *thrown-up hands emoji* There is much more to Graham and Charlotte than meets the blurb. And much more to the romance.

First and foremost, the wry voice, third-person, my favourite, puts Charlotte in the grumpy Scrooge heroine territory and I loved it. Think The Holiday interspersed with Dickensian and Austen-esque notes. Because behind every crusty Scrooge exterior beats the heart of a Christmas-cheer-love-conquers-all softie. Does the blurb mention how funny Charlotte’s sister is? How hilarious baby Alice? Like aunt, like niece: the grumpiest, scowliest, banshee-aspiring romance baby I’ve ever read. I loved it. The families, Graham’s and Charlotte’s, the friends, London’s holiday ambience and its countryside environs: it was perfection and in many many places, guffaw-inducing. Charlotte, for example, makes a grand declaration describing all the saccharine bits and pieces to the Christmas romance and, in a beautifully adept, but still wry and funny, ironic twist, Waters sees Charlotte’s HEA come about with the same stereotypical conventions. There’s a meet cute at Eden Priory where Charlotte finds a quiet, isolated spot to look serious if not grumpy and sketch when hero Graham, sounding like Mr. Knightley, tries to use said spot to strip out of his reindeer costume. When you’re the owner of a crumbling estate and it’s Christmas and was the sight of a popular Christmas movie, needs must and you gottadowhatyougottado.

And yet…as Graham and Charlotte swan around England’s bucolic countryside, eat in charming pubs, fight Christmas crowds, and fight off a flock of stupidly persistent sheep (hilarious!), they get to know each other. In a romance rarity, Waters is good at showing two protagonists who really like each other. The banter is wonderful: funny, smart, with grumpy Charlotte to emotionally-open Graham. They share a hilarious scene watching a Christmas movie (for Charlotte, research purposes only!). Charlotte is aghast when she notices Graham weeping at the moving bits. One wonderful scene follows another.

Amidst the frivolity, fun, and banter, Waters also shows us Graham and Charlotte getting to know each other in conversations of gravitas. We learn Charlotte’s child-star experience left her self-absorbed parents disappointed she didn’t pursue an acting career, no matter how awful the experience itself was and how successful and fulfilling her present career leaves her. But her parents’ lack of interest and self-centredness, a disappointing past relationship and the bad experience with the childhood Christmas movie left Charlotte with a Scrooge-tude for Christmas and afraid of getting close to someone.

Graham throws a huge ole wrench into her works. Graham is one of the loveliest heroes I’ve read in ages, largely because Waters seems to think that an honourable hero makes for a great one. She’s right. Graham is honourable, committed to his family and legacy, also HANDSOME, hard-working, smart (he went to LSE!), and can weep through a schmaltzy movie. He also shows Charlotte that he’s the man who can love her “for herself alone and not her yellow hair,” famous parents, or childhood fame. She needs this affirmation and he can affirm AND being sexy as heck.

Graham too has a psychic wound. He’s grieving his father and afraid to deviate from what his father wanted for the family legacy, Eden Priory. Graham, as his father did before him, sees himself as the estate’s steward, not lord of the manor. See, honourable. We also witness what a wonderful brother Graham is to his sisters and son to his mother. But he won’t let them think of money-making schemes for the estate he thinks his father wouldn’t endorse. And, like his father, was willing to workaholic himself to an early grave…until he didn’t. Charlotte knows what to say and how to say it to show Graham he’s doing everything he can and can think of ways for the estate to survive for himself and his sisters beyond his father’s vision. All this to say, other than liking each other, Waters is also good at portraying a hero and heroine who know how to support each other.

All this and a romance that is so much fun! Miss Austen would love Waters’s Christmas Is All Around. With her nod, I would say Waters’s Christmas Is All Around possesses “a mind lively and at ease,” Emma.

Martha Waters’s Christmas Is All Around is published by Atria Books and releases tomorrow, October 22nd. I received an e-galley from Atria Books via Netgalley. The above is my honest, AI-free opinion.

A rom com! A rom com where Charlotte makes fun of rom coms! This is a fun read that sees Charlotte, who flees the US to visit her sister in London in order to avoid fans of her one and only movie, fall for Graham the man whose family home was used for one of the settings of said movie. She's built a good life with her art, art which might help Graham and his family keep their home. But first they have to get through Christmas, a holiday she dislikes. This has good London atmospherics in small ways, the characters sing (both literally and figuratively), and honestly, while it has all the trope-y elements (the offstage BFF, the misunderstanding, the meddlesome families) it still feels fresh. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. I really enjoyed this one.

As the holidays approach, I like to get in the mood with many of the holiday books, mostly romances, that show up in the late fall. This year, NetGalley is helping by providing me with advance copies of three. It’s still in the 90s with no hint of “snow” in Houston, so I needed them!
The first one, Christmas is All Around by Martha Waters is the story of Charlotte Lane, and accomplished artist, who happened to have appeared in a beloved Christmas rom com as a child, and as an adult, hates Christmas. So much so that she runs away from NYC, which she loves, to spend the holidays with her understanding sister in London. Unlike past years, her sister has given birth, and now wants to experience everything Christmas with her infant. And by default, Charlotte.
Graham Calloway, a serious young man trying to save his family’s ancestral home by capitalizing on every possible occasion he can think of to get guests pay for tickets to see it. It happens that the estate was the set for the very same film in which Charlotte appeared. When her sister takes her, unknowingly, to the tree lighting at Graham’s family’s house, the scene is set for a lovely rom com with all the elements. It’s a fun book, sure to be beloved by fans of Christmas and rom coms. The book will be released October 22, 2024. Thanks to NetGalley and Atria for the ARC.

This book was such a fun read. It definitely was a cute small town holiday vibe and I was so here for it. The FMC was really witty and smart and definitely an interesting character with her background. The MMC was honestly amazing. I loved his overall vibe. He was hilarious and was fun and an absolute sweetheart. I liked the way the story was layed out in the book almost like a countdown which was cool. Overall if you want a quick and fun and cozy Christmas book to read this one is an amazing option! Thank you so much Netgalley for letting me read this as an arc.

A lot of Christmas touches are the biggest redeeming quality of this book- the story becomes too far fetched the longer it continues.

Charlotte is escaping the fallout of her refusal to reprise a childhood film role in a Christmas movie reboot by visiting her sister in London for the weeks leading up to Christmas when she happens upon a handsome man who just so happens to be dressed as a reindeer and part of the family that owns the amazing country house where she is attending an event. Graham's family is trying to find a way to fund the maintenance on their family estate that capitalizes on the fact that scenes of the very same childhood film Charlotte starred in were filmed there. Though Charlotte hates Christmas, she likes Graham and his family and wants to help them, taking a commission to paint scenes from other famous Christmas movies that they can sell in their estate store, and Graham offers to escort her to some of the more far-flung locations. Gosh, whatever will happen as they spend more time together during the magical holiday season???

Waters does a great job playing with the Christmas romance movie tropes without being over the top or too saccharine. It helps that both protagonists are a little more edgy than is typical of Christmas romances and that they are both aware of said tropes and call them out when they appear. The secondary characters are quirky and fun (as expected of both Waters and good Christmas romances) and add a nice layer of depth to Charlotte in particular. The romance itself feels realistic and builds gradually but so it feels too drawn out or rushed. The third act misunderstanding and argument makes sense and feels authentic for both characters, as does the first resolution. Though the ending tips a bit too far into self-aware schmaltz, it doesn't make the mistake of tying too neat a bow on things. It is nice to see Waters branch into contemporary romance after her delightful historicals!

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read Christmas Is All Around early in exchange for a review.

Harassed by her past as a child star in a holiday movie, Charlotte flees to London—only to entangle herself in a new Christmas adventure. A chance encounter leads to a collaboration with a charming man whose family’s historic home needs a boost of holiday cheer, creating a heartwarming and unexpected romance.

What a fun book! I love the tone and all the wonderful characters. If you like a hint of snark with your heartwarming holiday romance, this book is for you.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

I love Martha Waters’ historical fiction novels, so I knew I needed to read this one, and while I’m not totally in the mood for Christmas right now, I really enjoyed this one.

I always enjoy Waters’ writing style - she keeps me engaged throughout the entire book. The banter is fantastic and the characters are well developed.

Highly recommend for anyone looking for a good Christmas read.

Pub Date: October 22nd, 2024

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

In this funny holiday rom-com, Charlotte, a former child star, can't stand Christmas, mostly because fans of her iconic holiday movie won’t let her leave it behind. When an article reveals that she shut down plans for a reboot, she escapes to London to spend the holidays with her sister.

But things get complicated when she ends up at Eden Priory, a filming location from her movie. After being recognized by a fan and accidentally left behind, she has to hitch a ride with Graham, the son of the estate owners. Their family relies on holiday tourism, and Graham knows that having a holiday star visit would boost business.

Now working as an illustrator, Charlotte takes a commission to illustrate holiday movie scenes around London, with Graham volunteering to help—if she agrees to run an art workshop at Eden Priory. As her family holiday plans fall apart, she spends more time with Graham and starts to realize that maybe Christmas isn’t so bad, especially when you might be falling in love.

Thank You Netgalley and Atria Books

The publisher provided ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

I love a sweet little Christmas romance and this did not disappoint.

Former childhood actress Charlotte visits “the house” where she filmed a Christmas movie. The owner happens to be Graham, her love interest. I had a hard time relating to Charlotte because she is truly anti-Christmas, but Graham thaws her.

Definitely recommend as a Christmas tbr add!

Christmas Is All Around by Martha Waters

Rating: 4.5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Spice: 1/5 🌶️

Thank you to Atria Books, Simon and Schuster, Netgalley, and Martha Waters for access to this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Martha Waters always writes such incredible historical romances so I was thrilled to have the opportunity to read a contemporary romcom of hers. Christmas Is All Around is a modern-day romcom set in England over the holidays that’s full of heart, wit, and cheer!

It centers on Charlotte, a former child star who is now an artist in New York City, who dislikes Christmas. She goes on vacation to England to see her family and while she’s there she reluctantly visits an estate that was a filming location for the movie she starred in. There she meets Graham, whose family owns the house. As they get to talking, Charlotte agrees to illustrate famous holiday movie scenes in England and they embark on a journey together during her time there. The setting, banter between the MCs, and the supporting characters all make this one a wonderful read.

Overall, I really liked this book! The plot is unique, the relationship between Charlotte and Graham felt authentic, and I loved the emphasis on London and the surrounding areas during Christmastime. I highly recommend adding this to your TBR this holiday season!