When it comes to Christmas books, I don't expect much. Typically, they mostly follow the same, predictable pattern. So when a story comes along that surprises me, it's the best holiday gift I could ask for!!

Hallelujah!!! 🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻

This is the story of Charlotte - a disgruntled child star who stared in an uber popular Christmas movie (think Love, Actually) - and is tired of the attention it still draws to her. She wants to be known for her art, not her one-time claim to fame. When she refuses to do a follow-up movie, the internet trolls come after her, and she escapes to London for the holidays. Enter meet-cute with Graham, whose family owns the property where said movie was filmed.

What I loved about this book:

🎄 Not your typical holiday tropes
👯‍♂️ Great supporting characters
🌶️ Chemistry & spice
🍭 Sweet but not sticky
👩‍❤️‍👨 Witty, good banter
🏃🏻‍♀️Good pacing

If you're looking for a holiday romcom that gives you something different than what you could get from a Hallmark movie, this is a great choice!

Christmas is All Around will be my favorite holiday romance of 2024!

This festive love story centers around the heart. Charlotte and Graham struggle with family issues, as each feels like they haven't lived-up to family expectations. Charlotte is the resident Christmas Scrooge, and starred in a block buster holiday movie in her youth. The haunts of her time on screen are a constant in her adult life. To escape the drama of her notoriety, she escapes to England to visit her sister.

Graham owns the family home used in the filming of Charlotte's movie. He's determined to save his families legacy and establish it back to its glory. A chance meeting in a reindeer costume has them partnered together to visit Christmas movie locations throughout the countryside.

The witty banter, their chemistry and comedy made this an absolute delight. This book will light-up the holidays!!!

Thank you, Atria Books

Martha Waters has written a wonderful Christmas Rom-Com. This is a Hallmark movie in print form. It hits all the holiday rom-com requirements. City girl, check. Grumpy golden retriever hero, check. Family needs to be rescued from financial trouble, check. A cast of hilarious supporting character, check. Meet Cute moment, check.
What I love the most is the slow burn romance between the child actor turned artist and the great great grandson of a famous artist. They have amazing lovable chemistry. I loved the dialogue between these two, typical of all Waters novels.

As a fan of the Martha Waters' Regency Vows series, I was excited to get my hands on a copy of her new holiday rom com. Full of holiday hijinks and the author's trademark humor, <i>Christmas is All Around</i> tells the story of Charlie, a Christmas-hating ex-child-actress who falls in love, during the Christmas season, with a man who stands to profit from the former career she now reviles.

This book has lots of great stuff: London holiday magic, sisterly affection, and a bespectacled British love interest. Unfortunately, it also has Charlie, its extremely grinchy main character. I love a good grumpy-sunshine plot, but Charlie's grumpiness is so broad (in addition to Christmas, she dislikes romantic movies and babies, and resents most of her family and friends) that it makes her difficult to connect with, particularly in the story's first half. Still, I enjoyed the read and appreciated Charlie's character development and eventual (partial) thaw.

3.5 Star Review for Christmas Is All Around by Martha Waters

Christmas Is All Around had me hooked from the start with its witty banter, delightful characters, and refreshing take on holiday romcoms. Charlotte, the sharp-tongued, big-city heroine, stays true to herself and her career while navigating a quintessentially English holiday romance with Graham, the bespectacled, emotionally-repressed hero. The playful commentary on hallmark-style Christmas clichés had me laughing out loud, especially when Charlotte declares, “Because Christmas romances are bad. The meet-cutes under implausible circumstances! The elaborate festive tasks that require the protagonists to join forces and discover the joy of Christmas! The quirky, borderline contrived Christmas rituals! The meddling supporting characters! The third-act fights! The sudden, improbable snowfalls! Kissing in front of Christmas trees! It is all terrible.”

The supporting cast is quirky and fun, and the English countryside setting is a picturesque backdrop for this festive romance. Plus, the inclusion of a “demonic baby” adds a humorous and unexpected twist that I wasn’t prepared for, but thoroughly enjoyed.

However, while the novel sparkled for most of its length, I was left disappointed by the lack of an epilogue. I wanted all those cozy, feel-good holiday loose ends to be tied up in a nice Christmas bow, but instead, I was left wondering: What happened with Charlotte’s wallpaper line? Did Graham (and the rest of his family) ever get therapy for their “daddy issues”? Did Graham ever propose and was it in their nook? Did they consciously decide not to have children (love that for them either way). And most importantly, where did Charlotte and Graham end up—New York, London, or both? These unanswered questions left the ending feeling a bit incomplete, and I really needed that epilogue to feel fully satisfied.

That being said, Christmas Is All Around still delivers on the charm, humor, and festive romance you’d expect. It’s just that without that final wrap-up, it fell short of the four-star read it could have been.

Favorite quotes:
“She’d turned twenty-nine this past summer, and was convinced that it had destroyed her ability to sleep properly on a plane, like some sort of horrifying aging switch had been turned on in her body’s wiring.”

“Kit shook his head. ‘I think you just need to meet a handsome man from a small village whose family livelihood is tied to the festive season and who teaches you to view the holidays through new eyes,’ he said solemnly. ‘You’ll be discovering the joy of Christmas in no time!’”

“‘Because it’s a requirement for emotionally repressed English boys who live in countryside manors to find a career that cannot possibly bring them any joy or passion, all so that a nice boy or girl can come along to teach them how to feel,’ Charlotte said without missing a beat. ‘I think I’ve read that one,’ Graham said, and Charlotte couldn’t help smiling.”

*This ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was so charming! I've been in a reading slump from school, but was lucky enough to receive an ARC of this so I wanted to get it done before it's release on Tuesday!

This is a cute little Christmas story that also works if you're not really a fan of Christmas! I don't often enjoy holiday reads, but this one (with a Grinchy FEMALE main character) intrigued me. I enjoyed Charlotte's Christmas hatred so much, as someone who used to hate Christmas myself and have now come to absolutely adore it. The banter in this one was off the charts and I was laughing and kicking my feet for the greater part of the story. This is, quite simply, just a happy little holiday book, perfect if you're looking for some cozy winter cheer.

I will say I've never been a huge fan of Waters' writing style. Sometimes it just feels a little choppy and repetitive to me (Truly, I lost count of the number of times characters said or muttered something "darkly" in this novel). So it took a little bit of time for me to get into it and get past that, but I was able to in the end because the story was just fun!

Definitely add this to your happy Christmas tbr!

Basically a Hallmark move in a book. A cute, lighthearted holiday romcom. I do love a self-aware romcom that calls out typical tropes, and this one does that.

The book follows grumpy FMC Charlotte, who has an aversion to Christmas after being in a Christmas movie as a child. She flees to London for Christmas and meets Graham, who actually owns the English manor featured in her movie.

Charlotte was grumpy but not to an overly annoying extent, and so strong willed. She was a bit extra, always worrying about being identified as a child actress, but given she fled to London to avoid the controversy regarding her holiday movie, it was understandable. She was a bit harsh to her infant niece and honestly the niece could have been referenced less. BUT there was copious witty banter between her and Graham, which I loved. And good sisterly and best friend content.

⭐️⭐️⭐️
Pub Date: 10/22/24

Thank you Atria and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Charlotte meets Graham when she is in the UK for Christmas. A great festive read, and a great setting.

If you love Hallmark Christmas movies like I do, you will love Christmas is All Around by Martha Waters. The entire book is an absolutely sweet holiday movie script, with the addition of actual holiday movie references sprinkled throughout. The romance is charming, the characters adorable, and the situations are frequently laugh-out-loud funny. The best part is that all the while, the book kind of pokes fun at typical holiday romance tropes!

I especially like when a book makes me want to travel to the location it is set in, and while London at Christmas may be a bit more populated than I prefer, the setting of Christmas Is All Around made me envious of a holiday in an old English mansion.

Thank you to Netgalley and Atria Books for the digital ARC of Christmas is All Around by Martha Waters. The opinions in this review are my own.

Christmas Is All Around is a holiday romance, the main character Charlotte is a Christmas hater. She was previously a child star in a Christmas film and has spent all her life trying to separate herself from being associated with the film. She is now an artist. She comes from parents who are in the entertainment business, as well as a sister that is quite popular performing in plays. Charlotte lives in NY by herself, but travels to London for the holidays to be with her sister and her family. While there they visit the family home of Graham, which just so happens to be the location her former holiday film was filmed at. Graham’s family home is on the verge of being lost, as money to fix the home is hard to come by. Charlotte and Graham end up making a business deal selling her art as a way to make money, but their meeting and connection might not be what Charlotte thought it was. Charlotte spends a lot of the book coming to terms with the fact that the Christmas film will always be in the background of her life, and that the way she has been towards her family and any romantic relationships may have been a flaw on her part. This was a cute holiday romance for sure and I enjoyed the banter and sarcasm that Charlotte used throughout the book.

This book was a sweet holiday romance but I couldn’t really connect with the characters, and it was just missing something for me.

⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️

Read if you love:
-single POV
-friends to lovers
-Christmas romance

For a book that is about a character that hates Christmas and Christmas movies, this is the warmest, coziest, most festive Christmas book I have ever read. I loved every moment of Christmas is All Around. I enjoyed the veiled references to both real and fictional Christmas movies and the continual commentary on them. Both Charlotte and Graham are kind and delightful characters and their witty banter and sarcasm only serve to make them and the story more enjoyable.

This Christmas books of this season are just so good, I’ve loved every one I’ve come across and read so far! All so different yet all have the perfect Hallmark Christmas movie feel. Honestly Christmas books are the best part of the October-December release season!

Charlotte is the perfect grinch hating Christmas and all things related to the holiday when she’s stuck doing all these activities with her sister and her in-laws. Charlotte is the star of an older Christmas movie and is recently getting a lot of backlash as a result of new articles. She escapes to London and at the scene of where her movie was set, meets Graham who loves Christmas and enjoys all the small things about it!

Charlotte and Graham work together on a business venture and as a result, they go on adventuring to other Christmas movie sites and overtime fall in love with each other. They have a slow burn, it’s a melting, two friends falling in love over a short period of time that will have you grasping for more until you finish the book!

Thank you Atria Books for my #gifted copy and thank you Simon Audio for my #gifted listening copy of Christmas Is All Around! #AtriaPartner #atriabooks #ChristmasIsAllAround #MarthaWaters

𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐦𝐚𝐬 𝐈𝐬 𝐀𝐥𝐥 𝐀𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝
𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫: 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐡𝐚 𝐖𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬
𝐍𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫: 𝐍𝐢𝐤𝐤𝐢 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐝
𝐏𝐮𝐛 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: 𝐎𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟐, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒

Christmas All Around was a cute holiday book by Martha Waters. I really enjoyed the characters and how Charlotte, the FMC, was somewhat grumpy and loathed the holiday season. I loved how Graham entered the picture and felt like the plot was just so perfect. The side characters also worked so well in this book, and found them to be so quirky. Overall, I thought this was such a cute, fun, and heartwarming read. There were some humorous moments and also some really tender moments too. I highly recommend this one this holiday season!

🎄Forced Proximity
🎄Former Childhood Actress
🎄Hallmark Movie References
🎄Set In London
🎄Amazing Banter
🎄Single POV
🎄Heartwarming

🎧I listened to the audiobook, which was narrated by the talented Nikki Massoud. Massoud did an excellent job bringing this book to life and I felt like she really did an excellent job with this audiobook. I would highly recommend reading this one with your ears if that option is available to you.

Posted on Goodreads on October 17, 2024: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144922955?ref=nav_profile_l
**Posted on Instagram - Full Review- on or around October 18, 2024: http://www.instagram.com/nobookmark_noproblem
**Posted on Amazon on October 22, 2024
**-will post on designated date

Charlotte decides to extend her annual trip to visit her sister's family in London when her childhood stardom once again rears it's head and bites her in the bum. Her refusal to reprise her role has angered the masses. She simply wants to be taken seriously for her art and jumps at the opportunity to create a new series for Graham's ancestral home, Eden Priory, after a not-so-sweet meeting.
I love the humor that Martha exhibits in her historicals and so I was surprised that it didn't come across as much in this contemporary Christmas novel. It read much heavier than I expected. That said, I really liked the supporting cast and the setting was picturesque. The whole concept of a failing. financially burdensome manor as the catalyst for a meet-disaster was lovely.
Thank you to Atria and Netgalley for the advanced copy. All thoughts are my own.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read the ARC of Christmas is All Around.

What a happy, heartwarming story this was! I was hooked from page one and felt every twist and turn through the story like it was my own. I will be recommending this to all my reader friends this holiday season!

4.25 stars

A Christmas romance for the Christmas haters (but also for the Christmas lovers). This was a really fun, festive, holiday romance that poked fun at the Hallmark Christmas movie world while also embracing its cheesiness and joy. Charlotte and Graham were both well-written characters who had some things to work through - Charlotte's issues with Christmas and her former child stardom, and Graham with trying to save his family's historic home. I thought these characters worked really well together and I loved their chemistry. All their little adventures were quirky while still allowing for really great character development for them both.
Both of their families were also a lot of fun and I enjoyed all their holiday traditions as well as their meddling. One of my favorite things, though, might be that they never forced Charlotte to start liking Christmas, they just let her enjoy spending time with them in her own way. I thought it was nice that despite being a significant character trait, it wasn't something that needed to be "fixed".
Overall I really enjoyed this book. It's got all the holiday fun and romance you would want while also giving you well developed characters and realistic issues.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria for the ARC!

The best part about this book for me was how self-aware it was. It lovingly made fun of all the holiday romance tropes even as it followed nearly every single one. At the same time, it had an emotional sincerity and depth between the two love interests that really allowed me to connect with them as a reader, and I appreciated that. Also there were a few Easter egg references to Waters's Regency romance series and I very much enjoyed that, and all the British-ness in general. A fun read, all around!

Thank you to NetGalley, Atria Books & Martha Waters for the chance to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

If you are anti-Christmas Rom Com, you will like this Christmas Rom Com. It pokes fun at so many of the troublesome tropes yet revels in them as well! Martha Waters' banter was present in all of its glory, the side characters gave the story dimension and Holiday vibes made me want to have some mulled wine and try a mince pie. (Where can I get one in the states?)

I caught at least one nod to the Regency Vows series.. perhaps I missed more? Which one(s) did you find?

This book made me realise that normal people don’t learn the plot of movies they’ve never seen, that’s not normal behaviour, that’s just me afraid to be weird in case someone is discussing that film and I need to pretend I’ve seen it, but that’s not the point of the book, only my weird epiphany.
Charlotte hates Christmas, and as someone with a rocky relationship with festivities I thought I could relate, but her hate, while with some good reasons behind, felt often childish. She’s spending time with her sister and her family and acting like every moment of it is a chore. Do we really need a constant reminder that her 6 months old niece is crying? I’ll say to give her some slack, since she’s 6 months and hardly ruining her life, or her Christmas.
For more than half of the book the romance between Charlotte and Graham felt more like a cordial work relationship, until the moment they randomly start kissing.
The book was filled with repetitions, every conversation had to be repeated twice before the characters actually memorised the information shared, couldn’t tell if it was editing problem or writing style choices.
The conflict and resolution was at the same time rushed and drawn out too much.
It wasn’t an awful book, just one that didn’t really feel like something that’ll stick with me.