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You Make It Feel Like Christmas was such a charming and fun read with great holiday vibes. I read the story during a particularly hot day in July, and it was a refreshing palate cleanser. Maisie and Nick were so easy to root for, and I love how their relationship deepened. They had so much chemistry, and I was so curious to see why their one-night stand didn't develop into more. They both have realistic anxieties and baggage, and I like how the author addressed these issues. I also love that Nick worked to earn Maisy's trust. Though I understood his reasons, he had a bit of groveling to do, and he did it well. He makes some beautiful and heartfelt gestures that prove his feelings and worth.

I also really liked how the book handled Nick’s anxiety and Maisie’s strained relationship with her mom. Those elements added more depth than I was expecting from a holiday romance, and I thought both were handled well. The setting was charming without being too over-the-top Hallmark-y, and the sibling dynamics brought some nice warmth and humor into the story. The pacing worked for me—the third-person POV gave enough insight into both characters without slowing things down. Overall, it struck a great balance between festive, heartfelt, and fun. Definitely one I’d revisit during the holidays and recommend to other contemporary romance readers!

Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for providing me with a copy of the book. All thoughts are my own.

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I was afraid this book was going to have a lot more miscommunication in it based on the summary but I was pleasantly surprised that the FMC and MMC were actual adults and cleared up their miscommunication very early on. I liked how the main characters knew that there was something between them and didn't wait until 90% of the book for them to get together--especially since it's a second chance romance.

You'll like this book if you like:
- second chance
- mental health rep
- grumpy x sunshine
- forced proximity

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Griffin for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

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Sophie Sullivan is magic at creating heart filling stories. I am so happy to be able to read Maisie's story and and her second chance with Nick King, hockey star with a heart.
Maisie and Nick both realize they have something special early on and while their initial meet ended abruptly, Maisie was able to accept the reasons with understanding. Sophie touches on more difficult topics like mental health and anxiety with grace, saying the things we all wish we could.
It was great to get another glimpse at Lexi, Maisie's best friend, I think I need to reread her story next. The whole cast of supporting characters really built the story well.
Although this is sweet at Christmas time, it really could be read and enjoyed at any time.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

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This was my first time reading anything buy this author. I really enjoyed this story. I thought it was a fun and cute holiday story that hit all the right notes for a Christmas story and romance. I also enjoyed the premise of mixing and blending multiple families. I feel that far too often we forget how as families merge and grow they may not spend as much time together. So, I loved the idea of each of the families meeting at the Christmas Tree farm to celebrate Christmas together. I also loved that the meeting of families happened because of a chosen family situation. Maisie's older brother is marrying Nick's chosen brother, thus creating a blended family. But we add in the fun complication of Maisie and Nick having met before. And in their prior meeting fireworks exploded but due to unforeseen circumstances they hadn't seen each other since. And it was shock to them both seeing each other again.
Maisie often felt like the black sheep of her family being more artistic than studious. She chose to become a photographer and celebrate her artistic side. Nick is the hockey player with a heart of gold and is secretly a bit of a marshmallow. These two were able to understand each other in ways that their family and friends never could. Or rather they had never allowed them to. But first Maisie had to get over the hurt of Nick running out after their first electrifying meeting. And where better than the Nick's sister's tree farm.
As we navigate their story, we get to see why Maisie always felt a bit out of step with her family. Her mom and dad both continued to harp at her for not living up to her potential. But they never really stopped to ask her why she chose the path she did. I loved that Maisie continued to stand up for herself and stopped always letting the negative critiques from her mother keep her from achieving her successes. I felt that the author handled Maisie's wish to be loved and respected by her mom well. As did she with Maisie standing up for herself. It never felt as though Maisie was trying to push her mom away or be mean, but simply wanted to be understood and if she couldn't be understood then she wanted to find peace in knowing what she was doing made her happy.
As for Nick's side of things, I felt that the author handled his mental health issues as well as his injury quite well. I feel like in sports romances all of the characters are macho and rarely ever truly experience a lot of doubt. But here we met Nick after an injury and he's struggling with the fact that it's taking longer to recover as well as him wondering if he'll ever be good enough to play again like he did in his prime. Nick is also older and is still trying to figure out why his body isn't doing what it used to do when it was younger. You add all of this on top of some family stuff, Nick ends up with a panic attack and no one in the beginning able to help him. We far too often see men, especially athletes, unable or unwilling to discuss their feelings or how it feels to have their body changing and perhaps preventing them from doing the thing they loved and made them money. The author explores this will dignity and grace. Never once making Nick's character out to be solely defined by his career or his current struggles. She allows room for Nick to breath as he works through what he wants.
The other thing that was done well was exploring Maisie's own insecurities when it came to her relationship with Nick. She never wanted to be with Nick because he a professional hockey player, in fact, Maisie would have probably preferred he wasn't. Being a professional hockey player meant Nick would be traveling and not really there for Maisie. She grew up with. Her mom often not available because she was a college professor and her job took precedence. And again with her father, a surgeon, who was often on call and not available for the big moments in the family. Maisie wondered if she could live like that again. One of the nice things that the author did with Maisie was allowing Maisie to feel what she needed to feel and not force her to brush aside her worries. Or force Nick to chose Maisie. Both characters were allowed the space to come to their own choices and then see if the aligned. No ultimatums or massive blow ups forcing a decision that one or both of them unhappy with.

I think my only criticism of this book would be that there was less romance than I would have liked. I really wish we could have gotten to see the original meeting between Nick and Maisie versus the characters telling us about it. At times the romance felt a bit rushed. I lied, I do have one more critique, I do wish we had gotten to see more of Maisie and Lexie's friendship. I would have loved scenes between the two discussing what happened and seeing more of a support system for Maisie.

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It was cute and the first half showed potential. But it felt like two disjointed halves and I started getting bored. It’s not a book that I will remember long term. 2.5 stars.

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The perfect read for Christmas in July. Exactly what I needed. I appreciate the opportunity to read it early! Thank you.

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This book made me happy. Nick and Maisie were wonderful. I loved how they were open and honest about their feelings and there weren’t miscommunication issues. I just thoroughly enjoyed this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press | St. Martin's Griffin for this book. ~I was given this book and made no commitments to leave my opinions, favorable or otherwise~

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I have only recently started getting into hockey romances and this is the perfect cozy read this holiday season. A small town, second chance romance with a love story you are invested in from the very beginning, its the perfect book for romance readers this fall!

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Before I get into the review, a quick thank you to NetGalley and the publishers over at St. Martin's Griffin for allowing me access to this ARC in exchange for an honest review. You Make It Feel like Christmas is a second chance romance between a photographer and a hockey player who had a one night stand at their mutual friend's wedding six months ago, but have never spoken since. Now, they're both staying at this Christmas tree farm for the holidays and find that they still feel that spark. With Nick's current stint on Injured Reserve and Maisie's family pressure, will all this tension make them bend or break? You Make It Feel like Christmas comes out on September 23rd and is available for preorder now.

A holiday hockey romance? I had to read it. I absolutely had to. There were no other options for me. And what's so insane to me is that for the first maybe 10-20% of the novel it was feeling like a 5 star read. I was having such an amazing time going to the Christmas tree farm, meeting everyone's family members, getting to see some tension from our two main characters. But there were two factors that really threw that off for me. 1) The tension, the yearning, the will they/won't they of it all was so short lived. One of my favorite tropes is enemies to lovers so I live and die by the pining. A second chance can be a good one for me if they're apart long enough to really build that up in the novel. But in this one they reunite so fast. It makes sense given the pace of the story...that just leads to the other issue. 2) The Christmas part of this story is only about 100 pages of the novel. So, a third of the book. This is sold so hard as a Christmas romance and it's only about a third of the novel? It IS super Christmassy during that part of the novel, but it's just not enough for me. Most of the novel DOES take place during December but it's like Christmas ends and it is dumping the reader back into the real world immediately. I don't love that.

What I did love was the holiday portion of the novel. I mean, all of that portion of the novel felt like a 4 to 5 star read for me. I also really did enjoy seeing how this professional athlete had to fight against this new reality of getting panic attacks and having to figure out what the future holds for his career following this injury. I'm a big hockey person so I would never sell this as a hockey romance, but what we did get was done well so I do appreciate that from this author. It was hard at the end for me to feel much sympathy for our main female character. They, briefly, have to be long distance so he can figure some stuff out back in California where his team plays and she does a lot of the things that can kill a long-distance relationship. I was in a long-distance relationship for almost a year and a half which had me cringing at the traps she was falling into that was hurting her relationship. It makes sense given their past as a couple, but it was still not great.

Overall, I think this can be a great read for someone who wants a Christmas romance with another storyline to follow underneath it all. Or it would be a good test for someone who wants to try out a hockey romance but doesn't have much hockey knowledge. It was a fun and quick read and I would definitely pick up more books from this author.

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I enjoyed this book a lot, however the Christmas theme kind of phases out half way through the book. If you enjoy hockey, 2nd chance romances and forced proximity-this is for you!

This is told in 3rd person and alternates between main characters. It takes place in a small town where Masie and Nick have a one night stand and then No k ghosts Masie. When Masie ends up staying at Nicks sisters house, Nick realizes he still may have feelings for her. It’s a heartwarming slow burn between hockey player and photographer.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

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I was so excited to read this book because Christmas and hockey are two of my favorite things. I love reading Christmas romances and I love reading hockey romances so I was expecting a cute little hockey romance. This was honestly a really big struggle to get through despite being two of my favorite things.

Maisie and Nick previously spent a night together, but Nick didn't pursue it further and Maisie was left hurt and anxious after their encounter. When they both wind up spending Christmas on his sister's Christmas tree farm, they have to face each other again and Nick decides he's going to win her back over. Despite the very cute setting of an actual Christmas tree farm (!!!), there weren't really any cozy vibes in this book and it didn't really feel like a Christmas book. The book probably would have worked a bit better set in any other time, but I still really didn't get much chemistry for the characters or care for it beyond that either. Their relationship felt a bit rushed and I just didn't really feel like they actually had much chemistry.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC!

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Every book by Sophie Sullivan makes my heart SO HAPPY! This was SO SWEET! It was soft snd sweet and full of so much family and found family and loooooooove! I LOVE how vast the Sophie Sullivan universe is!!! We got so many cameos and mentions of past characters and it was SO FUN!! And all the new characters!! Ellie and Asher! I LOVED seeing Nick and Asher do all the cute uncle/nephew things!! I hope this means Ellie’s going to get her own HEA! I’d love to see them again!!

Everything about Maisie and Nick was perfect. From how they met to their instant connection and their one night together! Even just seeing their first meeting in little flashes was absolutely delicious!! To them meeting again and then both still feeling all the things but Maisie freezing Nick out cause she was scared!! And they were SO SWEET! They were both scared of a lot of things but so unwilling to give the other up??

It also touched on familial expectations and how hard those expectations can weigh on someone. How Maisie’s learning disability was written felt so real and heartbreakingly true for so many people. I really really appreciated that she made her mom realize that how she was pushed when she was younger really made things SO much harder. And that she has been able to find accommodations that work for her. There was really good mental health rep. Nick’s anxiety and panic attacks were written with so much care. And the way Nick dealt with his anxiety and then the way Maisie helped him realize that he’s not alone. It was all done so well.

I am forever a Sophie Sullivan fan!!! I already cannot wait to read the next book in her other series!!!

Thank you so much to SMP for the arc exchange for an honest review!!

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Well, this book definitely had all the coziness and warmth of Christmas time! Maisie Smart is a photographer trying to figure out what success means to her. For the holidays, she journeys to Merry, Washington, a town straight out of a Hallmark movie, to stay with her family at Tickle Tree Farms. There she runs in to her one night stand she hasn’t been able to get out of her mind, Nicholas King, brother to Ellie, the owner of the tree farm, and a professional hockey player. A series of events with their families brings the two of them together, and as the Christmas holiday grows closer, so do Maisie and Nick. Is love waiting for them under the Christmas tree?

I love Sophie Sullivan’s books! I find that they are the perfect hallmark-type pick me ups for when I want a cute, wholesome read. When I found out that she was writing a Christmas novel, I knew I had to get my hands on it. I was not disappointed!

As with all Sophie’s books, I really love the characters she crafts. They always feel so real to me, like I’m reading a story about a personal friend. I also appreciated the growth of the characters throughout the story, particularly Maisie. It was so refreshing to see her learn to advocate for herself with her parents and see how supportive her siblings were of her life choices.

The love story between Nick and Maisie was also super cute! The forced proximity of the tree farm really helped the mutual pining leap off the page. And the cameos from Lexi and Will (from Can’t Help Falling in Love) were fun!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Griffin for the ARC!

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A hockey star, a one-night stand, and a Christmas tree farm—what could go wrong? In this charming winter romance, sparks fly and hearts tangle in the most unexpected ways. The story is warm, romantic, and effortlessly readable, like a favorite holiday sweater you never want to take off.

“He wanted Maisie. When he kissed her, he forgot about everything else…”


Thank you to Netgalley and St Martins Press for the arc!

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This was a sweet little holiday story; working through things as Maisie and Nick try to go from a one night stand to maybe something more? It's hard tellin' what will happen when you randomly have to spend Christmas together.

This was cute. It'll be a good read around Christmastime. Some hockey sprinkled in with the rom-com. Loved the acknowledgment of mental health issues in men's sports as well!

Publication Date : September 23, 2025

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin's Griffin for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

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I received this book free of charge from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Who knew that hockey RomComs are a thing? I do now..

Masie is a photographer who has a one night stand at a wedding with Nick. Unbeknownst to her, Nick is a pro hockey player. They have an amazing night and never see each other again.... until... They meet again at a Christmas tree farm that her family was invited to for Christmas. Nick's sister owns it. They try to deny their feeling for each other. There are a lot of family dynamics at play in this book. Masie's siblings are all very accomplished and their parents don't think that Masie is living up to her potential.

In many ways, this was a typical romcom. Nothing too deep but still a good and entertaining story. It was a fun read.

A solid 3/5 stars

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I loved it!

I cried and laughed and was hopeful and, in the end, happy!

Oh Maisie and Nick...how I love you both!

A one night stand turned into a forever love! Nick and Maisie went through it but it was all worth it in the end. I'll have more of them please. At any time.

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This was the first book I have read by Sophie Sullivan. I can honestly say I loved it. It was sweet and romantic. I had tears in my eyes at the ending. I loved Asher, I thought he was adorable. I'm grateful that netgalley and the publishers let me read this in exchange for an honest review.

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Christmas is the time for miracles, and it will take one of those to get Maisie and Nick together. Again, kind of.

After a one night stand six months ago, neither of them can stop thinking about it. Maisie in anger and Nick is just messed up.

When they meet again at a Christmas Tree Farm, things get fun!

Always a fun ride!

Netgalley/ St. Martin’s Press September 23,2025

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I loved this book so much. Def gets you in the Winter/Christmas mood but also has you really wanting the main characters to have that happy love story during the holidays. I’m usually not a fan of books that include sports but I loved this one!!

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