As always, Debbie Macomber makes me feel good! heartwarming and are really uplifting!! They never fail to put a smile on you face and make you feel really good by the time you finish the book!!

4.5 This is an enjoyable read and perfect for the Christmas season! I absolutely loved the setting on the ferry and around Seattle. I have my own fond vacation memory on a ferry headed to Friday Harbor with an a cappella group serenading the passengers, so this took me right back to those warm feelings.

I felt like the relationships were handled just right. Not too quick, a good get to know you period, and a lot of talking and time together.

Definitely put this one on your list to enjoy this winter!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for the opportunity to read and review this book.

A Ferry Merry Christmas is a fun Hallmark-like novel. Each of the characters has his/her own story. A broken down ferry joins people together who might never have met otherwise. A charming holiday story that shares the joys of Christmas. Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine Books.

Another great book by Debbie macomber. this is a story about people coming together when they need each other. I enjoyed this book

A Ferry Merry Christmas by Debbie Macomber. A wonderful sweet Christmas read to get you into the season. Coming together of strangers to help one another and making life long friends or more on this broken down Ferry during the holidays. Cozy up and start reading! Thank you to #NetGalley and Ballantine for this Arc. This is my honest review. Releases Oct 21,2025

A Ferry Merry Christmas is a tale of several people either on the ferry to Seattle or waiting for the ferry to arrive. It's Christmas Eve and they all have places to be and Christmas celebrations awaiting them. When the unexpected happens we'll see how they deal with challenges and additional stress. This is one of those books where the reader can predict the ending almost from the start. For me, it was okay but not a favorite. Fans of the author and quick Christmas stories might want to check it out.

I love Debbie Macomber's books. This book is about several unexpected meetings of 2 families that comes together in a miracle. Would love to see this book as a series as there were so many stories that could be told from this group. Thank you Debbie for writings such beautiful stories that captures the hearts of your readers. Thank you NetGalley and Ballentine Books for allowing me to read it.

Avery is taking the boat to Seattle to spend the holidays with her brother. This is the first year they will be celebrating the holidays without their Grandma. As she's entering the boat a handsome young man begins to talk to her but she senses he's in the navy and so she shows no interest due to been burnt in the past by a navy ex-boyfriend. The young man Harrison does not give up trying to talk to her. We the readers soon finds out while in the middle of the trip the boat breaks down and all the passengers become irate. What I enjoyed about this story is although Avery and Harrison are the main characters Ms. Macomber introduce us the readers into other storylines of some of the people on the boat. We meet an older woman going to meet her sister whom she have not spoken to in years, the married couple struggling in their relationship for their marriage to last, a man desperate to get to the mainland to get to his pregnant wife. these and other subplots made this book so enjoyable just seeing the lives of all these individuals who just as real life going through their own struggle. Ms. Macomber can do no wrong when it comes to Christmas books and in this she does it again.

I loved this story. It is a sweet, uplifting holiday story of hope, love. forgiveness, second chances and new beginnings. When a ferry is stuck on a trick to Seattle, everyone on board has a reason for being upset about the delay. But when strangers come together to make the most of a hard situation, new beginnings and connections can be formed!
The characters were each different and well developed over the course of the book, the plot was a mixture of varying sub plots of the different passengers, and the ending was just perfect. A must read if you are looking for a light, quick, holiday story to put you in the holiday spirit.
I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I look forward every year for the new Macomber Christmas book. This one did not disappoint! Such a sweet story and always just right for the holiday feels.

Stars: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Scoville Spice Scale: 🫑

Dear Debbie Macomber,

Where have I been all of your career? Obviously, not reading your books and shame on me! A Merry Ferry Christmas had me laughing and crying and craving gingerbread cookies! This book is a must-read for getting into the Christmas Spirit!

"Family. He had a family, a real one, with love and acceptance. He’d been a fool to turn his back on the very thing he most craved."

A Merry Ferry Christmas took inspiration from a real event that happened in the Puget Sound. But the interactions of the characters? Completely fictional and wonderfully crafted like a spiced cup of eggnog but without Uncle Eddie. We follow several different storylines:

Avery, who will be meeting her brother Reed for Christmas and lunch at a seafood restaurant. She desperately does not want to get involved with a military man, and yet Harrison, who is in the Navy, is determined to change her mind.

Meanwhile, Avery's brother Reed happens to meet Harrison's sister, Kellie. Instead of waiting around the terminal, Reed invites Kellie to take Avery's place for lunch. It turns out they work at the same large company and have met once before. Imagine that! Oh, brother and sister couples? Giggle! Sublime. Especially after what Reed and Avery have been through.

Virginia is on a quest to reunite with her twin after a falling out two years ago through the magic of baked goods. Her inner turmoil yet persistence and her generosity to her fellow passengers pays off.

Beth and her young daughter, Olivia who discover that Logan, the husband and father who left 2 years ago, is on the ferry. Observing their story is so poignant.

James is having a baby. Well, his wife is. And now he's stuck on this boat. His wife isn’t. The way this story dances through so many emotions is amazing.

I absolutely thoroughly enjoyed this book. If you want to kick off your holiday season with a wholesome, heartwarming novel, this is it. What are you waiting for! Grab the Rumchuta and some homemade gingerbread cookies and read!

A gentle, feel-good story set during a ferry ride at Christmas brings together wistful people, creating new friendships and healing. The magic of the season inspires change and connection.

Christmas in July is a tradition with the Debbie Macomber holiday release. I was so excited to get an ARC of A Ferry Merry Christmas because I had just finished the last season of Grey's Anatomy and I was not ready to "leave" Seattle. And if I ever do get to this great city one of the first things I'm going to do is ride a ferry! A Ferry Merry Christmas is like an episode of the old TV series The Love Boat. Lots of passengers that are somehow tied to one another and all wanting a happily ever after or, in this case, a happy Christmas. In true Macomber fashion the story takes lots of twists and turns, with some drama thrown in. The storyline is engaging but my favorite part of the story was the descriptions of Seattle at Christmas and the atmosphere of the ferry ride. When I read anything by Debbie Macomber, in my mind I'm there. Even if I've never been there, if that makes sense. I see pictures and movies in my head instead of words. If A Ferry Merry Christmas is ever made into a holiday TV Movie I will get my hot chocolate and popcorn and settle in for the perfect seasonal movie.
I voluntarily received a copy of this book from Netgalley.

Debbie Macomber writes the best sweet Christmas romance books and this one is no exception. I really liked that she told how she got the idea for this book. It made it feel like it was a true story about these people. This was really a love story about 3 couples and a reunion of estranged siblings, but also the whole ferry becoming like a family to one another. It's a really quick feel good book. If you like books that give you hope in humanity and in love and second chances, give this one a read. Even though it's set at Christmas, I feel like it was about so much more and can be read any time of the year.

My mom always read or watched movies that were like this book and i never understood them before because no one can have Christmas's like that so perfect and everything going right. Reading these books about Christmas's that are nothing like the real deal is sad. It was not a bad story by any means just makes you think about wanting to have a life like the one you read about in books. I can say i cried and didnt want it to end. Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for a chance to read this.

A Ferry Merry Christmas by Debbie Macomber is a WONDERFUL Christmas story that I absolutely loved.
No one writes Christmas romance like Debbie Macomber.

The story follows Avery and her brother Reed as they spend their first Christmas without their grandmother.

Avery is stuck in Puget Sound and something wonderful comes of it. She meets someone. This is a cozy, beautiful well written holiday romance.

Such a cozy story I absolutely loved.

I received a free copy of, A Ferry Merry Christmas, by Debbie Macomber, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Siblings Avery and and Reed Bond are close, especially after the loss of their beloved Grandma. This was a cute story, but I knew what was going to happen, so it didnt make it as fun, I like to be surprised.

Book Review: A Ferry Merry Christmas by Debbie Macomber
Thank you to Ballantine Books and NetGalley for my gifted ARC of this delightful holiday novel.

There’s just something about Debbie Macomber and Christmas. I could be sweating through an August heatwave, and the moment I crack open one of her holiday books, it’s instant cocoa vibes. A Ferry Merry Christmas might be the coziest thing I’ve read this year, and that’s saying something considering it starts with a ferry breaking down in the middle of Puget Sound. But leave it to Macomber to take what sounds like a commuter’s nightmare and turn it into a floating miracle packed with family, romance, and more heart than a Hallmark tree farm.

The story centers around Avery and Reed Bond, a pair of close-knit siblings spending their first Christmas without their beloved Grams. Avery’s ferry trip to visit Reed doesn’t go quite as planned when the engine gives out mid-journey, stranding her and a handful of passengers between Bremerton and Seattle. Instead of panic or chaos, what unfolds is a quiet sort of magic: strangers talking, hearts opening, and the kind of slow-burn connections that only happen when everyone’s forced to just… stop.

Now, this isn’t just Avery’s story—and that’s what makes it sing. We also meet Harrison, a Navy sailor who strikes up a warm, charming friendship (maybe more?) with Avery while stuck onboard. Reed, on land and wondering where his sister is, meets Kellie, another stranded sibling on the other side of the delay. There’s Virginia, traveling with a tin of cookies and years of regret, hoping to mend things with her twin sister. James, whose wife is about to give birth without him. And sweet little Olivia, whose Christmas wish is heartbreakingly simple: she just wants her dad back home.

Macomber’s gift is how she weaves all these lives together without making it feel cluttered. Each mini-story stands on its own but also ripples out, touching the others in subtle ways. It’s like watching snowflakes fall and realizing that, somehow, they’re all landing in the same place at just the right time. And while the coincidences might border on convenient, that’s part of the charm. It’s a Christmas story, after all—if there’s no serendipity, what are we even doing here?

One line that lingered with me long after I closed the book: “Maybe the delay wasn’t ruining Christmas—it was rearranging it into something better.” That pretty much sums up the theme: when life goes off-script, magic sneaks in through the side door. There’s something comforting about that idea, especially during the holidays when expectations are high and emotions even higher. This story doesn’t shy away from grief or loneliness, but it never leaves anyone stuck there for long. Healing happens. Connections form. And yes, miracles occur—even if they’re more emotional than literal.

There’s an undeniable Hallmark energy to this one, but in the best way: the kind of feel-good story you want to read in one sitting, wrapped in a blanket, possibly while ignoring your own to-do list. It’s fast-paced without being rushed, sweet without being cloying, and sentimental in a way that earns every tear and smile. And the epilogue? Absolutely charming. If someone doesn’t turn this into a movie, I’ll eat my Christmas stocking.

Debbie Macomber has always been the literary version of a warm hug, and A Ferry Merry Christmas is no exception. It’s filled with the things we all hope to find during the holidays—love, forgiveness, connection, and a dash of perfectly timed serendipity. Whether you’re new to Macomber or a lifelong fan, this one deserves a spot in your holiday reading pile.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5 stars)

As always Debbie Macomber delivers a heartfelt story. I loved this cozy read that had me swooning. I loved how the characters start out as strangers and slowly develop into friends. It's a prefect story to remind us that everyone is going through something and not all everything is as it seems. A must read for my winter TBR.

A Ferry Merry Christmas is a sweet, easy holiday read that left me smiling. The story follows Avery and her brother Reed as they try to spend their first Christmas without their grandmother. Things don’t go as planned when Avery’s ferry gets stuck in Puget Sound, and what could have been a frustrating day turns into something unexpectedly magical. She meets someone new, feels that spark of holiday hope again, and even Reed finds his own surprise connection. I liked how warm and simple the story felt—there’s family love, a little romance, and plenty of Christmas charm without being too over the top. It’s the kind of book you can finish in an evening with some hot chocolate and Christmas lights turned on! Loved this one a lot!