ARC Review

Ghost of Ex-mas Past by J.E Reid

Release Date: November 3, 2026

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

🎄 Fake Dating
👻 Ghosts of her Ex's
🎄 Christmas Romance
👻 Grumpy/Sunshine
🎄 One Bed

The start of this book was fabulous and the first line got me. "If Mary could break up with a guy, she could break up with her piece of $#it father." He was always calling begging for money after her company took off and she was super successful. He had already ruined her, her mom and sister's life so all she could do was constantly block his number. Her and her younger sister Evie made a pact - no man would ruin there lives. Mary was at her company's party and decided to quickly ski and do a few runs to meet clients and she gets in an accident and wake up above her body in a hospital. Her dad visits her and when he leaves he says, "Your first visitor comes at one o'clock, then each hour until three." 👻

"If we visited a thousand different Christmases and a thousand possible futures, I'd love you in every one."

"I am more than my mistakes or successes."
"We are not our parents, we are not our pasts, we are not our fears."

This author is from Montreal, Canada and this is her debut novel. I absolutely love reading books by Canadian authors and this book did not disappoint. I don't even know how to describe in words how much I loved this book and how much it made me think and re evaluate my life. This book was not a fluffy, happy go lucky fairytale. This book had depth and made you really think. The characters were well developed and I felt encapsulated by Mary's world. I read this book in one sitting. I spent an entire Sunday with my head in this book and could not get enough. This love story was not the one I was expecting and it was beautiful, messy and brilliant. This book taught me that you can learn from your bad decisions and there's always lessons to take away. This book speaks profoundly on forgiveness and how you can't move on with your life without forgiving yourself and others. The Ghost of Ex-Mas Past book focuses on Mary finding her self worth and realizing for once that she is deserving of love and the life that she so desperately wants. She comes off as cold and uncaring and too much of a workaholic for relationships but deep down she is loving and kind. This wasn't the Christmas book I was expecting to read but it was so much more than that and I absolutely loved it. It really made me think and the ending was beautiful. I really appreciated how the author used a million adorable nick names for her cat. Everyone who owns a pet knows you don't call it by it's actual name. This book was definitely a 5 star read!

This was very cute! It’s a fun and spicy Christmas Carol modern retelling!

Mary has commitment issues and a knack for picking bad boyfriends. She makes a pact with her sister that they’ll never let a man change them, but that changes one Christmas. Years later Mary gets hurt on a ski retreat and wakes up floating above her body with all of her ex boyfriends there.

I loved seeing Mary interact with the different Exs and their different dynamics. I think this a very sweet Christmas romance about forgiving yourself and those around you. I definitely recommend this if you’re a fan of Good Spirits by B.K. Borison!

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Victory Editing, and the author for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

5/5 stars!

Ghosts of Ex-Mas Past was such a warm, messy, and heartfelt holiday romance. What stood out to me most was how raw and complicated the relationships felt. I genuinely loved every character introduced, and I especially appreciated how each relationship revealed something different about the main character and the person she was becoming.

The main character, Mary, has a complicated past that she is able to look back on with a surprising amount of insight. I loved seeing her recognize the ways that past experiences shaped her tendency toward self-sabotage, and watching that awareness develop throughout the story. Each of her past relationships felt distinct, and seeing how she changed from one relationship to the next made her character development one of my favourite parts of the book.

The romance itself felt like a warm hug once she finally found it. The story balances messy emotions, humour, romance, and just the right amount of spice (which I'd rate a 3/5 for spice level).

I also have to mention the setting because I genuinely felt like I could feel the Canadian winter while reading this. The Atmosphere was so well done and made the holiday setting feel especially cozy.

The pacing was just right for me, and the combination of one-bed, grumpy x sunshine, he falls first, fake fating, and second chances made this such an enjoyable read.

A heartfelt, cozy, spicy Christmas romance with complicated characters, messy relationships and plenty of emotional growth. Absolutely recommend this read!

* Review posted to @allbookedkenzie on September 28, 2026.

second chance x fake dating x grumpy/sunshine x ex-boyfriends brother x christmas romance = a perfect time

Mary Douglas history with men could resume in one word: horrible, starting with her dreadful father and continuing with a parade of disastrous ex-boyfriends. After the pact of never letting a man change them with her sister falls apart one Christmas six years ago, she now finds herself miserable, cut off from her family and with a big gamophobia. Funny how life works because after an accident at her company's ski retreat, her second chance at life is in the hands of the man of her past. Mary's ex-boyfriends guide her through past, present, and future Christmases, determined to set her back on the right path by confronting the past that haunts her. Can Mary amend herself and learn how to forgive and let people in or would it all be too late?

I cried. I didn’t expect to cry. It was supposed to be a short, fun, sweet Christmas story but it was so much more than that. I loved the underlying message of needing to learn to forgive ourselves and others for mistakes and decisions that we made, that resentment and bitterness only cause us pain and unhappiness.

I’m a hypocrite. I’m a hypocrite because I was very much rooting for Chris and Mary while she was in a relationship with his brother. I was endeared against my will. I was rooting for infidelity, yet I crucified Eric and Eve for what they did. Despite what Mary did or didn't do with Chris I hated how she was portrayed as the bad guy in the family break up when she was the one betrayed in the first place.

I love the ex-boyfriends brother trope, and this book did not disappoint. I loved Chris, his yearning was EVERYTHING. Their chemistry was so good. I really liked how they didn’t jump into a relationship right away and decided to be friends instead. The emotional growth Mary had was marvelous. I loved how she was able to drop her cold emotionless facade and allowed herself to embrace the love she deserved.

“Me. Myself, and I don't give a fuck about other men, I was lying. You let me in, and I won't take that for granted. I can't imagine what kind of a person would have you and want anything else.”

"Do. You. Love. Her? You don't, do you? Then I am sorry, Francis. I'm sorry she met you first. I'm sorry you've had more time with her. I'm sorry things had to happen this way.”

“I fucking love you, Mary Douglas, and all the stupid, ridiculous things you say, and the stupid, ridiculous way you pretend you don't love me back."

“I think two people who are meant to be together always find a way back to each other. If we visited a thousand different Christmases and a thousand possible futures, I'd love you in every one."

“I am more than what I tricked my mind into thinking I could be. I am limitless with an ever-expanding heart. The past can keep its ghosts. I've got big plans for our future.”

This love story was sweet, touching and very messy. 5/5 ⭐

Thank you J.E Reid, Zacchia Publications and NetGalley for the ARC.

Thank you so much, J. E. Reid, Zacchia Publications, and NetGalley for the advance review copy.

​If you are looking for a fast-paced, high-heat holiday romance that you won't be able to put down, Ghosts of Ex-mas Past by J.E. Reid is an absolute must-read.

The heat level in this book is no joke! 🥵

It captures an incredible, cozy Canadian winter atmosphere that makes you feel the cold setting right alongside the warmth of the romance.

Mary's journey from messy relationships to self-awareness is deeply rewarding. Plus, the romance is wrapped up in incredible tropes like one bed, grumpy x sunshine, he falls first, fake dating, and second chances.

Steamy, and surprisingly emotional! This was such a fantastic read. Add it straight to your Christmas TBR!

I devoured this in a weekend it was chefs kiss.

I have never read anything from the author but I am a sucker for a Christmas Carol trope and this one was delicious.

Mary is spending Christmas all alone after pushing people away and gets visited by her estranged dad who tells her 3 ghosts will visit her and they do in the form of ex boyfriends and the one who got away.

Mary's story unfolds and I am not spoiling but the ending is beautiful.