This Christmas: The bestselling cozy holiday romance for the festive season

I don’t believe a book has ever made me tear up and cry (mostly happy tears), as much as This Christmas.A truly beautiful story that has left my heart full.I loved Rose. She is such a kind and beautiful character that I instantly connected with.Rose is dealing with a terrible loss and has decided to spend Christmas in a place that is full of warm & loving memories, in the hopes it will finally give her the peace her mind and heart greatly desires and deserves.(My heart went out to Rose. The mind can truly be a torturous place and has a way of coming up with its own narrative).I have to admit that I didn’t like Charlie at first.He was a little pretentious & judgemental but as the story goes on you realise that, along with Rose, he is dealing with his own heartache and you start to understand why he was so annoyed by the double booking.As the story unfolds, Rose and Charlie’s relationship grows and, what started out as texts and whiteboard messages, soon blossoms into something much deeper.And it’s this relationship I adored. It’s full of funny, cute and tender moments that had me smiling throughout.And how can I forget George & Max. So freaking cute 🥰🐶🐾Also, let me just say 1 final thing, Music Box! 🥹♥️The story deals with the themes of grief and loss sensitively and in a very realistic way.

This book is being touted as perfect for fans of The Holiday and I would agree. Rose remembers a beautiful old family home that she used to stay in with her family as a child over summers. She remembers the comfort, warmth and feeling of family which she craves after a tragedy that has impacted her. Her cousin, who now owns the house, agrees to her staying. But unbeknownst to her, his wife has also promised it to Charlie.Charlie is facing his first Christmas alone, as his daughter has moved to Spain with her mother and Charlie needs somewhere, where he can ignore Christmas. With one bedroom, and one living room can Charlie and Rose share their new home for the Christmas time and maybe help each other in the process?This was everything cosy that is needed at Christmas, a gentle love story, a cottage complete with snow, a cast of loveable characters all set in beautiful Ireland.Indeed, it is Emma Heatherington's Irish warmth that shines through beautifully with this tale. Loss is dealt with, but there are such wonderful moments of fun and joy as well. This is more The Holiday meets Marian Keyes.As I say I did enjoy this immensely and knew this was going to be on my list of #12booksofchristmas whilst I was reading. It left me feeling all aglow and enjoying a good craic. Loved it.

Emma I have thoroughly enjoyed your wonderful book.I could not put I down.I loved it.You have a special talent.Just Fabulous.

Lovely storyline.

Many will love this gentle, festive read told from the POV of 2 main characters. However, although I liked the writing style and enjoyed the first half of the book, I felt myself losing the urge to read on as it felt very repetitive with no real build-up. I also felt I went from thinking the characters were warming to one another to suddenly being petty and not realistic in their ‘rules’ of the cottage. Maybe just me! As I say, many will enjoy this easy read with a Christmas feel, but it missed the mark for me.

Great heart warming Christmas story, makes you think of others during the festive period, and how Christmas can be very different for people.

A cosy, feel good read.I love Emma Heatherington’s latest book, it combines some of my favourite things, cosy feels, a dog, a suitable love interest, the image of rural Ireland, and of course Christmas.It is difficult to write something refreshing in the increasingly crowded market of festive fiction, but This Christmas is one of the standout stories of 2023, I highly recommend snuggling up with a mug of hot chocolate and something nice to nibble on whilst you are enveloped in this 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 star read.My thanks to Netgalley and Penguin for allowing me to read and review.

I finished this book and half expected to see snow when I looked out the window 🥰 A gorgeous Christmas read, full of charm, beauty, and romance - just what you want at this time of the year. Like hot buttered toast in front of an open fire!