Kate is in her thirties and is single. She gets talked into participating in the 'Twelve Dates of Christmas' by her best friend, in hopes of finding romance. Kate is hesitant but decides it's time to get back out there. She goes on a string of dates, some good, some bad and some complete disasters. She thinks she has hit the jackpot when she meets Richard, but something's not quite right, perhaps she needs to look a bit closer to home to find love?

Ahh this was the perfect cosy Christmas read. This was laugh out funny and I think anyone who has been on a bad date or two will relate to this. This definitely has the rom com vibe and I would love to see this adapted as a cheesy Netflix Christmas film.

I'm not usually a bigger love of the friends to lovers trope but I adored Kate and Matt together as soon as he was introduced. I would definitely recommend this if you're looking to get into the Christmas spirit!

Thank you Netgalley and Pan Macmillan for providing me with a copy to read.

The premise of this book really appealed to me as it offered a suggestion of being a little different to the many Christmas novels available.

There was a lot to like in The Twelve Dates of Christmas. Having returned to her hometown of Blexford, London, Kate Turner is happily single, content with her job as a designer, catching up with her pals and looking after her dad. Her friend Laura suggests that Kate signs up for a new dating app service for some Crimbo fun so Kate agrees...

Kate had a wonderful joie de vivre and her banter with Laura and Matt was hilariously funny. It was exciting to be party to her dates and each one offered something special and individual, story-wise at least. I was certainly caught up in the romance and Christmassy festivities and it was a cracking debut by Jenny Bayliss. Very highly recommended.😁

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Pan Macmilan via NetGalley and this is my own unbiased opinion.

Kate loves being back in Blexford with her friends Laura and Matt. Then Laura persuades her to join a new dating app 12 dates of christmas where you have 12 blind dates at different venues leading up to christmas

I did enjoy this book. Warning! It's Christmas overload and the village the author writes about is picture perfect! I loved hearing about Kate's job designing fabric for Liberty. I think the idea of incorporating the twelve days of Christmas into the twelve dates of Christmas is clever. I didn't like the way Kate was treated by some of her dates though. That leads me to Matt, Kate's love interest. What happens there is predictable, but can be forgiven. I can't say I was completely enamoured by Matt though. He was nasty at times. But there was enough there to keep me interested, and Matt did explain himself towards the end. Recommended. With thanks to NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this Christmassy read based on the concept that singleton Kate will go on twelve dates before Christmas in the hopes of finding love. I found the characters to be very well developed and interesting, and whilst the ending was pretty obvious from the start, it was immensely enjoyable none the less.

If you want to be put in the mood for Christmas, this is the book for you. There's an abundance of festive baking, decorations and activities - and the villagey vibes from Blexford are so charming that I think I'd move there if it actually existed.

The Twelve Dates of Christmas is the perfect Christmas novel for a time when Christmas is feeling a little different from usual. This one will really get you in the festive spirit, even if it is a little predictable. I feel as if I may even miss the characters from this book now that I've finished it!

Thanks to Pan MacMillan and Netgalley for an advanced copy in return for an honest review.

This book tells the story of single Kate who signs up to a dating agency where you agree to 12 dates for Christmas. Each date you have to choose from various activities/dates and the agency choose your partner. Her dates don't get off to the best start as her date does not turn up. She meets up with all sorts of men, married, gay, pigs, but will she meet the one?

With her best friends Laura and Matt and Mum and Dad to help her along the way will she get her Happy Christmas? I even cried at the end because of a thoughtful Christmas gift.

Designer and cook Kate is persuaded to join the Lightning Strikes ‘Twelve Dates of Christmas’ dating enterprise by her best friend. Throughout December, she embarks on organised events with a different partner, in the hope of finding the perfect match. Some are disasters from the start, others show more promise, but will Kate manage to find the One?

The Twelve Dates of Christmas is an interesting concept, not just for a story, but as an event. I loved the diverse range of activities offered - from escape rooms, to country walks and wine tastings - to help find the right match. Of all the men Kate is partnered with, and ignoring all later revelations about their characters and attitudes, my favourite has to be Drew, the salsa dancing date. In my head, he was Strictly’s Johannes, with the moves to match,

An enjoyable, original storyline, which will keep you entertained.

Kate is encouraged to join a new type of dating agency- 12 dates with different men on the lead up to Christmas. There are a whole range of activities and a whole range of available men. I loved this idea- and enjoyed seeing Kate get ready for dates and meeting the new men, some are lovely and some are not!
Alongside this she has 2 great friends- their friendships are wonderful. I loved all of the characters- the village knew all about her dates even before she got home from each one. The downside of living in a wonderfully close community. She also has a lovely relationship with her dad.
There are some bumps in the road to negotiate and you are hoping that we will get a happy ever after. Is Mr Right waiting for her at one of these events?
I can't wait to read more by Jenny Bayliss- I hope there is another book soon.

a most enjoyable book from start to finish so easy to follow the story but not knowing how each date will turn out and some brill ideas on baking well done and a lovely christmassy ending

If anything will put you in the mood for Christmas in this bizarre year that is 2020, this book will. Atmospheric with a wonderful English village build up to Christmas, I am in the mood to put my Christmas tree up a month early. Kate’s adventures on the 12 dates of Christmas were priceless and although you anticipated what would happen from the start, it was no less lovely. I want to live in Blexford! It reminded me of living in a Cambridgeshire village with small children many years ago. Even makes me yearn for snow! This was like reading a Christmas movie, and a book I’d come back to every Christmas! #netgalley #TheTwelveDatesOfChristmas

My thanks to Netgalley and Pan for acopy of “ The Twelve Dates Of Christmas “ for an honest review.

This was a lovely light read to get you into the spirit of Christmas , although not so festive that it wouldn’t appeal any other time of the year.
A little predictable but Lovely written setting and characters . A very good debut novel.

A light hearted Christmas read. It was a bit predictable but I still found it thoroughly enjoyable and I loved how Christmassy it was. An amusing and very festive romance, loved it


Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

The Twelve Dates of Christmas by Jenny Bayliss follows Kate Turner who reluctantly signs up to festive dating, whereby she would go on twelve dates in December. As well as this main storyline, the book featured several other characters and smaller events. I was looking forward to reading this and hoped it would get me into the festive spirit.

I did like this, but I didn’t love it. It was very predictable (not an issue as I do love a HEA) but it felt as though it dragged a lot and didn’t flow well. Some chapters and events/dates were short and flowed easily, whereas others seemed a lot longer even though not a lot happened and a bit boring. I also didn’t care for Kate or her love interest!

Overall, The Twelve Dates of Christmas was a decent Christmassy read. I don’t see myself ever rereading it, but I liked the premise and how much detail there was describing the village and other villagers- it was easy to imagine being there.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

What a delicious and tasty Christmas treat! Kate lives in a little English village that sounds just like the perfect Christmas card. She embarks on an organised dating event, the 12 dates of Christmas in the hope of resurrecting her dismal love life. Each date is a new adventure, some of them good, some bad. Along the way she learns about herself, past issues and discovers what she is really looking for. So well written, it is a cut above the average in this genre

A nice book to read in the run up to Christmas. I wouldn't describe it as funny though, but definitely enjoyable. You can sense the ending quite early on in the book but it was a nice enough read until you got there.

A cosy Christmas love story. Kate is happily single and living back in her home village of Blexford. She has a dream job designing fabric for Liberty, using her passions painting and nature. Both her lifelong friends live in the village along with her lovely Dad, Mac. Kate's biological clock is ticking so Laura, one of her best friends, persuades her to sign up for The Twelve Dates of Christmas to help her find a partner. Matt her other best friend is horrified that she has done this. The story centres around the twelve dates. The ending is predictable but exactly what you want for the characters.

When Kate is cajoled by her friend Laura to join a new dating service, '12 dates of Christmas', she is uncertain of meeting 'Mr Right'. Now in her thirties and ready to settle down, Kate returns to her childhood home and reconnects with childhood friends/

I loved the mixture of comedy, desire, dating disasters and Liberty fabric. The characters were all well illustrated, especially stubborn Kate and her flighty mum.

The venues of the 12 dates sounded like real fun, even if some of the participants were dubious.

Read, laugh and enjoy

Entertaining and funny. I liked the way the book was split into chapters for the twelve dates and the dates themselves were really funny. It was predictable but I thoroughly enjoyed it and it was very Christmassy. I enjoyed the dialogue between Matt and Kate and the way their relationship was portrayed.A good read if you want an amusing romance in a Christmas setting.

This book follows Kate as she joins a dating service that sends her on twelve dates on the lead up to Christmas.

I was so excited to read this book, I really hoped it would get me in the Christmas spirit and it definitely delivered!
We met some really lovely characters including Kate's dad, Mac and her best friend, Laura and some not so nice characters (not all twelve dates were good dates😂).

I loved how the chapters each covered a date. It gave the reader the opportunity to explore the idea of the dating service and the dare in a really in depth way.

However I did feel that the chapters were a bit too long and that the pacing was a bit off at times, some things moved a bit too slow, while other parts were too quick. There was also some cringe language used a couple times, but if you can't be cringe in a Christmas love story when can you?

This book was so atmospheric, I could imagine the whole town, the cafe and the snow. Bayliss did such a good job describing each date and setting, I could almost imagine being right there.

It was also just such a feel good book. An ideal read for this time of year, and it's already out now!

This was 4 star read for me, the perfect Christmas story!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for providing a copy in exchange for an honest review

Elevator Pitch: On a last ditch effort to see if she can find someone to settle down with, Kate takes part in a dating service - twelve dates in the month of December where she mingles with a mix of personalities.

Review: The writing style was quite basic and straight forward. The characters all felt one-dimensional and the dialogue was relatively bland. I was not a fan of the love interest, he was possessive (something another character is called out on) and immature. The book seemed like it was geared to an older audience, but the characters themselves were in their thirties, however the dialogue made them seem a lot older, and their actions a lot younger. The main character is only occasionally given a backbone and often is just bending to whatever the whims of her love interest were, which I did not find especially romantic. Most of the book felt redundant because as soon as the love interest character appears on page, you can already predict the ending. There's nothing wrong with a predictable romance, that's often the comfort, but when you're reading about rather trite people, then the experience is not particularly enjoyable. However, I did see that this is the author's debut novel, so I wouldn't rule out reading from her again.