Sadly, I didn’t particularly enjoy this. For a book about Christmas, a time that is supposed to be happy and joyful, this book was a bit morbid. I know, I know that’s harsh given what happened in the past for Megan and Xander, but I felt like it was focused on too much. For me, instead of bring a nice, light-hearted read, that I I had hoped would get me into the Christmas spirit, it just got me down. I will give 5e author another go though and I’ve already got some of her books on my Amazon wish list.

A Bookshop Christmas is a nice Christmas-themed romance about Megan and Xander. It took a little bit for me to get into the story but once in I really enjoyed it. The setting is a perfect little village at Christmas and the characters all revolve around a bookstore. I think this is the first one I have read where the bookstore was a take it or leave it scenario, most are save the bookstore or something similar, this is a bookstore is not important type deal. The romance was nice, it starts out with the guy being a jerk and then redeeming himself. All in all, it was a nice holiday romance.

Whenever I fancy reading a good romance/rom com, I can always turn to Rachel Burton to deliver the goods! A Bookshop Christmas is the Christmas book I’ve needed for weeks and it’s been an absolute dream to experience. Everything from the characters and the storyline to each single snippet of dialogue has been perfected, and that ending has left me on such a high!

I always love this author's characters, but there was something extra special about Megan and Xander. Their pasts, their traumas and their losses unexpectedly become the glue that holds them together and combined with all the festive cheer, the balance has been written really nicely. There’s fantastic humour, characters you’ll love and laugh with and a story line that will both break your heart and fix it back together again. Rachel Burton has done EVERYTHING right in this book. It’s the most perfect piece of festive fiction to read before Christmas!

A fun read for those who enjoy a Hallmark Christmas-style category, A Bookshop Christmas gives you a widowed FMC and a somewhat snotty MMC with two main questions, will they get together and stay together and what will happen to the struggling bookshop the FMC has been caring for in the meantime?

Stepping out of my reading category comfort zone with this one, I struggled to remain gripped, even when passing the 50% mark. I wasn't attached enough to either character or their outcome(s) to truly drive myself to keep picking up the book in my spare time; but don't let this deter you if holiday will-they, wont-they romances are your favourite trope.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for my introduction to this category via a complimentary ARC.

Meghans bookshop is needing help. Xander Stone runs into her at the supermarket. A famous author and a way to save her shop. This starts a great tale of books and love under the mistletoe. Good read!

My thanks to NetGalley and Aria Publishing for a copy of “A Bookshop Christmas “ for an honest review.

I’d saved this book as one of my festive reads on the countdown to Christmas , and I wasn’t disappointed.
Perfect setting of a bookshop, and likeable , believable characters . It deals well with the subject of grief and loss .
This was a perfect seasonal read , with warmth and romance .
A definite recommendation from me.

This is a lovely Christmas romance featuring a couple who are both recovering from difficult events in their pasts.

Megan is a widow who moved home after her husband died from leukemia. She’s gone into a kind of hibernation after her husband’s death, and her friends are trying to break her out of her rut.
Her family has a bookshop and she runs it. It’s Christmastime, and she’s trying to increase sales by having authors speak and other events. Her book club has decided to have a Regency Christmas party with costumes, and customers are invited.

Megan meets a well known author named Xander Stone when he hits her with his cart in a store. As they get to know each other, Megan realizes that Xander is in hiding like she is after a divorce, and he uses obnoxiousness to deliberately to keep people away. Can this couple overcome their pasts and get together?

I enjoyed this story, it examined the affect that grief has on people. I liked how Megan and Xander grew as the book went on. The characters were fun and had great personalities. I highly recommend this book, 4 stars.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

A Bookshop Christmas was the perfect festive location for me, so I was completely sold on the location from the start. I also loved the idea of a Regency Christmas party and although I’m not usually a fan of fancy dress parties on the whole, the idea of a Jane Austen-esque party sounded so much fun I would definitely make an exception!

I love both Megan and Xander, both of whom were dealing with the grief of losing a loved one, and were able to find a connection that allowed them both to heal. The other characters were great fun, and there was even a dog. I love dogs in books, and Gus was no exception! I really enjoyed the interactions between the members of the Die-Hard Romantics Book Club, and it made me really wish I had a book club near me!

On a serious note, the story highlighted the plight that affects many local independent book shops, where it is difficult to make a steady living and compete against the bigger well known bookshops. I already share the love by buying books from a variety of independent shops around the UK, but it did make me think that I needed to do it more.

The setting in and around York sounded so idyllic, especially with the snow, and with the book shop being in an older building, it really made it all sound so beautifully festive.

This festive novel is filled to the brim with the spirit of Christmas, romance, life after a loss and feel-good vibes that will leave you smiling every time you think about the book!

I must admit, this book had me at the title. What could be more inviting than a bookshop - at Christmas? It did not disappoint. Set in York, I could absolutely visualise the whole scene. I really felt as though I had visited the shop! Megan is at a crossroads in that she is sensing that change is coming to waken her from the cocoon she has created for herself back at her parents' bookshop, following her husband's death. Xander's appearance in her life certainly stirs up some memories for her. He is a complicated character, she discovers. In some ways, they both have issues from their past which they need to face up to before they can move on.

The cast of secondary characters are a delight. Each one a distinct personality. Their Regency Christmas added some humour to the story, with their attempts at cooking Regency dishes and learning the dances. The Die Hard Club sounded brilliant with its lack of pomposity and determination to read for enjoyment. There turns out to be one or two surprises for these romance lovers. In all, it has so much to recommend it as a festive read - lively characters, a bit of a mystery, the joy of reading and a glorious setting- not to mention a huge dollop of romance.

In short: a super festive read
Thanks to the publisher for a copy of the book

This book has a lot going for it, it hits all but one of my most loved spots for a book. This was an adorable Christmas story. Burton's writing style was great, making this a really fun read. There were laugh out loud moments. The character growth was nice too, consider this was a holiday read. The only miss for me was the romance. It felt forced and unnatural.

A bookshop romance, set in York, at Christmastime… need I say more?? This was a sweet overcoming romance and was the perfect pairing to my first Christmas latte of the season! I enjoyed the character development of the two leading characters, both individually and as an eventual couple. This is a wonderful story for any book lover who is ready to get into the holiday spirit!

Fun book and a good read. Glad to have been given the opportunity to read it would recommend to others

Megan has returned home to York to help run her family’s ailing book shop. It’s almost Christmas and she’s feeling the pressure of organising a high profile book launch for a demanding author and publisher. I enjoyed this book but it wasn’t quite as Christmassy as I’d hoped. It is set near Christmas but there wasn’t enough of the season in it for me. Having said that I loved the characters and getting to know them. I loved the will they, won’t they? element of the budding romance. And I especially loved the setting – York is a city I know well and it was wonderful to find that it is the setting of this novel. I could picture exactly where the bookshop would be so clearly and it gave me a sense of home for a while. There is also a very cute dog in this novel, which is always a bonus! All in all this is a fast, cosy read and I enjoyed it.

I have literally just finished this book this morning and came straight on here to give my review! What a lovely lovely book... I read A Bookshop Christmas over about 2 days as I didn't want to put it down. I loved the main characters, Megan and Xander. Both are flawed and struggling with life after experiencing significant traumas. I loved the fact that they weren't perfect and they were finding their ways in life after such heartbreaks. I was rooting for them throughout the book and enjoyed the fact that their journeys weren't simple and overly predictable. I knew from the first few pages that I was going to love this book - the writing is so accessible and pleasurable to read. The setting of a cozy, traditional bookshop in the centre of the beautiful city of York was just perfect for a festive read. The cast of characters was delightful and fun. I adored every page of this book and want to recommend it to everyone who loves a festive story... Thank you so much to Aria fiction for my gifted copy of the book in exchange for my honest thoughts.

After losing her Husband a few years ago, Megan is as content as she can be with her life working in her bookshop with her Mum and friends in her home city.  Determined to do the best she can for the bookshop, she arranges for a big author to launch their new book there, but is less than impressed when he turns out to be rude, arrogant and.....gorgeous.  She resolves to put him in his place and as they start to get to know each other, secrets are revealed and sparks fly.  But then just as everything seems to be going well, something big blows up and everything she has starts to fall apart.  Will she get the second chance at life that she's been avoiding? and Will her story turn out to be like the romances in the books that she loves?

The characters were brilliant.  Megan is so lovely and has been through such a difficult time, it's wonderful to see her start to live her life again. Xander was just arrogant and rude to begin with.  He blows really hot and cold at times, but underneath he has his own insecurities that come to light. The members of the Die-Hard Romance club were brilliant - they all had me in stitches at some point, especially Trixie and her bossy ways!

In terms of the setting, I absolutely loved that this was set in a bookshop at Christmas.....could it get better than that?! It was cosy and snug, and I adored the sound of their Christmas party!  There are some truly wonderful romantic moments in this, where the weather and surroundings definitely make it even more magical!

The storyline at times was really heartbreaking and it will make you take a moment and think about life.  But at the same time, it was really uplifting and wonderful to see more than a few people get their second chances.

So if you're looking for a wonderful, uplifting, heartwarming story in a gorgeous cosy, festive setting, then this is for you.  Recommended by me.

I picked this book up after I was invited to join the Blog Tour for the launch and was really surprised that this was the first Rachel Burton book that I have picked up. You'll recognise the cover style instantly from her other hits - The Tearoom on the Bay and The Summer Island Festival.

After the death of her husband Megan Taylor has moved back to York to help her mother run the family bookshop. Leaving behind in London the memories of their lives together and a glittering publishing career. Unfortunately there is no happily ever after here as the bookshop is running at a loss and despite her best efforts it looks like this Christmas will be the final one for the store. Determined to do her best to go out with a bang Megan has organised a number of events over the weeks running up to Christmas including a book launch and signing for the new Xander Stone release.

When Megan is rammed by a trolley in the supermarket she trades insults with the angry man pushing it and is then surprised to find him on the doorstep of the bookshop demanding to check over the details for his book signing. Mr Angry is none other than celebrated author Xander Stone himself. He is opinionated and a little brash and is soon trashing Megan's taste in books - her beloved romances, especially Austen. Despite his demeanour Megan finds Xander intriguing and it isn't long before she realises that all of the emotions she had buried on becoming a widow have come rushing to the surface.

Xander is a complicated character and just as Megan relaxes and realises that she is falling in love with him the worst happens and she is pushed away. Can she get past her own personal trauma to help Xander overcome his? A Bookshop Christmas is a fun seasonal read and will have you hankering after a good old fashioned bookshop. If you are lucky enough to have one where you live make sure that you support it while it is still around.

Well as a massive lover of Christmas and a book addict this was the perfect book title for me to want to dive in. We meet Megan and her Mum straight away as we get to know a little about Megan's past and want bought her back to York to help her Mum in the bookshop.I loved the book club they ran and that it was focused around romantic fiction as that is one of my goto genres for when I need a lift. I found Megan a really likeable character and from the off you could feel her determination to try and keep moving forward despite her heartache. Xander was a character that I initially didn't like and blew a little hot and cold for me although I did thaw towards him as Megan started to get to know him and peel back some of his protective layers.A highly enjoyable book, with romance around every corner from the books they were reading to the characters that made the story. I loved their Christmas party theme and the enthusiasm captured for the book club by these lovely ladies.

Another strong and emotional novel from Rachel Burton with a stunning and festive location. I am a sucker for stories set in bookshops and add Christmas and York to the equation I knew from the start this was a book that would grab me. Both Megan and Xander have experienced grief and it was a joy to follow their journey as they learnt to move on from the past into the future. With a wealth of interesting characters, in depth discussions on romantic novels, Regency dancing and love at it's heart this was a wonderful read to get me into the Christmas spirit.

A Bookshop Christmas is one of the quirkiest Christmas chick lit books I've read this year, and I loved it! While I am firmly in the "Die Hard is NOT a Christmas movie" camp, I adored that the bookshop has a Die Hard Romance Readers book club. (It doesn't really seem my thing, but I would also be very interested in joining this fictional book club...) And of course, the fact that they are planning a Regency Christmas party and are trying to be accurate in every sense speaks to my Austen-loving soul. If you want the usual holiday charm and spirit with something a little bit different, A Bookshop Christmas is for you!

Young widow Megan is hiding in her family run bookstore. Moving home to York was meant to be a fresh start, however, her grief is still too raw. When she meets prize winning author Xander Stone, things don’t run smoothly, especially as he is one of the most arrogant men she has ever met.

Are they able to put aside their past histories and trust one another with their hearts?