Jo Thomas is a favourite of mine. I loved the storyline and characters in this book. And the setting was wonderful and full of Festive feeling.

This is another great Jo Thomas Christmas read. The descriptions of Iceland and the depth of the characters and the community in the book kept me racing through it. A really lovely ending that left you with a warm glow.

Three friends travel to Iceland in remembrance of a friend who always wanted to see the northern lights. While out travelling, they get caught in a storm and end up stranded in someone’s cabin. The next few days see them thrown into Icelandic life and the experience the closeness of the community, learn how everyone pulls together and help each other. They all learn something about themselves and even find romance. A good read.

This book could easily have been titled “Adventures in Iceland”! Freya and her friends promised their dying friend that they would go and see the Northern Lights in Iceland at Christmas time. They have not counted on being cut off from their hotel by an avalanche and very bad weather, but soon realize these things happen for a reason.

Yet another superb book from Jo. Thought I would love the book from the synopsis, and it didn't disappoint.

Thanks Netgalley and the Publisher. Although I am not a Xmas person at all I actually really enjoyed this book. I liked the characters and the storyline.

Yesss, another great read from Jo Thomas this year! I love how Jo Thomas' books always get me in a seasonal mood ~ it's honestly the best thing EVER. Her writing style is truly enchanting. ❄️

Winter books with a Icelandic setting are a match made in heaven. I have read quite a few books with the same setting in the last few years, and I must say, the ✨ cozy ✨ vibes in those books are always immaculate! In "Keeping A Christmas Promise" we follow Freya and her friends as they face unexpected changes in their plans at Ireland! I loved the friendship theme of the story from the very beginning. Tight-knit group of friends make up the best kind of stories! I really liked how the author showed that it's never to late to lean on the people you trust, even after distance creeps into said friendships.

The sense of community in the book was remarkable. Seeing people (even though they're fictional) care so selflessly about other does something to you, you know? It makes you look back on your choices and think about ways to help people in need. Also, the representation of Iceland's culture and location descriptions were so perfect! It felt a bit lengthy for me at times, but other than that, I loved knowing more about Iceland & the Northern Lights!

The mystery and secret elements of the book was really well done too! I enjoyed reading the book through and through and can't wait for others to read it too 💜

I found this book a little hard to get into initially but once I did I raced through to the end. So glad I stick with it.

I really love Jo Thomas's books, especially her Christmas books. This one is definitely one of my favourite books that she has written.
I loved the description of Iceland and the food and festivities. I've always wanted to see the Northen lights, so I enjoy reading about them. I didn't really know much about Iceland, but now that I've read this book I definitely want to visit!
This is such a cosy and heartwarming read. It's the perfect escapism on a cold day. Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for my ARC.

Jo Thomas’ Christmas books are always magical with a thick layer of snow. When Freya and her friends go on a trip to find the Northern Lights they never imagine their lives will be changed forever with plenty of secrets the women have to confront some home truths and start to realise you have to live your lives. A lovely wintry read that is perfect escapism

Yet another fantastic story from Jo Thomas. I always say her books are so much deeper and leave you feeling like you have just experienced it all with the characters.

This time we are visiting Iceland! Freya and her friends make the trip after one of their friends passes away and they want to honor her and fulfill some of the things on her bucket list, one being visiting Iceland.

The descriptions of Icelandic traditions, places and the food are just amazing and reading about how all the characters come together to help really stayed with me after reading!

Absolutely fantastic!

What a wonderful book. I have learned so much about Iceland & now I want to go. Such a beautiful book that has been well researched by Jo Thomas.
Perhaps the story has been overshadowed by the descriptions & story of Iceland, but I did enjoy this book. Recommended read.

A lovely festive read. Really enjoyed this story .When three friends plan a trip to Norway to try and see the northern lights to remember their friend Laura little did they know what they would discover. As they get snowed in searching for them In a remote location they find some wonderful friends, beautiful sights and relationships that will change forever. Loved the setting for this story and some of the traditions make this a perfect read

A Christmassy story with a feel good factor, just what I wanted.
I loved the descriptions of Iceland and the extreme weather. This was a book I couldn’t put down and read it in record time. Great characters , loved it!

Oh, how I love a new Jo Thomas book! Especially one set in a cold climate at Christmas. This was the perfect book to read when all cosy on the sofa with nothing planned for a few hours. Jo Thomas has written a variety of books but the ones set in the colder areas of the world are my favourite (A Winter Beneath the Stars is a firm favourite!) We follow a group of friends, Freya, Joanne and Meg on a summer holiday with the rest of their lives ahead of them and learn about their hopes and dreams. As we fast forward to twenty five years later, their group of 4 has sadly becomes 3 and their visit to Iceland is in honour of their friend Laura's 40th birthday and her wish to see the Northern Lights but sadly was never able to.

As each friend reminisces of their previous holidays and the route life has taken them on, we learn that they have coped with the loss of Laura in their own ways. Freya (our main narrator) has pushed herself to becoming a successful Michelin star chef but she seems to have lost herself on the way and why she originally wanted to become a chef. Her life appears to be mainly work orientated with little time for anything else.....When the friends all become stranded after a failed mission of seeing the Northern Lights and find an avalanche has blocked their only way back, they find themselves staying with Petur at his farmhouse and eventually meet the community in which he is an integral part of.

This was such a lovely warm hearted story and I absolutely adored it. I loved how Freya and her friends eyes are forced to slow down and open their eyes to a simpler and slower way of life where a community is just that. They help each other in times of need and respect the landscape around them. We are also treated to learning about the Nordic culture which fitted in perfectly with the storyline.

For all fans of Jo Thomas, this is a beautiful book that I'm sad to have finished!

Jo Thomas in my mind is the Queen of Christmas fiction and her latest fabulous Christmas delight, Keeping a Christmas Promise, is another gem of a read that whisks you away to the land of fire and ice - Iceland. Initially, I found it a little slow to get going and it took me some time to familiarise myself with the characters but once the trio of women find themselves stuck in a remote town that has been cut off thanks to an avalanche and storm, well then that’s when everything really got going and I found myself totally immersed in the wonderful, heart-warming and inspiring story that unfolded. Freya, Meg and Joanna have finally made it to Iceland fulfilling a wish that their friend Laura had hoped to do before she turned 50. They want to do what Laura couldn’t as she passed away from an illness that took away all her hopes and dreams.

On the weekend long trip they are desperate to see the Northern Lights and want to make sure their promise to Laura isn’t broken. But each woman arrives for the getaway with excess baggage and worries and the trip doesn’t go as seamlessly as they had planned. External pressures, for some in their professional lives and for others in their personal, means their heads and hearts aren’t always focused on the trip. But when the girls set off on the beaten track to find the lights they run into trouble when a storm hits and a woman named Frankie crashes into them. They have no choice but to find shelter with the gruff and at times inhospitable Petur and their few days in Iceland stretch well into a week in the lead up to Christmas Day as the small town they find themselves in is cut off. Forced to work together with the townspeople and cut off from all modern day technology, it’s a chance for each of the three women to confront what they have been pushing aside and at the same time unease starts to simmer in the village. Can they do anything to help?

Freya was the character who I feel went on the greatest journey and it was a joy to read about as I got sucked into a world of cold, wind and snow with lots of scrumptious food thrown in. Not to mention the hot springs that feature too. Really as you read this you’ll find yourself thinking god a trip to Iceland doesn’t seem that bad at all. Freya is a chef working in a Michelin starred restaurant who is brilliant at her job, always 100% dedicated and she is so passionate but really she is just cooking someone else’s ideas. Why can’t she be brave enough to let her own creative juices flow as she has such ingenious ideas when she comes to food? She works all the available hours and is always under such immense pressure. Even now cut off from the world she is fretting that she won’t be back in time for the restaurant’s Christmas tasting menu and for the big day itself. She tries to leave work behind her for the weekend and just be with her friends but you can tell she never really switches off that work is always there at the forefront of her mind which prevents her from living in the here and now.

Freya has a secret hurt and pain thanks to her ex Mark, who is also a chef. She feels like she is always playing catch up and in a race to be better than he is but how can she show off her creative flair and talent whilst working for someone else under said persons constraints? As she works with Petur to deliver food and supplies to the villagers she meets a whole range of characters who teach her some important life lessons and perhaps this unexpected adventure was meant to happen for her to realise her life needs to venture in a new direction and she needs to go back to basics. The inclusion of the women at the safe house and of course the special story behind Knutur who lives in a shack on the beach all help in inspiring Freya and allowing her to see the bigger picture. Was Laura leading them to Iceland to see beyond the narrow confines of their lives to something much bigger out there? Really the Lights weren’t a priority but they do add a touch of magic and sentiment to the overall story.

Meg and Joanna feature more on the periphery of the story but still were worthy inclusions as they form a solid trio with Freya. Meg is divorced but about to marry for the second time. The only problem is the excess baggage she is bringing with her in the form of her ex mother-in-law. The wedding is days away and she is fretting that despite all the time and preparation gone into it that the road won’t be cleared and they won’t be able to leave Iceland. Joanna’s first marriage broke down and now she is married to a rich man much older than her. She has the perfect life and every last detail regarding Christmas has been planned and perfected but behind this wonderful life is Joanna just living a façade and things are not as happy as how she presents them to the world? Meg and Joanna’s stories are tied up nicely at the end but I would have loved to have just a little bit more from their point of view.

The sense of community and working together just radiated from the pages of this really enjoyable book and Petur is at the centre of it all. At first I thought he was rude and very stand offish but underneath the exterior he presents to the world I did think he had a heart of gold. He put the wellbeing of others and the community as a whole before his own needs and as more information came to light about what was potentially going on in the little village I felt Petur really came into his own. The reasons for his behaviour became clear and I found I was on his side. As Freya gets to know him better, the things she learns from him and the various residents of the community help her to grow herself and given she can’t rush back to the restaurant she is made to stop, think and contemplate everything in her life and that perhaps going back to basics and why she loves food and cooking will help her find the right path she is meant to be on in life. Even letting in some friendship and love might help her to realise that life is precious and that she had come so far only to get stuck in a vicious rut. She needed to look back as well as forward.

Jo Thomas has such a way of bringing her settings to life. She uses such rich and vivid imagery to absolute perfection that you feel as if you have travelled alongside the characters to the country being explored. When in reality you may have never visited there before and really you haven’t left the comfort of your sofa. Also the use of food in her books adds so much to the themes and issues being developed and although when you first think of Iceland, a range of gastronomic delights from this country wouldn’t instantly spring to mind, Jo still worked her magic and made the reader realise how much this unique country has to offer. All the wonderful things Iceland has to share with the world are explored and developed so well against the backdrop of three women fulfilling one last promise to a dear departed friend. By the time you finish this you won’t just think of Iceland as being a country that is super expensive or cold but instead its heart and soul has been brought to life through a fabulous, engaging read that is ideal for the festive season and the cold winter months ahead. You must make sure that Keeping a Christmas Promise is at the top of your Christmas reading list this year.

Who do you turn to when you are in search of a ‘breather’ book … you know the type .... one that whisks you away where new ventures are to be had? Jo Thomas of course! And for this trip we kick off the Christmas cheer with a trip to Iceland! Yup … seeing the Northern Lights and learning all about Icelandic culture was one trip I didn’t know I needed. Thanks Jo! Her books are always an immediate teleport to exceptional locales.

‘We may be remote here, but we live with nature. We look out for our neighbours and Mother Nature. She’s our closest neighbour. We work with her and she provides for us. It’s a mutual agreement .’

There is much to love about a Jo Thomas book … all the requisites are there of course …. idyllic location, gourmet cuisine, romantic love interest … but Jo always adds those extra elements that take this genre to the next level. Firstly, Jo takes readers to what I would consider the ‘real’ Iceland, a small village experiencing frigid temperatures yet a window into nature at its most raw and beautiful and a community watching out for each other. There is even a sub plot with regards to the environment which was a worthy inclusion. Secondly, there is culture, customs and cuisine on almost every page that in itself is an eye opener. Finally, this is a book full of life lessons and pep talks to set even the most lost person on the right path.

‘It wasn’t about seeing the Lights. It was about seeing the bigger picture. Taking time to work out how we want to live the rest of our lives.’

On a personal level, I did find this book a little too heavily laden with advice that it became a bit preachy. Stereotypes and cliches that caused a wince or two. It also is a little repetitive with various characters overly concerned and caught up in their ‘lesson’. Still, for those readers who need a light and uplifting tale, look no further. Friendship, loyalty and love are at the forefront in this tale where an enforced snow-in provides the time out from life for people to reexamine and reconnect in a unique setting.

‘Now, this is living my best life . . .’ I say. ‘Sometimes you have to take time to stand and stare to realize what’s been and where you want to go.’





This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.

When they were young Freya and her three best friends create a bucket list. Now 25 years later 3 of them make a trip to Iceland to see the Northern Lights in honor of their friend who passed away.

A quick weekend away turns out to be a longer break thanks to an avalanche that leaves them stranded in the middle of nowhere.

Here secrets are revealed and long forgotten dreams are reignited.

I loved reading about the Icelandic Christmas traditions.

It took me a few chapters to get into this book and then I couldn’t put it down!! I loved the storyline, loved the community, loved the message and I cried at the end. Phenomenal writing. Thank you

Definitely one to read for escapism. A real delight to read- don’t you just love stories that involve Christmas! A joyful story with wonderful characters set in Iceland. A group of friends travel there to hopefully see The Northern Lights in memory of Laura, but this trip turns out totally different to how they thought it would.