3.75 stars
This was a lovely festive read. It's definitely perfect for fans of The Holiday
It was a lot more heartfelt and touching than I expected it to be, which was a nice surprise. And both main characters are dealing with their own issues when they unexpectedly have to share the same space.
It was a little slow in parts, which is why I couldn't give it any higher than 4 stars and it was a bit predictable. But sometimes that's all you're looking for in a book like this.
I will, however, be looking out for what Emma Heatherington does next.
Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This Christmas is a cute, cosy Christmas Novel. The holiday meets the flare share when there’s a double booking on the cottage meaning Charlie and Rose have to share it together. It’s so heartwarming how both characters are struggling with personal issues in their life but they end up finding comfort and happiness in each other over Christmas. However, it was also really funny in places which made it the perfect Christmas/December read. Definitely recommend reading this at Christmas.

Predictable but lovely nonetheless, this was a perfect cosy festive read. The classic trope of two strangers forced to spend lots of time together and ultimately fall in love after a series of obstacles? I'm in.

A lovely festive read which I meant to read in December but, forgot about it. This was a fabulous bookerfect for that time of year. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

This wasn’t the cheeriest of Christmas reads, a difficult one for me as I prefer something mote uplifting around Christmas time, as I don’t find it easy myself.

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

Great read. Not a Christmas time feel good book, but a book that will touch on grief and sadness. Could t read it quick enough, it mad me laugh and cry, which I really like a book that can pull at emotions

Thank you for giving me an opportunity to read it before publication

3/5 stars only cause of the dogs.

I was fully prepared to fall in love with this book - double booked cottage, Christmas holidays and the start of a new chapter for our protagonists.

But it was such a drag and disappointment. Both Charlie and Rose were so incredibly mediocre. Their appearances were supposedly so captivating but I barely remember what they were each supposed to look like. They just gave off such pathetic vibes as people. So boring in their self-described despondency. The grief each of them was dealing with felt pretty shallow and of their own making. It was so hard to empathise with either of them. And how did they fall in love if they were in such dire emotional states? It was such a miss for me as a story that had a lot of promise.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for providing me an ARC for my honest review.

If you're looking for a cheery, festive read, this is not the book for you! That being said, this is the perfect book if you're looking for a story that has a bit of romance, a bit of Christmas, and two people trying to overcome their loneliness and grief while staying in an overbooked cottage in Donegal. Both Rose and Charlie are trying to escape Christmas for different but heartbreaking reasons. Unbeknownst to the others, they are given the go ahead to spend Christmas in a cosy cottage in a secluded area of a small village in Donegal. They try their hardest to keep out of each other's way, but without realising it, they actually help each other find a way past their hurt and grief.

I laughed, cried, and cried a little bit more throughout this book. I started it just after Christmas and finished it within a couple of days. A lovely story of hope after loss and one I will probably read again in the future.

This was an emotional read with some heavy topics including grief. I liked the setting and the characters but I did find it to be a bit “insta lovey” which isn’t a trope I generally enjoy. However, it was enjoyable and the ending was great.

I love a good Christmas book. This one was so romantic and gorgeous. Such a feel good story that was a perfect for that time between Christmas and new year

Cutest and coziest Christmas story. I absolutely adored it. It transported me to the most magical and wonderful time of the year. Love love love.

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.

Thank you so much, NetGalley & Random House, for the arc of this beautiful story.

This book had potential to be more than it was for me personally, a little emotionally intense for me, I felt tense reading it and it became a little bit of a drag for me, I had to force myself to carry on with it and that's took me longer than I originally wanted to finish it.

I wanted to read this book because of the setting of the book being in Donegal and thought it might have been quite descriptive in that sense but it seemed like I'd read it before or something very similar, it was very similar to the film the Holiday in the sense two characters end up being stuck in one place together, a little unbelievable and I know for sure, had it have been me, there is no way I'd be sharing with a total stranger, regardless of how kind or dashing he was.

The characters were developed but I didn't feel a connection to them, it just felt like the romance between the character seems a little slack,and unbelievable. There wasn't really much to the actual plot line for me, the ending seemed to be a little bit rushed,

Many thanks to Netgalley for my free ARC in return for my review!

Charlie and Rose find themselves trying to escape Christmas and end up being double booked in a remote cottage in rural Ireland.

Rose came across as a no nonsense business woman but behind the facade is dealing with loss and grief and is avoiding Christmas. Charlie, likewise, does not want to celebrate.

Put them in the same house and you have yourself a wonderful story. Both characters were relatable and I adored them both as well as the dogs.

This is a heartwarming book filled with emotion, heartbreak and drama and I felt the author dealt with the heavier topics of death, loss and grief with sensitivity.

This is certainly a book I would recommend.

Thank you Penguin Random House and Netgalley for the eArc. I am leaving this honest review voluntarily.

This was a very heart warming story which shows you that Christmas is a time that can bring people together again. This story was one of the cutest and cosiests christmas stories I have read in a while. I love how Emma put into words the complicated emotions that was being felt from both sides of this story and I loved how the story was told from both Rose and Charlie's perspectives. There were elements of humour which gave a story that felt very sad an uplift to it.

I did take me a little while to get into the book and i felt the story was slow up until the last few chapters which as much as i enjoyed the story didn't have me longing to keep picking this up,

A wonderful cosy Christmas read! Rose decides to escape her Christmas nightmares by going to the beautiful old cottage she stayed in as a child, to help her regain her love for the season and herself following a tragedy. However, her cousin's wife also breaks the rules to allow a friend to stay in the same, small, old cottage over Christmas. Charlie is facing his first Christmas alone without his daughter and he wants to avoid Christmas altogether, but how can these two co-exist and maybe could they help each other deal with their individual traumas. I loved the setting of the book, and really felt like the characters were well developed and organically lead through all the trials of sharing the 1 bedroom cottage! Plus the 2 dogs were a fab addition! Some difficult topics are covered, grief, divorce, loss etc but there are so many warming moments to make this a Christmas read you won't put down.

Such a lovely and delicate Christmas story, of grief in many forms and the difficulties people can face at that time of year. The story was handled beautifully.

I was invested in the story of two strangers who end up double booking the cute one-bedroom cottage in Ireland, with their dogs, over Christmas, both with their own reasons for wanting to be alone and not celebrate, but without realising it supporting each other to move on.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC in return for my honest and unbiased opinion.

This book was adorable! We start with Rose, who avoids Christmas best as she can, usually hunkering down and ignoring everyone to get through the holidays. But this year she’s desperate to get out of Dublin, and books a cottage in rural Donegal. Charlie can’t face Christmas this year, his first holiday alone, and needs an escape. A friend suggests a cottage in rural Donegal. And when Charlie arrives with his dog, the place looks perfect – until the woman he helped on the roadside arrives with her dog, and the couple who own the cottage realise they’ve made a huge mistake.

They try to make the best of things, laying down rules for their shared time, so both can still have a solitary Christmas. But the harder they try to avoid each other, the more difficult it becomes, and the more Charlie and Rose grow to realise maybe the answer isn’t to remain totally alone over Christmas.

This book ticks all the boxes for a heartfelt Christmas romance. Yes, okay, there’s only one bed, but Charlie and Rose find a workaround for that problem. There’s the quaint village where they keep bumping into each other, and despite the ‘rules’ designed for them to keep their distance, they find themselves sharing some truly tender, heartfelt moments. Some things in here were a touch clumsily handled, but much more often than not I found myself smiling at the ways the two characters interacted with each other, whether it was over text message or face to face.

The atmosphere is handled really well and there was a lovely supporting cast, and as the book goes on, we see some great character development for both Charlie and Rose, as they overcome their personal obstacles. Some elements felt a touch forced, but, overall, this was a wonderful festive read.

Thank you to Penguin for providing a copy of this book via NetGalley – views remain my own.

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.

This book was enchanting. A mix of The Holiday and The Flat Share, I found myself fully invested in the story of two strangers who end up double booking the cute one-bedroom cottage in Ireland. I quickly warmed to these two characters (and their dogs) who came from different backgrounds with a lot of baggage to unpack. Highly recommend, and don’t think I can look at a glittery pinecone again without finding myself cozily dreaming of idyllic Seaview Cottage.