This was super cute and perfect for the festive season! It was funny, witty, light-hearted and a refreshing Christmas read!

I enjoyed that our main character doesn't enjoy the holidays due to the movie she was in as a child and I honestly loved watching her development throughout. I really liked the romance and I liked how they treated each other like mature adults. Yes there was a little bit of misunderstanding but it was dealt with really well and how it allowed each character to grow.

This was my first Martha Waters book and I can assure you it will not be my last. I definitely recommend this one!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is the first book I've read by Martha Waters, and it certainly won't be the last, I always tend to lean towards light-hearted and cheerful stories now, especially at this time of year, with Christmas around the corner I don't want anything heavy so this was just what I was looking for!
Christmas All Around is a typical British rom-com, full of crazy antics and eclectic characters, wonderfully festive cheesiness, and lots and lots of love and laughter, it's not heavy, it's light-hearted and such good fun, and will certainly eave you with a smile on your face and feel smug that this year you're ready for Christmas, a defined Christmassy winner!

This is so wonderfully festive and just a joy to read. This was my first Martha Waters book but I thoroughly enjoyed her writing style. It’s funny and charming and has that meta style of being about Christmas movies while feeling exactly like a quintessential Christmas, one you could easily imagine playing out on screen. It had a great cast of characters, bringing humour and perspective to the MCs’ journeys. The third act conflict did feel a little weak but all in all a very enjoyable read for the season.

I really enjoyed this. but I have to say it didn’t provide me with that addictive quality that Martha’s historical fictions do.

For a book that was supposedly less than 250 pages long, Christmas is All Around really dragged. My initial disappointment with this book came when I realised it was categorised wrong on NetGalley and it isn’t in fact a graphic novel. I’ve never read a Christmas graphic novel before so I was really excited when this popped up. But never mind, seeing that it was fairly short made up for it. Unfortunately it wasn’t the quick read I was hoping for.

Christmas Is All Around would have been much more Christmassy if every single festive event wasn’t skirted over. Every time it was a case of “we’re going to do this Christmas-related thing that would probably make for an entertaining section of this book” which would then skip straight to “so that thing happened, here’s absolutely no detail about it but you get to hear more of Charlotte complaining about how much she hates Christmas”. This whining got old very quickly and made Charlotte quite unlikable. Her attitude towards Christmas could have been excused but this extended towards her family and honestly, she was just plain mean sometimes. She constantly referred to her niece with horrible names or descriptions. I get that she doesn’t want kids herself, I feel you there, but I’m not a child hater or judge people that do want children.

Charlotte likes to remind the reader that she’s not ‘the artist type that is a burden to their friends and family’ but she seemed to have conflict with everyone in her life. She may not have been a burden financially but she clearly had a lot of unresolved issues that, in the grand scheme of the book, were there just to spice things up a bit. Don’t even get me started on how horrible she is to Graham and he just takes it the whole time. I did like him, but that’s because he had no flaws and as a by-product of that, no personality.

I’m also so over the ‘the main character hates Christmas and this makes them think they’re better than everyone else’ trope that appears far too often in festive romances. At first I found it refreshing when it was the female character that felt that way, but not anymore. It’s overused and takes the joy out of what could be lovely books.

Ok, no more complaining about Charlotte, I don’t want this review to be purely negative.

The parts that I did like will take no time at all to talk about, so I will be using them to close this review. London at Christmas is always wonderful to hear about. I used to visit London at Christmas when I was younger so a few parts of this felt nostalgic, but as I mentioned at the start, all festive events are skirted over. I also really loved the supporting cast of characters. They had a lot of personality and made Christmas Is All Around a much more readable experience. Ava, Charlotte’s sister, was definitely my favourite. She was no nonsense but also hilarious. I’d much rather read a story about her and her husband Kit.

Overall, Christmas Is All Around was unfortunately, disappointment after disappointment for me. The story drags on for much longer than needed and an unlikable main character really sours the whole experience.

Such a quick and easy, but above all enjoyable festive book.

It has so many of the good tropes of a hallmark Christmas movie, that in fact I think it would make a charming festive film of its own.

We have a demonic baby, there are a troop of period costumed carol singers, there are references to Christmas films, there are multiple Christmas light turn ons and festive activities.

But Charlotte is our main character and she isn't particularly a fan of Christmas, as especially of Christmas films, despite having been in one when she was a child. And yet Christmas, Truly is haunting her well into her 20s, and thanks to one article and the internet, she is being vilified for not wanting anything to do with a reboot, twenty years on.

So Charlotte decides to spend December with her sister in London, to have a break from the craziness, only to end up meeting Graham, at a Christmas event, as his home, which just happens to be where some of the scenes from her film were filmed!

I really warmed to all of the characters, and it was such a lovely and Christmassy story to read. What a delight it was.

This is the first book I've read from the author and if she choses to write more contemporary festive books it certainly won't be the last. Definitely a Christmas story to enjoy.

Thank you to Headline Eternal and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

This one certainly delivered! A cozy christmas romance, exactly what I expected of it.
Loved the writing and everything about it really!

Super cute story set in England, with the backdrop of a fancy English historical house and christmas movies. Perfect pace as well!

I really enjoyed Waters’ historical series, so was keen to try her modern romcom and I wasn’t disappointed. Her banter and dialogue is great here too. The story lightly mocks Christmas movies,- the heroine also having been in one as a child and now a Christmas grouch – and I was totally entertained by that. Lots of Christmas fun.

This was so much fun, I adored the characters and the wonderful festive feel of the story, Will be the perfect Christmassy story to read by the fire this season

A book set in London at Christmas? I don't think there's anything better

3.5 stars
Christmas is all around is everything you want from a Christmas read! It ticks all the tropes, and is the perfect cosy read. It took me a little while to get into the story but from around 50% through I felt more in the rhythm. I’d definitely recommend this for someone looking for an easy festive read.

Charlotte goes to visit her sister for Christmas. Her sister's in-laws are renting the place above them, and they are obsessed with Christmas. They want to ensure that baby Alice has a great Christmas full of Christmas activities. charlotte is also known as the little girl in a popular Christmas movie. When she returns to the house in the movie, she runs into Graham, who is hiding and taking off a reindeer costume. They start hanging out and he helps her expand her artistic skills. They sight see, they do Christmasy things. they have a fight about betrayal, and of course find their way back to each other. A cute Christmas book.

Charlotte hates the holidays. She also starred in a Christmas movie when she was a child, the fans of which cannot let her move on especially when its discovered she might've single-handedly stopped the possibility of a reboot. She flees to London for some peace as she spends time with her sister and ends up unknowingly visiting one of the scenes the movie was shot at all those years ago. Accidentally left behind by her sister, she's forced to hitch a ride home with Graham, the son of the owners.

This soon developed into a friendship of sorts especially as Graham commissioned art pieces of famous holiday scenes shot in London. She was glad that he wasn't interested in her expertise solely because of her association with the estate.

I loved their camaraderie. Their banter and discussion of Christmas movies and the Hallmark movie genre had me in stitches 😂 Being a Grinch, it was hilarious for her to see similarities in her current life with holiday romances.

Graham was this sweet and sexy presence that kept her entertained and grounded. It was easy to fall for him which made it hard to resist considering past hurts and them living an ocean apart. He also had emotional hurdles that he needed to overcome whilst also trying to keep his family estate functioning.

Charlotte definitely had her head up her butt with the third act conflict. Her disdain for the movie clouded her judgement but her loved ones gave her the swift kick she needed to snap out of it. I loved how the resolution played out.

This was a treat of a holiday romance. Thank you to Netgalley and Publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. It's out now!

Rating: 4.5⭐
Steam level: 3.5🌶️ One moderate open door scene

Charlotte Lane hates the holidays. As a former child star of a Christmas movie, her mission in life has been to ignore Christmas and resent anything Christmas movie related but when circumstances throw her deeply into Christmas, she finds some hard truths that may change her thinking.


I enjoyed this book; it's cleverly written against an almost checklist of the features of a Christmas film, and the characters even delve into this towards the end! The characters are likeable and real, whilst the plotline is a little whimsical and Hollywood. It's a nice escapist Christmas read with enough real human bits to make it approachable! As a Brit, I also enjoyed the that this story is set in England, lots of festive reads of this nature tale place stateside.

By the end, I could've gone on reading about he characters for a long time, I enjoyed the dynamics between them all and its put me firmly in afestive mood!

I thought this book had a lot of potential and it’s best parts had me hooked but unfortunately I found it quite slow and thus struggled to keep reading.

Having said that, I really enjoyed Charlotte’s growth and seeing come to terms with and see the bright side of her childhood acting career. Her relationship with Graham was also really great and I liked how openly they communicated even during arguments.

Happy Publication Day to Martha Waters!

First of all, a big thank you to NetGalley and Headline for the ARC of Christmas is All Around — what a festive treat this was!

If you’re looking for a heartwarming, cosy holiday rom-com that will have you grinning from ear to ear, then you need to add this book to your festive TBR immediately. Martha Waters delivers big-time with a delightful story that grabs you right from the start. The premise is just fantastic: former child star Charlotte, who can’t escape her Christmas past, and Graham, who needs a little holiday magic to save his family’s business. I was hooked before I even turned the first page.

Charlotte and Graham? Absolutely loved them! These two main characters have the kind of witty banter and chemistry that is an absolute joy to read. There’s no unnecessary back-and-forth about their feelings; they meet, like each other, and just go with it. For a rom-com, that’s refreshingly direct and really made the story feel unique. It’s a perfect blend of fun and warmth, without any of the typical drawn-out miscommunication drama.

Charlotte’s character development is one of the highlights for me. I appreciated how mature she was, especially when it came to helping Graham, even if it meant letting go of her own hang-ups about Christmas. Watching her move past her Christmas-loathing ways to do something selfless was touching, and it made the story even more rewarding.

And let’s talk about how Christmas is All Around gets meta! Yes, the book has that self-aware, tongue-in-cheek humor about holiday movies (think Hallmark Christmas flicks), which I personally loved. Martha Waters does a brilliant job of poking fun at all the tropes, while still delivering a festive story that hits all the right notes. Some readers may not have loved this aspect, but I found it added a fresh and unique twist to the story.

This was an easy, breezy read that I finished in less than a day, but it’s packed with charm. It’s not just a cute Christmas read—it’s a must for 2024. If you’re a fan of Love, Actually and The Holiday, you’re going to love this book. Trust me, you’ll want to curl up with this one by the fire with a hot chocolate.

Martha Waters, you’ve delivered —five stars all the way!

⭐ 3.5

Okay, I liked this one and it was very entertaining. Charlotte is an artist but she has her past as a child star of a peculiar Christmas movie (which caught my attention to read this book since I love Christmas movies) she goes to spend Christmas with her sister and ends up in the place where said Christmas movie was filmed, where the whole plot of the book begins and where she meets our protagonist Graham who is the son of the owners of the place. Their relationship was good, they had chemistry almost from the beginning and more when Charlotte is hired to make some paintings to sell in the house which is when they start to spend a lot of time together and get to know each other; I will also say that I liked how they traveled through the places of different movies and Charlotte's grinch heart became a little soft. I laughed a lot with this book but more with Charlotte's occurrences with her sister's baby (which I feel is 100% real jajajaja) in short it was good, funny, light, without much drama (well, almost at the end) and with all the Christmas feeling that I love.

📌I received an e-arc through netgalley, and this is my honest opinion/review of it.

4,25/5

Such a wholesome Christams romance!

I love Martha Waters's books and when she announced the contemporary Christmas romance, I had faith she could do it with no problem and I'd love it - and I was right. The characters were loveable, the plot was fantastic, I truly enjoyed this book. SOmething about books set in England warms my heart and I loved this one.

Both characters are great, and I enjoyed getting to know them and I was rooting for them the whole time - though I wish we got an epilogue to see how things are going on a couple of months later. Because of the lack of the epilogue if felt like happy for now instead of a happy ending - I'd love to see what else is in store for them. Did Charlotte move to London at the end and expanded her business there? She could technically work from anywhere. Are they doing long distance instead? How are things going on on that front? Did Graham join the non-profit like he wanted? What's happening with the house? I feel like there are too many questions unanswered, so unless Martha is going to write a sequel, the epilogue should be here.

That's why I couldn't rate this higher. It feels like an open ending, hopeful but open. I don't know; I would love to have all the questions answered.

The book was amazing though and I'll be reading more of Martha Waters should she write anything else.

Thank you to NetGalley, Headline, and Martha Waters for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

A fun festive read, the story of Charlotte and Graham. She doesn't like Christmas but this year she is forced to embrace it. Makes you want to visit London at christmas time

I am a huge fan of Martha Waters. I have read and adored all her books in the Regency Vows series, so I was thrilled when not only she announced a contemporary romantic comedy, but also a Christmas novel. Unlike Charlotte Lane, the protagonist of the novel, I love the Christmas season: the lights, the Christmas trees, the songs, the presents, the food. Although, I was a bit shocked by all the Christmas activities Charlotte’s family took part in just six weeks. However, like Charlotte, I don’t like Christmas movies. Not the classic Christmas movies, like Love, Actually, Home Alone, or The Grinch, but the romantic comedies that start, develop, and end all in the same identical way.

Part of the reason Charlotte hates Christmas is that, when she was nine years old, she was one of the protagonists of a successful Christmas movie, but, unlike the rest of her family, she never had any intention of pursuing an acting career. Now she is a successful illustrator and she is also the reason the sequel of the movie is not happening, as she refuse to take part in it, antagonising quite a large of number of fans, so she flies to London to spend the holiday season with her sister and her family where she is forced to take part in the numerous Christmas activities and events they have organized, one of which takes her right into the house where part of her movie was shot.

Needing an excuse to avoid her family’s Christmas obsession, Charlotte accepts a commission from Graham, the handsome owner of house, to illustrate scenes from famous Christmas movies and she starts spending more and more time with him, risking to find herself in a real life Christmas movie.

I had so much fun reading Christmas Is All Around. The story is beautifully-written, entertaining, and immersive and the setting is very atmospheric (I adore London during the Christmas season!).

Charlotte and Graham are adorable together. I enjoyed their banter, the slow-burn romance, and the way both their characters develop. Martha Waters is one of my auto-buy authors and as long as she keeps writing, I will keep reading her novels. And whether you like Christmas or not, you will enjoy Christmas Is All Around!

Thank you Netgalley and Headline for my ARC copy.

This was such a fun, festive read, it was the perfect mixture of rom com and festive read. I loved how it seemed to point out the silliness of some rom com plots, whilst having them happen to the characters within the book, seemingly naturally. I will 100% be recommending this to friends and family this year whilst adding it to my festive read Advent list.