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.

'Christmas Is All Around' is a festive romance in which our main character, Charlotte, a former child actress from the smash hit film 'Christmas Truly', has found herself in hot water following the news that she is the reason that the sequel film is not being made. Escaping New York to stay with her sister in London, Charlotte is thrust into many festive activities despite her dislike for the season including a Christmas lights switch on at a stately home used as a location for 'Christmas Truly'. Hijinx and romance ensues as Charlotte, who is an artist, finds herself involved in a Christmas themed project for Eden Priory and spending a lot of time with the eldest son of the manor home, Graham.

I found this to be a fun and festive read with a lot of heart at the centre. Watching Charlotte and Graham become closer as the story went on was delightful, and also seeing them grow as individuals was heartening. I thought the premise was unique and worked really well, I particularly loved the supporting cast of characters and thought they added so much enjoyment to the story and were all very believable.

I would rate this 4.5/5 stars, a thoroughly great book with a loveable cast of characters and lots of festive fun! A great addition to any tbr.

Thank you to NetGalley and Headline Books for an eArc of this book.

*I’d like to thank NetGalley, Headline Eternal, and Martha Water for providing me with a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

“Christmas Is All Around” is Martha Water’s festive contemporary debut, and tells the story of Charlotte and Graham.

After a rather jarring encounter with a Christmas, Truly fan, the former child actress Charlotte Lane flees to London to spend the holidays with her sister and her growing family. Unfortunately for this particular Christmas disliking New Yorker, her sister drags her all over the place to create the perfect first Christmas for her daughter, including an event at the filming set of Christmas, Truly. There she runs into the owner of Eden Priory, Graham who is very busy saving his family’s business. Together they start working on an art collection depicting famous filming locations for Christmas movies which is supposed to help Charlotte get a foot in the English art market and improve business for Graham. But time trapped in Graham’s mini cooper driving through the picturesque landscape of England, Charlotte and Graham get much closer than business partners ought to be…

As this novel is a single POV romance novel, my discussion of the main characters will mostly focus on Charlotte as the story is completely told from her perspective. Personally, Charlotte has been a difficult character for me. On one hand, she is smart with great humour that follows her passion with great ambition and determination. On the other, she is undoubtedly almost unbearingly grumpy, selfish and a little too mean for my taste. I get it, Charlotte is supposed to be a Grinch-type character, but I think Waters went a little too overboard. The way Charlotte talks about her family, and especially her little niece is off-putting, and clearly falls into the category of low-key child hating. I do not have a problem with characters not having an interest in family and having children, but when it borders on straight up degrading children and people having such a life, I get a little fuzzy myself. We’re talking about her sister having a six-months old, and Charlotte is definitely not a fan, and extremely unsupportive of her sister. That's the selfishness point I mentioned prior. And considering how the “conflict” is built up and handled later in the novel, I feel this part of the story never comes up, it’s a given that Charlotte doesn’t like children. Also, there is so much inconsistency with Charlotte as a character. She dislikes Christmas, and then decides to join her sister’s celebration for her daughter’s first Christmas only to complain about it from the beginning to the end. She clearly went through with her personal ambitions rather than doing what her parents wanted her to do, and yet this is still relevant enough to the plot to constantly bring up how the successful Charlotte is standing up to her parents. Charlotte agrees to paint the filming set of Christmas, Truly for Graham’s business, and then breaks up with him because their relationship is too connected to her movie career that she hates. It all doesn’t really make much sense.

Now to Graham though is not a main character in the sense that we have his perspective on everything going on, he is an essential part of the romance portion of this novel. The thing is there isn’t much to say about Graham, I actually found him sort of bland. Nothing about his backstory or personality truly stands out. In fact, his biggest problem is that he seems a little too perfect. He just was there simping for Charlotte from the moment they met, and never truly pushing back at her for treating him rather awfully. I don’t know, I wish he had more of a backbone, more flaws and something that makes him memorable.

Their romance was ok. The meet-cute was pretty hilarious, and I liked the way Graham matched Charlotte’s humour, and they exchanged some pretty well written banter. However, the development of their romance was at the beginning super slow, like no romance there until like the 60 % mark, and after that it went rather quickly with them kissing and having relations all in the same night. A lot of their intimate conversation felt a little too constructed, and I didn’t feel much when they poured their hearts out to each other. In general because of the extremely slow progression of their relationship, I started to not really care about them as a couple. Even when they finally did get together there weren’t many emotional or physical intimate scenes, they just were a thing now and it didn't really seem to matter all that much. The third act breakup was ridiculous, it didn’t make any sense whatsoever why they broke up. And in my opinion Charlotte deserved to grovel a heck load more. The conclusion of their relationship was again bland. I mean, they are about to enter a long distance relationship or make a big decision regarding a six-week relationship, but in the end none of that is discussed, they just love each other. Done.

Plot wise the book wasn’t all over, but sometimes I felt like the story doesn’t tell where it wants to go, especially in regards to Charlotte’s inner conflicts. The conflict between her and her acting past, the conflict between her and her parents, the conflict between her and the fact that all her friends are moving on in life, as well as her conflict with her past relationship are all brought up, but not discussed in any meaningful way. These conflicts are simply there to jazz up Charlotte’s personality and reason why she is grumpy. Very quickly I found myself much more invested in the stories of the supporting cast. Ava, Kit and Alice were much more interesting and entertaining than Charlotte. Even Graham’s family and their troubles seemed much more real and touching than Charlotte’s family drama.

In general the supporting cast was the highlight of this book. From Charlotte’s best friend who is a tough lawyer obsessed with romance novels, or her sister Ava who is a melodramatic actress with much personality and heart to Charlotte’s parents. Everyone except for the main couple was so full of life and personality that they pulled me through the story even though I got disinterested in the main plot pretty quick. The biggest flaw in my opinion was Charlotte, or more some aspects of her personality. I found her very difficult to identify with or relate to. Even her redemption arch is so low, it’s practically not there.

Actually, I am quite the Martha Waters fan, and I demolished all of her historicals, but her contemporary debut could not win me over. Maybe it’s the fact that in general I have a difficult time with festive romances, maybe that just wasn’t it.

Overall, I have to say that “Christmas Is All Around” has been quite the disappointment. It suffered from the same difficulties as Waters last historical. There was much potential as seen by the supporting cast and great dialogue, but it all got watered down with unengaging main characters, pointless conflict, and an unsatisfying ending. Unfortunately, not a recommendation from me.

A warm-hearted festive read. Charlotte has arrived in London to spend the festive season with her sister. Only one problem, Charlotte hates Christmas. As a child she starred in a Christmas film, and it appears the die-hard fans won’t let her move on. After a scary encounter in New York, she heads to London hoping for a quiet break. But it seems the universe has other plans for her. The plot is engaging and moved at pace and it’s interesting how the different characters interact. It felt slightly predictable in places so I would rate this 3.5 stars. Thank you to NetGalley, Headline and the author for the chance to review.

Tis the season for Christmas releases, apparently, and this is a fab example. Martha Waters has turned her writing talents to something contemporary, and the humour and sparkle is just as evident as in her historical works. Charlotte is not the greatest fan of the festive season and especially does not like reminders of her childhood role in a much-loved Christmas movie. But when she escapes to her sister in London following some unwanted media attention, she inadvertently gets even more entangled in the past she wishes to avoid.
This book manages to gently poke fun at the whole Christmas/Hallmark movie genre while also immersing Charlotte in exactly that type of romantic tale. Not that it’s sugary-sweet or sappily OTT: Charlotte is sharp and witty and her banter with both Graham and her sister Ava is delightful. I snort-laughed several times at characters (Alice) and situations (the sheep!), but there are also deeper themes in play, particularly around meeting (or not meeting) family expectations. I really hope this author writes more contemporary novels because her writing style really suits it, and I’m definitely putting this one on my festive re-read list.

Imagine this: a former actress haunted by the role that defined her childhood, and the guy who just so happens to own the house where she filmed that very movie. It’s a setup that sparks so much fun as these two characters build connections and navigate their tangled pasts. I loved how both their families were involved, each with their own plotlines that really painted a vivid picture.

I really enjoyed Charlotte’s character development, especially how she gradually began to appreciate creating new, positive memories despite her past. Graham’s dedication to his family was heartwarming, though his sisters could have been a bit more understanding of his perspective.

Now, I’ll admit, I did end up skipping a few scenes😅

If you’re looking for a cute, feel-good holiday rom-com that gives off major Hallmark movie vibes, this one's for you! It’s a perfect way to get into the holiday spirit and enjoy a fun, festive escape.

Thanks to Headline, Netgalley, and Martha Waters for an early digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion!

#ChristmasIsAllAround #NetGalley

Thanks Netgalley and Headline for the ARC copy.
I love anything written by Martha Waters and this didn't dissappoint. A perfect book to get into the spirit of christmas.
Charlotte is a childhood movie star who was in a very famous christmas movie and now is not a big fan of the whole holiday season. While spending the weeks leading up to Christmas with her sister and her sister's in laws, she meets Graham at a christmas lights switch on at his ancestral home. Charlotte agrees to help Graham to find ways to save the house.
It was a very cute and comforting book and I really enjoyed it.

3.75 stars

Thank you NetGalley and Headline for the ARC.

I love reading Christmas holiday books months before December. This was a cosy, enjoyable book. I loved the chemistry between Charlotte and Graham,

I think the secondary characters could have been developed properly. Don't get me wrong, they were super fun. But I barely knew them, especially Kit's parents.

Regardless, really enjoyed the book. It's so comfy and fun. I can't wait to read more of Martha Waters' books

this one’s definition of a book that can give u all the old and classic xmas vibes and it’s perfect as a start to immerse yourself in the holidays mood!!

this was my first book written by martha waters and it won’t be my last! it’s written in third pov and as the cover suggests it’s set in the uk during the holidays, the story’s about charlotte,a former childhood star and let’s say that she isn’t in the mood for the xmas vibes but well life has a different plan for her and she’ll fall in love with an english man trying to save his home!

a classic,easy,xmas story that feels like an hallmark movie and that could be a perfect escape and enjoyable read! predictable maybe? yes but who cares?
we all need sometimes a book like this just for the comfort vibes and fun!

a lot of thanks to headline,netgalley and martha waters for an early digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion!

Loved this beautiful holiday themed Hollywood inspired Christmas novel! It made me feel all the feels. I loved how complex and heartfelt the MC was and I enjoyed ever minute of it! I highly recommend it if you’re looking for a holiday themed book to get you ready for the upcoming season!