One Charmed Christmas is a sweet tale of several travelers that find themselves together on a German cruise right before Christmas. The story is shared mostly through Catherine, a widow who finds her kids too busy to spend time with her during this festive season. She is scooped up by her friend, Denise, for an adventure of a lifetime. 

It truly is a serendipitous event that leaves you wondering what would've happened if any one of them stayed home, but you're glad they didn't! I especially loved Trevor, the chocolatier looking for love. It is a light-hearted read that will get you in the mood for Christmas! One Charmed Christmas would make a cute Christmas movie!

I love Christmas stories and was hoping this would be a fun kick off to my Christmas reads. However, I was disappointed. While the story is cute and at times heart-warming,I had a hard time connecting and/or liking the characters (outside of Denise - loved her).

It was highly repetitive throughout...how many times does one need to convey how lucky they are to be on this cruise, to have such a good friend, etc. I understand the sentiment but I don't feel it was necessary to overly repeat it.

Overall, just an ok read for me. Not great, not terrible. I appreciate NetGalley gifting me this E-ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed herein are mine and mine alone.

One Charmed Christmas by Sheila Roberts is a magical holiday romance. A lovely story that is sure to sweep you away. Roberts writing reads like a movie and makes you feel like you are part of the story. It is the perfect escape from the real world.

This was such a fun holiday book! It follows several people as they take a Yultide cruise through the rivers of Germany, as they eat, sightsee, and fall in love. It's such a unique setting and the author really makes you feel like you're there with them. I especially liked that the characters ranged in age from their 20s to 60s, as so many romances focus on younger people. It was a refreshing change to have older characters included. I also loved that there was an emphasis on getting to know the characters' backstories, with the reminder that there are always reasons for the behaviors/persona that we express to the world, and we should keep that in mind when interacting with others. I highly recommend this as a addition to your holiday reading! Thank you to Netgalley and Harlequin for the advance digital copy.

I might be one of the very few that just found this one to be just ok. I liked the characters but I got a little bit bored with the story. Maybe I just need a break from these kinds of books for a while.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I wanted to love this book, but it just fell short. I didn't feel connected to the characters, and didn't really care what happened to them- for me, holiday fiction is largely about characters!

This is a light cozy story...protagonist and friend go on a cruise and meet new friends...predictable ending...fun for an afternoon.

I really enjoyed the intertwining storylines. There’s humor, romance and lots of feelings through the book. I recommend this holiday themed book.

One charmed Christmas will get you in the mood to travel and live your life to the fullest. A widow feels abandoned by her children so a friend convinced her to go on a cruise with her. Having a medical issue is trying to stop her from falling in love but you'll enjoy how this plays out.

Oh sigh. If you are missing travel, this one will make you miss it more. Catherine's a widow, her kids are off on their own, and she's been diagnosed with cancer. But, she takes a chance and joins a river cruise for Christmas, opening her up to a new group of friends. Each person- Sophie, Rudy, Kurt, Athena, and so on- has their own 3rd person POV and each has a quirk. But they all form a. sort of family for the holiday. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. This is a perfect read to relax- and to smile.

One Charmed Christmas, by Sheila Roberts, has a really interesting and unique concept for a Christmas story. Various people, for an array of personal reasons, find themselves on a German river cruise over Christmas with a friend or family member. Each of these people has challenges they are facing in their lives and are struggling to cope with them. This odd assortment of people find themselves drawn together on a festive river boat cruise and an unusual friendship of sorts forms between them.

One Charmed Christmas is a really unique look at the holidays, and I appreciated that. For this reason, the story peaked my interest from the start, unfortunately, it wasn’t able to maintain it. The topics these characters dealt with became a bit repetitive and their behavior came across as immature and whiny, making them fairly un-likeable. The final outcome was also rather predicable.

As all of Sheila Roberts books, it was easily readable, and in this case, decidedly atmospheric, depicting the German culture and festivities. There were some tender moments and a positive message that was thread throughout the plot. However, I would have liked to see a more realistic portrayal of the characters with both flaws and strengths along with a bit more depth. I would have rather the topic of “hunting for a man” be less emphasized and the other issues of marital difficulties, health concerns and grief explored more. Though this story had an intriguing concept, and is a quick read, it wasn’t as interesting or endearing as I hoped it would be.

Christmas is coming up and it's the first one since 60ish Catherine's husband passed away. She's going to be alone because her two adult children have made plans with their families and neither bothered to include their mother. Plus Catherine recently learned that she has cancer and will be starting chemo in the new year. When her friend, Denise, asks her to go on a week long boat cruise in Germany because another friend had cancelled at the last minute, she goes for it.

Sierra had bought the cruise as a surprise for her husband, Mark, but he's not able to get away from work so she takes her sister, Sophie, instead. Sophie is a hypochondriac but agrees to go.

Rudy is an older doctor whose first wife passed away and his second younger wife, who had only married him for his money, left him for someone with more money. He and his divorced daughter, Athena, will also be on the cruise.

Finally there's Kurt who is taking his German class of older teenagers on the cruise to help them improve their German. He convinces his brother, Trevor, who owns a chocolate making company, to go along.

Right away Sophie has her eye on Rudy ... she figured marrying a doctor would be a good fit for her since she is a hypochondriac. But Rudy has taken a shining to Catherine, who is more mature and his age, and she likes him back but doesn't want to start anything because she feels her upcoming year is uncertain because of her chemo. Athena will do anything to drive both women away from her father because she assumes that all they want it his money. Trevor likes Sophie right away and pursues her. Sierra doesn't get responses from Mark and assumes they are over so that dampens her mood and her trip. Denise is there for a good time and ends up having two men vying for her attention.

I've read many books by this author and this one was okay. It is written in third person perspective, with the focus shifting among the characters and you get to know what they are thinking. Despite all the turmoil, there are lots of happy endings so it's great if you are looking for a nice "feel good" story.

I wasn't crazy about the characters, though, and found them unrealistic. Though Catherine was nice, she seemed to be a bit of doormat. She acknowledged that her kids had been spoiled and now she is paying the price for that since they don't have time for her ... but she doesn't confront them about it. Sierra is afraid Mark is going to leave her. Instead of enjoying her cruise and sister-time and saying "Screw you, Mark!", she lets how she's feeling about the Mark situation ruin it for her. Sophie was just too over the top in pursuing Rudy just because he was a doctor, even when he made it clear that he was interested in Catherine. Rudy seemed to be blind to Athena's rudeness to Catherine and Sophie and she was very unlikable. I can't imagine there being anyone like Trevor and his devotion to Sophie even when she made it obvious she was chasing after Rudy. I thought the most likeable character was Denise ... she was an older gal who just wanted to have fun and had a great attitude.

Anchors aweigh, Shelia Roberts affords readers to set sail on a holiday, European cruise. Strangers will become friends and love is blossoming aboard the vessel. Boarding the ship, the travelers are grappling with difficult decisions that they leave ashore. Will this charming Christmas voyage be just the ticket to ring in the holidays or will a Grinch keep love at bay?

Thank you to #NetGalley and the publisher for the early read of #OneCharmedChristmas in exchange for an honest review. While travel is halted during the pandemic, Sheila Roberts allows readers to armchair travel for a seasonal celebration.

One Charmed Christmas
Sheila Roberts
September 29, 2020


Sheila Roberts new holiday journey begins with introductions to several characters that are struggling to improve their lives. We begin with Catherine Pine, a widowed mother of two adult children. Both are married. They spend little time with their mother. Oh yes, there are calls and texts but not much time is spent with her. The two have their own families, busy with work and enjoying time off. Catherine approaches her second holiday without William, her husband, who died suddenly of heart failure. Her life is lonely and she would like to have a happy season with visits from her grandchildren. Both children have chosen to visit their spouse’s families out of town. On Christmas Catherine would be alone. She decided to put up a tree complete with all the decorations just because it seemed necessary. Her best friend, Denise has asked her to accompany her on a cruise down the Rhein River in Germany. Recently she had learned she had cancer and would need radiation and chemo after the first of the year. She declined the invite at first but then felt that it would be quite a beautiful area to visit. The ship would stop at various small towns where festivities and holiday fairs would make the trip even more delightful.
Other people from the coast area have had similar invitations to tag along on this same cruise.
Once aboard the ship they all seem to meet and become friends. Most have conflicts in their lives and struggle to improve the quality of daily existence. Each is meeting at the end of a road and needs to decide the direction to travel. It is difficult to take the first step because each needs to figure out the best way to modify the current life patterns.
Robert’s latest novel is entertaining and interesting once I got into the meat of the book. I found it difficult to connect with each of the characters. Once aboard the ship the plot was more interesting and the storyline picked up. It is a good novel to read with the impending season of hope and love approaching. One Charmed Christmas by Sheila Roberts will be published on September 29, 2020 in arrangement with Harlequin Books. I appreciate their allowing me to read and review this latest Sheila Roberts work. It is an excellent time for readers to connect to others by reading such stories to remind us how friends, family and neighbors may be alone during this time of celebration.

Thank you to Net Galley for an advanced copy of this book. What a lovely holiday read!! It took a bit to get all of the characters in this book straight in my head but once I did the story was very lovely and engaging. You routed for each character to achieve happiness in their lives. Some achieved their happiness in ways you didn't expect however each character finds what works for them if not by choice. After reading this book, I would love to take a river cruise down the Rhine river, it sounds so lovely and definitely during the Christmas season so I can attend the Christmas markets! If you are looking for a light holiday read with lots of happiness, then this is the book for you!

A perfect Christmas read that intertwines multiple stories in to one satisfying ending. This will get you in to the Christmas spirit without a doubt.

I really enjoyed this book, this is the first book I read by Sheila Roberts. It was funny, romantic, and heartwarming. I liked that I can actually imagine myself on a cruise with these people. I usually don't read Christmas books this early, but I needed something to keep my mind off the pandemic and other issues in the world.

I believe this book will take your mind off things, and get you in the holiday spirit. I look forward to reading more books by Sheila Roberts. I am grateful that Netgalley let me read this in exchange for an honest review

One Charmed Christmas is an ideal holiday read am deathly it's funny. I laughed heartily for the first half of the book. Roberts' description of Athena guarding her vulnerable father from female predators to Trevor being stuck with motor mouth Harriet was comical. All the main characters go on a dreamy Christmas river cruise in Germany. I enjoyed reading about each German port of call. Everything turned out the way it should. I had a crush on Trevor, he seemed a little too perfect, but I'd grab him. Roberts continues to delight me with her colorful characters and plots.

This book has a great cast of characters. Two elderly ladies, one a widow, a Father and his over-productive daughter,two sisters traveling together, and two brothers supervising a German club trip. I enjoyed the interactions between the characters. Not everything was happy during the book, there were a few minor conflicts along with some humor, but all was well by the end of the book. This is a feel good, entertaining read. Thank you to net galley for an advanced readers copy.

Imagine two older ladies one of which was widowed in the last year and now is battling cancer, a father and his overprotective daughter, two brothers, one of which is chaperoning a group of college students (a few of them are a bit quirky) and two sisters with one of them experiencing marital problems and the other one is a hypochondriac all taking a cruise. In Sheila Robert's One Charmed Christmas, you meet some very interesting characters who are going on a cruise down the Rhine River to explore castles, special holiday markets and other sites! The story includes both sad as well as humorous times along with some interesting love triangles which create a fun and intriguing plot. One Charmed Christmas is definitely a fun romance to enjoy along with a couple of Christmas cookies and a cup of hot chocolate!