If you're looking for a holiday romance that is more serious, than lighthearted fun, with a lot of heart - this book is for you!

It was a tad slow and serious for me, but I still enjoyed it.

*Gifted by Netgalley and Quercus - thank you! All opinions are my own.

All I Want for Christmas by Joanna Bolouri

A reasonably well written book. A light hearted festive read if some what predictable. Easy read nice to cuddle up on the sofa with.

I’ve had this on my netgalley shelf for awhile and have tried to read it a couple times (most recently this past holiday season) and unfortunately the writing style is not for me. I think it’s possibly the British style that is different then I am used to, so don’t let my rating deter you from picking this one up.

A festive story about starting again.
Nick loses his job as a lawyer and bums around for a bit, before being persuaded to take a job as Santa at the local shopping centre. He meets Alfie, a young boy whilst playing santa and is flawed by the request made. Alfie just wants his mum, Sarah to be happy.
Nick meets Sarah and feels an instant attraction, but as he wasn't in the right head space sets her up with his best friend instead.
A group friendship with underlying tensions / attractions ensues and this made for sightly uncomfortable reading in places. I did really love how Nick interacted with Alfie as well as the male friendships he had.
I enjoyed how the corporate lawyer was humbled and his character growth.
A lovely festive read that gave me Scrooge vibes.

Lovely feel good book to read. It was a joy to read. Lovely characters. Great plot. The book was charming. Very well written. I’d definitely recommend this book lovely location. Perfect seasonal book to get you in the mood for the festive season.

I enjoyed this one.
Funny, festive & full of heart.
I shall definitely keep Bolouri on my radar to see what she does next.

Not one of my favourite romances but it was sweet, easy to read and made me laugh at times! Enjoyable for a light read.

I usually don’t mind a predictable book, but I kinda had a hard time with this one. It was a fun holiday book, and honestly I don’t really know what the problem is I just wasn’t super into it. I think I would totally recommend it because I feel like I should re read this when I’m in a more festive mood.

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for the arc. All opinions are my own.

A gorgeously cosy Christmas romance. Perfect for curling up in front of the fire with a hot drink and a blanket. I loved that it was from a male perspective, and felt it was written really well. Also little Alfie was very sweet.

This book features a lot of expletives, which I was fine with but some readers may need to be aware of.

Found the pace of this book too slow to get into - going back to the past once the prologue is done just felt like too much, like we know what's going to happen and it's then redundant to read about it all, and in the process end up disliking the hero at every page turn because he is showing himself for who he is and he kills the little sympathy we'd already garnered for him in the prologue... It just completely missed the mark for me

I absolutely love a good rom com that makes me laugh out loud and All I Want for Christmas certainly delivered!

The main characters were all so likeable especially little Alfie! A fast-paced read that has you flying through the pages! Full of festive cheer and absolutely hilarious, but oh so heart-warming. This would be one of my favourite festive reads and perhaps one that I will be reading every year going forward during the festive season.

Be warned the humour in this one may not be your cup of tea and if you are a little shy to swear words, perhaps this is not the one for you, but for me this just made parts of this story so funny!

I’m not a fan of these type of Christmas books but I did enjoy it. I liked the characters I just always wanted more from it every step of the way

This was a predictable but absolutely delightful book and i devoured it in a few days. It was charming, warm and definitely hit the mark for a cosy, christmas book.

Thirty-year-old lawyer Nick has been sacked after a few incidents at work. He takes his sacking badly and resorts to getting drunk most nights, and day and eating take-out food for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. He shares a flat with his best friend who has tried to give him a kick up the butt but nothing is working.

Nick has applied for numerous jobs but no-one seems to want to hire him, that is until an offer comes in for him to play Santa at the local shopping centre. He doesn’t want to do, doesn’t even like children but he needs the money after nearly depleting his savings. When his reality star girl-friend finds out that he is Santa she dumps him.

One afternoon just after closing and a day from hell a little boy, four-year-old Alfie is desperate to see Santa. Nick eventually obliges and asks Alfie what he would like for Christmas, his response stuns Nick. He wants his mum to be happy again as she has been sad since his dad died. In a panic Nick tells Alfie that he will grant his Christmas wish, now all he has to do is make it come true, and what a better way than fixing Alfie’s mum Sarah up with his friend Matt.

As the two become close Nick soon realises that he is falling for Sarah and has become attached to Alfie. As if his life wasn’t complicated enough!!

This book made me laugh, was heart-warming and featured a totally adorable child.

All I Want for Christmas was a beautifully written 5 star read. I am a big lover of Christmas and this book was a delight to read.
The book follows Nick. He loses his job, is dumped by his girlfriend and is forced to work in a Christmas Grotto. There he meets Alfie and his mother Sarah. From there he sets up how new friend Sarah on a date with his friend Matt, but during the process, he soon discovers that he might actually have a feeling for Sarah after all.
This book gave me all the Christmas feels I wanted from a book. It was a delight to read and can't wait to read more from this author.

3.5 stars

Warm, fuzzy, Christmassy and easy going. Weirdly I chose to read this book during an April Covid self-isolation! Did exactly what I needed it to do though... escapism at its best!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

A perfect Christmas read. I cannot recommend this book enough. Will definitely be reading this one again next Christmas. A fantastic story that is beautifully written. Can't wait to read more by this author.

Sometimes all you want is to read a heartwarming story with a happy ending. No major surprises, no hey-reader-I-tricked-you twists. And Joanna Bolouri did this beautifully by focusing on character development and humor, while still allowing us to enjoy a pleasant, even if slightly predictable, read.

Why would you introduce the person you have a crush on to your best friend? From the very beginning that the plot made me pity Nick in a not-so-good-way. Nick was portrayed as a selfless character who cared about everyone except himself. But how helpful (or even interesting) can you be, when you’re trying to help others in ways they don’t want to be helped, while also harming yourself in the process? That’s not selfless, that’s just silly. However, for the sake of a romantic comedy, this concept worked.

This is what I particularly loved about this book:

🧡 The male POV
The author did a fantastic job with the male POV. It felt realistic, yet not over the top or relying on gender stereotypes. In fact, Nick is anything but your standard romantic comedy character.

🧡 The humor
The humor and language might not be for everyone, but I thought some moments were hilarious. Especially being inside Nick’s head, in such a deep POV, really makes you feel as you’re part of some of those awkward situations. Let’s say I had quite a lot of fun reading some parts of this book.

What I didn’t like so much:

🌧️ The actual characters
Funnily enough, feeling part of the plot and inside the head of one of the characters, didn’t help me feeling connected to them. It’s still funny to think about some of their decisions and can’t help but wonder: Why would they do this? Still, it didn’t personally feel relatable to me. I wasn’t specially rooting for these characters, or excited about the outcome. I was reading because I was curious about the situations they were putting their own selves through.

🌧️ It dragged quite a bit
I felt tempted to skip some pages, especially when it came to Nick’s endless job pursuit. It just felt some of it dragged quite a bit and didn’t contribute to the progress of the plot or character’s development.

Overall, I’d say “All I Want for Christmas” was a refreshing, fun and interesting romantic comedy. Even though it won’t be on my favorites shelf, it’s still a nice read for a cozy time during Christmas time (and beyond).

All I Want For Christmas by Joanna Botouri

What if the love of your life was your best friend’s girlfriend? A sparkling Christmas romance to lighten you up during the holidays.

This was a light, humorous holiday cozy. Romance is in the air, but with the wrong partner. Very family oriented with great characters. I enjoyed this book.

Thanks to Net Galley for sending me an advanced reader’s copy for review.

After being dumped by his girlfriend and needing to find a new job Nick ends up working as Santa in the local department store. Meeting 4-year-old Alfie who's Christmas wish is for his mum (Sarah) to be happy. There is something about this selfless gesture that makes Nick want to make his Christmas wish come true.

hen Nick loses his job and is dumped by his glamorous but demanding girlfriend, he is forced to grudgingly accept work as a Santa at a local Christmas grotto. As his friends are getting married or promoted, Nick spends his days being terrorised by unfriendly elves and cried on by snotty, spoiled children.

Then he meets 4-year-old Alfie. All Alfie wants for Christmas is for his mum, Sarah, to be happy again. Moved by the boy's selfless wish, Nick arranges a date between Sarah and his best friend, Matt. But as Sarah and Alfie become part of all their lives, Nick realises that happiness for Sarah and Matt might mean heartbreak for himself.

This book was such a good read. It is definitely up there with one of the best festive reads I’ve read. I experienced a range of emotions reading this one. I felt like having worked in law, I could relate to some of things that Nick was feeling and could relate to some characters!

The book is humorous, fun and a great escapism.

I found the book hard to put down as it was just full of warmth and page turning

I loved all of the characters and I was so pleased with the ending.

This book is perfect for fans of Beth O Leary and Sarah Morgan