Such a sweet story of misunderstanding, love, and redemption. I love thinking about the Plaza Hotel and delighted that our old friend Eloise is prominently displayed here. Nice holiday love story!

A sweet holiday story of heartwarming individuals who have experienced heartbreak and a series of misconceptions only to eventually find that no matter who you are or what you are, love will eventually find its way into your heart, especially if you experience the magic of New York at Christmas. I received an advanced copy of this book from Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press. The comments and review are my honest opinion.

This was such a wonderful read! It gave me warm Christmas feels, and the romance in it was written so well. I was so invested in this story that I could not put it down! Highly recommend!

Christmas at the Plaza in New York is spectacular on its own. Add a case of mistaken identity and you have a great seasonal rom-com. Drags a little at the end but all in all enjoyable

4 stars / This review will be posted at BookwormishMe.com today.


Magical indeed! Sabrina is a struggling writer. With a journalism degree in hand, she is trying to make ends meet with writing assignments. She lives in a small apartment in Queens, but has landed a ghostwriting assignment that is taking her to The Plaza Hotel! For several weeks she will live in the lap of luxury while she writes the story of a famous art dealer’s life.

Ian has been friends with Spencer Braxton since they were fourteen, when Ian was a scholarship student and Spencer, the teenage Lord Braxton, attended Harrows together. Ian has been as close as family to the Braxtons. As an adult he has become Spencer’s personal secretary, which comes with perks and downfalls. Spencer is a romantic. Ian spends an inordinate amount of time fending off women that would love nothing more than to be Lady Braxton. The Braxton family jewels are going on display at the Met in New York City. Ian and Spencer have traveled with the jewels to get the gallery showing prepared. They will be staying at The Plaza as well.

When Sabrina finds herself hungry late her first night at The Plaza, she wanders downstairs to find a snack. She comes across Ian sprawled on a couch with food in front of him. When he wakes, he offers to share the luscious feast of caviar and lobster spread with her. A friendship is struck. As the days go on at The Plaza, they continue to find themselves in each other’s company, which they enjoy immensely. But Ian lives in England and Sabrina in Queens. How will this work out?

What a perfect holiday novel about finding unexpected romance at the holidays. The Plaza is the ideal setting for this romp with its strong holiday traditions. Interwoven with the story of Sabrina and Ian is the story that Sabrina is writing for the art dealer. It is such a wonderful parallel of lives and experiences, taking chances and risks while you can.

Anita Hughes has given us yet another story perfect for a cup of eggnog by the fire. I love her holiday stories especially well, as they’re the romantic fantasy we all wish for during this time of year. Pick this one up to read while you’re enjoying a day at the beach or snuggled under a blanket on the couch.

The perfect Christmas read! Wow, that was such a fun story. When I saw the title of the book, I knew I had to read it. I mean christmas time in New York City! My favorite city in the world! And again, christmas! It was a blast all around.

Enjoyed this book and it felt like I was in a magical city during the holidays. Fall in love with New York and this book at the same time.🥰📚📚👍👏

I couldn’t get invested in this weirdly overcomplicated plot. On the one hand, we have a romance where two people are lying about who they are to the other…which is already a lot to deal with. But then we have the heroine interviewing a man who knew the author of the Eloise books…and we get flashbacks to his story. It just seemed like it wanted to be two different things, and resulting in it being disconcerting and not fleshing out either.

A Magical New York Christmas’ Releasing 28 September
Straight out of Countdown to Christmas on the Hallmark Channel is a story about Grayson (an art dealer), Kay Thompson (think Madeleine), Sabrina (the ghost writer), and Ian (the love interest).

Told in dual POV: Grayson’s memories of years ago when author Kay Thompson lived there, and current day with Sabrina. I enjoyed reading about life at the Plaza! While technically the setting, it comes alive, and morphs into a character. My only negative is both Sabrina and Ian misrepresent each other and rather than come clean they fall further into their lies. It just seems the wrong way to start a relationship.

This is a cute, open door, holiday romance. I would not be surprised to see it in the lineup on Hallmark or Lifetime.
A huge thanks to #stmartinspress and #netgalley for the ARC. Y’all know I can skip right over fall and jump right into my favorite season!

Definitely recommend for a Hallmark movie!
Magical Christmas story with a sweet holiday romance.
Loved the Plaza at Christmas details, especially the Eloise flashbacks♥️
A classic Christmas romance that will get you in the mood for Christmas to get here!
Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read this book for my honest opinion. All opinions expressed are my own.

This is exactly the kind of book you should pick up if you're looking for a perfect fire-side read - it's for the snow day that has you cozied up with a hot drink and slippers! It will definitely prepare you for snow and the holiday season!

This book has sort of a dual timeline - I find these can be hit or miss but it was absolutely a hit here. And I loved both timelines equally. We got to see Grayson as a young butler at the Plaza working for Kay Thompson. And we also get to see Sabrina working as a journalist and getting to know a handsome British visitor named Ian. I loved both of these characters stories. Sabrina was a sweet, relatable woman with hopes and dreams and I loved watching her come into herself as the story progressed. Grayson was also such a great character - it was so much fun reading about his past and learning how he came to be the man he is today.

The book had a full circle moment that had me in happy tears! Overall, super sweet book perfect for the holidays! It's sure to get you in the Christmas mood!

A Magical New York Christmas by Anita Hughes
Contemporary romance. Clean.
Sabrina is interviewing Grayson to be his memoir ghostwriter. He’s paying for her to stay at the Plaza Hotel in New York between Christmas and the New Year. Sabrina meets Ian in one of the restaurants where they share caviar and a little flirtation.
The story follows Ian and Sabrina in current day and Grayson’s live in the early 1960’s.

Sweet and beautifully organized, the story has the relationships building together even though they take place sixty years apart. An adorable surprise with multiple happy connections.

For anyone that has ever stayed at the Plaza Hotel, and anyone who has wanted to stay, this book includes descriptions of the restaurants, the shops, the decorations and the feeling of being pampered in their high-end suites. The area around the Plaza and other famous and close locations plus holiday activities make it a magical interlude with a romantic slant on the city.

Excerpt:
“The elevator doors opened and Sabrina stepped into the lobby. Every time she saw the Christmas tree—tall and fragrant and decorated with colored ornaments—she wanted to pinch herself to prove she wasn’t dreaming. She really was staying at the Plaza Hotel over Christmas.”
Excerpt from A Magical New York Christmas by Anita Hughes.

I received a copy of this from NetGalley. I will buy a copy as well to share with my New York loving friends.

Anita Hughes has a nice touch with light romances in gorgeous settings- in this case the Plaza Hotel at Christmas. It's a dual time line novel, with Grayson, a wealthy older man, telling tales of when he was a butler at the Plaza to Sabrina, who is his ghostwriter. In turn, she meets Ian, who she believes is an Earl (he works for the Earl) and he, given that they are both staying at the hotel, believes she is a wealthy woman (she's not). I liked Grayson's stories more, I must admit, than the romance, which felt trope-y. That's likely because I have fond memories of my own of the Plaza (not like Grayson's but still!). Regardless this is the sort of read that can make you relax. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. It's light and cheery.

This is a well written book that holds your attention. It's a clean Christmas romance that will put you in the Christmas spirit. If you like Hallmark Christmas movies you will love this book.
I received a complimentary copy from St. Martin's Press via NetGalley and was not required to write a review. All opinions expressed are my own.

I really liked all the New York at Christmas is magical and beautiful(or to be more accurate the week between Christmas and New Year's). It's easy to pretend that there isn't any traffic, rude people, trash, etc when there is skating, twinkling lights and elaborate department store windows. This book brings plenty of Christmas feels including three balls and a wedding.

I liked the use of flashbacks as Grayson recounts his early days as a white glove butler at The Plaza as part of writing his memoir with Sabrina. That made sense and was a perfect way to give some history about the hotel, the reputation of its service, and its two most famous residents, Kay Thompson and Eloise. I did think there was way too much of Kay Thompson and not enough of how Grayson became an art dealer to the stars. That was the part I was interested in. Not Andy Williams (though I do love his Christmas album and the song that Kay Thompson gave him)

But the multiple flashbacks that involve characters other than Grayson with Kay Thompson are hard to follow because they aren't set apart with dates, they just pop up as internal dialogue. After awhile the celebrity and royal name drops through the book got tiresome too.

The misunderstanding between the main characters is so flimsy, especially on her side. Sabrina does enough research online to know that Lord Braxton's mother is Lady Violet BUT she never finds out that Lord Braxton's name is Spencer not Ian? That whole farce went on for far too long. So did Sabrina supposing that people will think she's a big time business lady because she's staying at The Plaza for work.

My biggest "wait what?" of this book is why would anyone eat seafood that's been sitting out for hours in the hallway of a hotel with a stranger?? Even if that hotel is The Plaza and the stranger is British.

*I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher and I am required to disclose that in my review in compliance with federal law.

Reading this book was like I was at the fabled Plaza Hotel in NYC. From the lovely description I could picture the Christmas decorations and the the wealthy guests mingling in the Palm Court. Also other NYC Christmas sights are introduced: Rockefeller Center, Radio City Music Hall, etc. There are two plot lines and both are really primary. First there is Ian and Sabrina and the other has to do with Grayson the wealthy art dealer and former Plaza butler. I found the story of Grayson the more interesting. The Ian Sabrina romance would have developed quicker if they had just been honest with each other. Ian's job of keeping Lord Spencer in line got tiresome after a awhile. There is an abundance of Christmasy feeling and it will put the reader in a holiday mood.

“There was nothing like the Plaza Hotel in New York Christmas”

This book follows the story of Sabrina, a journalist who has been struggling lately and recently got a job as a ghost writer for an art dealer named Grayson Westcott. Grayson arranges for Sabrina to stay at the plaza for the Christmas week while she works on his book. One night she meets a handsome Brit named Ian and her life takes a very unexpected and almost magical turn.

This books was super adorable! It was a little cheesy at times but what Christmas book isn’t? I really liked the flashbacks while Grayson was telling his story and it was very fun have Eloise and her creator Kay Thompson as a part of the book. Ian and Sabrina’s romance was a tad insta-love but that’s kinda of the theme of any Christmas book (or Hallmark movie). The little surprise twist at the end was adorable.
My only complaint is the misunderstanding between Sabrina and Ian was super drawn out and at times took away from the story. Because of that it kind of got repetitive towards the end of the book.
Overall,I really enjoyed this book and would highly recommend it if you need a cute Christmas read!

Thank you so much to the publisher & netgalley for sending me a copy of this book!

*I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

Sabrina can’t believe her luck, when she accepts a job ghostwriting for famous art dealer, Grayson Westcott. This also includes room and board at the famous Plaza Hotel in New York City. One of her favorite books to read, has always been the Eloise stories that take place at the hotel. The most amazing part is that when Grayson started out, he was a butler at The Plaza for non other than the author of the Eloise books, Kay Thompson. Sitting at the hotel bar one evening, she meets a handsome British man, Ian Wentworth. He assumes she’s wealthy, and Sabrina assumes he’s British aristocracy. Problem is they are both pretending to be something else.

Ian is totally mesmerized with the beautiful woman he’s just met. Unfortunately, she thinks he’s also wealthy. Well, he’s only in town for a few more days and Sabrina will never know he’s the assistant to the wealthy aristocrat. As they get to know each other and get closer, it bothers Ian about his lie to Sabrina.

How will this romance unfold, once the truth comes out? This was a sweet romance in the magic of Christmas at the Plaza Hotel.

A solid, clean Christmas romance for readers who want something to put them into the holiday mood. The magic of Christmas in NYC comes to life within the pages. With assumptions on both parts of what and who the other person is continues to grow as the innocent deceptions are not cleared up. This novel is told in multiple POVs and dual timeframes. A Magical New York Christmas tells the love story of two couples. One in the past and the other in the present. What I really enjoyed is how they surprisingly intersected. If you’re a fan of the Eloise storybooks, you will enjoy a look into the life of the author. The writing, characters, plot and setting are all wonderful. If you enjoy Hallmark Christmas Romance movies, this is for you.

If you like light romance with unrealistic characters and just want to enjoy the Christmas season this might be the book for you. Sabina Post is 26, the daughter of college professors, and is trying to make it as a writer. She is hired to be the ghost writer for a memoir of Grayson Westcott, a wealthy international art dealer. For seven days she gets a suite at the Plaza Hotel in NYC to be able to meet daily with Grayson to hear his life details. On the first night she meets a handsome Englishman that she believes is British peer, Lord Spencer Braxton. He isn't. He is Braxton's personal secretary. So in addition to Sabina's romance we get the flash back story of Grayson's time as a butler at the Plaza, his friend ship with Kay Thompson (the author of Eloise) and a possible romance.

This is one of those books that you know is magically going to come together but there were a few things I didn't like. The author continually name drops. For example Lord Braxton gets invites to Christmas and tea with various royal family members. Westcott mentions selling paintings to Miley Cyrus and other celebrities. It seems over the top. I actually enjoyed getting Kay Thompson's story, some of which I knew and other parts that matched info I learned on Wikipedia. I strongly disliked how long Ian lies about who he is when he knows that she believes him to be a Lord. They spend a lot of time together dining, walking, skating when he could have come clean. And she forgives him too easily. I also found the real Lord and his various romantic escapades more annoying than funny or charming.

I enjoyed the story but it had too many negatives for me to rate it higher. The book is clean for language and steaminess. It could almost be a Hallmark Holiday Movie. Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an ARC ebook in exchange for an honest review.