THIS BOOK. I am livid. I went in knowing that this wasn’t a feel-good holiday romance and I still have a lot of THOUGHTS. So do not be thrown by the cutesy cover, this one is not your hallmark December read.

Okay, most of the this book was a 4.5-5 star for me. I liked the chemistry between the characters Josie and Max. I LOVE a story that revolves around fate and chance meeting. So most of the book was pleasurable for me. I even had an idea of what the plot twist was—and I was mostly right. I would have been content with a bittersweet ending if I had liked the way it was executed in those final moments. I LIKE getting my heart smashed to pieces by books—I call myself a book masochist. I like broken characters trying to find love and acceptance despite their brokenness. BUT I felt like that ending was so abrupt and a cop out instead of making these characters have a MOMENT where Max is forced to be honest with Josie. I hated the miscommunication throughout the entire novel, which seemed wholly unlikely to have persisted as long as it did. And THEN the ultimate final miscommunication that ends with a LETTER. I get it is supposed to have a continuity factor from other elements but jeez, this felt cheap. I am sorry, this potentially great story ended up making me so mad haha. I was devouring this book, ready for the heartbreak. I was not ready to be completely unsatisfied by the ending. It felt like and cop out and took the rating down a few notches. The writing was mostly very good. The author is super engaging, I obviously have my issues with the final product, though.

Be warned; this is not the cutesy Christmas romcom you’d expect based on the cover. Yes, part of it takes place over Christmas and it gets you in the right vibes but it’s really a story about loss & grief & heartbreak & discovering who you are and how much stronger you are than you ever knew. It’s a story about family & good and bad timing & being there for those you love. And it was so beautiful and unexpectedly heartbreaking.

My biggest complaint is that there was NO warning for the end. Seriously, the first 95% of this did feel like that cute Christmas romcom and then the carpet gets pulled out form under you and you find yourself sobbing on the couch when all you asked for was an HEA. I honestly don’t even think this should be classified as a romance. BUT, I still really enjoyed it, thought the story was unique, loved the meet cute, and loved spending Christmas in London, summer in New York, and fall in Edinburgh.

You've probably seen this book everywhere on social media if you follow booktok or bookstagram. Full disclosure that you should know going into it: it is not a romance.

Reading it as non-romance just felt like trauma porn for me. Maybe it's the frame of mind I was in, but I couldn't get into it.

Always, in December had me going in thinking I would know how it would end. It took me for a loop. I loved the character development but was really hoping for a different ending.

This book is not a romance! Is there romance involved? Yes. Be prepared however, to bring a box of Kleenex. It's a beautifully written story about a woman who does not celebrate Christmas because she lost her parents around Christmas when she was nine. As an adult, she's somewhat stuck in her career and a little lost personally after her long term boyfriend has an affair with a mutual coworker. Enter Max-a mysterious man who she runs into on her bicycle while mailing an annual Christmas letter to her deceased parents.
Over the course of a year, Max weaves in and out of Josie's life as she learns to take charge, deal with her grief and become the woman that she was meant to be.
Loved the story but trigger warnings for those who are not looking for a tearjerker!
Thanks to NetGalley and Random House-Ballantine for the ARC in return for an honest review-albeit very late.

I have trouble rating this book since it was recommended to me as a romance, but I do not consider it one. If you are looking for a romance to read, I'd skip this one. If you're looking for a heartbreaking read, I'd say maybe? The ending soured the rest of the book for me. While I loved the character development, I felt the pacing was slow for much of the book and I kept waiting for more to happen.
Overall, this book just made me cry and I wasn't really looking for that type of book.

Always, in December is not your typical feel-good holiday read. The author introduces us to a woman, mourning the loss of her parents as a child, and a mystery man...who seemingly comes out of nowhere. While there's possibility in this scenario, the depth of the characters fails to fully come to life. Mystery man, stays just that - mostly a mystery. And our lead? She is indecisive and unsure. I wanted so badly to cheer for both, but found that I was left simply wanting to know the details. Always in December, was a decent read. However, it may leave you longing, and wondering what could've been.

First off thank you NetGally for an ARC of Always, in December by Emily Stone.

If your looking for a Christmas roncom book this might be the book for you. If you want your emotions to be everywhere. This is the book for you. I went in thinking cute Christmas book boy was I wrong. Emily is a beautiful writer and I will continue to keep my eye out for her work!

Do not let this pretty winter cover or title fool you. This is not a lighthearted Christmas read. It was beautiful and I loved the story and all the characters. But I was bawling and the book is so heartbreaking. I wasn’t quite expecting that, as I believe this book was categorized as “romance.” I don’t think it could quite be called that, more of women’s lit or something. There is definitely a lot of depth to the story. We deal with grief, friendship, love and finding yourself. I read this pretty fast, because the story definitely grabs you and you want to see where it goes. I am just saying I wish I would have known that it wasn’t your typical lighthearted, cheesy Christmas romcom. Though, the book did have a few funny moments that had me smiling.

Bottom Line: Read it. With a box of tissues.

**I received a copy of Always, in December from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are of my own.**

A sad, supposedly romantic story for Christmas? I will try anything once. Is this a good book? It is. Is it a romance? Absolutely not.
Authors need to really stop this nonsense of calling a book without a HEA a romance. It is not cute. It is incredibly frustrating.

(Contains spoilers) I’ve always felt like for a book to be classified as a romance it needed a happily ever after ending. I still feel that way after this book, but I’m realizing that sometimes a character can be happy with their journey throughout the book and come out the end as a better person. So isn’t that happily ever after, in some way? This book was well written and honestly made me re-evaluate how I’m living my own life. I hope to make the most of it and do the things that make me, me.

Wow, this is a really sad book. Maybe my perception was wrong, but this book is making the rounds with other cute and sweet Christmas books, and it is not. Every part of this story (Josie's back story, Max's story, everything) was just so sad. I enjoyed seeing Josie find herself, even making realistic mis-steps along the way. But man, Max should have just talked to her.

I think if you go into this story with the right mindset, it would be enjoyable, but this was just not the book I was expecting.

Oh my gosh what a tear jerker. I totally did not see the ending coming so be sure to bring your tissues! I absolutely loved this novel from start to finish. There were a couple of times I thought it got a little slow and drawn out but other than that it was absolutely perfect! Thank you netgalley for my free copy.

This is a Christmas romance, but definitely not a romantic comedy. While it does have a few of the expected moments, it is distinctly difference. But the romance between these two characters is delightful. The leads are well-rounded characters. Josie’s motivations are believable. Max’s are hidden, although it wasn’t that difficult to figure things out. There are the usual mistaken assumptions about each other that frequently stop things from progressing. The ending, while sad, is believable and heartfelt.

There is some sex in the book, though not described in detail. A few curse words.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book also reviewed at https://biblioquacious.blogspot.com/2021/11/cuddle-up-with-holiday-romances.html

3.5 Stars

Always in December by Emily Stone is an emotional story that explores grief and love. While on the surface, this book seems like it is going to have some happy moments, it is definitely one that contains a lot of sadness. I was hoping that the romance would be a little more heartwarming and uplifting, but this one has a very heavy theme that is at times very hard to read. For those hoping for a Christmas romance, this one might not be the holiday book you were hoping for.

Josie is a character that is both relatable and enjoyable to read about. She has a lovely relationship with her grandparents and I found those parts of the story very endearing. It does seem, however, that Josie has been handed the short end of the stick too many times during her life. As hard as she tries, her career and her love life don’t always go in the direction she is hoping for.

❀ ROMANTIC ELEMENTS

There is a romantic element to the book that is similar to One Day in December. The two lovers always seem to find each other again, which is romantic, but at times a bit far-fetched. I think if the book was a bit more upbeat, I would have been willing to overlook this aspect, but it just did not feel very realistic to me.

❀ A LOT OF EMOTION AND SADNESS

Perhaps if Always in December by Emily Stone wasn’t marketed as a holiday novel I might have enjoyed it more than I did. I went into it expecting the love affair to bring happiness to Josie’s life, yet felt a bit disappointed in the way the story unfolded. That being said, it is a well-written novel and it will be enjoyed by others who don’t mind a holiday romance novel with a lot of emotion and sadness.

This book is a hard one for me to rate, because I thought the author had a nice style of writing and I liked the heroine most of the time, but I wasn't expecting something so sad and occasionally listless. It took a while for this book to find its energy, and I'm not sure it ever did fully. There was just a lot of meandering and the parts told from Max's POV were slow and at times uninteresting.

I think I'd definitely try something else by this author, but this isn't an endearing, holiday romance like I assumed it would be. In fact, the story doesn't even completely take place during the holidays. The first part is the only part of the story set during December. (The story might end in December again, but I didn't make it that far.)

This book deals with a lot of hard emotions, so maybe I wasn't in a good headspace to appreciate all the drama and grief going on in this book. To be fair, the back of the book does describe it as devastating and it's up-front about the loss Josie is dealing with after her own tragic Christmas Day years ago. Also, the hero--Max--didn't really hold much appeal for me. He came off as fickle and he never redeemed himself. Maybe he did at the end, but I had to put it down at 73% and DNF. I felt like I gave the story a fair try, but it might not have been for me. That's not to say that someone who wants a sad, play-with-your-feelings holiday-esque romance wouldn't enjoy this. I just want my holiday romances more in the style of something upbeat and heartwarming. You know, 'tis the season and all that.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for a copy of the book. All opinions are my own.

This book has a really good story, but it definitely plays with your emotions.
I experienced, joy, pain, uncertainty, frustration, friendships, love, as we follow these characters through the course of this story.
It starts off with Josie, biking to a mail box to send a letter which she writes every Christmas to the parents that she lost many years ago, at that time of year.
But this year her bike collides with Max, a man who is getting out of a cab and from there, the story becomes the story of these two running into each other through a year of on and off friendship, love and misunderstandings. Thing need to be cleared up, but would that happen
The story really held my interest, as I kept hoping these two, would end up together, but is it in the cards.?
I really liked this authors style of writing and will need to read something else of hers.
I would like to thank NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine for a copy of this book.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book in the beginning, but unfortunately, it went downhill from there and I struggled to finish it.

How should I put this, it's kind of a spoiler. Don't call a book a romance if it doesn't have an HEA. If you go in looking for a light feel-good read but leave it sobbing, what has been accomplished? I didn't sob, I was just disgusted. I outgrew the Lurlene McDaniel bullsh!t as a teen.

Strong opinions but that's how I roll.

DNFed this book almost half way through. Even after going through 46%, I still didn't get the characters or the whole point of the story. I didn't find it too good. Most of it is still a mess in my mind though i reread many parts of it.