Sadie and Max are rival contestants on a singing show. Their dynamic together plays well for the audience and forces the two to join forces as partners, musically and romantically. While the romance is fake, the music is anything but.
I started this as an advanced copy prior to publishing but wasn't really in the mood for it so I put it on pause... for a year. OOPS! But ultimately, it didn't work for me despite the delay. I liked the premise (rivals to lovers at Christmas) and the cover is so cozy and pretty but the execution was a little lackluster. The miscommunication was high and I wanted more depth out of their character arcs. Plus Max's stringing her along was overplayed and made me hate him a little bit.
Thank you to Putnam and Netgalley for the advanced copy. All thoughts are my own.

Super cute Christmas romance with all the Christmas vibes and a singing show. With fake dating and humor.

Book Review: All I Want for Christmas by Maggie Knox – A Working Mom's Take

As a busy working mom, I appreciate a cozy holiday read, and All I Want for Christmas by Maggie Knox was just what I needed. This charming story follows two estranged siblings who team up to compete in a holiday music competition, rekindling their bond and exploring what really matters during the festive season.

The mix of family dynamics, romance, and holiday cheer made for a heartwarming escape. Knox captures the spirit of Christmas while weaving in themes of love, forgiveness, and the joy of family, which hit home for me as I brought home a newborn during the holiday season.

Final Thoughts: All I Want for Christmas is a delightful, feel-good read perfect for moms looking for a light, uplifting holiday story. It's an enjoyable reminder that the best gifts often come from the heart!

I really enjoyed The Holiday Swap by this author duo, so I was very excited about All I Want for Christmas. Besides it being a holiday themed book (which will make me pick up a book immediately), it has one of my favorite tropes: fake dating. Also adding a little rivalry to the mix? Yes, please! That's everything I ask for in a book.

Sadie and Max both want to win Starmaker for different reasons, but because of that they're willing to do anything to win. So when the chemistry between the two attracts a lot of fan attention, they're offered a guaranteed spot in the finale if they pretend to date. This is one of my favorite tropes and I loved seeing them have to work together while not really liking the other. The little moments where they started showing each other something about themselves were so sweet and put a smile on my face. Besides the developing romance, I loved the side stories with Sadie's family and Max's as well. Both of the have different things to work through and I even shed a few tears during some of these moments.

That being said, I expected to love this one more than I did. Miscommunication is one of my least favorite tropes and so many things would've been resolved if Max and Sadie just sat down and talked. It frustrated me so much! Also, I was expecting this book to be more festive with Christmas in the title. The only aspects that fit this were the decorations during the show and when Max and Sadie were at the cabin together.

All in all, I did enjoy my time with these characters, but I was expecting to love it a lot more.

My review will also be posted on https://thebookdutchesses.com on August 17th.

All I Want for Christmas by Maggie Knox is a perfect fit for readers who adore lighthearted, emotional, and romantic stories, especially those who enjoy country music, fake dating, and enemies-to-lovers tropes, and are looking for a heartwarming holiday romance that will leave them feeling merry and bright.

I had high hopes for "All I Want for Christmas" by Maggie Knox, especially since I loved their previous novel, "The Holiday Swap." Initially, I enjoyed the country music theme, the singing competition, Sadie’s gran, the Nashville setting, and the chemistry between Sadie and Max. However, the story's turn into a #MeToo narrative felt out of place for a romcom, and the miscommunication theme was frustrating.

If you love music, that aspect will stand out for you. The authors' discussion at the back of the book gave me a better understanding of their intentions, especially about the pressures faced by celebrities. The audiobook, narrated by Sophie Amoss and Sean Patrick Hopkins, was excellent, though I wish it had included music.

While this book wasn’t exactly what I expected, I still recommend it to the right reader. Despite my mixed feelings, I’ll continue reading future novels from these authors.

3.5 Stars - Another sweet story by Maggie Knox. The perfect book to set the tone of the season, and to get you into the holiday spirit! If Christmas Rom-Coms are your jam, this one's for you!

I liked this book. It had a lot of my favorite things, country music, Nashville and Christmas. I marked it five stars but would probably adjust it to 4 after reading many other romances since that have stuck with me more. I did enjoy this book and would recommend it to someone who wants a light hearted Christmas themed book.

✨ PRINCEMAN REVIEW ✨

📝 Sadie and Max are chosen to be contestants on the singing show-Star maker. Both think they've finally made their break, but instead, they're paired up for a duet. The world thinks they have romantic onstage chemistry, so, these two remain on and fake a relationship in order to reach their dreams. The only issue...these two can't stand each other.

What I 🤍:
🎵 Reality Singing TV Show
💕 Fake Dating
🥊 Enemies to Lovers
2️⃣ Duel POV
🤠 Nashville Scene

Anything set in Nashville...sign me up! These two singers pairing up was so adorable, and it reminded me of when I am watching reality shows hoping that the stars are actually dating! I felt this story was cozy and cute, although their miscommunication is what knocked it down a star for me. I felt it was over the top at times.

Overall, this story is perfect for those wanting a cute, feel good Christmas romance for those who love American Idol.

A sweet, enjoyable holiday romcom from one of my favorite duos, Karma Brown and Marissa Stapley. It's just sweet enough, just cute enough, to take your mind off other things and enjoy some romance for awhile.

Love a good Christmas romance book and Maggie Knox delivers just that with this one. I’m a sucker for “fake dating” and a big “The Voice” fan and these are the vibes I got from this book. Excellent Christmas romance!

I've had success with a Maggie Knox Christmas novel in the past so I was really hoping to enjoy this, but it did not capture my attention unfortunately. I was hoping for a more Christmas-ey feel, but it felt more like watching The Voice and I wasn't invested in watching these characters fall for each other.

Thank you to the publisher for granting me access to an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I am not huge into insta love for some reason so this trope wasn’t for me. However it was definitely the cheesy light hearted romance you would see on hallmark this time of year, which is exactly why I wanted to read it! I thought it would be more of a slow burn trope, but as soon as the main characters were stuck in a traumatic situation for 24 hours and fell in love, that was it. This had a lot going on and I felt like there was more going on in certain situations that didn’t need to be there.. while I wanted more elaboration on other pieces of the book and didn’t get it.

Overall, it was light hearted, & the main character had a charm that made me enjoy this over the holidays.

The miscommunication trope in this book went too far. Some of it was absolutely non sensical. Its possible i was in a bad mood when I read this one, becuase I adored the holiday swap and this wasn't that much different, style wise, but I could not get into the characters.

This was a cute feel-good read, but I didn't feel like it really strongly connected to Christmas, which is initially why I chose to read it in December. However, I really enjoy books from this duo and will definitely recommend it to others.

Reality star contestants Sadie and Max are fighting for their shot at a record deal in Nashville when they suddenly find themselves fake-dating as a PR stunt to keep them in the public eye. But, it's a Christmas book. And you know what happens at Christmas....

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for the chance to read “All I Want For Christmas.” Unfortunately, not every book is for every reader and this book did not work for me. The plot moved a little too slowly for me. Overall, it would be better for readers of sweet romance or lovers of Hallmark Christmas movies.

This book is wonderful! So much better than I expected! Sweet, warm, emotional Christmas read. Some language, fade to black romance, spice level 🌶️🌶️. Sadie and Max’s story feels so authentic, it covers about 2 years. Themes of family, grief, anxiety, self worth. Tropes include Fake relationship, second chance, reality show, and celebrity

This book was okay. I was overwhelmed with the heaps of miscommunication, and I think there were some unnecessary characters and plot lines (Cruz’s catfish restaurant). I enjoyed the country singing theme woven in but not enough to bump it up to 3 stars.

Unfortunately, I wouldn’t recommend if asked for a book to read during the holidays.

Max and Sadie are supposed to be a duo, both on and off stage, but they can’t stand each other. A fake dating trope, set on a Nashville reality singing competition, (think The Voice), there are miscommunications and a cute dog, but I was really hoping for more of a Christmasy vibe.