DNF @ 40%. I'll be honest I didn't enjoy the first 40% of this book. I didn't think Sadie nor Max were fleshed out characters for being nearly halfway through this book. I understand I would get more from them had I continued but I didn't get enough to want to continue.

Towards the end of my reading, Sadie and Max are catching real feelings even though we've really only seen them interact like twice. The entire tv show singing competition was done so poorly. It made no sense. It began and ended within 40% of this book and we got to see almost none of it. They kept talking about all the time they were spending together but again, we really didn't see it so it was just taking their word that they were falling in love.

The thing that got me to put this book down for good was the jump forward in time. I guess I didn't understand that it would do that from the "last Christmas" at the beginning of the book. Getting a time jump where they are still fake dating but haven't really seen each other in nearly a year, I just really don't care.

Nothing in the 40% of this book that I read makes me care enough about these characters or this story to continue the rest of it so for that, this book is a DNF from me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was heartwarming and I expected nothing less 🥰 A lovely Christmas🎄 romance that contains many things I love in a book : dual POV, fake relationship, and enemies to lovers.
Sadie and Max’s chemistry was so sweet. I wasn’t sure about the 🎤 music aspect of it in the beginning but it turned out fine. I did not expect the dramatic change though. The topic got heavy and dives into sensitive issues. I was not happy on the decisions the main characters made but overall it’s an adorable book to snuggle up with 🥰

It’s out tomorrow! (10/4) Start stacking up on your holiday reads or read it right away. It’s never too early for a festive story 🎄

Rating: 2.5/5

Thank you to NetGalley, Putnam and PRH audio for access to this advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

I wanted to love this book, it had all the makings of a cozy holiday romance but I was very disappointed.

We never actually saw the MCs fall in love or really have any significant interaction that was more positive than negative. SO MUCH MISCOMMUNICATION, I was ready to pull out my hair at their level of immaturity. For a holiday romance, we were really missing any Christmas spirit. Christmas was an afterthought to the competition, which feels like a case of mis-marketing. .

This gave me holiday goodness, made me want to go to Nashville and sing karaoke, and gave me the feels. I enjoyed the story overall I just didn’t see any relationship development and wished I had so that I could have watched the two fall in love

I remember when American Idol first came out 20(!) years ago. I watched the finale in a college dorm room with friends from high school as they were still the only people I knew. This book brought me back to that time. All I Want for Christmas is about two people in a country version of that show who find that their chemistry on stage can propel them to the finale. Plus, if they throw in a little showmance/PR couple action, they will get even more attention.

This enemies to lovers story was sweet and filled with the miscommunications that keep the main couple on their toes until the end. The descriptions of Sadie and Max singing together made me think of one of my favorite now-defunct bands, The Civil Wars, which led to the ambiance for me. When I picture "Christmas romance", my mind goes to the Hallmark channel, but this had more grit and substance to it which made me devour it.

I was really looking forward to this book after reading and really enjoying their debut novel Holiday Swap last year. Overall I think I enjoyed Holiday Swap more but this one was cute too.

Synopsis: Sadie and Max are both selected as contestants on a reality singing show in Nashville. When paired together for duet week fans fall in love with their on stage chemistry....but plot twist....they can't stand each other. They agree to fake their relationship to give the views...but will they get exposed....will feelings change?

Read if you like....
- Enemies to love,
- Grumpy vs. Sunshine
- Fake Dating
- Reality TV

This book was cute - but I definitely feel like the Holiday Swap had more of the cozy Christmas vibes....and this one was missing that.

Star Rating - 3.5 stars

Read if you like: Dual POV, fake relationship, pop culture references, closed door romance, reality shows, insta love

When Sadie and Max are selected as contestants on the famed reality singing show Starmaker, each thinks they’ve finally gotten their big Nashville break. That is until they’re paired up for duet week and stun the world with their romantic onstage chemistry.

With fans going wild for them the network demands that they remain a duo on and offstage, or exit the competition. Faking a relationship until their final performance in the Starmaker holiday special shouldn't be too hard, except Sadie and Max can’t stand each other.

I loved Maggie's previous book and this one was good too. The characters were developed well. Max is the son of a country superstar and Sadie is a singing powerhouse. They work well together although they didn't like each other. You can feel the chemistry in the book. I'll admit Max did have to grow on me a bit. He was a bit abrasive at first. I'm also not a fan of miscommunication in books. Just talk. 🤣 I loved the banter but they needed to communicate more. Overall the book had a cozy feel. This is a great Christmas read. I highly recommend it!

Big thank you to NetGalley, to the author, and Penguin Putnam for the gifted e-book!

When I heard Maggie Knox was coming out with another holiday book, I requested this right away. I thought The Holiday Swap was adorable last year and All I Want for Christmas was the same. And I know what you’re thinking. “If you thought it was adorable, why the 3 star rating?” In general, holiday stories are typically around this rating for me. I enjoy them but I don’t find myself loving them and raving about them. They are reads meant to get, or keep, me in the holiday spirit. They give me all the Christmas feelings. That’s what All I Want for Christmas did. It got me in to Christmas mode and early.

The book is about two characters competing on a reality singing competition for country singers. Think American Idol in Nashville, where the story takes place. This is a classic fake dating story with a Christmas twist. I truly enjoyed watching the relationship between the two characters grow, as well as watching them develop as characters. I found this a quick, easy read that you should be adding to your Christmas TBR, especially if you loved The Holiday Swap.

I found this a very sweet read and really enjoyed the singing contest aspect of this story. These two had a lot of missed opportunities and seemed to keep missing the timing of being together. I was very happy with the ending.

I was so excited to receive this one! I love Maggie Knox’s last Christmas book. There’s just something about a good holiday story!

All I Want for Christmas (𝐞𝐀𝐑𝐂) — 4 ⭐️

𝐏𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: Tuesday, October 4th

𝐁𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐟 𝐃𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: Sadie and Max both think they’ve finally gotten their big break after being selected for a singing show in Nashville. Soon afterwards, they are paired up for “duo week,” and the internet blows up for #Saxie, so the producers change their contracts - continue as Saxie or one contestant has to leave. Forced into fake dating, they try to work together despite their dislike for one another, but can they convince the world that they’re truly together by the Christmas finale? Or will it blow up in their faces?

𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰: Maggie Knox does it again with another adorable Christmas tale! There were plenty of moments while reading that I wanted to shake the characters and tell them to just communicate, but the miscommunication seemed realistic.

My only complaint was the “instant love” factor, but otherwise, it was very cutesy and made my heart happy. I would recommend this book to anyone wanting a light-hearted Christmas book to read by the fire with a cup of hot chocolate!

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞𝐝 —
👩‍🏫 Ambitious MC
🥸 Fake Dating
📺 Real-Life Pop Culture References
🥰 Feel-Good Story
🔐 Closed Door Romance (Mostly)
🏃‍♀️ Fast Paced
✌️Second Chance Romance

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐢𝐟 —
🎤 You enjoy reality tv shows involving singing
👯‍♀️ You like dressing up in costumes
❄️ You’d like to spend winter in a cabin
👵 You’re bffs with your grandma
💭 You chase your dreams

𝐓𝐖: death, alcoholism, sexual harrassment

Thank you, NetGalley, G.P. Putnam's Sons, and Penguin Group Putnam, for providing me an eARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I am a sucker for the fake dating trope and throw in a country music reality show - I am in! Sadie and Max had a terrific vibe and chemistry that would just not go away. I was expecting a sweet story that ended with them winning the competition, but the story continued far beyond that.

The push and pull relationship of Sadie and Max was frustrating. And I so wanted more story of them together, but it felt like they were always running from each other.

The emotional elements of the story totally worked, I loved how they were both dealing with tough family issues, but again, I wished they talked to each other about it.

There was so much to like about this book, but I think it just tried to span too much time with the huge time jumps and lack of communication.

Two country singers.
One singing competition.
One fake romance.
What could go wrong?

Max and Sadie are both competing on Nashville’s country reality singing show, Starmaker. They both are great artists, everyone can see it, especially the judges and the producers of the show. To boost the show ratings, the producers want them to pretend to date until the final show performance.

The final show is the big Christmas extravaganza show where they need to write and perform a Christmas duet song.

I enjoyed the dual point of view. It was great to see how both Max and Sadie were feeling throughout the story. I loved watching them from going frenemies to lovers. You really saw how they both truly cared for one another. My favorite part was when Max took care of Sadie when she got sick. It was so sweet.

I also loved watching both characters grow throughout the story. It was great to see them both overcome some personal hard times in their lives.

This was such a cute heartwarming story that had some emotional parts but overall you will be smiling in the end.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Putnam for an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

enjoyed The Holiday Swap from the author last year and happily looked forward to her new book. This one didn’t work for me as much especially as I found the male MC hardly likable. Sadie and Max are contestants on a Nashville based reality singing show. Max is the son of a country superstar and has already had an album fail. So this is a chance for him to reboot his career. Sadie has a magical voice and is hoping the show leads to her big break. But the show is more fake, fixed and scripted. After performing one song together that goes viral the show makes them a fake couple.

Sadie is sweet and has some anxiety that soothed by encouragement from her grandmother who loves and supports her. Max is a grump, who is famous for being son of someone famous. Miscommunication is a big thing in this book and it stretches annoying through the entire book. Sadie literally has to run off to see her grandmother who is dying and he has a tizzy that she doesn’t stay and talk to him. And when I say a tizzy I mean he ghosts her for a full year not responding to over 200 messages and apologies. So not a fan of his. And later when he should trust her he breaks up with her over a photo because “pictures can’t lie”. How can he say that when they began as a fake relationship with fake photos, fake everything. It is beyond ridiculous. A sleazy producer is added to the mix which isn’t surprising. Sadie manages that one on her own. So it left me to wonder why she wants or needs a relationship with Max at all.

To summarize I didn’t buy the relationship which sort of tanks the book. Max is supposed to be dealing with his grief but it is hard to empathize with him when he has been literally handed everything his whole life. He does nothing redeeming. I have a friend who, when she fights with her spouse he may be 97 percent wrong and when she apologizes for her 3 percent, he sees it as they are both equally wrong and all is forgiven. It made me crazy the books' ending works that way. Max wrongs were way bigger and there should have been groveling and offering grand gestures.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for an eARC in exchange for an honest review. (2.5 stars)

The Holiday Swap was one of my favorite reads of last year! I was so so excited to read this author duo's second book!

This is a great fake relationship book. I don't think I've seen this kind of set up. And if you like reality tv and country music - you will love! The country music vibes reminded me of Just Another Love Song.

Max was not a big book crush because he never stuck around to let anyone, especially Sadie explain. He jumped to conclusions so many times and it drove me crazy. To a certain extent, the terrible communication took away from the progress of their relationships. I think we needed some more good/sweet moments in the relationship to even everything out.

Sadie could also be a little flighty in the relationship, but I didn't think she was quite as insecure as Max. Honestly, towards the end I thought Sadie didn't need to deal with Max's crap lol.

This book definitely got me excited for the holidays! (Even if it might be early for xmas.)

I'm giving this one 4 stars because I was happy with the HEA and epilogue. It won me over in the end.

I read The Holiday Swap last year and really enjoyed it so when I saw that Maggie Knox was coming out with another book this year, I instantly put it on my tbr list. I didn’t enjoy this one as much as The Holiday Swap but it was still a good read.

We follow Max and Sadie who are both contestants on Starmaker which is a reality singing show. Neither of them like each other so when they are paired to sing a duet together, they aren’t very happy about it. The audience and crew on the other hand are beyond enthused with the outcome. When the producer and their agents insist on them pursuing a fake relationship, they slowly realize their feelings towards one another may be changing.

With this being a Christmas book, I was expecting a lot more Christmasy things but there really wasn’t that much. I enjoyed the atmosphere of the story though and Patsy Canine was adorable. I thought it was super cute that Max knitted a sweater for her. I loved the enemies to lovers aspect and the fake dating troupe.

Overall, I did enjoy my time reading this. I just wish there was a little bit more of a Christmasy feel. If you’re looking for a super cute and fluffy Christmas romance then make sure to pick this one up on October 4th!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Penguin Group for the arc!

I need a Christmas book from the duo that is Maggie Knox every year 😍 I loved this one! I had the normal frustrations of romance novels about all their problems being due to a lack of communication but it's pretty expected. I loved the build up to Sadie and Max getting together. I loved the music competition. Overall it made a really great Christmas themed romance!

This would be my go-to pick for a swoony Christmasy romance that has all the makings of a holiday hit. If you like fake-dating tropes with a side of music royalty and reality tv, then All I Want for Christmas may be a favorite new holiday book for you. As a Tennessean myself, I loved all of the Nashville references and connections Sadie and Max had to Music Lane and the Country Music Industry.
Selected to pair up as duo #Saxie after their immediate stage chemistry on the reality show Starmaker, Sadie and Max begin fake dating to hope and win the hearts of America and a chance of making a record with producer Cruz McNeil. Of course with any fake-dating scenario there’s always the underlying tension between what emotions are real and what is fake and these two characters put the reader through the ringer of the “do they don’t they” like each other dance. What Sadie and Max struggle with I imagine, is what any famous or semi-recognizable person might deal with and that is anonymity and having private time that doesn’t involve the rest of the world. I think because of this, there is a STRONG miscommunication thread that runs throughout the book and might deter a few readers. Max and Sadie can sometimes seem immature towards each other’s actions and I hoped they would give each other the benefit of the doubt when various slip up’s occurred. The peak of the book takes place in Banff where Sadie and Max are just allowed to be—no personalities or expectations exist in this magic bubble and here they can be themselves. I wanted this part of the book to carry the story until the end because it was top tier romance writing. But of course even characters can’t stay in their love bubble indefinitely, so will Max and Sadie be able to stay themselves once they get back to Nashville? Will their secrets be too much to keep them together? A big thanks to Penguin Group Putnam and NetGalley for an eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Sadie Hunter wants to sing at the Grand Ol Opry in Nashville and she's hoping that can happen by performing on a reality show called Starmaker. For Duet week she is teamed up with Max Brody. She's unhappy because they've met before and he wasn't pleasant. But their on-stage chemistry is on fire and their agents come up with the idea of fake dating to garner more ratings.

This was such a fun book and I loved Sadie's Gran. Sadie & Max are really bad at communicating. It is pretty infuriating throughout the book. I love books that make me laugh out loud and cry and this one did just that. A wonderful holiday read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam Books for this advanced copy of All I Want for Christmas by Maggie Knox.

Sadie and Max are contestants on a televised country singing contest (think American Idol for country music), competitors forced to work together. This is an enemies-to-lovers, fake relationship, grumpy / sunshine style book. All of which I am a fan of! However, there is also a lot of miscommunication. And if that drives you a bit crazy, like me, this book may leave you a little frustrated.

For me, the beginning of the book felt disconnected. Almost like we were rushed into the plot. A few times I felt like we were jumping from one thing to the next, without enough depth or context to the story. Luckily, I do feel like the book eventually found its rhythm.

I’m glad I didn’t stop reading at the beginning, because I eventually become more invested in the characters and enjoyed the ending of the book. However, if I’m comparing this book to Maggie Knox’s The Holiday Swap, this one missed the mark a bit.

I didn’t love this book but didn’t hate it either! And the second half definitely flowed better than the first. If you’re looking for an easy read and enjoy enemies to lovers, dual pov, singing contests, fake relationship, miscommunication, grumpy / sunshine, closed-door romance, with a sprinkle of holiday, you’ll likely enjoy this book.