This book was adorable and everything I wanted to read this holiday season. I mean country music competition with Christmas music and a snowy locale (for part of it). Yes, it was everything!!!!

Okay here are the things I LOVED:

- Nashville love!
- Centered around a country music competition
- the emotional development of the characters & their grief
- CANADA!!
- fake dating!!
- boy who loves his dog more than anyone and will kill you if you feed the dog anything that’s not ethically made or gluten free

Things I didn’t love too much:
- The hatred between each other at the beginning was not well developed and incredibly rushed. It didn’t make a lot of sense other than the fact that they were competing against each other.
- It was super instant-love for me. By 20% in they are already heads over heels in love with each other. I would’ve liked it to be a slower paced love story. Really embrace the enemies to fake dating to lovers.
- There were just some simple editing that could have been fixed? It just felt rushed at times.
- Holiday romances pretty much never get five stars for me because it always feels so forced and a little cheesy

A huge Thank You to The author, The publisher and NetGalley for providing the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.
Cute. It seems like my type of book.

𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘐 𝘞𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘍𝘰𝘳 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘮𝘢𝘴 begins with Max and Sadie singing together on a reality TV contest show. With the fans mesmerized by their sizzling chemistry, the production wants them to remain a duo for the rest of the duration. But with their entire careers on the line do they really have an option? Despite their hatred for each other?

- ~ -

What this book really gave me is travel lust and now I really want to experience the snow in Banff during the holiday season. What magic!

I'll be honest Sadie and Max had some chemistry but they fought too too much. Like alnost every chapter they fought then reconciled.
That aspect was exhausting.

But the parts when they were in Max's cabin in Alberta away from the troubles awaiting them in Nashville and simply relaxing, enjoying themselves, lost in each other's arms? Yeah, those parts relaxed me too.

Overall: The plot was well though out but the execution was spotty.

- ~ -

3.26 / 5✩

𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘗𝘶𝘵𝘯𝘢𝘮 𝘉𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘴 & 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘨𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘱𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬, 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘐 𝘷𝘰𝘭𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 & 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸𝘦𝘥. 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘮𝘺 𝘰𝘸𝘯.

I would give this one a solid 3.5 stars. I enjoyed the characters, but the setting (Nashville) and having the story centered around a country music competition wasn't as likeable for me. Sadie and Max are rival contestants on a reality music competition show. When they are paired up as a duet and the audience goes crazy for them calling them #Saxie, the producers of the show decide they need to stay a couple and even pretend they are now dating.

The book is mainly broken up into 2 parts - Last Christmas and This Christmas. I originally thought this book was a holiday book and wasn't really in the mood to read it September but gave it a go anyway. It was NOT a holiday book, nor did it revolve around the Christmas holiday... it was just the "main" performance was on a holiday show around that time.

Overall, it was a heartwarming read about 2 grieving people coming together even though they are a little bit immature, stubborn, and not good at communicating.

Cute little romcom. Love the faking dating tropes, but this just wasn't really for me. This was like a Hallmark movie with lots of miscommunication that didn't need to be. But overall it was enjoyable.

Thank you Netgalley and Penguin Group Putnam for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

All I Want for Christmas by Maggie Knox is a holiday romance novel involving two singers, Sadie & Max, that meet on a reality singing competition show & get paired up for show success & end up fake dating thanks to the show. They struggle to deny their innate chemistry whilst also dealing with the difficulties of the music business & the realities of being in the spotlight but still having the hardships of being human.
Something that frustrates me in romance novels like this one is the miscommunication parts. Occasionally, it makes sense but when it happens multiple times in similar mattesr, it’s just not my favorite thing in romance novels. There was so much miscommunication. & even just lack of any communication that I got extremely frustrated.
I love the bones of this book, including the singing completion, the fake dating, the holiday atmospheric vibes & the isolated, cozy cabin. However, the immature behaviors & horrible communication & lack of listening made it a 3 star read for me.
I did enjoy how everything came together. & I loved the ambiance of the holiday season throughout. This book made me crave snow falling, Christmas carols, holiday decor & gingerbread cookies so I always appreciate that.
All I Want For Christmas by Maggie Knox comes out October 4, 2022!

Massive thanks to NetGalley & Penguin Group Putnam for giving me the opportunity to read an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Trigger warnings: This book mentions &/or contains death of a parent, cancer, death of grandparent sexual harassment & sex

I think this book had a lot of potential. The premise was good! A small town girl finally getting her shot only to get stuck with the seasoned singer who has a super star as a dad. And there was an opportunity to make a real second chance romance, which I would have loved. But they never really got their first chance? I really liked the good parts of both characters, but it seemed like their flaws were more on display which made it hard to like them.

At the beginning I had a really hard time connecting with Max and Sadie, and maybe it was because they weren’t connecting? They were starting to have feeling for each other, complicated feelings as they both said, but it didn’t feel like they had much chemistry outside of their singing. Max has so much hidden, and it wasn’t until he told Sadie he did remember meeting her for the first time years ago and how much his life changed that day,that I sort of believed they could actually sort of like each other? And even then it wasn’t perfect, it was just them finally talking to each other about real things.

I DID like when they were happy and everything was going right (for the BRIEF moments it happened and if I ignored the rest???) They had deep feelings for each other and they wanted things to work, and they were happy being together; they made each other feel whole again. They both had some really sweet things but then. I mean Max and his love for his dog, and his knitting, the cabin, and his guitar. And Sadie had worked so hard to get to where she was, her gran was her biggest supporter and their relationship was so sweet.

But the miscommunication was too much for me. And they flip flopped WAY too much. They never gave themselves a real chance. At the first sign of a POTENTIAL struggle they ran. The story was so miscommunication heavy. And I just didn’t like it. So many stores have it and it usually is fine, it usually works in a story. Maybe it was because I was struggling to see a connection between the characters so then the miscommunication REALLY didn’t make sense to me. They had feelings for each other and literally only said it once otherwise it was just them being mad at the other for stupid reasons?

What I did like was seeing how both Max and Sadie handled their grief. Sadie just shut down and avoided everyone for a year. Even her mother, and her mother kind of did the same too. She didn’t want to push Sadie, but she also didn’t really want to deal with it either. And Max just assumed he’d never be happy again, and that’s kind of what he made for himself. They did a good job of showing how different people handle grief.

Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Putnam Group for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐
Steam Level: 🔥🔥 (2.5- mildly descriptive fade to black sex scene)
Trigger Warning: sexual harassment, death of a loved one

Max Brody wants to get out of the shadow of his famous father and make it big on his own as a singer. Sadie Hunter is tired of playing open mic nights and is hoping to get her big break in Nashville. When they both meet while competing on Starmaker- a country music singing competition- their off the charts chemistry on stage has their managers encouraging them to start fake dating and continuing the competition as a duo. But Max has always wanted the spotlight for himself, and Sadie is hoping to get her own solo deal. Meanwhile, the chemistry they start to feel for one another isn't making things any easier. Could these two be destined for stardom together or will their fake relationship crash and burn?

I really wanted to like this book- it honestly had so much potential. But the parts I liked best- the Starmaker competition, fake dating, and Max's snowy retreat in Canada- were such small parts of the story. Instead the focus was on the constant drama and miscommunication between Max and Sadie. These two were so hot and cold with each other, breaking up and making up repeatedly throughout the book. And I felt like the chemistry was really hard to feel until the second half. I think that if the writers had just fleshed out the Starmaker competition and fake dating better, then this could have had five star potential. Unfortunately it just missed the mark for me.

Thank you Netgalley and Penguin Group Putnam for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

If you are in the mood for a cozy Hallmark movie-esque Christmas read, this is definitely the book for you. Really enjoyable.

I think this book has a lot of potential and for me, it was just fine. The miscommunication trope is not my favorite and I feel like it has to be handled REALLY well, and I'm not sure if this did. It had fake dating which I liked, a little bit of tension, and 'celebrity' romance. The storyline was unique in that I have never read a book that had to do with any sort of competition, let alone a singing one, so that was fun.

I do think this one was good, just not for me.

Max and Sadie are two competitors on a country singing reality tv show, and after an explosive duet, the pair is teamed up for the remainder of the competition as producers try to boost ratings. The duo is trending as #Saxie as the world watches the off the charts chemistry unfold between them on stage.

I devoured this book in a day! I loved the holiday charm, the fun Nashville setting, and well developed characters. The two MCs are likable, while at the same time infuriating with how much miscommunication happens between them throughout the story line. I really enjoyed several of the supporting characters as well. Overall a really sweet enemies to lovers/ fake romance type story! Can’t wait to check out more from Maggie Knox after this story!

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for my ARC in exchange for my honest feedback!

I really enjoyed last year’s The Holiday Swap by writing duo Maggie Knox, so I was very excited to receive the ARC for their second Christmas themed book. It did not disappoint! All I Want For Christmas is a thoroughly enjoyable, compulsively readable book with some major holiday vibes.

Sadie and Max are two of the competitors on the country singing reality TV show Starmaker. After they are paired up for the duration of the competition due to their instant chemistry, they begin a fake romance with their very own couple name, Saxie. There is a ton of miscommunication along the way to their HEA. Both characters are likable yet immature at the start, hiding things from each other and never revealing anything their true selves. They grow and develop as we go from one year to the next in the story, and I loved the moments when they let down their guard and let each other in.

I thought the concept of this story was so fun and the settings were beautifully described. I would happily recommend this one to anyone looking for a fun read this winter!

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Following the themes of the Holiday Swap last year, Maggie Knox's upcoming holiday book takes on a different reality tv twist, this time involving two contestants in a Star Search/American Idol-type competition. There are a few common tropes at play here, with the fake dating setup being the most pronounced. This was a quick, engaging story than I enjoyed just as much as her first novel.

Thank you to Viking for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I really enjoyed the first Maggie Knox book, but this felt incredibly sophomoric and messy to me. The leads are supposed to be in their late 20s but lack any type of emotional or physical maturity. I felt no chemistry between them, actually felt they were more toxic together than anything. I got 40% into this and couldn’t believe there was more than half the book left. The only quality character is Gran and spoiler alert, she dies! I knew the country music plot wasn’t going to be a full win for me, but I really expected more with the character development. I couldn’t root for Sadie; we’re told she’s wanted this dream for years but I just didn’t feel the passion. Max felt spoiled, immature, and selfish. This was not a win for me.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Reality television country style!

Max Brody has signed to compete on Starmaker’s to get out of his father’s shadow try and make it as a country music singer and be known for more than superstar Holden Brody’s son. He knew he had some competition in Johnny King (the favorite of the head judge) and Sadie Hunter. Sadie had tried to make it in Nashville but earning a spot on Starmaker’s might get her the big break that she needed after trying for seven years. But everything changed when she was paired with Max and their duets were magic maybe they could fake dating to keep the interest going until the final show.

I was raised on country music so reading a story about a reality show about a country music and set around Christmas made it a perfect read.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Hallmark meets High School Musical... A great holiday read!

There was instant chemistry between Max and Sadie. Their distaste for each other was short lived. We love a good love story. #SAXIE

The back and forth between them was a little exhausting at times. I wanted to tell yell at them! Why would you believe this person? Why wouldn't you tell him that? So. Much. Miscommunication.

Overall, it's a sweet read. I see it being popular on #bookstagram this year.

This was a feel-good, dual POV, fake dating, enemies to lovers holiday romance between two aspiring country music singers who are competing on a reality television singing competition.

I really enjoyed the dynamic between the leads, Max's father is a famous country music singer and dealing with living in his shadow, while Sadie is a newcomer trying to crack into the business without any of the connections that Max enjoys.

While these two have electric chemistry on stage, in real life past misunderstandings and miscommunication keeps them from getting along well. I didn't love how often their relationship kept going back and forth from almost finding happiness and enjoying one another's company to being at odds with each other over and over.
Overall though this closed door romance was full of heart and would make a perfect Hallmark movie!

Much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @PRHAudio for a complimentary audio copy in exchange for my honest review. While I didn't love this one quite as much as Canadian writing duo Maggie Knox's first book, it was still an enjoyable holiday story and I loved the cover!

Maggie Knox writes such lovely, feel good novels to get you in the mood for the holidays! I read the Holiday Switch last year and it was adorable and this was no different. It felt weird reading it when it was still 100 degrees outside, but it was a cute story with my favorite fake dating trope. If you are a fan of these relationships and Christmas, it is a must read!

A charming Christmas story. I loved the settings in both Banff and Nashville as Sadie and Max's relationship developed. I liked the Nashville music scene being highlighted throughout. One of my frustrations with the story was the lack of communication throughout. To be fair, this is a pet peeve of mine in many books. But so much of the conflict was based on fairly minor things and I didn't really understand why such a secret that Sadie's Gran died.

Overall though, this was enjoyable and fun to read.