This was a super funny, cheesy, very British holiday rom com. It reminded me a lot of "In a Holidaze" by Christina Lauren, especially with the Groundhog Day-esque Christmas time loop. It's absolutely stuffed to the brim with yuletide cheer, a charming cast of characters, and all the warm and fuzzy feelings you expect from a holiday romance. This is a very low-steam book that had me giggling the entire time I was reading. Thanks a bunch to Netgalley for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review. Highly recommend adding this to your holiday season TBR!

The author described this as the Christmas Groundhog Day book in her author's note and I think that's pretty much the best way to sum up the plot's foundations. The main character is going through a bit of a slump in her life - she's recently been dumped, put on leave at her high-profile job, and can't come clean about it to anyone. As if that wasn't enough, after experiencing a very depressing Christmas Day she wakes up on Boxing Day to find... it's Christmas again. After a series of trial and error, she figures if she helps everyone in her family fulfill their Chrsitmas wish, she can escape the time loop and get on with life. It also gave me a little bit of "It's a Wonderful Life" vibes with the family drama and personal realizations for the main character AND it was also a very sweet romance novel.

As far as Christmas novels goes, this book had everything I was looking for - setting, plot, pace, family, romance. Set in a soft, warm Christmas day (with snow!) in the English countryside, featuring a big family gathering with gifts, feasts, neighborhood parties, and romantic potential. There's no better time or place to air everyone's dirty laundry, am I right? But really, I loved the plot and the pacing was just what I needed to get me out of a reading slump, I finished this book in a day! I also found the romance soft and very lovable (not steamier than a hottub kiss) - basically, perfect for a holiday romance - nothing too demanding and quite entertaining, with a feel-good, wholesome vibe.

A new favorite Christmas book for me, this one will definitely be on my re-read list every year. I thoroughly enjoyed this story. I was so absorbed in the first several chapters filled with humor, relatable family dynamics, and all around chaos, that I forgot this was a Christmas version of "Groundhog Day." So as Gwen wakes up on that first repeat day ... I was right there with her. Day after day she plods along, reliving the calendar day but every interaction is informed with previous days information. Gwen works through her different relationships, trying to find the key to finally getting to December 26th, and I was there for it all. It was fun to see how each day was the same and different, but towards the end, I too felt her desperation to figure this out and move forward. Plot and character development was great, leading up to a simple wish that I won't dare spoil for you now. Highly recommend!

A cozy Christmas book that will have you feeling all warm and fuzzy! A fantastic story with likeable characters who make the book so much fun to read. Five stars!

Gwen Baker has to get rid of the Christmas pudding. Like, she has to. So she grabs it off the table, still on fire from the brandy, and runs with it to the end of the backyard. She chucks it over the fence, to make sure no one can find the sixpence hidden inside, to make sure no one can make the wish that has her trapped in a Christmas nightmare. But the pudding ends up hitting next-door neighbor (and teenage Gwen’s crush) Dev Jones, now a grown man and successful doctor with maybe a bump on the head from the flying pudding.

Gwen tries to explain to her family and to Dev why she had suddenly lost her mind and raced around with a pudding, but how can you explain that she is living Christmas day over and over, and all she can figure is that someone made their Christmas wish, and it caused her to get stuck in a time loop? Who would believe that?

Gwen doesn’t want to believe it, but no matter what happens at Christmas, she can’t deny how many times she ends up waking up in her childhood bedroom, with her dad waking her up to tell her Santa has been and there will be bacon butties if she gets downstairs before he eats them all.

She comes up with the idea that someone had made a wish that first Christmas on the sixpence hidden in the pudding, so to undo the wish (when chucking the pudding into the neighbor didn’t work) is to find out what everyone potentially wished for and try to make their wishes come true. When the first pudding had been served, she and her cousin Manny weren’t at the table, so it wasn’t either of them. Her sister’s kids and husband weren’t at the table either. So that left her parents, her Nan, and her sister Cerys.

Originally, Gwen had planned to come home for Christmas to feel sorry for herself and eat and drink too much. Her boyfriend of four years had left her for his receptionist. Then she had a meltdown at the law firm where she worked, getting sent home for a couple of weeks and putting her partnership track on hold. And she did that for her first Christmas, until everything fell apart. So then she starts spending her Christmases trying to make everyone’s wishes come true. But as she does that, she starts to remember what makes her happy too.

When Gwen finally figures out how to get out of her Christmas nightmare, will she be able to find her own Christmas wish too?

Master rom com writer Lindsey Kelk has crafted a lovely holiday romance that is filled with delightful surprises, alcohol, family, teenage crushes, bad choices, Christmas puddings, roasted and mashed potatoes, and chocolate. It has everything that makes a family get-together beautiful and cringe-inducing, with all the hope and heartache that holidays bring.

I loved The Christmas Wish. I thought it was clever how each Christmas that Gwen experiences brings another layer of holiday insanity, from fighting with family to embarrassing yourself in front of the neighbors to burning the appetizers. Each Christmas is different, and each is important to teach Gwen what she needs to learn, and each is filled with wonder, laughter, mistakes, and lessons. I couldn’t wait to see what each day would bring, and to try to guess at what would finally break Gwen out of her eternal Christmases. I am a fan of Lindsey Kelk, and this one did not disappoint. In fact, this one may be my favorite so far. If you are looking for a holiday gift for the rom com lover in your life (or, even better, for yourself), then this may be just the book you’ve been wishing for.

Egalleys for The Christmas Wish were provided by Harper 360 through NetGalley, with many thanks.

Y’all, if you’re making your Christmas tbrs, go ahead and slap this one on it because you need this book in your life!!!

Let me just preface this by saying, I will read anything Lindsey Kelk writes. Her books are always excellent. But a Christmas book?!? Well sign me up!! I have a small stack of Christmas books that I reread every year and this book will definitely be added to it. I already want to read it again!

It’s cute and fun AND HILARIOUS (I read it in public and got so many funny looks for my cackling) and just so, so lovely. It’s exactly what I want a Christmas book to be! Lots of magic and lessons and family “fun”

And because I knew I loved this book at 8%, I also ordered the UK collecter’s edition as a birthday present to myself (NO REGRETS). I am so in love with the gorgeous snowflake hardcover and lovely end pages. It's the first collector’s edition book I’ve ever owned so I’m happy to have it on my shelves!

Anyway. I cannot rave about this book enough! If you’re looking for a wonderful romcom this Christmas, please pick this one up!! The characters are so fun! The romance is lovely!! And I cannot even stress how much you will laugh. But it’s also full of Christmas magic and is perfect for the season!

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins 360 for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review! What a joy this was!!! Can't wait for Kelk's next book!

Rating: 3 / 5 Stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Lindsey Kelk for providing this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Usually I don’t like the concept of a Groundhog Day but this one was interesting considering it was Christmas. I love me a good Christmas novel and this one also got me right in the Holly Jolly spirit. I also did enjoy that. This was funny and made me laugh out loud at times. I did feel as though it was quite repetitive, and it took quite a bit to get interested. But overall an enjoyable read!

Charming and funny holiday read! Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this! It was a very light and cute book! It was a thoughtful re-imaginging of Groundhog day with a Christmas twist. I love the main character Gwen's sense of humor. The side characters, especially Manny were great! I enjoyed the message of the book, to take risks, go after what you want, ask for help when you need it, ask others if they need help, and to put happiness first. It was very funny and a great way to start the holiday season! I highly recommend and look forward to reading more by this author!

This is the British Christmas version of Groundhog Day. I somehow didn’t realize that going into it and honestly probably would not have chosen this book because the reliving part of the concept annoys me YET I quickly finished this book, laughing the whole way through. Truly, this book is very funny. Gwen is a 30-something lawyer living in London, headed home to the country for the holidays. She’s less than thrilled about it because her boyfriend broke up with her and there was a snafu at work. Oh and she is mortal enemies with her sister. There is some romance with the all grown up boy next door, but the story is really about Gwen and her family, all working through their issues. The family members are all relatable and likable (for the most part!), so I was happy everyone gets a Merry Christmas in the end.
Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC.

Family is rarely easy. The holidays tend to bring this fact more to light. Lindsey Kelk manages to take all the joy, love and laughter found in a family gathering and wraps it up in a Christmas package of a book. Gwen recently broke up with her boyfriend of 4 years and is on hiatus after a terrible experience at her job and is now traveling home with her cousin Manny for the holidays. She is both looking forward to and dreading this....something many of us can relate to. After experiencing one of the most difficult Christmas days ever, Gwen wakes up the next day to find out that it's Christmas again.

This Groundhog Day style book follows Gwen through the next 10 days as she experiences Christmas over and over and over again. I LOVED this book. I laughed out loud so many times. Gwen and Manny are absolutely lovable as is Dev, their next door neighbor. Her family is a beautiful mess and I enjoyed getting to know each and every one of them through Gwen's eyes as she works through getting to know them and herself better. Dev and Gwen are so dang cute. I loved all their adventures. The book is just simply heartwarming and funny and made me look forward to my own messy, lovable family Christmas all that much more. If you are looking for a holiday rom-com filled with family experiences and self-discovery, I highly recommend this one. Kelk will make you laugh and smile as you turn the pages and struggle to put this book down. 5 Christmas Stars!

I love Lindsey Kelk books and this was no exception. This was like “Groundhog Day” with Christmas Day on repeat. The main character was trying to figure out her life and determine why she was caught in a loop. This was such a cute book with an engaging cast of characters. I would definitely recommend this and her other books. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

Having read a similar book at the end of last year and just not enjoying it, I wasn't sure how I would feel about this one. I was pleasantly surprised with how much I ended up enjoying this book. It was laugh out loud funny. Snuggle up under your favorite fuzzy blanket, listening to A Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack, sipping some hot chocolate next to a fireplace kind of read, I did none of those things, sadly, but if I could have, I would have!

Gwen is an overworked lawyer who ends up in a Christmas time warp, think Ground Hog Day meets a Netflix holiday movie. It had more personal growth than any Hallmark movie could even imagine. Learning to truly appreciate her family, to see their personal struggles and faults, and also enjoys a good Taylor jam session. My kind of gal.

I saw so much of my lawyer bestie and my self in this character, I was constantly stopped to share tidbits about Gwen with her, We would get a good laugh and I would go back to Gwen and Manny and Nan, who is by far my favorite.

I have nothing bad to say about this book, or this author and I am going to go purchase this book from my local store ASAP.

Gwen is hoping that a family Christmas countryside, will salve the sting of her career hanging by a thread and her heart being trampled on because everyone else has their life sorted: even Dev, her boy-next-door crush, with a fiancée. She can’t help wishing her future was clearer.
Then Gwen wakes up to discover it’s Christmas day all over again. Like Groundhog Day but with eggnog. And family arguments. On repeat.

Stories like these will be read by the fire with a hot chocolate in your hand. I really liked the countryside Christmas theme. The characters were complex and at times very hard to like; especially Gwen's sister.

I'm not a fan of time loops, but this one was definitely entertaining. With a most trusted & lovable cousin by her side, Gwen was ready to take on the world. I loved the subtle, slow burn between her & Dev. Full of family drama & time loops, this was refreshing & fun to read.

Thank you netgalley and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I love Lindsey Kelk and I was so excited about a holiday romance from her. But it’s do not love a time loop. It feels repetitive and just doesn’t work for me.

Oh how I ADORED this book!

To start off I’m gonna keyboard smash my thoughts about this book bc ADOXMEOSNWOSKSIS IT WAS SO CUTE??? I laughed like a hyena but also giggled like a school girl. I shed (a few) tears. And swooned with the subtle romance playing in the back.

It’s a super quick read (or at least it felt like it to me) and It gave me all the holiday comfort I enjoy from Christmas movies/books. And a book centered around a family is always a plus for me.

Definitely a a great Christmas read!

This was a cute holiday rom com!!
Gwen is a newly single lawyer and her career is in trouble. She heads home for Christmas to be with her family. She ends up stuck in a time loop when she wakes up and it’s Christmas Day over and over again. She is determined that she needs to make everyone’s wish come true so that time can move forward and Christmas Day stops repeating itself.
It’s was a very slow start for me. There was quite a bit of family drama. I did laugh out loud many times.
It’s kind of a Groundhog’s Day story with a little romance with a childhood crush. I was expecting more romance and felt it was more of a woman’s fiction. It’s still cute and I did enjoy it!
Thanks so much @harpercollins and @netgalley for the gifted copy♥️

For Gwen Baker it seems everything that could go wrong has, now she must go home for Christmas and face her family. Everyone knows her boyfriend cheated and broke up with her and that she had to find a smaller apartment, but they don’t know she’s also been having problems at work. She is doomed to relive Christmas until she ultimately finds out that everyone in her family is dealing with some sort of issue in their lives, but not being open with each other. She then must decide how to proceed with her future and how to open up to those she’s closest to about what is going on with her work life. A year later and it appears everyone has made changes and is a bit happier. A great story that shows how family isn’t always honest and opening up can just be the key to helping you move on with your life.

Christmas Groundhog Day romcom. I've read three magical Christmas romcoms now, and I think this is the best of the bunch. Charming and fluffy, it's essentially a Hallmark movie that allows cursing and blue jokes. It's light on the romance, but it's cute. Not a bad choice to spend a snowy afternoon with.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins 360 for the advanced copy of The Christmas Wish by Lindsey Kelk.

This was a lighthearted, fun, cozy Christmas book! I’d best describe it as a mash up of Groundhog Day and Bridget Jone’s Diary, all taking place on Christmas Day. There is family drama, self discovery, humor, heartache, and a little romance.

I enjoyed the witty banter, the main and secondary characters, and the dash of romance. I actually found myself laughing out loud a couple of times. And for a holiday read to take place almost entirely on Christmas Day?! Perfect!

I’m not sure if I would have made the same assumption as the main character Gwen as to WHY she was in a continuous Christmas day situation. So the plot felt a little muddled to me part way through. But it actually all came together and the book left me feeling all the sweet Christmas charm!

My only trouble with this book - and I feel like this is a “me-problem” not a book problem - were all the British references to products, people, stores, foods… so many things were lost on me. Which surprised me because this has never been so apparent in other books taking place in the UK.

If you’re in the mood for a cozy and festive Christmas read that is a bit silly and a bit sweet, this really was a fun read!

If you’re looking for a light hearted, holiday meets groundhog day read, check out The Christmas Wish! This book is full of witty banter, family drama and a little bit of romance. Happy reading!

3.5 stars (rounded up to 4 on GoodReads)

Thank you Harper360 and netgalley for the eARC!