More holiday romance! This was heavier and more emotional. It deals with grief, guilt and family issues. So well written. It broken my heart and then put it back together.
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I loved Holly and Jack and seeing their story come full circle. Highly recommend, but have your tissues ready!

Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Another gorgeous book by Emily Stone!!!

RATING: 4 stars
GENRE: Women’s Fiction/Holiday Romance

READ IF YOU LIKE:
▫️ Dual POV
▫️”Right person, wrong time” romance trope 🥺
▫️Hand written letters ✍️
▫️Venice, Italy
▫️Emotional reads 😢
▫️Themes of: grief, family, forgiveness

THOUGHTS:
Emily Stone can do no wrong in my book. Her stories are so deep and tender, which is a mood that I am ALWAYS here for! Romcoms are the best, but I find myself thinking about how similar all holiday books can be... but not with Stone's books. I swoon at her writing style and strong character development. Her characters have real issues, that I think many, many readers can relate to!

RATING EXPLAINED:
This book was beautiful and simple. Exploring grief and shame in ficiton is never an easy task and Stone did it well. It wasn't a 5 star favorite bc I did feel like the characters all knew each so fast?? Like they instantly connected... if that makes sense. Lastly, most of the holiday feels were more in the beginning. I would have loved more holiday feels throughout! I definitely still recommend this one if you enjoy emotional reads.

Thank you Random House & PRH Audio for my gifted copies.

This book had its ups and downs, but overall was an enjoyable read. I loved the characters as well as the twists and turns that gave their “chance” meeting more layers and significance. Some things I saw coming and others were truly a surprise. It is a great holiday or vacation read.

I have liked Emily Stone's other Christmas books, so I was excited to dive into this one! I enjoyed this book quite a bit. It is a bit heavy at times as it seemed to center a lot on fractured relationships, with Holly and her sister and Emma and her grandson Jack. With that being said, I appreciated that we got resolution by the end of the book. I appreciated the friendship that Holly and Emma had developed and loved to read the parts of the book when they were together. I found Holly is be one of my favorite main characters in a book for a while, and while curmudgeonly, Emma was very charming as well. I loved a character driven story, and this book definitely delivered on that. I do recommend this book who is looking for a heartwarming read during the Christmas season.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced copy of this book. All opinions within this review are my own.

Really enjoyed this one! Started out a bit slow but there was a twist about 40% into the book that totally caught me off guard and got my attention. Will definitely be recommending this as a future holiday read.

This book was emotional, yet so heart-warming and I still can't stop thinking about these characters. It had some of the sweetest and introspective moments. This is an absolute staple going forward for Christmas novels.

Emily Stone sure knows how to write touching stories and this one is a doozy!!

This Christmas is the first Christmas without my mom and it's bittersweet. Finishing this book the day after Christmas on the day I'm meant to celebrate the holiday with my family feels like fate.

Holly's story isn't one that I can relate to personally but there are so many moments in this book that I feel deep down in my soul. As I reached the epilogue I knew that I was holding a book that would stay with me forever. The words so beautifullly written on each page will stay with me forever!

Such a beautiful book that I think everyone should read!

"Please don't spend too long mourning me. Miss me occasionally". - This line broke me but is still a favorite 😁

I want to hug this book real tight and never let go. And now I’ve read it and I loved it. It was a very hopeful and emotional read it was all about the journey the MCs were on before they could even begin something between them.

This book was sooo cute! I loved everything about it. Couldn't read it quick enough. Adored the characters and sad it's over!

I read to 17% and then stopped… I’m sorry but I didn't meet one character I liked… and her family turning on her for the reason they did? Toxic.

4 ⭐️
I really enjoyed this heartfelt Christmas novel! It dealt with real-life issues, had a sweet romance, and it pulled at your heartstrings a bit. Love that it discussed grief when grief is so difficult around the holidays 🤍

*Thank you to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for giving me the chance to read it!

I couldn’t get past the tragedy and sadness of this book, so I chose to DNF at a little past 15%. There was too much depressing content for the kind of Christmas reads I enjoy, just not the book for me.

The premise of this one, while interesting, ultimately hinged on a lie by omission which I'm finding is one of my least favorite tropes lately. I love a good intergenerational friendship, which ultimately kept me reading this one, but the female main character is absolutely insufferable. She does not listen, refuses to address underlying situations and stand up for herself, and is all around unlikeable. Also her family are flat out the worst. The grief in this one is appropriate at times, and absolutely ridiculous in others. While I like Emily Stone well enough, her books are either hit or miss for me, and this one was VERY much so a miss. Interested to see if her next book is a hit, as I am really hoping it will be. Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review.

Absolutely loved this one and highly recommend for some cozy, holiday reading! I found myself smiling from ear to ear one moment and tearing up the next. The concept of the letters between strangers was so endearing to me and I love reading a story about grief as someone who has experienced loss myself.

Seems like it might be a cute Christmas story but couldn’t capture my interest / nothing special. DNF at 25%.

Years ago, Holly was in a car accident with her sister that tore her family apart. To help cope with her loneliness, Holly has joined a group where they write letters to a stranger around the holiday season. When Holly receives a letter that she relates to, and has a full name attached to it, she tracks Emma, the woman who wrote the letter down. Holly becomes determined to reunite Emma with her grandson and will not give up until it happens.

Emily Stone really knows how to rip your heart out and put it back together in the most beautiful holiday stories. While this one didn’t have me crying quite as much as her previous books, it very much hit me in all the feels. Holly’s journey through forgiving herself was heartbreaking but also so beautiful as was the friendship she forged with Emma and their unique bond. I loved how they helped each other heal from their pasts and mend fences with their families. The small twists of fate that bring them together really get you thinking, and their stories leave you both heartbroken and hopeful at times. I adored this story.

Thank you to Random House and NetGalley for the advance copy.

Although this is not a light holiday read as I had expected, it is a heartwarming story that extends beyond Christmas but is bookended by the holiday. I became invested in the dual storyline of Holly and the relationship of her family and Holly and Jack.

Thanks to NetGalley and Dell Publishing for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion!

Emily Stone is hit (One Last Gift) or miss (Always in December) for me but I knew I wanted to read Love, Holly.

I am so glad that I took a chance on this one and thankful to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Dell for this gifted copy because this is now my new favorite Emily Stone novel and I will continue to try everything she writes.

Christmas/winter/holiday vibes mixed with love and family in a perfect combination. IF you are looking for a book with these type of vibes look no further. This one will give you all the feels.

Emily Stone really can do no wrong. I adore every one of her books and I just can’t get over how incredible and unique each story is. She writes incredible and captivating characters with a beautifully cozy plot that just sucks me in and makes me fall in love with her writing more and more.

Emily Stone writes emotion so incredibly well. It’s pure talent on her part where she can manipulate my emotions the way she does throughout the story. I love when that happens because it means I’m so caught up in the book.

Overall, I adored this story and continue to be a big Emily Stone fan and will highly recommend this book!

*Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.*

Love, Holly is a romance with Christmas vibes in it but it could easily be read and enjoyed at any other time of the year as well!

I loved this book, it gave me all of the feels which is my favorite kind of reading experience! I laughed, I teared up, I wanted to hug it at the end.

This was one of those romances with depth, the characters had excellent growth, the difficult things they worked through were real and raw and the romance was a beautiful part of that woven in with the real life things they were working through.

If you enjoy books that have themes of love, found family (as well as family you are born into), forgiveness, heartbreak and healing then pick this one up! It is well worth the read and I will be recommending it to others!

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Dell for the e-arc!