I was lucky enough to be invited to read the latest book from Josie by the publisher. It always humbles me when I get these offers!!

I have loved Josie’s previous books - particularly The Two Lives of Lydia Bird. So I jumped at the chance to read this one. I loved the premise - and winter in New York holds a bit of an appeal to me (as I really want to visit one day during the winter).

Iris’ story is a sweet and heartwarming tale as she flees her past in the UK to find answers and a new life in New York. There’s some content that some readers might want to be aware of - check out at the end for more details.

Whilst the premise of this one really did appeal, I just didn’t connect with Iris and her story as I wanted. I think it was because I wanted more depth to her story, her feelings and her relationships with her supporting characters. This is definitely a cosy winter light romance, if that’s your thing, you will love this!

Huge thanks to Georgia at Penguin for the opportunity to read this one.

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⚠️Content warning/potential spoilers: includes reference to an abusive relationship. ⚠️

I loved this lovely, poignant lighthearted read.
The story is about Iris and Gio who are both from different backgrounds and dealing with their own family issues.
I enjoyed the authors writing style, the beautiful flawed characters and the wintery scenery.
A brilliant book you won’t want to put down.
Definitely recommend this beautifully written love story but it’s so much more than just about love.
Thanks to #NetGallery @PenguinGeneralUk @Viking @JosieSilver for an arc of #AWinterInNewYork in exchange for a honest review. All opinions are my own.
Book publishes 12th October 2023.

This book is just a warm hug. If you love new york and big warm hearted books with lots of lovely characters you will not be disappointed. I read this book in a day and I just became so immersed in the characters lives . Just bliss

Josie Silver you've done it again. You always manage to weave a tale of romance full of such beautiful heartfelt moments that tug on the heartstrings.

I am absolutely sucker for the loner being brought in by the family of the love interest and the fact that this one came with a twist that fueled a lot of the tortured emotions from Iris, our MC.

Gio is just a perfect gentleman and honestly how he handles some reveals had me swooning, all I will say is I fell hardcore in the storage unit scene.

I also love the traditions held so fiercely by this family and I am now dreaming of some amazing Gelato, vanilla of course.

I have always wanted to visit New York for Christmas and this book was so wonderfully written that I feel I have already been.

If you are looking for a heartfelt romance this winter, pick this one up!

When Iris leaves an abusive relationship and starts over in New York, she couldn't imagine it would bring her closer to her mother than ever before.

While still grieving her loss, Iris finds that her mother's past is entwined with her own future, bound together by a family's secret vanilla ice cream recipe.

A wonderful and uplifting holiday read of 2 people, both dealing with loss, but opening up to one another trying to solve the recipy mystery and finding romance along the way!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for my eArc in return for my honest review.

Iris escapes to New York to get away from an abusive relationship, to a place that her late mother had loved. Settling in she stumble across a gelateria that looks familiar, which changes everything.
I have visited New York on holiday, which helped me visualise the setting, although I can't match Iris' love for the city. There are some flashbacks to her mother when she was a singer in a band, which helps set the scene, and explain Iris' relationship with the family that own the gelateria. This is a book that needs to be read slowly to appreciate it, with dark tones balanced against lighter moments. Very moving, I had to put on a Joni Mitchell song "River" at one point (you'll know it when you reach it) to match the mood. So an ideal book for those who appreciate slow-burn, but maybe not for those who prefer something lighter, but perhaps this will change your mind?
I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley, however this did not influence my review of the book.

A winter in New York by Josie Silver

I hadn't heard of Josie Silver but liked the premise of the story so thought I would try it, and I'm glad I did.

Iris has finally broken up with her controlling boyfriend Adam, and in order to put as much distance between them as possible she moves from London to New York. As Iris has no family ties in the UK she can thoroughly embrases the New York lifestyle. Her only tie is that her late mother had met the love of her life in New York, until she had left to pursue her career in the music industry.

Iris was so lucky in meeting Bobby and his husband, who gave her a job in his noodle bar, and accommodation, and a best friend. One day Iris comes across a Gelato bar, and recognises the unique picture on the door as that in a photo of her late mother's. There she runs into Gio, with whom she had already had a previous, disastrous encounter. Gio runs the restaurant with his sister, as his uncle is in hospital, and it is famous for it's vanilla ice cream recipe. The only problem is that the Uncle has suffered memory loss and cannot remember the recipe. Iris realises quickly that she is probably the only person with the recipe - given to her mother years ago- but can't say that she has it for fear of disrupting the happy family. However, she is a chef and offers to help Gio recreate the recipe - it doesn't hurt that Gio is drop dead gorgeous either!

There are a great many secrets between Gio and Iris to unravel - but will their relationship stand the test of all the lies and half truths?

An excellent book that you won't want to put down.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5888576419

This was my first Josie Silver book and I am happy to report that it did not disappoint! It was such a tender and heartfelt read - just in time for the holidays. I am still gathering my thoughts but suffice to say I will be reading more of this author’s book. Thank you so much netgalley for providing me an ARC of this book.

4 stars

My first Christmas themed book of the season and it was a lovely read. London Chef Iris has moved to New York to escape her abusive ex. Unlocking clues to her mum’s past leads to her to the Belotti Gelataria and hunky Gio.

This was fairly formulaic; there are no great surprises as to what happens, but there is a great cast of characters and some atmospheric locations.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my review copy.

The title of this book makes you instantly feel cold if you’ve ever been in New York in the winter. Add into that a helping of authentic Italian gelato, and it could feel colder still. As a lover of New York and ice cream, I couldn’t wait to get into this book. It certainly didn’t disappoint, especially when a drop dead gorgeous man was added right from the start. It was one of those books when, once started, I didn’t want to put down.

The story centres on chef Iris, who has fled the clutches of an over-controlling boyfriend in London and moved to New York, a city where her late mother spent a lot of time. Iris has been lucky to find a job working in a noodle restaurant for Bobby, who has quickly become a close friend and confidante. While out walking one day, she sees a building that is familiar from a picture in her mother’s photo album. On investigation, it proves to be Belotti’s gelateria, where she finds handsome Gio, despairing over the lost recipe for their famous vanilla gelato. When Iris is given a sample of the last remaining batch of the gelato, she realises that she actually has the recipe, handed down from her mother who made her promise never to reveal it to anyone. Unsure what to do for the best, she offers to help Gio try to discover the recipe by trial and error. Over the course of a few weeks, the recipe is coming close to the original and Iris has fallen for Gio and the whole Belotti family. However, revealing what she has learned of her mother’s secret history with the family could have disastrous consequences and it looks as if Iris may have to turn her back on her new life and the man she loves.

This was such an amazing story spanning many years as the story is told of her mother’s history with the Belottis as well as Iris’s struggle to escape from a bad relationship only to perhaps lose what may just be the love of her life. I also found myself falling for the Belotti family, who were a power to reckon with when they all got together, and of course for the lovely Gio. As the story progressed I could not see how the situation was going to be resolved without a huge amount of heartache all round. The spectre of Iris’s ex haunted the pages, making both Iris and the reader afraid that he might just turn up and spoil everything. I can definitely recommend that you read this book and find out. It is certainly worth the trip across the Atlantic, but is probably best read with ice cream and tissues to hand.

This book has grit, romance, family secrets, gelato and Christmas! Josie Silver has delivered a great wintery read with hints of Taylor Jenkins Read and so many other great stories.

A stand-alone story with plenty of plot, but not too many characters to keep track of. Very enjoyable.

Thank you @netgalley for this ARC of Josie Silver's new book, out in the UK on 12th October 2023!

A perfect pre-Xmas read (not quite a full Xmas novel) equally heart breaking and heart warming. I loved the characters and was quickly invested in the story. An easy, fast read that will leave you craving gelato (and a handsome Italian 🤦‍♀️).
Many thanks for the ARC, 4 stars.

How a well-intentioned lie complicates everything. A heartwarming story about (found) family and finding your place. Warning: you'll crave vanilla gelato while reading.

I got this arc in exchange for an honest review.

Iris arrives in New York to start again. Leaving all her troubles behind she is enjoying exploring when she sees a gelateria which looks familiar.
inside he meets Gio who has his own problems.
It soon becomes apparent that Iris can help him but she cant tell him.

Don’t be misled by the title! A Winter in New York by the bestselling author of grab-a-tissue novels, Josie Silver, is the perfect read for any season. Her new offering is a luscious romance mingled with a good pinch of angst and melt-in-your-mouth moments to sweeten your day, or in my case, greeting the sunrise with a big smile plastered on my face. Yes! Once I’d started this beautifully written book, I couldn’t stop reading until I reached the end.

Silver took me to gelato paradise in Little Italy NYC, where a previously thriving Italian family business is desperate for their uncle’s well-guarded recipe. Why? Alas, the poor man can’t tell them because he’s indisposed, and they have no idea for how long or if ever. As Silver’s stories go, she an ace at keeping us guessing. Can the Belotti famiglia find the secret to such a renowned vanilla cornet deliciousness?

Before walking into the oldie worldie gelateria, because it certainly felt like that, I met Iris, a young chef eager for changes. She’d every reason to escape to the city, make new beginnings and discover lost memories a parent had left behind and much more besides. But Iris has an heirloom she suspects no one else is aware of–goodness me, Silver exceeded herself here because, as well as keeping me on the edge of my seat, the story’s pacing picked up at a speed that had me skimming pages. Okay! So my impatience might have got the better of me, but I never missed one word.

If you haven’t already got an ice cream maker, I have little doubt you’d like one like Iris’s. I confess to getting quite attached to it. I wanted to know the ins and outs of the workings and why it was special. So, while she’s trying to make magic with the ingredients unhurriedly, jot them down: the smoothness, creaminess and consistency her new friend is looking for could save this emblematic sundae parlour. The delicious toppings might even give you an idea or three, too.

It sounds a tad strong to say I hero-worshipped Gio, but he certainly has all my must-have attributes for a book boyfriend. Attentive, hard-working and gorgeous to boot, I loved observing his faith in Iris. However, handling ‘what-ifs and what-nots’ could make or break it for those concerned. I bonded with his oh-so-Italian sisters instantly. Respectful of their heritage, imagining the whole tribe making gestures flying here, there and everywhere was easy-peasy. Now for Bobby–the one. I’d welcome Iris’s landlord into my life at the drop of a hat. He encourages her, soothes troubled waters and is beyond loveable.

If there is one author who knocks her readers for six in the space of a few paragraphs, it has to be Silver. Like a domino effect, Iris’s past and an unsaid truth catch up with her, getting me to reach out for that blinkin’ rectangular box again! But communication is the key. It’s plentiful, intelligent, and assertive, and I loved every single minute of it.

If you have a passion for ice cream, like Italian families that don’t have a filter between their brain and mouth, swoon-worthy characters in a well-thought-out plot with a baddie you’d gladly give a good talking to and appreciable second chances, this book is for you! Bravo, Silver!

A copy of this book was kindly gifted to me by Penguin Books UK through NetGalley for my honest review.

Iris left her mentally abusive boyfriend and London behind. She wagers a new start in New York as a chef, not only for her sake but to see places her late mother had loved. One day while visiting a fair at Little Italy and recognises a Gelato shop from her mother's photograph. The shop is all the same, she has seen so many times while going through her mom´s photographs. After getting inside she loves the feeling of the shop yet is told that there is no gelato due to sickness and with no one knowing the recipe. When she anyway gets a sample, she finds out it is the same gelato recipe, that her late mother left her. As a chef, she wants to try to help, without breaking a promise to her mom to never share the recipe with anyone and getting away secret of holding onto the recipe. What she hadn´t planned on was falling in love with the handsome Gio. Although starting a relationship with a secret is never a good idea, she can´t help herself. But what will happen if the truth comes out?
Peeps read this book, it was amazing. I loved every second of it :)

Thank you to Penguin UK and Josie Silver for letting me have an arc review copy of A Winter In New York.

The winter vibe of this book frosts each page with the wonder and charm that New York is legendary for having throughout the festive season. The foodie descriptions in this book will leave you hungry and mouth-watering at times with the mental smells/images your brain conjures up.

The characters are heart-warming, and charming and come alive through dynamic energies. Told through two points of view Iris and her mother, Vivian, while they visit New York and meet the men of the Belotti family. A lot of big emotions come into play in this story as it waves a plot around moving on, grief, loss, and healing (both from loss and an abusive, controlling relationship). Lots of little side stories are threaded through the main plot stitched together through family, friends, and a budding romance between Iris and Gio.

One thing, I wasn’t so keen on was Iris's tendencies to use blurt out a lot of white lies. It was a little distracting and only did her harm in the long run. There is a lot of miscommunication and secrets already embedded into the relationship between Iris and Gio, the lies made me feel cold to Iris at times, and thinking why you would do that. I felt like telling her to go to counseling because of it. Gio and his big Italian family stole the show in this book for me, I loved them as they were all interesting personalities with big hearts.

This book is a nice cozy, festive read to enjoy curling up with during snuggle season with the sparkle of festive fairy lights and a roaring fire. I almost felt this book read like Friends the TV show with all the interconnecting characters, places, and food elements (gelato).

I have loved every Josie Silver book I have ever read, but this one fell a little short for me. And I think it is because of my very high expectations.

A Winter in New York is certainly not a bad book. No, its a fun albeit very average read, but it misses the magic and the profound moments that for me are characteristic for a Josie SIlver book.

We meet our main character Iris in New York. We know she has run from her London life, but we don't know why. She has found refuge as a cook in a noodle bar and lives above the restaurant. When her boss - home owner - best friend Billy takes her to an Italian festival she recognize a gelato shop from her late moms scrapbook. Iris cant resist to delve into her mothers past and learn more about her. But soon Iris is getting very invested in the gelateria and its owner Gio.

Like I said, don't get me wrong. This is absolutely a lovely little romance. and a story about family. But it wasn't more then that. And I just expected more after all the tears and the magic in previous Josie Silver books.

Heartbreakingly magical! Josie silver works her magic again, just when you think this book will be just good, she changes gear and makes it great!

Iris is trying to start a new life in New York, tempted there by her mum’s love of the city. Iris hopes to find out something of her mum’s life in New York…she should be careful what she wishes for! Iris finds herself embroiled in her mum’s past, and just maybe finds herself a future.

Wonderful story-telling, I adored this book.

Iris needs to escape London after the death of her mother followed by a disastrous relationship so where better than New York where her mother spent some of her youth.

She bumps into Gio on Valentines Day and they don't hit it off but they never expect to meet again. The story follows the twists and turns of Iris's recovery of herself, her friendships and how she gets mixed up with Gio and his family. It's a shame that she said things she regrets in the first meeting but it is interesting to see how she deals with it.

A lovely feel good story which cements my desire to visit New York some day.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC