I was interested in this book because of the season theming. That part did not disappoint! I did struggle a bit with staying interested while hopping from story to story. The ending felt rushed after the beginning was a bit slow and I was left wondering what happens next!

I really loved the concept of The Christmas Season, it reminded me a lot of the Twelve Dates of Christmas but with a regency twist. The events were very festive and they all sounded pretty fun. I don’t know how good they’d be to find your perfect match but apparently it has a 100% success rate which isn’t completely ridiculous *sarcasm*. Especially considering they apparently don’t ask for your sexual preference on the application. I only know this because Emma (our matchmaker) talks about there being something between Connie and Jon. Well there wasn’t because of one glaring fact, she’s a lesbian. There is no way you’d have such a high success rate without knowing whether you’ve put one queer person in a room full of straight people.

At the very start of the book Emma says someone is “Clearly of excellent breeding” this almost made me want to put it down. What a gross (and weird) thing to say.

A 27 year old woman throwing a hissy fit because her dad has a new partner after being alone for 12-15 years is just plain embarrassing (I’m not sure on the number because the book used both). I’m being completely honest when I say I got secondhand embarrassment about this situation. This is terribly nitpicky though.

There was only one couple I was actually interested in and that was because of the situation they found themselves in. It seemed like they had good chemistry and they were one of the only convincing matches.

The Christmas Season has four different POVs, which I think is far too many. Especially for a cutesy little festive romance. I found I didn’t care about some characters as much so their chapters were a little difficult to get through. However, I will say chapters from Theo’s perspective would have been interesting.

I feel like I haven’t said many positive things about this book, but genuinely it was pretty decent. I liked the concept and it was very festive.

A good romance with great characters. This book is well written with familiarities of other great romance stories. It is heart warming and an easy read. Did not put the book down until I had finished it

The Christmas Season is a fun romance with Victorian Vibes set between Thanksgiving and New Year's Eve. Emma Love is a matchmaker who believes in old fashioned courtship, over swiping left or right. She loves Jane Austen and the romances where matches were made at events during "the season". During her last season, she failed in making a match for Hope, so invites her, free of charge to participate in this season. Along with the invite, she is allowed to bring 3 friends to make her comfortable. Her twin cousins, Connie and Grace, along with her BFF Theo decide to come along. Now Emma has four difficult people to make matches for. With the help of her step-brother Josh, his wife Annie and her boyfriend Tom, Emma works extra hard to make matches for everyone, even at the risk of losing her own.

I really enjoyed The Christmas Season with one exception, the open door romance, which is why I only gave it 4.5 stars.. The four daters were as different as night and day. Connie is struggling with her identity, feeling that Grace is the perfect twin and she doesn't know where she fits in. When she meets Morgan, she is sure she would be her match, but steps aside because she thinks Grace is interested and Morgan would surely prefer Grace. Grace is pansexual, so as much as she is interested in Morgan, Jon Rackham also attracts her and they end up in a casual sexual relationship, at least that is how it starts out. Autumn also meets someone she is interested in, but Theo struggles. You see, he has been in love with Autumn for years and never told her. Throw in both families that have issues and struggles and it's a wonder these three women are as stable as they are. Then there is Emma's relationship with Tom. He is struggling with his mother's health, and Emma gets a business offer she can't refuse. There is a lot going on in this book which made it a bit longer than I expected, but I never lost interest in this intriguing story. Yes, there is romance, but there is also self-discovery, family reconciliation, secrets, self-forgiveness and more. I was pleasantly surprised with the depth of this story and highly recommend it.

I read this book purely because I loved the cover and the title. I knew nothing about the author or even about the story of this book. And I am so glad I gave a try to Ally Sinclair's new book! I LOVED IT!!! If you love romance, christmas atmosphere, fun stories about people first dates, you will love this book too!!! I can only recommend it! I will wait for the next book by Ally Sinclair!!!

Who doesn’t love a Christmas novel in the summer! It was well written and enjoyed the characters and romances forming. Perfect Christmassy read.

I have not read the previous book featuring Emma and her Social Season but I don't think that was a problem. The author does a great job of giving just enough information about the relationships established in that book so you know what happened without retelling the entire novel. I don't know what Emma was like in that first book, but I was having a difficult time believing that she was any good at her job as a matchmaker. I don't know if she was just distracted with the events of her own life, but she didn't really seem to put much effort or thought into helping our main characters with their matches. In fact, other than putting these characters in the same room together she did very little. And how much more obvious could it have been that Theo was in love with Hope? As for that couple, I'm not a huge fan of the "best friends falling in love" trope, especially when one of those characters constantly tells the other about all of their sexual conquests. The truth is, he could have told her how he felt about her at any time and instead waited until she had found someone herself. I wish there had been more time spent with Grace and Jon as there could have been more about how they came to fall in love. There was so little development there and there could have been. Connie was my least favorite character. I feel a little bad about saying that because she's probably the one most in need of a hug. She was a walking self-fulfilling prophecy but seemed to always blame Grace when things went wrong for her. I was so glad when Morgan yelled at her - she needed to hear everything Morgan said to her. This book is a good example of a good premise that doesn't quite deliver.

This was a quick read, but lacked much substance.

Emma runs a matchmaking business and the story follows the "season" where she arranges group outings to help make love connections. Minimal bumps in the road exist, so the couples are established very early and pretty much ride straight towards their happily ever afters.

The group dates are relatively predictable, and not overly romantic. Also, the participants being allowed to duck in and out (or not show up at all) seems like it would undermine the process, but I get it--it's just a story.

In general, it's fine. Nothing over the top happens, nothing all that scandalous. It's an easy, surface read that will help people escape reality for a couple hours.

Overall: 3 stars

I'll tell my students about: alcohol, language, sex, parental loss, trauma

**Thank you to NetGalley and Hera Books for the free ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.**

This had the potential to be an incredible book but the author tried to put too much content and have too many characters in such a short book, this lead to the book feeling rushed and hard to follow.

Thank you to NetGallery and the Publisher for the ARC copy of this book. I have rated thisnbook a 3/5. It was a nice easy read. Match maker Emma is trying to find the perfect t match for the Price twins. She believes in old fashioned matchmaking. There are several characters in this book. I unfortunately was unable to finish it. Based on what I have read, I am rating it a 3/5.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

This is my second Ally Sinclair book, I didn’t enjoy as much as the first that I read but overall thought it was a cute Christmas story, something you might see on the hallmark channel.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced copy.

DNF

This book was just not my style. I was intrigued by the blurb, but I was kind of disappointed by the execution of the story line. The plot was not original enough to keep my interest and I did not find myself connecting to any of the characters.

There is nothing I love more than a good Christmas romance, absolutely love them - they fit so well together. So, The Christmas Season just works so perfectly! An adorable romance that has some really lovable characters for you to meet along the way.

Emma Love is a matchmaker, running a successful singles event known as "The Season" - hearkening back to Regency-era social gatherings designed to foster deeper intimacy than a swipe. Enter Emma's latest clients: Hope, one of last Season't matchmaking 'failures'; Theo, Hope's bestie; Connie, Hope's cousin, struggling with her sense of self and worth; and Grace, Connie's twin, who needs to be in control and feels like she's always apologising for Connie.

The story centres primarily around Emma, Hope, Connie and Grace as they juggle relationships and search for the One. It is a romance, yes, but there are other layers beneath the surface that provide the characters scope for growth. Emma's own, existing, relationship is less than perfect, and she learns to challenge her own assumptions about the happily ever after. Hope, Theo, Grace and Connie are all on journeys to find themselves, as well as a partner, with some surprising revelations and reconciliations in the latter part of the book.

There are a LOT of crisscrossing storylines in this book, as multiple relationships - familial, friendships, partnerships, self love, and of course, romance - are explored, and the book could have easily been longer to give each more depth. Christmas and the Season itself were background themes to all of the relationships.

This was a light, fun read, with some surprisingly complex themes under the froth and fluff of a Christmas romance novel.

~Many thanks to NetGalley and Hera Books for providing an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review~

A simple, easy, Christmas romance. What is there not to love?

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of the book in exchange for a review.

The Christmas Season...

For anyone who loves Romance and Christmas, The Christmas Season is the book for you. It is a clean romantic book based around the Christmas season.
The story is based around Emma Love. Emma is a match maker who believes in finding your true love the old fashion way. We aren't talking any dating apps here!
Emma is so busy finding happy endings for everyone else, while possibly missing her own.
The book will take you on the romantic train of Emma finding matches for others and maybe, just maybe finding her happy ending.

A charming light read. Love actually came to mind. Different stories if different couples. It was a fun read.

I am a huge fan of Jane Austen anything, however this book fell a bit flat for me. Perhaps I needed to read the other book in this series? I did appreciate the sibling relationship and carrying on their family business.

I loved this!!! Such an amazing romantic holiday romance book that has you ready for the season. It is the perfect book for any Jane Austin fan!
I just reviewed The Christmas Season by Ally Sinclair. #TheChristmasSeason #NetGalley
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I received a free copy of, The Christmas Season, by Ally Sinclair, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Emma Love is a matchmaker, she has two tough clients this season twins. Emma believes in old fashion ways, not swiping right. In the modern world its nice to read about people who still appreciate Mr. Darcy. I really enjoyed Emma, her clients and friends.