Go ahead and add this to your fall/winter TBR! Such a great, cozy read that is the epitome of what I want in a winter romance. I loved this whole book, beginning to end. I loved Iris’ quest to make memories in the same places her mother made memories so many years before. The romance was done so well. I do wish that Iris had shared her secret sooner but it made sense in the storyline why she didn’t. The secondary characters are done so well in this book. The setting is almost like another character, which is always one of my favorite things. This book also has an element of found family which is something I can’t get enough of. I highly recommend this read! It does have some holiday storylines but could really be read any time in the fall/winter as it covers before Thanksgiving all the way through and past Christmas.

Read if you like:
▫️One Italian Summer (but in my opinion, this is done better!)
▫️found family
▫️cooking/chef themes
▫️New York City setting

Thanks to @netgalley and @delacortepress for the eARC in exchange for an honest review. This book releases today!

Check out my full review at http://www.instagram.com/the.paperback.place

Iris came to New York to escape from a bad relationship but to also see the places in New York that meant the most to her now deceased mother. When she finds work and starts to build her small family of friends in Bobby and his partner Robin, it seems natural that she is living near the places that her mother loved. As the book goes on she learns more about her mother, the struggles she went through and through that process gains strength in herself. Iris particularly went through a lot of self discovery and came out stronger. When she meets Gio, she is immediately attracted to him and is drawn to his family. Their warmth and generosity fills up that lonely place inside.

A Winter In New York is a novel that feels nostalgic, and there certainly is quite a bit of looking back in the form of learning the story of Iris’s mother, but it is also a story about moving forward. Iris finds her inner strength and finally finds a place where she feels like she belongs. Even if it takes her a while to believe in that place and in herself. I liked this story a lot, and especially loved the Belotti family, Gio, and his daughter Bella. That family is the one that we all want to belong to and it was easy to root for Iris to untangle her life and believe that she deserves this happiness she has found. The satisfying conclusion was everything I wanted to read. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley and the publisher for an honest review and it was honest!

Such a cute and cozy love story! The ending has all the holiday feels but the story does take place throughout the year.

Iris having lost her mom and running from her past winds up in New York working at a Noodle shop. Her boss, landlord and best friend Bobby live above her over the noodle shop. One day she recognizes a door to a shop she’s seen many times in a photograph of her mother’s while exploring the city. It’s a gelato shop now being run by Gio.

Gio is a widow raising his daughter and trying to run the family gelato shop while his father is in the hospital. No one knows the recipe for the famous vanilla gelato and his father has lost his memory. In walks Iris offering to help him try to figure the family recipe out.

Iris has made a lot of mistakes and has dug some pretty deep holes you wonder if she will ever get out of. She grows so much in the story and finally comes into herself. She and Gio have such a special relationship and you want to root for them so hard.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Dell.

Rating: 4.5 Stars

Every time I see an announcement for a new Josie Silver book, I get excited because I know I will be reading a warm and wonderful story. Once again, Silver touched my heart with A Winter in New York.

There were so many things that delighted me in this story, but what stood out for me was the theme of connection among these people. Belotti's was an important part of Iris' mother's past. It was there that she fell in love and made the difficult decision to leave him behind. It was also where she was gifted the family's top secret gelato recipe which then led Iris to Gio. There were a few more points of connection in this story, one which made me giddy, but I will let you discover them on your own.

I feel like the gelato drama was the universe's way of bringing Gio and Iris into each other's lives. Both were still dealing with grief - Gio's due to the loss of his wife, and Iris' due to the loss of her mother. The mornings they spent together may have been in search of the perfect gelato recipe, but it also served as a time for them to heal. It was so wonderful watching them slowly open their hearts, and it was even better to see them fall in love.

When these two were not in the kitchen, they were out exploring the NY. One part that was an utter delight was when they went to view the Christmas lights in Dyker heights. This was a walk down memory lane for me, as one of my aunts lived in that neighborhood, and I used to go see the lights. A great tradition, and I loved that they brought me back there. I wish I was able to find the pictures, though you really need to see them in real life to appreciate the splendor of all those lights.

I also was able celebrate the holidays with Iris and Gio. I had no doubt this would be a wam-fuzzy kind of experience given that I would be spending time with the fabulous Belotti family. This tight-knit and boisterous bunch filled me with glee. The chaos and energy of it all reminded me of past holidays spent with my extended family. I felt so happy that Gio had such an incredible support system, but I also loved the way they welcomed Iris into the fold. This was something that was really missing from her life.

Iris had experienced some tough years. A never present father, the death of her mother, and an abusive ex were among the struggles that led her to New York. There, she found Bobby, Robin, Gio, and the rest of the Belotti family, and I was so happy she did. They became her family, showed her love, gave her comfort, and filled an important space in her life.

As I had previously stated, there was a lot to love about this story. There's some subterfuge as Iris tries to keep Santo's past relationship with her mother under wraps, but that didn't distract me from all the lovely parts. It was the food, family, and romance elements of this story that won my heart, and I adored getting to bear witness to this sweet and heartfelt tale.

This was a cute a book but I’ve enjoyed some other Josie Silver books better! A Winter in New York is a heartwarming, cozy tale about love and loss.

The plot, filled with delicious recipes and secret histories, leaves you wanting more every chapter. The romance left something to be desired.

Don’t get me wrong, I was giggling three pages in, but wanted more chemistry through it. While it’s a super sweet, slow burn, I found the connection between the main characters lackluster at times.

At the end of the day, this a really enjoyable holiday read!

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for this ARC.

Josie never disappoints! A Winter in New York by Josie Silver was a cute holiday romance.
I found this book to be delightful and was engaged throughout reading it.
The characters and storyline were fantastic.
I love that she creates characters that tug at your heartstrings and packed with laugh out loud humor. The characters were a delight to spend time with. I loved the chemistry and connections that were made.
Josie Silver writes a wonderfully enchanting love story. A fantastic book with plenty of depth.
It truly was a wonderful story and I’m so happy Josie Silver has done it once again.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Random House, Ballantine & Dell for the opportunity to read this ahead of its publication date in return for my honest review.

3.5 stars
I really enjoyed Iris and Gio, plus his large family of sisters and her adorable upstairs neighbors, Bobby and Robin. I liked the flashbacks to Iris's mother. The time spent with Iris and Gio trying to perfect the gelato recipe as they fall for each other, and Iris recovering her self esteem and confidence, were interesting.
The part of the book that I struggled with was the recurring appearance/mentions of Adam. I found them unnecessary and distracting, in addition to being unpleasant. The book didn't need.that suspense, and I felt like the growth Iris had and the demonstration of Gio being a great guy didn't need Adam's character to take place - I would much rather he have been totally off page and in the past.

This book was different from what I expected, but in the best of ways. It isn’t just a straightforward romance. Silver has beautifully weaves a story of grief, the love between a mother and daughter, and rediscovering yourself when all seems lost.

After losing her mother and escaping an abusive relationship, Iris moves to New York City to start over. Her mother’s stories of the city always shone with magic and life, and she’s hoping to find her own spark again. When she stumbles on a storefront from one of her mother’s old photos, she stumbles into a search for the Belotti family’s secret gelato recipe - a recipe that her mother just so happened to have. As she becomes ever more deeply intwined with the family, especially the handsome widower Gio, she’s faced with a choice. Does she come clean about her connection to their family, or make a clean break and leave them behind?

I really enjoyed this book. The story was unique, the characters vivid, and it is a gorgeous love letter to New York City. However, the pacing felt extraordinarily odd, at times glacially slow and other times skipping forward weeks at a time. Since pacing is a huge factor for me as a reader, that knocked the rating down a bit.

Thank you to Net Galley and Delacorte Press for a copy of this ARC!

Let me start by saying I’ve loved all other Josie Silver books. One Night on the Island was one of my favorite books last year. This book however was a bit of miss for me. It takes place in NY but really didn’t have much to do with it being winter in NY. The title and cover lead you to believe that it’s going to be more of a holiday book than it was. The conflict between Iris and Gio seemed to drag out and very forced. The ongoing lies seemed unnecessary and overly dramatic for what they were. I loved Gio and his family but the rest was just off.

A Winter in New York by @josiesilverauthor
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
Release date- 10/3/23

BIIIIIIG Josie Silver fan over here 👋🏼 I’ve been hooked ever since One Day in December. 🧣This story follows Iris & her journey as she starts over in New York after leaving a difficult relationship & dealing with the grief of losing her mother. Iris stumbles upon a struggling gelato shop & makes the realization that she has the secret recipe & is able to help but only if she sacrifices her mother’s secret.

🤭 I was in love with these characters from the get-go. The relationship dynamics & banter between characters was a 10/10 for me. I love the slow burn & also a big fan of the big family relationship.

If you’ve read & loved Josie Silver before this is a MUST read!

Read if you enjoy:
❄️ winter romance
❄️ big families
❄️involved families
❄️slow burn
❄️secrets
❄️secret romance
❄️single dad trope
❤️thanks @netgalley for this ARC!

**Many thanks to NetGalley, Random House-Dell, and Josie Silver for an ARC of this book!**

Ice skating in Rockefeller Center. The Radio City Music Hall Christmas Spectacular. Enchanting window displays lighting up Macy's.

And... vanilla gelato?

Josie Silver has one more item to add to the iconic list of New York City winter musts...but as much as I LOVE sweets, I'm not sure one would QUITE be added to my must-have yearly rotation.

Iris is walking away from life in London, and a toxic relationship that nearly destroyed her. Her destination? Glamorous NYC, where she hopes to be swept away by the romance and excitement of the city. She's out at an Italian street festival with her best bud Bobby one day when a cute, quaint shop on the corner of a street catches her eye. It's a family-run gelataria, and Iris feels like there is a REASON she stumbled upon it, and she vows to return the next day.

When she does, she meets Gio Belotti, a drop-dead gorgeous Italian man who is desperate to figure out the family's secret recipe for gelato so he can recreate it. His uncle, the original keeper of the secret, is in a coma and Gio is determined to keep the family's business thriving in the meantime. When Iris gets a taste, however, her stomach drops: it is EXACTLY the same as the vanilla gelato she used to have with her mom, so many years ago...and Iris realizes that her mom must have been in on the secret too. Iris feels sure she can help Gio and family recapture that magic AND keep the secret under wraps. But when Gio's charm begins to sweep Iris off her feet, can she stay grounded enough to keep the past in the past? And when Gio's uncle finally wakes, will he compromise her place as a veritable member of the Belotti family AND the future she was hoping to build with Gio? Is the relationship she ended in London really and TRULY over...or destined to haunt her new life too?

I've been aching to recapture the magic I felt while reading One Day In December ever since I finished that book, and every time Josie Silver puts out a book, I get a rush of anticipation. Although I normally avoid Christmas ARCS due to the timing of the publishing world, this one seemed to do less with the holiday itself and more with the locale and the winter season rather than Christmas specifically, so I figured it was worth a try. And in many ways, this one DID fit the bill.

The locale? Charming.

The two leads? Likable enough (although Gio's swooniness revolved mostly around his good looks and calling Iris "little spoon" in Italian. Which in fairness IS pretty cute...but still)

The premise, however? I think calling it simply implausible is being a bit kind.

This is absolutely in the league of Hallmark, you just have to 'grin and go with it' plotting. There is a LOT of right place, right time that takes place to even put Iris in Gio's path, and their romance definitely was on the 'instalove' side of the street. I'm not necessarily opposed to all of this, especially in a cozy story, but there were times when the dialogue and the plot points themselves didn't necessarily feel real enough for me.

Not only does Iris become instantly entrenched with Gio, she basically becomes one of the Belottis with almost no prelude, and the whole situation, while sweet, didn't feel too authentic to me. It was also difficult to have SO many side characters, siblings etc., but to not feel like I got to know any of them well enough to be fully invested. Even Gio's own DAUGHTER is hardly a hiccup for Iris: apparently she feels ready to jump into a motherly role without any hesitation. Again, this seemed odd for someone who had been through what Iris had and was at that place in life...but with those reflective passages absent, it was sometimes hard to say.

The whole history of the secret recipe and the connection between Iris' mom and the older Belottis is also a bit heavy handed in terms of info dump and trying to make it all make sense. We get a COUPLE of glimpses back in time to see how everything played out, but it is a far cry from two fully formed timelines. In some ways, I think I would have preferred to see more of this relationship play out in parallels (as is often the case in these kinds of stories) rather than just a glimpse here and there. Even if Iris had happened to stumble upon her mom's old journals or the like, I think there was a lot of missing depth that Silver could have explored to give this story more of the peaks and valleys I was expecting.

All of these plotting and structural quibbles aside, there is a lot to love in Silver's latest romance, and although I didn't connect with it the way I'd hoped, it DID inspire me to do 3 things:

1) Eat gelato 🍨
2) Watch Moonstruck 🌙
3) Teach my husband Italian😍

...

(okay, I'd settle for him going to GET me the gelato!)😏

3.5 stars, rounded up to 4

This is probably my favorite holiday read for 2023. We have Iris moving from London to start over in New York’s Little Italy. Upon visiting a small gelateria, Iris realizes that someone else may have her family’s secret vanilla gelato recipe. While this may seem awkward, Iris has been trying (unsuccessfully) to recreate this miracle dessert. Enter Gio, whose gelateria is in danger of closing! Can these two solve a family mystery, make amazing gelato, and fall in love in the Big Apple? Read this one to find out!

Thank you to Net Galley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for allowing me to read the ARC of A Winter In New York. It is a story about secrets, loss, love, gelato, grief, loyalty, and hope. It begins with Iris running from London after her mother passed away, leaving behind an abusive ex-boyfriend. She arrives in New York where the story takes place, meets Gio and their journey begins. I enjoyed how the author developed the characters, making me fall in love with all of them. I also liked the backstory between Iris's mother Vivian and Santo, Gio's pappa.
There was some laughter, and some tears, and my heart is just so full right now from this heartwarming story. I couldn't put it down. 5 stars!!

Publication date: October 3, 2023.

I read Josie Silver’s “One Day in December”, so I was looking forward to her new release. It did not disappoint! I found myself more emotionally invested than I expected. I loved every scene featuring Gio’s big Italian family and craved more time with them.

I struggled with this book - elegantly written and woven with grief but still beautifully told. For as many times as I was frustrated with the lack of honesty in the narrative, this book was objectively human.

This was such a cute, heartwarming slow-burn romance. It was definitely slow to start as Iris helps Gio try to make the perfect vanilla gelato over and over again, and their friendship and romance grows, but the ending was perfect. I loved Iris's relationship with her boss Bobby and his partner Robin. And then as little orphan Iris is welcomed into Gio's family, the secrets she is keeping from them becomes overwhelming for her. She's never had a family or really anyone that cared for her as much as her mother did, and without her mother she doesn't believe she is worthy of being loved, cared for and protected.

It is a great holiday romance. I loved all the characters, even though Iris's stubbornness could sometimes be annoying. A wonderfully cute love story.

Josie Silver. NYC. Christmas. SAY NO MORE.

I need to start off by saying that Josie Silver is one of my absolute favorite authors. Even when the story isn't my favorite (One Night on the Island) I still find myself immersed in the story because I just LOVE her writing.

A Winter in New York is a sweet story with a little more depth than a typical holiday romance.
Iris moves to NYC after the death of her mother. She lands a job, a new best friend, and while visiting a family run gelato shop, possibly a new love interest. Gio is the handsome Italian nephew of the owner.
I absolutely LOVED seeing New York through her fresh eyes! Especially during Christmas time. The characters were just lovely, though I wish we'd gotten to know Gio's family just a bit more.

I'd definitely recommend this to someone looking for a light-ish read with some more serious topics. Now I'm ready to go plan a trip to NYC and find some fantastic gelato!

Thank you to Ballantine Books and PRH Audio for my early copies!

Is it too soon to read another holiday book? Definitely not when its Josie Silver’s new book!

Josie Silver is an auto-buy auto for me!

I fell in love with The Two Lives of Lydia Bird and have read every single book she has written since!

Her writing always evokes all the emotions and that is my favorite kind of writing.

This is a love story about Iris and Gio and both characters are struggling with things. Gio is struggling to keep his store open and Iris helps. Iris is struggling with loss and searching for herself. I love their dynamic as well as so many of the side characters in this story. It gave be While You Were Sleeping vibes a little bit which is a favorite rom-com of mine.

I loved so much about this book! I loved the themes of love and loss, how we all process grief and strive towards healing. I also really loved the Belotti family and think you will too!

This definitely got me in the holiday spirit!

I would highly recommend you read this book with some gelato because I promise you, you’re going to want some!

Thank you @netgalley and @randomhouse for the early copy

Thank you @josiesilveauthor for writing another wonderful book!

4.25 stars

My first Christmas read of 2023 and it did not disappoint! I will be sharing the review tomorrow on pub day on my Instagram account. Josie Silver has become a favorite ever since I read One Day in December as part of RW Bookclub, and I was so excited for another holiday read from her! This book gave me all of the emotions. I was tense and anxious, I was happy, I cried. I loved the setting of being in NYC, but more specifically enjoyed their corner of it feeling like it's own community. Gio was a love interest I could get onboard with as well! The relationship between mother and daughter was so special and moving and I especially loved Vivian's chapters. I will recommend this one!!

A Winter in New York by Josie Silver is a nostalgic and cozy holiday romance set against the backdrop of bustling New York City. This book will leave you craving for a scoop of gelato, so be sure to have some on standby! The story revolves around a young chef armed with her family's secret gelato recipe, who embarks on a journey to restart her life in NYC. She stumbles upon a handsome man named Gio and his family's struggling gelateria - a shop that holds a special place in her late mother's memories. With Gio's uncle, the keeper of their gelato recipe, in a coma and only one batch of their signature gelato remaining, the future looks bleak. However, after tasting the last batch, Iris makes a startling discovery - their gelato tastes identical to hers! Iris steps up to help them recreate the flavor, but her secrets threaten to unravel everything.

This tale of love, family secrets, and new beginnings is a perfect choice for fans of Emily Stone and Jenny Bayliss. This was my first encounter with Josie Silver's work, but I'm eager to explore her other titles, including One Day in December and The Two Lives of Lydia Bird. Tags: Fiction, Romance, Contemporary Romance, Holiday Romance, Christmas, Family Secrets, Found Family, Terminal Illness. *Special thanks to #NetGalley and the publisher for providing a free eARC #AWinterinNewYork #JosieSilver