I absolutely loved this story of love and family, the family you're born into and the family you are lucky enough to be brought into.
Iris moves to NY to escape an emotionally abusive boyfriend in London. She just surviving until she meets Gio at his family's gelateria.
She only wants to help him recover his family's sacred Gelato recipe. That's it. But then lies happen, feelings happen, and before she knows it, Iris is in a hole she can't seem to climb out of.
Iris'srelationship with her mother and her trauma from her ex are a juxtaposition that make her a complicated character, but one you are rooting for.

What’s not to like in this novel? NYC, Italian, a lovely family backstory with a recent breakup - with lots of leading up to iris and Gio. And who doesn’t love gelato? A cute, easy, page-turner that scratches a lot of itches as a reader - comforting read with fun side characters and a simmering plot.

It has been 103+ degrees for something like eight weeks straight. As PSLs hit stores and fall décor begins to make its way out, I'm still stuck in the sweaty, long, dog days of Summer. A Winter in New York was the perfect book to read considering all of that, because it sucked me in so much I was almost convinced I needed a scarf and a hat to keep me warm on the cold New York nights.

A Winter in New York finds Iris, a thirty-something émigré from England, living in southern Manhattan, cooking noodles at a restaurant owned by her landlord-employer-cum-best-friend, Bobby, pretty well keeping to herself, running from her past. When Bobby forces Iris out of the apartment in the fall to see a festival in Little Italy, he unknowingly reintroduces Iris to an important part of her mother's life. Iris' mother died some years back and after a lonely, itinerant life, Iris has few connections and longs to find pieces of her mother left behind in New York in the 80s. When Iris steps through the intricately painted door at Belotti's Gelato shop, she finds herself fully mixed-up in her mother's past.

I read Josie Silver's One Night in December sometime back and loved the premise but loathe a cheating storyline and I was disappointed that something so hyped and seemingly perfect didn't hit the HEA vibes I expect from holiday romances. A Winter in New York is everything I hoped One Night in December could be and more. Iris and Gio are not twenty-somethings with nothing to lose, as is so often the case in romances. Their story has stakes, they are grown people confronting real trauma and trying to get past it to live their lives. I found both character's backstory and their central issue to work through believable and relatable. The family and friendship component were equally valued in Iris' story, not just the romance. There was as much to love about Iris figuring out where she stands as there was about her finding her HEA. It was such a well-rounded, immersive book that I stayed up late into the night to finish it, consuming it in just one day. This is sure to be a well-loved, extensively read holiday romance in 2023. Holiday romances are one of the things I most look forward to at the end of the year and the only disappointment I have now is knowing I've already read the best of this year with three months to go. A must read for fans of this subgenre and anyone out there who needs a little hope, sunshine, and lots of gelato talk.

What brings broken people together like gelato? Well, family secrets, lies, New York City, and a little winter magic might just do the trick. When Iris tells a simple lie to a stranger at a bookstore, she tells herself she won't lie about her past any longer. But when she meets that man again, and when said man just happens to be connected to the gelateria that appears in her mother's photobook, Iris doesn't know what to do. Gio is trying to unravel the secret to the family's gelato recipe, and Iris, a chef, realizes that same recipe has been hidden in her mother's things ever since she passed away. As Iris tries to decipher the truth behind her mother's storied past by spending more time with Gio and his family, her guilt over the lies she has accidentally woven grows. Gio and Iris grow closer, but eventually Iris must face the truth about her and her mother's past, no matter the consequence.

The setting of this book was beautiful. Winter in New York City? Falling in love in an Italian gelateria? The setting was just perfect for the story. I also loved hearing Iris talk about her mom's history (although those chapters were a little unnecessary). Gio's big Italian family were the perfect contrast to the way Iris grew up. And I loved Silver's sweet, lyrical storytelling.

However, I just didn't like Iris. Her decisions did not make sense to me. She lied, did not come clean, and eventually put people in danger. Having an unlikeable main character kind of hurt the story for me. I felt like this made the climax a bit too unbelievable and farfetched. Without giving more away, the climax just seemed unnecessary and Iris seemed selfish. Overall, though, a fluffy farfetched winter love story with a little Italian flair!

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for this Advanced Readers Copy of A Winter in New York by Josie Silver!

Oh what another fantastic read and book from Josie Silver, and the way I will devour any book she writes! A Winter in New York is a great cozy season read to bundle up on the couch with and just dive into the world that Josie Silver creates with Iris and Gio. Iris has moved to NYC from London after fleeing from a bad relationship, and stumbles upon what becomes a kismet connection with Gio Belotti, his family, and their gelateria – and has secrets about their connection and how she’s able to help them with their secret gelato recipe. Overall, I really loved the story and gahhhhhh Gio was chef’s kiss – the way he would call Iris “little spoon” in Italian – swoooooooon. The story had me hooked from the beginning about how it would play out with Iris helping the Belotti’s, but ultimately I wish she would have shared her secret earlier, instead of freaking out multiple times. The flashbacks from Iris’s mother’s POV were also enlightening and really added to the story.

Add to your TBR immediately, because yet again Josie Silver has written a book that I couldn’t put down.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book provided to me through NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Josie Silver and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Dell for giving me the opportunity to read this book!

This book made me so ready for the holiday season. Our heroine Iris has never truly settled anywhere until she came to New York. She stumbles upon a gelato shop that has the same recipe as the one she grew up making with her mother. Turns out it’s a secret family recipe of people she’d never met before, including Gio. She’d met him before on Valentine’s Day in a meet-cute gone wrong.

I enjoyed most of the book but didn’t care for the abusive ex storyline. It felt a bit shoe-horned in there, but I did like how it was resolved.

Thanks as always to NetGalley for the ARC.

This book had me yearning for a warm cup of coffee and a cozy blanket on a big cushiony couch. Josie Silver writes imagery of certain places beautifully. I was sucked in on her descriptions of New York City in the winter time. The romance in the book hit the right note of wistful yearning from the two main characters, Iris and Gio. Iris leaves London after she ends a terrible relationship and still reeling from her mothers passing. She meets Gio at a gelato shop and sparks fly. There's found family, strangers to lovers, and so many fun side characters. I do wish that some things were more fleshed out. Her past regarding her mother and past relationship were mentioned a lot but I didn't feel like I got any sense of who she was before she moved to NYC. The banter from chapter 1 between Iris and Gio faded so there wasn't much playful banter between them. While I did enjoy their romantic relationship there were missed opportunities Silver dropped the ball on. I wanted a better view into their relationship, but the scenes we do get are swoon-worthy. Overall I'm gonna give this a 4.3 stars.

Thanks NetGalley for the arc

This readable story centers around a gelato recipe. Iris is a little lost after moving to New York and her friend drags her to a street fair in Little Italy. She discovers a gelateria and she is intrigued because she and her mother made wonderful gelato as a special treat for themselves. The uncle who was running the shop has suffered a stroke and he is unable to remember the recipe for the special gelato the store is famous for. Gio, the nephew now running the shop, is trying hard to recreate the recipe. When Iris visits the shop, she finds a connection to her mother and realizes that she knows the special recipe. Because she doesn't know why her mother had the recipe, she is reluctant to tell the family that she has it. There are lots of bumps and misunderstandings and I through the story dragged a little as they worked through everything but it was a pleasant and different story with a happy ending. I give it three and a half stars. Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read this book in return for my honest review.

I loved this holiday book set in NYC. Overall, love Sophie’s work!
It was the perfect amount of light and emotional. I did notice a typo right in the first sentence of chapter 7: “sorry I just needed to get OUT of there”. My positive review is attached. Thank you so much for allowing me the privilege to read this early, I am so ready for the holidays now and can’t wait to get my hands on my physical copy when she book is officially released.

Love the setting being in New York, I really enjoy any rom com based there. Add in the time of year and this makes a perfect fall/winter read. I enjoy this author, and this is another good read. Follows the basic romance/chick lit feel for the book and one I'll recommend to customers.

I feel like the title is a biiiit of a misnomer - the book starts around September and thanksgiving doesn’t appear until around the 60 percent mark.

I’ve read two books by this author and found them to be poignant, introspective, character driven reads. This one was no different. This is completely a character driven story following the main character, Iris, dealing with grief following the death of her mother by following in her footsteps to New York City. Iris is also fleeing an abusive relationship, so she is in desperate need of a fresh start.

The writing was excellent and evocative, but I couldn’t help but feel that the main source of conflict was…fairly minor? The entire time, I kept thinking, “why doesn’t she just tell them the truth?” Stories where the entire conflict has to do with the main character keeping a secret from someone else aren’t my favorite, so I didn’t enjoy this one as much as I was expecting to.

I really enjoyed the Christmas vibes when they entered the story, particularly all the Italian traditions and customs (panettone!!). Overall I’d recommend this one, if you enjoy character driven stories with some holiday feels.

A Winter in New York by Josie Silver is a perfect fall/winter read. Searching for an escape, Iris goes to New York, the place where her mother was the happiest, looking for an escape. When walking through a food festival, she stumbles on a gelato shop that looks familiar, one she recognizes from her mother's photo album. She returns the next day to check out the shop and meets Gio who is struggling to recreate the secret family recipe after it has been lost. As Iris and Gio start to work on recreating the recipe, Iris has to decide what matters most: keeping her mother's secret or helping Gio save his family's shop. The characters in the story are rich and realistic; Silver doesn't shy away from exploring the challenges of family and relationships, instead allowing the reader to connect more with the characters. This story is perfect for readers looking for a romance with more depth, those who love New York, music, and food, or those who just want a story with both a found family and close blood family element. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Aww I loved this book! It brought me pure joy while reading it and I know I need to have a physical copy on my shelf for a re-read in the future! This is a must read for long and cold winter nights!

I was so attracted to this book based off the cover and the title. Winter in New York is something I have dreamed about since I was a child and I really enjoyed how this book took me there. The description of the cooking in this book had my mouth watering. I loved the strangers to lovers trope and was cheering for love.

Thank you NetGalley for providing this eArc in exchange for my honest opinion.

Mourning the loss of her late mother and escaping a toxic relationship with a psychologically abusive man, Iris uproots her London life and moves to New York City, a place her mother loved as a young adult. Feeling more connected to her mother than she has since her passing, Iris allows her best friend Bobby to drag her out to explore the city. Which is how she stumbles upon the Belotti Gelateria, a feature in her late mother’s scrapbook. Iris meets Gio, the handsome shop owner, and learns that the business is in danger of closing because Gio’s uncle, the sole keeper of the store’s famous gelato recipe, is in a coma. When she samples the gelato, she instantly realizes that the recipe is the exact same as the gelato her mom made growing up, leaving her to wonder how her mom came to get the recipe and what her connections to Gio’s family really are. Iris offers to help Gio recreate the recipe. But when his uncle wakes up from his coma, all of the secrets Iris has kept threaten her new life and her budding romance with Gio.

Thank you @netgalley, @randomhouse, and @josiesilverauthor for the ARC! This was a heartwarming story full of love, loss, friendships, and overcoming past traumas. Iris’s character was so well developed and I loved her and felt for her so much. Her journey to overcome the trauma of her past relationship and live with the grief of her mother’s loss were so poignant and you couldn’t help but cheer her on. I loved how the Belottis embraced her and their family dynamic was so fun and felt so authentically New York and Italian. Gio was so well written to and I love his character and how he and Iris cared for each other. The slow burn between them was perfection. Overall this was a great read that lovers of the holiday, New York, and gelato will devour! A Winter In New York is available October 3! (On October 3rd, he asked me what day it was. Iykyk)

Obviously, if you pick up a Josie Silver romance then you know you are in for a well-written, heartwarming and compelling love story. And A Winter in New York did not disappoint. There's a baking together trope, an intriguing secret and a found family realization. While the novel is mostly told from Iris' perspective, we do get a brief peek into her late mom Vivian's side -- and that gave me, like, serious Daisy Jones & the Six (IYKYK) vibes. It's such a cute and compelling read that I was oh so eager to find out what was happening next.'

CW: Abusive relationship (Not the main love interest)

4 Stars

This was my first book by Josie Silver but it definitely won’t be my last. I got drawn in by the cover (I love it) and having heard good things about her previous book.

I loved the premise of the story and think it would make the cutest movie? It has While You Were Sleeping vibes! Overall, I really enjoyed A Winter in New York. I will say at times it seemed really slow paced, especially in the first 40-50%. This could be a me problem since the last book I read before this was a fast-paced fantasy.

I love loved the few chapters which tied the past into the story and also all the movie/tv show references throughout. The element of deception was kind of woven throughout the story and it gave me major anxiety the longer it went on. It’s nothing new in books and movies but if that’s an anxiety inducer for you, then know it will be for a big chunk of this story.

I personally would have loved more romance and build up to the main relationship on the page— more flirty interactions and signs that things were developing. It seemed like it went from friendship to more pretty instantaneously and I wanted to be feeling it more alongside them. I will say though, Gio is the most delicious cinnamon roll of a man! I would protect him at all costs and now really just wanna eat some Belotti’s famous vanilla gelato.

Thank you to Net Galley and Random House Publishing Group- Ballantine for the ARC of A Winter in New York!

In the winter, you need nothing more than to bundle up in a thick blanket, in front of a roaring fire, cuddled up with this book! One of the best books I have ever read and I can only dream of building a family like the one in this book.

Iris' mother was a 1980s rock star, and though she retired to London, regaled her daughter with her past in New York where she really took off in her stardom. Now, her mother is in an urn, and Iris has come to New York to discover who her mother was, and why she has a picture and recipe from a random gelato shop. At the gelato shop, she will meet Gio, who will do anything to keep his family together and keep the gelato business going another generation.

We can easily guess where the story goes from there, but the heart and love of Gio and his family is so incredible, I was pulled in from the moment we first meet him. When people talk about men written from a female gaze, they mean men like Gio. I would swoon over him any day of the week! And his sisters are just as rapturous!

If you only read one romance book this year, make sure you make it this one!

Josie Silver doesn't write what I'd call rom-coms. They have meet-cutes, and Happily Ever Afters, but they tend to be heavier than most rom-coms, even though some of them contain an element of magic. A Winter in New York is in the same vein -- a romance but not a rom-com. No magic this time. Instead, there's gelato, and a lot of references to classic movies and classic rock. Which, for me, counts as a different kind of magic.

Iris is 34, has recently lost her mom (who was only 52), and has recently escaped from an emotionally abusive relationship. She's been in New York a few months, where she knows a grand total of three people and tries not to leave her apartment unless absolutely necessary. Then she meets Gio Belotti and his gelateria, and finds herself twisted up in his life in ways she never could have imagined.

The whole gelato thing is really far-fetched but also really adorable. A secret recipe, family ties that seem super unlikely -- you gotta suspend a lot of disbelief for this one. But somehow it works. Iris and Gio are what you'd expect for two people who have been hurt and have a lot to lose -- awkward, shy, not at all smooth. But that's what makes them endearing, and you can't help but root for them, even when it seems that Iris has created such a huge mess that she'll never find her way out of it without hurting everyone involved.

The mess, by the way, could have been cleared up immediately if she just would have told Gio the whole truth at the beginning. I have a difficult time with books that rely on people digging a hole for themselves when there's an easy way out. I know, I know, we wouldn't have a book if the people in it acted rationally. But still. It made me frustrated with Iris, and it might affect you that way too.

I never got a great feel for who Iris was, but that's not surprising -- she's the narrator, and she doesn't really know who she is either, thanks to her former boyfriend, Adam. He's damaged her emotionally in ways she doesn't even fully see, so of course she probably doesn't see herself too clearly right now. I wish we'd gotten a bit more of an idea of who she was before Adam and before her mom died. We see some of that come out when she meets Gio, but not enough.

Speaking of Adam -- spoiler ahead . . . .


Why does he actually show up in New York like some third-rate comic book villain? The whole scene with him and Gio's family was pretty silly and not the way I would have liked to see this wrapped up. Iris lived in a storage unit for a few days? What? Who does that? So weird.


Anyway. I liked this one -- it's probably my favorite of Josie Silver's so far, and I look forward to her next one. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an eARC of this book.