All year long Zoey lives Christmas, not only because she just loves it but she's also a director of countless Christmas movies.
This year she gets the chance to direct her own movie but for her to reach that dream she has to get a permit for filming.
Her boss wants her to get the permit before Christmas so Zoey decides to book a flight to Canada and visit Chelsea to personally get her permit.
She meets a lot of friendly people in town who all seem very excited to let her film in their stores and bars except for Ben, he doesn't want a camera near his tree farm.
And the worst thing is, Ben is also the mayor of the town, so Zoey needs to give it her all to convince Ben to grant her a filming permit.

If you open a dictionary to look up the meaning of romcom, you will find the title of this book. It fits perfectly in the genre, there's not only a romance between the main characters, all the other characters in town are so heartwarming, they just feel like one big family.
About the comedy part, there were a lot of scenes where I actually laughed out loud and reading it made me feel so happy.
It was no doubt a 5 star read for me and I would really recommend it if you're into cozy, 'enemies' to lovers, holiday romcoms.

Reading It Happened One Christmas is like cozying up by the fire with a mulled beverage and a sleepy pet of your choice, regardless of your actual location/situation. Zoey is charming, relatable, and hilarious. Ben is dreamy as only a plaid shacket-clad grump can be. The circumstances in which they're thrown together are interesting and tense while still staying true to the frothy tone of the book.
While Zoey is American, there are plenty of "inside jokes" that made this Canadian guffaw.
A great, quick, happy read for the holiday season!

4.5⭐️ this is cute and swoony with perfect holiday vibes! I enjoyed this book so much and it put me in the holiday spirit.
There was one part at the end that end that wasn’t my favourite as it was a misunderstanding and that’s not my favourite trope, but it was such a small part of the book that it didn’t ruin it for me.
If you like small town romance, enemies to lovers, forced proximity and Hallmark Christmas movies then you should definitely check this out.

Thank you so much to Penguin Random House & Netgalley for a copy of the arc. This review is my own.

This Hallmark movie themed romance was a sweet & cozy read. Zoey & Ben's banter was amazing, especially in the beginning when they constantly butted heads. The small town of Chelsea felt like a dreamy sequence to begin with, and the side characters were equally wholesome.

I loved "Gigi, Listening" by Chantel, but for this one, it felt like the chemistry was missing somehow, and the plot wasn't exactly unique. The book spans over 4-5 days, which makes the romance almost insta-love. Most of Zoey & Ben's time was spent battling snowstorms, trying to take shelter, & convincing each other to change their minds about the movie shoot.

I definitely think that it was a cute book, but there was nothing in comparison to the tension, angst, bickering, & romance in "Gigi, Listening," which is basically what I need characters to have when they dislike each other at the beginning.

Thank you Netgalley & Publisher for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

Get ready to be swept away on a sleigh ride of festive cheer and romance from the very first page! As a fellow Quebec native, I was mesmerized by the vividly painted scenes of Chelsea. The characters, oh, the characters! Both of them are a blast, and their witty banter and blossoming love story kept me engaged. The Quebec traditions and references are spot-on, making this charming story even more delightful. The author even spices things up with a little extra romance to give it that Hallmark-esque feel we all know and love. I was so hooked that I breezed through the story in no time! The pacing was perfect, and the entire story was carefully crafted. And here's the cherry on top: a playlist at the back of the book that's simply brilliant! So, grab a cozy blanket, some knit socks, and a yummy poutine and dive right into this heartwarming tale!

So nice to see a Christmas book set in Canada! Zoey Andrews is a film director that travels to a small town in Quebec in order to secure a location shoot for a Christmas movie. The book follows the usual Christmas story theme in that she meets a guy and the enemies to lovers trope ensues. I have to admit that I had a hard time getting into this book and the pacing of the last half of the book seemed so much faster than the first half.

I just finished It Happened One Christmas by Chantel Guertin and here are my thoughts.


Zoey makes Christmas movies for a living and when she finally gets her script greenlit to film, she won’t let anything stand in her way. Traveling herself to Quebec to a small hamlet where she has set her movie, Zoey has to get the permits and permissions quickly before her boss decides to shoot another movie…

Zoey didn’t foresee Ben, owner of the Christmas tree farm where she needs to film. When it is a resounding no, she goes to see the mayor and who does she find in the office? BEN! No chance of that permit now.

Convincing Zoey to go to the next town over, a freak ice storm strands Zoey and Ben in the middle of nowhere with only each other to get through it.

Can they work together to make it back to civilization and will Ben change his mind on Zoey’s request?

Not your average christmas romance and I am so glad for that! This book was so charming and whimsical with a slight hint of terror! The author changed my mind on a grumpy frenchman… Ben was a total babe at the end and I loved how their relationship developed and changed over the course of the book. I did find Zoey a little annoying but I think she was pushed to her limit with trying to fix someone else's mistake to make sure her movie got its shot.

The romance was a total slow burn and didn’t consume the whole book which was an interesting path to take but I think it worked pretty well here. I think the story building was quite excellent and I loved how Canada was portrayed as well.

The writing was great and I was pleased with the book overall.

3.75 stars - rounded to 4.

Thank you @netgalley and @penguinrandomca for my gifted copy

First thought: This book had it all cute and witty banter, adventure, teamwork, glimpse into French Canadian traditions, and little bit of spice all wrapped in an adorable hallmark worthy Christmas romance.

Zoey is an LA film producer specializing in feel good holiday romcoms. She finally got the studio to fund her own script to the perfect Christmas romance but now it’s all in jeopardy because of a mixup of the location. That lands her in the small town of Chelsea Canada a few days before Christmas trying to secure movie permits so her movie can happen. This film is everything to her as this town holds memories of her past and dreams of what her future would look like.

Ben is the owner of the local tree farm in Chelsea, he makes and supplies maple syrup to the area, oh and he happens to be the mayor. When his dad passed away a year ago he decided to step into his shoes and ensure the town he loved so much is protected and doesn’t change. Nothing is more important to him than his family, community and the traditions of the holidays.

Zoey and Ben are destined to collide in this small town as she needs permits and he refuses to give them to her. To make matters worse the worst ice storm in history is about to hit and these two are trapped in not ideal circumstances and will have to work together to survive. You will not want to put this one down and I highly recommend listening to the Christmas playlist that was provided.

Tropes you’ll find:

* Enemies to Lover
* Forced Proximity
* Ice Storm
* Small Town
* Hallmark Movie
* Holiday Traditions
* Found Family

This was a great pre-holiday season read. Perfect to get you in the festive spirit! I will be looking forward to recommending this to friends this year.

I loved, loved, loved this Christmas book! Ben and Zoey are such an amazing MC pair and Simon is the perfect addition (cute Husky)! I’m sure this is not the last time I’ll read this book. It’s so heartwarming and cute and has the added bonus of being set in Canada! I have not read a Christmas book set in Quebec yet and it was so nice to imagine the little town covered in snow where everyone helps each other out during the horrible storm.

A word about the characters: Zoey is very determined and loves her job as a movie director but deep down in her heart she is longing for the small town life she never had. She is basically in love with Chelsea and the whole idea of small town Christmas and that was awesome. She is a very easy to like FMC. In addition, Ben being as stubborn, slightly grumpy at times and with a very kind and loving at heart was, in short, the perfect MMC in my opinion.

All in all I will recommend this Christmas book to anyone, as it was just such a heartwarming and nice read.

(A review will be posted on my Goodreads and instagram @anns.book.chronicles on pub day).

This was a feel-good, Hallmark movie esque Holiday romance that sees a movie producer trying to convince the mayor of a small, picturesque, rural Quebec town to let her film her holiday movie there. Full of great enemies to lovers tension and tons of small town charm, this was great on audio read by new to me narrator, Amelia Sargisson. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @librofm for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!

Zoe needs Ben's help but he is reluctant. Will she be able to convince him to help her out? I would have liked more of an epilogue.

I enjoyed this cute Christmas romance so much! Zooey is a charming protagonist, I really liked the references to Christmas traditions in Québec, and the general very strong christmassy vibes (be warned, you might get a lot of Christmas songs stuck in your head after reading it!) A fun, light read; not my usual type of books but I really got into it! Thanks to Doubleday Canada and Netgalley for the ARC:!

Thank you to Penguin Random House Canada, Doubleday Canada and NetGalley for this ARC!

I absolutely adored this book! Being somebody who frequents the spa in Chelsea, QC and also has a brother that used to work on Christmas movies this book was perfect for me!

The story is super cute and great for the holidays. I really enjoyed the characters and laughed out loud many times while reading this book!

This was my first book by Chantel Guertin and I will be adding others to my TBR!

This was just so cute. The perfect Christmas book for the season. We have enemies to lovers and trapped together tropes. Both ones that I love. Ben is our cinnamon roll. Zoey is the spunky American. The romance is sweet and there is a bit of spice. I loved the banter between them. It had me laughing out loud. I cannot wait ot read more by this author. Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

If you are a fan of Hallmark Christmas movies (especially Christmas at Pemberley Manor) you may enjoy It Happened One Christmas. I loved the scenery, but felt that the story was lacking (whatever happened to their cars?).

Thank you to Penguin Random House Canada / Doubleday Canada and NetGalley.

If you like Hallmark movies, this is for you! I really felt like I was reading one of my favorite movies to watch during the holidays. It's a cute and fluffy holiday read, the insta-love wasn't a favorite of mine, but mainly because I really don't like the trope.

*I received a free ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

I loved it. That's the review. I absolutely loved this vaguely bonkers holiday romcom that was chock full of the true spirit of the holiday season: freezing your butt off in the first massive storm of the winter.

But seriously. This was the perfect madcap holiday romance. It gave off those quintessential Hallmark movie vibes: there was chemistry, chaos, and a dollop of holiday magic. At times you did need to suspend your disbelief, but that's part of the magic of holiday books is it not?

I loved our little canine sidekick. I found my heart pounding with suspense worrying about Zoey and Ben as they braved the winter storm to get back in time for Reveille. I was rooting for Zoey to get her permit while also feeling so much compassion for Ben while he navigated his own grief and responsibilities.

I also especially loved the setting. Chelsea is one of my favourite places, and so many aspects of the setting were familiar, especially the pub! I'm also PAINFULLY familiar with the type of storm that blew through in this book (I too remember the storm of 1998!) which added an extra element for me.

Basically, this was the feel-good holiday magic I needed to kick off holiday romance season! And no, we are not talking about the fact that it's still October.

Wow, a book set in Quebec? How fun!! I've never been to Chelsea, but I live in the province, so I understood all the references! :) Definitely an ideal book for any Hallmark movie lovers out there.

This was not a bad story. It was good, but it didn't have any standout qualities that clicked with me.

Zoey heads to Chelsea, Quebec, to gain a permit to film her dream project there. However, her plans hit a roadblock when Ben, the mayor, refuses her request. With just four days to sway his decision, Zoey faces the risk of her film never coming to fruition. Stranded in a snowstorm, they find solace in each other's company.

I did expect a little more from the story; it lacked some sparkle. The beginning was slow, and the ending was quick. Although I did like the characters, I didn't really feel the chemistry between Zoey and Ben.

A quick holiday read that will definitely be enjoyable to many.

“It Happened One Christmas” is a heartwarming and entertaining holiday romance with memorable characters, a charming setting, and a delightful blend of humour and romance. Chantel Guertin’s storytelling and the audiobook’s narration make this a perfect choice for fans of feel-good holiday tales and those who enjoy the magic of Christmas.

The novel weaves together a forced proximity and enemies-to-lovers romance, adding a touch of humour that keeps the readers engaged from start to finish. Zoey Andrews, the protagonist, is a character you can’t help but root for, especially with her unyielding determination to convince the stubborn mayor, Benoît Deschamps, to grant her a film permit in his idyllic hometown of Chelsea, Quebec.

One of the book’s standout features is the picturesque setting of Chelsea, Quebec. The author’s vivid descriptions create a warm and festive atmosphere that makes you feel a part of the community. Zoey’s connection to the town through cherished childhood memories adds a layer of sentimentality to the story.

The banter between Zoey and Ben is not only entertaining but also adds depth to their evolving relationship. Their dynamic is filled with sparks and tension, making their journey from adversaries to lovers all the more satisfying.

Character development is another strong suit of this novel. Both Zoey and Ben have interesting backstories that provide depth and complexity to their personalities. This makes their emotional growth throughout the story feel authentic and relatable.

The book also offers a cultural aspect by introducing readers to Christmas French-Canadian traditions. It’s a delightful way to learn about different holiday customs while enjoying a heartwarming story.

If you’re a fan of audiobooks, the narrator, Amelia Sargisson, does a fantastic job. Her enthusiastic and authentic performance, along with her ability to provide distinct voices for each character, adds another layer of enjoyment to the book. I highly recommend the audiobook format for those who appreciate this immersive experience.

I received an ARC and ALC from the publishers but the thoughts and opinions expressed here are my own.