When Lexie’s estranged father, whom she hasn’t seen in 10 years, dies, he leaves her half of his holiday travel company. The other half is given to her father’s partner, Theo, a cute yet grumpy young executive. The will states that the two of them must find a way to run the company for a year before the future of the company is decided. Lexie starts counting the days until she can be done with the company and Theo…but things begin to take a turn. It's a super cute, feel-good read. Thank you NetGalley and Dell for this ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

A Winter Wish by Emily Stone is perfect. No NOTES. Five Stars.
A Winter Wish is set over the course of a year from one Christmas to the next, and handles the complex feelings of Lexie after her estranged father dies and leaves her half of his company but it is also a kicking, squealing, swoon-worthy enemies to lovers romance.

Lexie’s estranged father dies, leaving her half of his boutique travel company. Travel had always been their thing before her father left Lexie and her mother when Lexie was seven. Lexie is, rightfully, angry and conflicted. She would rather sell the company but her new business partner, Theo, was Lexie’s father’s protégé and Theo is committed to keeping the company. They have to stick with the company for a year and can only sell if they make a profit.
While the romance is amazing, probably Emily Stone’s best to date, it’s the heartbreaking journey of grief that Lexie must go through that makes A Winter Wish a rich and fulfilling story.

In terms of romance though, there is delightful banter in this enemies to lovers story. Theo judges Lexie harshly for her treatment of her father in the five years that Theo knew him. Theo obviously doesn’t have the full story. Through travel and intense conversations, Lexie and Theo find understanding and that’s when the slow burn develops. Lexie and Theo have chemistry.

Will you cry? If you’ve ever cried during an Emily Stone book and felt like the tears healed something in you… A Winter Wish will not let you down.
I could probably go on and on about this book. It would be perfect for a holiday book club.

Thank you to Emily Stone, Ballantine Books, and Netgalley for an eARC of A Winter Wish in exchange for my honest opinion. I honestly really loved it. This was the easiest five stars.

Thank you to Random House Ballantine for the ARC in exchange for a review.
3/5
I enjoyed the setting of this story, like arm chair travel. There were some fun details (wish jar, travel agency) that I haven’t come across in other books that I liked. Overall the book was fine, it wouldn’t be my top pick from Emily Stone, but a fun read. Kind of want to know where Mike went!
Favorite Character: Ange.

A Winter Wish really sets the tone for the upcoming holiday season bringing truth to the past, new beginnings, love, and a wish jar. One of the best books I've read all year.

Thank you to Rando. HOUSE publishing and Netgalley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Quick intro:
Lexie is left with half of her estranged father’s travel agency after his unexpected passing. She and his former coworker fumble through running the company together, processing their grief, and love.

Quick thoughts:
Oh I really liked this book! The story takes place over the course of the year, so it isn’t really a Christmas book. But if you’re familiar with Emily Stone’s works, you probably know that already. This is my second by Emily Stone and what I like most about her books is she writes very real and relatable romances. They aren’t fluffy or outrageous - readers should be able to really connect with her characters and their realistic stories.

My heart really warmed toward Lexie and Theo. To be honest, they were both sort of grumpy at the beginning, but as I got to know them better I really softened toward them. It was beautiful to witness them both process through their grief, baggage from complicated family dynamics, and experience healing.

Read if you like books set in England with a lot of travel around Europe and gorgeous scenery, third person POV, low spice, workplace rivals, themes of grief and loss, complicated family dynamics, “screw it” moments.

Thank you so much, Dell and NetGalley, for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts!

Lexie learns of her father's death and inherits his travel company with conditions to be fulfilled if she wants to walk away from it. Theo has worked under her dad, learning the ropes for 5 years, and is upset to learn that his estranged daughter now shares ownership in the company when she's shown no interest in her dad or his life.

This isn't a Christmas story, though a couple of key scenes happen at Christmas, but it does feel like a wintry story to me. Stone writes grief well, as her other books have shown. This story was no different. It centered around grieving a dad and grieving the you that your parents wish you could be. I think Lexie and Theo's love story could have had more depth, but I was happy to see both of them growing as people by the end and learning some of their histories in the process.

I really appreciate Stone writing from Lexie's perspective of missing the opportunity to fix her relationship with her dad. Though, her dad does seem to be a unicorn who was just passive and chose to not resist his new wife (former mistress) by fighting to be in Lexie's life. Eventually, he pursued reconciliation but he ran out of time. Sometimes grieving what Could Have Been is as devastating as who is gone.

Thanks to Stone for a reminder to call my dad.

And thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Emily Stone is one of the authors I’ll always read, and she didn’t let me down with A Winter Wish. The pacing was perfect, as was the development of the relationship between Lexie and Theo. Stone did a great job tackling grief for different characters with differing relationships to the deceased (Richard). Plus you can’t go wrong with a book that involves travel.

📘 A Winter Wish-a standalone

✍🏾By Emily Stone-a new to me author

Format: eBook 353 pgs.

🌍Setting: starts in Austria and work in Bath

📅 Publication 10/15/24, Read 10/2/24

👆🏾POV: 3rd person, single-Lexie

🙏🏾Thanks to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group| Ballantine | Dell, and Emily Stone for this ARC❄️! I voluntarily give an honest review, and all opinions expressed are my own.

Genre: Contemporary Romance, Adult Fic, Holiday-Christmas

Tropes: opposites attract, enemies to lovers, forced proximity, workplace romance, slow burn, witty banter, 3rd act separation

⚠️ TW: parental death by cancer-h, parental estrangement, toxic parents-H

💭Summary: Lexie is a self-proclaimed nomad and commitment-phobe constantly moving and changing temp jobs. When her mother calls to tell her that her father died, she doesn't really know how to feel. He left them when she was seven for a new family, and they haven't spoken in over ten years. Theo is Richard's mentee who inherits half the company with Lexie, and they travel to France on a "working" holiday. They get to know each other and banter over preconceived notions and past hurts.

🎭The characters

🚺 Lexie Peterson-(29) inherits 50% of R&L travel company owned by her father. Makes a wish written in a decorated glass jar every Christmas since she was four years old.

🚹 Theo-Richard's protege, a handsome, young executive who inherits 50% of the company. His Irish parents were always disappointed in him, so he left home @ 22 and wandered until Richard gave him a job.

Rachel-22 Lexie's half-sister, Jody-Rachel's mother

Richard Peterson-Lexie's father

Angela "Ange" Wilson-Richard's former personal assistant

Lexie's mother

Mikkel-Lexie's friend with benefits, a ski instructor

Fran-Lexie's friend from university, a solicitor

Mike-company director of R&L Travel


🤔My Thoughts: This was a trigger for me because my parents divorced, and I became estranged from by father. He's still alive, but had a stroke and I had no idea. He has a wife and daughter that I know nothing about, and I liked it that way. When Lexie kept telling her mother "I don't want to know," it reminded me telling my siblings or other family members that when they try to share news about him. I loved the banter between Lexie and Theo that puts their unfavorable opinions of each other to rest. Lexie grieved and gave her father a little grace to move on and have a better relationship with Theo and Rachel.

✨Rating: 4/5
😭 Emotion 5/5
🌶️Spice 3/5
🧑‍🤝‍🧑Couple 4/5

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the ARC of A Winter Wish by Emily Stone.

Not even sure what to say about this one, but a great read to get you in the mood for winter and holidays. Just enough romantic feels to make you swoon, with a little bit of sadness to pull at your heart strings. All the while you just want Lexie to fall for Theo already as you likely have! I mean he’s the jerky co-worker you hate but love. Now I must find all books by Emily Stone and read them in hopes that they are all this enjoyable.

Thank you to Random House publishing for the advanced copy of this title.
This book is much deeper than I anticipated based on the cover.

This book is about coming to terms with the memories of our past and finding a solid ground to land on while reconciling a broken relationship.

Lexi tries to understand her father after his death when she inherits his travel company. The absence she has felt for years doesn't coincide with the stories of the man who ran this company. This book is about the impact that parental absence leaves on our future. The line that really stuck out was "Acceptance is not the same as forgiveness." Rectifying the multi-facets of the same person, because people are complicated. Each decision has a domino effect on our lives and those around us. None more pronounced than the ones in this book.

In the midst of finding a place of acceptance with the loss of a parent, there is a love story between the pages. Workplace romance, slow burn, and enemies to lovers,The relationship didn't have any spark to make me excited. I was numb to their relationship and I never felt invested in either character.

The bones of the book where here, but it was missing any butterflies you would normally find in a holiday romance book.

I really enjoyed the grand gesture ending and the conclusion of Lexi's journey of acceptance with her father.

Will add to goodreads, amazon, and storygraph upon release

As far as a warm and cozy Christmas-feeling book, this one misses that mark for me. Nonetheless it’s a cute story and a quick read. The characters are a bit blasé, but they grow on you. Not my favorite, but enjoyable.

Thank you to NetGalley & Random House for this ARC! I have read other novels by Emily Stone and this was different than her others. I liked the concept of a travel company that was centered around celebrating in other cities & their cultures. This novel took you all over - Ireland, Vienna, Madrid, the Alps, the UK. Lexie was very complex and you could see how much the author wanted you to feel her guilt, grief, hesitancy, and her passion for people & things that meant a lot to her. Theo was a perfect love interest- broody, blunt, serious, and then later funny and sweet. The story was wrapped up in a way that made sense and was still a happy ending.

First and foremost thank you Random House Publishing Group and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Publishing Date: 10/15/24

This book is a charming holiday novel based around two main characters Lexie and Theo. It takes place over a span of a year. Lexie receives an unexpected call that will land her as part owner of a travel company. She must run the company with Theo for 1 year before they can sell it and move on with life. There aren’t a whole lot of Christmas vibes to this book. So if that’s what you’re looking for be warned. There is family loss, new relationships and moments of happiness.

If I’m honest the entire book was slow for me. As much as I found myself enjoying it at moments but there were also moments of wanting something exciting to occur. I also found moments of not loving the characters and the relationship that’s portrayed in the book.

The overall premise of the book is lovely and the heartache of Lexie and her situation was there and making you feel remorse for her. I did shed a few tears toward the end of the book which was unexpected.

Although this might not have been totally for me it doesn’t mean it won’t be for you.

This was a beautiful, emotional book by one of my favorite authors. It was a Christmas book, but to me it was more of a romance that happened to have some Christmas. It takes place over many months, so the wintery/Christmas parts aren't the majority of the story. (Though there is Christmas in July!) Lexie is grieving her dad in multiple ways. Not only did she lose him, but she lost the chance to ever have a relationship with him and she has to grapple with the fact that her version of him doesn't match the man he was. Theo, despite what Lexie thinks of him, loved her dad and loves the business he had a big part in growing. It was fun to watch them move from "enemies" to much more as they worked together to run the business. I loved the descriptions of the destinations they traveled to, from France to Madrid to Ireland and Iceland. Emily did a wonderful job making me feel fully immersed in the settings.This one kept me turning pages and smiling at their banter and chemistry and I couldn't wait to see how it all wrapped up. I highly recommend this one as a fantastic read for any time of the year!

Thank you to Netgalley, Random House and Dell for the arc edition of this book in exchange for my honest opinions.

Lexie, a serial temp, unexpectedly finds herself the co-owner of her estranged father’s travel agency after his passing. Her new business partner, Theo, isn’t thrilled about the arrangement.

This was such a cute read, and not so Christmassy that you couldn’t read it outside of Christmastime. Read if you’re a fan of travel, complicated families, and enemies-to-lovers romance!

Thank you to Dell/Random House and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

As a little girl Lexie adored her life and her parents but all of that changed when her Dad and Mom divorced. Her Dad went off and had another family. It devastated her thinking her father no longer cared about her. One day she learns that Richard, her Dad, had died and she was summoned home for the funeral. During the reading of his will Lexie discovered that her father left her ½ of his travel agency bushiness. The other half was left to a young man the father had befriended. The understanding is that they had to run the company together for one year before they could sell it and move on with their lives. This is a wonderful story of family loses and new relationships and takes the reader to many wonderful exotic places. I highly recommend it as a Christmas read and think book clubs will love it. It continually asks the question can wishes come true. I love books by this author and look forward to future publications as well.

I wish to thank Net Galley and Penguin Random House Publishing Company for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book. I have voluntarily read and reviewed this advanced copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

A Winter Wish by Emily Stone is a charming holiday novel that is sure to warm your heart. Stone has a talent for crafting engaging holiday stories that tug at your heartstrings. This delightful read is perfect for getting into the holiday spirit. Be prepared to have some tissues handy as you immerse yourself in this heartwarming tale.

I dove into this book ready for an early Christmas read thanks to the cover having cute little Christmas trees on it. However, this was not a Christmas book because it took place over the span of a year so there won’t be any Christmas vibes in this book.

The beginning started out slow for me but started to pick up when Lexie and Theo finally saw that there may be a connection and then it slowed down a lot again. Story progression was on the slow side for me.

I loved the overall premise of the story and would have loved to see more of Rachels’s character as she seemed fun and her and Lexie’s relationship could have developed a lot more.

I loved things towards the end of the book.

Thank you NetGalley! This is my honest review. ❤️

After learning of her estranged father's death, Lexi found out she is now the co-owner of his holiday travel company with grumpy Theo.

Emily Stone strikes again with another amazing holiday read. Adored this one. Here's what I loved:

Lexi and her story: My heart really broke for Lexi in a lot of ways. She was really put through to ringer with her dad and his other family. I understood where she was coming from with not wanting to let anything related to him into her life. But last the book progresses, she starts to open up to new things and come to terms with others.

Theo: He starts off deliciously grumpy and starts to slowly melt as the story. goes along. He's an absolute book boyfriend.

The side characters and the business: I adored all of the side characters. They all helped the story move along but in a meaningful way. I also found the holiday travel business to be really awesome. The traveling sections were some of my favorite.

All in all, this was a really good emotional holiday read.

Thank you to the author and publisher for the gifted copy!

Star Rating: 2.5

This book was very cute but I think I may be in a slump. I plan on rereading during the Christmas season! I want to say thank you to the publisher and author for letting me read the arc.