This was a good Christmas read, but not my favorite Falon Ballard book. The book was sweet. I enjoyed that the premise of co-writing the book together didn't occur until later in the book. I feel like it gave the story momentum until the ending. I found myself getting frustrated at the MMC throughout for hiding the reason for breaking up with her, and the FMC's decision that she didn't care and wouldn't push him. Too much miscommunication. I feel like the MMC should have had to work harder to win her back after revealing the reason for the breakup. Also, super annoyed at him being a romance author who doesn't write happy endings, especially that he's so torn up over losing the "love of his life" when he's entirely at fault for that.

I'll read anything Falon Ballard writes, and even though this hit on several different tropes, it still did them all well. This was a fun holiday read and I love it.

If you love second-chance romances with festive vibes and classic tropes, All I Want Is You is a must-read. Jess and Nick, once lovers and now professional rivals, are forced to reunite when Jess must present Nick with the Romance Author of the Year award—five years after he broke her heart. Their rekindled spark becomes impossible to ignore when a snowstorm leaves them stranded at a remote inn, sharing a room (and yes, one bed).

Falon Ballard masterfully balances humor, heartfelt moments, and romantic tension. Nick’s reason for their breakup is admittedly dumb (as is often the case in second-chance romances), but he owns it early on, making the story more about moving forward than dwelling on the past. The snowed-in setting and forced proximity trope bring the holiday magic, and the chemistry between Jess and Nick is undeniable.

This book is bingeable, heartwarming, and perfect for Christmas romcom fans who love emotional depth without over-the-top drama. Falon Ballard delivers a cozy, charming romance that’ll leave you smiling.

I 👏 ate 👏 this 👏 book 👏 up

I’ll be honest, I was very hesitant to read this one after not jiving with Right on Cue but this one was so good. I literally finished it in 12 hours and it’s been a minute since I’ve done that.

Jess and Nick are both romance writers. One follows the tropes of the genre, the other doesn’t and that causes a lot of disagreement. After breaking up five years ago they are thrown into an event where they have to be civil. And then they get snowed in.

I loved how fast paced this book was, but it didn’t lack depth. I truly felt like a voyeur in Jess and Nick’s minds and hotel room 😅. The depth that Ballard achieves with her characters is so heart warming and real. I also loved the tropes of this book, it had everything that I love.

Read if you like
💕Second chance romance
💕only one bed
💕Multiple pov
💕snowed in

This former loves to enemies to lovers story is a cute one!
It gives so many romance tropes!

I wanted to jump into this Hallmarkish holiday inn and read by the fire! The reason for Nick & Jess's breakup in the first place made me boil a little, but the banter, the spice, and the revenge dress is all worth it. Both characters are romance writers and they definitely know hot to be spicy off the pages!

Grab this one if you like:
~second chances ~dual POV ~one bed ~romance authors ~snowed in ~holiday setting

Second-chance romance? More like “You showed me who you are and I still decided to ignore your red flags which, by the way, are all still here”.

Honestly, this fucking guy.
May I present you Nick Matthews, the embodiment of the “good guy” who never does anything wrong, it's never his fault - when he's the one who broke up with you for HIS selfish reasons and then used YOUR feelings as a justification - and if you don't want to date him he's cool with that, emotional blackmail and gaslighting aside.
This guy is supposed to be the best writer in the whole world - even if he has the depth of a golden fish - and swims in his white male privilege while whining around about being excluded from the writers' community because he doesn't write happy endings (poor thing), even if he's a best-selling author with movies in the way and a six figures contract (it's so sad, I know).
Like, how can he be described as a romance author in the first place is a mystery to me, but let's ignore that.

The other aspect I didn't see coming is how much this story revolves around smut.
It's not necessarily a bad thing, but it's kinda boring because it's supposed to build this tension between Nick and Jess but, really, only made me dislike even him more, especially when he was the one describing the scene - again, this man does not know how to write.

What they say it's true: even with all the best intentions and efforts, a second-chance romance is one of the most difficult tropes to write, and not all writers can succeed with it, especially when they can't see how problematic it is what they're writing.

Thanks to PENGUIN GROUP Putnam, G.P. Putnam’s Sons and NetGalley, who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest opinion.

Second chance romance is never my favorite trope, and I still think the reason Nick broke up with Jess in the past was kind of lame. But the present more than made up for it. The forced proximity, Christmas, only one bed fun is so good. Their chemistry is palpable, and I just wanted them to figure out their issues and have their HEA already.

I think in a lot of holiday novels, the characters aren’t always as fleshed out an author’s other books, but I totally loved Nick and Jess. They were real people with flaws, anxieties, strengths, and desires. They were the main characters, not Christmas, and I think that made this a stronger story. I really enjoyed it for the holidays!

The perfect Christmas book to kick off the holiday season for my reading! I thought this short and sweet book had the perfect amount of second-chance romance and a cozy Christmas vibe. Two authors who used to date, stuck in a cozy Christmas Inn because of a snow-storm?! Love it! Sure it's not the most groundbreaking book ever to have been written - but I loved the banter, and the ending!! If you are looking for a cute, Christmassy book - especially a shorter book to help you hit that reading goal - I recommend it!

This book is exactly what you would expect from a second-chance romance book about two romance writers who are writing a second-chance romance while debating living their own second-chance romance…. You name a trope and it probably exists in this book. There were cute parts although I didn’t find the characters particularly relatable; they didn’t have much personality outside of their lust for the other. Not my style of book, but if you’re looking for a typical Christmas romance book, this could be one for you.

Thanks to NetGalley and Putnam for the ARC!

This whole book was cute! It felt exactly like watching a hallmark movie but in the best way. I finished this in one day, its thing groundbreaking but it is a quick read perfect for the holiday season.

I’m slowly becoming addicted to Falon Ballard’s books! Each one just gets better and better!
This one, once I actually got into it, I devoured in a day. It was cozy, a snowstorm has them stuck in the adorable holiday inn together (in one room, mind you 😜). It was steamy with lots of flashbacks showing how connected and in sync Nick and Jess were.
She loves Christmas, he hates it
He knows he messed up and he’s still in love with her, she’s petty and wants to make him eat his heart out
I loved watching their character developments and the grand gesture … 💔 💔 💔
Once again, I say I just cannot wait to read another Falon Ballard book 😊

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

I enjoyed this quick holiday rom com in which two rival romance writers might just get their second chance at love. I loved that the hero and heroine were both writers. And even though I don't normally enjoy second romances but I loved this one. I guess it was the magic of Christmas.

This was so sweet and fun! It’s like if Book Lovers had a holiday episode spin off. I loved that they got better at communicating throughout the story. I one thing that bothered me is that they never addressed specifically how he makes decisions for her without asking her. It annoyed me throughout the book and was one of the main reasons they broke up before. I wish they could have squashed that. But I had a good time!!

This was such a cozy winter read, but also deeper than I anticipated. It was a quick read but packed a punch in those pages. I really enjoyed the flashbacks and getting to know these characters. I normally like having the background information laid out for me but this time the slow reveal and being in the dark about aspects of it was very satisfying. This was definitely my favorite book by this author yet!

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced reader copy of this book. I read this book as part of my December hallmark reading of all the rom coms i could get my hands on. This book hits allll of the romance tropes and i found it perfectly short, sweet and enjoyable. Would recommend!

My favorite Falon Ballard book yet! This is a delightful mix of humor, romance, and emotional growth that delivers plenty of laughs. The protagonist’s journey of self-discovery is relatable, as she navigates love, career challenges, and the complexities of relationships. I appreciated the sharp, witty dialogue and character development which balance fun and emotion.

Sincere thanks to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Cute, sweet, festive fun! I love a romance about two romance authors. The chemistry between Nick and Jess is obvious -- especially when they *hate* each other. And their passion inspires their writing which helps break through writer's block and turns life into fiction and fiction into life as they come back together. Despite the clear chemistry, this is a bit of a slow burn but it's such a quick read I did not mind at all and the snowstorm/room mix-up that forces them to spend lots of time in close quarters really amps up the tension. I do wish we had more on the book they were writing together but overall it was the fluffy, romantic read I was hoping for and I really enjoyed it.

*forced proximity
*second chance
*rivals to lovers
*only one bed
*snowed in
*miscommunication

I love all of Falon's books honestly and this one is a perfect winter read, so get some cocoa, get cozy and get started!

Thank you Penguin Group Putnam for the DRC via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Second chance romance tropes are not my favorite but this book really changed my mind. The best aspect is that you see their relationship from both their POVs which helps the reader understand what ultimately broke them up. Sometimes in relationships you have to choose between love or your career which is also a hard concept to introduce in a romance but it was perfectly written. There was rivalry since they were both romance writers but there wasn’t competition. I think this second chance romance was a great Christmas romance.

Exes who have to get together for a work function and get stranded together because of snow? Yes please.
This is such a fun and cute wintery novel. It’s on the shorter side and quite steamy.

I’m a huge fan of Falon Ballard and this one was no exception. It reads super quick which is honestly perfect for a holiday romance. I loved that this was the second chance and you got to actually see the before and the why things fell apart. The grumpy sunshine author pairing was perfect and like her other books the banter was spot on. It takes a little bit for things to get hot, but I think it’s worth it. I’m really glad I squeezed this one in this holiday season.!!