Unfortunately, I found this book lacking in originality. It was entertaining enough, and the holiday atmosphere was great, but there wasn't a lot that set it apart from other holiday stories I've consumed in the past.

While this is all about a woman who hates Christmas, the romance is no bah-humbug. I absolutely adored Graham and Charlotte’s story. This was nothing as I expected yet everything that I love. I have become a huge fan of Ms. Waters and this book, like her previous works, is fresh and original. The storyline kept me engaged and I could not turn the pages fast enough. Everything about this pulled me in. There is just something about the way this author writes that I find highly addictive and Christmas is All Around is another example of the magic she wields.

Christmas is All Around was like reading a Hallmark movie (with the addition of kissing and more) paired with Book Lovers in that the characters make reference to the idea of tropes and things that they're experiencing at the same time. Set in London, Christmas is All Around follows Christmas grump, Charlotte, who starred in a Christmas movie when she was 9 and has genuinely hated it ever since. Now an artist, Charlotte would very much like to put her past acting career very far behind her, but the public's desire for a follow up movie has gotten very loud and out of control. So Charlotte moves from NYC to London to stay with her sister for six weeks before Christmas. Her sister's in-laws are staying in the apartment above them and Alice, the baby, is very loud and Charlotte is not necessarily much of a baby person. Pretty quickly, we wind up meeting our love interest at one of the various Christmas shenanigans Charlotte gets dragged along to and he is a stressed out boy. Graham is the oldest son and is now responsible for his crumbling estate and feels so much pressure. He also has two sisters and a best friend we get to know throughout the book. The two of them have a pretty immediate connection that neither of them quite know what to make of, but slowly, they let themselves explore whatever it is between them. Overall, I really enjoyed the book and appreciate Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced copy.

As much as I wanted to love this book (London setting, holiday romance, travel romance, et al), something just fell flat for me. Unfortunately. It reads quite quickly and the writing isn't poorly constructed, meh, it's just the overall story. I just wish it had more ... something, I can't put my finger on it. Again, not knocking that it wasn't well-written, because it was, certainly and I can agree on that. It also was a cute, holiday rom-com set in London, but it just missed that spark that drew me in and could make me obsessed in an instant. It's just not the book for me, but maybe it is for you.

Also, if you came to this book because you are a fan of the author's historical romances, just know that this is set in the modern-day.

Thank you to Netgalley and Atria Books for this ARC.

This is a fun holiday read! Banter was enjoyable, but really loved the descriptions of Christmas in the UK, makes me want to plan a trip abroad for the holidays! As someone who loves The Holiday, but doesn't enjoy Love, Actually, this brought a nice happy medium.

4 Stars – Christmas is All Around by Martha Waters is about Charlotte who hates the Christmas holiday. She was in a movie when she was 9 years old and, unfortunately for her, the movie was a HUGE hit. Charlotte has had a challenging time moving forward with her life as she is always recognized as her movie character. She resents and hates the movie and holiday and, honestly, became quite self-centered about the whole thing. With her best friend and her sister finally getting through to her that the successful movie gave her opportunities in life that she wouldn’t typically have been afforded to have. Charlotte’s maturing process develops when she meets a yummy Brit in London and falls in love.

Christmas is All Around is a great holiday read! I really enjoyed it and think most readers will too. It is a little bit Hallmark-y and I wasn’t Charlotte’s biggest fan in the beginning. But by the end, I was rooting for her to get it together and be with Graham.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for sharing an ARC. This review is completely voluntary and joyfully shared.

*I had a difficult time with Charlotte’s character
*Charlotte’s anger about being attached to a movie is kind of her entire personality
*Charlotte’s issues with her niece are irrational

The book’s title made me think of Bill Nighy as Billy Mack singing “Christmas Is All Around” in Love Actually and the song remained in my head during my reading. I was ready to love this but found I just wasn’t able to connect to the story. Other readers will likely love this, but it wasn’t a favorite for me.



Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for the DRC

A charming reluctant holiday rom-com that was fun to read.

The banter was a lot of fun, and I enjoyed the relationship development between Charlotte and Graham. I think the third-act breakup was a bit of an overreaction on Charlotte's part, but I liked the growth she went through to recognize her issues. I enjoyed the perspective of someone who isn't all in on the holidays. Overall, a fun holiday read.

Thank you to NetGalley and publisher for the opportunity to read and review.

This story is absolutely beautiful! 8/10

Charlotte, an artist, was a child movie star for one Christmas movie, a popular one that she hates, and hates Christmas. With talks of reboot of the Christmas movie, she gets accosted in New York, and decides to go see her sister in England.

With her sister and her family, Charlotte visit a famous house, one that she recognize from her Christmas movie. From there, she meets an Graham Calloway, a descendant of a family artist, an artist that Charlotte admired. Knowing who each other are, Graham asks Charlotte to hel with the house, Eden Priory, with making money as the Calloways are struggling with keeping up with the house and it's maintenance.

Charlotte and Graham learn to overcome their faults and grown as adults, and learning that Christmas isn't that bad.

Also, I thought the story was going to go one way, but it went the other way. Different from what I had exptected, which kept me hooked.

Thank you to NetGalley and Martha Waters for the ARC!

I spent my Sunday cozying up with this story, and I was charmed thoroughly! It felt like being transported to a Christmas setting, and for once I could relate to a character in this setting - Charlotte's hate for Christmas had me feeling very validated in all of my Grinchy glory. This didn't take away from objectively acknowledging all the traditions around Christmas and how people really enjoy this time of the year.
Featuring a nice slow-burn of a romance with an English man who wears glasses, some family moments, and a demon baby, Christmas is all Around was a great way to spend a lazy Sunday.
I have enjoyed Martha's histroms, and I can say that I really loved this contemporary romance from her as well.

Thank you to the publisher for the ARC via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

The banter between these two was TOP TIER. Also Martha Waters is just hilarious in general. I literally laughed out loud so many times while reading this book. I'm only knocking off a star because I didn't feel like the plot was super strong.

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Ah, a book where the main character is sort of a grinch, but learns that there is more to the holidays than just decorating. This book had a great message and I enjoyed that aspect a whole lot. Charlotte had a great reason not to really like the holidays, I mean I wouldn’t either if I’d gone through what she did! The plot ended up being nice and moved along at a nice clip. It wasn’t super fast, nor was it super slow, though at time I do wish that it had been a little faster. I found that Charlotte was rather opinionated and had a strong personality, at times she was a bit much. I did have to remember her origin story as to why she was that way because at times it was a bit exhausting. I loved the setting of this book so much, that was truly the most magical part of this book for me. I felt like I was right there in a Christmas town despite it being October.

This is a cute holiday read.

I love Martha Waters' historical romance novels, the characters are all fun and a little wacky making it for a great time. I was super excited for her writing a contemporary romance, and a holiday one at that. I think overall this was a cute, holiday romance with a great cast of characters. Ultimately, what brought the book down for me was Charlotte herself. She was so negative about Christmas, and I didn't get the insisting on calling her niece a demon baby, she's just a baby.

I love a Christmas novel with a Christmas Grinch character, but Charlotte was a lot of Grinch, so this book took me longer than I expected it to take me to read.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria book for a free arc of the book in exchange for an honest review!

This book was very cute! I liked that it didn’t take itself too seriously regarding the multitude of holiday movie/story tropes mentioned in it. There was a lot of good character development, and although I did find it slow in places I did enjoy it. Would recommend to others!

I knew I was going to love this book as soon as I read the dedication: “for Kristyn, who hates Christmas.”

This was one of the most realistic romances I have read in a long time, from the banter, to the situations, to the conflict and subsequent resolution. It wasn’t contrived or forced, but felt like a story you’d hear from a friend of a friend. The dialogue between siblings I could see as actual conversations I’d have with my own siblings. The honest communication between Charlotte and Graham was refreshing, especially since that’s the go-to trope for conflict. The Regency Vows have been on my bookshelf for a while, patiently waiting to be read, and now I’m looking forward to actually getting around to reading them!

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria for the ARC!

P. S. A special thank you to Ms. Waters for accurately portraying what babies are like. Adorable? Yes. Demonic? Also yes.

Holiday Steamy Romance featuring a former child actress turned illustrator in London for Christmas meets a man who helps her change her perspective about the holidays.

5/5 stars: This is Waters's Holiday Steamy Romance stand-alone that's set in London, England and follows a former child actress turned illustrator travels to London to celebrate Christmas with her sister's family meets an Englishman, who's family home was a filming location for the modern holiday movie classic she starred in and would love to forget but when she declines to participate in a reboot the fans won't let her alone. Despite hating Christmas, she accepts a commission illustrating iconic holiday movie scenes to be sold in the manor home's gift shop with him acting as an escort. But as her chaotic family holiday goes awry, she begins spending more time him and she begins to wonder is Christmas so bad if you’re falling in love? Waters's writing and character work are excellent; the characters are well-rounded, complex and yet remain likable. I love Charlotte and Graham. Their great and I love seeing them dealing with their personal issues as they come together for a lovely HEA. The romance is top notch with plenty of swoony banter and the OPS sex scenes are incredibly steamy and very hot. Additionally, Water's humor hits just the right spot... I had several LOL moments! While there are plenty of heartfelt and lighthearted moments, Waters does takes on some sensitive subjects; so take care and check the CWs. Filled with great holiday fun and tons of holiday movie love, this is a great yuletide read that will tug on your heartstrings.

I received this eARC thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books in exchange for an honest review. Publishing dates are subject to change.

Martha Waters is a new author to me. This book was super cute and I really enjoyed it. It was like reading a really charming, witty Hallmark movie, which I am a fan of. The slow burn love story, the witty humor between Charlotte & Graham had me fully invested. I found myself laughing out loud at times. Not to mention it involved an “extremely handsome Englishman who wears glasses.” Count me in! Ithink it’ll be a really good book to curl up and read this holiday season.

Cute, rom com set in London with love actually undertones. This was a little slow at times but overall it’s a sweet read, perfect for the holiday season.

Visiting her sister Ava for the holidays in London, ex child actor Charlotte now 29 and famous for starring in a Christmas movie at 9 years old, is forced to confront her Scroogeness while surrounded by holiday cheer.
She meets Graham, basically Stephen Nedoroscik (it’s the glasses for me), and embark on their own little holiday romcom.

This is a slow burn, but I didn’t always feel the chemistry or tension between the characters. It felt a little unresolved at the end and a little too open ended for me.

Side note: 6 month old Alice being a fussy, screeching baby throughout this whole story was distracting. It didn’t add anything to the plot and instead made me skip ahead. I don’t know what vendetta Waters has about 6 month old babies and parents who seem oblivious to the triggers of a fussy baby, but I could have done without this subplot.

Overall, 3 star read. Great to add to your TBR if you love a hallmark woman leaves her hometown to visit her sister who moved away/overseas and finds romance storyline.

Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster/Atria for this eARC!

I tried but ended up DNFing this one around 50 percent. I’ve enjoyed Martha Waters historical romcoms in the past but this fell a bit flat for me. I found the dialogue to be cringey, too many characters I do not care about, and honestly the references to Love Actually were just way to much for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!