Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for a free ebook copy in exchange for an honest review.

Fans of the British monarchy seeking a Christmas holiday romance with some depth will enjoy this read.

The story alternates between three storylines: the newly appointed young Queen Elizabeth, an up and coming chef, Jack Devereaux, and an aspiring BBC reporter, Olive Carter. The story takes place between 1945 to 1957 and follows these three main characters as their lives cross paths over the many years in the story.

Jack is an up and coming chef who is hired to work at Sandringham, and has just lost his wife at the opening of the story. Olive Carter is a single mother looking for her break in the reporting world when a chance opportunity to cover as the royal correspondent presents itself. At Sandringham, Jack and Olive run into each other and rekindle a friendship that began in 1945. Over the span of 5 years, we see each character grow and mature, and discover just how much of a past Jack and Olive share.

I loved the deeper themes in this holiday story. I was drawn right in from the beginning. I was rooting for each person to achieve their best possible selves in this story, and I was invested in each character. One frustration was that this story contained my least favorite romance trope: miscommunication. I liked the slow burn of the character’s relationship, but sometimes, it felt a little too long over something that could be easily communicated, if one of them had just started the conversation. I enjoyed the chapters including the Queen’s perspective, and how much she cared for her country and people.

Overall, this was a good Christmas read.

This is the review I'll be posting on my Instagram page:
As you know, I set some ambitious goals for my holiday reading this year—and I’ve already checked off 3/8 books (with plenty of time left to dive into more!).⁠
⁠
One book I made sure to prioritize is "Christmas with the Queen" by Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb, two talented authors known for their collaborations on historical fiction.⁠
⁠
In this heartfelt novel, we step back into the 1950s, exploring the early years of Queen Elizabeth’s reign after her father’s sudden passing and her unexpected ascension to the throne. While we occasionally hear from the Queen herself, most of the story alternates between two compelling characters:⁠
⁠
👩‍💼 Olive Carter, a determined BBC reporter fighting for respect in a man’s world.⁠
👨‍🍳 Jack Devereaux, an American chef reeling from personal tragedy while chasing his culinary dreams.⁠
⁠
Their paths converge at Sandringham House, the Queen’s Christmas retreat, where both characters navigate personal struggles and professional challenges...while also remembering their life when they first eight years earlier.⁠
⁠
Although there’s romance, it's the book's portrayal of life in 1950s England and unique insights into the early days of Queen Elizabeth’s reign that make it a good read. The writing is captivating, the characters are well-developed (and occasionally frustrating—just like real life!), and the setting feels magical for a holiday read.⁠
⁠
✨ Perfect for:⁠
⁠
👑Fans of royal history⁠
🪖Lovers of historical fiction⁠
🎄Anyone who enjoys a cozy, Christmastime story with depth⁠
⁠
Have you read Christmas with the Queen? Or how are you doing on your holiday-themed reads this year? Let’s chat in the comments!⁠
⁠
**I was given a free version of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to @netgalley and @williammorrowbooks.

Christmas with the Queen by Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb is the perfect cozy, festive escape—perfect if you loved binge-watching The Crown. The characters are charming and complex, and there's just the right sprinkle of royal encounters throughout to feel like you're getting a real glimpse into the early years of Queen Elizabeth's reign. It's a beautiful holiday story for any fan of British Christmas vibes!

I really enjoyed this Christmas romance! Jack and Olive met on VE Day in London, celebrating the end of WWII out on the streets. They haven’t kept in touch since. They meet again at Sandringham Castle, where the Royal Family spends Christmas.

Jack is a chef and Olive works for the BBC, covering the Christmas festivities and the new Queen Elizabeth’s Christmas speech. Jack is a fairly recent widower, and Olive recently broke up with her longtime boyfriend.
At first, they’re just happy to see one another but get closer as time goes on.

I loved reading about the behind the scenes life of the Queen and her staff, including time on the Royal Yacht and at the different palaces. It’s a fascinating look at the personal life of the Queen and the rest of the Royal Family. 4.5 stars.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley, I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC of this book!

I enjoyed this seasonal historical fiction and following Jack and Olive (along with Elizabeth and Phillip) through multiple Christmases, but it did seem to drag in some parts. I think it could have been edited down a little more and still have gotten the same point across.
Other than the slow-pace, I enjoyed this holiday book, and I think others would enjoy the audiobook, especially if they enjoyed The Crown.

A cozy, heartwarming Christmas story of believing in yourself to chase your dreams and how life will always bring the right people back into your path.

This story follows Jack and Olive over a span of five years but mainly focusing on the Christmas season each year with the royal family. With the help of flashback chapters, we learn more about Jack and Olive and how they arrived where they are currently. The story starts in 1952 when Queen Elizabeth II first takes the crown and also follows her story each Christmas until 1957.

I instantly fell in love with Jack and Olive the moment that I met their characters. I found myself rooting for their journey and story. I got to the halfway point of this book and couldn’t put it down. I wanted to know more of what was going to happen. The writing style also captivated me and made me feel relaxed while reading their love story unfold before me.

For someone that is a fan of “The Crown” and “Downton Abbey”, this story is for you. If you’re looking for a cozy, comfy, holiday read…this one is for you!

Thank you @netgalley for this gifted copy of “Christmas With The Queen”.

Olive and Jack's love story was a slow burn, but the surrounding details were delightful and made the wait enjoyable.

The story starts out in 1952 with Olive trying to advance her reporting career despite the reluctance of the male-dominated BBC to have anything of importance reported by a woman. Jack is excited to leave the toxic kitchen he's been working in for a short assignment in the Sandringham royal kitchen during the new queen's holiday stay.

Fast forward a bit, and Olive and Jack end up seeing each other over the holidays during good career developments for both of them. They got along fine when they ran with the same social group of singles years ago, and getting reacquainted is a pleasant surprise for them both, even if it is just for a few minutes.

Both their lives continue to progress, with Queen Elizabeth II's life and reign an influential event that continues to affect both of them. The descriptions of the settings where the story takes place and the other people in both their lives are charming and a fun escape to read about. The book also included a few quotes from the queen's Christmas speeches over the years, which were intriguing and reinforced the historic part of this pleasant fiction.

Overall, it was quite nice to read about the early years of Elizabeth II's monarchy, her life with her husband (sorry, forgot his title right now) and their children. The Christmas details and descriptions made the story a fun holiday read as well. The book earned 4 out of 5 stars and would be great for anyone who likes British royalty stories, 1950s fiction, and modest love stories.

I enjoyed this novel about two lovers, Jack and Olive, who are separated by circumstances, including Jack's marriage to another woman, Andrea, he loved. As the story opens Andrea is killed in a car accident. She leaves behind the dream she and Jack had for Jack to open his own restaurant. Olive harbors a secret, and these two things keep them apart for most of the book. (Full review at: https://novelpastimes.com/2024/12/16/book-review-christmas-with-the-queen-by-hazel-gaynor-and-heather-webb/

Wonderful Historical Fiction for the Holidays! Beautiful and descriptive, this novel brings Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip to life and adds an engaging story of a chef who’s story will have you cheering for him and take you into the royal household.

Readers who are fascinated by the life and times of Queen Elizabeth II will enjoy this glimpse into her imagination and thinking as she takes the reins (reigns!) of her new role as queen. The main plot of the story features two friends who still long for each other as more than friends after many intervening years. This is a multiple time line story that wings backwards to the time when the main characters met, forward to 1950's, and back again.

While I especially enjoyed the sections about the royals, the story of Olive and Jack seemed long drawn out and got to be repetitious after awhile. The author notes at the end detail their meticulous research for this novel and they certainly did their homework.

I received this novel from the publisher and from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are mine alone.

Christmas with the Queen was the perfect holiday read! Sweet, likable characters and vivid descriptions of London made this a treat to read. I loved the scenes with the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh - they were reminiscent of the early seasons of The Crown (I’m planning a rewatch now). I’m so excited to check out other books by Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb! I think I have found my new favorite historical authors.

The magic of Christmas is unmatched, especially when you spend it with the Queen . . . and her dogs.

Told from various perspectives, specifically Olive and Jack, this book is the cozy welcome and intro to the Christmas season every royal book lover needs. As we follow the stories that unfold for Oliver and Jack, spanning 5 Christmases, we see the struggles and triumphs for Olive and Jack while relishing Christmas with the Queen.

I dream of visiting England for Christmas someday but, until then, I am thankful to have spent Christmas with the Queen between the pages of this book.

Princess Elizabeth became the Queen in February, 1952 when she was just 25 years old. As this story begins, it's getting close to Christmas and the Queen is worried about her first Christmas Day radio broadcast. England and the other colonies are still suffering from the results of the war and she wants to give a speech that is hopeful and uplifting and show her plans for changes in the upcoming year.

Olive is working for the BBC. She's in a clerical position but she wants to be a reporter. When the reporter who covers the Royal Family becomes ill, she begs to take his place for the Christmas celebration at Sandringham House. They agree to give her a chance so she leaves her young daughter with her parents and goes to spend Christmas with the royal family. She has a chance encounter with the Queen and ends up helping her with her Christmas address. While she is there, she runs into Jack who is the newest addition to the kitchen. He is an old friend and a recent widower who took the job with the royal family to help him deal with his grief over losing his wife. Olive and Jack had been friends several years before but after Jack got married they lost touch with each other. When they meet again, there are sparks between the two of them. But they both have their new careers to work on so they say goodbye with no plans to meet again. Over the next five years, Olive and Jack continue to run into each other and getting closer but Olive can't let it go too far because she is keeping a big secret from him that will alter their relationship if he ever finds out. Will their relationship continue to grow or is it doomed for failure?

I always admired Queen Elizabeth and even though this was fiction, the authors provided us with an inside glimpse of her as not only Queen but also as a wife and mother. I enjoyed reading about all of the hard work that went into the meals that the family ate especially for Christmas. Plus there was a lot of talk about food - preparing it and trying new recipes that was fun to read. I also really enjoyed the characters of Olive and Jack. They were very well written and their growth as characters throughout the story was very well done.

This book is not just about the Queen but is also a love story of second chances for Olive and Jack. When she reveals her secret to Jack, will that be the end of their relationship or will the spirit of Christmas give their relationship a chance?

I really enjoyed this book, Christmas with the Queen. I've read these authors before in "Last Christmas in Paris" which I enjoyed, and this book did not disappoint either.

Taking place over a period of about 5 years, with flashbacks to the end of WW2 as well, this story follows 2 main characters, Olive and Jack, who met at the end of WW2 when celebrating the end of the war, but life took them in different directions until they run in to each other again, both in service to the royal family.

This was a great story, although a little sad at times, but also showing that good things can come about even with life is complicated or difficult.

I received a copy of this book from netgalley and really glad I was able to add it to my holiday reading this December.

I really enjoyed this historical fiction book set around when Queen Elizabeth began her reign. It has dual perspectives and timelines. Very well done and enjoyable.

From the kitchens of Buckingham Palace to the country lanes leading to Sandringham and the Queen’s first televised message, this ‘will they-won’t they’ romance is a delightful Christmas adventure.

Note: Thank you to NetGalley, William Morrow Paperbacks, and authors Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb for the advanced reader copy of this book. What follows is my unbiased review of the book.

Christmas With the Queen is a charming book that is a lot of fun, while at the same time showing just how hard society was on women who wanted a career following World War II. It was a time of change in England as Queen Elizabeth ascended to the throne, while at the same time, widespread misogyny in society marginalized the women who wanted to keep working outside of the home.

Olive Carter is a single mother who has worked in the BBC typing pool for several years but has ambitions to do much more. An opportunity opens up to work on a story on the Queen's first Christmas radio broadcast after having ascended the throne following the death of her father. Olive looks at it from a bit of a different angle, rather than the traditional report the male correspondents have made.

Meanwhile, Jack Devereaux, an American sailor and chef who married a British girl and settled in London, is facing the holiday season alone for the first time after a tragic accident kills his beloved wife, Andrea. They had plans to one day open their own restaurant together, but Jack is paralyzed with grief. A friend had arranged for him to start working in the kitchen at the Queen's Sandringham estate for the holidays, but he's reluctant to get on with his life. His friends bring him to Norfolk for the holidays, and they convince him to go to work at Sandringham.

Olive and Jack knew each other following the end of World War II. They were part of a group of friends that formed in the celebration of VE Day. Over the years, they lost track of each other but met up again at Sandringham.

Christmas With the Queen follows Olive, Jack, and Queen Elizabeth through the early years of her reign as their lives continually intersect, usually at Christmas. The Queen and Olive form a bit of a bond as Olive coaches her on her speeches. They are both females in male-dominated worlds. Jack's distinctive cooking style gets him a job on the Palace's staff as a chef, and he and Olive manage to renew their friendship. Could it be more than that?

If you enjoyed the series The Crown, I think you'll enjoy Christmas With the Queen. The story humanizes Queen Elizabeth, Prince Philip, and their family in a holiday setting. She's the Queen of England but she is nervous about the changing times and doubts herself as much as anyone. The story follows her Christmas message from when she first takes the throne until the first television broadcast of the message. She thinks of her own father and what he had to overcome with his speech impediment as she works to blend tradition and progress.

At the same time, Jack and Olive's tepid romance gave me something to root for. I'm not a huge fan of romances, but this was sweet without being saccharine. They are both people I could root for. Olive has a secret she has managed to keep from just about everyone, but she's still very sympathetic. We all make decisions in our lives based on the circumstances at that time, and in hindsight, it's not always the right one. Jack and Olive arent' good at communication, and their lives seem to keep throwing them together until they get it right.

If you're looking for a fun, lighthearted Christmas romance, you can't go wrong with Christmas With the Queen. The authors did a great job with the setting as well as the story itself. It's hard to believe that this was seventy years ago now, and the time before television will be alien to many of today's readers. The historical setting is depicted very well, and I could picture what it must have been like in those years.

This book tells the story of Olive, a single mother and BBC correspondent, and Jack, a recent widower and aspiring chef. Through many fortuitous events they each find themselves working around the royal family through the early 50s early during Queen Elizabeth’s reign and especially during Christmas celebrations over the years. This book explores buried secrets and second chances along with a modernizing monarchy and a young QEII newly on the throne.

This was a delightfully cozy read. I especially liked the snippets of Queen Elizabeth and royal life at Christmas. The personal stories of Olive and Jack are sometimes painfully cheesy and the coincidences that unfold in their lives are almost too much at times. BUT the Christmas coziness and royal family references kept me enjoying this read throughout. (3.5/5; thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy)

The story itself was interesting, and I liked the concept, and for the first half of the story I was invested in both Olive and Jack`s storylines - hearing a little about the traditions of the royal family was somewhat interesting for me. The authors did seem to meet their goal of showing what might happen if ordinary people go entangled in the royal traditions.

The characters were enjoyable to follow, but I think what fell flat for me was that the relationship and communication between Jack and Olive was too dragged out and beating around the bush too long and it felt unrealistic for me. Though, if you are looking for a lightish mid 20th century romance and long slow burn romance then this is the book for you .



Thanks to Netgalley and William Morrow | William Morrow Paperbacks for this ARC . This is my honest review.

First off - this cover is easily one of my all-time favorites! I just love the color palette with the dark green jacket and red door. The snow is perfect and I just feel cozy and wintery every time I look at it.

I'm so glad that Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb are back with another Christmas historical fiction! There are a severe lack of adult historical Christmas books so this one really made me happy. This book features two timelines for readers to escape into. It has a royals, a sweet romance, an unforgettable setting, and all the holiday scenes you could ask for!