Member Reviews
First of all, a big thank you to Kristen Bailey and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this arc.
3 stars :)
Normally, I would consider this an easy and quick read, but while I was trying to read this, I fell into a book slump. When I have arcs though, I try to review them at least a few days before they're released so I don't have to do them last minute, so I had to drag myself through it.
Also, tell me why I thought this was a why choose?
It was probably because of the title, but genuinely what?
I found we didn't get a lot of Leo and I would have loved to, but I think it was meant to be closed-door, so there wasn't as much description. I also believe there could've been more about her after her resigning, but I thought it was a good (mild) plot twist anyways, and felt really sweet.
I don't really know, this book just felt like it was slowing down at some points, which also bored me.
I found there wasn't much character development either, and my opinion of her stayed the same throughout.
Overall, I did like this book and thank you again :)
Maggie, an IT-manager who supervises a small team and loves every member. When it's clear she'll be spending Christmas alone, Frank, Jasper and Leo come up with a plan so she can spend Christmas with each one of them. Though there is a secret that Maggie is keeping from them that could ruin their friendship.
I love how the characters were described, they really came to life on page. The author did an amazing job!
Such a Christmassy and cozy rom-com, perfect to get into the holiday spirit. Although the slow burn was a bit too slow for me, I still enjoyed it!
Thanks to Netgalley and Storm publishing for giving me the chance to read this Arc
We Three Kings⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Maggie is looking forwards to spending her Christmas holiday alone, that is until her three work mates decide to mix things up for her. When they found out she will be alone, each one invited her to spend part of the holiday with them. She’s excited and can’t wait to get to know each of them better but before her holiday starts, her boss brings her into her office and tells her she’s going to have to let one of them go. Now Maggie must decide which one of her work buddies that will be. Frank loves his job, Jasper’s sarcastic humor makes the workplace and Leo… well Leo is smart, professional and good looking. Can Maggie find a way to keep her work family together and maybe even find true love under the mistletoe?
This was such a cute Christmas romcom! I loved the journey Maggie went on spending time with each coworker. There were many laugh out loud moments with the witty banter between her and the coworkers. I also liked the slow burn romance between Maggie and Leo. Overall, the book was such a fun, lighthearted, easy read and perfect for the holiday season.
This book will publish October 14, 2024. Thank you to Netgalley and Storm Publishing for my advanced readers copy. This is my honest and voluntary opinion.
Maggie works in the basement office with her three coworkers, they all enjoy working together and are all friends, however she is told just before Christmas that one of the team has to be made redundant. She spends part of Christmas with each of them with this secret burning away inside of her.
In my mind's eye I could see the IT Crowd, but this story is much more than that. Having been involved in redundancies on more than one occasion, albeit on the receiving end, I know how stressful it can be. I really felt for Maggie having to make that decision. What really made the story though was the rest of her team and the situations that she became involved in whilst spending time with each of them. This really lightened the mood with episodes including bridesmaids, fox cubs and even a donkey. A really enjoyable Christmas romcom to get you into the mood for Christmas, or any other time of the year.
I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley, however this did not influence my review of the book.
This is a charming Christmas story of the true light of a true friend and how one might strive to be in everyone's lives. It is about three young men working in the basement for The Wiseman Brothers in the IT department. They a group of nerdy young men that really have no direction in life until Maggie walks into their lives. Maggie has been hired as a manager for the IT department. She not only wraps each one of these young men up in her life, but she becomes a friend and that is something much more than any of them could have ever expected.
There is Frank, Jasper and Leo. They all are very smart and all have different levels of intelligence. Each one of them are completely different in their personalities. They have decided to invite Maggie to each one of their Christmas' as she will be spending hers all by herself.
The first Christmas will be with Frank and his family as his sister will be getting married and Maggie will be his plus one. Frank has told his family that she is his girlfriend. She had no idea that he had done that but she ran with it.
The second Christmas is spent with Jasper. She is spending it at his families home. It's quite busy and filled with children and chaos! There are surprises that I don't want to spoil!
The third and final Christmas was spent with Leo.. Part of their Christmas is spent with Maggie's best friend Gemma and her children. Then they go on to Leo's family home.
After the New Year and before they go back to work Maggie gathers the three kings together so she can tell all of them what she was told right before the holidays. She was brought in by the HR rep Jan and told that she needs to make a decision of who to let go in the IT department as everyone is cutting one person from their department. Maggie is told she will have until January 2 to decide.
She gathers them together and tells them about what she has been told and they all talk about it. She makes a decision but doesn't tell them until they are at the meeting the next day.
This was a very sweet cute book ! Thank you for the Christmas book Kristen Bailey!
Happy Reading!!
I loved every character in this novel. It was so easy to see how the co-workers quickly became friends to family that the female main character could lean on and love even in the hardest moments. Frank, Leo, and Jasper were the co-workers that I wished we all had and they each brought a different version of the "tech guy" that we think of which was unique. I loved reading this novel and will definitely find it at my local bookstore once publication day arrives. Thank you for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!
This is such a sweet holiday romance. I loved the characters and the story is really engaging and thoughtful.
Highly recommend for getting into the holiday spirit!
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for access to this eARC.
This would have made a great festive novella but as a full length novel it is a DNF at 40% for me. Everything happens so quickly in this novel and it goes from a solo Christmas to suddenly spending it with her three coworkers and it’s very clear from the first chapter where this will end up.
A sweet concept but didn’t lend itself to long form. Will definitely keep an eye out on what this author writes next.
The book deals with friendship, love, and the everyday lives of four people. One of them is the boss of the other three. The story is set in London and some other places in the UK. Different families with traditions and relationships among their peers are presented and discussed. In the end, the boss must make a hard decision. Will the boss be capable of making a good decision? It would help if you read the book to find out.
There’s nothing quite like a new Kristen Bailey Christmas novel and I was so excited to pick up We Three Kings!
Maggie is the boss of an IT department in London. She has a small team of coworkers - Frank and Jasper and Leo and Maggie is both protective and proud of them.
Just before the Christmas breakup HR tells Maggie that the business is downsizing and she has to let one of her staff go, and could she let them know which one? Maggie spends the Christmas week with her three workmates and the plot centres around her getting to know them as friends, while also having to decide which one will be made redundant.
British romances often have lots of tangled threads and I loved the subplots around Frank and Jasper and their families and love lives. During Christmas week Maggie is a plus-one to a wedding with Frank, stays at Jasper’s posh country house and goes to the Lake District to have Christmas with Leo. Maggie meets all their people and sees all their complexities while she grapples with the knowledge that one of them is going to get the sack. Maggie is also falling for Leo, and realising that he has been in love with her for years, but the timing could not be worse.
There are so many moments that make the most difficult and perfect week for Maggie. Between being a fake bridesmaid, thwarting a fox hunt, stealing a donkey, staring down a tiger mom and a trip to Emergency, there’s hilarity and so many wonderful and tender moments.
Another thread is Kristen’s love of London. I loved the walk through Covent Garden, the London Underground, Christmas markets on the Thames - it’s all so vivid and festive. If visiting London is on your radar this might convince you to visit!
It's a slow burn – they try so hard to get together but there’s no on-page sex – that’s not for a lack of trying on Leo and Maggie’s part! It's really about trust and emotional intimacy and Maggie really seeing Leo after all that time working together.
I adored this charming novel – it’s funny, and heartfelt and tender and so so delicious! I We Three Kings is a gem! Recommended if you love funny, warm and messy romances.
Thank you NetGalley, Kristen Bailey and Storm Publishing for the ARC. Opinions are my own.
Synopsis: Maggie Field is alone for the holidays and has to make a challenging choice to get rid of one of her coworkers on her team. So they each, all three of them being men, invite her to stay with each of them for the holidays, This sets her on a Christmas journey that is one to remember. When she starts to have sparks with one of the men she has to make the tough choice, how can she keep her work family together but also find love?
Boy was this such a fun journey! From it being around Christmas time to the characters. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know them all. Maggie was such a delight and incredibly relatable character. I really started to love Leo over the course of the book. I didn't want him to just be another rom-com MMC that was like them all but he surprised me. The baby fox scene was so precious! There were so many times I laughed out loud that it truly made this a rom-com one I will not forget!
4.75 stars! Oh my god, how absolutely FUN was this book?! This was such a unique story compared to other holiday romances I’ve read. I laughed out loud and swooned and was overjoyed by the end. Totally devoured this masterpiece in 2 days.
The characters were all so different and engaging. I loved that Maggie found some piece of herself with each of her friends. The banter was witty and smart and I loved all the adventures we went on with the IT department. The fact that their work and nerdiness bonded them was amazing.
The found family trope was 10/10. Honestly, one of the best I’ve read in a long time. The romance was sweet but not overdone. It never overshadowed the rest of the story which was just as important. The book being split into different parts for each of the characters was the perfect example of this; it showed each piece of Maggie’s Christmas adventure was important, even if it wasn’t the romantic piece.
The dialogue could be a little stiff at times, but I found it was easy to look beyond that because the story was so good.
I’m going to say it again, this was SO FUN.
Thank you NetGalley and Storm Publishing for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!
Resolved to spend Christmas alone cuddled on her comfy couch, Maggie Field was surprised to find herself with not one holiday celebration - but three!!! As head manager of the IT department at a large financial firm in London, Maggie treated her coworkers like family. When “the boys” hear Maggie will be solo for the break they act quickly. Neurotic sweet Frank invites her to be plus one at his sister’s wedding, Posh Jasper, who has one foot out of the closet, brings her along to join his boisterous family at their fancy estate and sweet Leo includes Maggie in a picture perfect countryside holiday. Heartwarming friendship and a budding romance are quickly daunted when HR quietly demands Maggie make one of these amazing guys redundant after the New Year. Horrified at the thought of hurting anyones feelings and derailing their future plans she must find a way to enjoy the beauty of Christmas and not destroy this team she has grown to love. Funny, cute and cozy, this quirky cast of characters brings the magic of the holidays to life.
I just loved this book as it was so heartwarming and fun. I just loved the story and the characters were so fun and amazing. It was such a good Christmas book showing beautiful friendships.
I would highly recommend reading this book if love a good Christmas book that is heartwarming with beautiful friendships.
I would like to thank Storm Publishing and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book early.
This is such a cute and fun feel good romance.
I only wish I'd read this during Christmas. It's cozy, lovely and absolutely wonderful. Completely loved the relationships, humour and the banter. This is my first book from Kristen Bailey and you can be sure that I will definitely read all her other books now!
Please see link for full review.
I have reviewed We Three Kings for book recommendation and sales site LoveReading.co.uk. It has been chosen as a book of the month.
I enjoyed reading We Three Kings so much. I loved how our leading character was a woman who held a higher position in the IT department she worked for. The work environment for our characters seem to be very genuine and real between the boss and coworkers, they were like family. It all changed when management threw a curve ball at Maggie right before Christmas! The characters were the best and I loved getting to know each of the male leads families and their interactions with Maggie outside of work for this Christmas adventure of hers!
The premise of this was really cute and something a little different than what I’ve read before, so it held my attention well.
I’ll be honest though, I thought the main character was going to consider dating all of three guys, considering the title. I’m glad it wasn’t that but I did love all of the characters regardless. I almost enjoyed the tale of all their friendships more than the main romance, which is kind of rare for me.
Maggie was the adorable, quirky, and so kind that it was easy to understand why the guys thought of her as a friend as well as their boss. The way their relationships really bloomed as she got to know them more personally was so damn heartwarming, I began to feel a little attached to them. I think my favorite was Jasper because who he seemed to be and who he really was, well it was yet another reminder that you really don’t know what someone’s life is like and shouldn’t be quick to judge.
I loved the way this was split up in different acts, too, each one their own adventure.
While I was able to guess what the ending would be, I enjoyed the journey nonetheless and still had a few things really surprise me along the way.
The one thing that might trip some people up is that she is technically into someone that reports to her at work. Had it been a guy who was the boss, that might not be as palatable.
But if you're looking for a really funny book with a great cast of characters that will give you all the cozy, warm holiday feelings, look no further!
Another great story set at Christmas by Ms. Bailey. This book was perfect for the holiday season. Watching this band of four IT nerds who work day in day out with each other find who each other are behind the scenes. Maggie, who is spending Christmas alone is invited to each coworker’s holiday plans. This band of brothers who have worked together for years really don’t know much about one another. Spending one on one time with each man Maggie learns more about their lives outside of work. She has only spent the holidays quietly with her parents in the past. She gets one wild adventure acting as a plus one for different events. Finding love and lifelong friendships along the way. Thank you to NetGalley and Storm publishing for this free advanced copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily
An adorable holiday read!
With her parents traveling, IT manager Maggie is going to be alone for the holidays. A trio of three very different men who are not only her work team but also her friends aren't going to let that happen. Frank, Jasper, and Leo adore and respect her. They appreciate all she does to support them and make them feel valued in a company that doesn't seem to respect their role. Each man offers for her to spend some time with them and their respective families over the holiday. From a "fake date" at a wedding,, to a party at posh family estate, and finally, spending Christmas on a farm family, Maggie gets to know each of them in a new and different way.
Through each visit, Maggie learns more about each man and they about her - their support of each other is fierce. What the men don't know is that Maggie is also grappling with the decision she needs to make in the New Year - which person on the teams position can be eliminated for redundancy? In her eyes, each one is vital to their role, and their role is vital to who they are in their personal lives. Through their adventures together, their friendships deepen, and a holiday romance even evolves. How can she make this impossible decision without hurting or losing one of her closest friends?
It is a sweet holiday story about how the right people will stick by your side no matter what and that friends can also be your chosen family.
Thank you to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for the opportunity to read this ARC.