A quick read but oh so good.

Felt like a novella was the perfect length to accommodate the story.

Secluded Christmas getaway. Estranged siblings and their significant others. Power goes out. What can go wrong?

The twist which I was trying to figure from the get go was not at all what I would’ve expected. And to me that makes this a good read.

This is my first J.E. Rowney book but based on this read I’d definitely try another by this author.

This was a short fun read about Isla and her husband James who visit Isla's estranged sister Clara and her husband Greg at their beautiful isolated home in the woods. I loved J.E. Rowney's writing, the eerie Christmassy vibes, and the message Rowney was able to convey in under 200 pages. But...the hot cocoa?!! 😂

This was a quick read and yes, it was rushed in some parts so it would've been better if it were longer. However, it was pretty tense and I didn't expect that ending. It was a wild ride!

When Isla reluctantly accepts her estranged sister Clara's invitation to spend Christmas at a luxury mountain retreat, she expects awkward family tension – not a fight for survival. After years of silence following their mother's death, this holiday reunion seems too good to be true. And it is.

As a brutal snowstorm cuts them off from civilization, dark secrets begin to surface. With time running out and nowhere to run, two sisters must put aside years of mistrust to survive the night. But in a house full of lies, how do you know who to trust?

This was a fun story. I like the idea of chapters as an advent calendar and needing to wait until the next day to read the next chapter! The story was repetitive in places, like the author didn't trust the reader to follow the story. Otherwise, this was a quick read. I don't think I could have read one chapter a day, though! 3.5⭐

I received an advanced complimentary digital copy of this book from Netgalley. Opinions expressed are my own.

A quick to read thriller that somehow packs an awful lot into its short length.

Two sisters are brought together after years of not speaking to spend Christmas with their respective husbands in an idyllic isolated cabin. The book is atmospheric and I could imagine the snow falling outside and the log fire burning inside whilst I read. The festive warm feeling soon dispersed as the story takes its first turn when the power goes out and Isla and Clara’s husbands set out to locate the emergency generator that has failed to start. A few twists within the plot kept me reading to find out how the story finished.

A good Xmas read.

I received a free arc of this book in exchange for an honest review. This was an easy, quick read, a thriller novella! Set on the side of a mountain in a storm, 2 sisters reunite and Christmas Eve becomes a Christmas nightmare. I enjoyed this book and will investigate other books by this author.

Quick read and a perfect Christmas thriller. Short novel.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this advance copy of the book.

It was ok. I ended up skimming more than anything. Novellas often seem rushed to me. Did not guess the ending!

This book was great. It told the story so well and i would have never seen that twist coming would recommend.

What a wild ride this one was! This book had me hooked from the beginning because I love a good fast paced thriller. I had no idea where this book was gonna go at the beginning but once I was about 60% of the way through, it was a little predictable. Xmas Break is about more than just lies and secrets but it’s about family and warmed my little grinchy heart. Also Greg supremacy 🫶🏼

Thank you NetGalley and J.E. Rowney for the opportunity to read this ARC!

Xmas Break centers around estranged sisters Clara and Isla, who have hardly spoken in three years since their mother's passing. Choosing to move past their differences, Clara and her husband invite Isla and her spouse to join them for a magical Christmas in the mountains. However, upon their arrival, nothing is as it seems.

The writing in Xmas Break is richly detailed, immersing you in the setting. However, the story felt somewhat repetitive and prolonged, especially for such a brief read. In terms of thrillers, this one didn't resonate with me.

This is a decent Christmas thriller. I enjoyed the Christmas setting. However, there was a bit too much unnecessary description for me. The ending wasn’t as climactic as I had hoped but I did enjoy the book. It was a good short story.

3.5 ⭐️A well written fun fast paced ominous thriller. I liked the snowy / Christmas atmosphere with a secluded setting, and the descriptions of the eerie smart house. However, the storyline was simple and a bit predictable + the ending dragged. Regardless, I enjoyed this in between Christmas rom coms.

Tensions high and they are in a cabin isolated. This book had been doubting everyone including myself.

"Some things, once broken, could never be fixed."

Two estranged sisters, a remote cabin and a snowstorm that cuts them off from civilization. Will the holidays be awkward or just plain deadly?

I did enjoy this Christmas thriller. The story was atmospheric and you could feel the emotions in the characters. Both sisters were hard to like, which I thought worked for this book and you didn't know who to root for. The only thing that I didn't really like was that it was fairly predictable and I wish there were some twists. Overall, I thought it was a good holiday thriller novella that hooked you quickly from the start and kept you engaged throughout. I would recommend this quick holiday read.

My reviews can also be found on my GoodReads page: www.goodreads.com/brandisbooks.

This book will be available for purchase November 22nd 2024.

Thank you to Little Fox Publishing and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

What a fun little thriller. Lots of questions and an ending I didn't see coming. I love when books surprise me!
Four and half stars rounded up to 5!!!
Will definitely read more by this author.

That was such a fun and entertaining short novel! It took my half a day to read it and I was hooked! There isn’t much twists and turns, to my deception, but that’s okay! The only thing that kinda annoyed me with this one is how many times the author described the wind outside the house. Like at some point, we get it, there’s a snow storm. I really liked the setting, I could fully visualize the house and the surroundings in my head. It wouldn’t be so bad to stay there for Christmas, it seems so cozy, without the crazy killer, obviously. Fast paced and entertaining, I would definitely recommend it for this time of year!

X doesn't always mark the spot.

A family thick with tension, a holiday celebration in a luxurious cabin, but who are these people in the photos scattered around the house. When Isla agrees to celebrate the holidays with her estranged sister Clara events take an unsettling turn.

For a thriller novella to work, the writing should feel tight. Instead, there is heavy handed foreshadowing and metaphors that feel like they're trying too hard. The multiple times events were recapped seemed excessive for a 181-page story. The blatant moments reminiscent of "The Shining" were just too much. I can appreciate a nod to a classic, but this was over the top. The reveal felt soft, predictable, and out of place. I just didn't buy into the turn of events, characters' behavior or reactions. (No one with a brain waits that long to call for help.)

As someone who calls a secluded cabin home, I chose this hoping for an eerie read able to bring an edgier vibe to the usual festivities. Instead of wanting to spend X-mas Break with this watered-down thriller; I was left wanting to break up with it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the Advance Readers Copy

#XmasBreakAChristmasThriller #NetGalley is a quick read, perfect for the holidays, with interesting characters.
I'm glad I gave this short story a try.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for selecting me to read and advanced copy of the book.

This was a middle of the road book for me. It definitely was a one sitting read. 2 sisters are reunited over Christmas after being apart due to differences. I really needed this book to be longer and darker. I felt like it could have been super good but it really fell flat after the big twist. I loved the isolated snowy setting. For some reason, I love snowy stories. The characters felt like they didn't match what was going on. I felt they needed much more development and different actions at different places. Also many sentences felt unfinished, ending in ... It was written through one pov, and I think adding the other sister's pov would have made this work much better. Overall a nice short holiday read.

Thank you to Netgalley and Books Go Social for the ARC. I greatly appreciate it. I do recommend this book.