This book was delightful! I loved the setting and of course everything Christmas. This will get you in the holiday spirit!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Yay for a light Christmas rom com! Isabella is returning home after 10 years of being away for Christmas, their traditional week of festivities, and her sister's wedding- fresh off of a broken heart. She and her boyfriend of four years are officially on a break. When a snow storm delays her flight, she runs into her high school sweetheart, Leo- the guy she left behind to follow her dreams in New York. Needless to say, there is a hefty side of sparks with that lack of closure.

There was a lot to love about this one, particularly in the first half. Isabella and Leo's chemistry was A+ and I love me some lovers-to-enemies-to-lovers feels. Add in Christmas cheese, and I'm super happy! It was like <I>Sweet Home Alabama</I> and <I>In a Holidaze</I> had a baby.

However, around halfway, the tension really eased up and I felt less engaged in the story. Half of the book really focused a lot on where they were going to live their lives and the wedding, which just didn't feel high stakes enough to keep me super interested. That all being said, it ended with a funny, super heartwarming scene.

This is a great pick for anyone looking for a quick Christmas love story!

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC ebook in exchange for an honest review!

This review will also be posted to Goodreads as well as @blissfullyread on Instagram.

Thank you City Owl Press, Starla DeKruyf and NetGalley for this ARC!

I’ll be honest, this book surprised me in so many ways. And in the best of ways! I couldn’t put it down. It is the perfect holiday rom-com to get lost in with a hot cup of tea!

Isabella Whitley has to return to her hometown in Colorado for her sister’s Christmas wedding. She left for college in New York ten years earlier and never looked back. Now she must face not only her family, but her high school sweetheart who she left behind, as they all await an explanation.

Leo Hoffman has been trying to forget his first love for a decade. Now they must spend the eight days before Christmas together, performing family traditions, as his brother is marrying Isabella’s sister.

The chemistry between these two is undeniable. And soon they find they can’t fight their attraction any longer. But, will her ex making a surprise appearance throw a wrench in their reunion?

This is definitely such a fun read for this holiday season!! I highly recommend!

Eight Days of Christmas was a sweet holiday story featuring a second chance romance for two high school sweethearts.

Isabella Whitley flies home for the first time in ten years after moving to New York City to celebrate her sister’s Christmas Day wedding. Coming home isn’t as easy as it seems, though. Immediately Isabella runs into her ex and the grooms brother, Leo Hoffman, where lots of angst and chaos ensues.

I loved tagging along as the Whitley family and their guests partook in their annual eight days of Christmas traditions. While I felt the parts of the book describing the Christmas activities were well written and gave me all the cozy holiday feels, the romance didn’t work for me. It felt rushed and I had a hard time connecting with the main characters because of it. After so many years apart and with Leo never understanding why, and once Isabella shares why she stayed away, it felt like they jumped back into a relationship too quickly. I wish that Leo had more of an inner monologue so we could have processed this new information with him.

Overall this was a cute story, but it lacked spark for me.

The concept of this book is cute....a family gathers each Christmas and has activities they do for the eight days prior to Christmas. This year, Izzy is returning home for the first time in ten years because her younger sister is getting married on Christmas Day. Izzy has stayed away from home all these years for a reason that made perfect sense to her as a young girl but probably should have been shared with others years ago.

She flies home only to have the flight hit bad weather stranding her with none other than her old boyfriend from high school and college, Leo, who also happens to be the brother of her sister's fiance and her family's next door neighbor. There was a lot of heat in their relationship when they were young and it is inevitable that the fire might still be there.

As I said, the idea of the story is cute. The idea that a family has a tradition of eight days of activities is nice; probably not something a lot of folks do but it is the second holiday book I have read this year with people doing the community activities. I imagine there are places where they live a Hallmark movie for the holidays.

So, cute story which I could see becoming a cute holiday movie. However.... there was so much repitition of the thoughts Izzy and Leo had about each other....how hot he looked in his jeans, the sound of his voice, his smell, his hair.....described over and over. And he had thoughts also...the way her leggings showed every curve, how nicely her clothes hugged her body, etc. Mentioning this is normal but I found myself skipping over some of these descriptive paragraphs. If a movie was made, these things would be seen through actions (smiles, emotions, etc) and not said alound.

I was also bothered by how Izzy's family made little digs at her for the fact she had not been home in so many years. Obviously, there was a reason and to keep pouring salt on the wound, even if they did not know the reasons, seemed unfair. It was clear she dearly loved her family and again, the miscommunications shoud have been handled years before. Maybe her parents should have talked with her before and had the long overdue discussion.

Easy little read for the holidays so I would not discourage anyone from reading it.

I did receive this book from NetGalley and City Owl Press.
#NetGalley #CityOwlPress

A second-chance relationship is always a good read but set during Christmas makes it feel so much more magical. This story follows Izzy and Leo. Once high-school sweethearts with big dreams together. When life takes them in different directions, 10 years later and a wedding bring them back together. I love the chemistry of Izzy and Leo. It is the perfect holiday romance to curl up under a blanket and by the fire and get lost in this happily ever after.

This book was such an adorable holiday second-chance romance! Izzy and Leo were high school sweethearts. They had grand plans to follow their dreams and be together but Izzy left for college in NY and Leo stayed in Colorado to stay close to his mom who was sick. Izzy promised to come back but then never did. Ten years later, her sister is getting married on Christmas Day (to Leo’s brother!) so Izzy is forced to come home for Christmas for the first time in a decade. Her family has a crazy 8-day tradition of Christmas activities and competitions and Leo has been invited. I loved the forced proximity and the general holiday cheer. It’s a very classic holiday romance story but it was a ton of fun to read! I loved hearing about all of the competitions and could really imagine myself as part of their family. It definitely put me in the holiday mood!

Thank you to NetGalley and City Owl Press for this advanced copy!

This book was so much fun! A swoony, second chance romance set during the holidays make it a perfect read for the upcoming season. We'll written with great chemistry and tension

I wasn’t sure about this book but I loved it! It’s a great romcom with a Christmas theme. Isabella (Izzy) hasn’t been home for Christmas in Colorado for 10 years, she’s been living in NYC. She hasn’t seen her family, and she hasn’t seen the love of her life, Leo, either. She has a reason for not coming home, but she’s never shared it. She has to come back now, because her sister Norah is marrying Leo’s brother Landon. She’s also just broken up with her live-in boyfriend and wants to get away.

When her flight gets canceled in a snowstorm, she turns around and Leo is there, on the same flight. She ends up renting a car and driving home with him because she has to be home for the wedding and the eight days of Christmas, a tradition her parents started where each day is another holiday activity or two.

Leo has never gotten over Izzy, and he’s furious at her for leaving him behind. However, the chemistry between them hasn’t changed at all, and it takes them both by surprise. Leo and Izzy have to spend the next 10 days together because of the wedding and the eight days tradition. Leo is like a son to Izzy’s parents after his mom died.

Inevitably, Norah pairs the two of them together for every activity, and Leo starts sneaking in to spend the night with Izzy. However, she’s still planning on going back to NYC when the holidays are over, and he still wants to know why she left him. Do they want to be together, and can they find a way to make that happen?

Generally speaking I’m not a huge reader of romance, at least not traditional romances. Now rom-coms are another story. And when they are holiday themed ala Hallmark holiday movies…forget about it. I’m all in. They are my guilty pleasure to the point they take up one third of my DVR. Starla DeKruyf ’s Eight Days of Christmas is an absolute delight and everything I want in a holiday rom-com. Isabella (Izzy) and Leo were high school sweethearts that always thought they be together, but after college they ended up going in different directions. Now after ten years away (kinda) Izzy is returning home for younger sister’s wedding and to take part in her family’s ‘8 Days of Christmas’ tradition. Who’s Izzy’s sister marrying? Leo’s little brother,…so yep, Izzy and Leo are going to be forced to spend the entire week together, confronting their unresolved feelings. I liked these characters from the very start and loved watching them fight their feelings even as they fought each other. While it’s a bit more steamy than your average Hallmark flick, it has all the charm you could want, and really should be turned into a movie.
I’d like to thank City Owl Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an eARC of Eight Days of Christmas.

https://www.amazon.com/review/RVJ0QI869VV6D/ref=pe_1098610_137716200_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv

This book was cute, fun and met all of my holiday book reading expectations. Great emotion. The writing was solid with good conflict. Second chance and coming home romances are my favorite tropes. This is definitely a must read for the holiday season. Huge thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

Eight Days of Christmas follows Isabella and Leo childhood friends and high-school sweethearts.

Isabella is returning home to her small snowy hometown at Christmas for her sisters wedding. She hasn’t been home or saw Leo since she took off for New York years ago. But with Leo’s brother marrying her sister Isabella knows that she is not only going to have to see him at the wedding but also during the ‘8 Days of Christmas’ - a tradition where her family perform different holiday activities each day.

With Christmas in the air and old sparks flying Isabella and Leo find themselves unable to stay away from each other, trying to figure out what torn them apart and if they can find a way back together.

This book has everything that makes my heart swoon. Second chance romance is seriously my jam! And throw in a bit of two people trying to stay away from each-other but being pulled together and I cannot get enough!
Plus alternating chapters in Isabella’s and Leo’s points of view. Like seriously it’s everything I love in a romance. Add to it christmas. Seriously you need this book in your life.

I also loved how the author has created a playlist that goes with the book as well. Additions like that make a book even more enjoyable.

Thank you NetGalley for the copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinions.

3.5/5
Such an enjoyable read! It’s about Izzy, whose not been home for Christmas in 10 years. This Christmas she will be back because her sister is getting married. Back home, she meets her ex boyfriend again, and things happen…
It was a Christmas book, so of course it was full of clichés. Sometimes I had to cringe a bit, but most of it was sweet.
I did have a hard time finishing it to be honest, it was pretty stretched out, I caught myself scanning the words instead of reading sometimes.
Overall a fun read, and would recommend if you want to read a sweet, sappy love story.

This is such a fun festive story, i think it ticked every festive story box for me and left me with a bit of a book hang over!

This is the story of Isabella who returns to her home town for her sisters Christmas wedding. She wants to come home enjoy the wedding and return to New York as quickly and quietly as possible but that's not going to happen because she has to explain her disappearing act not only to her family but also her high school sweet heart that she has left behind..
Leo has never gotten been able to forget Isabella and isn't best pleased to see her again but since his bother is marrying Isabella's sister he is forced to celebrate the eight days of Christmas with Isabella and her family.
The close proximity has them bringing up old memories . The only problem is Isabella's ex enters the equation and Isabella is left needing to decide what is best for her.

Highly recommend if you're looking for a fun and sometimes hilarious festive story!

Things I loved: second chance romance, heavy tension, funny
Things I didn't love: the airport scene, the meddling parents, MC was annoying, the fiancé
Going home for Christmas hasn't been an option for Isabella in years, but she refuses to miss her little sister's wedding. The only problem is that the love of her life, whom she left behind six years ago, is the best man and brother of the groom. But, unfortunately, Leo is asking questions that she can't answer, not without breaking his heart all over again. Leo can't believe he's spending eight full days of Christmas activities with Izzy. Tension from the past bubbles to the surface the longer Leo is around her. But he realizes the woman he thought would never leave him has changed. But will they be enough this time?
This novel was a fun second-chance romance. The tension between Isabella and Leo was so thick I could feel it through the pages. I was very proud of Isabella for finally coming clean about what happened all those years ago. I figured out who was involved beforehand, but I was still shocked by how things played out. However, once Leo opened up more to Isabella, he became incredibly thoughtful.
I could have done without Isabella's behavior in the airport. She owed Ben an apology. Leo's father owes him a better apology, too, after what happened and not telling him until years later. Additionally, I wish the main characters realized how selfish they were when preparing for Norah's wedding. They kept talking about not spending time with each other, but they should've been focusing on their siblings who were getting married. I also couldn't believe Leo acted that way after their dance at the wedding.
Overall I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys messy holiday romances full of surprises.
3.5/5

I love a good Second Chance romance and EIGHT DAYS OF CHRISTMAS had everything I love about the trope: the memories of teenage love, the palpable chemistry, the enemies vibe when they first reunite, the secrets that tore them apart finally coming to light.

Leo and Isabella are so great together! I loved their hate banter at the start of this book when they are suddenly thrown back together after a decade apart. Watching them slowly reconnect is sweet and steamy!

Leo and Isabella's families are so wonderful and I wanted to be invited to this 8 Days celebration! The competition and snark is so fun to read.

I found the conflict resolution a bit frustrating. Both characters are just to afraid to act and, much like the "just talk to each other" conflict in other books, EIGHT DATS OF CHRISTMAS suffers from "Just take the leap already!"

But the sweet ending of this story makes the mild frustration all worth it! I loved the final scenes.

Charming story with laugh out loud fun.

Christmas is my favorite holiday, so I couldn’t wait to get my first taste of holiday reading in. Thank you #NetGalley and #CityOwlPress for this arc of #EightDaysofChristmas as it was the perfect read.

Bring on the physical attraction and mental connection between our main characters, Isabelle and Leo. Loved their banter - their chemistry was perfect. Combine that with a National Lampoon Christmas Vacation family dynamic and I’m hooked.

Great character development and depth added to this story. Look forward to more by DeKruyf!

I absolutely loved this book!!! Although it started a little slow, I was sad when it finally ended. I really grew to love the characters and their history, the cute town, their family's quirky Christmas traditions, and everything in between. The plot was well developed and there were fantastic descriptions - detailed enough to envision yourself there, but not too detailed that the story drones on forever. I read many Christmas novels, and this is one is most definitely at the top of my favorites!

What a great start to the holiday season! This book makes me want to curl up in front of the Christmas tree with a book and hot cocoa already! It gave me all the Hallmark vibes I look for in my Christmas theme books. Second chance romance? Enemies to lovers? SIGN ME UP! I personally love a dual POV so I was beyond excited to see this book had that🙌🏼 I can't wait to see what the next book in the series has to offer ☺️

What a sweet little read, perfect for the run up to the holidays. The book follows a fairly high strung New Yorker who is returning home to Colorado for her first Christmas in 10 years, and joining her family for the holidays is her ex, and first love, Leo. There were lovely candy cane vibes and cute scenes of ice skating, Christmas tree decorating, snowman building and cookie making, The writing was quite well done, and at times it was quite atmospheric and in some scenes it felt like I was reading a romantic comedy. There were some nice twists and turns to the story that added an extra element which I wasn’t expecting and added a little bit of emotion, although I feel like this could have been explored deeper.

I did feel that the love story evolved too quickly for my taste, and I would have preferred the “enemies to lovers” bit to have lasted a bit longer as I much preferred the main characters banter when they were at each other’s throats. There were parts which were overdone, such as the digs towards FMC not returning home for 10 years, which I felt weren’t necessary and were tedious at times.

Overall, this was a good way to ease myself into the Christmas romances and I would look forward to reading anything else from this author.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book. Review also posted on Storygraph and Instagram: kims.reads