The Ex-Mas Holidays: A festive and laugh-out-loud enemies to lovers Christmas rom com for 2024! Paperback – 12 Oct. 2023

Was recommended by a friend and so happy it was.A lighthearted mixture of Christmas, family dynamics, career dilemmas and the rocky road to finding true love.The style of writing allowed me to really visualise each character.It also highlights just how much harm we can cause to each other by how we treat them even when our intentions may be coming from a genuine place of protection and guidance.Emotionally intelligent, funny, festive and an all round good book to cosy up with in the winter.Can't wait to read more by Zoe 🎄

I really enjoyed reading this coming up to Christmas. It was an easy read that is perfect for snuggling up by a fire and a pallate cleanser in between some denser reads.It had everything you could want love, friendship and skiing (plus naked butlers 😘)

I've wanted to read this for a while, and when I realized the second book, which is kind of linked, was due out, I sped it further up my TBR pile, and I am so glad I did!Two exes (I'm not spoiler-ing there, it's in the title!), Maya and Sam end up bumping into one another in a rather inopportune way, and this paves the path for an interesting set of circumstances where we see them both struggle with old feelings, new feelings and a whole load of barriers that come in their way, in the name of a girlfriend (Sam) and a father who has high aspirations (Maya).Slow burn, lots of sizzle, dry wit and humour, and cuteness overloadI truly adored this book, and now I cannot wait to dive into the next one, The Wedding Engagement, as I want to know what happens to the other characters in this fab read!

Oh my goodness, how much did I love this funny, romantic read?!(Perfect for any time of the year, by the way - not just the snowy, festive season.)Maya and Sam were characters with real depth, and some issues to overcome. These were dealt with cleverly, and it was great to see the story from each character's point of view. (Who doesn't love seeing inside both heads?!)I absolutely adored their banter, their sizzle and the slow burn romance between them. Soooo good.Can't wait to read more from this talented author.

This was a cute read and I liked how the author wrote about experiences in a mixed race family & when a friend is in a toxic relationship. Both of which were covered very well.Thank you to netgalley for the book.

First book I have read by Zoe Allison. It was a cute story in a lovely setting.I really enjoyed it will be reading more of Zoe's books.

Eight years ago, when they were just 18, Maya and Sam almost got together, but the combination of an argument, one deserting dad, one domineering dad and a scheming friend who wanted Sam for herself meant that they parted on bed terms.Now, newly single and redundant from a high-flying job in Glasgow, Maya returns to her Highland home and is surprised to meet up with Sam - working as a buff butler - at a party.Sam and Maya are meant to be together, but they must find their way back to each other after a huge misunderstanding - on both sides. Sam must overcome the demons of his absentee dad and toxic girlfriend, while Maya must find the courage to fight against her own dad's high expectations and pursue what really makes her happy - Sam and her job as a ski instructor.I thoroughly enjoyed this book, which is full of humour and emotional intelligence, plus, I really loved the description - the scent of the pine trees, the pristine, powdery snow and the hot chocolates. If I could, I'd book a holiday in Glenavie myself!

I loved reading this book.The main characters Maya and Sam each had some personal issues that they had to deal with. They were handled smartly and it was good to read the characters give their own viewpoints.I loved the quips and the romance Sam and Maya.I read the book in one sitting.Highly recommend this book.

I love hallmark holiday movies and this was that in book form. Except the characters had so much dimension and history. I loved the dual POVs and the build to friendship then romance.Theres some on-page adult scenes near the end of the book, but nothing too graphic (at least by my standards)

Oh boy, this book was a total breath of fresh air and the perfect cosy Christmas read.I actually came across this book when choosing which books I was going to send Tammy in our annual Christmas book exchange. It looked great so of course I added in one for me too and I’m so glad that I did.🎄 Second Chance🎄 Enemies To Lovers🎄 Small Town🎄 Childhood Sweethearts🎄 Romantic Comedy🎄 Set in Scotland🎄 Holiday Read🎄 Forced ProximityMaya and Sam had a thing going on back when they were 18 and due to some things going on they haven’t seen or talked to each other in 8 years.While Maya is on her way home she unexpectedly bumps into Sam in the most unusual circumstances IYKYN and that definitely makes for some awkward moments. There is some buried resentment between both of them so they are not really happy to see one another, and let’s just say they don’t become fast friends.I absolutely loved the storyline of this book, it was fast paced, it was funny, and it was such an easy enjoyable read. I read it within a 24 hour period as I just didn’t want to put it down.I thought the characters were brilliant, aside from Cat, I wanted to punch her 😆 I thought they all had great depth and really helped with the storyline.I adored how it all ended and honestly it was just a total joy to read. This one is definitely one of my favourite holiday reads this year and one I wholeheartedly recommend.

This book has some of my least favorite tropes and still manages to work. I’m not quite sure what Zoe Allison put into Ex-Mas Holidays but I definitely want more of it!The MMC, Sam, has a girlfriend for half the book! This is a second chance between teenage sweethearts who broke up over a “silly” miscommunication! The FMC, Maya, has kind of a mean dad! Sam’s girlfriend is The Worst™️ on page for many chapters! AND YET… I loved this.The vibe is very Talia Hibbert. Scotland but modern and highly multicultural. Casual queerness. Small town but realistic. Festive but homey and approachable. Sweet enough to draw you in and real enough to make you feel things. Great banter, and a really highly unlikable villain. So yeah, Sam has a girlfriend and this is a second chance between high school sweethearts who broke up due to miscommunication but just take my word for it. It’s great.I loved how deeply this book delved into emotional intimate partner abuse and had that script gender flipped (Sam’s girlfriend is super manipulative and emotionally abusive to him). The resolution to that plot line is really satisfying but I know that can be hard for some readers to experience so be ready. Additionally Maya’s family troubles were so super realistic and well done. Her dad is really hard on her and expects the moon and stars, but again, the way this plot line resolves will make your heart grow three sizes.👍🏻Recommended! Fans of contemporary Christmas romance and Talia Hibbert will enjoy this one. Skiers will probably like it even more.

I bought this book because of the enemies to lovers and forced proximity tropes plus it was a good holiday read! I felt like the book was really slow to begin with. I had a hard time getting into it because it was like so much was going on but also nothing was going on at the same time. It wasn't very detailed and there were a lot of characters that were not really introduced so I got confused easily. Once things finally started to kick off between the two main characters, Sam and Maya, I really started enjoying the book. Overall, I did enjoy the book! I do recommend but just know it is pretty slow at the beginning.

I really was expecting more enemies to lovers for this book and while there was a touch of grudge holding between the two characters it really was about so much more than that. I LOVED how Maya and Sam haven't really ever given up on each other, work through their baggage, and help each other along the way. Definitely add this to the holiday TBR!