Blog Blitz Review | We'll Always Have Christmas ~ Jenny Hale

Title: We’ll Always Have Christmas

Author: Jenny Hale

Amazon Links:

UK: http://amzn.to/2uMjcEP

US: http://amzn.to/2wObhIm

Description:

An enchanting story about the magic of Christmas, the importance of family, and the joy of falling in love during the most romantic season of the year…

Christmas has always been a special time for Noelle Parker. Winter evenings spent with family and friends, drinking hot chocolate and eating cookies at her family’s cozy bakery have shaped her love for all things festive. But this year everything is changing…

The beloved bakery is facing closure and Noelle needs a miracle to save Christmas.

Determined to raise funds for the family business, Noelle sets about revamping the bakery while juggling a surprise new job, caring for the elderly and cantankerous William Harrington in his luxurious, sprawling mansion.

As Noelle melts the frostiness of the house with cake baking, snowball fights and glittering decorations, she helps William to reconnect with a romance that has spanned decades and unexpectedly finds herself falling for his grandson - the gorgeous but mysterious Alexander Harrington…

In the countdown to Christmas, can Noelle save the bakery, reunite a family and create some magical memories of her own along the way?

REVIEW

I'm so so sorry that this is up late, due to a date mix up I've only just read the book and now just when I finished the book I was called to babysit at the last minute, now I'm home I really can't face putting the laptop on but I was eager to get something up so my review is in a very raw state and as I'm on my phone it's not in the usual layout.

I will correct all of this tomorrow but the book is too good not to share my thought with you immediately. So my apologies to Jenny and Kim/ Bookouture one again! 

We'll always have Christmas by Jenny Hale is the perfect festive read - full of emotion with  family loyalty, secrets, new beginnings and of course some romance.

In this latest novel from jenny we meet Noelle - if the name doesn't set you up for Christmas then I don't know what will - who us a single mother to Lucas, trying to bring him up and give him memories like the great ones she has from her own childhood which was full of love particularly with ones of her grandmother and the times they spent at their family business - the hope and sugar bakery.

With Christmas looming the last thing Noelle needs is to be laid off from her current job.

It's not long before she is offered a placement at the Harrison mansion, caring for the elderly william harrison.

Her best friends, phoebe and jo are super excited for her, phoebe in particular, in hope that she gets a glimpse of alex Harrison - Williams grandson.

Alex is completely focused on his work but things start to change when Noelle and Lucas move in to the massive house, and as the feelings between Noelle and Alex start to form, Noelle gets a blow with his saying he is moving to new york. But it's not just her heart she is worried about, Lucas - her shy quiet and reserved little boy has taken a real shine to Alex, opening up, laughing and smiling and making memories with a father like figure.

Whilst this is all going on, Noelle is fighting to keep open the family bakery after her father's confession that it's been failing and with the recent rent increase its just not feasible to stay in business any longer as well as still coming to terms with the loss of her beloved gran.

What jenny hale does so brilliantly is write with a whole heap of emotion and depth that allows you to see how the characters are feeling, I felt the heart ache the Harrison's felt with their own stories of which I've not gone in to as I want to leave some elements of surprise for when you read this  you can also feel her characters falling for each other as the words flow of the page.

I could write a whole bunch more but there's so much to this book I'm sure I'd end up spoiling it for you!

We'll always have Christmas is full of warmth and love focussing on family and friends and is perfectly descriptive both with the wonderful settings and decor of the mansion and bakery as well as the weather for the time of year - I may have to holiday in Virginia in December for the amount sparkly snow it has! 

A thoroughly enjoyable romantic novel to curl up with! 

Blog Blitz ~ Review | The Christmas Holiday ~ Maxine Morrey

The Christmas Holiday

Maxine Morrey

HQ Digital

September 2017

Rating 5/5

              

Fall in love this winter on a romantic trip around the world ending in a fairy-tale winter wedding!

As winter comes to London, journalist Mia Walker is desperately hoping for her big break as a travel writer, dreaming of exotic locations and sun-soaked beaches. When she’s invited to write a romantic travel piece that ends in a huge winter wedding in London, she jumps at the chance. The only trouble is, the photographer is renowned adventure-junkie Hunter Scott, who Mia last saw five years ago when she ended their engagement.

It’s the opportunity of a lifetime, and Mia knows she’d be mad to say no – even if it does mean spending weeks travelling round the world with the one man she never wanted to see again! But as the wedding approaches, and the magic of Christmas begins to take hold, Mia can’t help looking out for mistletoe – and wishing she hadn’t cancelled her own engagement after all…

              

I've been longing to read another novel from Maxine Morrey for what seems like forever after I loved her debut novel, Winter's Fairytale.

Due to circumstances last year not allowing me to read as much I didn't get around to reading The Christmas Project although it is high on my list of books to catch up with this year. So imagine my delight when it was announced that Maxine is publishing two festive stories this year - you'll have to wait a little while longer for The Best Little Christmas Shop as today's review is all about The Christmas Holiday - but just click on any of the titles I've just mentioned and you can grab a copy for yourself!

Have you ever read a novel and thought 'Yes - this book just gets me'? 

A book that you really want to read but at the same time your consciously trying to slow down your reading speed as you are aware it's nearing the end?

A book where your mind is constantly on the characters and what they will do next?

The Christmas Holiday was that book for me, and although it is a festive read, its not overloaded with Santa's and stockings, mulled wine or mince pies, but rather filled with luxurious hotels and private jets.

Mia Walker has just been offered by her boss Jeremy what could be the break her journalism career needs - travelling the world with his Daughter Olivia and her soon to be husband Sandeep - and documenting the build up to their Christmas wedding. Olivia has requested Mia on the trip as she adores Mia's writing style and has been following her write ups of weddings for ages. With a dream of being a travel writer this gives Mia hope of moving forward.

That is until she is introduced to the photographer for the holiday, Hunter Scott.

Ahh Hunter... if you don't fall for Hunter in this book then I'm disappointed in you, Ha!!

Anyway... Hunter and Mia have history, in fact they were previously engaged up until Mia broke it off and they've not seen each other since. Hunter makes no exceptions in stating his feelings that he would rather someone else be on the trip but Mia is set to prove him wrong.

From the moment the pair are re-connected, I knew I would love this book. It is clear that Maxine spent a lot of time getting their dialogue just right and for me, the balance of quick jibes at each other here or there along with sincere and caring moments mixed with tension and heat made it pretty perfect.

As Mia and Hunter travel and document Liv and Sandy's lives, they seem to be pulled closer together but with Mia still thinking that the reasons she gave for breaking them up to be true, and Hunter having secrets of his own, we are left wondering if they should just clear the air and be friends.

Liv and Sandy are utterly in love and I think if they were the main characters it could probably be a little too much but as they weren't it worked well and we see a different side to Hunter when in their company to what with do with just him and Mia.

Mia and Olivia on the other hand grow close and it was nice to read of a friendship forming as well as romance.

I think what I loved about this book what the fact that Mia and Hunter weren't a couple falling in love, they already were in love but for what ever reasons lost their way and it was refreshing to read of a couple in this situation.

The Christmas Holiday was full of moments where I chuckled out loud - rain storm, dress, thong... I say no more! 

It also had moments where I felt myself welling up and wanting to give the characters a hug through the book. The locations on The Christmas Holiday were stunning and the book had the right balance of detail in each location as well as moving the story forward without getting a bit stale mate.

Overall, The Christmas Holiday is a wonderful book that I didn't want to leave - full of romance and emotion, its the perfect love story to curl up with!

Review | Christmas at Mistletoe Cove ~ Holly Martin

Christmas at Mistletoe Cove

Hope Island, Book 2

Holly Martin

Bookouture

September 2017

Rating 5/5

Kindle

               

Christmas has arrived at Hope Island, promising snowflakes, surprises and plenty of seasonal joy. So snuggle up and fall in love at Mistletoe Cove …

Growing up on Hope Island, Eden Lancaster always believed that if you wished hard enough for something, dreams really could come true. But Eden’s greatest wish is also her biggest secret: she has been completely in love with her childhood friend, the charming and attractive Dougie Harrison, for as long as she can remember. And he has no idea. 

When Dougie leaves his successful life in New York to return home to Hope Island for good, Eden can’t escape her feelings. Her heart is full of hope that her romantic dreams are finally, at long last, going to come true…

This Christmas could change everything. But can a lifelong friendship really turn into the perfect romance? And will Eden get the happily ever after she’s always wished for?

               

My festive reading isn't complete without diving in to novel full of love, romance, snow and sparkle from Holly Martin.

Christmas at Mistletoe Cove certainly delivers and rounds up this series from Holly perfectly - if your new to the series if give the right about of back story to enable it to be read as a stand alone novel, If you have read the previous two, Spring at Blueberry Bay and Summer at Buttercup Beach, then Holly provides just enough info to refresh your memory from Bella and Issac and Rome and Freya's stories.

Christmas at Mistletoe Cove is the story I have been waiting for, we met Eden,  Bella and Rome's sister previously, and we have also been introduced to to Dougie, Rome and Issac's friend in snippets of the books too - we also know that Eden is head over heels in love with Dougie, who happens to be her best friend and has been for as long as she can recall.

Christmas at Mistletoe Cove starts with Eden nervously awaiting Dougie's arrival back on Hope Island, after 12 years away living and working in America, he has decided to come home.

Eden and Dougie are the best of friends, during his visits to the island they do everything together but Eden is very guilty of hiding her true feelings and having to deal with her heart breaking a little bit every time the holiday is over, and now he is coming home for good, as much as she is excited, she is nervous - they are very affectionate as friends and despite all the islanders believing their feelings are mutual, Eden is convinced that Dougie doesn't feel the same.

Dougie convinces Eden to meet him at Mistletoe Cove, and to write down three wishes before releasing them for the the magic of the cove to do it's thing.

Thinking its a load of nonsense, Eden does as she is asked to humour him but when one of her wishes comes true within 24 hours she starts to wonder.

As the second comes true, Eden goes from believing to having even more doubt and even tells herself that Dougie is doing all these nice romantic things because he is under a spell, when in truth all he want do do is make her dreams and wishes come true - what a man!

What follows is a well throughout story of two people very much in love trying a little too hard to make each other happy, when actually them just being together is more than enough for both of them.

Eden tries to correct her wishes, but breaks Dougie's heart in the process and the story I thought would be completely lovey dovey actually made me question whether these two could resolve their issues.

As with all Holly's books, the characters are ones that you instantly connect with, and even though this was Eden and Dougie's story it was nice seeing how both Bella and Issac and Rome and Freya had moved on in the last couple of month is gorgeous sub plots.

Hope Island is just as idyllic at Christmas as it was in Spring and Summer, with Holly capturing the readers imagination and allowing them to lose themselves for a few hours.

Christmas at Mistletoe Cove is Holly Martin at her best, full of romance, snow and magic.

        

The Hope Island Series

       

More from Holly Martin