Tag Archives: Christmas Reads

Review of Helen J Rolfe’s Christmas at the Little Waffle Shack.

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Today, I am delighted to join the blog tour for Helen J Rolfe’s Christmas at the Little Waffle Shack.

The blurb:

Heritage Cove is in full swing for the festive season and as the temperature dips, who will be lucky in love this Christmas?

It’s December in Heritage Cove and along with the village Christmas tree, frosty mornings and the promise of the most wonderful time of the year, the new waffle shack is about to open. And its owner isn’t a stranger to the Cove, because after all this time, Daniel is back to make amends with his brother Harvey – as well as a few other locals he might have offended along the way.

Fairly new to the village, local blacksmith Lucy has kept up the pretence of being with her ex for the sake of his gran but she’s fed up with all the lies. Determined to come clean and live the life she wants to live, she’s devastated to find that her attraction to Daniel is tainted by the fact he’s hiding a few things of his own. And his secrets are ones she isn’t sure she’ll ever be able to get past.

Heritage Cove is full of friendship and community; it’s a welcoming place people visit and never want to leave. But will it work its magic for Daniel and Lucy?

My review:

This was a sweet (in more ways than one) festive read, with plenty of feel-good family and friendship filled moments. I liked both Lucy and Daniel and was interested in learning more about them as the story progressed. The ending is all the more lovely as a result of the issues they have to overcome.

I loved Heritage Cove and its inhabitants, who were warm and welcoming and a pleasure to spend time with. The community Christmas tree sounded a delight, as did the waffles served in Daniel’s waffle shack. The descriptions frequently made me hungry!

This is the second in the Heritage Cove series but can easily be read as a standalone story (I hadn’t read the first). Overall, it was a sweet festive read, ideal for snuggling up with on a winter evening.

Purchase link.

Follow the tour here: 

About the author:

Helen J Rolfe writes romantic fiction and contemporary women’s fiction and enjoys weaving stories about family, friendship, secrets, and community.

Location is a big part of the adventure in Helen’s books and she enjoys setting stories in different cities and countries where she thinks her readers might like to escape to.

Helen loves to hear from readers so please don’t hesitate to get in touch. She can be found via: website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram 

Many thanks to Helen J Rolfe for the great read, and thanks to Rachel Gilbey of Rachel’s Random Resources, for inviting me to take part in the tour and providing an advanced read copy.

My reviews are added to Amazon UK and Goodreads. x

Review of Emma Jackson’s One Kiss Before Christmas.

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The blurb:

Could it be the start of her happy ever after?

Ashleigh could use a little Christmas magic. She’s still living in Brighton with her Nan – who could give the Grinch lessons in how to be miserable – her acting career has been reduced to playing one of Santa’s elves, and not even the prospect of a friend’s winter wedding can cheer her up…

That is until Olivier, the gorgeous French chef, reappears in her life. Or more accurately, next door.

When they were teenagers, Olivier would spend every Christmas with his mother, who just happens to be Ash’s neighbour and owner of the best chocolate shop in England.

If anyone can bring a little sparkle back to Ash’s life, it’s Olivier. All she needs is one kiss before Christmas…

Purchase links: AmazonUK | Amazon.com |

My review:

This was a sweet, second chance romance story set in Brighton (not that far from where I live), and so I greatly enjoyed recognising places mentioned and visited. The lead characters, Ashleigh and Olivier, were both likeable, as were the supporting cast. I especially liked Romesh and his matchmaking. There is a lovely sprinkling of Christmas throughout as Ash and Olivier both learn to be the people they want to be. While the middle slowed a little in terms of the will they won’t they, I really liked the ending; it provided the kind of warmth you expect from a cosy Christmas film.

About the author:

Author of the Best Selling A MISTLETOE MIRACLE and contender for the Joan Hessayon Award 2020, Emma has been a devoted bookworm and secret-story-scribbler since she was 6 years old. When she’s not running around after her two daughters and trying to complete her current work-in-progress, Emma loves to read, bake, catch up on binge-watching TV programmes with her partner and plan lots of craft projects that will inevitably end up unfinished. Her latest romantic comedy, SUMMER IN THE CITY, was released in June, with a festive romance, ONE KISS BEFORE CHRISTMAS, was released on 2nd November 2020.

Emma also writes historical and fantasy fiction as Emma S Jackson. THE DEVIL’S BRIDE was published by DarkStroke in February 2020.

Discover more about Emma Jackson via: newsletter | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram

Huge thanks to Emma Jackson and Orion Dash for the advance read copy and special thanks to Rachel Gilbey of Rachel’s Random Resources for inviting me along to be a part of the blog tour. xx

Kitty Wilson joins my Christmas Countdown!

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Today, I am excited to welcome author of the wonderful Village School series, Kitty Wilson, to my Christmas countdown!

Welcome to my blog Kitty, I would love to know how your characters will be spending Christmas…

Alice and Dan both live in Penmenna and they LOVE Christmas. With Alice being a teaching assistant in the school and Dan the local vicar, this story sees the two of them working together to make the school’s Nativity play something truly special, even though at times it looks like the production may get a little out of hand.

Meanwhile, Alice is secretly trying to pull together a special choir to march down the aisle on Christmas Eve as a festive surprise for Dan whose church choir has dwindled down.

At the same time Dan’s Granny Annie has moved into the village for the Christmas period and has very firm ideas of exactly what she wants to happen for Christmas, and will stop at nothing to have her festive dreams come true.

Christmas is certainly a very special, and very busy, time of year for Penmenna.

It sounds great, and to tempt readers further here’s the blurb:

It’s the most wonderful time of the year in Penmenna…

Teaching assistant Alice has sworn off men, which is fine because with Christmas coming she’s super busy organising the school Nativity. This should be a blast with the help of close friend and village vicar, Dan – if she can ignore those more-than-just-a-friend feelings she’s developed for him…

Dan is happy to help Alice – his secret crush – but not only is his beloved Granny Annie about to be made homeless, the church choir has disintegrated and he’s battling some dark demons from his past.

With meddling grannies and PTA wars thrown in the mix, can Alice and Dan overcome their past hurts to move forward? Will they be spending Christmas together as friends… or something more?

A festive feel-good romance perfect for fans of Tilly Tennant and Holly Martin.

Buying links: Amazon | Kobo | iBooks | GooglePlay | The Village School series

With your characters having a fabulously festive time, I’d love to know how you will be spending this Christmas…

Christmas has always revolved around my children but with me now officially being an empty nester, and them both likely to be working on the day itself, things are going to be quite dramatically different this year.

In the past it has been a mad frenzy of baking and making in preparation. Lots of the things referenced in Christmas Wishes come straight from our Christmases, glitter footprints up the stairs from fireplace to stocking, bells as Santa’s sleigh crosses the skies, Christmas carol services, parties and gallons of mulled wine.

This year will probably be considerably quieter, I shall sneak off down the motorway at some point to celebrate with all my friends in Cornwall and cook a Christmas dinner for the children (which means I get two Christmases) when they are free but the day itself will be quite quiet; myself, my partner and my mum will eat far too much and lie around groaning as the dog expectantly jangles his lead. I’m looking forward to it.

I hope you enjoy your quiet Christmas, and I love the fact your own Christmases inspired the festive fun in Christmas Wishes. Before you go, Kitty, I have to ask you to answer five quick questions from my Christmas selection (when I say “have to”, I think everyone has realised by now, it is because I am nosey and loving these answers):

Naughty or nice? Naughty…every time!

Real or artificial Christmas tree? Real, I love the smell of a real tree and the excitement of choosing it.

Favourite Christmas song? No prizes for originality but it’s The Fairy Tale of New York, largely because it was the one the children and I would sing super loudly together every time it came on the radio. I also have a sneaking love for O little Town of Bethlehem.

Sprouts or no sprouts? Yes, yes, yes to sprouts. Cooked with pancetta and chicken stock make these a huge family favourite. Hmm, you’ve actually managed to make them sound appealing, hehe!

Best cracker prize? The little red fortune telling fish – despite it seemingly only having one setting (curling up) we all love this. I am with you on this!

Thank you so much for joining my Christmas countdown and I can’t wait to read Christmas Wishes! xx

About the author:

Kitty Wilson lived in Cornwall for twenty-five years having been dragged there, against her will, as a stroppy teen. She is now remarkably grateful to her parents for their foresight and wisdom – and that her own children aren’t as hideous. Recently she has moved to Bristol, but only for love and on the understanding that she and her partner will be returning to Cornwall to live very soon. She spends most of her time welded to the keyboard, dreaming of the beach or bombing back down the motorway for a quick visit! She has a penchant for very loud music, equally loud dresses and romantic heroines who speak their mind.

You can follow Kitty, and find out more about her work here: Facebook | Twitter 

Don’t miss author, Sharon Ibbotson, joining me on Monday 23rd December with her novel, Hanukkah at the Great Greenwich Ice Creamery! xx

Kirsty Ferry joins my Christmas Countdown!

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Today, I am delighted to welcome Choc Lit author, Kirsty Ferry, as she joins my Christmas countdown!

Welcome to my blog Kirsty, I would love to know how your characters will be spending Christmas…

They’ll be having an extended celebration – if Zac can reach Ivy in time! She’s in Glastonbury, just around about the Winter Solstice. So they might get involved in the celebrations there, by climbing the Tor and visiting the Chalice Well. Then, if, say Ivy heads up to the Isle of Skye where Zac lives, they might have a more traditional Island Christmas, with church, food and drink, the company of good friends, a pub or two and finish it all curled up in front of a roaring fire at Zac’s converted croft. It’ll all be revealed in the book!

OO, it sounds fabulously festive and to tempt readers further here’s the blurb:

How far would you go to be with the one you love at Christmas? How far would you go to be with the one you love at Christmas?

The Isle of Skye is a magical place, especially at Christmas, and there’s no place Zac Fallon would rather be. But whilst Zac has everything he needs on Skye, there’s still something missing – and that something is a somebody called Ivy McFarlane.

Ivy used to work with Zac but then spread her wings and moved to Glastonbury. He’s missed her ever since. Now it’s almost Christmas and Zac realises that the Ivy shaped hole in his life is too big to bear. So starts his festive mission to the mainland – but will he be back in time to spend Christmas in Skye? And, more importantly, will Ivy be with him?

Buying links: Amazon | Audio

With plenty going on for your characters in the lead up to Christmas, I’d love to know how you will be spending this festive season…

The celebrations will start on Christmas Eve, when we will go to the Family Crib Carol Service at our local church with a big group of friends. The kids have all grown up together and remain very close. Every year we get a photo of them in the same place outside the church. Then we will go home and watch Muppets Christmas Carol and order in a Chinese. Then drink prosecco and wait for Santa – putting out his prosecco, a mince pie and a carrot for Rudolph. Christmas Day we will visit my parents, then come home for lunch. The after that it’s pjs, chocolate, trashy tea, more prosecco, chocolate and relax!

I love the fact that Santa gets prosecco at your house; I must work on the fact that my children leave him milk 😉 Before you go, Kirsty, I’d love you to answer five quick questions from my Christmas selection:

Mince pie or Christmas pudding? Mince pie – I can wolf on down on the hoof, therefore I don’t have to invest any time in sitting down and eating properly.

Favourite Christmas film? Tough one. Either Elf or Muppets Christmas Carol.

Black forest hot chocolate or gingerbread latte? Gingerbread latte. If I had a black forest hot chocolate during the day I’d fall asleep!

First Quality Street flavour to disappear from your tub? Runny caramel, then chewy caramel then strawberry creams.

Who did you play in the school nativity? I can only remember being in one. I was an angel, complete with tinsel halo.

Thank you so much for joining my Christmas countdown and I wish you and your family a fabulous festive season! xx

About the author:

Kirsty Ferry is from the North East of England and won the English Heritage/Belsay Hall National Creative Writing competition in 2009 with the ghostly tale ‘Enchantment’.

Her timeslip novel, ‘Some Veil Did Fall’, a paranormal romance set in Whitby, was published by Choc Lit in Autumn 2014. This was followed by another Choc Lit timeslip, ‘The Girl in the Painting’ in February 2016. ‘The Girl in the Photograph’, published in March 2017, completes the Rossetti Mysteries series. The experience of signing ‘Some Veil Did Fall’ in a quirky bookshop in the midst of Goth Weekend in Whitby, dressed as a recently undead person was one of the highlights of her writing career so far!

Kirsty’s first timeslip novel ‘The Memory of Snow’, commended in the Northern Writers’ Awards, is set on Hadrian’s Wall, with the vampire tale ‘Refuge’ set on the Holy Island of Lindisfarne. She has also put together a collection of short stories, a non-fiction collection of articles and writes Gothic Fiction under the pen name Cathryn Ramsay.

Kirsty has had articles and short stories published in Your Cat, Peoples Friend, Ghost Voices, The Weekly News and It’s Fate, and her short stories appear in several anthologies. She was a judge in the Paws ‘n’ Claws ‘Wild and Free’ Children’s Story competition in 2011, 2013 and 2014, and graduated from Northumbria University in December 2016, having achieved a Masters with Distinction in Creative Writing.

You can follow Kirsty, and find out more about her work here: Facebook | Twitter | website | blog

Don’t miss author Kitty Wilson, joining my Christmas Countdown, on Thursday 19th December! xx

Angela Britnell joins my Christmas Countdown.

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Today, on my Christmas countdown, I am delighted to welcome author Angela Britnell whose novel, Christmas in Little Penhaven is definitely on my reading list this festive season.

Welcome to my blog Angela, I greatly enjoyed my last visit to Little Penhaven, in One Summer in Little Penhaven, and I would love to know how your characters will be celebrating Christmas…

It’s tricky to answer this without giving away too much of the story but ‘Christmas in Little Penhaven’ is set in a small Cornish village where most of the inhabitants celebrate in the time honoured English manner. But Samantha, my feisty American heroine from ‘One Summer in Little Penhaven’, wants to incorporate her own holiday traditions into her new life so there will be definite parallels with my own transatlantic celebrations.

Here’s the blurb, for a bit more of a hint 🙂

Have yourself a little Cornish Christmas …

Wannabe author Jane Solomon is expecting an uneventful Christmas in her Cornish village of Little Penhaven.

But then super fit American gym owner Hal Muir comes to town, and suddenly the holiday season looks set to be far more interesting. Hal is keen on embracing every British tradition on offer, from mince pies to Christmas pub quizzes – and perhaps some festive romance too …

Click to buy.

Please, tell us more about your own transatlantic celebrations and what you’ll be up to this Christmas:

By the time 25th December rolls around we’ll be getting ready to move house but plan to host the family anyway. At least two of our sons and their families will join us but the third could already have moved because they’re in the process of moving too. As far as the Christmas meal is concerned we always combine British and American favourites so as well as roast turkey we’ll have southern cornbread dressing (instead of stuffing), sweet potato casserole and an asparagus casserole plus roast potatoes and sprouts! Desserts will be a mixture too including southern boiled custard and snickerdoodle cookies alongside mince pies and Christmas pudding. We’ll have stockings for everyone old and young and I’ll definitely listen to the Queen’s speech.

Wow! Good luck with moving house at such a busy time of year. And I would love to know what snickerdoodle cookies are, they sound great. Before you go, please take a moment to answer five quick fire questions from my Christmas selection (I am loving everybody’s answers to these!):

Mince pie or Christmas pudding? I love both but if forced to choose it has to be mince pies – preferably homemade, warm and served with Cornish clotted cream.

Singing a Christmas carol or bopping along to a Christmas classic? I love hearing and singing traditional Christmas carols but seriously dislike canned seasonal music you hear played in shops for months leading up to the holidays. I particularly hate sappy Christmas songs – ‘I’ll be home for Christmas’ and ‘White Christmas’ make me gag! My own preferences have sneaked into the character of Jane in ‘Christmas in Little Penhaven.’

Worst Christmas gift? Definitely the sewing machine my husband gave me many years ago. To set the scene I hate sewing, I was suffering from the flu and everything was being captured on video to send to my parents in Cornwall. I had to plaster on a smile and pretend to be pleased while wanting to smash the offending object through the nearest window.

Multi-coloured decs or co-ordinated Christmas tree? IMHO colour-coordinated ones belong in hotel lobbies but everyone to their own! I love unwrapping our tree decorations every year because they bring back wonderful memories. Red hearts from Denmark, carved wooden decorations bought at German Christmas markets, exquisite hand painted glass balls from Italy and cross-stitch ornaments made by old friends no longer with us.

Sprouts or no sprouts? Sprouts – I love them now and my sons all enjoy them (the youngest would bizarrely eat them like sweets as a two year old!) but they’re definitely a taste I’ve acquired with age because as a child I hated them and thought them a plague on Christmas.

Oh goodness, I would be disappointed with a sewing machine too (well done on the fake smile), and I do love hearing a Christmas carol too, though I must confess to bopping along to all kinds of sappy Christmas songs from about October, hehe!

Thank you so much for joining my Christmas countdown and I wish you and your family a wonderful festive season! xx

About the author:

Angela Britnell grew up in Cornwall, England and returns frequently from her new home in Nashville, Tennessee to visit family and friends, drink tea and eat far too many Cornish pasties!

A lifelong love of reading turned into a passion for writing contemporary romance and her novels are usually set in the many places she’s visited or lived on her extensive travels. Thanks to over three decades of marriage to her wonderful American husband she’s a huge fan of transatlantic romance and always makes sure her characters get their own happy-ever-after.

Angela is a member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association, the Romance Writers of America and the Music City Romance Writers.

If you’d like to find out more of what Angela gets up to (Advance warning: this may include references to wine, chocolate, Poldark and the hunky Aidan Turner) check out: Facebook | website | Twitter | Instagram

Don’t miss author Jane Cable sharing a Christmas read and some festive fun, on my blog on Monday 9th December. xx