Book Review - The Best Christmas Ever by Sarah Morgan

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Title: The Best Christmas Ever

Author: Sarah Morgan

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Netgalley

Publisher: HQ

Publication Date: 22nd October 2026

Rating: 5 Stars

This year, Christmas isn’t going to plan … and that might be the best gift of all.

Mabel has no intention of celebrating Christmas. Living alone in her beautiful old house in the woods, she’s happier keeping the world at a distance.

Brooke has planned every detail of a magical family Christmas at her parents’ house. But when a fierce snowstorm forces her, her husband and their two daughters to take shelter in Mabel’s home, all her careful plans are turned upside down.

Also stranded are Izzy and Jason, two colleagues with unfinished business and undeniable chemistry. Izzy is hiding a lonely heart behind a bright smile. And Jason may be the one man capable of breaking through her walls.

Suddenly, Mabel finds herself hosting the last thing she wanted: a full house for Christmas. Then the chaos, laughter and warmth begin to work their quiet magic. As the snow falls and the fire crackles, this snowbound group discover that family can be found in the most surprising places.

Because sometimes the Christmas you never planned is the one that changes everything …

When you open the pages of a Sarah Morgan Christmas book, you know you are in safe hands and are about to be treated to an exceptional story. 

And thankfully the author is able to keep up her rate of Christmas hit books with me, with this one, as I adored this from the very first few pages. 

It's all about people coming together during a horrific snow storm, and spending Christmas together.  It's about family and about trying to heal from past mistakes or experiences.  And thanks to Elsie and Poppy, you get the childish joy of a spontaneous Christmas too. 

Mabel was settling in to endure another Christmas all alone, dwelling on past hurts, and missing Walter who died eight years before hand. She lives a fairly reclusive life and almost didn't answer the door during the storm, but turns out that is the best thing she could have done - not just because otherwise there would have been people frozen on her doorstep. 

Brooke and her family were meant to be visiting her parents, and so determined not to let them down, they decide to travel against the weather warning advice.  They get so far and then they manage to crash, and just about get themselves to the nearest (only) house they can in the hopes of shelter and to wait out the storm. 

While Izzy and Jason were on their way back from a work appointment, when the car skids and basically ends up in the snow drift as Brooke's car a few hours later. 

Mabel may be a recluse with good reason, but she does accept that there will be extra people for Christmas, as the weather forecast is shocking and it really does change her life.  But equally thanks to her experiences which she shares as she gets to know her unexpected guests, she is able to really help Brooke and Izzy especially. 

I adored the two children, they are  a lot of fun and not too bothered about the change in circumstances.  They believe Mabel might be the witch from their favourite series of books, and one of the cats really takes a liking to Elsie too.  Elsie at 8 years old is rather inquisitive and I loved how perceptive she is.  

Over the course of a few days they all are able to for various reasons declare that this might be their best eve Christmas, and it's certainly one that has a lasting effect on all of them.   I loved seeing what they got up to, especially as Mabel reveals the truth about who she really is.  

Equally my heart broke a bit at some of their back stories.  

This is heartwarming, emotional, joyous, very snowy in a gorgeous house that looks like it came from a fairy tale and multiple generations of people having an unexpected way of celebrating Christmas. 

An absolute pleasure to read, and another hit from one of my favourite authors. 

Thank you to HQ and Netgalley for this copy which i have reviewed honestly and voluntarily. 

Book Review - The Christmas Clause by Sharon Ibbotson

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Title: The Christmas Clause

Author: Sharon Ibbotson

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Netgalley

Publisher: Choc Lit

Publication Date: 20th October 2026

Rating: 5 Stars

Warning: This is not your average Christmas romance! 🎅🎄❄

Mrs Claus wants a divorce.

And she's hired the one lawyer who doesn't believe in Christmas.

Somer Henshaw believes in facts. Winning arguments. And never, ever losing her head.

Then a woman in vintage clothing sweeps into her London office and files for divorce — from Santa Claus.

Now Somer is in an ice palace at the top of the world, arguing the most impossible case in legal history. She’s facing judgemental elves. A reindeer custody claim. A prenup drafted by Abraham Lincoln. North Pole jurisdiction issues no court has ever ruled on. And tinsel . . . So much tinsel!

But the real problem is Reuben Winter.

Santa’s lawyer. Ruthless. Insufferable. Built like something the North Pole ordered specially for under her tree. And undefeated across a negotiating table.

Neither will back down.

But every argument leaves them standing a little closer. Every late-night discussion gets a little too heated. And somewhere between the candy-cane negotiation and the pumpkin-spiced hot chocolate scandal, they stop pretending the tension is about the case at all.

Somer Henshaw has never lost a case.

This Christmas, she might just lose her heart.

Wickedly funny and deliciously steamy. The Hating Game meets Miracle on 34th Street. A scorching, laugh-out-loud festive romcom for readers who like their Christmas with less cocoa and a lot more heat. Perfect for fans of Meghan Quinn, Hannah Grace, C.R. Jane, Alina Jacobs, Tessa Bailey, Lyra Parish and Ali Hazelwood

Without a shadow of doubt in my mind, this is a book that needs to become a film.  I could see it all so clearly in my minds eye, and it had cinematic qualities to it. I would happily watch this. 

So long as you believe in Santa and Christmas magic, you will absolutely adore this book, and thankfully I'm positive Santa is real, so I was happy to lean into this very easily. 

Because Mrs Claus is determined to divorce Father Christmas and would like to be released from her pre-nup and also to regain her mortality too.   She hires Somer to be her divorce lawyer, whereas Santa uses his pet lawyer, the fierce Reuben. 

I absolutely loved Somer and Reuben verbally sparring with each other, while trying to deal with an impossible case, as they both want to win, but they kind of don't want to risk destroying Christmas for the world if they can help it. 

And when they decide they need to locate something at the North Pole, it becomes magical. I loved the descriptions of Santa's ice palace, as well as meeting the elves. In fact I'm impressed at just how many things elves are taking credit for. 

And there is clear chemistry between our battling lawyers, which some incredibly steamy scenes, which I was totally there for! 

This is a festive romance that is so much more than a festive romance, it's just so much fun, and I couldn't get enough of it.  I would love a sequel, or another book set at the North Pole, as I am not remotely ready to leave. 

An utterly imaginative story from Sharon Ibbotson, that is a completely fabulous festive escape.  

Thank you to Choc Lit and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily. 

Book Review - Always A Silver Lining by Jessica Redland

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Title: Always A Silver Lining

Author: Jessica Redland

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Netgalley

Publisher: Boldwood Books

Publication Date: 19th October 2026

Rating: 5 Stars

'It’s all about reframing things. No regrets. Just silver linings.'

Juliet believes in love stories. As a wedding planner, she’s helped create more than five hundred perfect days for other people, though her own path to happy-ever-after has been far from easy. Her first love always taught Juliet to look for the silver linings in life, and when she unexpectedly meets Christian Wynterson, it feels as though one might finally be shining through.

But not everyone is ready to accept Juliet and Christian’s new beginning. Family tensions, buried secrets and old wounds threaten to overshadow what should be a joyful new chapter.

Juliet has spent years believing in happy endings for everyone else. But can the people she and Christian love see that their relationship isn’t just a silver lining – it could be the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow?

I'm absolutely loving the Escape to the Lakes series, and this is another totally brilliant addition to it. 

I literally couldn't read it fast enough, and loved Juliet's philosophy of looking for the silver lining in everything. 

I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know Christian a lot better too, with his rather complicated family tree, that will be more familiar if you have read the previous books, but this does stand alone. 

Juliet has never had her own wedding despite being engaged twice, with her first love still defining her life all these years later, and it's clear she still loves him.  But she also realise it might be time to move on, and her meeting Christian starts to awaken things within her. 

I really enjoyed her Wine Wednesdays with her friends, some of which fans of the series will already know.  And she is hiding a massive secret from everyone that had me feeling really emotional when it was revealed. 

Once again Jessica Redland has written a book filled with love, romance, emotion and it all balances out into a really feel good and uplifting tale.   Another triumph for this author. 

Thank you to Boldwood Books and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

Book Review - Christmas at Honeycombe Bay by Lilac Mills

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Title: Christmas at Honeycombe Bay

Author: Lilac Mills

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Netgalley

Publisher: Aria

Publication Date: 29th September 2026

Rating: 5 Stars

An uplifting, heartwarming seasonal romance set in a quintessential seaside village in Devon, perfect for fans of Holly Martin and Sarah Morgan.

Two Scrooges come together for a festive-free holiday season by the sea and find all their anti-Christmas plans going up in smoke when they decide to play Santa for a single mom and her child.

Eloise Garrett thinks Christmas is overpriced, overhyped, and overrated, and without any family to share it with, she feels sad, lonely and isolated. The “season for giving” is just a constant reminder that she's single, sixty(ish), and staring down retirement. But not this Christmas. Determined to avoid the most magical time of the year, Eloise decides to spend Christmas in Honeycombe Bay. Surely a seaside village in the middle of winter won't be too festive?

Ever since his wife passed away, Bartholomew Knott hasn't felt up to welcoming visitors to his guest house. With the prospect of another long, lonely winter, and having become more Scrooge than Santa over the years, Bart is dreading Christmas. However, when he's contacted by someone who dislikes decking the halls just as much as he does, Bart has the brilliant idea of opening the guest house to people who want to escape all things festive.

Christmas isn't easy to ignore, though, not even in off-season Honeycombe Bay. So when fate forces Bart to give shelter to a single mother and child whose holiday has been devastated by a terrible fire, Eloise finds herself playing Mrs. Claus to Bart's Santa-dragging the house's other guest, a heartbroken teacher looking for a break during the holidays, into the action as well. But holiday cheer isn't the only thing sparking under the mistletoe. Will the guests at Honeycombe Bay realize that, sometimes, the best way to escape Christmas is to let it into your heart?

Oh this was so totally and utterly heartwarming, and made so feel rather festive too.  I feel this at it's heart really does show the true meaning of Christmas, and it's not the presents, lights etc.. but it's how you can make other people's lives a bit better for the festive period at least. 

Eloise is determined to avoid Christmas this year, she is recently unemployed and was never a big fan of the season anyway, plus her best friend is in a new relationship and she doesn't want to intrude. so will be alone. 

Impulsively she decides to book into a B&B in Honeycombe Bay, a place she has some fond memories of, and assumes that it will be quiet and not full on xmassy, given it's out of season.  Something Bart the owner agrees with.  Bart hasn't opened the B&B since his wife passed over a year ago, but needs the money, so not only agrees to Eloise but promptly decides to offer it as a non Christmas break to others. 

I enjoyed getting to know Eloise, Bart and the other guest Mitch, even though it turns out Honeycombe Bay was putting on a week of Christmas activities.  But it's when Bart takes in a young mum and child after they have no where else to go, that he decides the little boy needs to have good Christmas memories, even if the other guests leave. 

But instead they all agree and from then there is a real sense of found family between them all, and I'd say the second half of the book with all the characters in place is just a sheer pleasure to read.  

It really gave me all the festive feels, and I loved all the various Christmas activities that were undertaken, including the local panto, 

There are also some fledgling slow burn romances, if only the characters can actually learn to communicate and not just guess what the others are thinking, which was a bit frustrating but true to life. 

This is another wonderful book from Lilac Mills, and it left me feeling warm and fuzzy. 

Thank you to Aria and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily. 

Book Review - The Candy Apple Cafe by Donna Ashcroft

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Amazon UK

Title: The Candy Apple Cafe

Author: Donna Ashcroft

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Netgalley

Publisher: Bookouture

Publication Date: 25th August 2026

Rating: 5 Stars

A fun-loving baking queen with a heart of gold. Her gruff neighbour. A tiny Scottish town. Is this a recipe for love – or disaster? This is the utterly unputdownable spicy autumn romance you’ve been waiting for!

Seasonal spice + hot Scotsman = 🧡 🔥🌶️

When Izzi pulls up in her battered old car outside the Candy Apple Café, she takes a deep breath and channels her trademark optimism. She’s run away to Honey Haven to escape the mess her life is in right now. Only, she hasn’t bargained on a handsome, broad-shouldered Scotsman appearing out of nowhere and grilling her on why she’s parked there… it turns out the baking work she has lined up is in his gran’s café and he’s her new landlord...

Cameron is immediately rubbed up the wrong way by Izzi’s upbeat vibes and yet, his eyes keep meeting hers across his gran’s cake display at the Candy Apple Café. Cameron’s heart beats a little faster every time she looks up at him through those long, dark lashes and there are only so many times Izzi can pretend she hasn’t noticed the way he towers over her, his dark brooding eyes failing to avoid hers…

Then Izzi and Cameron find themselves thrown together to organise the town’s autumn festival. Planning a spectacular cinnamon-scented event as a surprise for his gran, they find themselves pressed up against each other as they work to turn a crumbling castle into the perfect haunted house filled with sweet treats…

But he’s closed off his heart. And she’s only meant to be in town for a few weeks.

Will the heat between grumpy Cameron and sunny Izzi dial up a notch? Or will their relationship turn as chilly as the autumn air in Honey Haven?

Snuggle up with a steamy hot drink and bed down with this spicy romance, filled with grumpy sunshine vibes and a dreamy HEA. Perfect for fans of Laurie Gilmore, Harper Graham, and Gilmore Girls!

It had been a long while since I last read a book by Donna Ashcroft but her seasonal releases this year have really caught my eye. And based on this first book in the new Honey Haven series, I'm really glad they have done. 

Izzi has taken a job at the Candy Apple Cafe in part because she needed a job, but specifically in Honey Haven, as she has an ulterior motive for ch0osing this Scottish town.  Cameron is very suspicious of her, but has been coerced into letting her stay in his hut, and sharing his kitchen and bathroom.  He is determined to protect Maud from any further issues, and is convinced Izzi will cause them. 

But there is a clear attraction between them, and although Izzi isn't being entirely truthful, it's not through choice, and it's not in a nefarious way. 

Izzi is though a master baker, and omg some of what she was baking had my mouth totally watering. She's also a really thoughtful person and is determined to help give Maud a Halloween to remember, with the help of the town.  

I loved seeing how they were trying to overcome things in their pasts, and was curious to see if they would find a way to be together.  I am really enjoying the setting of Honey Haven too and am already looking forward to the next book. 

Thank you to Bookouture and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily. 

Book Review - I'll Be Home for Christmas by Helen Rolfe

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Title: I'll Be Home For Christmas

Author: Helen Rolfe

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Netgalley

Publisher: Boldwood Books

Publication Date: 21st August 2026

Rating: 5 Stars

Chrissie used to love Christmas in her Swiss childhood home… until she lost her husband eight years ago. Add in a prolonged conflict with her sister Meg, and the holidays in the snowy Alps are just too hard to face. Now she’s in quiet Oxfordshire, focused on her daughter Sarah’s wedding.

But when Sarah runs away to her grandparents’ chalet just weeks before the big day, Chrissie heads to the mountains to help – and finds her estranged sister Meg there too. Usually in London at the helm of a thriving chocolate shop, Meg’s hiding the troubles of a tough year.

Trapped by snow in Winterbruck, the sisters must face old tensions, support Chrissie's daughter, and discover that family –and a little chocolate – can make even the coldest Christmas cosy.

Well this is definitely a book that will make you crave Chocolate and possibly make you want to jump on a plane to Switzerland too. 

I loved the town of Winterbruck, it's an absolutely stunning setting, for what was a really cosy and heart warming festive story. 

I really enjoyed getting to know Meg, Sarah and Chrissie. Meg and Chrissie are estranged sisters after a public bust up years ago.  While Sarah is Chrissie's adult daughter and who doesn't know her auntie Meg. 

Sarah has decided to visit her grandparents in Winterbruck to try to clear her head, ahead of her upcoming nuptials.  Unbeknownst to her Meg has also decided to go home for Christmas this year, although she is hiding the reasoning. 

It is great seeing Meg and Sarah start to get to know each other, although they are both a bit scared of what Chrissie will say.  

I especially loved learning Meg's back story, and learning just how she became a chocolatier.  Between that and her mum Astrid being an excellent cook,  this is definitely a book that will have your stomach rumbling. 

Thankfully Christmas in the snow is a season for magic and miracles to happen, and it certainly feels apt for this fractured family. 

I just really loved every second of this book, and wished I could jump through the pages to visit, mainly so I could sample the chocolate! 

Thank you Boldwood Books and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily. 

Book Review - The Ski Lodge by Nina Manning

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Title: The Ski Lodge

Author: Nina Manning

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Netgalley

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton

Publication Date: 8th January 2026

Rating: 4 Stars

A perfect escape. A secret worth dying for.

After all flights are grounded, Jolie finds herself stranded at a luxurious ski resort with her two children. Having checked out of her hotel, she desperately posts a message on social media asking for a place to stay.

When Rona offers an isolated ski lodge higher up the mountain, Jolie can't refuse.

But Jolie's hiding something: she's been to this resort before, and the past won't let her go. And as the whirling snowfall takes a turn for the worse, it becomes clear Rona has ulterior motives for letting Jolie stay in the chalet with her family.

What is each woman hiding? And will the truth be deadly?

Don't miss this spine-tingling thriller with twists you won't see coming by bestselling author Nina Manning, perfect for fans of Ruth Ware and Sarah Goodwin!

This is the first book I've read by Nina Manning and based on this it almost certainly won't be the last.  I was enthralled with this story, and really wasn't sure how it would turn out. 

i love exotic holiday thrillers and ones set in the Spanish Alps when you know the weather could play a big part and make it rather claustrophobic always appeal to me. 

Jolie worked at the ski resort when she was younger, but things went wrong, and she never told a soul what really happened to cause her to run.  Years later her husband has flown the family out to the resort, oblivious to Jolie's past connection. 

Jolie is not a confident woman, although she is a loving mother to her two children.  Then Idris goes back to London to sort out work, Jolie is left in resort and on the day they are due to leave and when her nerves are already shot - all flights are grounded and mass chaos reigns. 

Without many options she accepts Rona's offer of help, and Rona drives them up to a very remote lodge up a mountain.  

As the weather worsens, we learn about Jolie and Rona's shared past, and it's really hard to know who to trust.  

This was so good to read - I wasn't necessarily keen on any of the main characters, but they are written in such a way they felt very real and they had good bits to them, But I cared enough to be determined to find out just what was going to happen.  

I loved the descriptions of the setting, and the snow, and the way the mountains made Jolie feel.  So atmospheric, 

I thoroughly enjoyed this and look forward to seeing what the author will right next. 

Thank you to Hodder & Stoughton and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed and honestly and voluntarily. 

Book Review - A Perfect Summer in Starshine Cove by Debbie Johnson

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Title: A Perfect Summer in Starshine Cove

Author: Debbie Johnson

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Netgalley

Publisher: Storm Publishing

Publication Date: 10th June 2026

Rating: 5 Stars

The perfect feel-good summer read from the million-copy bestselling author. Get ready to laugh, cry, and fall head over heels in love with Starshine Cove! ❤️

Suzie has always been the wild one. While her siblings settled happily into village life, she roamed the world – chasing adventures, collecting stories and running from that horrible day, sixteen years ago. But when it's finally time to return to the tiny Dorset village of Starshine Cove, Suzie must face everything – and everyone – she left behind.

There's her dad George, still the beloved heart of the village at almost ninety. Her sister-in-law Connie, who runs the irresistible Cove Café, where the scent of sugar and vanilla drifts on the sea breeze and the red velvet cake is to die for. And then there's Guy, a brooding stranger with secrets of his own who arrives in the village on the very same day…

As the summer unfolds and old wounds begin to heal, Suzie discovers that sometimes the bravest adventure isn't running away – it's finally coming home.

From the beloved bestselling author of the Comfort Food Café series comes an unforgettable story of love, loss, and discovering that home is the place that never let you go.

This is a book that felt a lot like coming home, not just for Suzie our main character, but also for me as a reader as I'm loving Starshine Cove so much. 

I can't believe this is the fifth book in this series already, and it was wonderful to spend time with George's remaining child, and suring up in my mind even further all of the various family connections in the cove. 

We also meet newcomer Guy who is similar in a lot of ways to Suzie and they both are feeling a pull towards Starshine and trying to leave their wanderlust behind them.

I loved seeing how their stories progressed over the course of this book in addition to catching up with all my old friends from the previous books. 

There is something just so charming about this setting and I loved every minute of this book. 

Another winner for me from Debbie Johnson.  

Thank you to Storm Publishing and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily. 

Book Review - Glad You Came by Chloe Ford

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Title: Glad You Came

Author: Chloe Ford

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Netgalley

Publisher: Aria

Publication Date: 16th July 2026

Rating: 5 Stars

She's a runaway bride. He's a runaway popstar.

After calling off her wedding at the very last minute, Sara does what any self-respecting woman would do: she goes on her honeymoon alone.

But the fifteen-day luxury cruise around the Mediterranean implodes almost immediately when Sara misses the ship at its second stop. Stranded, sunburnt, and spectacularly unprepared, she's bracing for disaster… until she realises she's not alone.

Gus – member of the world-famous pop sensation Just4Summer – has also been left behind. Desperate to avoid the headlines and savour one rare taste of anonymity, he teams up with Sara to chase the cruise across the Adriatic.

Cue dodgy buses, missed connections, the storm of the century, and far too much proximity. As they stumble from city to city, the chemistry between them becomes impossible to ignore. But when real life comes calling, Sara must decide: is this just a summer romance… or the love story she never saw coming?

This is a book that feature's every cruise fanatic's worst nightmare - missing the ship. 

And not only once, but a series of missed connections,  while Sara has a phone that runs out of charge too fast, and very little money on her.  And Gus who she appears to be stranded with has a working phone, but even less access to anything useful. 

But that is the exact situation they find themselves in, which leads to a wonderful adventure as they attempt to catch up with the luxury yacht cruise they are on. 

Gus being a world famous pop star who doesn't want to be recognised adds a bit of extra difficulty to this while Sara ran away from her wedding not too long ago and this was meant to be her honeymoon trip.

So gotta love some close proximity and very mild peril, while also seeing how the pair start to have a growing fondness for each other. 

I love travel in all forms so I was hooked on seeing where and what they would try next, and seeing just how they would cope. 

I whizzed through this story loving every moment of it.  I'm really enjoying what I've read so far from this author and look forward to reading the rest of this series. 

Thank you to Aria and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

Book Review - F##k It, It’s Christmas by Holly Atwood

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Title: F##k It, It’s Christmas

Author: Holly Atwood

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Netgalley

Publisher: Pan

Publication Date: 8th October 2026

Rating: 5 Stars

❄️Is your Christmas to-do list more like a never-ending roll-call of obligations?

🎄Are your fairy lights more tangled than your tights drawer?

🍷And are your homemade mince pies more pie in the sky than reality?

Join the club.

Meet Laurie: a working mother of two who is at the end of her tinsel. All she really wants for Christmas is five minutes of peace (and another Bailey’s in her coffee).

With a disastrously chaotic family Christmas brewing, Laurie has a choice to make. Should she double down on her perfectly manufactured festive cheer? Or burn the Pinterest board and embrace her imperfections so that she can have some fun too?

If you’ve spent more Christmases surviving than thriving, it’s time to join Laurie in ditching the colour-coded spreadsheets, letting the kids (and adults) stay in their pyjamas until 3 p.m. and finally raising a toast to say, ‘F##k it, it’s Christmas’.

A laugh-out-loud novel for fans of Amandaland, The F##k It List and Why Mummy Drinks.

From start to finish this had me giggling, and nodding and empathising and generally loving every single moment of this.

I love books featuring rather hectic mums that think they need to be perfect when instead they are face with the messy reality of life, and in this instance Christmas! 

And Laurie is the master of the motherly internal rant. They were brilliant, and I can imagine women of all ages especially if you have kids, or extended family to stay at Christmas, nodding in total and utter recognition of just about everything Laurie thinks. 

She is wonderful and to say for all of her intentions of planning and having a properly organised Christmas, that nothing goes according to the plan she never had time to prepare.  She is just barely surviving, and her husband doesn't seem to be much help at all. 

Her kids are fun, although like just about any book of this trope, there were a couple of inevitable scenes with far too many bodily fluids for my liking.  And they always seem to occur while I'm reading while eating!! 

I feel like Laurie could be me if I had ever had kids. I loved how her attitude changes over the course of this book, especially towards the big day itself but also towards "Perfect Clara" her sister in law.   

This is easily one of the best books I've read for a while, and should be a must read on festive TBRs for this year.  

Thank you to Pan and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.