Amazon UK
Title: The Holiday Swap
Author: Zara Stoneley
Format reviewed: Ebook
Source: Author supplied review copy
Publisher: Harper Impulse
Publication Date: 2nd September 2016
Rating: 4.5 Stars
 |
| Amazon UK |
Two women, two very different lives – one perfect solution to a Christmas holiday fraught with potential pitfalls.
The Holiday Swap.
Florence Cortes has the perfect life – an apartment in the trendiest district of Barcelona, a job she loves and a boyfriend who’s whisking her away on a romantic break to Paris to no doubt propose.
Only, he’s planning something far different, and Flo soon realises her life isn’t so perfect after all.
Home loving Daisy Fischer is perfectly happy in her idyllic home in the Cheshire countryside, with an on-off boyfriend who might be slightly dull but is totally dependable. Until he issues an ultimatum, and Daisy suddenly realises that there might be a whole different world out there that she’s missing out on.
Have Flo and Daisy come up with the perfect solution to escape festive heartbreak?
Can a snowbound Christmas in Cheshire – with aristocratic, handsome Hugo as her neighbour, a house full of animals and a leaking roof – help Flo mend her broken heart, and remind her of what she really wants in life?
Can a sunny break in beautiful Barcelona – with the dishy but brooding Javier, a never ending supply of cava, and a sea view to die for – prove to Daisy that playing safe isn’t always the answer?
Love actually does seem to be all around this Christmas – and in the places Flo and Daisy least expect to find it, but where will they be for New Year?
The Holiday Swap.
Florence Cortes has the perfect life – an apartment in the trendiest district of Barcelona, a job she loves and a boyfriend who’s whisking her away on a romantic break to Paris to no doubt propose.
Only, he’s planning something far different, and Flo soon realises her life isn’t so perfect after all.
Home loving Daisy Fischer is perfectly happy in her idyllic home in the Cheshire countryside, with an on-off boyfriend who might be slightly dull but is totally dependable. Until he issues an ultimatum, and Daisy suddenly realises that there might be a whole different world out there that she’s missing out on.
Have Flo and Daisy come up with the perfect solution to escape festive heartbreak?
Can a snowbound Christmas in Cheshire – with aristocratic, handsome Hugo as her neighbour, a house full of animals and a leaking roof – help Flo mend her broken heart, and remind her of what she really wants in life?
Can a sunny break in beautiful Barcelona – with the dishy but brooding Javier, a never ending supply of cava, and a sea view to die for – prove to Daisy that playing safe isn’t always the answer?
Love actually does seem to be all around this Christmas – and in the places Flo and Daisy least expect to find it, but where will they be for New Year?
I love holidays, I love Zara Stoneley books, I love Spain and Tippermere and I love romance. If you are like me and love even some of those things, then I would suggest you may really enjoy The Holiday Swap. It's a story that feels like its loosely based on the festive film The Holiday, but with slightly less focus on Christmas, and more on the circumstances for the swap, and the two destinations.
For fans of Zara Stoneley, yes I mentioned Tippermere, we return there, but more to the outskirts, although there are brief cameos from those at Tipping House, which was a very pleasant surprise. There are also horses and dogs as you would perhaps expect, including the most adorable Irish Wolfhound.
The story is set between Barcelona and Tippermere. In Tippermere we encounter Daisy, who after she is proposed to, realises that she wants more than what her life would be if she was to say yes, and that she wants adventure. In Barcelona, we have Flo who walks in on her boyfriend cheating on her, and is eager to have any distraction from what was there shared life in Spain.
Flo, and Daisy, with the help from their other friend Anna decide to swap locations for December with the swap back to be on Christmas Eve. What neither are counting on is that there are some men that will distract them completely from their own troubles.
I loved seeing Javier show Daisy around the various parts of Barcelona and also enjoyed the talk of the tapas and wine tours which sounded tasty. I also loved seeing the sparring going on between Flo and Hugo, as she settles back into country life, including various amusing incidents, usually to do with fires or animals.
Both locations are described in details and I'm not sure I would be able to decide which I liked best, if pushed and yet both ladies have to make some fairly tricky decisions, as time runs out on their stays.
I found myself loving every second of the sun and the snow in this story, and thought with the exception of the 2 men they start the book with, that all the characters were likeable and incredibly realistic and I could really imagine them.
If you are looking for a book to ease you into the festive season then this is certainly a good start, the festiveness is not over the top, but is part of the story, due to the story being set in December. I didn't feel like I needed to set up my Christmas tree in August as a result of this book, but did find it a brilliant way to spend a Bank Holiday.
Thank you so much to Zara Stoneley for this review copy. This was my honest opinion.
For fans of Zara Stoneley, yes I mentioned Tippermere, we return there, but more to the outskirts, although there are brief cameos from those at Tipping House, which was a very pleasant surprise. There are also horses and dogs as you would perhaps expect, including the most adorable Irish Wolfhound.
The story is set between Barcelona and Tippermere. In Tippermere we encounter Daisy, who after she is proposed to, realises that she wants more than what her life would be if she was to say yes, and that she wants adventure. In Barcelona, we have Flo who walks in on her boyfriend cheating on her, and is eager to have any distraction from what was there shared life in Spain.
Flo, and Daisy, with the help from their other friend Anna decide to swap locations for December with the swap back to be on Christmas Eve. What neither are counting on is that there are some men that will distract them completely from their own troubles.
I loved seeing Javier show Daisy around the various parts of Barcelona and also enjoyed the talk of the tapas and wine tours which sounded tasty. I also loved seeing the sparring going on between Flo and Hugo, as she settles back into country life, including various amusing incidents, usually to do with fires or animals.
Both locations are described in details and I'm not sure I would be able to decide which I liked best, if pushed and yet both ladies have to make some fairly tricky decisions, as time runs out on their stays.
I found myself loving every second of the sun and the snow in this story, and thought with the exception of the 2 men they start the book with, that all the characters were likeable and incredibly realistic and I could really imagine them.
If you are looking for a book to ease you into the festive season then this is certainly a good start, the festiveness is not over the top, but is part of the story, due to the story being set in December. I didn't feel like I needed to set up my Christmas tree in August as a result of this book, but did find it a brilliant way to spend a Bank Holiday.
Thank you so much to Zara Stoneley for this review copy. This was my honest opinion.
No comments:
Post a Comment