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Title: The Christmas Calendar Girls
Author: Samantha Tonge
Format reviewed: Ebook
Source: Netgalley
Publisher: Aria
Publication Date: 3rd October 2019
Rating: 5 Stars
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| Amazon UK |
This Christmas fall in love with the town of Chesterwood...
Christmas is meant to be a time of giving, so with Chesterwood food bank under risk of closure Fern knows just what to do to save it. She's going to get the town to create a living advent calendar.
Fern, and her best friends, call for help from the local community to bring this calendar to life. When Kit, the new man in town, offers his assistance Fern's heart can't help but skip a beat (or two).
As they grow ever closer, Fern must admit that Kit's breaking down the barriers she built after the death of her husband. But his past is holding him back and Fern doesn't know how to reach him. No matter how hard she tries.
In this town, Kit's not the only one with secrets. Domestic goddess Cara is behaving oddly, burning meals in the oven and clothes whilst ironing, and Davina's perfect children are causing trouble at school leaving her son, Jasper, desperately unhappy.
Can the Christmas Calendar Girls find a way to bring the community together in time to save the food bank, while still supporting their families and each other? Can Fern find love again with Kit?
This is a story about kindness and letting go of the past. It's about looking out for your neighbours and about making every day feel like Christmas.
Christmas is meant to be a time of giving, so with Chesterwood food bank under risk of closure Fern knows just what to do to save it. She's going to get the town to create a living advent calendar.
Fern, and her best friends, call for help from the local community to bring this calendar to life. When Kit, the new man in town, offers his assistance Fern's heart can't help but skip a beat (or two).
As they grow ever closer, Fern must admit that Kit's breaking down the barriers she built after the death of her husband. But his past is holding him back and Fern doesn't know how to reach him. No matter how hard she tries.
In this town, Kit's not the only one with secrets. Domestic goddess Cara is behaving oddly, burning meals in the oven and clothes whilst ironing, and Davina's perfect children are causing trouble at school leaving her son, Jasper, desperately unhappy.
Can the Christmas Calendar Girls find a way to bring the community together in time to save the food bank, while still supporting their families and each other? Can Fern find love again with Kit?
This is a story about kindness and letting go of the past. It's about looking out for your neighbours and about making every day feel like Christmas.
A fabulous festive story with feeling and grit.
What an inventive idea a living advent calendar is, and seeing how it all came together and the ideas that each day had for their turn were incredibly imaginative.
There is a lot of depth within this story, all three of the main characters are struggling with various things in their lives. Fern, Davina and Cara are great friends, and I enjoyed seeing how their stories would develop.
What really hooked me as the storyline that felt a bit like it came out of a Christmas film - where the friends are asking to community to rally around and save a much needed amenity, in a race against time to raise the funds, from the nasty scrooge like landlord.
It's an eye opening story in that it takes in just how important a local foodbank is, gives plenty of examples of people whose circumstances mean they need to use it, as well as a character who is starting to turn their life around, and is someone I was really drawn to.
There is plenty of Christmas Cheer, and its such an enjoyable story. All the children are great, and there are some incredibly touching moments.
I really loved this book, and it is so great to see Samantha Tonge go back to writing a more light hearted book, but still taking in some of the more serious topics that were dealt with in her darker books.
I'm trying to not give too much away, but safe to say I would definitely recommend reading The Christmas Calendar Girls. And I promise unlike The Calendar Girls film / musical there are no naked calendars... this is completely different!!
Thank you to Aria and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.
What an inventive idea a living advent calendar is, and seeing how it all came together and the ideas that each day had for their turn were incredibly imaginative.
There is a lot of depth within this story, all three of the main characters are struggling with various things in their lives. Fern, Davina and Cara are great friends, and I enjoyed seeing how their stories would develop.
What really hooked me as the storyline that felt a bit like it came out of a Christmas film - where the friends are asking to community to rally around and save a much needed amenity, in a race against time to raise the funds, from the nasty scrooge like landlord.
It's an eye opening story in that it takes in just how important a local foodbank is, gives plenty of examples of people whose circumstances mean they need to use it, as well as a character who is starting to turn their life around, and is someone I was really drawn to.
There is plenty of Christmas Cheer, and its such an enjoyable story. All the children are great, and there are some incredibly touching moments.
I really loved this book, and it is so great to see Samantha Tonge go back to writing a more light hearted book, but still taking in some of the more serious topics that were dealt with in her darker books.
I'm trying to not give too much away, but safe to say I would definitely recommend reading The Christmas Calendar Girls. And I promise unlike The Calendar Girls film / musical there are no naked calendars... this is completely different!!
Thank you to Aria and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.
This looks like a really cute book - I may have to check it out.
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