A Merry Little Christmas by Julia Williams
Cat Tinsall, Pippa Holliday and Marianne North all live in the lovely village of Hope Christmas and have formed very close and supportive friendships over the four years they have known each other. The story starts with Christmas just over and follows the three friends through the entire year leading up to the next Christmas. It’s not going to be an easy year for any of them though and they’re definitely going to need each other’s help.
| A Merry Little Christmas by Julia Williams | |
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| Category: Women's Fiction | |
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Reviewer: Jo Heffer
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| Summary: Hope Christmas sounds like the sort of village where Christmas should be really magical and Cat, Pippa and Marianne are all hoping it will be especially after the year they have all had. Each woman has faced her own trials and tribulations but with the support and friendship they have offered each other, they have managed to get through the year. Maybe Christmas is the time to put what has happened in perspective and start looking to the future. | |
| Buy? Yes | Borrow? Yes |
| Pages: 355 | Date: October 2012 |
| Publisher: Avon | |
| ISBN: 9781847560896 | |
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Cat is having to deal with her sick mother who suffers from Alzheimer’s as well as her daughter, Mel, who seems to have turned into the teenager from hell. Pippa’s daughter Lucy has cystic fibrosis and, although Pippa loves her to bits, she doesn’t think she would cope if it were not for the fortnightly respite care that Lucy receives. However, with the council threatening to take away the care, Pippa feels desperate. Things are not helped when Pippa’s husband, Dan, suffers a serious accident and her world begins to crumble. Marianne’s life is also not easy trying to juggle a part time teaching job with bringing up her baby twins. Things are not helped when husband Gabriel’s ex wife starts interfering over the way they are bringing up Marianne’s stepson Steven.
All their stories weave together so well making this a most enjoyable book. I was caught up in all the different stories from start to finish which at times made me laugh and, at other times, made me cry. It is a wonderfully moving story with such warm characters and potentially heartbreaking stories. I loved the resilience of the three women though and really enjoyed seeing the strength and the power of their friendship.
This is actually Julia Williams’ second book about these three women. She first introduced them in her book ‘Last Christmas’ which took place four years earlier when they first met. You don’t have to have read the first book in order to enjoy this one though as this works completely as a standalone story. However, I might recommend that you read ‘Last Christmas’ first purely because I think that you will enjoy this one so much, you’ll want to read the first one too and therefore you would want to read them in order.
This is a perfect book for Christmas or for any other time in the year too.
If you like the sound of this, why not take a look at Last Christmas, also by Julia Williams.
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You can read more book reviews or buy A Merry Little Christmas by Julia Williams at Amazon.com.
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