Good Morning Everyone,

I hope that you’re all keeping well. I don’t think I really have much to report since my last post, not a lot has been going on. I was super excited to read this book though. It may be early but I am so ready for cosy, cold nights and this book seemed like a good a place to start as any.

Book 📖

Thank you to @SarahMorgan_ and @HQstories for this advanced copy of The Christmas Escape in return for an honest review. The Christmas Escape is due to be published on 21st October 2021 and you can a copy here.

Description 🔖

Christmas is Christy Sullivan’s favourite time of year and she’s planning the Christmas that dreams are made of. Christy, her husband Seb, their young daughter Holly and her best friend Alix are planned to spend the Christmas period in Lapland. However right before they’re due to travel, something shifts in the Sullivan’s marriage and Christy decides that some alone time is necessary to make sure her marriage doesn’t fall apart.

So Christy makes the difficult decision to ask Alix to continue on to Lapland with Holly, along with Seb’s good friend Zac. Christy and Seb plan to join them ready for Christmas Day. Alix isn’t crazy about the idea as her and Zac have their own problems from the past and the idea of being responsible for a four year old is daunting. But in support of her friend, she goes along with the plan.

The plan puts tension on the relationships within the group and as long held feelings and secrets start to spill out, it becomes clear that work is needed to rescue those relationships. Will the magical settings of Lapland be enough to heal relationships and even develop romances?

General Thoughts 🤔

I wish I could express in words what my face looked like when I finished this book. It was a kind of smug, content, happy smile. A bit like this emoji – ☺️. This was such a sweet book that gave me all of the feels but it wasn’t sweet to the point of being sickly. I liked that not everything was plain sailing and easy because that’s just not how life is; whether you’re in winter wonderland or not.

I also really liked that romantic relationships weren’t the main topic of this book. It made me think about the fact that friendships are just as important (if not more so) and that they deserve just as much attention. Christy and Alix reminded me that even the longest standing relationships need work and that just because circumstances change, the love shared within a friendship doesn’t have to.

Characters 👫👬👭

Oddly, I saw a lot of myself in both Alix and Christy. I say oddly because as I was reading this book, they seemed like complete opposites. Christy was the sensible, organised, home bird whilst Alix was the fiercely independent, spontaneous, career focused woman. I loved the friendship that they shared and I found it really frustrating that the two of them struggled to communicate with each other but this was so realistic. Friendships that have lasted that long are often the ones that we forget to nurture.

Writing Style ✍️

I loved the tone of this book. It was fun and light hearted but also had some points in there that made me think about my own friendships and relationships. It wasn’t just about the happy times and all sweet and rosey and I liked that it was a more realistic depiction of life.

The author did a great job of creating an enchanting feeling for this book and as soon as the characters arrived in Lapland I felt swept away with them. I love that Sarah Morgan was able to make me feel how I imagine they felt.

Conclusion & Scoring 🎖️

This was such a lovely read, I’m smiling about it still whilst writing this review. It has all of the ingredients for a fantastic romance whilst also giving a nod to the importance of friendship. If you like a cosy, winter read with a hot chocolate in front of the fire; then this book is for you.

😍😍😍😍😩