Reviewed by Emma Crowley
Thirty-year-old Belle Albany is feeling lonely this Christmas. Another whole year has passed and her life is… exactly the same as it was last December. She longs for true love and a little bit of winter magic – but she’s almost given up on finding it in the sleepy Scottish community where she lives…
When Belle crashes into elderly Edina on her cherry red bicycle, it’s not the meet-cute she’d been hoping for. But she immediately recognises the lost look in Edina’s watery-blue eyes and resolves to organise a Christmas to remember for them both – brimming with mince pies, mulled wine and lots of sparkle. Although Belle hadn’t counted on Edina’s home being a crumbling Scottish castle and she certainly hadn’t been expecting Edina’s handsome long-lost grandson Jack Hamilton-Kirk to turn up on the doorstep in the middle of a snow storm…
Jack is arrogant, rude and bossy and Belle is convinced he’s about to ruin the seasonal cheer she has worked hard to create. He’s basically the Grinch in human form, so why does her heart race every time they’re in the same room? They disagree on almost everything, from menu choices to music, and yet she starts to glimpse a softer side hidden behind Jack’s clipped words and brooding countenance.
As they hunt down costumes for the annual nativity show and save a donkey from a snowy disaster, Belle can’t ignore their growing attraction. But will a secret from Jack’s past come between them? Or will this finally be the year Belle falls in love?
Many thanks to Bookouture via NetGalley for my copy of Christmas in the Scottish Highlands to review and to Sharon for having my review on the blog.
I’ll admit I was a bit gutted when I saw Donna Ashcroft’s new book, Christmas in the Scottish Highlands, wasn’t set in the village of Lockton as her last few books have been. I have come to love this setting and its characters and wanted more from them. But as soon as I started this new amazing, feel-good story my disappointment was instantly alleviated because I I found the village of Christmas was near to Lockton and some of the previous characters were briefly mentioned but also this really did have all the traits that I have come to love from a Donna Ashcroft book and it truly is the most wonderful of festive reads. It’s definitely one of the best out there this year.
The author has a way of making you feel at home within the story right from page one. She has such a brilliant way of describing her settings and the wide range of characters introduced and of bringing winter and the festive scene to life from the pages. I loved every minute of this uplifting, sweet and cosy read which featured such warm, lovable characters.
Belle Albany has been living in the little village of Christmas in the Scottish Highlands for the last two years. She loves her job as a teacher in the local school and is now young free and single since her boyfriend emigrated to Australia. I connected with Belle straightaway being a teacher myself but there was also just something about her that made me see so many traits of myself within her. All the emotions she was feeling and her need to do all the things for all the people whilst forgetting about her own needs, well that sums me up perfectly. Don’t get me wrong I didn’t think the majority of the traits that Belle had were wrong or not useful, in fact the village of Christmas would have been lost without her considering all she does. I don’t know how she kept so many balls constantly juggling in the air whilst staying sane.
I found Belle to be an admirable person and someone who deserves respect and gratitude but at the same time she needn’t have spent so much time worrying about others and could have stepped back a bit and taken some time for herself. Will she be able to do this or is she just too used to taking on so much and therefore uncomfortable in asking for help for herself when needed? With Christmas just around the corner and lots going on in this magical little village, will the Christmas show turn into a disaster when the costumes can’t be found or will help from an unexpected source provided Belle with the support she hasn’t used for herself for some time but up until now she has refused to admit to?
One word that sums up Belle is reliable. She is the one, people turn to in times of a crisis and when she knocks Edina Lachlan over when her bike skids on ice and Edina suffers a fractured ankle, Belle knows she has to step in. It’s a way of assuaging her guilt over the incident but also she is killing two birds with one stone. Edina lives alone in Evergreen Castle and has become quite isolated from the village over the last several years. Belle volunteers to move in with her and help her until she is recovered. In doing so, she can let a family in need of a home stay in her own cottage until they find something. She has no close relatives nearby as her father works in Kenya and has never really returned to visit and the Aunt she shared the cottage with has passed away. This is just a prime example of the caring, kind and considerate nature that Belle has. She never stops and rests. She always has a multitude of things on her to do list and she is always thinking of others. How can she reduce some stress in people's lives? How can she help out with Christmas preparations in the village? Yet at the same time you can sense she takes on too much but I would say similar to myself she is reluctant and uncomfortable to ask for extra help to share the load. Partly because she gets a good feeling when she is doing good deeds but also sometimes don’t you just feel like you would do a good job of getting something if you did it yourself and you know it is done to perfection.
Edina was a fabulous character with a wealth of world experience and I felt a real connection between herself and Belle. Edina has only recently connected with her grandson Jack who is estranged from his mother Tara. This strand of the story was sensitively and expertly developed and you just knew that Belle was itching to get her hands on Jack’s problems and try and help him solve them. But also she did see him in a bad light for quite some time wondering if had ulterior motives and wanted Evergreen Castle to be sold as Edina is getting on and finding it difficult to manage. Therefore she would end up in a retirement home which Belle knows she really doesn’t want that. Jack himself had such a suspicious nature. He avoids intimacy and finds it to difficult to trust and he has felt alone in the world and cast adrift since his Dad died. Is now the time to reconnect with his mother or has his head been filled with too many things of an unsavoury nature to make him want to go back to his roots and become a family once more?
Jack believes that no one does anything for nothing that surely Belle has something sinister up her sleeve? I hated the fact that he couldn’t see how genuine Belle and Tavish actually were. He really needed to revaluate his whole outlook on life. Jack is so stubborn and needs to allow people to talk and he should listen and you question given his nature will he ever allow this to happen? I loved the gradually thawing between himself and Belle and that Jack came at first with one goal in mind but that village and its community spirit and of course Belle at the centre of it all really wanted to show him that keeping people at arms length and protecting your heart may not always be the right thing to do.
Perhaps for me the element of the story that really brought a smile to my face and made me all excited and eager for Christmas was when the children from Belle’s class came to the castle to write their Christmas lists. This was the inspiration for a big part of the overall book. Belle sees that Edina has written her own list with some way out there requests but also some more heartfelt things that she wishes to come true. Once again Belle’s instincts to help out are set in motion and she is determined that Edina’s list will be fulfilled and in doing so this allows for lots of little lovely things to happen in the run up to Christmas both for Edina and for the village as a whole. There is a more pressing issue on Edina’s list that Belle is not sure that it can be fulfilled but she will always try her best to do so. Belle always wants to do the right thing for the right reason but perhaps it might not always bring the happiness that one would expect? Will her plans prove fruitful and will she also reveal why she has spent so long doing so much?
Christmas in the Scottish Highlands, is just a fabulous book from start to finish and I desperately hope that these characters will feature in future books by Donna Ashcroft. It’s packed full of all things festive to get you in the mood for the big day. Not to mention it’s infused with such warmth, humour and genuine human understanding. Quite simply, it was a great book and I am sad it’s over and do make sure to put it on your Christmas wishlist this year.
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