27 December 2014

Book Review: Snow Angels, Secrets and Christmas Cake by Sue Watson

"For Tamsin Angel, Christmas is always the biggest and best… chic parties and a little showbiz sparkle are a must. This year though, things aren’t going quite as planned…

With bailiffs suddenly at the door and her husband nowhere to be found, it looks like Christmas just got downsized. Moving into her sister’s one-bedroom flat, she wonders whether things will ever be the same again.

After losing her husband on Christmas Eve, Sam Angel has rebuilt her life around her son Jacob and her new business – The White Angel Bakery. She’s also found herself a very handsome, loving boyfriend, but is struggling to let go of the past.

Thrown together with a sprinkle of Christmas magic, Sam and Tamsin might just learn a little more about each other – and themselves. But when disaster strikes at the bakery, will they be able to save the day in time for Christmas?"


Rating:





Festive Feeling Rating:





I recently read Sue Watson's eBook Love, Lies and Lemon Cake, and I absolutely loved that book. Therefore, when I was offered the chance to review her latest festive offering, I was over the moon and had seriously high expectations for the book. The cover is utterly gorgeous, a bright Christmas red and it just looked like a book I would thoroughly enjoy. Luckily for me, Sue certainly hasn't disappointed and this eBook was one of my favourite Christmas books I have read all year! It's one you should definitely download and read now, here's why!

Christmas hasn't always been a time of happiness for Sam Angel. She lost her husband a few years ago at Christmas, and has been left to bring their son up alone, as well as running The White Angel Bakery by herself. Although she's got a rather nice boyfriend now, Sam is frightened to take it further with him and push away the memory of her late husband. Her sister Tamsin Angel seems to have it all, and Christmas is the perfect time for her to flaunt that. But when everything she holds dear starts to crumble around her, and the idyllic Christmas she had created melts away, Tamsin has to turn to her sister in her hour of need, and to a rather different Christmas altogether...

I have to confess I really warmed to this book right from the beginning. I loved everything about it, but the best thing for me was just how festive it was right the way through! There wasn't just a bit of it that was Christmassy, the whole book was and I absolutely loved that about it. It begins with Tamsin's beautiful mansion, stuffed full of Christmas goodies and sounding rather perfect and posh, so you do have to feel very sorry for her when it all starts going horribly wrong, and there is nothing she can do about it. While Tamsin initially seems a bit of a snob and determined to be miserable once the bad things start happening to her and you find it quite hard to like her, she does thaw out a little bit as the book goes on, and you can see she really loves her sister. There was more to Tamsin than meets the eye however, and as she reveals things about her childhood, you can certainly understand why Tamsin is like she is, and I did feel very sorry for her.

Her sister is Sam, and she was my favourite character in the book. She is a single mum who has been widowed, and she still deeply misses her husband Steve who died in a tragic way at Christmas. It is very sad, but I enjoyed catching up with her and her son, seeing what a success they have made of their lives now, with the bakery going well, and the pair being happy together in their small one-bedroom flat. Sam has to show Tamsin that Christmas isn't all about money and what you have, but the people who you are with and the love for each other, but Tamsin wants to help her sister accept that love is coming for her again and it is okay to move on without forgetting her husband. There's a lot of emotion going on in this book, all wrapped up with the festive feeling and it was just wonderful.

The main stories in this book involve the sisters and their lives, and the bakery plays a large part in that too. Tamsin is determined to help her sister make the business more of a success than it already is, but Sam is feeling dubious that they can pull it off. As a Christmas party looms, it seems like Tamsin has really aimed too high, and I enjoyed reading about how they all worked together to try and pull it off, and the ups and downs that came along the way. There were a few supporting characters in the book, but for me it was really all about the Angel sisters. Sue Watson's writing is really enjoyable in this book, painting a very festive picture vividly in my mind as I was reading, and I was left with a lovely warm feeling as I finished the book. It's an emotional book, full of family, love and Christmas, and I enjoyed the entire thing. Sue Watson is fast becoming one of my must-read authors, and I can't wait to read more from her.

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