It’s an absolute pleasure today to be helping launch the blog tour for Maggie Christensen’s Christmas in Bellbird Bay, and to share my review: the fourth in her latest series (and another glorious cover…), set in a small community on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, this one was published on 3rd November and is now available both as an e-book (free via Kindle Unlimited) and in paperback. My thanks to Rachel at Rachel’s Random Resources for the invitation and support – although it doesn’t really take a blog tour to make me want to read Maggie’s lovely books – and to both Rachel and Maggie for my advance reading e-copy.
I’ve now read and reviewed so many of Maggie’s books that I’m beginning to rather repeat myself. I knew I’d found a favourite author when I read The Good Sister (you’ll find my review here), went on to so enjoy the rest of her Scottish Collection, then (almost!) the whole of the Granite Springs series (you’ll find all my reviews if you pop her name into my search box…). There was a little diversion with A Mother’s Story – a family saga, the stories of three women, starting in WW2, and I really enjoyed that one too (you’ll find that review here). And I’m now very much enjoying her new series with its well drawn mature characters that I always find it so easy to identify with and the loveliest location – Summer in Bellbird Bay was the perfect start in February last year (could anything be much better than the Sunshine Coast in the depths of an English winter – you’ll find my review here). A bit of a glitch in May when I just couldn’t fit in the reading of the second, Coming Home to Bellbird Bay (but that’s never really matters, every book is perfectly readable as a standalone), but I thoroughly enjoyed the third, published in August, Starting Over in Bellbird Bay (you’ll find my review here).
I’m delighted to be back once more – let’s take a look at the latest story…
Libby Walker never imagined she’d be moving into the dream house she and her husband had purchased for their retirement as a widow. Intent on making a new life for herself in the quiet coastal town of Bellbird Bay, Libby’s life is upended by an unexpected call from her daughter.
Adam Holland’s unhappy childhood and broken home has left him scarred. Content with the life he has built for himself as a journalist and author of political thrillers, Adam arrives in Bellbird Bay to fulfil the deathbed request of an old friend.
When Libby and Adam meet, there is an initial attraction. But Libby is grieving for her late husband and trying to help her daughter sort out her life, and Adam has no intention of forming a relationship, wary of commitment because of how his family was torn apart.
Will the peace and tranquillity of Bellbird Bay help these two move on from old hurts and make this a Christmas to remember, or will events conspire to keep them apart?
A heartwarming tale of family, friends, and how a second chance at love can happen when you least expect it.
The mother-daughter relationship can often be a fraught one – but when Libby receives an anguished call from daughter Emma whose marriage has fallen apart, she doesn’t hesitate to rush to her side. But when she offers Emma and her young daughter Clancy a refuge at her new home in Bellbird Bay, at least for the Christmas holidays fast approaching, she really doesn’t realise the disruption it might cause to the new life she’s settled into. Libby never expected to find herself living alone – the move to Bellbird Bay was one she’d planned with husband Bernie – but she’s made a new life, surrounded by friends (many familiar if you’ve been here before – they’re now my friends too), a little job at the library, dog Milo her constant companion. The arrival of a memorial bench will make things complete – somewhere to talk with Bernie, to quietly revisit her precious memories.
Adam is in Bellbird Bay after a loss too – it was the childhood home of a close friend, and while fulfilling his last wishes he decides the Bay is the perfect place to take a rather longer break and leave some of his troubles behind. He’s a very successful author, tired of the treadmill, hoping for some anonymity for a while, keen to try writing something different – and there’s a relationship moving rather faster than he wants it to that he’s keen to have some distance from.
When Libby and Adam become friends, Emma makes her disapproval very clear – although it’s only a friendship, she’s opposed to any idea of her mother forming a new relationship, and makes life particularly difficult. And when the attraction between them grows, and they might just be becoming more than friends – coupled with Emma’s likely decision to stay in Bellbird Bay – it’s clear there are stormy times ahead. And Adam has his own share of unexpected family issues too – along with a little drama, and a relationship he regrets that refuses to die.
As always, the characterisation in this book is just wonderful – I grew particularly attached to Libby, her edge of sadness but her determination to find some happiness of her own despite the many obstacles. And I really liked Adam too – with parts of the story told from his perspective, it was easy to understand his own issues and his equal need for a fresh start to his life. I’ll readily admit I never particularly warmed to Emma – she’s very real, but her self-obsession and conviction that she was always in the right could become a little wearing, even to a mother who loves her. Thank goodness for Milo and young Clancy!
The developing relationship between Libby and Adam was everything I wanted it to be – they’re a couple who were really meant to be together, despite the many obstacles, and I really hoped for a happy ending for them both. And, of course, the story plays out in one of my now favourite locations, beautifully drawn – the cafes, the beach, the surf club – and with cameo roles for so many of the residents I’ve grown to know so well, with just enough of their back stories to help a new reader feel equally at home. And, of course, it’s Christmas – with the sun beating down, so an unfamiliar experience for a UK reader, but one I very much enjoyed.
This was the loveliest addition to a series I’m very much enjoying – second chance romance at its very best, with mature characters I could really identify with and the perfect emotional touch. Very much recommended.
The next book in the series – Finding Refuge in Bellbird Bay – will be published on 7th February 2023 and is available for pre-order for kindle. That’ll be Bev’s story – I already feel I know her quite well from my visits to the Pandanus Garden Centre and her support for Martin and Ailsa, so I’m really looking forward to that one…
About the author
After a career in education, Maggie Christensen began writing contemporary women’s fiction portraying mature women facing life-changing situations, and historical fiction set in her native Scotland. Her travels inspire her writing, be it her trips to visit family in Scotland, in Oregon, USA or her home on Queensland’s beautiful Sunshine Coast. Maggie writes of mature heroines coming to terms with changes in their lives and the heroes worthy of them. Maggie has been called the queen of mature age fiction and her writing has been described by one reviewer as like a nice warm cup of tea – warm, nourishing, comforting and embracing.
From the small town in Scotland where she grew up, Maggie was lured to Australia by the call ‘Come and teach in the sun’. Once there, she worked as a primary school teacher, university lecturer and in educational management. Now living with her husband of over thirty years on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, she loves walking on the deserted beach in the early mornings and having coffee by the river on weekends. Her days are spent surrounded by books, either reading or writing them – her idea of heaven!
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Thanks so much for this awesome review, Anne 🙂
Always such a pleasure Maggie! x