My second Christmassy review today, and another new-to-me author – I’m delighted to be sharing my review of The Christmas Tree Cottage by Holly Martin. Independently published in October, this lovely book – the third in her series set at the Wishing Wood – is now available for kindle (just 99p, or free via Kindle Unlimited), in hardcover and in paperback. The e-copy I read was my own, preordered and purchased via Amazon.
Do you know, I’m starting to question my credentials as a romance reviewer – how on earth can I not have read a book from Holly Martin before? If you’re one of her legions of fans, I’m sure you might well have already enjoyed the first two books in this series – and perhaps also enjoyed visiting Jewel Island, Sandcastle Bay, Hope Island, Juniper Island, White Cliff Bay and more (but if you’d like to explore her books a little, you might like to take a look at her Amazon author page – there are so many to choose from!). It was a review from Rachel (on Rachel’s Random Reads) that convinced me I just had to read this one – with words like “stunning”, “phenomenal” and “utterly brilliant”, I really couldn’t resist (and there are over 2000 Amazon reviews, almost all of them saying very similar things!). So I might be rather late to the party, but it looked as if Holly might well be an author I’d love too…
It’s the most wonderful time of the year in Wishing Wood, where the forest sparkles with fairy lights, the snow is falling, the fire is crackling and love is in the air. From the bestselling author of The Wisteria Tree Cottage comes the perfect romance to warm your heart this Christmas.
Evergreen Winter lives an unconventional life. Her home is a ramshackle red caravan and her Clydesdale horse Thunder is her only companion. She’s never anywhere long enough to put down roots, and that’s just the way she likes it. Until she arrives at beautiful Wishing Wood eight days before Christmas…
When Evergreen accepted the job to play the role of Mrs Christmas at the magical treehouse resort nestled within lush forest she never expected her Santa Claus to be the very gorgeous Heath Brookfield. From the moment they meet their connection is electric, and each day they play husband and wife Evergreen gets a glimpse of how incredible her life could be if she stayed in Wishing Wood for good.
But the last time Evergreen opened her heart to love she lost everything and she swore she’d never rely on anyone ever again. Heath believes he’s the one person who can change her mind. But with Evergreen set to leave on Christmas Eve, Heath doesn’t have long. Can he convince her to stay or will she ride away forever in her little red caravan taking his heart with her?
Perfect for fans of Jill Mansell, Trisha Ashley and Sarah Morgan, this unforgettable romance is guaranteed to make you smile and melt your heart. Like a creamy hot chocolate with marshmallows, you won’t want to put this deliciously heartwarming novel down.
The Wishing Wood – what a totally stunning setting, the tree houses and the sparkling lights, and I’m so glad I chose to visit at Christmas. As I haven’t read the earlier books, I didn’t know about the dynamics of the extended and eclectic family who own it – but as Evergreen found herself wrapped in the warmth of their welcome and embrace, I knew I was going to enjoy every moment of being part of it for a while too.
Evergreen arrives at the Wishing Wood, in her caravan home drawn by Clydesdale horse Thunder, to take on the role of Mrs Christmas during their celebrations – and to use her skills as a make-up artist to turn Heath Brookfield into a suitably convincing and jolly Santa. Family life is something she’s not used to – her own life experience has made her wary of letting in anyone she might become fond of – but this one draws her in from the very beginning. And when her dilapidated caravan becomes impossible to live in, she agrees to move into Christmas Tree Cottage for a while – warm and dry, sleeping in a comfortable bed for a change. And she finds herself increasingly drawn to the lovely Heath – until she begins to wonder whether their growing feelings for each other are real, or whether he might just see her as another of the charity cases that he frequently takes on.
The chemistry between this couple is exceptional – we see it from both their viewpoints and get to know both of them really well, to take them both to our heart, and as things begin to heat up (to a degree that, for me, was just perfectly judged) I became entirely invested in wanting a happy ending for them both. But if the romance is beautifully handled, so is the family side of things – I never thought I’d want to be part of a Christmas Hullabaloo, but this one was absolutely wonderful. The different relationships are fascinating – had I read the first two books, I might have found getting a handle on them a tad easier, but the author unobtrusively and very quickly brought me up to speed – and, rather unusually for me, I particularly loved the very real and endearing younger family members.
And the warmth the whole family radiates throws into sharp relief everything Evergreen has lost – a really emotional story that sometimes moved me to tears, slowly revealed, but with hope that the future might be rather brighter if she’s willing to make the right choices. But the whole book is filled with joy too, with love and warmth and kindness – along with plenty of the loveliest touches of humour, often with the children at its centre. On the Christmassiness scale, this one’s right at the top end – with a touch of real magic at times helping the characters find their way when they’re really in need of a helping hand.
So, another author whose future books I really must add to my reading list – this one really was just gorgeous. Do you still have space on your Christmas reading list? If so, this is a book I’d wholeheartedly recommend (oh, go on, spoil yourself – try the whole series!).
I won’t promise to catch up on Holly’s entire back catalogue, but I’m certainly looking forward to a summer visit to Apple Hill Bay (and I can’t wait to meet Bones!) – The Little Beach Hut Hotel will be published for kindle in July next year, and is available now for preorder (and yes, of course I have!).
About the author
Holly lives in a little white cottage by the sea. She studied media at university which led to a very glitzy career as a hotel receptionist followed by a even more glamorous two years working in a bank. The moment that one of her colleagues received the much coveted carriage clock for fifteen years’ service was the moment when she knew she had to escape. She quit her job and returned to university to train to be a teacher. Three years later, she emerged wide eyed and terrified that she now had responsibility for the development of thirty young minds. She taught for four years and then escaped the classroom to teach history workshops, dressing up as a Viking one day and an Egyptian High Priestess the next. But the long journeys around the UK and many hours sat on the M25 gave her a lot of time to plan out her stories and she now writes full time, doing what she loves.
Holly has been writing for 8 years. She was shortlisted for the New Talent Award at the Festival of Romance. Her short story won the Sunlounger competition and was published in the Sunlounger anthology. She won the Carina Valentine’s competition at the Festival of Romance with her novel The Guestbook. She was shortlisted for Best Romantic Read, Best eBook and Innovation in Romantic Fiction at the Festival of Romance. She is the bestselling author of 26 books selling over a million books worldwide. Holly’s books have been translated into French, German, Italian, Dutch, Bulgarian, Estonian, Turkish and Russian.
