It’s a delight to be joining the blog tour today for the latest book from Clare Swatman, Last Christmas, and sharing my review: published on 27th August by Boldwood Books, it’s now available as an ebook (free via Kindle Unlimited), in paperback, and as an audiobook. Thank you, as always, to Rachel at Rachel’s Random Resources for the invitation and support, and to the publishers for my advance reading e-copy, provided via netgalley.
Ever since reading The Night We First Met (I read it as How to Save a Life – you’ll find my review here), Clare’s been a real personal favourite – that one was one of my 2022 Books of the Year. I adored A Love to Last a Lifetime – so compelling, all those perfect emotional touches (you can read my full review here) – and The World Outside My Window might have been even better, an moving portrayal of trauma and recovery, and the book I chose to include in my 2023 Books of the Year (you’ll find my review here). And The Lost Letters of Evelyn Wright was simply wonderful – emotionally authentic, a moving and engaging story, wonderful characters (you’ll find my review here). And this time? A “sliding-doors love story” – an intriguing prospect I was very much looking forward to…
‘Bea was always early for everything. Even, it turned out, when she was running away from her life.’
As Christmas approaches, Bea Preston has a choice.
Looking up at the departures board in Heathrow airport, her flight to New York boarding soon, she knows that getting on that plane changes everything. Her life in London has grown stale, her relationship with boyfriend Dom has run its course, and New York has always been her dream. But it’s a risk – she’ll miss her parents, her friends, her job.
What if Bea could live both lives? In one she goes back home for Christmas, and in another she heads to the Big Apple. Would her fate remain the same, or can one decision really change everything?
In a grand sliding-doors love story that spans oceans, years and lives, Clare Swatman’s unforgettable tale of fate and friendship is perfect for all fans of Jojo Moyes, Beth Moran and Ruth Jones.
The first thing I’ll mention – just in case reading a Christmas book in August/September gives you the chills – is that this is a book you’ll be happy to read at any time of the year. The season just anchors the story, as it shifts between the alternative scenarios – whether Bea decides to go, leaving her life and partner of five years behind, to follow her dream of living in New York, or to stay and change nothing in her increasingly troubled life.
We first meet Bea at Heathrow, three days before Christmas, with a long wait for the flight that will change her life, working through her uncertainties and the implications of her decision. At the airport, she bumps into a stranger, scattering her luggage – and then fields a call from partner Dom, hoping she might just change her mind. And that’s where the story divides – she pulls herself together and goes home, or she gets on the plane and discovers what the future might hold.
The way the book is written is easy to follow – the alternating chapters headed “stay” or “go”, always set in December over an eight year period, looking back at the year before, with Bea’s experiences as their focus. I’m not sure how I felt about her – at times she’s sympathetic and likeable, especially when dealing with some of the most difficult personal challenges, but I was sometimes a bit put off by the selfishness that seemed to underpin some of her decisions. And the issues she finds herself facing, in both timelines, are often very difficult to handle – there are moments of joy, but plenty of heartache too. In her London life, there’s a particular focus on living with depression – and its impact is particularly well handled. But it’s also a story that focuses on friendship and family, with a strong romantic element and excellent characterisation – all perfectly balanced, and always emotionally convincing.
The writing is just superb – although the reading is easy, the organisation of the content must have been an immense challenge. There are touchpoints between the two stories – sometimes repetitions of the same events with a slight shift of context or perspective, very cleverly done. And I never lost track of which of Bea’s lives I was reading for an instant – although the way the stories slowly converge could have made things difficult. The author’s confidence and the firm grip she has on the story is flawless – I was entirely involved throughout, engaged at every level, and hoping for a happy ending. And it’s a book that makes you think too – about fate and destiny, the possibility of change, the impact of decisions, and the different paths sometimes leading to the same conclusion.
This was such an accomplished piece of work, highly original, but also a moving and particularly compelling story. I loved it – and it’s a book I’d highly recommend to all.
About the author
Clare Swatman is the author of eight previous women’s fiction novels – her first three, published by Macmillan, have been translated into over 20 languages. She has been a journalist for over twenty years, writing for Bella and Woman & Home amongst many other magazines. She lives in Hertfordshire.
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Definitely one for my Christmas reading list, thanks Anne x