And my final Christmas review of the year? It’s Mix-Up under the Mistletoe by Margaret Amatt, independently published on 23rd November, and now available for kindle (free via Kindle Unlimited) and in paperback too (and what a lovely cover!). It was a bit of a wildcard really, but I’d read some reviews from the blog tour with Rachel’s Random Resources (one that, just this once, I couldn’t fit in…), and thought it looked very much my kind of read. It’s also the eleventh book in her Glenbriar series, which is loosely linked with the Scottish Island Escapes series that came before – but everything I read reassured me that it could be enjoyed as a standalone, and I really wanted to finally try Margaret’s writing. The e-copy I read was my own, bought and downloaded via Amazon.
So, let’s take a closer look…
She’s always on the outside looking in, but his door might just be the one to open for her this Christmas.
‘Her name’s Tilly. Tilly Thorpe. She lives in London.’
To stop his family from speculating about his love life, travel company CEO Rafe Harrington casually drops Tilly Thorpe’s name as his girlfriend. After all, they’ll never meet – she’s just a name he saw on a rival company’s website.
But when Rafe arrives at his family’s home in Glenbriar for Christmas, he’s shocked to find ‘his girlfriend’ waiting for him.
He has some explaining to do and so does Tilly.
Why did Rafe’s family welcome her with open arms when she’s little more than a spy? Someone who’s trying hard to please her superiors, hoping it’ll bring some desperately desired happiness to her lonely existence.
Rafe isn’t a big fan of the festive season, but neither he nor Tilly can ignore their instant spark. With bad weather forecast, now is the ideal moment to discover some magic. Tilly’s never felt this at home anywhere, but none of it’s real, and that’s not why she’s here.
With time running short, can they seize this unexpected chance to fall in love not only with Christmas but also with each other?
What a thoroughly lovely read! The Harrington family certainly throw themselves wholeheartedly into the whole Christmas experience, and they’re always happy to include just one more – and all the more so when they all believe Tilly to be Rafe’s new girlfriend. But, of course, she isn’t. He gave them her name after seeing her photo on a website just to stop everyone pressurising him to find a partner – she actually works for a travel agency in competition with his own, doing some undercover investigation, and her arrival is the most massive coincidence.
The deception uncovered, she’s ready to head home, back to the job where she’s constantly taken advantage of, and her usual lonely Christmas. But then the snow falls, and leaving is out of the question – having grown up in care and particularly fragile in so many ways, the Harringtons take her to their hearts and, for the very first time, she feels as if she’s found somewhere she belongs. And as for Rafe – she wins his heart too amid all the magic of Christmas, but they both know their time together will be limited.
The whole family is just wonderful, every individual perfectly drawn – and Tilly and Rafe are both such lovely people, deserving of some happiness. Especially Tilly – she’s missed out on so much in her life, every new Christmas experience a first for her, and I just wanted to give her a big hug. And if a full-on Christmas is what you enjoy – and I certainly do – this book delivers at every possible level. The decorations, the piped music, the films, the cocktails, all that food – and then there’s the snowball fights, the sledging (and that ended rather unexpectedly…), the nativity play, the Christingle service. And through it all, Rafe and Tilly grow ever closer – I really liked the alternating chapters, from their separate perspectives – with a romance I really believed in, a nice touch of heat, but with both of them not entirely sure about the depth of their feelings for each other.
A fresh start, leaving the past behind, trusting in your feelings, being wrapped up in the love of family, finding that special person – and all the magic of Christmas. This book delivered everything I could possibly have wanted – and I’ll look forward to reading more from this lovely author. Just gorgeous…
Meet the author
Hello! I’m Margaret, author of the Scottish Island Escapes and Glenbriar series. I hope you love reading the stories as much as I enjoy writing them.
Writing books is my passion and when I’m not doing that, I’m often eating chocolate, walking and taking photographs in the hills around Highland Perthshire, where I live with my family in a little house close to the woods. From my window, I often see red squirrels, deer and other tremendously Scottish wildlife… though not normally haggises or even men in kilts!
Thank you to everyone who buys my books, it brings me a little bit of joy every day to know readers are enjoying them.
So glad you were enchanted by this gorgeous book ❤️
It was your review that really sold it to me – and, as always, you were absolutely right! x
That’s made my day. I’m thrilled that you enjoyed it x