And another? I called Emma Davies’ last book “a perfect read” – and today it’s a delight to share my review of her latest, One December Morning, which I perhaps loved even more. Published by Bookouture on 7th/8th October, it’s now available for kindle (just 99p, or free via Kindle Unlimited) and in paperback. The ecopy I read was my own, preordered and purchased via Amazon.
It’s ten years now since I fell in love with Emma’s writing – you’ll find my review here of her gorgeous debut novel, Letting in Light, along with a really lovely post from Emma about her delight in having found her passion and her dream. And I dipped into her books as often as I could over the years that followed, enjoying spending time at Rowan Hill, Appleyard Farm and Hope Corner – you’ll find all my reviews if you pop her name into my search bar. She started writing mysteries for a while, that I thought (probably wrongly) might not be quite my kind of thing – and then life intervened for us both. So I was delighted earlier this year when I spotted The Midnight Bakery – and found her writing was every bit as wonderful as I remembered. There were individuals I took to my heart – their surprises, their disappointments, their worries, their sadnesses, the moments of drama, and the strength and joy they were able to find in each other. The whole book felt like a warmest of hugs, through all the individuals’ many trials and tribulations up to its simply perfect ending (you’ll find my full review here). Her latest book came out while I was away on holiday, but I couldn’t wait to get to it on my return – and as it’s set at Christmas, I think the timing might have been absolutely right…
One chance meeting. Two strangers. And a sprinkling of Christmas magic…
Fifty-five-year-old Peg has been lonely for as long as she can remember. As she battles through traffic while the snow softly falls around her, the best she can hope for is to get home for Christmas safely, and to spend it wrapped in a blanket by a roaring open fire in her tumbledown cottage in the Cotswolds. Little does she know that everything is about to change…
Because Henry is also stuck on the road, and when their cars come to a complete standstill, he and Peg strike up a conversation over a homemade mince pie and a flask of hot tea. Towering over Peg, his navy waffle-knit jumper charmingly threadbare at the elbows, he chats effortlessly. With his tortoiseshell glasses pushed back into his mass of curly dark hair, Henry makes Peg laugh, and the two click. As something shifts, Peg realises that it’s been a long time since she smiled like this.
Peg discovers that Henry is single too, but he’s off to grit his teeth through the forced jollity of another family Christmas with his insufferably perfect daughter-in-law in the next village. Before they get a chance to exchange numbers, the traffic starts to move and Peg and Henry are wrenched apart…
She doesn’t expect to see him again. But then, days later, there’s a knock on Peg’s door: Henry needs her help. In an instant, she knows this will be a Christmas she’ll never forget, in ways she could never have imagined. Can she let herself get involved and risk being vulnerable, or will she shy away?
Peg doesn’t open her heart to anyone. But can the magic of Christmas persuade her to give it to someone special…?
Fans of One Day in December, Jill Mansell and Sally Page will adore this totally uplifting and page-turning novel of finding hope and love in the most unexpected of places.
Peg lost her husband at Christmas, four years ago, so it’s not the easiest time for her – and this year she’ll be spending it alone, with her two adult daughters away on a skiing holiday. But she’s contented, planning to curl up by the fire with a good book in her cosy Cotswold cottage – and perhaps take a walk in the nearby woodland her husband bought her as a gift. She’s been to see her elderly Aunt Mim, so important in her life – and, on the way home, finds her heart lifted by a chance meeting with Henry, stuck in the same traffic queue as she is.
He’s on his way to spend Christmas with his son Adam and daughter-in-law Sofia – always a testing experience, their life choices having been rather different from his own. While the presence of Sofia’s mother Blanche – not as elderly and incapable as they like to make out – might make things a touch easier, by Christmas morning the tensions are too great, and he finds himself driving away after a particularly painful argument. Peg never expected to see him again, although she would have liked to spend more time with the gentle man who made her laugh. And when there’s a knock at her door on Christmas morning…
I really don’t want to spoil this story – but the way it unfolded was one of the loveliest pieces of writing I’ve read in a long time. There’s a touch of magic, an experience that might or might not have happened, beautifully handled – and the story continues as Peg becomes pivotal in the lives of Henry and his family, the experience changing all their lives and bringing happiness in the most unexpected ways. The characters are wonderfully developed – very real people in every way, both good and not so good – and the dynamics of families explored. Lives are transformed, through acts of extraordinary kindness – and Peg and Henry find that the initial spark between them that they both felt might be able to find a way to develop.
Peg and Henry are rather older than the norm for main characters – something I always enjoy when done so well – and all their quirks and concerns are quite perfectly captured. Additional texture is added by the more elderly Blanche and Aunt Mim – an unexpected guest after an accident at home – and the younger characters of Adam and Sofia, their lives beset by problems and complicated by secrets, and Peg’s daughters who return early from their trip. The pacing is fairly slow, the whole story developing mainly through all the individuals’ conversations and interactions – and it all works so perfectly, touching you to the heart. And that one central relationship, developing slowly, was one I really believed in – finding joy, and the possibility of new beginnings – while gently helping provide a fresh start for others who need it just as much.
The whole book is set at and around Christmas – with a real contrast between the Insta-ready celebrations of Henry’s family and the warmth and simplicity (and quiet magic) of Peg’s offering. The emotional content makes it a read perfect for the season – but its messages would work just as well whenever you chose to read it. Tremendously uplifting, deeply moving, beautifully written, a story I adored and that will stay with me for some time – this might well be one of my favourite reads of the year, and I couldn’t recommend it more highly.
About the author
After a varied career, Emma Davies once worked for a design studio where she was asked to provide a fun and humorous (and not necessarily true) anecdote for their website. She wrote the following: ‘I am a bestselling novelist currently masquerading as a thirty something mother of three’. Well the job in the design studio didn’t work out but she’s now a forty something mother of three and is happy to report the rest of her dream came true.
After many years as a finance manager she now writes full time, and is far happier playing with words than numbers. She lives with her family and two guinea pigs in rural Shropshire where she writes in all the gaps in between real life. It’s a county she adores, her love of its beautiful people and landscapes providing endless inspiration for her books, and in fact the only thing that would make Shropshire more idyllic is if it were by the sea.
Pop over to her website where, amongst other things, you can read about her passion for Pringles and singing loudly in the car. You can also wave to her on Twitter, follow her on Instagram, or find her on Facebook (a little too often than is good for her) – and if you’d like to join her email list, you can do that here.
High praise Anne. This sounds lovely!
Do try this one if you can – I think you’d love it as much as I did! x
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