Notting Hill in the Snow, by Jules Wake #Review
It's mayhem in Bethlehem…unless they can work together!
Viola Smith plays the viola in an orchestra (yes really!),
but this year she's been asked to stretch her musical talents to organising
Notting Hill's local nativity.
Nate Williams isn't looking forward to Christmas but as his
small daughter, Grace, has the starring role in the show, he's forced to stop
being a Grinch and volunteer with Viola.
With the sparks between them hotter than the chestnuts
roasting in Portobello market, Nate and Viola can't deny their feelings. And as
the snow starts to fall over London, they find themselves trapped together in
more ways than one…
My Thoughts
This is a real festive treat! I loved the way that Christmas is very present in the story but does not dominate. Up front and central are the characters and how treatment in the past has led to how they behave today. Viola's parents were older and more distant from her as she was growing up. They were preoccupied with their own academic careers and this led to her striving to lose herself in her music. She can totally relate to Nate's daughter, Grace, whose mother has not been emotionally present for her and who put work before her needs. Viola completely understands how Grace needs security and consistency from adults.
I also appreciated the humour when Viola was rehearsing the school Nativity Show and the little asides about the over- enthusiastic parents who she met there. This is a heart-warming read and one of those which you don't want to put down. The writing is descriptive and vivid and you can totally visualise her characters and Viola's reactions to them.
In short: Depth of character and emotion makes this a great read.
About the Author
Jules Wake announced at the age of ten that she planned to
be a writer. Along the way she was diverted by the glamorous world of PR and
worked on many luxury brands and not so luxury brands. This proved fabulous
training for writing novels as it provided her with the opportunity to hone her
writing and creative skills penning copy on a vast range of subjects from pig
farming and watches, sunglasses and skincare through to beer and
stationery.
She writes best-selling warm-hearted contemporary fiction
for One More Chapter as Jules Wake and under her pen name Julie Caplin, she
writes the Romantic Escapes series.
Between them, the two Js have written twelve novels, Notting
Hill in the Snow being the latest.
Thanks to Jules Wake, One More Chapter and Rachel of Rachel's Random Resources for a copy of the book and a place on the tour.
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