Your most delightful holiday read: the sequel to the instant New York Times bestseller The Christmas Bookshop, from beloved Scottish author Jenny Colgan.

Christmas comes early–far too early–to McCredie’s little Old Town bookshop in Edinburgh. It’s summer, but an American production company has decided that McCredie’s is the perfect location to film a very cheesy Christmas movie. After all, who can resist the charmingly narrow historic street with its Victorian grey stone buildings and warmly lit shop windows?

Carmen Hogan, the bookshop’s manager, is amused and a bit horrified by the goings-on, but the money the studio is paying is too good to pass up. She uses the little windfall from filming to create new displays and fend off a buyout offer from an obnoxious millionaire who wants to turn McCredie’s into a souvenir shop selling kilts made in China and plastic Nessies. Still reeling slightly from a breakup, Carmen’s not particularly looking forward to the holidays. But just as snow begins to fall and the lights of Christmas blink on, all sorts of lovely new possibilities present themselves…for McCredie’s bookstore, and for Carmen herself.

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Bronagh in the magic shop had a theory that immaculately groomed, rich, working Edinburgh women with well- behaved children were all witches, because there was no other way of doing it.

Phoebe had a frowzy face, always looking slightly suspicious of the world, as if she’d tried it all already and it hadn’t pleased her.

…he felt himself, misshapen and awkward, a paradox of desires, as the loose threads of the world pulled and stretched him every which way.

He was the kind of guy, Carmen thought, that if you disagreed with him in any way would, depending on how much he wanted to sleep with you, either call you “feisty” or ask if you were on your period. It seemed unlikely there was a middle ground. His eyes flicked her up and down in a way she couldn’t bear and made her want to kick him and run away, the way the children weren’t allowed to.

When someone is trying to wind you up and succeeds in winding you up it is one of the worst feelings on earth. You feel irritated and cheated all at once.

Every day, it seemed, she lost something. She hadn’t felt like this with the others; she’d always been excited to see them move on to the next stage: walking, talking, exploring. But if she could have a vampire bite Eric she would have.

It was Jackson McClockerty, of course, dressed in bright red Stewart tartan trousers that made his bum look frankly enormous, as if it was about to float into the air like a pair of balloons.

My Review:

 

Jenny Colgan always hits all the feels between generous servings of well-honed humor and acute observations. This one was as insightfully written as it was cleverly amusing. I was giggle-snorting with glee at the author’s snarky humor and oddly fractured characters, with the frozen city of Edinburgh at Christmas also having a starring role. The writing was easy to fall into, emotive, and highly descriptive. I live in the tropics yet I felt the constant chill of their drafty rooms and Arctic winds as I read.