Lizzie's Christmas Escape by Christie Barlow

A gorgeous country house hotel, a liberal dusting of snow, a cosy weekend away…what more could Lizzie ask for at Christmas?

Every Christmas Lizzie promises herself that things will change and she will leap into the new year a new woman. And yet here she is again, at the beginning of December and nothing is different. Her girls have grown up and left home, her husband Henry is slumped in front of the TV and she is alone in the kitchen, seeking refuge in the cooking sherry and talking to her Gary Barlow calendar. She’s also been very diverted by handsome new neighbour Marcus and she knows she shouldn’t be …

So when best friend Ann suggests a weekend away in the country, Lizzie jumps at the chance. Will this Christmas escape give Lizzie some much needed perspective and allow her to mend her marriage? Or will Marcus prove to be too much of a distraction?

A funny feel good festive read about rediscovering the magic of Christmas - just the thing to curl up with on a cold winters night.

Title:               Lizzie's Christmas Escape
Author:           Christie Barlow
Published By: Bookouture
Date:               Sept 14th 2016
Link:               UK: Amazon  US: Amazon

My Review

I really enjoyed this book and felt it was quite different from the norm. The story follows Lizzie who is feeling quite neglected, her husband Henry is hard working but every day, once home, he slumps into his armchair and watches the darts with barely a glance at Lizzie.

Also to make her feel lonelier her two daughters are at Uni, thankfully she has her best friend Ann Sandeman to keep her sane and their friendship is wonderful, they can share all their secrets and are entirely honest with each other. Ann seems the more outgoing out of the two and encourages Lizzie to have fun. She is happily married to Henry's best friend Dave however the men's friendship has lessened over the years so they didn't really all go out together any more.

Basically Lizzie and Henry were stuck in a rut, Lizzie had thought about leaving Henry. Especially as he discouraged her from trying to set up her own dressmaking business even though it was her dream because he thought it would inconvenience him too much.

Everything changes when a handsome stranger called Marcus moves in next door, he has a past full of sadness and a very bouncy dog called Frank. Lizzie falls for Frank as she has always wanted a dog and is delighted when Marcus asks her to walk him whilst he is at work.

Marcus then provides Lizzie with the attention she has been lacking for all these years in the form of a fairy tale romance and lots of trouble ensues.

The story is told at a relaxed pace and what I loved about it was that every time Marcus treated her with something or did something nice for her, Lizzie's mind would instantly take her back to a tender memory with Henry and remind her how things used to be.

It's a tale that many women who've been married or in a relationship for a long time can relate to.
The friendship between Lizzie and Ann was solid and I loved how much support they provided each other and the giggles they had whilst out shopping or on a night out. Nothing could come between these two friends.

It was especially touching that Ann was named after a lady who has been battling breast cancer for a long time and who's friends had donated a lot of money for her to be in the book. Therefore the friendship in the book was even more meaningful.

This is a beautiful story and the ending was just how I wanted it to be.
It was also quite special to me as Christie has mentioned my name in her thank you's which was so lovely of her.
Thanks to bookouture for the arc which I reviewed voluntarily.

Sincerely
Book Angel x

About the Author

Christie Barlow is the author of A Year in the Life of a Playground Mother, The Misadventures of a Playground Mother, Kitty's Countryside Dream and Lizzie's Christmas Escape. She lives in Staffordshire with her husband, four kids, horses, chickens and a mad cocker spaniel. Her writing career came as somewhat a surprise when she decided to write a book to teach her children a valuable life lesson and show them that they are capable of achieving their dreams. She is a Mum who wrote a book to prove to her children whatever you want to do in life go for it. The book she wrote to prove a point is now a #1 bestseller in the UK and USA.

Christie loves to hear from her readers and you can get in touch via her website www.christiebarlow.com Twitter @ChristieJBarlow and Facebook page Christie Barlow author