Holly has the place to herself this Christmas. It’s not her place, though – she is house-sitting for friends who live on Nightingale Square – just there to keep the place warm and cosy and only for long enough for her to sort her life out. Newly single and finding herself unsure about next steps for her career, she plans to hunker down and make some life decisions.
To clear her mind, she sets off on early morning walks around a nearby lake and bumps into May, an older lady who is also new to the area, and her dapper Dachshund Monty. Quickly, a firm friendship blossoms. Then when Holly meets Bear, a rather large and rather attractive man, at the local pub, and his rescue dog Queenie, her stay at Nightingale Square suddenly feels even more appealing.
As the community comes together for the season’s festivities, Holly must start thinking about where her life will take her next. Some big decisions need to be made, but distractions close to home make thinking about the future more tricky than ever…
Will she get that festive feeling this Christmas…?
*****
Title: That Festive Feeling
Author: Heidi Swain
Published By: Simon & Schuster
Publication Date: 12th October 23
*****
Heidi Swain has done it again with this cracker of a Christmas Story. I loved my trip back to Nightingale Square where Holly is house sitting for friends of hers. After a relationship break up she needed somewhere to lick her wounds and plan for the next stage of her life and Nightingale Square provided the perfect solution.
On a walk she rescues a little dog from the mud and gives his owner, an elderly lady called May a lift home. They quickly become firm friends and confide in each other a lot.
On a trip to the pub Holly accidentally steps on a dog’s paw and when she tries to pet the dog she is told off by the grumpy owner, a very handsome man called Bear.
Holly really wants to keep herself to herself but reluctantly becomes immersed in the village life, in doing so her and Bear’s paths cross regularly and she finds herself falling for him but his relationship to someone she has become close to prevents them from getting together so she has to nip it in the bud. But love very often doesn't behave as we would like it to and as the saying goes, it always finds a way.
I loved every aspect of this book, the relationship with Holly and May and watching that friendship grow, the pain of her feelings for Bear which she can’t give in to, the descriptions of Bear’s home which was a converted horsebox and the camaraderie around the square even if Holly does find it a bit difficult to have people knowing her business.
Talking of business, Holly is at a standstill in her career as an illustrator and is just not feeling it any more and I loved how May and Bear’s dogs really piqued her imagination and I could see the drawings in my mind really clearly.
Heidi paints a wonderful picture of all the beautiful settings she’s created and this one features everything you need for the perfect cosy Christmas. I recommend you grab a chunkie mug of hot chocolate, a warm blanket and snuggle up in front of the fire to read this fabulously festive treat.
Heidi Swain is a Sunday Times Top Ten best-selling author who writes feel good fiction for Simon and Schuster. She releases two books a year (early summer and winter) and the stories all have a strong sense of community, family and friendship. She is currently writing books set in three locations - the Fenland town of Wynbridge, Nightingale Square in Norwich and Wynmouth on the Norfolk coast, as well as summer standalone titles.
Heidi lives in beautiful west Norfolk. She is passionate about gardening, the countryside, collecting vintage paraphernalia and reading. Her tbr pile is always out of control!
Heidi loves to chat with her readers and you can get in touch via her website or on social media.
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