Stevie‘s review of Merrily Ever After by Cathy Bramley
Contemporary Holiday Romance published by Orion 13 Oct 22
I like stories about people discovering unexpected relatives close by, because I’ve witnessed it happen in my own family. On the other hand, dementia – particularly involving parents – also hits home at the moment, in a less good way, so I was a little uncertain about this book at first. Emily lives in the small Derbyshire town of Wetherley and has recently started a temporary job as a school secretary after quitting a higher pressure job in order to take care of her father, who has dementia and lives in nearby Bakewell. Meanwhile, Merry also lives in Wetherley and has a thriving candle business in the town. Merry was brought up by her mother, who died while Merry was still at school, and has no real recollection of her father. She has a good relationship with her boyfriend’s family, including her former art teacher, but still longs to know more about her own.
When Emily’s father has an episode that brings him into contact with the police, she realises that he can no longer live alone and finds him a place in a nearby care home. Her father is unsettled by the move and worries that some of his possessions may be lost. Emily is keen to reassure him, and while she is checking his old flat, she comes across an old baby photo she initially assumes to be a picture of her; however, the words on the back are Merry’s First Christmas. Emily does some digging and realises this must be a child from her father’s previous relationship – before he met Emily’s mother.
Emily and Merry have already met on a number of brief occasions, and the older of Merry’s stepchildren is a pupil at the school where Emily works. The pieces slowly fall into place, and Emily seeks Merry out to see whether she would be interested in meeting her father and possibly getting confirmation of their relatedness. Although the interactions of both women with Emily’s father were difficult for me to read, I really liked the friendship that developed between them, even before they were aware of who the other might be.
Meanwhile, Merry is preparing to marry her boyfriend, and Emily is cautiously starting a relationship with one of the part-time staff at her father’s care home. She is understandably nervous after her previous partner broke up with her over the amount of time she was spending on caring for her father. This new man, though, is totally cool with Emily’s responsibilities, which I also appreciated.
The two downsides to this book were, firstly, that it’s actually a sequel to a previous Christmas-themed book about Merry and her boyfriend, with the story from that being rehashed rather clunkily at various points in this one, to my mind. Secondly, when there’s a family crisis in the runup to Merry’s wedding, her boyfriend verbally lashes out at her in what felt like a huge red flag to me. I think there should have been some kind of acknowledgement of how toxic this was, and the two should maybe have taken a step back and paused their wedding plans while they worked through the issue.
Overall, I loved seeing a book set in Derbyshire that felt very real to its location but could have done with more of Merry and Emily and less of their boyfriends – Merry’s in particular.
Grade: C
Summary:
Two strangers. One big secret. And a Christmas to remember…
Merry has always wanted a family to spend Christmas with, and this year her dream comes true as she says ‘I do’ to father-of-two Cole. But as she juggles her rapidly-growing business, wedding planning and the two new children in her life, her dream begins to unravel.
Emily is desperately waiting for the New Year to begin, so she can finally have a fresh start. She has always put her family first, leaving little time for happiness and love. When her beloved father Ray moves into a residential home, she discovers a photograph in his belongings that has the potential to change everything.
As past secrets come to light, will this be a magical Christmas for Emily and Merry to remember?
Read an excerpt.
Other books in this series:
