Veena’s review of The Christmas Sisters by Sarah Morgan
Women’s Fiction published by HQN 25 Sep 18
This book is a departure from Ms. Morgan’s usual romance novels. I admit I had a hard time getting off the ground with it, but fortunately Ms. Morgan’s writing style, with all its elements of laughter and tears and sizzling dialogue, finally peeked through and saved the day.
Suzanne struggles with the excitement of having her three daughters home for Christmas and with the stress of creating a perfect holiday. Beth, Hannah, and Posy all have their own strong feelings of what the holiday means for them.
Poor Hannah always trying to over compensate for not being enough for her biological parents creates a perfect sterile life where work reigns supreme. Love however has a way of sneaking through and when she finds she’s pregnant she finds herself heading home. As Hannah works through her relationships with her sisters and mother, can love set her free? I loved the dancing pizza girl nickname.
Beth, once a successful career woman, is now a housewife raising two beautiful children and dreaming of going back to work, when her husband throws a bombshell in her face. She too flees home to her safe place, leaving her husband to deal with the angst of being a true father to their daughters. I absolutely love all the cameo moments between this family and the characters of those little girls. Totally adorable.
Posy is too young to remember the tragedy that shaped her sisters and mother and seems to be content and happy on the surface, but, as we find out, she has her own dreams and fears that she’s kept buried. With Suzanne sick with the flu, the three sisters finally bond. I love the interaction between them as they love and fight with each other as only siblings can.
Readers get a chance to drill down into the heart of each of the four characters and understand their fears, their joys, and their dreams. As we get through the quagmire of emotional baggage strewn with a lot of funny moments and emerge on the other side, we are left with the satisfaction of a tale well told. This is a Christmas story with all the messages of joy, love, and forgiveness that the season is all about.
Grade: B+
Summary:
Can they make this the Christmas their mother always dreamed of?In the snowy Highlands of Scotland, Suzanne McBride is dreaming of the perfect cozy Christmas. Her three adopted daughters are coming home for the holidays and she can’t wait to see them. But tensions are running high…
Workaholic Hannah knows she can’t avoid spending the holidays with her family two years in a row. But it’s not the weight of their expectations that’s panicking her, it’s the life-changing secret she’s hiding. Stay-at-home mom Beth is having a personal crisis. All she wants for Christmas is time to decide if she’s ready to return to work-seeing everyone was supposed to help her stress levels, not increase them! Posy isn’t sure she’s living her best life, but with her parents depending on her, making a change seems risky. But not as risky as falling for gorgeous new neighbor Luke…
As Suzanne’s dreams of the perfect McBride Christmas unravel, she must rely on the magic of the season to bring her daughters together. But will this new togetherness teach the sisters that their close-knit bond is strong enough to withstand anything-including a family Christmas?
