#BLOGTOUR - The Gift of Happiness by Holly Martin

Available Here

Christmas has arrived in the little village of Happiness, promising snowflakes, hot chocolate and plenty of seasonal romance. So snuggle up and fall in love with the gorgeously cosy new story from the bestselling author of Christmas at Lilac Cottage…

My Review:

One of the things that makes me really happy is snuggling up with a good book by one of my favourite authors. Holly Martin has given us wonderful stories and so many lovable settings and characters that  I was beside myself to be returning to the village of Happiness.

I loved discovering the fantastic community in Holly’s previous book – The Little Village of Happiness – and couldn’t wait to catch up with some of the characters I’d grown to love previously as well as getting the chance to discover more about Ruby.

We had already met Ruby, as she is Willows best friend who came to visit but now, she is opening her own Christmas decoration shop and moving to Happiness herself. I love the sense of community that has been created in Happiness, I just wish I could live there– everyone sounds kind, caring and they always get up to so much fun. I also love the gossip that builds about Ruby and Jacob it isn’t malicious (mostly) but their own way people are just trying to be encouraging and supportive, wanting the best for them both.

Ruby and Jacob has a brief ‘liaison’ in the previous book and its quite easy to see the chemistry and attraction is still there on both sides, but we discover why Ruby doesn’t ever want to commit and it appears pretty unlikely this partnership would ever be anything ‘proper.’. It’s an unexpected and painful experience that leaves Ruby unwilling to be with Jacob and I can fully understand her reluctance to ever bond deeply with Jacob. They do have an incredible spark, which means they develop a good bond, a solid friendship and although both have stronger desires, Jacob realises he must be patient if he ever stands a chance of having anything more.

This is full of festive frolics, but it isn’t your typical feel-good, romantic festive delight; it contains some deep and sensitive topics that I felt were addressed carefully and portrayed very realistically. I resonated with the character of Ruby, she is one I took to my heart immediately and although I adore Willow, Ruby will continue to be very special. I hope we will return to Happiness in the future.
Holly Martin has given us an amazing escape yet again, so enjoy, relax and treat yourself to this wonderful read.

Thank you to the author for a copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

Check out the rest of the blog tour!