*I was given a copy of Snowfall Over Halesmere House in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Canelo and Suzanne Snow*
Synopsis:
Welcome to Halesmere House, where romance might be just around the corner…
After years of living in the past, Ella is ready to start building a future. The perfect opportunity presents itself when she is offered a short-term role at Halesmere House in the Lake District, and tasked with kick-starting its artists’ residence. She can’t wait to start and explore a new career in an inspiring location.
But when Ella arrives at Halesmere, she wonders if she’s made a huge mistake after she clashes with Max, the new owner. Max has his own reasons to be unsettled by her presence, but despite his misgivings it seems everyone else loves having Ella around. As a single dad, it’s his children’s attachment to her that bothers him most. Who will pick up the pieces when Ella leaves?
What Max doesn’t know is that Ella is falling for more than just the Lake District and the community around her. Can her temporary job lead to a permanent happy ending?
Review:
Snowfall Over Halesmere House was extremely heartwarming. It took me some time to get into the story, but once I did I couldn’t put it down.
If you’ve been keeping up with my festive reviews then you will know I love a book with a small village and Snowfall Over Halesmere House has just that. I love how everyone in the village got involved with the re-opening of the house and it was interesting to hear about the products they made. It really made me want to live in a small village with a tiny shop that sells local produce.
At the beginning, Max asks Ella for a DBS certificate as she will be looking after his kids and she replies with ‘I sent off for one a week ago’. Oh, my sweet summer child that is not how it works, trust me I know I waited two months for mine. Not a bad point of the book, I just thought it was funny and worth a mention.
Parts of this story were a lot darker and sadder than I thought they would be. It’s good to have some proper depth and background for characters though. Hearing about Ella’s twin really fleshed out her character and after she showed she’s more than the happy front she puts on, I liked her more.
At first, I really wasn’t feeling the chemistry between Max and Ella and I couldn’t see how it would develop. He was quite rude to most of the people in his life and I didn’t like him much. However, as time went by their relationship begins to develop and it’s done so naturally that you don’t even realise it’s happening. Honestly, I was actually very impressed with the subtle changes in their characters and the way they interacted with each other.
If I had to choose a favourite character it would 100% be Lily, what a charming little girl. Often children in books are written to sound much older than they are, and although Lily did sound mature for her six years, she did act like a child. She was funny, charismatic and very loving. Both kids were cute but I feel like she kept the story going, especially when it came to keeping Ella around.
Snowfall Over Halesmere House was extremely festive and it really put me in the Christmas mood even though I read it in October. I really got the festive feeling once Halesmere House had been decorated for Christmas and when Lily had her winter wonderland birthday party. Beautiful descriptions leave you feeling warm and cosy and the heartfelt story of finding happiness is perfect to read during cold winter nights.
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[…] Like this post? Why not read this one too: The 12 Books of Christmas: Snowfall Over Halesmere House by Suzanne Snow […]