The Perfect Christmas Village: An absolutely feel-good festive treat to curl up with this Christmas 2023

Product Information

She remembers a home on the Green whose owner recently passed away and she knows it will be sold. However, as it’s not currently listed for sale, she takes a chance and shows it to a man named Sam who wants to move to the area. She has a key to the house as she had promised the previous owner she would feed his feral cat, Turpin. It took a little time, but she finally got a call from a solicitor for the deceased and arranged to sell the house to Sam. As a matter of fact, she has a "show down" scene with Sweeney that is quite excellent and her second meeting with Macfarlane at a market is moving and sweet. Throughout, her scenes with Maesa Nicholson, playing her granddaughter are very well done and, at times, nicely humorous. Nicholson is an impressive young actress. I do love the setting and the enthusiasm they have for Christmas. There’s quite a lot of competitiveness and almost military-style planning to set up the annual event. The stakes are higher this time due to the contest. The village has an array of characters to bring enough variety to the setting. They add to the warmth and humor.

The perfect Christmas village is also the perfect Christmas novel. Combines a little bit of mystery, a lot of homey warm villagers, romance, and of course the perfect winter holiday. Another Hallmark movie to be! My thanks to Aria & Aries and NetGalley for the DRC of “The Perfect Christmas Village”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book. The village of Holly Cross was charming, and I would love to visit. It reminded me of a town where we stayed in Colorado. Maybe not to the extent of the Christmas decorations, but certainly the strong sense of community. The characters were all perfectly drawn to the point that I could almost feel some of the wonderful hugs that were passed around. However, I’m not going to discuss how delicious Norman’s sausage was! Sam was clear that he detested Christmas. He was the one Blythe hid the truth from. And yet, he was made out to be the villain (rather, the Grinch) of the story. Why? Not everyone likes (or needs to like) Christmas, and it was totally unfair of them to compel Sam to get involved. If I were in Sam’s position, I would have had a mental breakdown at the annoying intimidation of the villagers. It was strangely ironic to read a Christmas story with no sign of the Christmas spirit. I have read a number of Bella Osborne books now and when I saw her latest, The Perfect Christmas Village, I couldn’t resist.

Discover our other networks

Blythe is a real estate agent and competing for the top spot and she needs one more sale to grab the title. So she kind of sells Sam a house in her neighborhood under false pretenses. Sam hates everything Christmas and he just bought a house across the street from the epicenter of the most Christina’s village in England. Now Blythe has to work hard to make things right with Sam, while trying to persuade him not to be the Grinch. Christmas hating Sam moves to Holly Cross, thinking that he found the perfect house. But little does he know that Holly Cross turns into the most Christmassy village in the country. During the spring Blythe finally finds the perfect house for Sam Ashton a customer who has been looking for a house in the village for some time. The house belonged to Murray, an elderly man and good friend of Blythe’s who died suddenly while away on a birdwatching trip and was buried in Manchester under mysterious circumstances. Although she misses her friend and is still feeding the cat who lives in his garden, she is happy to find the perfect buyer for his house. While talking to Sam during the sale, he tells her he hates Christmas and everything to do with it but she decides not to tell him about the village’s love of Christmas and that everyone is expected to get involved.

Thanks to the author, Rachel's Random Resources, Aria & Aries and NetGalley for the ARC. I am voluntarily leaving my honest review*

Blythe doesn’t like it when a fellow agent records more sales than her. She is determined to be the Real Estate Agent of the Month and, in a desperate attempt, manages to sell a house to Sam Ashton (by hiding certain truths). While Sam loves the house, he doesn’t like Christmas. My favourite character has to be Turpin the feral cat. Murray was slowly getting him used to being around him when he passed. Blythe has promised to continue feeding him even though he lives in Sam's garden. Once he decides to live indoors he takes to sleeping in woks, pillowcases - while Sam's head is still on the pillow. He doesn't let Sam come down the stairs at one point or out of the utility room. The Perfect Christmas Village" by Bella Osborne is a heartwarming and picturesque holiday tale that transports readers to a world of idyllic charm and festive magic. With its cozy setting and endearing characters, this novel is a delightful addition to the Christmas romance genre.