Chrissie used to love Christmas in her Swiss childhood home… until she lost her husband eight years ago. Add in a prolonged conflict with her sister Meg, and the holidays in the snowy Alps are just too hard to face. Now she’s in quiet Oxfordshire, focused on her daughter Sarah’s wedding.
But when Sarah runs away to her grandparents’ chalet just weeks before the big day, Chrissie heads to the mountains to help – and finds her estranged sister Meg there too. Usually in London at the helm of a thriving chocolate shop, Meg’s hiding the troubles of a tough year.
Trapped by snow in Winterbruck, the sisters must face old tensions, support Chrissie's daughter, and discover that family –and a little chocolate – can make even the coldest Christmas cosy.
I absolutely adore Christmas books and was excited to find this one from Helen Rolfe the first of many to appear in my kindle library this year. She is an author who always produces a heartwarming festive tale in an interesting setting. This story is set in Switzerland, and, I must warn other readers, is full of chocolate goodies as well as oodles of snow. It should really be read by a warm fire with a box of the confection close by.
This is very much a family story, featuring three generations. In the Swiss town of Winterbruck, grandparents Earl and Astrid (Grump and Nanna) are pleasantly surprised to receive a letter from granddaughter Sarah asking to come and stay over Christmas. She is due to get married on New Year’s Eve but her elderly grandparents will not be able to travel to England for the wedding, so they will be delighted to see her. Another surprise visitor turns up slightly after Sarah in the shape of her aunt Meg, who she has barely ever seen due to an estrangement between her and Sarah’s mother, Chrissie. Then, sensing that something is amiss with her daughter, Chrissie arrives on the doorstep. It is a long time since Chrissie has visited her childhood home, as it reminds her of her husband who she lost several years ago. The chalet is filled with tension as Earl and Astrid wonder what is going on with their daughters and granddaughter. It takes a near disaster for everything to come out in the open and begin to heal all the troubles.
This was a truly uplifting story brimming with family and friendship. In contrast to the cold snowy landscape outside, the Winterbruck chalet was full of warmth and love. I loved Sarah’s grandparents who looked on their family with affection and fed them lots of lovely local homemade favourites while they all worked out their problems. It was entertaining each time there was a knock at the door to guess who was there next. There was quite a crowd by the time the story ended. I liked the way in which the reader gradually learns what caused the estrangement between sisters Meg and Chrissie and what each of them has been doing in the interim. Sarah’s story also emerged in time. Being trapped by heavy snow was definitely beneficial for everyone to sort out their problems. The town of Winterbruck itself sounded absolutely amazing with its mountain views, snowy vistas and, importantly, chocolate shops; the author really had me wishing I could visit. I can highly recommend this as a book to add to your Christmas reading list.
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