Guest Review: Christmas for Beginners by Carole Matthews

IT'S THE MOST WONDERFUL TIME OF THE YEAR . . .

Christmas is fast approaching at the new Hope Farm. Owner Molly Baker has been convinced to organise an open day to raise some much-needed funds ahead of the New Year, but the nativity tableau is proving challenging. With anti-social sheep, awkward alpacas and a seriously sequined Santa Claus to assemble, Molly is feeling overwhelmed, and in desperate need of some Christmas spirit . . .

Despite the chaos of the farm getting in the way of her event planning, Molly is looking forward to spending the holidays with boyfriend Shelby and his son, Lucas, hopeful that a happy family Christmas is exactly what they need to draw them all together. But while she is busy making plans on the farm, Shelby, it seems, has ideas of his own.

As the nativity draws near, the team are working hard to pull off a spectacular festive fete - and make sure the animals and humans remain on their best behaviour.

Will this Christmas be merry and bright... or is there more than one surprise in store for Molly and Hope Farm?

Review: This book is a sequel to Happiness for Beginners by the same author. I really enjoyed that book and was looking forward to reading this one, especially as it is set at Christmas. When reviewing a sequel, it is difficult not to give away spoilers for the previous story, but I’ll do my best. Safe to say that the same characters are present in this book, with a few interesting additions. This book must be a contender for most attractive and most Christmassy cover of the year. It just begs the beholder to pick up the book and read.

Once again, the story revolves around Molly Blake and her farm which is populated by abandoned or donated animals, some of whom have ‘interesting’ personalities. Molly opens her gates to children with problems of their own, sharing their care with a few others, including difficult teenager and budding poet Lucas Dacre. Lucas’s father, Shelby, is Molly’s partner, but, as an actor, is frequently absent from their lives. Christmas is going to be busier than ever for Molly this year, as she has been persuaded to run an open day on the farm with a festive theme to raise some much needed cash. With Shelby away pursuing his acting career, the local mayor, Matt, steps up to help with the event. He is interested in the farm in general and helping in any way he can. Predictably, organising the open day throws up problems along the way, from both humans and animals, and Molly has to cope with some really serious issues. She wonders if the event will ever come together, and, as Christmas approaches, what the future holds for her with father and son Shelby and Lucas.

This is a lovely, cosy Christmas read, with a nice mix of drama, romance, comedy and animal antics. You wouldn’t need to read the previous book in the series to make sense of this one, but I was glad that I had; together they make a lovely set. It was good to see Molly coping a little better with her farm and life outside it. Nice also that Lucas was still on the scene, but he was really difficult to deal with on his off days; I was impressed by Molly’s patience in dealing with him. The reader is treated to a selection of his poems at appropriate times throughout the book. My dislike of Shelby from the last book grew even more here. Poor Molly has a difficult time playing referee when Shelby and Lucas meet up. I was glad to see another, more suitable, man turning up in Molly’s life. I think this heartwarming book would make an ideal Christmas present to another reader (or even to yourself).

To order your copy now, just click the link: UK or US

Guest Review: Happiness for Beginners by Carole Matthews

Molly Baker is living her best life.

Thirty-eight years old, she lives on the twenty-five-acre Hope Farm in Buckinghamshire, surrounded by (mostly) four-legged friends and rolling hills. There's Anthony the anti-social sheep, Tina Turner the alpaca with attitude, and the definitely-not-miniature pig, Teacup.

Molly runs the farm as an alternative school for kids who haven't thrived in mainstream education. It's full on, but she wouldn't have it any other way. So when the well-groomed Shelby Dacre turns up at Hope Farm asking to enrol his son Lucas, Molly isn't fazed.

But Lucas is distant and soon Molly realises he might be more of a handful than she anticipated. And then there's the added problem that his dad is distractingly handsome. Molly has her beloved farm to think of - could letting Lucas and Shelby in be a terrible mistake, or the start of something wonderful?

Review: I always enjoy Carole Matthews’s books and sat down to read this one full of anticipation. I loved the idea of a farm full of animals who had personality problems but had found a loving home and were material in helping children with difficulties find a purpose in life. To find that the fictional farm in the story was based on a real-life project was an added bonus.

In this story, Molly Blake is living on Hope Farm with her assortment of animals and running it as a centre for children of various ages with autism, learning difficulties or mental health problems. The children help Molly and adult helpers with caring for the animals and the farm itself. Molly is happy with her life, except for the constant worry about having enough money to keep going. She certainly doesn’t live in luxury in her old caravan which is lacking in the most basic facilities. When local TV star and widower Shelby Dacre turns up at the farm with problem teenage son Lucas, things begin to change in Molly’s world. Lucas is a very difficult person to deal with, but as she learns more about him and his background, she begins to grow fond of him and also his handsome father.

I can highly recommend this heartwarming story. It is brimming with great characters, both human and animal. I liked the way in which the story is written; it’s just like Molly is having a chat with the reader. She is very sensitive when talking about and dealing with her charges, but there is also a great amount of humour in the book. The animals have some wonderful names suited to their appearance or personality. I found Molly a likeable person, but I was a bit concerned by her living conditions. It was nice to see her coming out of her shell a bit more as the story progressed, and I loved the relationship she built up with Lucas. Shelby was an interesting character, handsome and rich, but with as many problems as his son; I couldn’t say that I liked or trusted him. I was never sure if he would become romantically involved with Molly. I was really pleased to find that this book has a festive sequel; I’m looking forward to finding out what happens to the trio, to say nothing of the animals, especially the naughty alpacas.

To order your copy now, just click the link: UK or US