Book Review: Christmas at the Village Sewing Shop by Helen Rolfe

While there maybe a strict no Christmas rule in The Enchanted Emporium until 1st December, it doesn’t extend into the courtyard outside. Sitting next to the enchanted lending library, Rosa’s Box of Romance has been decorated with fairy lights and tinsel to reflect the books inside. It’s full of this year’s festive treats for visitors to borrow or exchange including Christmas at the Village Sewing Shop by Helen Rolfe thanks to Random Things Tours.

Rosa is excited to share her honest and unbiased review as part of the blog tour.

Christmas at the Village Sewing Shop by Helen Rolfe

Title: Christmas at the Village Sewing Shop

Author: Helen Rolfe

Publisher: Orion

Genre: Romance, Festive

Release Date: 22^nd October 2022

Blurb

Can three sisters stitch their family back together?

Loretta has run the little sewing shop in Butterbury for years, while bringing up her three headstrong daughters. Her own grandmother taught her how to quilt, and Loretta always found time to sit with Daisy, Ginny and Fern, pulling together scraps of material – and their hopes and dreams – into a beautiful whole.

But this Christmas the family is coming apart at the seams: Fern feels like she’s failing at motherhood and marriage; Ginny’s passion for her job as a midwife is fading, Daisy is keeping two very different secrets – and most of all, Loretta seems to be hiding something from her daughters…

As they come together to create a beautiful new festive quilt, memories are stirred, the bonds between sisters healed, and new friendships woven. But when Loretta reveals the real reason she’s gathered them all back to the sewing shop, can the sisters mend the quilt, and their family, in time for Christmas?

Full of kindness, community and festive magic, this is a treat to curl up with this Christmas! Perfect for fans of Cathy Bramley, Jenny Colgan and Ali McNamara

Thoughts from the Emporium

The title and blurb drew Rosa in thanks, in part to the recent chat in the shop about the special meaning quilts after the history of Willow’s beloved childhood patchwork quilt was revealed in Old Jax’s Quilt. It promised to be as cosy and warming as the quilt the sisters were making and it didn’t disappoint. Christmas at the Village Sewing Shop was a delightful and heart-warming start to Rosa’s festive reading.

The Sewing Box is an ideal setting for a festive read and made a refreshing read from the usual bakery or café. The family business was built on love and community which showed in the colourful and detailed descriptions of the shop and the sisters’ current and past sewing projects. Reading about how memories were held in each patch encouraged Rosa to pick up a needle and begin some festive projects of her own to create heirlooms and traditions for her small family including her own version of an advent calendar. For readers who have a creative side, this novel is an inspiring Christmas treat.

The village and wintery landscape also extended the feeling of escapism away from the family home and the sense of community and care was just what was needed in these troubling times.

Told in all the sisters and their mum, Loretta’s, point of view it gave an insight into each life, motivation and reason for drifting apart which made Rosa invested in a happy ending. They’re all relatable characters especially Fern with her desire for perfection and Loretta for a close knit family again.  It tugged at the heart. While there is a thread of romance through this book, the focus is on the bond sisters can have, idyllic locations, friendship and a tight knit community where healing and love can flourish.

It’s ideal for the dark evenings, snuggled under a duvet with hot chocolate or festive tea.

Author Biography

Helen Rolfe

Helen Rolfe writes contemporary women’s fiction and enjoys weaving stories about family, friendship, secrets, and community. Characters often face challenges and must fight to overcome them, but above all, Helen’s stories always have a happy ending

Social media

Twitter @HJRolfe

Website www.helenjrolfe.com

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Book Extract: More than Mistletoe by The Christmas Collective

Now the Halloween celebrations are over, the Emporium’s focus is on the colder and darker evenings, as we head towards winter and Yule. Unlike many shops, Willow is adamant they won’t decorate for Christmas until December. While it infuriates Amber who wants to put the Yule tree up now, the shop provides an oasis of calm amidst the frenzy and festive delights springing up in neighbouring streets in Whitby. It also ovoid upsetting the tree spirits. There is enough chaos in the shop with the ongoing feud between Black Cat and Vincent, and Mrs Marley’s interference without adding avenging spirits to the mix.

Christmas isn’t completely banned, new festive books are appearing on the Enchanted Emporium’s bookshelf and in Rosa’s Box of Romance. Some of the best romances cover this magical season. More than Mistletoe by The Christmas Collective has arrived, courtesy of Rachel’s Random Resources and Rosa is excited to share an extract with you, to tempt you to read further.

More than Mistletoe by The Christmas Collective

Title: More than Mistletoe

Author: The Christmas Collective

Release Date: 25th October 2021

Purchase Link – http://mybook.to/morethanmistletoe

Blurb

Cosy up for Christmas with 12 very different tales of love with all the festive feels!

More than Mistletoe, the debut anthology from The Christmas Collective, is an eclectic and inclusive mix of stories, with swoon-worthy characters, second chances and happy endings.

Between the pages, you will discover classic romance, festive thrillers, LGBTQ+ love stories, hilarious romcoms and historical settings, these stories really do span the whole spectrum of festive fiction.

Featuring twelve up and coming new authors, this refreshing, diverse and romantic read, is a must-have read that will leave you reaching for your Christmas jumper, gingerbread cookies and a mug of hot chocolate!

Extract from More than Mistletoe

This extract is taken from Lumikinos by Lucy Alexander. This is the opening story in the More Than Mistletoe anthology. In this beautifully atmospheric tale, Erica finds herself caught in a snowstorm in the Cotswolds on Christmas Eve. When the traffic grinds to a halt, Erica and the other stranded drivers support each other through the long wait. An immediate connection with one particular driver, the handsome Jack, feels so right, it’s almost as if a force as great as Christmas itself is trying to bring them together.

Extract from ‘More Than Mistletoe’: Lumikinos by Lucy Alexander

‘Any news?’ called Jack, as he helped Erica down the steep bank.

Erica spotted the man in the orange hard hat moving down the line with a lantern.

‘No news,’ he called back. ‘Won’t be getting out of here tonight after all, I’m afraid. Plough’s fixed but couldn’t shift it. They’re sending the big one from Oxford first thing. Reckon you’ll be out of here in time for your Christmas dinner, though, okay?’

Jack nodded.

Erica sighed – but perhaps not quite so heavily as she would have earlier. ‘So … now what?’ she asked.

Jack shrugged. ‘I guess we’d better call our families,’ he suggested.

‘Yes. Yes, you’re right.’ Erica nodded. She took a step towards her Clio, which was now almost completely buried in snow.

‘And then …’ Jack rubbed the back of his neck. ‘Do you maybe want to have a drink or something? I’ve got some Baileys in the car. I was going to give it to my mum for Christmas but … well, looks like we’ll be here for a long time, and would be nice to have some company. You don’t have to, though …’

Erica smiled. ‘No, that would be great.’

Half an hour and some uncomfortable phone calls later, Erica found herself sitting with Jack in his Land Rover, sipping Baileys out of their plastic keep cups and talking as though they had known each other for years, not hours.

It turned out that Jack worked in the city and had gone to the same university as one of Erica’s housemates, and she was pleased to learn that his flat wasn’t too far from her studio. She wasn’t usually much of a chatterbox, but Jack was easy to talk to, and they were just comparing their families’ Christmas traditions when there was a cheerful knock on the window. The glass was completely covered in snow and condensation; Erica opened it to find a group of their fellow drivers, including the Werther’s Originals lady, beaming at them.

‘Hello, dears!’ she cried. ‘We’re all having a campfire and a few nibbles. Would you like to join us?’

Erica and Jack were only too glad to join the others gathered around the campfire – which turned out to be a blazing pile of bracken and old newspaper that some enterprising person had set fire to with a lighter. One person was melting snow in a travel kettle to make tea, and someone else was passing around a tin of roasted chestnuts. Erica toasted her fingertips and felt her toes begin to thaw as she and Jack stood beside the flames. She couldn’t help smiling – strangers were sharing hipflasks and swapping Christmas stories, and if it hadn’t been for the circumstances, Erica would have thought this was rather a nice way to spend Christmas Eve.

Erica and Jack were both hungry, but they too shared what little food they had – a box of M&S biscuits which Jack had bought for his grandmother, and an assortment of Christmas treats that Erica had got from the Bath Christmas market. Erica had also bought a cuddly toy reindeer at the market as a gift for her nephew; this she gave to a little girl whose mother was at the end of her wits trying to settle her down to sleep in the back of their car. Around the same time, a rather sweet old man with an ancient Austin remarked that his heater was broken, so Jack and another driver got out their toolboxes and helped him to fix it.

Later, someone pulled out a guitar, and everyone who wasn’t busy lending blankets and extra clothes to those less well-prepared, gathered back around the fire to join in a spot of spontaneous carolling. Erica was no songbird, but she enjoyed listening to Jack’s tuneful voice as he stood singing beside her.

As the final notes of “In the Bleak Midwinter” soared up towards the starry skies, Jack turned to her and murmured that it was getting late.

Erica felt suddenly warm, and she didn’t think it was because of the fire. Looking up at Jack, she smiled somewhat nervously. ‘It is late,’ she agreed.

‘Do you want to go to bed?’ he asked, then he laughed awkwardly. ‘Er – sorry – I mean, are you tired?’

Erica blushed. She was glad of the firelight flickering over her face. ‘I’m not tired,’ she lied. She found herself longing for the night not to be over just yet.

Image by Lidia from Pixabay

Author Biography

‘The Christmas Collective is a group of twelve romance authors who came together when shortlisted for a festive romance competition. Together they have created two Christmas Romance anthologies, More Than Mistletoe (2021) and The Mistletoe Mixtape (2022).

The Christmas Collective authors are spread far and wide, across the UK, Ireland, Spain and South Korea, however, one thing connects them despite the distance: a love of romance and Christmas.’

Website

http://thechristmascollective.co/wordpress/

Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/thechristmascoll

Twitter

https://twitter.com/ChristmasCo2022

Instagram

https://instagram.com/christmasco22?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

TikTok

https://www.tiktok.com/@christmasco2022?_t=8V3OdLw3XWQ&_r=1

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