I’m delighted to be part of the blog blitz for A Very Vintage Christmas, written by Tilly Tennant and published by Bookouture 🙂
Blurb:
The fairy lights are up and shoppers are flooding the snowy seaside promenade. It’s going to be a busy month at Forget-Me-Not Vintage, a magical shop with a warm heart where every item has a story to be told.
With bright red hair and an infectious smile, Dodie is a hopeless romantic and absolutely one of a kind, just like the pieces in her shop.
When Dodie finds a love letter in the pocket of an old woollen coat, she makes it her mission to deliver it to its rightful owner. Following the address, she manages to persuade the handsome but reluctant new tenant, Edward, to help her with her search.
As the story of the letter unfolds, Dodie is there, as always, to pick up the pieces and make things right. But who will be there for her when her own love story needs a helping hand?
Is it too much to dream of a happy ending like the ones in the black and white movies she adores?
If you’re looking for a sweep-you-off-your-feet romance that will warm you through and through then the door to Forget-Me-Not Vintage is always open. Perfect for fans of Jane Linfoot, Debbie Johnson and Jenny Colgan.
My Review:
When I first saw A Very Vintage Christmas and read the blurb, I had a good feeling about this and I was in no way disappointed, other than by it having to end. I loved this story, and feel a little sad that I’ve already read it, as I think as far as Christmas stories go, this one is going to take some beating. Really hoping I’m not underwhelmed by other Christmas books I read this year now.
This book is about a young woman who runs her own vintage shop, and one day discovers a really old letter from a man to the love of his life in the pocket of a vintage coat. The story follows the impact discovering such a letter has on Dodie and those around her. Are a few words between loved ones many years ago enough to change the course of her own life as well as others? Read the book to find out.
What I loved about this book is that it wasn’t just a romance. I adore Christmas books, but as the years go on, it seems increasingly difficult to find Christmas books that aren’t just romances set in December. I read Christmas books for the magic, compassion, charity, hope, friendship, family, festive cheer, perhaps a little mulled wine, and I’m pleased to say this book had all of those things. Yes, this is a romance, but it is also so much more than that.
I loved Dodie, and would definitely have been friends with her. I’ve dyed my hair all sorts of colours over the years. My natural colour is a mix of mousy and ginger, but my own ginger has turned a shocking white these days, so now I’m quite boring and just dye it all ginger, to make up for mine having turned white and also so I don’t have contrasting roots like I used to with the more vibrant reds, pinks and purples I used to dye it. I attempted turquoise about a decade ago, but it faded to pale green and I ended up looking like Orville. Not one of my finer moments, but one I think Dodie would have been amused by 🙂
I also appreciated Dodie disliking the word ‘babe’. I agree completely. The word makes me cringe and the husband is banned from calling me it under any circumstances. I’m feeling myself going the same way with ‘darling’, thanks to The Hotel Inspector.
I related to Dodie’s anxiety and depression. Life is too short and precious, and it was actually the death of my grandma just under a year ago, that changed the course of my own future, as I realised I couldn’t live down in Cornwall forever. I’m no longer truly happy down here, and need to be nearer family and friends, so now have plans to move back up to Yorkshire when the husband leaves the Navy in about five years. Of course, I will aim to make the most of the few years I have left down here, but the dream of moving back up north is what drives me and keeps me going.
I loved Dodie’s grandma. What a fun character she was. She did make me giggle. I also loved Nick, the homeless man too. There really were some great characters in this book.
This book also brought back memories, as my dad had a Monkees album on LP, which I loved playing as a child. Such catchy tunes. Also, my mum won the Butlins leg competition too, but in Skegness when she was in her late thirties. I was very young at the time, and it was so funny in my eyes seeing complete strangers looking at my mum the next day, recognising her as the winner of the competition the previous night.
A Very Vintage Christmas made me laugh, cry, feel sad and also filled me with that happy warm fuzzy feeling inside. I do love a story that can put me through all the emotions and this was a delight to read. If you want a Christmas story with romance plus a whole lot more, then this is the book for you. If I could give this more than 5 stars I would.
5 Stars
Where to find this book:
About the Author:
Tilly Tennant was born in Dorset, the oldest of four children, but now lives in Staffordshire with a family of her own. After years of dismal and disastrous jobs, including paper plate stacking, shop girl, newspaper promotions and waitressing (she never could carry a bowl of soup without spilling a bit), she decided to indulge her passion for the written word by embarking on a degree in English and creative writing. She wrote a novel in 2007 during her first summer break at university and has not stopped writing since. She also works as a freelance fiction editor, and considers herself very lucky that this enables her to read many wonderful books before the rest of the world gets them.
Hopelessly Devoted to Holden Finn was her debut novel; published in 2014 it was an Amazon bestseller in both the UK and Australia. In 2016 she signed to the hugely successful Bookouture and is currently working on her tenth Tilly Tennant novel. She also writes as Sharon Sant, where she explores the darker side of life, and Poppy Galbraith, where things get a little crazier. Find out more about Tilly and how to join her mailing list for news and exclusives at http://www.tillytennant.com
Where to find the author:
Here are the details of the blog blitz in case any of you wish to follow it:
LittleMissNoSleep Daydreams of Books 
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