A good Christmas story overall, but did find it skimmable at times. Not exactly sure why. Did want to see how it ends, but the idea of a landlord wanting to take over and covert the buildings wasn't my favorite plot. Still though, a good romance and did like the main characters. Would recommend.

This was a sweet story that was very predictable, but lovely nonetheless. I love these stories, where you can start the book and never put it down, and this was one of those.

A lovely festive read I would highly recommend.
Well developed relatable characters, great location, pure escapism in a book .
The perfect book to get in the Christmassy mood. I was rooting for the characters.
Loved it !
Thank you to Netgalley, Embla Books, and Lucy Coleman for letting me read this book in exchange for an honest review

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book. I have chosen to write this honest review voluntarily and it reflects my personal opinion.
This book by Lucy Coleman is a good example of how lucky we chicklit readers are to have so many talented British writers, especially in the Boldwood publishing house. The story is unique, starting with the sleigh ride that is used to collect gifts for struggling families. I have visited both Fort William and Loch Awe and the setting is described accurately, including the peace and serenity, it's very beautiful. The story about the shop lease and premises is realistic, and the characters portrayed well (albeit that there are quite a few - at one stage I thought this was part of a series and I ought to have 'met' some of them.previously!), although there are so many that a 'who's who' at the beginning might have been helpful. A couple of things struck me as odd (the reference to Isla sending Belle to speak to the McPhersons which was never continued, and Fiona's accident which seems to be a secret) but in general I found the book interesting as well as enjoyable. I particularly liked the epilogue which ties up loose ends. I've now signed up to follow this author!

'Christmas at the Highland Flower Shop' is a fabulous festive read that will be enjoyed by many. It has romance, tension, and festivities - a great combination for any story!

A brilliant read and one I really enjoyed. The characters are loveable and varied, the plot is one that is engaging and medium paced. I found myself completely drawn into the story and enjoyed the writing style.

This is such a lovely story; the author's descriptions transported me to the snowy Scottish Highlands and quickly immersed me in the lives of the residents of a charming village. I enjoyed reading this book. Full of fully-formed, believable characters and with a storyline that held my interest from beginning to end. This is a great winter read.

Christmas at the Highland Flower Shop by Lucy Coleman

I received an advance review copy for free thanks to NetGalley and Embla Books and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Blurb

Four months. One impossible task. It's time to save Christmas.

Bella Reed has worked at The Highland Flower Shop ever since she left college and now her Aunt Jane has handed the keys and the lease over to her. With the business under her reign, Bella is ready to hit the ground running - until she's dealt a massive blow. They're being evicted.

When dashing businessman Maverick McIntyre turns up in Fort William, Bella discovers the reason they're being kicked out. He has no intention of honouring a ridiculous deal his father made many years ago.

As Maverick and Bella lock horns, they both begin to see different sides to one another and before long the two strike up the most unexpected of friendships. Bella knows she has to keep business separate, but when her head and her heart are saying two different things, life starts to get complicated.

No matter her feelings, Bella isn't about to let anyone down and the entire town's counting on her to save Christmas.

My Opinion

This is such a lovely story. Bella is trying to find up with a way to save the Santa Sleigh Ride as well as the flower shop that sells Christmas decorations all year round. Reading this I feel like I have just visited the snowy Scottish Highlands. I'd recommend reading this with a nice festive drink, surrounded by Christmas decorations.

Rating 4/5

Christmas at The Highland Flower Shop by Lucy Coleman was a great book to get you in the Christmas spirit. I was very quickly transported to the Scottish Highlands where Bella takes over a flower shop but life doesn’t pan out as she expected. A great book to escape into.

I really wanted to love this book but I just couldn’t. The main story was all a bit flimsy and I didn’t love the characters.

Bella has worked in The Highland Flower Shop since she left college now her Aunt Jane has left her the business to run. Happy to be in charge she is delt a blow when she discovers they are being evicted from the premises.

When Maverick McIntyre turns up, the reason they are being evicted, Bellla and he lock horns. However, they realise they need one another to navigate the locals and save Christmas for the village.

A lovely festive read.

This book was sent to me electronically by Netgalley for review. Thanks to the publisher for the copy. What a gorgeous book! The author has a great gift for characterisation - nuanced, interesting, believable people but created with a charming lightness of touch. Thanks to a great author we have warmth, wisdom and emotional intelligence, this festive book was a huge pleasure to read!

What a truly lovely story.

You might think it is the regular sort of a book about a shop that is coming up against a corporation, and know exactly how it ends but I am delighted to say that the route Lucy Coleman takes with this book kept me on my toes at all times, and in terms of the Flower Shop and the Sleigh Ride certainly didn't turn out how I would have thought at the start.

It took me a while to get into this story completely, I found it slow to get going and just felt like it may have had too many pages. I would have loved less deliberating over business decisions and more about the charitable sleigh ride, or just generally more of a feeling of Christmas.

It's a good book, I enjoyed it but I have read so many books from this author that I have enjoyed more, it just didn't properly mesh well with me.

I enjoyed the development of Maverick and getting to know his family. I also loved seeing how Holly's story developed. I think it was just Bella that I just didn't gel with.

I did though enjoy the Highlands setting and some of the descriptions were really good and I could conjure up the images in my minds eye quite easily.

Thank you to Embla Books and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

Bella is handed the keys to her aunts flower shop that is a huge drawer for the local community with their Santa sleigh ride that is housed in part of the shop floor. When they get an eviction notice Bella has to try hard to save the shop and the Christmas heritage.
You could just imagine the beautiful aromas in the shop and the Winter Wonderland extravaganza that she is trying to preserve.
A lovely festive read.

A heart warming Christmas read. I throughly enjoyed it and was wlling the characters to succeed.I loved the idea of the Highland Express and enjpyed seeing Bella navigate her way through her problems. A cosy feel good Christmas read with the advantage of a Highland setting.

Bella has inherited her aunt's flower shop as her aunt Jane wants to go abroad for her retirement early but unfortunately they don't realise that there are terms in the lease which means it isn't going to be as easy as that
Maverick McIntyre whose uncle's company owns the building the flower shop gives Bella an eviction notice as the lease has now changed
Hoping to sort things out and re lease the shop Bella invites Maverick to look around, unfortunately there is a small demonstration outside from some of the locals trying to help which wasn't what Bella needed
Can they work things out as a business interest or do feelings start to run deeper than that ?

I was excited to read a book set in Fort William, because I love it up there, but although Coleman does the scenic description of Loch Awe etc. well, I don't think she captured the flavour of Fort William. Nor did I really get a strong sense of chemistry between Maverick and Bella. I enjoyed the story of what was to become of the flower shop. In summary, there was enough of a story to hold my attention, but I do wish the romance had been more uplifting. One last thing, I didn't always know who was speaking, but that could be the fault of the formatting, which will hopefully be corrected. With thanks to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A quick and easy escape from everyday life. This sweet story of perseverance, family, and love brought the characters to life. I found myself rooting for the characters throughout and the book left me with a smile. A great way to start the holiday mood.

I usually love everything I've read by Lucy Coleman, but this one just didn't resonate with me for some reason. I wasn't really that engaged with the characters or the story. I'm not sure why, most of her stories are terrific feel good stories, but this one just didn't grab me. I found most of the characters to be annoying stereotypes and didn't really care one way or another about them.

Christmas at the Highland Flower Shop is my first Lucy Coleman book and won’t be my last.

If you are looking to get into the holiday spirit and feel like you are in a Hallmark movie, this is the book for you.

I felt like Bella and Maverick’s relationship was completely authentic and wasn’t insta love, which I was happy about. Their journey really was beautiful.