Thank you for my eARC. This was an enjoyable, festive read (that I read in spring, I know), and was lovely for a bit of wintery escapism.

Lovely to back in Nightingale Square with characters old and new. Full of romantic moments and produces and the good feels. This is part of a series but can easily be read alone and if you are a fan of the authors back list some other recognisable locations are featured. Easy to read but hard to put down. Really enjoyable.

Thank you Netgalley

That Festive Feeling - Heidi Swain

As always this author knows how to hit the cosy spot right on the head! Another great indulgent book, with heart-warming characters, beautiful picturesque settings and adorable pets. I really enjoyed the slow burn self growth from the main character Holly and the way this was intertwined with making a new friendship with May and also a budding romance with Bear (May's Son). The attention to detail was a delight (especially enjoyed the Sunday lunch delivery and fun Christmas slippers instead of jumpers) this all added to the warm hug this book provided me.
Thank you so much Simon & Schuster UK and Netgalley for this e-arc in return for my honest thoughts and opinions.

It wouldn't be Christmas without a Heidi Swain, and this book does not disappoint. In fact I think Heidi Swain never disappoints. Her books transport you away to beautiful places and with great communities and characters to like, love and despise all in equally measure. Such joy.

In this latest novel, we are back in Nightingale Square, where Holly is house sitting for two of the residents. She is keeping herself to herself this Christmas, that is until she meets May when she is out walking. May, walking her dachshund is also new to the area and Holly and May strike a friendship up.

When Holly meets Bear and his rescue dog in the local pub, it seems the quiet Christmas Holly was planning is not going to be possible. The community is determined that Holly can take part at least some of the festivities. Holly though resists, but when she finds herself enjoying her life in Nightingale Square, she needs to make some decisions about her future.

A perfect festive read.

That Festive Feeling by Heidi Swain

I received an advance review copy for free thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster UK and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Blurb

Holly has the place to herself this Christmas. It’s not her place, though – she is house-sitting for friends who live on Nightingale Square – just there to keep the place warm and cosy and only for long enough for her to sort her life out. Newly single and finding herself unsure about next steps for her career, she plans to hunker down and make some life decisions.

To clear her mind, she sets off on early morning walks around a nearby lake and bumps into May, an older lady who is also new to the area, and her dapper Dachshund Monty. Quickly, a firm friendship blossoms. Then when Holly meets Bear, a rather large and rather attractive man, at the local pub, and his rescue dog Queenie, her stay at Nightingale Square suddenly feels even more appealing.

As the community comes together for the season’s festivities, Holly must start thinking about where her life will take her next. Some big decisions need to be made, but distractions close to home make thinking about the future more tricky than ever…

Will she get that festive feeling this Christmas…?

My Opinion

Christmas is always a lovely time in Nightingale Square, and it was lovely to catch up with some old favourites as well as meeting the new characters. This could easily be read as a standalone, however it is better when read as part of the series. This is filling with Christmas spirit and will make for a great read over the festive season.

Rating 4/5

Holly thought she had her life all planned out, but then her now ex-husband changed his mind about their future and she is now preparing to move back to her family home as she tries to figure out what to do next. Her relationship with her parents is not warm or close and she is not very looking forward to living with them, so when her friends ask her to housesit their house in Nightingale Square, Holly is happy to accept. All Holly wants is to be left alone as she decides about her future, but it’s not very easy when her new neighbours are determined to involve her in the community activities. And, as she finds new friends, including the lovely May and her adorable stylishly-dressed Dachshund Monty, and the handsome new gardener Bear with its unique horse box home, Holly realizes that maybe she doesn’t need to be alone at Christmas.

This is the perfect novel to read in front of a fire with a blanket and a mug of chocolate in your hands. I spent hours happily immersed in the stories, secrets, and matchmaking of the residents at Nightingale Square. Having read some of the author’s previous novels, I was happy to see some of the characters again and read what they are up to, and being introduced to new ones.

I liked the character of Holly. Newly divorced and without a home, she needs to decide about her career and her life and meeting new friends help her make choices and develop.

That Festive Feeling is a fantastic, heartwarming, and delightful Christmas novel that you will enjoy from start to finish. Highly recommended!

Holly is single but certainly doesn’t want to mingle as she is hurting from a break up and is homeless so when her friends ask her to house sit in Nightingale Square over Christmas she agrees hoping for isolation and quiet.
On a walk one morning she meets May and her charming daschund Monty and a friendship is born leading to her peace and quiet becoming anything but

I generally love Heidi Swain's writing so was delighted to be approved to read her latest. Unfortunately though it wasn't my favourite by her. I did like some the characters, particularly May and her gorgeous dog - I would love a whole book just about them! I just found this didn't feel as festive as I was expecting and the two main characters were a little annoying, and I found their storylines a bit repetitive. I enjoyed moments of the novel but as a whole it just felt a bit long. I will definitely read more by the author in the future but this one just wasn't really for me.

I was worried that I had grown out of Heidi Swain after the last couple I read had not sparked the joy they usually do but this one really sparked and set me alight, I loved it!

I love a festive read and although they generally are cheesy, that’s the cosy comfort you need at this time of year.

Heidi has packed it all into this book, there’s hunky men, cute dogs, loveable characters and so much festive cheer.

I really hope that she will revisit the character May at some point as I absolutely loved her, there must be more to come from her.

Basically this is a perfect Xmas read!

Another Smash Hit from Heidi, i love the way we revisit favourite settings and bring new characters to life there, this follows Holly and her coming to terms with a divorce and learning to trust in herself, the way the characters evolve and are so likable, I am always eager to ready the next story in the lives of these characters

With a book by Heidi you can't go wrong, she always gives us a great story and one to be really enjoyed. This is well worth 5 stars.

Thanks to Netgalley, author and publisher for this ARC

I enjoyed this festive read and loved the way the story unfolded. A long book but, one I got into quickly. I loved e Heidi's books and this one didn't disappoint. My thanks to netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

What a wonderful Christmas read by a favourite author of mine. Holly is house-sitting this Christmas and is trying to find her feet again so goes for walks around the lake. here she bumps into May, an older lady new to the area, and so a friendship begins.

This is such a poignant story about starting fresh, making decisions and living life. It is about friendship and community, it is a feel good read and I loved all the characters (old and new) which brought the story to life. The setting, the dog, Christmas. It all made me want to be there with these friends who help each other and support each other. I just really warmed to this book and loved reading it.

A great holiday read and although quite a long book it was a book that I enjoyed reading and found quite entertaining as well. 4 1/2 stars from me.

Thank you NetGalley and Simon and Schuster UK for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

Light hearted Christmas story.....friendship, community spirit and love all tied into this one book! Very pleasant to read and ut gives you a warm feeling in your tummy!!

As always, Heidi has delivered a perfect festive feel-good book!

I adored the characters, new and old, canine and human! Monty was a particular favourite as I have a mini dachshund, too. Holly was a delight, and May was joyous!

I always love being back in Nightingale Square, especially at Christmas time! I so wished I lived there!

This is my first festive read of the year, and it has started me off well! I'm all warm and cosy now!

A new book in the NIghtingale Square, yuppi, right?
Not so.

The first half of the book was slow, very slow and felt very repetitive. The second half of the book felt also slow, to be honest, but at least felt less repetitive. Although it was actually all the same, only put in different words, repeating the same situations, getting back and back again to the same thoughts and problems. The character of Bear was absolutely not my pair of shoes, assuming things, deciding about things and altogether feeling very flat and gah, and all the other characters, oh my god, they felt so stereotyped!

I finished reading this book two days ago and already forgot about it. Sadly. I was expecting something more and not same old, same old. I think I am probably too old for Heidi Swain's books - her characters don't grow up with me, like those of many others authors, where they mature and have other, more realstic, problems. I'm not saying it's bad or wrong, I'm just saying that I am probably not the right audience for Swain's books anymore. Yes, it was festive, yes, it was heart - warming, but mostly it was lifeless.

As always the most delightful Christmas read from Heidi! I look forward to these every year and this didn't disappoint.
A visit to Nightingale square had me feeling a little sad thinking that Holly initially didn't want to join in with the other residents, but I was soon happy as she was pulled into the community and festivities. I loved all the links to the previous books, even with a visit to Wynters trees!
A proper festive cracker, with love, alternative ideas and some serious Christmas tradition thrown in! The characters were fabulous, you felt as if you were visiting old friends with the people featured in previous books, but my absolute favourite, had to be May, she is an absolute triumph! Then Heidi swings in with additions of the adorable Queenie (my fave dog breed) and her little and unlikely, daxi sidekick and its just the cherry on the top!
Another fabulous book to cozy up with, to really get you in the festive spirit!

Want to get into the festive spirit? Heidi Swain’s books will always leave you feeling ready for the season and ‘That Festive Feeling’ is just perfect for doing just that.
Having created many wonderful settings for us, Nightingale Square is so special and even more so at Christmas time. It’s a strong community with a great cast of characters (or friends as us Swainettes see them).
Holly is a great addition to the characters we love so much. She is housesitting for characters we already have come to know a little about and all she wants is to hide herself away, have a quiet time to evaluate her life/options for roving forward. She is adamant that she will not be drawn in to all the frolics and activities in the square, not matter how much any of the neighbours try to cajole her. Even I know this is not realistic with the Nightingale Square residents and soon Holly is finding herself getting involved.
Holly does strive for some quiet independence and soon becomes friends with a dog walker called May. May is the absolute best, what a colourful breath of fresh air she is, I adore her and would love to have her tenacity and character. The bond formed between these two characters is gorgeous, really so heart warming and it’s very clear both are helping each other in so many ways.
After a collision with Bear, Holly’s festive season is about to get busier and perhaps a little more complicated than she expected. Bear lives in an ‘alternative’ home and is quite keen to show Holly she has options she had never considered.
An absolutely gorgeous story with friendship at the heart of it all. Encouraging people to take chances, make changes and putting a bit of trust in other people again. Although it is a romance, it gives us so much more – comedy, drama, heart warming messages of kindness and compassion. A story to inspire people to follow their hearts and dreams, think outside the box and to always add a little more colour to their lives.
Left me feeling all warm and fuzzy. Another Heidi Swain classic!!

Another trip to nightingale square but this one didn’t grab me from the beginning. I found it to be a slow burner but it picked up the pace about halfway through. I enjoyed the blossoming romance between Bear and Holly and there were some delightful characters in the book. I especially loved May and the dogs Monty and Queenie. Bear was also very endearing. I’d love to have seen the dog illustrations that Holly had drawn and the book would obviously be a best seller!
An enjoyable read for Christmas time.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me to read this book.

Thanks to netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Another great read from Heidi,

Holly is house-sitting for friends in Nightingale Square over Christmas. She is looking forward to having the place to herself and to have some rest and recuperation and to sort her life out following a tough few months.
Nightingale Square has other ideas, she first meets May who is also new to the area while she is walking around a nearby lake. May and Holly begin an unexpected friendship and help each other to move forward. Holly helps May to meet new friends by introducing her to the residents of Nightingale Square. Meanwhile Holly meets Bear and his rescued dog Elsie, little does she know he is May’s son. Holly needs to start thinking about where her future will take her and how both May and Bear will fit into her life.