I
just love Jenny Colgan books, her characters, and settings are fabulous. Christmas on the Island is the third in a
series of books that started with The Café by the Sea and The Endless
Beach. The Endless Beach ended with a
bit of a cliff hanger this summer and I was very much looking forward to seeing
how the story continued in Christmas on the Island.
On
the beautiful northern Scottish island of Mure, our favorite characters find
themselves in the midst of trouble. Flora has found out she’s pregnant, but
she’s afraid to reveal the truth to her boyfriend Joel. Joel had a troubled childhood and they’ve
never discussed starting a family of their own.
Meanwhile Flora’s brother Fintan has finally come out to his family and
has married the love of his life, American billionaire Colton. Unfortunately, Colton has cancer and his
prognosis is not good. Colton is
estranged from his family because of their treatment of him over his lifetime,
but his brother Tripp has arrived on Mure to check on him after seeing
troubling reports in the news. Will
Colton be able to forgive his family?
Flora’s
best friend Lorna is in love with Saif, a doctor and Syrian refugee. Saif lives on the island and has newly been
reunited with his two young sons, but his wife is still missing after two years. Waiting for her and not knowing drives Saif
to distraction. He grows close to Lorna
and begins to have feelings for her – but is his wife still alive? Will Saif’s inner conflict tear him apart?
I
love how the novel started with farm dog Bramble ambling around the island
observing everyone and ended the same way.
I love Bramble and it made for an interesting way to start and conclude
the novel. I am a great fan of character
novels and Jenny Colgan knows how to write compelling characters. I feel fully vested in these characters from
the last two novels and I hope that Colgan continues the journey on Mure with
another novel.
The
novel is set at Christmas time, but does contain characters and their dilemmas
from the previous two novels. I would
recommend reading the first two books before you read Christmas on the Island.
I
enjoy that modern twists are in the story such as getting into the plight of Syrian
refugees and having a compelling love story between the first gay couple to marry
on the island of Mure, Fintan and Coltan.
This was a tragic end to their love story, but I love how it brought in
Colton’s broken family and some of his back story. I wish they could be the heroes of their own
book.
Favorite
Quote:
“But
otherwise this was his vigil: he would
stand watch. Until the end. The beautiful house was his prison, and he was
his own guard.”
Overall,
Christmas on the Island is a compelling novel with great characters. I recommend reading it as a third book in the
series and not on its own.
Book
Source: Purchased from Amazon.com