Christmas at the Beach Hut: The heartwarming holiday read

I loved this book, one of my favourites this year, but Veronica Henry has always been one of my favourite authors so I'm not surprised it was so good. This book brings us back to the beach at Everdene, the place some of her other books have also been set in but at Christmas this time, and ends up being a pared down version of Christmas for everybody, without all the stresses usually associated with it. Lizzy has a lovely husband, Simon, and twin children Hattie & Luke who are about to fly the nest, but they have been taking her for granted quite a bit, even though she has been letting them. Lizzy has recently taken redundancy and is at 'that time in life' and so everything has really gotten on top of her. So after a few additional stresses, which she really doesn't need, she decides she's had enough and her lot can sort themselves out over Christmas. So she takes off to her friend's beach hut at Everdene, a place she used to visit a lot when she was younger, but without telling her family where she was going. She thought she would be there alone to get her head together again, but as it turns out there is a (lovely) teenager, Harley, also staying there. The owner of the hut, Caroline, was planning on going there for Christmas but couldn't make it and so said to Lizzy to help herself and stay there, but had also mentioned it to Harley, who is a caretaker for the huts, saying he could use it too. Harley is also sort of running away, from his Mother's partner who is a nasty piece of work, but doesn't want to upset his Mum and little brother. Then a widower and his young son turn up in the hut next door, also trying to get away from well meaning family over Christmas, and Lizzy ends up gathering everyone around and looking after them, she is a real nurturer and just a lovely person. There are a few dramas along the way with Harley's family, and Lizzy's family trying to find her, but they all manage to sort it out eventually, and start afresh. Just a really lovely story with some great characters that left me with a lovely warm glow. One of those books I didn't want to end.

I love Veronicas books. The characters are always believable and the stories are relatable! Cant wait for the next one 👍❤

lovely easy read. thoroughly enjoyed it.