Wish upon a Christmas Cake - Darcie Boleyn

If you don't know me, this may surprise you, but my friends and family know my obsession with Christmas very well. I watch Christmas movies on repeat during the holidays, particularly on the Hallmark channel. I also listen to Christmas music through out the entire year. I have piles of decorations, a Disney themed tree, and more cookie recipes than I can count. It makes me happy year round and as the season finally draws near, I am getting that giddy feeling like a child once again. I was elated to receive this book as an ARC to review. Sweet holiday books are found everywhere, but I don't think they ever get old.

Rating: 4 stars
Published: October 2015
Many thanks to Netgalley for providing an ARC copy in exchange for my honest review.

A warm, Christmas story of second chances, love, loss, and family.

Katie has thought of everything to avoid Christmas with her family. She could stay at home taking care of her cake shop, Crumbtious Cakes, and avoid family entirely. The Christmas spirit wins though and an unexpected visitor is there to meet her under the mistletoe. Her first love, and now widower, Sam is joining the family Christmas with his two children, two dogs, and a lot of unspoken feelings. Katie made a wish on a Christmas cake and she's about to find out if Christmas cake wishes really do work.

I really enjoyed Wish Upon A Christmas Cake, it's a wonderful debut by Darcie Boleyn. The characters are so well described I felt like I was watching it all happen in a movie; I was picturing moments from The Holiday the entire time. The minor characters, particularly Katie's brother Karl and his beau, Angelo, were my favorite. They brought life to scenes and the interactions of all the characters brought understanding to the overall emotion of the house. I really enjoyed reading about Katie and Sam's past and present, how their lives worked out after so long and where they were headed going forward. Both characters are dealing with grief, old and new, and their meeting again after so long really brings some feelings out. I teared up several times, laughed out loud quite a bit, and smiled even more.

If any of my followers are looking for a lighthearted read for the holidays, I highly suggest you pick this one up. Not only does it contain more depth than you'd think, but it's got all the qualities of a romantic and beautiful white Christmas.

Xoxo