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emilylinman's review
3.0
Quite a festive little read with some lovely Christmas traditions included. I wasn’t 100% sold on either of the romance ideas to be honest, but it was a cute closed-door romance with lots of festive feeling.
ateachersguidetoreading's review against another edition
5.0
"It’s funny isn’t it, how we agonise over these supposedly big choices we have to make that actually make no difference in the end. But the little decisions - that seemingly mean nothing - they can change everything..."
*
While Christmas shopping in London, Norah Jones hears a busker tune that transports her back to the memory of a spontaneous romantic week she spent in Italy ten years ago with a perfect stranger, Andrew. The music reminds her of a promise they made - to meet on Grafton Street, in ten years time, on Christmas Eve. With nothing to lose, Norah enlists the help of her best friend, Joe, to make the trip to Dublin and find out if, after all these years, Andrew will be waiting for her.
*
"Walk down Grafton Street on Christmas Eve and it feels like you could see anyone: whether they belonged in the past, or far away or both..."
*
The journey this book takes you on is beautiful. It weaves the events of the present day with recollections, in chronological order, from ten years ago to now, filling in the story as you go along. Granted, I did figure out the twist from the title of chapter two alone but that took nothing away from the story of love, lost and found. Norah was a character that we could all find a part of ourselves in and I enjoyed delving deeper into her story, even if it triggered some tears. This book reminded me alot of How To Save A Life by Eva Carter, which I adored. I was drawn to this book as it was set mostly in Dublin. As an Irish person I can say it paints a lovely and honest view of what it's like bustling around the city at Christmas time. This was a touching festive story with a heartfelt message of staying true to yourself.
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Michael Joseph UK for the ARC.
*
"Just because you have this connection and you’re fated to meet, it doesn’t mean you are fated to stay together. Some couples have fate without destiny..."
*
While Christmas shopping in London, Norah Jones hears a busker tune that transports her back to the memory of a spontaneous romantic week she spent in Italy ten years ago with a perfect stranger, Andrew. The music reminds her of a promise they made - to meet on Grafton Street, in ten years time, on Christmas Eve. With nothing to lose, Norah enlists the help of her best friend, Joe, to make the trip to Dublin and find out if, after all these years, Andrew will be waiting for her.
*
"Walk down Grafton Street on Christmas Eve and it feels like you could see anyone: whether they belonged in the past, or far away or both..."
*
The journey this book takes you on is beautiful. It weaves the events of the present day with recollections, in chronological order, from ten years ago to now, filling in the story as you go along. Granted, I did figure out the twist from the title of chapter two alone but that took nothing away from the story of love, lost and found. Norah was a character that we could all find a part of ourselves in and I enjoyed delving deeper into her story, even if it triggered some tears. This book reminded me alot of How To Save A Life by Eva Carter, which I adored. I was drawn to this book as it was set mostly in Dublin. As an Irish person I can say it paints a lovely and honest view of what it's like bustling around the city at Christmas time. This was a touching festive story with a heartfelt message of staying true to yourself.
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Michael Joseph UK for the ARC.
*
"Just because you have this connection and you’re fated to meet, it doesn’t mean you are fated to stay together. Some couples have fate without destiny..."
livvygrace246's review
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
samms_corner's review against another edition
It was really boring and the main character wasn't enjoyable
helenpickett's review against another edition
5.0
This is a story about love. You may think the description tells you about this book and to a point it does, but this book is about so much more.
This is the story of Nora. A holiday romance in Italy ten years earlier has always left her wandering about what may have been and she has the chance to find out if she keeps her promise to meet up under the clock on Christmas Eve.
The loves of Nora isn’t just about a holiday romance though. Nora has the love of her female and male friends, her job, her love of music and the love of her father who had died a few years ago.
Her journey to that time and place in Dublin leads her on a journey of discovery of much more than she expected..
An easy read with that Christmas spirit.
Thank you to #NetGalley for the preview read in return for a review. #BabyIt’sColdOutside
This is the story of Nora. A holiday romance in Italy ten years earlier has always left her wandering about what may have been and she has the chance to find out if she keeps her promise to meet up under the clock on Christmas Eve.
The loves of Nora isn’t just about a holiday romance though. Nora has the love of her female and male friends, her job, her love of music and the love of her father who had died a few years ago.
Her journey to that time and place in Dublin leads her on a journey of discovery of much more than she expected..
An easy read with that Christmas spirit.
Thank you to #NetGalley for the preview read in return for a review. #BabyIt’sColdOutside
bethj899's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
alongreader's review against another edition
4.0
I'm not a massive romcom fan. I like them well enough, but I like them to be more com than rom, and a lot of them are not just predictable but badly predictable. There are so many out there where you look at the cover and you know exactly what's going to happen.
But I'd heard such good things about this one, I decided to try it. And I'm really glad I did. This is a sweet, gentle, beautifully described book. Both the winter in Ireland and the summer in Italy are so well described I felt as though I was there, living it along with the narrator.
I loved learning more about Norah and what happened in the ten years between her meeting Andrew and when we met her. I don't want to spoil the ending, so I won't say too much there, but I loved the tone of that second meeting ... it was exactly right for who Norah had become.
I really enjoyed watching her wander around Dublin and meet the locals, too. Emily described everything so beautifully, it was wonderful as an Irish person to follow along! I got some tips for next time I'm in Dublin, which was great.
All in all, I'm really glad I decided to try this, and I'd happily read another by Ms Bell. I think she'll be one to watch.
BE AWARE there is some loosely described adult fun time.
But I'd heard such good things about this one, I decided to try it. And I'm really glad I did. This is a sweet, gentle, beautifully described book. Both the winter in Ireland and the summer in Italy are so well described I felt as though I was there, living it along with the narrator.
I loved learning more about Norah and what happened in the ten years between her meeting Andrew and when we met her. I don't want to spoil the ending, so I won't say too much there, but I loved the tone of that second meeting ... it was exactly right for who Norah had become.
I really enjoyed watching her wander around Dublin and meet the locals, too. Emily described everything so beautifully, it was wonderful as an Irish person to follow along! I got some tips for next time I'm in Dublin, which was great.
All in all, I'm really glad I decided to try this, and I'd happily read another by Ms Bell. I think she'll be one to watch.
BE AWARE there is some loosely described adult fun time.
hedonicbooks's review against another edition
3.0
2.5 stars
Ugh, I'm torn. I really thought I was going to love this book. But.. but... it just didn't deliver.
I feel the blurb is a bit misleading. While I am ok with how everything turned out in the end, the overall experience was quite underwhelming.
The book follows Norah, a 32 year old music teacher, living in London. She's single and a bit lost after her father's sudden death 6 years ago.
The premise of the book sounded amazing: a promise to meet with a summer fling after 10 years? Tell me more!
The thing is I couldn't connect with any of the characters, the writing lacked emotion. I felt nothing while reading, I was completely detached from everything and everyone, I wasn't invested in Norah's personal or professional life at all. The flashbacks were kind of hard to follow too. And a tad boring.
I don't know, I guess this wasn't for me. It just felt flat. There was no spark whatsoever, between any of the characters. I feel bad saying this, really.
I did like the long descriptions of Dublin at Christmas time. I've been wanting to go there for ages.
Ugh, I'm torn. I really thought I was going to love this book. But.. but... it just didn't deliver.
I feel the blurb is a bit misleading. While I am ok with how everything turned out in the end, the overall experience was quite underwhelming.
The book follows Norah, a 32 year old music teacher, living in London. She's single and a bit lost after her father's sudden death 6 years ago.
The premise of the book sounded amazing: a promise to meet with a summer fling after 10 years? Tell me more!
The thing is I couldn't connect with any of the characters, the writing lacked emotion. I felt nothing while reading, I was completely detached from everything and everyone, I wasn't invested in Norah's personal or professional life at all. The flashbacks were kind of hard to follow too. And a tad boring.
I don't know, I guess this wasn't for me. It just felt flat. There was no spark whatsoever, between any of the characters. I feel bad saying this, really.
I did like the long descriptions of Dublin at Christmas time. I've been wanting to go there for ages.
georgiiaa's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
Found this book a bit slow and hard to get into to start with but enjoyed the ending despite it being quite predictable. A lighthearted read which was nice over Christmas.