Eager to banish the ghost of Christmas past - when her boyfriend dumped her on the streets of Paris - Lucy is determined to make this the best Christmas ever. She rallies friends and family for an epic celebration that just happens to fall on the same day as her ex's festive
But when the wedding is threatened and only Lucy can help, can she find the spirit inside to save the day, or will this Christmas be even more disastrous than the last?"
Rating: 4/5
You can buy Last Christmas as an eBook now!
Talli Roland is back this Christmas with another short festive novella, and I was really pleased to be offered the chance to review it. I read her 2012 offering Mistletoe in Manhattan last year and really enjoyed it - in fact, it was one of the first short stories/novellas I had ever read and I've read a few since then which I think is a good sign! As usual, Talli's eBook cover is gorgeous, certainly good enough to be on a paperback book too, and I love that such care is taken over her covers - although it's only an eBook and you don't get to look at the cover on your shelf, it is just so much nicer to look at and definitely tempts you into reading it even more!
The novella is centred around a character Lucy, who was dumped last Christmas by her ex-boyfriend just as she proposed to him. Since then, Lucy hasn't exactly been a barrel of laughs, and hasn't moved on from her horrid ex. When she finds out that he is now getting married on Christmas Day, she decides to throw her own Christmas party to show him that she's moved on and isn't bothered by his nuptials. However, when the groom's sister approaches her telling her that the wedding has been thrown into disarray and can Lucy help, she has to choose whether to save the wedding or get her sweet revenge and make it a Christmas never to forget.
I'll start by saying that this book was too short! I loved the characters straight away, especially poor old Lucy who you can't help but feel sorry for, and I wanted to know more about them and her journey to getting over her horrible ex-boyfriend! Roland does a great job of setting up the past history of these two characters, and creating the party and wedding ideas, but for me it was just over too quickly, I wanted more from it. This is often my problem with short stories, I just don't think they are enough for me, but I enjoyed everything that I read here. It was very well written, it had a good pace considering it was so short, and gave me a good few laughs along the way.
There's only a few characters in this book, Lucy, the main characters; Rob her ex, James the new man she stumbles across by chance, and Mimi, a young woman employed by Lucy. Mimi in particular is especially funny, totally engrossed in setting up the party and making it a huge bash, despite Lucy's hesitations! James is very sweet, a proper gentleman but Lucy is sure that there is a secret about his last relationship he's hiding. Finally, Lucy's ex Rob is a guy you have to hate, he dumped her out of the blue and then is getting married less than a year later. They are all good characters to read about, you just want Lucy to turn around and whack Rob for his cheek, and I'd love to read a full novel about Lucy and Mimi!
For me, this is a great short story to curl up with on an evening, you'll certainly get it finished, and have enjoyed a good story. Although Lucy does hate Christmas, it did make me rather look forward to the festive season, and was a great way to pass the time of an evening. Talli Roland is a very talented writer, able to write a short story that whilst very short, doesn't lack any detail or story at all, I was just left wanting even more! If you think short stories aren't your thing, give this one a go, you won't regret it.
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