Book Review: One Christmas Kiss in Notting Hill by Mandy Baggot
Christmas themed books are big business. It’s hard to ignore them and I don’t even try anymore. Instead nowadays, I just go with the flow and immerse myself in their cliche storylines and read at least two or three each year.One Christmas Kiss in Notting Hill is my last for the [now finished] season but if you’re still struggling to move on from the Yuletide, or looking to pick up a Christmas novel for next season, this would be a good choice.
Although I hate those tag lines included in the titles of books which seem to be the current trend, I will say yes, I suppose ‘feel-good’ and ‘heartwarming’ is true. The book is more of a sweet romance than sexy with a chick-lit feel to it and, at times, is quite funny.
Our heroine, Isla, meets our hero, Chase, in a cafe where she assumes he’s some sort of paedophile. He’s not obviously. He is, however, her new boss who’s just arrived in London from the US.
Isla and Chase will soon work closely together on a project; recently divorced Chase has two daughters with him, one a surly teenager, and Isla will help him connect with them; Isla has a sister (an interesting character but unfortunately underutilised) she needs to consider before she can jump into a relationship with Chase; Isla and Chase suffer from the inevitable cultural differences; Chase has a work secret he can’t reveal to Isla; yadda, yadda, yadda.
Unlike a lot of Christmas novels, this is quite a long book. And actually, I would have cut it quite significantly. Many scenes were superfluous. A lot of the conflicts seem to be forced. Isla and Chase’s meeting, for example, was probably one of the silliest meet-cutes I’ve ever read. Chase’s background also seems to have a lot of unnecessary details that became cringe-worthy, I thought.
Don’t read the book if you’re on a diet either. There’s lots of food porn. Chapters and chapters dedicated to what was being eaten and drank at the various parties Isla and Chase attend. (I must point out Isla and co must be crap at their jobs. They seem to do zero work other than planning and attending Christmas parties.)
The thing that saves the book and makes me recommend it is Notting Hill. Yes, for once the title is not misleading and Notting Hill gets much more than a cursory mention in the novel. The descriptions of the houses, parks and other attractions in the suburb are great fun and really make you feel like the characters truly are a part of the community. You can really tell that Baggot loves Notting Hill and London in general.
I will, of course, now need to rewatch Notting Hill, the movie.
3 out of 5
Advertisements Share this:
