Book Review: Once Upon A Christmas Carol by Melody Carlson



Once Upon A Christmas Carol by Melody Carlson
4 Stars 

I really liked this year's Christmas novella by Melody! It has A Christmas Carol feel with our main character of Carol who is a bit of a Scrooge about Christmas, but she soon realizes Christmas may finally be a happy day after all when her planned trip to the Bahamas gets derailed due to a snow storm in Michigan - which just so happens to be where her Aunt Maria - who she never met before - lives. Her mother and Maria have been estranged for years due to a falling out many years ago. When Carol randomly calls her up needing a place to stay due to her travel delays, Maria is beyond kind and welcomes her to her farm with open arms. This blesses Carol in many ways. 

As Carol stays with Maria, she realizes she may never want to leave and Michigan feels more like home than anywhere else before...especially after she meets the handsome Victor. :) Victor did have a girl Victoria he had been seeing on a few dates but nothing serious and you can tell he is trying to break it off with her at some point and its more on Victoria's side. I didn't mind that storyline really as there wasn't a romantic interest between Carol and Victor much with them until more of the end. 

This book had a lot of holiday spirit, joy and read like it could easily be a Hallmark movie. We have all the checkboxes for a cute Christmas read - a sweet romance, family elements, the real meaning of Christmas and a girl who realizes what matters most.

Seeing Carol's perspective change on Christmas after spending time with her Aunt was the best part of the book. I loved their discussions about life, decorating, cooking, and just the holiday season. 

I think the only thing that would have made it perfect was the addition of an epilogue - maybe like, 6 months later or the next year at Christmas with us seeing everyone together at that time. Other than that, solid Christmas book rec!

Thanks to Revell for a copy of this book to honestly read and review. All thoughts are my own.

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7821474361
Amazon: https://amzn.to/4lKFTTv
Baker Book House: https://bakerbookhouse.com/products/637248

*Amazon links are affiliate links and a commission may be earned on items purchased from these links.


 

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