Ratings4
Average rating3.3
From Mary Kay Andrews, New York Times bestselling author of The Homewreckers and The Santa Suit, comes a novella celebrating love and the warm, glittering charm of the holiday season. "Nobody does Christmas like Mary Kay Andrews." ―Debbie Macomber "Cozy up with Santa's favorite novelist!” ―Adriana Trigiani When fall rolls around, it’s time for Kerry Tolliver to leave her family’s Christmas tree farm in the mountains of North Carolina for the wilds of New York City to help her gruff older brother & his dog, Queenie, sell the trees at the family stand on a corner in Greenwich Village. Sharing a tiny vintage camper and experiencing Manhattan for the first time, Kerry’s ready to try to carve out a new corner for herself. In the weeks leading into Christmas, Kerry quickly becomes close with the charming neighbors who live near their stand. When an elderly neighbor goes missing, Kerry will need to combine her country know-how with her newly acquired New York knowledge to protect the new friends she’s come to think of as family, And complicating everything is Patrick, a single dad raising his adorable, dragon-loving son Austin on this quirky block. Kerry and Patrick’s chemistry is undeniable, but what chance does this holiday romance really have? Filled with family ties, both rekindled and new, and sparkling with Christmas magic, BRIGHT LIGHTS, BIG CHRISTMAS delivers everything Mary Kay Andrews fans adore, all tied up in a hilarious, romantic gem of a novel.
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I received an ARC (advanced reader copy) from Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.
Mary Kay Andrews is one of my favorite authors, so I was excited to be approved to read an ARC. Her new holiday novel comes out September 26, 2023.
Kerry Tolliver falls on hard times before Christmas and is home to help with the family tree farm in North Carolina. Her and her brother, Murphy, head to New York City to sell Christmas trees, like the family has done for decades. Here, Kerry meets and gets close with the neighborhood.
I devoured this book, like I do every Mary Kay Andrews book. But, upon reflection, nothing really happens. There's no mystery subplot, like there has been in her last few novels. I felt like I just read someone's holiday events. The characters were pretty flat and cookie cuter. They weren't fleshed out at all. Like, Kerry's recent trouble was glossed over and she didn't think about it too much during the course of the story. I didn't feel much of a connection to the characters.
It is a feel good, holiday read though. Maybe that was the whole point.
Well this was an easy one to fall in love with. I adore this author so much. Christmas reads are great any time of the year and this author is one of my go-tos when I need a pick-me-up story.
I loved every character in this book and of course teared up a few times like the sap that I am. Absolutely LOVE the Santa Suit mention (if you don't know .. go grab that book!!) Perfect read for the holiday season so if you're a planner .. mark your calendar and snag this one when it releases on September 26, 2023.
I sincerely appreciate St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the review copy. All opinions expressed are my own.