REVIEW: I rather liked The Christmas Bookshop by Jenny Colgan. I will say it was probably not one of my favorites but, I still really liked it. She writes about Scotland in this book and I’ve found myself reading several books based in Scotland in the last year. I seem to be drawn to that area.

This story is about Carmen, a young woman who always feels like an outcast in her own family. She doesn’t go on to college like her sister and then loses the only job she’s ever had during a bad economy. I think there are a lot of women that can sympathize with her. Her sister is pregnant with number four. She needs help and she has found a part-time job for Carmen. I felt really bad for her.

I became immersed in her surroundings in Edinburgh. I love the history and some of the characters. Some of her many characters were not very developed but, they didn’t need to be. I liked Carmen and her eccentric boss Mr. McCredie who owns a rare and antique bookshop. He is pretty interesting. We met a snobby author who was really kind of funny. At least the circumstances were. There are so many interesting happenings that keep this book interesting. 

I would recommend this book for any Jenny Colgan fan or anyone that enjoys something a little different once in a while. 

I received a complimentary copy of this book from #WilliamMorrow #CustomHouse and #Netgalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. 

SYNOPSIS: Perfect for the holidays! A brand-new heartwarming Christmas novel from the beloved New York Times bestselling author of The Bookshop on the Corner and Christmas at the Island Hotel. 

Laid off from her department store job, Carmen has perilously little cash and few options. The prospect of spending Christmas with her perfect sister Sofia, in Sofia’s perfect house with her perfect children and her perfectly ordered yuppie life does not appeal.

Frankly, Sofia doesn’t exactly want her prickly sister Carmen there either. But Sofia has yet another baby on the way, a mother desperate to see her daughters get along, and a client who needs help revitalizing his shabby old bookshop. So Carmen moves in and takes the job.

Thrown rather suddenly into the inner workings of Mr. McCredie’s ancient bookshop on the picturesque streets of historic Edinburgh, Carmen is intrigued despite herself. The store is dusty and disorganized but undeniably charming. Can she breathe some new life into it in time for Christmas shopping? What will happen when a famous and charismatic author takes a sudden interest in the bookshop—and Carmen? And will the Christmas spirit be enough to help heal her fractured family?