Portobello Book Blog

You might think it’s a bit early to be talking about Christmas books when there is still six weeks to go! However, I have a lot of books on my festive reading list this year – 14 at last count! – and I don’t want to leave it all to the last minute to give you my recommendations. I’m delighted that my first Christmas review is of this year’s festive offering from one of my favourite authors, Sue Moorcroft. I always enjoy her books and this was no exception. Last week, Sue was my first #AuthorInTheFestiveSpotlight for 2022 and you can read that by clicking here.

About the Book

When Sky Terran returns to the village of Middledip after losing the job she loves, she anticipates a quiet Christmas getting used to her new life. However, the annual street decoration competition is coming up and this year, the residents of Winter Street are determined to win.

As she is pulled into the preparations, Sky quickly grows to love the quirky, tight-knit community she is now part of. Including the extremely handsome Daz, who soon becomes more than just a friendly neighbour.

But when Daz’s ex turns up determined to win him back and it seems he might not be the man Sky thought he was, she remembers how much allowing people into her life – and heart – can hurt. As the snow falls, will she and Daz find a way through – and help win a Christmas victory for Winter Street?

A gorgeously festive novel about love, family and the power of forgiveness from Sunday Times bestseller Sue Moorcroft, perfect for fans of Sarah Morgan and Phillipa Ashley.

My Thoughts

I love Sue’s books and there’s something a bit special about a visit to her fictional village of Middledip, especially at Christmas. This time we are visiting the aptly named Winter Street where all the residents are gearing up for a Christmas street competition. I loved the idea of a whole street working together to make their houses as twinkly and festive as possible. It sounded such a lovely thing to do.

Sky is a newcomer to the street having recently bought The Corner House and it needs a lot of work done on it, not least in the garden. She’s got quite a job on her hands to get it ready and not let the street down. Sue Moorcroft brings an environmental strand to the story here as Sky is very much in favour of doing her bit to help the planet. Rather than cutting back all the unruly trees in her garden she goes for a more sensitive approach and trims them instead. It was good to read about her encouraging the use of solar lights, and making sustainable and environmentally friendly decorations so that the local wildlife and humans could live a bit more in harmony.

Families are a major theme in the book and while I don’t want too give too much away, we see how people can have very different experiences of family and not all of them positive. Sue Moorcroft writes so insightfully and sensitively about difficult family relationships and really made me think about some of the situations and how I would cope with them.

Talking of relationships, there is of course a romance running through the story too. You’ll have gathered from the book details that this involves Sky and Daz, and they quite quickly act on the heat between them. However, misunderstandings mean that this blossoming relationship turns decidedly frosty. Sky is quite wary of relying on others and is afraid to give her heart completely.

It was nice to spot a fleeting mention of Nelson’s Bar, the Norfolk village which featured in A Summer to Remember, as well as recognising characters and places from previous Middledip books. It feels like a real place I could go and visit and have a chat with old friends!

With themes of community spirit, kindness, family, forgiveness and new beginnings, A White Christmas on Winter Street is a perfect book to curl up with over the festive season. It was a great start to my Christmas reading and has me really wishing that we might actually get a white Christmas this year!

About the Author

Sue Moorcroft is an award-winning Sunday Times and internationally published author of emotionally compelling, feel-good, page-turning fiction who has reached #1 on Amazon Kindle UK and Top 100 Amazon Kindle US.

Her novels, short stories, serials, courses and columns have appeared around the world. An army child, Sue was born in Germany and then lived in Cyprus, Malta and the UK.

Website: suemoorcroft.com Twitter: @suemoorcroft Instagram: @SueMoorcroftAuthor

Facebook: SueMoorcroftAuthor and sue.moorcroft.3