Just for the Holidays, Sue Moorcroft

Review from Jeannie Zelos book reviews

Genre: General Fiction (Adult) 

I wanted something light, after a few dark, heavy reads and this was perfect, letting me relax while reading, lifting my mind up to bright and happy. Its not all smiles though, there's some pretty sad moments, very real issues that will face many of us at some point in our lives.

So we start on holiday with Leah, and her sister's family. It ought to be wonderful, relaxing, lazy days by the beach followed by nights spent with good food, wine and conversations. Well, that's what * should * have happened. Instead poor Leah finds herself being a temporary parent to teens Jordan and Natasha, while her sister makes sporadic, desultory attempts to sort her life out, and her brother in law is mending a badly broken ankle....
Thankfully next door provides a distraction in the shape of hunky Ronan and his teen son Curtis. 

Michele, Leah's sister is a selfish woman. She's two lovely teens - well, lovely as teens can be ;-), a husband who's a kind, caring, responsible man and yet like many she's discontented, has thrown herself into an affair with a younger man. Now she's pregnant with her formerly happy, easy life strewn around her in ruins, blaming everyone but herself. I was so angry with her.
I haven't patience with the "we just fell in love" mantra. There's always a point when the harmless glances and occasional flirty chat moves forward, and its at that point a spouse should stop. Its not hard. just do the right thing.
Of course that's not what they want, and Michele moves forward telling herself they can't help it, ignores the heartbreak she's going to rain down on her lovely family.
Sort your family issues out first is my solution, then once you're separated there's time for someone new. 

And that's my rant over, but you can see why I was so angry at Michele.
Right from the start she's leaving Leah to do everything; shopping, cleaning, cooking, looking after the kids, citing morning sickness and feeling unwell as an excuse to stay away from anything resembling work/responsibility.
She's actively jealous of Leah's career, her child free life, but as Leah reminds her, she chose a different route, she shouldn't be expecting Leah to take over her life now she doesn't like it. 
Her husband Alister is a lovely man, adores his kids and is trying hard to be civil, but his world has crashed and Michele isn't making things any easier.
The kids were great, typical teens, ever hungry, full of energy - until they're asked to do something of course, and they adore Leah. Until now she's been cool auntie but now she's a mum substitute, and after Alister's injury a dad one too...
Teens are a mix, grown and wanting to be adults one moment but still kids inside and Michele's actions have a huge impact on them. 

Then there's the family next door, Ronan and his son Curtis.
Curtis soon throws in with Jordan and Natasha, and the three are together having fun most days - and evenings.
Leah's cooking is fantastic, she's a trained chef, and soon they're spending mealtimes with the family.
Ronan and Leah are attracted but the course of true love and all that...hasn't hardly time to run smooth here with all the things being thrown up against it. 

Its a fabulous read, heady warm summer days abroad, fabulous food - and lots of decadent chocolate desserts. The characters are a real mix of families, ones we all know, issues many of us have faced one way or another, and throughout I was rooting for Ronan and Leah, they're two great guys and deserve each other. They've both been let down badly by others in the past, Leah especially is affected still by a past relationship that went bad, so though I wanted them to be together I kind of sympathised when I could feel her drawing barriers up. 

A story that was fun, felt very summery, with real characters, ones we know, can feel have genuine issues and problems that face many of us at some points in out lives. 
 
Stars: five, a fabulous summery read, with real people and genuine scenes.

ARC supplied for review purposes by Netgalley and Publishers

This was just a wonderful read! In the book we are whisked off on holiday to France. If you think this book is all about relaxing in the sun you are wrong, there is so much drama and craziness that goes on from the very start. I found myself gripped and could not put it down.

https://jennyobrienwriter.wordpress.com And have been in touch with Sue on FB, twitter x

How do you follow up the Christmas smash that was ‘The Christmas Promise’? That was the question facing best-selling author Sue Moorcroft. For the answer, look no further than her second novel for Avon, ‘Just For the Holidays’.

Nobody writes family angst better than Ms Moorcroft and JFTH delivers in spades. Take a family, in an atypical situation and you have a cornucopia of possibilities. Against her wishes, Leah is persuaded to join a family holiday in France by her sister Michele and finds herself left to look after her niece and nephew when Michele runs off with her boyfriend, to top things off, her estranged husband Alistar is badly hurt in an accident. Adding to the confusion is the attraction Leah feels to the workman next door who turns out to not only be not only not a local, but a helicopter pilot recovering from an accident, something that was certainly not on her agenda; the single life is what Leah feels best able to cope with.

I hope you’re not looking for a more detailed review of the full story, as you won’t get that from me – I hate spoiling things – you can get that from other reviewers. All I will say is that you will be very hard-pushed to find a novel with more twists and turns in it this year, or other’s for that matter. All the protagonists, including the children who all have large influences upon this book, go through more emotional, and physical, learning than I’ve read in one book than you’ll believe. If that doesn’t satisfy your need to know more about what happens, I have one thing to say to you; buy the book.

Here we have a master class in how to write family conflict that will stand the test of ages. The adult characters are, complete and accessible from the outset, which helps the reader relate to their reasons for acting as they do from the start, and to cheer, and boo where needed (and for one character, it certainly is) as they grow and evolve as the story unfolds. As for the teenagers? I probably know more about emogees (think that’s the correct expression) and text-speak than I did prior to reading this, but all are perfectly believable, the scenes where first-love rears its head is beautifully written and you can feel Ronan, Leah’s love-interest, cringing when he discusses the expression ‘MILF’ with his son (it’s also hilarious!).

If you’re new to Sue’s stories, I envy you if my review persuades you to go and purchase this book, you’re about to discover an author I’m sure you’ll grow to love as much as I do; if you’re already a fan, then I envy you as you’re undoubtedly about to embark on reading JFTH for the first time.

My thanks to @HelenaSheffield, all at @AvonBooksUK and Netgalley for allowing me to read ‘Just For the Holiday’s’ prior to its release.

This complex story of family relationships had some great sympathetic characters, and others you want to strangle. Most of the story is set in a French gite during the summer holidays and the freedoms and constraints of the location add to the situations. There is a good range of characters of different ages & occupations and enough twists & turns to keep the reader engrossed. Recommended.

This was a easy read which I could not put down! Kept wanting to go back each time I had to stop! Definatley would read and purchase for a nother read! Brilliant!!

Poor Leah, she agrees to go on holiday with her recently separated older sister Michele and her two teenage children Natasha and Jordan to a gite in France. At the last minute her soon to be ex-brother-in law Alistar announces that he too is coming, since he paid for the holiday when they were together and he wants to spend the summer holidays with his children.

Suddenly single Leah's summer holiday seems less about lazing around in France drinking wine and more about rescuing her sister's family when one catastrophe after another befalls them.

The only silver lining is the helicopter pilot living next door with his teenage son, Curtis, recuperating after a rough landing, As Leah's sister and brother-in-law become MIA one way or another cool Auntie Leah has to step up to a whole new level of responsibility with three teenagers conspiring to make life even more difficult.

Can a commitment-phobe single woman enter a relationship with a divorced father of one? Can she cope with having total responsibility for her niece and nephew?

I've read several other books by Sue Moorcroft so I jumped at the chance when I saw this book on NetGalley. Swoon as you see the family enjoy a summer in France eating and drinking all the local produce, Wince at the familiarity of teenagers and their self-centred behaviour, then gasp as their parents act in a similar fashion.

Great summer reading, recommended to read sitting in the garden with a glass of something cold and alcoholic. A story about the modern family and the issues that come from maintaining relationships with your ex.