This is my favourite book this year! Always love a Trisha Ashley book as she always gives a little more than your usual romance book. This book is set at Mitras Castle in Northumberland where Sabine Powys has received a terminal diagnosis & wants to have one more Christmas with family & friends to determine who will inherit the castle. Sounds a simple story but taking into account the past, so much has happened to make Sabine bitter! Now entering from the side lines is Dido Jones & her business partner Henry Rudge who cater & run large house gatherings.
So much happens in this book. So much research must have been done to secure this story. The description of the castle, the grounds & surrounding area, makes me want to visit & spend my Christmas with them all. Enjoy this great book!

One more Christmas at the castle is the epitome of the most delectable,atmospheric, traditional country house Christmas!
From the very beginning you are absorbed into a fully immersive Christmas experience,the location, the snowy weather, family traditions, and the most delectable Christmas food you could ever imagine! Added to this longstanding family feuds, letting go of the past, new romance and unexpected revelations make this book the perfect read for the festive season and one that will stay with you long after you have read it!
Sabine owner of the castle and with a progressive illness needs to get her affairs in order and to help her with this she decides to throw the best Christmas ever, inviting friends and family for a festive break, ably catered for by a professional catering company who have been handpicked for just this occasion! Fantastic characters, great plot and a brilliant read would highly recommend!
Thank you netgalley for this early read.

Another charming Christmas tale from Trisha Ashley, which I really enjoyed.

It's light on the romance, heavy on atmosphere and food - I was so hungry after reading this book! There was an old family skeleton lurking in the background, steadily revealed, which was done gently enough that I'd worked it out before the reveal, but very well done. An enjoyable story of family, Christmas and people's foibles.

And, as i say, wonderful food!

Recommended.

A Warm, Festive Treat…
A warm and festive treat from Trisha Ashley. The reader is transported to the enchanting and imposing Mitras Castle just in time for Christmas and with a colourful cast of characters, a lovely backdrop and festive food aplenty, this is an engaging and heartwarming tale. Ideal for some escapist, holiday reading from armchair or otherwise and in keeping with this author’s canon.

An elderly widow, Sabine, is on her last legs and wants to enjoy one more magical Christmas in her beloved home, Mitras Castle. She wants to relive the Christmas magic of her glory days and when her mother was alive. So, she decides to hires Dido and Henry of Heavenly Houseparties to help with the festive month of December. After all, a dozen guests need someone to feed and cater to their every need.

Dido and Henry have been best friends for years. Dido has been unlucky in love and has an interesting past of her own filled with mystery. They both fall in love with the castle as soon as they step through the doors and are set for a magical hard-working Christmas. However, one of the guests happens to be Dido's teenage crush, Xan, who doesn't seem to remember her. Determined to not be vulnerable, Dido plays along with pretending to not know him but as time goes on they develop a strong friendship. Love seems to be in the air at the castle and Henry also finds himself interested in one of the guest's sons.

Many secrets begin to come to light, and the guests are left to wonder if this was all part of Sabine's plan in the first place. Will it still be a magical Christmas or is it all a recipe for disaster? One thing is certain that it won't be a dull festive season and there is no such thing as a coincidence.

I have read a few of Trisha Ashley's books before and they never disappoint to provide entertainment. One More Christmas at the Castle is a festive book that left me longing for it to be winter and wanting it to be Christmas. It will make for a great Christmas read, and you will get swept up in the magic of the ambience that Dido and Henry create.

I enjoyed reading the book, however, my only slight criticism is that the book was a bit too long for my liking and certain bits of the book did drag on. It is an easy-to-read book that you can pick up and drop when busy, it doesn't have much depth but is a light-hearted read and perfect for the busy festive season. There is a lot of detail in the book and especially around the Christmas festivities, it does make you feel like you are part of the magical fun.

There is certainly a lot of drama in the book, which keeps you entertained and invested in the story. However, I did predict the twist of Dido's lineage quite early on and didn't feel that it was shocking. Furthermore, with the Sophie twist and her busy fingers, was predictable when she arrived and she made a good antagonist. Overall, it was a good book to read and perfect for Christmas time.

Pure Christmas escapism. What a lovely story! Dido and Henry run Heavenly Houseparties, a live-in catering business. Elderly and rather prickly Sabine decides to have one final Christmas party at her grand family home, Mitras Castle in Northumberland. She includes a wide selection of friends and relatives from best friend and vicar Nancy to her beloved godson, Xan, not forgetting scatty Lucy, her live-in companion. She also invites her family solicitor, as she wants to make a will. It is not a coincidence that Sabine chooses Dido and Henry's firm as caterers. Unbeknown to them, there is a family connection. This eclectic cast of characters thrown together over Christmas makes for an amusing and thoroughly enjoyable tale, with romance thrown in for good measure. Another gem from Trisha Ashley.

What better way to start your Christmas reading in August than with the latest from Trisha Ashley. If there was a book I wanted to disappear into and become part of the story, interact with characters and even live in the castle this was the one.

Mitras Castle current owner Sabine Powys knows that this will be her last Christmas there and she wants it to one to remember; the past traditions, the past glorious food and games and it also seems the weather is going to provide them all with a winter wonderland as well.

To achieve this though she is going to have to employ some help and enter “Heavenly Houseparties” – Dido and Henry that pretty much cater for your every needs. Whether that be cooking and cleaning, to those little touches, such as flower arranging and creating seed cake. They are selective in where they go and who they work for, but that has enabled them to be picky and work only a few times a year. What the perfect job!

With any old castle there are plenty of secrets to discover and the wonderful cast of characters that are invited to stay. We learn not just about the characters present but also their past and how they all come to be invited to Christmas at the castle.

When Dido arrives at the castle and gets to know the grounds that bit more, she finds affinity with the place, as if she has been there before. As more of Sabine’s family arrive and other waif and strays including Xan, an old school friend of Henry’s and a former crush for Dido. It looks like this is a Christmas that everyone is going to remember.

Throughout the book we are treated to what some might see as the minutiae of domestic help life, but for me it was simply glorious to absorb yourself into such fine detail. That “upstairs downstairs” element that has always fascinated many people for years, me included. Especially in such modern times.

Trisha Ashley’s Christmas novels are always a hit with me and this one is no exception. Pure Christmas escapism with plenty of mulled wine and mince pies to keep you full up at any time of the year.

The perfect book for Christmas and one that is worthy of a reread for many Christmases to come!

When you are reading a book and you want to get to the end but you also don't want to not read it - that is the perfect description for this book. I loved it! The writing was fantastic, the descriptions of the food regularly had my mouth watering and the scenery sounded lovely. I devoured this in one afternoon and I would highly recommend you do as well.

As cliché as this may sound I truly believe this is Trisha's best story yet. She outdid herself and she's definitely one of the best authors around. I am still mesmerised by it and I know whatever I am going to write won't give it justice. I am usually a very quick reader but I had to make this book last for as long as I could (as you would with your favourite bar of chocolate, eating a small square each day).
Mitras Castle provides the stage where a superb play is performed ( the characters are 'well aware' to be in a 'castle fair' ) by a most brilliant and quirky set of characters. There's love, there's mystery, there's suspense - and of course food, Trisha's trademark feature.
The plotting is masterful as only a great novelist can provide. I could actually 'hear' the characters perform on stage ( and my overactive imagination actually had already a revolving stage turning according to the change of POV - Sabine's and Dido's in the story. Did I like the different numbering for the chapters? I think it's a brilliant idea! )
This is one of those books that you want to start reading again the moment you've finished it, as there are so many layers and so many possible reading paths you may want to follow.
Pure genius. More than five stars to me.
Thank you to Random House UK, Transworld Publishers, Bantam Press, Netgalley and the author for an early copy.
#OneMoreChristmasattheCastle #NetGalley

Addictive from the start, as are all of Trisha’s books. The setting, characters and plot were all very deep and absorbing and even in August, it was lovely to have a feel of Christmas.

Some of the later “twists” involving Dido’s family were a little guessable earlier on than they should have been, but this didn’t detract from the storyline in any way.

The book seemed to go on forever, which is in no way a criticism, I was very happy about this. There just always seemed to be more coming and at points you felt the book would wrap up, you remembered there were more points to be resolved. A very satisfying ending and left me wanting to read more.

Another fantastic book from Trisha. A great one to curl up with this winter it will definitely leave you feeling all cosy

One of the things I love about Trisha Ashley book's is the way she describes the surroundings, the food, the characters ,well just everything really. I could imagine myself as one of the Christmas guests in this book and enjoyed every meal, every activity and the company of the other guests. The story is set in Northumberland in a small village called Rowenhead in the home of Sabine Powys - a delightfully eccentric old lady, who desperately wants to enjoy an old fashioned family Christmas. She employs Heavenly House parties (a dynamic duo consisting of Henry and Dido) for the month of December to create a Christmas like the ones she enjoyed as child. Sounds simple. However, we all know that a family Christmas is not without a few surprises and the odd argument and boy are there are some surprises! Small clues are left for the reader to pick up on but, I was still amazed and shocked in a couple of places as the story began to unfold. A brilliant Christmas read which can be enjoyed any time of the year.

Trisha Ashley writes the sorts of books that feel like coming home on a cold winter's day. Perfect for romance fans or those that simply want a story that will leave them smiling.

I don’t know how anyone can write so many amazing books but here we are with yet another fantastic Trisha Ashley book! I adore festive stories and this is probably one of my favourites this isn’t just a cutesy Christmas story it left me quite emotional at times and I did love the bit of mystery it really left me wanting to read more and more!

A great festive story!

Fast becoming a favourite author, this Christmas themed book is a lovely read. . . .

Love a Christmas themed book and this was no exception. Perfect to cosy up with and fast becoming a favourite author of mine

Oh my goodness, what is there not to love. Anyone that likens a character in the first couple of chapters to Margaret Rutherford in a cape like Miss Marple can do no wrong. I love Trisha Ashleys books and they just get better and better. Sabine is having one last Christmas at Mitras Castle and she has to decide who to leave it too. She manages to hire Heavenly Houseparties to deliver a catered for Christmas whilst her houseguests wait for her decision. There are surprises along the way with Sabine knowing more about Dido Jones who is one half of Heavenly Houseparties than even Dido knows.
Fantastic characters and a beautiful setting. I felt myself salivating when reading about all the wonderful dishes Dido was creating, just wishing I was staying in the castle too.
Another masterpiece from Trisha Ashley. Thank you NetGalley and Transworld

It felt strange reading a Christmas book at the beginning of August when the sun is shining and then you immerse yourself into snow and the cold, it did make me look forward to and start thinking of my Christmas plans though. Trisha Ashley does again a fantastic job of taking us on a fun journey with lots of twists and turns with her eclectic cast of wonderful characters. Welcome to the world of Dido and Henry who run an exclusive catering company who end up in Northumberland catering for a house Christmas Party. I think we all want Dido and Henry to come and look after us! Sabine is the owner of the house who has organised her family and friends together so she can decide who she will leave the estate to, we are led through her decisions with pace and sub plots along the way - and some small hints back to the places in her past books.
I love Trisha Ashley books as they are fun, they make you smile at the characters and you know when you sit down to read you will be able to immerse yourself in the story quickly and want to gobble the book up quickly. This book did just that. Roll on the next one.
Thank you for the opportunity of reading this pre publication.

I really liked this book! I'm obsessed with Christmas (most of all the food!) and this book is practically packed with gorgeous places, people and food :)
It's warm and comforting but may be a little slow for some.

There is a bit of intrigue and (of course!) some romance.

Plum was a really lovely character.

I will definitely read more of this author's books.

Absolutely loved this book, brilliant characters and storyline and very descriptive
Sabine has found out she is seriously ill and has to decide who is going to inherit her castle in Northumberland she hires Dido and Henry who run a housekeeping and party service to help over the Christmas but she also has an ulterior motive to hiring the company she has, twists and turns and full of recipes and food and everything christmasy, loved how descriptive this book was and felt like I was there with them