This certainly wasn't the book or the story that I was expecting, but was so much better!

Merry and Cole are preparing for their last-minute Christmas wedding, but Merry has no idea of the challenges and adventures that this will take her on, from a new family dynamic, and making unlikely new friends, and and...

In parallel, there is Emily who is looking after her dad, and trying to get through her life looking after her father, and not knowing which one she will see, after she puts him into a care home for his own safety.

This is a fabulous book with love, surprises, family ups and downs, along with the fun of Christmas, and encountering this with step-children to be, exes and new relationships!

I would highly recommend this (only downside is I now want lots of lovely smelling candles, thanks Merry!!)

It was lovely to visit Merry and Cole again and continue their stories, with some great surprises along the way. A heartwarming, festive read. I loved it and struggled to put it down 😘

A really well written Christmas book. Lovely and festive but a bit deeper than a lot of the usual Christmas books - I really enjoyed it.

Loved this book - such a great festive read! Two stories run alongside - one about Emily, a school secretary with a Dad suffering with dementia. She is trying really hard to hold it all together with no family to help. The other storyline features Merry, who runs a wonderful candle shop. Not only is she extremely busy with her candles in the run up to Christmas, but all of a sudden, she has a wedding to organise as well! Merry also has no family, having spent a lot of her childhood in care, although she is working hard to become a great stepmother.

Their stories run alongside each other but gradually start to intertwine. Emily discovers a photo of her father with a baby, who it turns out is not herself (and she doesn't have any siblings). Her investigations lead her to Merry..... I won't spoil the story by revealing what happens but would thoroughly recommend you read this book to find out for yourself. A wonderful Christmas feast of a story, which I loved reading curled up with a hot chocolate! It was like the story was giving you a lovely heart warming hug!

Thank you to Net Galley and the publishers for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review, which is what I have given.

Honestly words cannot describe how much I loved this book. I have always loved Cathy Bramley novels, but this one (for me) has topped them all!

I loved reading about Merry again but it was Emily’s story that captured me. Then for the two stories to entwine was like the cherry on top.

A fabulous story with an amazing ending.

A cute feel good cosy Christmas book with a wonderful characterisation. Not realising this was a sequel up Merry and Cole’s story I now must read the first book.

This was a truly heart-lifting festive tale. Filled with warmth, joy and Christmas cheer.

Merry and Emily are strangers whose paths keep crossing.

Ray is Emily's father, and as his dementia worsens, Emily makes the tough decision to find him a place at a nursing home. Little does she know that this decision will change everything, not only for her, but for Ray and Merry too.

Meanwhile Merry is busy planning a Christmas Eve wedding to the love of her life, Cole. She is overjoyed but has insecurities over Cole's children accepting her, and wishes she had her Mum with her to help plan her wedding. She doesn't even know who her father is.

A chance occurrence will lead Merry and Emily together in a way that will change their whole worlds.

Beautifully written, and a perfect festive tale for lovers of romantic fiction.

I loved this book. The first ‘Christmas book’ of the season. It has everything that’s needed to make an enjoyable read - romance, snow, families and friends. Perfect.

A wid Erum Christmas read. Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced copy of this book.

A wonderful story to curl up with on a cold winter's day. Believable characters and a happy ending !

This was such a gorgeous story to read and it is based around two women. They live in the same town but don't actually know each other. One runs a candle shop the other works as a school secretary.

Merry has a wonderful-sounding shop that sells candles, the name of the shop is Merry and Bright and it sounds amazing. It is the run-up to Christmas so it is a naturally busy time, she also has a wedding to get ready for.

Emily has settled for a secretary job as it fits better with her father. He has dementia and is becoming more confused, Emily looks after him but has to contemplate a change for him into a care home.

A chance meeting between the two women happens while Emily and her Mum are out shopping, when they bump into each other again they recognise each other. However, Emily knows something about Merry now and isn't sure how to broach the subject.

If you are after a book that will tug on the heartstrings then this is one that should be on your list to read. Yes, it is a festive-themed book as it does include Christmas markets, a wedding and the obvious festive season. This is simply a time of the year, the story that hides underneath the glitter and baubles is one that is simply gorgeous.

Both women are facing changes ahead for different reasons, and the sense of family is strong in each woman. I have to be so careful about what I say as there are so many wonderful moments within this story, there are several layers that are gradually unwrapped and believe me when I say you may need a tissue or more.

This is a story of discovery and of acceptance. Looking towards the future and allowing changes to happen as well as settling some secrets of the past. I do hope I have intrigued you with this title and you pick it up to read because it is fabulous. One for fans of contemporary fiction, festive fiction, and families and it is one I would definitely recommend.

This one was a nice enough read.. it was easy reading and I got through it pretty quickly. I liked the character of Merry and enjoyed following her story. Nothing stand out but still an enjoyable read.

Wonderful, simply breath taking. The love in this book was magical. Like Barbara the registrar I had to wipe my eyes a few times as I was taken by surprise.
The pure love that Merry has for everyone and everything was beautiful. I loved her and Cole and then how she navigates a new relationship with Emily and Ray, her family was very moving. Harley was a really good character too, his maturity shone through, as did his love for Merry and his dad.
Will and Emily were a wonderful new couple abc I really hope we get to see more of them in the future. I’d really like to know if they travel the coastline together or put down roots.
This book, like the previous book in this series was a Christmas marvellous miracle.

This novel follows the story of Merry, a business owner who is planning a Christmas wedding to her father-of-two partner; and Emily, who is struggling to balance her love life, her job and caring for her father, who has dementia.

This was clearly the second novel to a series, however, I had no problems reading it as a stand-alone.

A charming Christmas tale where two women are struggling with their own personal stresses, supported by family and friend. There was, of course, the obligatory HEA which is what you need in a Christmas novel.

An enjoyable romance/women’s fiction book which is perfect for the run up to Christmas.

Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

A brilliant heartfelt read full of love, loss, families and Christmas! I really enjoyed this book and loved the dual storyline told by Merry and Emily. A first read from Cathy Bramley and it definitely won't be my last. Perfect read for those cold Christmas nights

I really enjoyed this story. It is a wonderful warm well written Christmas story. Great characters and interesting story line. The perfect read for the long dark nights. Recommend

Two protagonists, Merry, business owner and happily in love with a divorced father of two, and Emily, struggling to juggle her working life with caring for her father. While Merry is getting a new family, Emily’s is coming apart once and for all. It seems unlikely that their paths will cross and yet somehow it is a reminder that we are all only ‘six degrees of separation’ away from each other.

I found both back stories quite heart-wrenching and was uncertain whether this book would be good for me. However, the subjects were dealt with in a careful, loving and light way and the story revealed itself to be like sunshine on water; sparkling and uplifting.

Set against the snowy backdrop of Christmas, this is a story of a twenty-first century family to warm your heart. I highly recommend Merrily Ever After by Cathy Bramley.

A glorious story of love, family and friendship - told as only Cathy Bramley can. A triumph. This is a sequel but it read very well as a standalone.

Merry Ever After is Cathy Bramley’s 2022 Christmas release and is a follow on from last year's novel titled The Merry Christmas Project where we met Merry and Cole, they are now back, and things have developed beautifully between them and they are ready to tie the knot but Merry still feels that slice of her heart is missing where the love of her family should be.

We are also introduced to a new character Emily who is struggling to cope with helping her father who has early onset dementia, trying to juggle his care along with holding down a job and carving time out for her boyfriend everything comes crashing to a head and she finds herself having to make a tough decision of her own which is set to open up a secret her father has hidden for a lifetime.

This book although it is the second in a series please don’t be put off if you haven’t read the first book because this can very easily be read as a stand-alone with the author referencing back to Merry’s past and the relationship that began with Cole. Also, although this book is based on the lead up to Christmas again this can be read any time of year because it isn’t overly festive, the storyline focuses more on the emotional struggles both Merry and Emily face.

Cathy Bramley has such an unbelievable writing style that really captures your heart and explores touching issues that affect so many people through our lives which she weaves into her characters’ lives, and she manages to make it feel so tender and believable, surprising me how much I can care for fictional character because they feel like friends of ours in no time. Both Merry and Emily are such warm-hearted selfless souls and I loved reading their stories and wanted a happy ending for the women.

I loved that until around just under halfway through the book I was oblivious to what direction the storyline was going to take and how the two storylines were going to weave together, was Emily going to work for Merry, Merry’s step children going to have an issue at school and Emily meeting Merry that way? So many ideas rolling around in my head!

I absolutely loved Merry Ever After it is another flawless and compelling novel by Cathy Bramley.

My first novel by Cathy Bramley, what a lovely writer. I really enjoyed it and will be reading more of her books