I really enjoyed Christmas by Candlelight by Karen Swan. A great book to get lost in, I have lost several hours at a time in this book. Once you start you just can not stop and this book will draw you in. A dual timeline set between university years and present day gave you pieces of the story as it unfolded. A fab read.

I absolutely loved this. I struggled to get into it initially and then couldn’t put it down, and the last third went off in totally new directions I didn’t see coming at all. The characters are all brought to life really effectively and I can imagine them completely as people. Great story, and not predictable in the slightest which is what I expected when I started.

As with all Karen Swan’s books, Christmas by Candlelight was fun and uplifting read, which would warm your heart not only at Christmas time.

A brilliant read and one I really enjoyed. The characters are loveable. The plot is one that is engaging and I found myself completely drawn into the story and enjoyed the writing style.

I look forward to Karen Swan’s new warm and cosy Christmas romance every year. This one was a triumph. Loved every page. Thank you.

Christmas by Candlelight by Karen Swan

I received an advance review copy for free thanks to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Blurb

Snowed in for the holidays . . .

It’s three days before Christmas and just starting to snow… Against her better judgement, Libby Pugh has been persuaded by her best friend to stop in on their university reunion on her way back from a wedding in North Yorkshire with her boyfriend, Max.

The host is Archie Templeton, the playboy of their group, who has finally inherited his father’s title and estate – even if the latter is more stately heap than palace. Libby is surprised at how good it feels to catch up with old. The night is a great success but when they come to leave, the road is now impassable and she and Max are given a bed for the night.

At first being snowed in with old friends is rather lovely - they spend he next day is spent in high spirits as they wait for the local farmer to clear the snow. But as the hours pass and he doesn’t come, everyone grows restless. Christmas is two days away and everyone has plans, other places to be. Then the power goes out . . .

By the fireside and by candlelight, the old friends must hunker down together as they await help. They reminisce about times past, good and bad. But as the cracks in their relationships, old and new, start to show, Libby is confronted with a truth she has long tried to deny . . .

My Opinion

Rural North Yorkshire is a place I am very familiar with so I can easily imagine the loneliness that the characters were feeling when there was a blackout days before Christmas. Karen Swan writes some absolutely lovely Christmas books and this was no exception. Whilst a festive book, Swan still managed to introduce a lot of suspense, that makes this a real page turner. Flashbacks have been utilised to show how the friendships originally started.

Rating 4/5

A lovely christmasy book which could be read at any time of the year . This book is pure escapism, and beautifully written. It is a dual timeline book set between Libby and her friends time at university and now . There are many twists and turns to the plot, some not expected . Locations come alive to the reader and well developed characters. Loved it and would recommend

Libby has avoided a reunion with her uni friends for over 10 years.
But she finally bites the bullet and goes to a pre-Christmas gathering with her boyfriend, Max, on the way home from wedding.
They get snowed in and all sorts of long buried secrets start to surface.
Libby is a strong likeable female character.
Told in dual timeline, you can see how she has grown from her uni days.
This was more of a thriller/mystery than a romance.
Don’t let the cover fool you, it’s not a sweet romantic Christmas read.
A big plus for me personally is that it’s Durham uni, my hometown - which made it all the more convincing.
Thanks @swannywrites, @pammacmillan & @netgalley for the perfect read

A great Christmas read
A group of former university housemates on a catch up
Reminiscing on the past
What can go wrong
Told in flashbacks and the present
With plenty of secrets
Thanks NetGalley

It’s not Christmas without a Karen Swan novel!

Libby Pugh has been persuaded to attend a university reunion at Archie Templeton’s estate, just 3 days before Christmas and it’s starting to snow much to her boyfriend Max’s annoyance, the night is a great success but as they’re about to leave, they realise they are snowed in, roads are impassable, they are stuck!

They stay over and have fun In the snow awaiting the roads to be cleared, which doesn’t happen, leaving them stranded, no phone signal and no electricity.

The book jumps from their university days to present day, giving back story to each of the characters and building their relationships and understanding the way they are now, with a lot of suspense too!

Absolutely adored the ending!

An interesting story telling of a household of students starting off there studying and nine years later they all meet up to reminisce and of course then things dont go according to plan and the fun begins when they are snowed in in the middle of nowhere in a spooky house

The past has never gone away and this Christmas it is going to come back and haunt the old University friends.
Libby has avoided meeting up with her university friends since leaving university nine years ago. She has built herself a good life and career and is in a convenient relationship with Max. Libby is nervous about meeting her friends again, but reasons with herself that it is only for a few hours.
The heavy snowfall puts paid to her escape plan and then a power cut adds to the stress already being felt by the friends. Tensions begin to rise, and the friends find that the secrets of old are about to come out. Can bridges between the friends be built or will the bridges be burnt forever?
Karen Swan describes the setting well and I could easily picture the snowy landscape and neglected mansion. It was an atmospheric story, with a hint of romance and a touch of sadness. A good winter, Christmas holiday read.
Many thanks to Netgalley and Karen Swan for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

Karen Swan has been on my TBR list for awhile so I was super excited to read this!

This was such a delightful, escapist book - I have already started collecting her previous Christmas novels to read this December. I loved the way the characters were brought to life.

One of my new go to Christmas authors.

⭐️ 4 ⭐️

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

I really enjoyed Christmas by Candlelight, so much so that since reading it, I've bought (nearly) all of Karen Swan’s Christmas book back catalogue — that says it all!
 
Well written with excellent characterisation. I loved the dynamic between the circle of friends, particularly in the chapters set in their university days.
 
The remote setting provides the perfect festive backdrop and heightens the feeling of suspense, yet also gives it a cosy vibe.
 
Overall, it's an excellent read — not overly Christmassy or sickly-sweet, but an intriguing story to get your teeth into.

The book covers events at uni with Libby and her friends 9 years before and the present day when they are having a Christmas get together in one friends country house.
Libby never felt that she had much in common with her friends so decides to make excuses that she and her boyfriend can’t stay as they had a wedding to go to but would call in on the way home. Unfortunately the weather had other ideas when it started to snow heavily and they got snowed in.
Will past secrets good and bad stay buried or will things finally come out into the open.
Fab read

Top notch read! Not the run of your mill Christmas friend romance at all. Past and present wave together to culminate in intrigue and drama. Completely entrancing! I thoroughly enjoyed this book from start to finish. I recommend to be enjoyed all year round!

Thank you Netgalley

I love a Karen Swan read they are my go to christmas cosy book.

Told from the POV of Libby in two timelines (Karen is the queen of a duel timeline) Libby and her university friends last term at Durham University in 2014 and Christmas reunion in the present day. Libby's friend's are an eccentric group and they are reminiscing of times gone by, but there is also some clear friction within the group and some unresolved issues from past events that have affected people in different ways and have played some part in how these incidents have shaped them into the people that are today.

There are some sad parts in this story and there should be a trigger warning for *Sexual assault* or at least the fall out of something like and how it can impact on the life that a person/s can lead post an trauma like that.

It had a different style to it but I enjoyed it nonetheless it wasn't my favorite but an enjoyable read, I will continue purchasing many more books from Karen Swan.

A Christmas book which could be read at any time . This book is pure escapism, and beautifully written. It is a dual timeline book set between Libby and her friends time at university and now . There are many twists and turns to the plot, some not expected . Locations come alive to the reader and well developed characters.
Loved it and would recommend
Thank you to Netgalley, Pan MacMillan and Karen Swan for letting me read this book in exchange for an honest review

Karen Swan is one of my go-to authors, I always enjoy her books. This one took me a while to get into, which was surprising but the book itself has a different feel to it compared to her usual writing. Once I was into it, I enjoyed it and appreciated the book having a different plot style from Swan’s usual writing. The story was told from the past and present to uncover the friends histories when they were at university. It was Christmassy, however it wasn’t the gushy Christmas love story I was expecting but still one I recommend.

Another wonderful book from Karen Swan. As always her characters were full of life, realistic and perfectly drawn. Libby was a great heroine, having to work her way to the top study hard while her friends partied as they were from rich families.
There were so many secrets and twists, taking the plot in different and unexpected directions, keeping me immersed in the book.