Laurel West is thirty-five years old. She lives in York with her cat Mistral for company. She hasn’t given up on love exactly, but she is content with her life.

When Laurel’s sister contacts her with a plea to look after her fourteen year old son Zac while she is in rehab, Laurel’s world is turned upside down.  Laurel and Abby have been mostly estranged for years now, and she barely knows Zac. She travels to London to stay with Zac, but her sister’s flat seems austere and cold after her cozy home in York. Zac gets thrown out of the school he attends, he is sullen and uncommunicative, and he is glued to his smartphone.  Laurel comes up with the bright idea of taking Zac out of his unhealthy environment and travelling to Orkney, where Laurel’s aunt lives. There they might get to know one another, and with only days to go before Christmas, perhaps Laurel can show Zac just what Christmas should be. And, as an added bonus, there is no wifi signal at the cottage so Zac just might have to do something other than play with his phone.

But Laurel’s vision of the perfect holiday retreat is soon shattered. Her aunt isn’t there and the cottage has been closed up for weeks. It would seem she has her work cut out to make this cottage as cozy as she remembered from her own childhood…

You can usually depend on Kate Hewitt to write a heart-warming, and romantic story and she has delivered both with this novella.

The characters and the setting were very vividly portrayed. Though you could predict the ending, it was nonetheless an enjoyable tale. Archie, the sheep farmer, was a positively yummy romantic interest.

This charming Christmas romance will appeal strongly to those who prefer to read romantic fiction.  The story was perhaps more romantically driven than my usual reading material.  That being said, I really enjoyed the characters and the setting AND, most importantly, it provided me with some enjoyable escapist fiction during this busy holiday season. Recommended!