 Thank you to Rachel from Rachel's Random Resources for inviting me to participate in the Publication day celebration of Samantha Tonge's book The Winter We Met.  Synopsis: The Winter We Met When charming, mysterious Nik sits next to Jess on a plane home from a Christmas toy trade fair, she never could have imagined the impact he'd have on her life. As they touch down in London, Jess is hesitant to let Nik walk away, and before she knows it, she's invited him to visit. As the two take in the delights of the toy store where she works, Jess gets an upsetting phone call. Willow Court, her grandmother's care home, is to close before Christmas. Jess is determined to find the perfect new home for her Gran – and throw the best Christmas party Willow Court has ever seen! But time is running out with the closure looming and Jess becomes increasingly drawn to enigmatic Nik who joins forces with her and best friend Oliver to realise those plans. Will a chance encounter on an aeroplane bring love to Jess's life or is this Christmas miracle too good to be true? Purchase Link - getbook.at/WinterWeMet My thoughts: This was such a sweet and original story, full of the traditional elements we associate with Christmas, but with an unusual, equally important focus. Jess Jagger, a twenty nine year old toy shop manager, is coming back home from a toy fair in Germany. When she changes seats on plane and ends up meeting charming, easy-to-talk-to Australian Nik Talvi, she has no idea how important this chance meeting will be. Nik's family own a toy making business and Jess, ever thoughtful and kind-hearted as she is, invites him to come and see her shop and the little quaint village it is situated in. He does, but during the conversation Jess gets a call from her grandmother Alice who is telling her that her care home has been bought by a redevelopment company and is slated to be closed and turned into a hotel. The current residents and their families will have just 6 weeks to find new places to live, which isn't easy at such short notice. Nik comes along during Jess's next visit to Alice's home and charms everybody straightawy. He offers his help in organising the last Christmas party for the residents. It will be a great chance to celebrate their friendship and all the good times they spent together. Nik is simply wonderful. So why does Oliver, Jess's flatmate and best friend, with whom she has been enjoying a quiet comfortable life, feel suspicious of Nik? Is Nik really way too good to be true? And what about Oliver himself- sweet, solid, dependable Oliver and his place in Jess's life? I absolutely adored the way the book focused on the elderly and their importance in our lives. The residents of Willow Court are all unique and drawn with so much love and care. I really appreciated their concerns about having to face such a big change and how the staff did everything they could to ensure their next home would be a good place. I also loved reading about the toy shop with its unique atmosphere. It gives me hope that people think about designing new toys to teach children about environment and taking care of our planet. A heart-warming and sincere story, easy to read and full of sweet, memorable characters, the Winter We Met is a bit more than just a regular Christmas romance and I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did. Thank you to Rachel, the publisher and the author for the review copy provided in exchange for an honest opinion.   Author Bio Samantha Tonge lives in Manchester UK and studied German and French at university. She has worked abroad, including a stint at Disneyland Paris, and has travelled widely. When not writing she loves family time, reading and baking. Samantha has sold many dozens of short stories to women's magazines. In 2013, she landed a publishing deal for romantic comedy fiction with HQDigital at HarperCollins and in 2014 her bestselling debut, Doubting Abbey, was shortlisted for the Festival of Romantic Fiction Best Ebook Award. In 2015 her summer novel, Game of Scones, hit #5 in the UK Kindle chart and won the Love Stories Awards Best Romantic Ebook category. In 2019 she was shortlisted for the RNA’s Romantic Comedy Award. In 2020 she won the RNA’s Jackie Collins Romantic Thriller Award with her novel Knowing You, from publisher Canelo. Social Media Links – Twitter: @SamTongeWriter Instagram: @samanthatongeauthor Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SamanthaTongeAuthor/  Comments are closed.
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