Festive Reads - Book 1 - The Christmas Party by Carole Matthews

The nights have drawn in, the weather has got cold and rainy, even a touch of snow and soon every house will be adorned with Christmas lights, so it’s time to start getting in the festive spirit by reading a few festive tales.

I’ve bought several Christmas themed books this year to read over the festive period, the first of which was The ChristmasParty by Carole Matthews.  The story follows Louise, a single mum, starting a new career as a PA working for a rather unscrupulous and handsy boss.  It’s almost time for the Christmas party and for once Louise is determined to have a good time and enjoy the party.

Set in a beautiful country house he office party takes off introducing a variety of employees each with their own drama going down behind the tinsel.  The party takes place the day before Christmas Eve and we then follow the lives of Louise and several of her co-workers through to Christmas Day.

I wanted to enjoy this book, I wanted to feel festive and I wanted to laugh and chuckle at the Christmas party antics but unfortunately I didn’t find the book as festive as I wanted it to be. 

The characters are well developed and you could probably find similarities if you’ve ever worked in that kind of office.  However I find the story lacked closure on a number of aspects.  The Handsy boss was a bit too over the top for me and the comical events at the party itself pushed in to the absurd.

This is the first Carole Matthews book I’ve read and while it’s not my favorite festive read I would consider reading her other work.  I just think this book wasn’t the warming Christmas read I was looking for.