A review by bookshortie
The Cornish Cream Tea Christmas by Cressida McLaughlin

5.0

Hannah loves Christmas and this is clear from the first page. She travels from her home in Edinburgh to Porthgolow, Cornwall to assist the Crystal Waters Hotel to become more eco-friendly.

Whilst there she has to work with Noel her counterpart. When Hannah first meets Noel he is a bit cold towards her, but he does eventually warm up as they get to know each other better and there are definite sparks between them.

Hannah’s stay at the hotel is definitely eventful. When a storm hits Porthgolow, Hannah’s short business visit is extended. As well as work, she also becomes involved in a ghost hunt as it transpires that the Crystal Water Hotel replaced the Victorian Cliff Top Hotel that use to be there and it is rumoured the hotel was haunted. She also has the chance to visit the Cornish Cream Tea Bus and she can’t seem to shake the feeling that she’s been to Porthgolow before.

This was definitely a book I loved to read. All the themes and storylines came together at the end in a nice little Christmas bow. I loved all the characters and felt by the end of the book that I was saying goodbye to old friends. I learned something new in mince pie scones, I did not know that this was a thing. Whilst reading I had many cravings for food especially Cornish cream tea and baked goods because they were described so perfectly and appetisingly from the outset. Plus it helped that the main character Hannah was a bit of a foodie so there were plenty of references to food. I love Cornwall and fell in love with the place all over again. I have already started planning my next visit.

One of my favourite things about this book is how the storyline centred on Hannah’s personal journey to find a place that she belonged. It was obvious from the story that this was lacking in her life. Her journey to Porthgolow not only bought more meaning to Hannah’s life but also strengthened her relationship with her mother.

It was interesting to read that the book was started before lockdown and the author continued to work on it when the world we lived in had changed forever. One of my favourite quotes from the book sums up life and the year we’ve had perfectly describing it as “Love, swearing and extra calories”.

Definitely one of my favourite reads of the year!

I received a gifted copy of this book for an honest review.