MIDNIGHT AT THE CHRISTMAS BOOKSHOP - Jenny Colgan
Avon
ISBN - 978-0-06-334509-6 (Hardcover)
ISBN - 978-0-06-326045-0 (Paperback)
October 2023
Fiction

Edinburgh, Scotland - Present Day

Thanks to Carmen Hogan, and her determination to keep Mr. McCredie's bookshop afloat, a film crew is in the store to shoot a rather cheesy Christmas movie this summer. While Carmen knows that the shop desperately needs this income, still it's a rather depressing thing to see. Now Mr. McCredie, in his late seventies, has announced that he needs more money in order for him to take his dream trip - to Antarctica on a research vessel. To Carmen's horror, he seems to be falling for a millionaire who wants to turn the bookstore into yet another of his touristy stores selling cheap Chinese-made souvenirs. And, to make matters worse, her sister, whom Carmen has been living with for a year, is hiring a nanny to care for her four children so that she can return to work. This means, of course, that it would be nice if Carmen moved out to make room for that person. Then there is Oke, the Brazilian Quaker who arrived in Edinburgh as a post-graduate student and stayed because of Carmen. 

Carmen knows that her salary from the bookshop won't pay for any decent spot in Edinburgh, but her boss does own the entire building and lives in the upper regions of it. Maybe Carmen can make a deal? At any rate, there is Oke who is a puzzle to Carmen because he's shown no interest in her sexually, so Carmen thinks he's waiting for her to make the first move. Which she does, and which goes terribly off kilter. Oke is off to South America for a planned research project, and that, it seems to Carmen, is that. Now she is without a home and heartbroken.

Despite her woes, Carmen still wants to do more with the bookshop to make it enticing to the general public. Mr. McCredie has been less than enthusiastic about her rearranging his tangle of bookshelves that run beyond the store itself. And he's still not convinced that cheap souvenirs won't be able to finance his trip. How will Carmen remedy this situation, and her need for housing, not to mention her broken heart? That's where the story gets more fun. 

A sequel to THE CHRISTMAS BOOKSHOP, MIDNIGHT AT THE CHRISTMAS BOOKSHOP is a true delight. The quaint Victoria Street section of Edinburgh with its quirky stores, and store owners, is the backdrop to this tale, and Carmen's slowly growing optimism is fun to watch develop. 

Don't miss this latest of Jenny Colgan's terrific books. It's the perfect Christmas read.

Jani Brooks