Maddy Cracy is carer to her aunt Ruthie and to her own little girl Lyla. Her life is predictable, if a bit stale until Raff turns up with a box of old love letters between Ruthie and his father. As with any Sue Moorcroft book, this did not disappoint.
The Christmas love letters is about two romances – the one between Maddy and Raff that is unfolding in the present, and the one between Ruthie and Raff’s (married) father, that happened in the past. The discussion of Ruthie’s affair is gentle and nuanced. There’s some exploration of what it was like to have had a child out of wedlock in the 60s and 70s. There’s a lot of strong emotional elements pulling in different directions in this book – long lost parents and siblings, blood family vs adopted family, living with a sick parent, living with the uncertainty when someone has disappeared …
I found this book very moving. I also found an interesting exploration of how to help someone with waning sight live in their own home comfortably.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the review copy.
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Jeevani Charika and Rhoda Baxter 