Synopsis

Gretchen Daniels has recently moved into an apartment with her two children to be closer to her mother, Miriam. She and her children are building a life together in a new community when a mysterious young woman, Melissa McCreary, moves into the apartment next to them. She has few possessions, little personality, and keeps to herself. One day, a local landlord who is looking for Melissa knocks on Gretchen’s door for assistance. Melissa’s mother has died and in the coming weeks the landlord needs Melissa to empty her mother’s apartment. Gretchen reaches out and offers to help, but the apartment is a gut wrenching shamble of a home. There is little worth saving except for a few photos and a note that is discovered on the crate beside the bed. It is unfinished but in the two scribbled lines, Melissa discovers she has a brother and a sister that she never knew about. Even more shocking, she begins to uncover family secrets that show her who she really is. Can two very different women embark on a journey that explores a long-buried need for forgiveness, hope, and redemption?

My Thoughts

It’s that time of year when all the Christmas books are on the bookstore shelves and the time when I am starting my Christmas reviews.  Early?  Not really.  With most having a release date of late October, I don’t want you to miss what’s out there.

The Christmas Note by Donna VanLiere is a wonderful, uplifting story about Gretchen and Melissa, two unlikely friends who become so much more to one another.  The story is told from the point of view of both women which adds amazing insight into their lives.  Gretchen is suffering through a difficult time in her life when she meets Melissa, a woman who has faced hardship her entire life.   While Melissa lives alone and keeps to herself, Gretchen is awaiting the return of  her husband who was wounded in a bomb explosion in Afghanistan

Melissa’s mother has died and she is dealing with a lifetime of hurt from her mother. Gretchen offers to help Melissa clean out her mother’s apartment and from then there out Melissa’s life begins a major transformation through healing and discovery.  When Melissa finds out that she has siblings that she never knew about, she begins her search.  The search is an amazing journey of miracles that reunite old friends while creating new friendships.

Although the end was predictable by the middle of the book, I was drawn to the characters and had to see things played out.  This is a story of forgiveness, hope, and redemption.  I love the way that Donna Van Liere writes about Christmas miracles without sounding preachy and fake. The story seems genuine and the characters are believable.  This is a wonderful book that reminds me to look past my initial impression of someone and to not pass judgement on those around me.

The Christmas Note is the newest edition in the Christmas Hope Series and I for one am looking forward to reading them all.

Publication Date: October 2011

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

Release Format: Hardcover , 224pp

My Source:  Publisher in exchange for an honest review

ISBN:  0312658966

Add to Your TBR:  Goodreads

Buy the Book:  Amazon