Although this is book four in Jenny Colgan’s ‘Mure Series,’ it is my first from this talented author. Jenny has more than thirty published books, in what I like to call the, “happy, cozy read.” Yes, of course, there is a little romance in here, but it is not the ‘syrupy sweet’ stuff I have read in other books. Jenny writes with her heart and mind. This book piqued my interest because I was in immediate need of a happy read, (and I mean now), that could lift me from my reality, (pandemic cabin fever), and take me anywhere else to lift my mood. This book answered that need!

Most importantly, you will not need to read the first three books of the series to enjoy this one. (I did not.) Jenny includes a simple summary in the Prologue that explains who the main characters are and what they have been doing. There is also a hand drawn map of Mure! Just like her writing, details and descriptions are kept to a minimum leaving the choicest words to tell the story.

Mure is a fictional island located in the cold waters far north of Scotland and just across from Norway. It is wind swept with clean fresh air, often biting cold then sunny sweet, but never hot. The ‘Endless’ is the white sand beach that runs almost the entire length of its eastern side. Sightings of whales are common while dots of seals sunning themselves on rocks near the end of the beach occur daily. Fishing boats leave the small harbor regularly unless the winds reach gale force, or the ice seizes everything. Yet no matter, the beauty remains breathtaking.

The population is small (approx. 1500), mostly hardy native-born Islanders, friendly and welcoming. When we last left our core characters, Flora Mackenzie had just given birth to baby boy, Douglas, conceived with her partner and former-boss, Joel Binder. Flora is supposed to be on maternity leave from her business, the popular, ‘Seaside Kitchen,’ which is doing fine without her. However, Flora has difficulty remaining still and she wants to help her brother Fintan fulfill the dying wish of his husband, Coltan, and open the Island Hotel for Christmas. Fintan is in the throes of grieving, since Coltan just died from pancreatic cancer a few weeks ago.
Flora feels guilty leaving baby Douglas with Joel, his father, who is totally enamored with his baby son. Maybe she is a bit jealous, but she is also amazed that Joel went from a high-powered, international lawyer, to a Daddy! Joel is equally amazed but just cannot believe the gifts he has been given at this stage in his life. He does have some work left to do, but it seems so boring compared to watching his baby son.

So, Flora goes off and sends one of her staff, Isla, to the Rock, now known as the Island Hotel. Fintan goes off to Glasgow to interview chefs and brings back the only one willing to go to Mure, a tattooed, long-haired, Frenchman, named Gaspard. Joel forgets to mention that he has arranged for the son of the Duke of Norway, a spoiled and lazy brat, to come and work as a kitchen boy at the Hotel, to help his father straighten the kid out. Ah yes, Konstantin Jr. brings his pudgy dog, Bjårk.

You can imagine what must be done to open a hotel and restaurant several months before Christmas, no?! Just picture inviting thirty or so people to your house for Christmas dinner and they are all staying for the weekend. Ahh, that did it!

Fun, happy chaos ensues of course, but only as Jenny Colgan can write it. Take a quick trip and fly off to Mure for a few days. You will not regret it, I promise. Oh, and bring a warm jacket with a hat and gloves.

Thank you Netgalley, Harper Collins Publishers, and Jenny Colgan

Loved revisiting the characters in this series with their complex and very human characteristics. The island of Mure is a unique setting adding an extra dynamic to the story. . An entertaining and uplifting holiday read.

We return to the remote island of Mure located between Scotland and Finland where the newly built hotel is getting ready to open at Christmas time. While Fintan owns the hotel after the death of his husband who was building it, his grief causes his sister, Flora, to take on overseeing the final stages of preparation. New characters join the familiar cast through those hired for the hotel including a temperamental chef and the secret son of a Duke who's been banished to work in the hotel kitchens washing pots. Returning to this beloved island with characters readers know and care about make this an easy-to-recommend title for Hallmark movie lovers.

Thanks to NetGalley & HarperCollins Publishers/William Morrow Paperbacks for a digital advance readers copy of this book. All comments and opinions are my own.

I'm of the belief that it's always the right time of year to read a book set during Christmastime. Especially if it's written by Jenny Colgan. I was excited to read this one, not even realizing it was book #4 in the series. And happily I discovered it can be read as a standalone, though now I want to go back and read the first three.

This is a sweet and heartwarming story of everyday people and an incognito Norwegian prince, a crazy French chef, a grieving widower, and a new mother, all living in a small Scottish village where everyone knows everything about everyone else. The story begins as the Island Hotel prepares to launch on Christmas Day. Be prepared for the mouthwatering food descriptions as the hotel's restaurant makes delicious meals throughout the story. Of course there are misunderstandings, mishaps, an ill-behaved dog, and quirky traditions, but I loved the way various plot threads came together to provide a satisfying conclusion - I definitely recommend this "happily ever after" book.

#ChristmasattheIslandHotel #NetGalley

This was an enjoyable book. I feel like you would need to have read the three previous books in the story to fully enjoy it. I was a bit sad that the new characters weren't able to be developed more because the book switched from so many different previous characters points of view. This book was similar to the movie Love Actually in the way that many different stories were being told concurrently. That said, it was all handled with good humor. The Syrian refugee plotline was the only bit of angst. Even postpartum depression was dealt with with a light hand. If you want a light, amiable read, then this will do the trick.

Christmas at the Island Hotel
A Novel
by Jenny Colgan
HarperCollins Publishers
You Like Them You Are Auto-Approved
William Morrow Paperbacks
General Fiction (Adult) | Romance | Women's Fiction
Pub Date 20 Oct 2020 | Archive Date 15 Dec 2020

It was lovely to be back on Mure Island. I love the characters and the story was good. Thanks to HarperCollins Publishing and Net Galley for the ARC.

5 star

Christmas at the Island Hotel is another wonderful book in the Mure series by Jenny Colgan! I have read and loved many of her books over the years however I think this may be the first Christmas one I have picked up. Mure, the remote island setting of this series and the unique hotel, The Rock are both so beuatiful and detailed, they are like characters in the book! I love the descriptions of the endless beach and the rustic MacKenzie farm. Christmas at the Island Hotel has all the same wit and banter, I look forward to from Jenny Colgan's writing. The characters are interesting and multilayered with multiple plots intertwining throughout the book. Seeing as this is the 4th book in the series, although it could be read as a stand alone novel- I do think it is best to have read at least some of the earlier Mure tales. (Otherwise, the characters and backstories could get confusing.) Jenny Colgan's novels are a welcome way to travel to a beautiful place to enjoy a laugh, maybe a slight cry or a pull on your heartstrings, and delicious descriptions of wonderful food!
Thank you to Jenny Colgan, HarperCollins Publishers, William Morrow Paperbacks for an advance copy! That being said, these thoughts and review are my own.

Love the writing, love the characters. Look forward to reading the adventures of her characters on Mure.

I was really ambivalent about this novel. What’s not to like about a Jenny Colgan Christmas book? The plot involved major suspension of disbelief (a spoiled, lazy foreign prince is forced by his father to get a job in the kitchen of a hotel on a small Scottish island). There are the stereotypical characters—a temperamental, abrasive French chef, a rich spoiled twenty-something, a bratty child whose parents think she’s just adorable, an ambitious London journalist and, of course, the sweet local girl, Isla. Will the prince learn to change his entitled ways? Will the Syrian refugee doctor be reunited with his wife? Will Isla find the man of her dreams? Jenny Colgan will deliver her trademark HEA ending, but the road there wasn’t as enjoyable as I’d hoped. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC.

I read the 1st book in this series and not the 2nd and 3rd. The author does a good job of recapping the characters at the beginning for a refresher. I only read 40% of this book because, as well as with the 1st book, I felt the plot just didn't get off the ground.

Thank you to Net Galley for an advanced copy in exchange for this review.

Another wonderful story on Mure. Jenny Colgan has a way of drawing readers into a wonderful and distinct locale full of the most loveable characters. Another fabulous edition to her Mure locale books.

I don't think there will ever be a time that I'm not a fan of Jenny Colgan. She is my safe space. I know I can always go to her books for comfort. Right now I need a lot of comfort so it was a joy to read about the people of Mure in this fourth book.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for letting me read this book. I started on it and after the first page realized that I missed Mure #3 so I read that one and then started this one right away.

Jenny is doing something right when I wish Mure was a real place I could visit. I don't do cold so this is saying a lot. The people are just so nice. Even the crotchety ones have endearing qualities. I press Jenny Colgan into anyone's hands who just needs a break. During COVID she has been even more of a treasure.

Flora just had her baby. She is also trying to get a restaurant up and running. I like how it tells a little of what us working moms battle with everyday. There are new characters that take this book into a new direction. There I'm not going to get too far into the details other than to say that Christmas at the Island Hotel is worth reading around the holidays.

The only note I have is that I was distracted by a name change in the book. Every time I'd see the name I'd think maybe I was thinking of the wrong books, even though I just read the prior one the day before. That was the only downside. Otherwise it was truly a joy.

With thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow Paperbacks for an early copy in return for an honest review.

In the interest of full disclosure I absolutely love Jenny Colgan books and own about a dozen in my home library! So I went into this book thinking I would like it. And like it I did. I love being able to travel to different places in Great Britain through her stories and returning to the island of Mure was absolutely delightful. The story made me want to book a ticket to go at Christmas despite the fact that I'd hardly even see the sun. And even though this was the 4th book with Flora, Joel and the rest of the friends and family, there were fresh storylines and it was good to catch up with all of them. I rather think if I visited the Shetland Island area that I would be able to pop into the Seaside Kitchen to have a scone from Flora. And that is one of my favorite kinds of stories...where the characters just feel so absolutely real!

Christmas at the Island Hotel brings the reader back to familiar characters on the Scottish island of Mure. After Colton’s death, Fintan with the assistance of Flora is in the process of opening a luxury hotel on the island. Isla finds herself working in the hotel kitchen, while Iona helps run the café. Two newcomers to the island are Konstantin, a Norwegian aristocrat who has been sent to work in the kitchen as punishment by his father, and Gaspard, the new chef. Saif, the town physician and his sons are still on the island, and still awaiting any news of his wife. Another delightful holiday visit to the island of Mure by Jenny Colgan.

I received an advanced reader copy via NetGalley.

Christmas at the Island Hotel is 4th in Jenny Colgan's Mure series. We return to the remote Island of Mure which is located between Scotland and Norway..I was very happy to be back there.

The story centers around the Grand Opening of the Island Hotel and it is near Christmas when the book opens up. Many ormf my old friends are there and a few new characters, now also friends, have been added. It all works miraculously for the season and marvelously for the story. At the end I felt there is certainly room for a fifth book in the series...whichbI for one, will be on the lookout for.
Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins Publishing for allowing me to review this book which has a publication date of:
October 20, 2020

This is perfect for fans of Macomber’s Christmas series. On the remote Scottish island of Mure the Island Hotel is preparing for a holiday opening. A brother and sister duo are in charge. The brother is grieving the loss of his partner whose dream was the Island Hotel. The sister is a new mother who is throwing herself into the work, more confident in her management skills than her mothering abilities. We also get a crazy chef, a shy but tough island girl, and a spoiled fellow doing his first real job. It all makes for a warm human story, just right for the holidays.

Lovely to be back on Mure Island wonderful characters that make me smile.Enjoyed the behind the scenes look at running a hotel.A warm wonderful read.# netgalley # Harper Collins books,

This is the 4th full novel in the Mure series by Jenny Colgan and I think it might be the best one! I thoroughly enjoyed being back on the fictional Scottish island of Mure. I like how the characters we’ve come to know during the series are still there, but Colgan spends more time developing several of the minor characters and introduces some fun new ones. This novel didn’t focus as heavily on the main relationship that started the series, and I really enjoyed that. Even if you haven’t read the other books in the series, this would be enjoyable on its own. It will be published in October 2020 and will be a great read as the days get shorter and colder.

Thank you #NetGalley for this #ARC!

I super wanted to love this because of the awesome premise, but the writing style is just not clicking. Wouldn't be fair to the book if I finished and rated it lowly. DNF.

Jenny Colgan deftly weaves the personal narratives of the residents of Mure, a small Scottish island, as their lives shift and grow in unexpected ways. The newest installment of Colgan's Summer Seaside Kitchen series offers winter seasonal comfort, cheer, and guidance for new readers and series fans alike. Chapters alternate character perspectives, delving into ongoing issues with newly widowed Fintan as he struggles to honor his husband's dreams; Flora, restless during her pregnancy, takes on a larger role in opening the island hotel; and the continued, cutting uncertainty between island doctor Saif, a Syrian refugee, and schoolteacher Lorna. Hotel preparations also throw together a spoiled and entitled young Norwegian man with a hardworking, sweetheart. Their stories unfold amidst a close-knit town peopled with memorable characters and delightful details. Once covid-19 health concerns abate, readers will no doubt want to book passage to this charming (fictional) community.

*This review is based on pre-publication text. "Christmas at the Island Hotel" will be published October 20, 2020.