The Noel Letters by Richard Paul Evans is so m any things: a fabulous piece of women's fiction; a lovely Christmas story; a story of redemption; and a beautiful romance. Noel Post is coming home to see her father after years of estrangement. He had contacted her to tell her he was dying. She makes it to Utah four hours after he passed. The ensuing weeks are traumatic, revealing, healing, and full of love from so many sides. The plot is carefully written and paced beautifully. As always, it is the quintessential feel-good novel.

Noel learns much about herself, about her father, about her long-dead mother and about her father's friends. She was the only one who didn't think he was special. He life has never been easy, but hen neither was his. This difference was that he was comfortable. She was not. And it showed in every action she took: her discomfort. She hurt so she hurt others, at will. The story holds a lot of truths and lessons for each of us, even if our stories are different. I recommend it as #1 on you Christmas to read list.

I was invited to read a free ARC of The Noel Letters by Netgalley. All opinions and interpretations contained herein are solely my own. #netgalley #thenoelletters

I've had a long standing tradition of reading each Christmas book Richard Paul Evans puts out. I eagerly await its release so I can get (usually) get lost in a story I don't want to put down. Some books have been better than others, and some have left a more lasting impression, but I still look forward to this Christmas tradition every year.

This year's release, The Noel Letters, was no exception. The plot sounded right up my alley. And while I think it's a good book, it wasn't as good as I was hoping. Usually, Mr. Evans' books encompass more of the Christmas spirit in terms of the emotions they bring out. This one didn't do that. The Noel Letters was about the long term effects of harboring a grudge. You can see why Noel distanced herself from her father. You can easily see why she felt the way she did. You can relate to the confusion she encounters when she arrives home to everyone singing his praises. How was this man the same man at the root of her pain? There is a heaviness of the heart as you read the pages of this book. How was it able to get as bad as it did? How was the distance and misunderstandings able to last as long as they did?

The letters Noel begins receiving weren't as impactful as I thought they would be. Rather, they were random nuggets of advice that you later learn are connected. Not to say the words written weren't wise, but you didn't always see the connection between them and Noel. Finding out who was behind them and involved with them was more impactful. Once you have this background information on the letters, you see them in a different light.

The supporting characters were both fascinating and confusing. Grace, I loved and wanted to learn more about. I loved her character. You just knew there was more to her involvement than just a friend of Noel's Dad. Your heart breaks to learn of her story, then it overflows with amazement when you see what she does with the circumstances. You aren't surprised to learn they were close friends, but shocked to see how the friendship came to be. I have to say, she was my favorite of the characters. I could just sit with her all day and gleam life lessons and wisdom from her.

Wendy, the coworker with her father in his bookstore, was a character I couldn't make sense of. You knew they were connected as she worked side by side, for years, with him. She was his righthand man in the business operations, as well as some of his personal life. Both she and Grace were the ones to care for him all the years Noel wasn't there- especially during his illness and death. There was a mourning with a touch of bitterness you meet right away, but can't quite figure out. I have to say the revelation of Noel's Father and Wendy was a surprise I didn't see coming. It was one I couldn't really understand. You aren't there to watch it unfold, so it's hard to imagine.

Overall, I'm glad I read the book. It was a story that tackles a darker set of feelings and emotions that can exist during the holidays. Grudges can bring damage that takes years to heal, if you let them. This book is a reminder of there always being two sides to every story, but being willing to learn both sides is key. Forgiveness was the center point of the story. Forgiveness from both sides. I felt much of the emotions Noel felt within the pages. I understood them. I cried a few tears and points. It's a good read, but not one that I think I would read again.

Noel Post has an attitude problem, made worse by recent events in her life. First, she and her husband divorce, her roommate’s husband is moving back in so Noel is homeless, then her father dies before they could reconcile. She returns to Salt Lake City for the first time in 16 years to find her father has left her his beloved bookstore and home. More upheavals follow and she’s faced with having to accept that her memories of her childhood and family need to be revised and she must accept that her anger at her father may not have been deserved. Coming to terms with her new reality leads her to a future she never imagined.

Be sure to have a box of tissues available when you read this book. Noel’s story is heartbreaking while ultimately being inspirational. The characters are complex – none of the major characters are perfect but have flaws like the rest of us. But they overcome their flaws to live the life they were meant to live. Noel’s anger is understandable, but you have t o wish her father had been honest with her. The letters Noel receives from the mysterious Tabla Rasa are thought provoking, even without the context.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley. The opinion is my own

I have been a fan of Richard Paul Evans for years. I remember back when his book, The Christmas Box, was first published. My mom brought home a copy and I picked it up and read it. I was just a young girl but read it and loved it. I was deeply touched by the story. I've continued to read and enjoy his books since that first discovery.

The Noel Letters was another touching and nostalgic book for me. This is a story about heartache, misunderstandings, healing, forgiveness, peace, love, enlightenment, friendship, trust, patience, discovery, and so much more. Noel's childhood in her memories is not a place she likes to visit. She hides that pain and allows it to influence her life choices, not always in the best way. She experiences a lot of loss and has to find a way to heal or walk away from everything.

I was trying so hard not to just tell her what to do through the pages of the book. I wanted to tell her everything she couldn't see to help her heal. But of course, we all know that doesn't work, her story is set on the pages and I can't influence it differently. But I felt a great connection with her character and wanted to save her from all the heartache and pain. Instead, I continued to read and watch her learn and grow in the process of her feeling and managing her pain and hurt.

The setting of this story made me smile. I could picture it all clearly in my mind. I spent a lot of time in the neighborhood where Noel grew up and as she spoke of running or driving there, I was transported back to those quaint streets and shops. I love when I find a connection like that with a book I'm reading.

Noel has several people come into her life throughout the course of the story and her ups and downs. I loved watching her navigate and making decisions about how much to let them into her life and if she was going to move forward or stay stagnant. All the characters were dear to me in one way or another. I loved the added dimension and perspectives they brought to the story.

If you love raw and emotionally gripping and compelling stories, with characters who grow and face their demons and pasts, I highly recommend this book. It's the fourth book in a series. I haven't read the previous three books but this one, and I'm assuming the other three, can be read as a stand alone novel. I hope you enjoy the journey you go on when you read this book.

Content: Clean. Some talk about alcoholism but nothing in detail.

I received a copy from the publisher, Gallery Books, via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions in the review are my own.

Happy Reading!!!

Born on Christmas, Noel Post, formerly Noel Book, is a recently divorced daughter of a book store owner, she is also a book editor at one of the publishers of note. Shortly before the holidays, she leaves NYC, flying to Salt Lake City to visit her father, whom she hasn’t seen in over two decades, nor has she wanted to see him. His recent diagnosis with cancer has brought her home, her plan to stay with him until his passing, but he passes shortly before her flight lands.

Within days, her life changes drastically, her roommate calls her to let her know that she will need to find a new place to live, she is let go from her job, and then she finds out that her father has left his bookstore to her, as well as being the sole recipient of his life insurance policy. While she wrestles to decide what to do, she begins to spend time working in her father’s bookstore, and hearing many stories about her father from many people about how loved he was by so many people. The thing is, Noel had shut him out of her life many years before, angry after her mother’s death in a car accident when she was just a young child.

There’s a memorial service, legal paperwork which needs to be handled, as well as the decision she has to make regarding the bookstore. Being in her old hometown, being in the house she grew up in, as well as running into old friends in town have Noel revisiting old memories, some unpleasant while others seem to give her reasons to consider staying. Those who loved her father seem to bring out the worst in her, since she’s never forgiven him for her mother’s death.

Letters begin to arrive from a seemingly anonymous writer signed by ’Tabula Rasa’, although she believes she knows who they are from. A childhood sweetheart whom she has recently reconnected with seems to have reappeared at the same time the letters began to arrive, and she is sure she knows just who is sending them.

Interspersed throughout this are quotes from various authors through the ages, some are part of the story, and some are shared as an epigraph, many on the topic of writing, which I enjoyed reading along with the story.

This is the fourth book in the Noel Collection series by Richard Paul Evans, which I’ve enjoyed reading. As the holiday season will soon be upon us, I was happy to sink into these pages and just have a little taste of the sweetness it brings, along with hope for better things in the coming year.


Pub Date: 27 Oct 2020

Many thanks for the ARC provided by Gallery Books

Love yourself. Then find something to love beyond yourself. - Grace Potter

I always seem to forget just how much I enjoy books by Richard Paul Evans until I start read another one. And then I kick myself for not picking up one of his stories sooner. I've read quite a few of his books and enjoyed all of that I've read but there's still quite a few I still need to get to.

Noel Book Post is a Senior Editor for one of the Big Five publishers in New York City but her life just keeps getting worse. A divorce starts her downward spiral out and then she gets a call to come home to Salt Lake City because her father is on his death's bed. One major problem - she hasn't seen or spoken to her father in 16 years since she left Utah as a teen.

She arrives back with incredibly mixed feelings to find out she's too late to see her father. She then finds out she now owns his successful bookstore plus more.

This is a story about love, loss, and misunderstandings. Noel meets an old boyfriend, Dylan, who has a young daughter and she ends up finding out much more about the father she thought she knew.

Author Evans begins each chapter of the story with some wonderful quotes that I especially enjoyed and thought complemented the book.

I highly recommend this book to readers of Evans, Nicholas Sparks, holiday stories, or readers that just want to read a moving story.

I received this book from Gallery Books through Net Galley in the hopes that I would read it and then leave a review or reviews.

The Noel Letters is the poignant story of Noel Book, a story somewhat reminiscent of the prodigal in the book of Luke. Noel is returning home after eighteen years away, to right the estrangement of years past and make peace with her dying father Robert.

This is such a touching heartfelt story, the truth playing out through a series of letters, revealing how misperceptions and half-truths can damage relationships. Noel was so confident she'd been wronged and yet there are always two sides to every story as she was soon to find out. A quote in the book says it so well, "It's how knowledge is applied to real life that counts as wisdom." Noel had much to learn about truth, wisdom and the power of forgiveness.

I recommend The Noel Letters for readers who enjoy Christmas themed books that both stir the heart and challenge what we believe about love. I appreciate a copy of The Noel Letters being made available by Gallery Books through Netgalley, for review. All thoughts and opinions are my very own.

The Noel Letters by Richard Paul Evans, is the first book that I have read by this author. All I can say, is "Wow". This is one of the best books I have read in awhile. I am an avid reader, and usually read 2-3 books per week. Very seldom do I read a book that affects me emotionally. This book did. The characters and plot of this story are well thought out. I would sum up the story as a modern version of "A Christmas Carol" (even though the story takes place during the Christmas season, it is not about Christmas). I would highly recommend this book, and I look forward to reading other novels by Richard Paul Evans!

Haunted by memories of her mother and determined to shut her father out of her life, Noel Book grapples at holding her crumbled world together.

Recently divorced with no place to call her own, Noel receives a call from her father that he is dying and would like to see her in the short time he has left.

Upon her return Noel is faced weighing out many life changing decisions in a short amount of time. In turn, she must question her belief in memories to find out the truth.

A story of a father and daughters love, second chances, and the true spirit of the holiday season.

*Bibliophiles beware: this read is set in a bookstore, has many bookish references and each chapter is prefaced with a bookish quote*

Thank you to @richardpaulevansauthor @netgalley @simonandschuster for the gift of another heartwarming tale.

OMG this book hit me in all the feels! Richard Paul Evans is a great writer who knows how to capture the feelings of his audience.

Noel Post (nee Book) fled Utah 16 years prior and never looked back. She had a tumultuous relationship with her father and dropped him from her life. However, when she finds out he is dying of cancer, she flies home, still angry, to see him one last time. She expects it will be a short visit and she will return to her life in New York and never come back. However, her anger unravels as the learns the real story behind what caused her to be so bitter in the first place and she re-discovers herself in the process.

I could feel Noel's seething in this book. She sounds initially like she got a raw deal but as we delve deeper everything she thought she knew and could hold on to is false. It was nice to watch her come out of her cloud of frustration and despair, although I admit I shed multiple tears while she did so. This is not your typical Hallmark Christmas story where everything is hunky dory and someone re-discovers Christmas. There are some dark and difficult parts. However, I really enjoyed this book and I would love to read it again in the future.

Thank you Netgalley for the chance to read this charming story.

Fans of Richard Paul Evans know to prepare themselves for an emotional journey when they open the cover of one of his books. This one is no exception, make sure you have tissues handy. I've never read a bad RPE book, not even one that was just so-so. He always gives his readers a character or two that must seek answers outside their comfort zones. While they are not totally unlikeable, they do tend to blame their problems on the world.

The Noel Letters finds our main character Noel, unable to connect with her father for so many years, she loses her last chance when he dies as she is on her way to see him. Noel has never reconciled her father's actions during her mother's death and used it as an excuse not to face the past. Fate has now given her no choice. Just as she begins to sort her father's things, she will receive letters that reveal many of her memories may not be the truth. She must face her past in order to have a future.

As do most of RPE's stories, the characters mature emotionally, taking us on the journey with them. We recognize many of our friends and neighbors in his communities and sometimes find some small redemption for ourselves. Heart stirring hard truths are a main character along with the rest of the wonderfully rendered story. These are not easy stories, but they are certainly great ones.

You know what you're going to get reading a Richard Paul Evans book and this is no exception. This is the fourth is a series of stand alone novels. The book is easy to read and every chapter starts with a quote, usually from writers.

Noel is sent off to school as a teen, continues on to college and a career as an editor in NYC. She has no relationship with her father who she blames for the death of her mom. When he says he is dying she returns home only to find that he passed away hours before her arrival. She is left to mourn for a relationship and person that she didn't know as an adult. Noel works at his book shop while she tries to decide what she wants to do with her life. Letters of advice and encouragement start arriving anonymously and she suspects they are from Dylan, Dylan was her first kiss as a teen and now is a single father

Evans is good at writing loss and redemption stories, (e.g. The Walk series). He gives good advice without it reading like a self help book. But this one didn't give me the feels. Noel is not an overly likable character. She is angry and not happy with where she is in her life. The side characters add to the story but seem one dimensional. Overall it is predictable. Other than taking place during the holiday season, Christmas and religion are not relevant to the plot.

I appreciate Evans writes family friendly books. If my mother in law were still alive I would buy it for her to add to her RPE collection. Thank you to NetGalley, Gallery Books and the author for the ARC ebook in exchange for an honest review.

I was crying all over the screen of my elliptical. When I got up this morning I had about 25% left to read. My overall impression so far was three stars for this new holiday read. It was raining cats and dogs outside so I jumped on the elliptical in our basement for some cardio and opened up my digital ARC. Then I hit the good stuff. I had to suspend my workout session several times to go blow my nose and clean up my face. This one is that good. What a beautiful picture of the love of our Heavenly Father and the reconciliation He offers. Grace. That's where it's at. Noel is singlehandedly sabotaging her life in multiple arenas, one after the other. Then she goes to meet with Grace -- and later is blessed by a meal in Grace's mansion. Hello, Heaven! So much to unpack in this one. Read it with a buddy or a group if you can. The best one in the entire Noel Collection in my opinion.

Bless you, Gallery Books and NetGalley, for providing a DRC in exchange for an honest review.

Noel’s father, Robert Book, had a last dying wish, to see his daughter just one more time. Twenty years since she stepped foot in the small Salt Lake City home she grew up in, Noel Post arrives. But she is too late to make amends or resolve her many unanswered questions. Overwhelmed by a recent divorce and losing her NYC apartment, Noel decides to stay in Utah a little bit longer than expected and get some closure. Intending to organize her father’s estate Noel begins by working in his iconic book shop, rediscovering her father’s passions and meeting the small circle of people who were an integral part of his life. Haunting memories of her mother’s untimely death and a chain of letters from a mystery author slowly reveal the difficult truth Noel must face if she is ever to find love in her heart again.

Thank you to Netgalley, Gallery books and the Author Richard Paul Evans for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This is the fourth book in the Noel series.
Again Richard Paul does not disappoint, this was a very emotional read.
A book that exudes the true meaning of love and forgiveness.
While I read this with a total dislike of the protagonist "Noel" the other characters were heartwarming in their own ways but, the more you read the more the story comes together.
I highly recommend this book and the entire series.

Richard Paul Evans has done it again. Another story that leads both the reader and character, on a journey of self-discovery. Even though this is a holiday book; in my opinion the holiday is only part of the scenery in a sense. This is more a story about facing truths about ourselves and things we thought were true.

Noel Book Post blames her father for her mother's death. Almost twenty years ago, she shook the dust of her hometown from her shoes and never looked back. Over the years her father has tried to find a mid-way point where they could get along without Noel's animosity toward him. When her father finds out that he is dying with only a short time left; he begs her to come home because there are things that need to be said. Noel reluctantly agrees to return home; leaving her senior editor position at a big name publishing house in New York City back to Salt Lake City, Utah. Unfortunately, her father dies before she arrives. She meets the woman that has worked for her father for many years and who has made all the arrangements for her father's funeral; leaving Noel with nothing to do but be present.

Noel is reacquainting herself with her childhood home and town. She is still reeling from her recent divorce, is being kicked out of the apartment she shares, then her father's death, is fired from her job, and inherits her father's book store. She has been put through the proverbial wringer. She's angry and scared and feeling sorry for herself. Then she starts getting some mysterious letters that begin to "speak" to her and make her examine some of her choices/decisions of the past and maybe help her find her future.

Such an emotionally charged book. It shows us that recollection of past events as a child is rooted in what is perceived to be the truth at the time. Memories from childhood can be flawed because the knowledge to see things as they really were hadn't been learned yet. As children most of us saw things as black and white; where there are always shades of grey as well. Does Noel learn this lesson too late? Can she find/see the truth and let it set her free?

I thoroughly enjoyed this story; if you read it, I hope you do as well.

Another October brings us another Richard Paul Evans holiday novel and his latest release, The Noel Letters, is another winner. Flying home to Utah, book editor Noel is returning to the one place she promised she'd never visit again-her home. With her father dying Noel is forced to confront the past in order to open herself up to the future. A hardened, sharp-tongued editor Noel has pushed everyone away in order to protect herself. Unexpectedly inheriting her father's beloved bookstore Noel gets to know her town and her father's inner circle again; dealing with the grief of his untimely death and a recent divorce the bright spot in her day are the anonymous letters she receives leading up to some startling revelations during Christmas. Told with the trademark style readers have come to associate with Richard Paul Evans The Noel Letters will ultimately warm your heart this holiday season and make you believe in the power of second chances.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

This is a lovely heartwarming Christmas story than might not have any real surprises but will definitely cheer you up. Noel has been estranged from her father Robert for years but now she's come home to Utah, too late to see him before he died. She's inherited his bookstore, which, as it turns out is going concern with customers that loved him. Her father's assistant Wendy and Grace, one of the clients, talk to her about a different man than the one she thought she knew. The man she's held responsible for the death of her mother. And Dylan, her never quite forgotten love, turns up and they reignite their relationship (no steam btw). Then the letters, signed Tabula Rasa, start arriving. They are filled with insight about Noel and make suggestions about her life. What makes this especially nice are the relationships that Noel develops and how she comes to understand some of the secrets he father kept. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A good read.

I have read everything that Richard Paul Evans wrote.

Noel goes home per her father's request. She lost her marriage, apartment, father, job, friends...
Where should she go, What should she do...
She goes back through a maze of memories. Father gave her roots ...or did he give her chains?
She feels a surrender to the Universe, and watch where guided.

I will be recommending this book to everyone.

I loved this story by Richard Paul Evans, the master of Christmas fiction. Heart-touching, uplifting and so appreciated during these days of negative news.

Noel Letters chapters start off with an ideal inspirational quote. The quotes made me smile, made me introspective and often put into words my feelings surrounding my life-long book-loving life.

Within two months, Noel Book was divorced, lost her apartment, her job as a book editor and her estranged father dies as she flies to Salt Lake City to reconcile with him after 11 years.

Turns out to be a good time to leave the rat-race of her previous life and reinvent herself after her father bequeathes his home, thriving English style bookstore, special collection of books and a one-million dollar life insurance policy.

Some of my very favorite bits are the handwritten anonymous letters that Noel receives. Inspirational, impeccably written and signed by the anonymous Tabula Rasa which means ‘clean slate’.

A perfect Christmas gift and great story for the holidays.