Christmas at Hope Hall

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Pub Date 24 Sep 2021 | Archive Date 18 Jun 2022
Lion Hudson Ltd, Lion Fiction

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Description

The festive finale to the Hope Hall series is here!

Share your review to Amazon or Goodreads on publication day for a chance to win copies of the complete Hope Hall series!*

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The march towards the end of the year sees Hope Hall once again buzzing with activity.The lead up to the Harvest Festival sees a stray dog causing a nuisance, and tensions rise between two old schoolmates.

The drama only increases as Christmas approaches, and the panto rehearsals featuring the jocular “Can’t Sing Singers” get into full swing. But the hustle and bustle of the drama in the community stems from the deeper personal stories. Loneliness, loss, and hurt impact the lives of many of the local residents. But where there is community, there is friendship, companionship, love, and most of all, hope.

Christmas at Hope Hall is the final book in a delightful trilogy centred on a Victorian church hall, the like of which can be found at the heart of so many towns across England.


*Giveaway competition: for a chance to win physical copies of the complete Hope Hall series just share your review to Amazon, Goodreads or your blog by Friday 24th September. One shared review = one giveaway entry so the more your share the more entries you'll have!

Winners will be chosen at random and emailed via their NetGalley associated email - do keep an on eye on your junk mailbox as well!

This is an international giveaway.

The festive finale to the Hope Hall series is here!

Share your review to Amazon or Goodreads on publication day for a chance to win copies of the complete Hope Hall series!*

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The march towards...


Advance Praise

“What a fantastic book! Instantly likeable with wonderful characters who draw you into the delightful mix of joy, poignancy and warm familiarity. Hope Hall at Christmas is well worth diving into.” - Lou Fellingham, singer and songwriter

“What a fantastic book! Instantly likeable with wonderful characters who draw you into the delightful mix of joy, poignancy and warm familiarity. Hope Hall at Christmas is well worth diving into.” -...


Available Editions

ISBN 9781782642893
PRICE £8.99 (GBP)

Available on NetGalley

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Average rating from 54 members


Featured Reviews

Wow what a finale to the series fantastic. Read this in one sitting! All the characters and how their individual beings came about it was a brilliant read with a hint of sadness that is the end. Looking forward to Pam writing another great saga

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With grateful thanks for an arc in return for an honest opinion.
A book full of love and hope for new beginnings for trust and broken hearts, a tale set in a gorgeous village this is the 3rd in the series highly recommend and a very enjoyable read..

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I really enjoyed this book! Will be recommending this book to everyone. Thanks for the opportunity to read and review this book.

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I received an advance copy of, Christmas at Hope Hall, by Pam Rhodes. This is the final book in the Hope Hall series. I really liked this village and its inhabitants. Christmas is a special time of the year, pantos/plays are great to see during this time.

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This was my first book by this author and I was drawn to the title and the description and the cover I know the saying is that you should never judge a book by its cover but in this case it turned out that was a good decision. This is the third book in a series but can also be read as a stand alone. It was such a beautiful book of love friendship and how a wonderful community all pull together to make sure that hope hall and its inhabitants are all looked after and pull together to make the world a better place. I laughed and cried while reading this heartwarming and inspiring read with its array of individual and quirky characters who all have a story to tell and who all care so much about each other and hope hall. This was so much more than just a Christmas book and perfect escapism once I had started reading it I couldn’t put it down. I can’t wait to read more by this author now.

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I finished this one so quickly! I wanted a feel-good cozy read and that's what I got. It wasn't the most amazing book I've ever read, but it made me feel happy and that's what is most important!!

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A light hearted read following the people involved in Hope Hall. A close knit community that helps and supports each other, culminating in a panto and a marriage An enjoyable book that I’m sure lots of readers will enjoy

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Not sure what it is about this series but I just love it. Characters are engaging and I love the community aspect. Add in a Christmas theme and it's exactly what I'm looking for in a book!

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This is such a great book and definitely got my excited for the upcoming festive season. I haven’t read any of the other books in the series but it didn’t lessen my enjoyment of this book. Although I will be reading the others very soon because I’m so invested.


Not only was there drama in this story there was also a real feeling of community and coming together to help one another and to me this is what made it the perfect festive read.
Some great characters and a great story that left me wanting more from Hope Hall!

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I wasn’t aware Pam Rhodes of Songs of Praise fame wrote books, which pleasantly surprised me when I opened this one.

I’ve read a number of Christmas books recently, and whilst they generally all follow the same pattern, I never get sick of them. They’re a sure fire way of warming me up and enveloping me in a big snowy cuddle. This is very well written and enjoyable, but I wouldn’t necessarily call it an out and out Christmas book, regardless of the title. The first mention of anything remotely linked to Christmas doesn’t come until nearly 40% of the way through. This doesn’t necessarily negatively impact the book or its reading - I still thoroughly enjoyed it - but I personally like my festive books to be all jingle bells and mistletoe and snowy hills right from the get go.

I didn’t like the main character of Ray initially as he wasn’t nice to a dog, and I don’t trust people who aren’t nice to dogs, but he soon won me round. There’s quite a number of characters to keep on top of, but they all have their own individual characteristics and personalities, and none are just put there simply to make up the numbers.

The advanced electronic copy I received did have some formatting issues which meant scenes merged into the next, with nothing to tell you the time, location or characters had changed, which was a bit off putting, but this hopefully has been amended in the final project.

Overall I thought it was well written, very enjoyable and easy to read, but I wouldn’t personally call it a Christmas book. To me, it is more a book with some Christmas elements, than a full on festive extravaganza.

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I loved this book.
Hope there's another one as I want to know what happens to everyone.
If Maggie does leave and marry Phil and open a teashop.
If celia makes the mill brilliant and what happens to uncle Jo.
Love the fact it follows on so seamlessly from the other books. Please let there be another one.

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Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. This book tells the story of villagers who live in a small town in England. I like getting to know the people who lived in the.town and how they interacted with one another. I could not put this book down.

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Christmas at Hope Hall is a sweet story following the lives of several people in a small British town during the holiday season. I'll start with why this wasn't 5 stars for me, then end with what I liked.
While it was a relaxing, cute story, there was nothing that really drew me in and made me care about any of the characters. There were so many, and it changed from one to another so often and rather abruptly, that I had a hard time remembering who it was talking about at times. It was also hard to get to know any of the characters on a deeper level to form an emotional connection. I also felt as though several of the stories were not tied up by the end. The last criticism I have is that it was not a very festive holiday book. There weren't many mentions of the holiday, and there weren't any festivities or traditional Christmas goings-on besides the panto. It seemed as if it could have taken place any time of the year.
However, I did enjoy most of the different stories that were happening, and found myself rooting for some of the characters. The panto at the end seemed hilarious and is something I would have liked to have seen in real life! I loved how Hope Hall played a part in everyone's story and how it had such a central role in the lives of the townspeople and community, and so often brought people together. I also really enjoyed the fact that the story is British. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a cozy, relaxing read they can lose themselves in, as long as they can keep several storylines straight and aren't looking for an overtly festive holiday read.

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Much Ado…
The end of year at Hope Hall comes with a flurry of activity and, of course, drama. These is much ado as Christmas approaches and much community spirit but overall a feeling of hope. The final book in this trilogy centred around a Victorian Church hall and a fitting finale to the series. Delightful.

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Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This is third book in a trilogy and I have not read the previous books, but the write-up states that it can be read as a stand-alone novel. There are short sections giving information about the history of specific characters for those of us who have not read the other books; I cannot say if this provides too much repetition for readers who are familiar with the others in the series.
There are a lot of characters so I found it difficult to retain who was who and what they did in the village. The storyline starts in September, before Harvest Festival (which takes a great deal of discussion and then is passed through very quickly), and progresses towards Christmas at quite a pace; I would have found it helpful to have a date at the start of each chapter to mark progress through the storyline. The narrative style is charming, almost observational, and reflects village life. It is a clean read, a pleasant aspect with today's leanings towards language which is not my style.
I'm sure I would have enjoyed this book more if I had read the previous books, so I have given it 3 stars to reflect this. However, I felt it swapped between scenes and characters without links so it seemed 'bitty' to me, and this is the reason for not giving a higher rating.

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Christmas at Hope Hall by Pam Rhodes was a cute Christmas story. The descriptions made you feel like you were there.

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Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.

This is the third book in a series, having read the previous books I was looking forward to reading this.

It was such a beautiful book, of new beginnings for two characters, of love and friendship. Also about how a community pulls together to ensure that the inhabitants of hope hall are cared for and make sure they are welcomed.

The story made me laugh and cry in places, but it was a story full of different characters, who each had their own story to tell, as well as caring for others.

It was much more than just a Christmas story.

Recommend this and the previous books.

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A heartwarming story full of loveable characters and a great sense of community spirit. It was like being wrapped in a warm, cosy blanket. A great read for an autumn evening.

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A really lovely festive romantic story with a great community feel. A great ending to a fantastic series of books. Totally recommend

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Really loved this novel, it felt like Christmas even though it was the build up to it. The characters came to life and you want to be there with them. Some lovely twists and turns but,.....well read it for yourself to find out what happens, You want to curl up and keep warm with a nice hot chocolate or a big glass of wine. This is a 5 star read, enjoy.

Thanks to Netgalley and publisher for this eARC

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Christmas at Hope Hall - Pam Rhodes

I received an advance review copy for free thanks to NetGalley and Lion Hudson Ltd and I am leaving this review voluntarily

The drama only increases as Christmas approaches, and the panto rehearsals featuring the jocular "Can't Sing Singers" get into full swing. But the hustle and bustle of the drama in the community stems from the deeper personal stories. Loneliness, loss, and hurt impact the lives of many of the local residents. But where there is community, there is friendship, companionship, love, and most of all, hope.

Christmas at Hope Hall is the final book in a delightful trilogy centred on a Victorian church hall, the like of which can be found at the heart of so many towns across England. This wonderful finale to the series (which includes the sound of wedding bells!) is full of friends and neighbours with stories that will have you giggling one minute, and dabbing your eyes the next.

I read this book as a stand-alone and unfortunately this did not help me; I struggled to connect to any of the characters, I also struggled keeping track of them all. I was also disappointed at the lack of Christmas spirit - for a book with Christmas in the title I would expect it to feature more heavily than it did.

I really wanted to enjoy this book but unfortunately I just don't think it was for me. If you are going to read this book then I would recommend you read the first two books in the trilogy first.

Rating 3/5

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I liked this life affirming and heartwarming book. It made me smile and enjoyed it.
Well written, likeable characters and an engrossing plot.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

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A Christmas book! It says it all! Who doesn’t love a good story about Christmas time, whatever the weather outside? An enjoyable read. Well done and well written.

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A fantastic finale to the Hope Hall series. The story encompasses the characters met in previous books as they get ready for the Christmas season. A lovely book to welcome in the festive season, definitely with a hot chocolate and roaring log fire.

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I’ve been so looking forward to this next book in the Hope Hall series, & from the opening words it does not disappoint! Drawing the reader straight in, one is immediately engaged with the very ‘real’ characters. It is so good to be back with old friends, in a village where one could imagine living, oneself. I do enjoy the way we hear from all generations, with their differing points of view – none of them become stereotyped. Many interesting storylines are deftly woven together to make a cohesive whole, resulting in a very satisfying read which one does not want to come to the end of. Having Hope Hall as the centrepiece is a brilliant idea, & the series is warmly recommended!

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I know that I'm biased because of my love of dogs, but I loved this Christmas novella! It was cosy and sweet and has a wonderful cast of characters that you can't help but love. I find that sometimes authors will really play up tragedy/sadness in holiday novels to create tension and drama but I think Rhodes does a wonderful job of including these characters' lives without getting terribly morose.

I was entirely new to Hope Hall but I didn't feel like I was missing information from the previous books. (I will definitely be reading the first two books this winter, though!) If you prefer a shorter book or novella but still love holiday cosiness, this book is for you!

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