Twelve Days to Save Christmas by Elizabeth Neep ~ a Review

by Donna Huber

Poppy is all set to jet off to the Cotswolds for Christmas with her boyfriend of five years and their friends when said boyfriend drops a bombshell. He's breaking up with her. Poppy, who has devoted her life to George for the past 5 years, is devastated. She doesn't know who she is without being one-half of George and Poppy. 

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. A free book was provided for an honest review.

October 2021; Bookouture; 978-1800198487
audio, ebook, print (322 pages); holiday romance

In turns, I wanted to hug and shake Poppy. At first, I wasn't sure if George had cold feet as Poppy was dreaming that he would propose this Christmas or perhaps it was a bit of tough love. Poppy had lost her job and her attempts at freelancing weren't exactly taking off. George said that she had become clingy and needy. And she was popping up at his office for lunch and always remembered their second Monday coffee and she was front and center at all of his band's gigs. But maybe her love language wasn't the same as George's. But as the story progresses, I started thinking Poppy needed to get a life, that George wasn't worth her attention, and as more of her story is revealed I wanted to yell, "You don't need a man to define who you are!" 

Seriously, the book made me glad that I'm not in my twenties, early thirties anymore.

Poppy, though, is such an endearing character. I was so glad she had Marie - I probably most identified with Marie and I can tell we shared similar feelings about George and Poppy. This book has an A-list of characters. They are all so fun and unique. They felt like real people, even her plasticy, Insta-influencer friends. I'm sure you have met a few of these characters in your life.

The twelve days of Christmas theme was cute without being too gimmicky. It is not twelve straight days until Christmas, either. Rather, it is twelve days that George and Poppy have together between the day he breaks up with her and when they leave for their Christmas trip. Also, I don't think it counts the 3 days a week he goes to the office. I was slightly confused by the timeline which is why I bring this up. But regardless the cute part of the twelve days are the things Poppy does (or just seems to happen) during those twelve days - like seeing a 12 person choir where she meets Marie, the 9 track mix tape that Poppy had made for George, and the 6 man band she enlists to help save Christmas for the community center. They are subtle and add a bit of unexpectancy to the story.

Speaking of the community center - I loved it! It makes me want to find a place like it and volunteer. While I don't think that was the point of Neep including it in her story, it would be a great unintended consequence if it got more people volunteering in their communities.

For the most part, I loved this Christmas book. I did think Poppy's need to fix things with George because she had no life apart from him dragged on a bit too long for a Christmas story, it probably was realistic. I recommend you add this book to your Christmas reading list.

Buy Twelve Days to Save Christmas at Amazon

Donna Huber is an avid reader and natural encourager. She is the founder of Girl Who Reads and the author of how-to marketing book Secrets to a Successful Blog Tour.

 

Enjoyed this post? Never miss out on future posts by following us. Get even more book news in your inbox, sign up for our newsletter today! Girl Who Reads is an Amazon advertising affiliate; a small commission is earned when purchases are made at Amazon using any Amazon links on this site. Thank you for supporting Girl Who Reads.