Book Review :: The Christmas Highland Lodge by Julie Shackman

The Christmas Highland Lodge by Julie Shackman
ISBN: 0008595194
Series: Scottish Escapes #5
Genres: Romance
Source: NetGalley
Goodreads

Lottie Grant loves the festive season so much that she works at the incredibly successful Christmas shop, Christmas Crackers, in her pretty Scottish home town of Craig Brae. But when the shop is sold, her world is turned upside down, leaving her wondering what she will do next.

Just as she’s about to give up hope on finding a new dream job, an offer comes that she can’t refuse, managing a set of luxury wooden cabins… and opening just in time for Christmas!

As she gets to work decorating the cabins, and hanging lights on the fir trees, Lottie can’t believe her luck. That is until the arrival of Blake Dempster, a moody but handsome hiking expert, who threatens to bring down her festive joy. But never one to shy away from a challenge, Lottie is determined to change Blake’s mind about all things festive.

And as the snow falls and the fairy lights sparkle, will work-obsessed Lottie and frozen-hearted Blake make their Christmas wishes come true?

Last updated on 16 December 2024

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What is The Christmas Highland Lodge by Julie Shackman about?

The Christmas Highland Lodge by Julie Shackman takes place in the small Scottish town of Craig Brae. Lottie Grant is all about Christmas—it’s her favourite time of year. So much so that she even works at Christmas Crackers, the go-to festive shop in town. But when the shop gets sold, Lottie’s world feels like it’s been turned upside down, leaving her scrambling for what’s next.

Luckily for her, a conversation opens up the opportunity to manage a set of luxury wooden cabins, opening just in time for the holiday season.

Lottie’s job is to oversee the decor of the cabins and work with the contractors to make it all happen. Joining the team, though, is Blake Dempster, a moody hiking expert who seems determined to put a damper on her holiday cheer. He really hates Christmas but has been hired to be part of the lodge group to take visitors into the Scottish mountains.

As Lottie and Blake try to work together to create a beautiful location for people to enjoy, they clash tremendously over nearly everything … but as you can imagine, they soon realise that maybe they don’t hate each other as much as they thought.

My thoughts on The Christmas Highland Lodge

I wanted to love this book, I really did. I love Christmas, I love Scotland, I love the idea of having seasonal accommodation that changes, and decorating cabins, and I would love to do that job … like, a lot.

However! There were things in this book that were just meh. Lottie was a bit of a bore, and having to read her inner dialogue was a bit of a chore. I didn’t really care for her or her relationships with her family (terrible of me to say, I know, but there just wasn’t anything fun or quirky or disastrous to make me like reading their parts – it was always very same-same), and then with Blake, it was just prolonged angst.

At the start of the book we meet Lottie, and very quickly do we find out that the store she works at and was meant to buy and take over has been given to other people and she’s going to have to give up that dream. But it’s not until about 20% of the way through the book that she actually takes the job with the Lodge. Which doesn’t seem like much, but basically nothing happens the first 20% of the story.

There were things I did like though, and that’s why I’ve given it a 2 star rating (2 being ‘it was okay):

1. It’s set in Scotland and she’s doing a job that I would absolutely love to do
2. I really liked the idea around the story and can definitely see it as a Hallmark movie
3. The fact that it’s set at Christmastime and everything is very festive

This is the fifth book in a series, though it’s one of those series that you don’t have to read in order, as far as I can tell. Shackman writes her Scottish Escapes series about characters all over Scotland, it looks like, so you don’t have to have read the first four to read this one.

Please don’t let me put you off giving it a go if it sounds like you! And if you have read it already, I’d love to know what you thought! Let me know in the comments. 

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Disclaimer: I received this book from Netgalley for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion and all thoughts are my own.