Thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this title. It's the first time reading Donna VanLiere's work, which reminds me of Debbie Macomber's stories.
The Christmas Table is a sweet, precious, endearing story about two families and their connection to a handmade table.
In 1972, John Creighton found a piece of black walnut and was determined to turn that slab into a beautiful table for his wife, Joan, for Thanksgiving. Joan decides that she wants to learn to cook like her momma, Alice, and uses her recipes to start her lessons. This young family of four has so many trials and tribulations through their young lives you wonder how they are going to make it.
In 2012, Lauren Mabrey, who was recently wedded to Travis, found out they are expecting their first child. In preparing for the baby's arrival, Lauren's friends help her out by decorating their starter home. Lauren needs a kitchen table and finds one at Larry's place, which they purchase only to find handwritten recipes inside the little draw. Lauren learns how to cook using these recipes and reads all the individual notes set aside each one, knowing that she needs to return them to their rightful owner. The mystery of the owner of the recipes begins.
We learn everyone going through life, and their journeys are all unique. However, each life intertwines with the other. So remember to be kind to others since we never know what they may be going through.

Such a sweet book...and not one that you have to save exclusively for Christmas! While the action does culminate around the holidays, it's a wonderful read any time of the year. We're following the action at Glory's Place, so if you're a fan of this storyline, it's a continuation. If you're not familiar with it, you won't be left out of the action...but will probably be inspired to go back and learn about the other characters' histories. I can't say too much without spoiling important parts, but you'll put down the book with a smile on your face!

The Christmas Table is a wonderful book filled with friendship, family, new beginnings, recipes to salivate over, and most of all faith. It tells the story of two women, decades apart: Joan, for whom the table was constructed, and Lauren who purchased it second hand and found the recipe cards that were written with such love and evoking precious memories. This is not a book filled with dogma but with a simple message that no matter how hopeless circumstances might seem today might be the day for a miracle...so never give up having faith. The book is well written and filled with characters that become real. I voluntarily reviewed an advance copy of this book from NetGalley. Most highly recommend.

Newlywed Lauren finds a collection of handwritten recipe cards in the drawer of a refinished table she buys for her new kitchen. Each recipe has a tender, personal note from a mother to her daughter. Lauren teaches herself to cook using the recipes and begins searching for their rightful owner. The book alternates Lauren's story with flashbacks to the original owner and her family. The storylines converge at Christmas.

This is a sweet, short, faith-centered book with some delicious-sounding recipes and good dialogue. It would make a nice Christmas present for a cook, an expectant mom, or anyone who enjoys passing along treasured family recipes.

This book is not for readers looking for conflict, complexity, or mystery. All the characters are admirable; the antagonists are physical fragility and the struggle to have faith when bad things happen to good people. It would be more helpful for readers who want to try the recipes if all of them were collected at the end of the book, instead of only a selection of the many dishes described.

Many thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for the honest review.

The Christmas Table by Donna VanLiere is an excellent holiday romance that weaves between 1972 and 2012. Two families that at first couldn't be more different, a generation apart, yet more in common then realized and forever tied together by love, compassion, heart, loss, friendship, forgiveness, and a beautiful black walnut table.

This book was heartwarming, heartbreaking, enjoyable, and memorable. I loved the plot, the cast of characters, and I loved the ending. It could not be more perfect. I will leave the specifics of the plot to the reader to unwrap and enjoy themselves. It is truly special.

5/5 stars enthusiastically

Thank you NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for this ARC and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR and Bookbub accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon and B&N accounts upon publication.

This is the story of 2 families 40 years apart - the Creightons, Joan and John, in 1972 and the Mabreys, Lauren and Travis, in 2012. They are connected by a black walnut dining table and the recipes contained in the table drawer.

Joan and John are the parents of two kids, Gigi and Christopher. John has made picture frames before and has decided to make a dining table for his family. Shortly after buying the black walnut wood Joan is diagnosed with breast cancer. She is started on chemotherapy right away to shrink the tumor, but the cancer spreads to her lungs. John works on the table whenever he can spare the time, but he doesn’t get time often since he is so busy taking care of Joan in addition to his job. With the help of a man referred to John through their church the table is finished just in time to give it to Joan for Christmas.

Lauren and Travis are newlyweds. Lauren wants to make their home “homier” when she becomes pregnant. One of the first things she buys is the table. Once it is at their home the hidden drawer with the recipes is discovered. Lauren was raised in foster care so never really learned to cook. Finding all the recipe cards gives her the incentive to start learning to cook. The cards are full of extra tips and instructions so they make it easy for Lauren to learn. Lauren feels the need to find who the table and the recipes belong to so starts her search for Bud, a dairy farmer named in the recipes hoping he can help her find the owners of the table and the recipes. Lauren explains her reason for contacting Bud, but he isn’t able to help at first. Although Bud recognizes Gigi in the Halloween pictures Lauren has on her phone. So Lauren and Travis invite Bud, Gigi and her husband to their home. Luckily Gigi brings her parents along too. The story of how the table was lost is told and Lauren insists that they take the table back. John promises to make Lauren and Travis their very own black walnut dining table.