Thank you so much to NetGalley and MacMillan Tor-Forge for my copy of An Irish Country Yuletide by Patrick Taylor in exchange for an honest review. It published October 12, 2021.
I'm a big fan of this series, and I definitely enjoyed this festive novella, as well. I felt like this goes well with the rest of the series and is a worthy addition to the series. It was heartwarming, sweet, and fun. And to top it all off, there are recipes!

I really enjoy books set in Ireland and to have it take place at Christmas time just adds another bonus layer to it.
It's 1965 in Ballybucklebo and the first Christmas as man and wife for Dr Fingal Flahertie O’Reillyand his wife. He has a general practice in the village and plenty of illnesses come knocking on his door but that doesn't keep the holiday spirit away.
Heartwarming story of a bygone era.
Includes delightful recipes straight from an Irish kitchen.

Pub Date: 12 Oct 2021
I was given a complimentary copy of this book.
All opinions expressed are my own.

I love this series and thoroughly enjoyed this heartwarming Christmas tale. I love the era and the village it is set in. The characters are very colorful and interesting.
Many thanks to Forge Books and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Charming novella of Christmas 1965 in Ballybucklebo with Drs O'Reilly and Laverty. Those who have been following the series for a while will be surprised and delighted with this look back. For those new to the series, it's a lovely introduction.

This 16th in the series is a novella, the perfect feel good read to accompany Christmas carols and eggnog..

It's 1965 and the village of Ballybucklebo is preparing for the holiday, the first Christmas as man and wife for Dr. Fingal Flahertie O'Reilly and Kitty, whom he met as a student nurse in Dublin in 1934.

As always, folk bring troubles to their door., but Fingal and his junior partner, Dr. Barry Laverty, sort it all out, and end up with the merriest Christmas ever!

What a delight to return to Ballybucklebo for Christmas 1965! It feels like visiting old friends. To add to the general hustle and bustle of the Christmas season, the village is beset by chicken pox and a village prodigal returns.

If you love Ballybucklebo, you're sure to love this Christmas tale!

“An Irish Country Yuletide” by Patrick Taylor is a novella set in the “Irish Country” series about Dr Fingal Flahertie O’Reilly who has a general practice in the small Irish village of Ballybucklebo. Everyone in the village is getting ready for Christmas, and settling in to enjoy the traditions of the season. However, illnesses take no holidays, and between all the festivities, it is up to O’Reilly to make sure his patients and their families can celebrate as well.

This is an easy, cosy read that transports you to an idyllic Irish world in the mid-1960s. I had never read any of the other books in the series, but there was plenty of light exposition from Taylor to make sure any reader could slide into this book and quickly get up to speed. It is also an easy book from an emotional standpoint. Usually I don’t go for books that are overly saccharine but I think, during these difficult times, it is relaxing to read a book where things just work out, and no problem goes unsolved. O’Reilly is a sentimental old fellow, and between fulfilling his Christmas responsibilities, he takes the time to reflect on how far he has come with the people he loves. Then there was the huge bonus of Taylor including recipes! I have mentioned on here many, many times how much I love recipes in fiction. Unfortunately I didn’t get around to trying any out, but I very much appreciated that they were there.

Although perhaps all the loose ends are tied up a little too neatly in a bow, this book is nevertheless brimming with Christmas cheer and if you are looking to immerse yourself in a picturesque winter setting, then this is a lovely, low investment book to try.

This is the 16th book in the Irish Country series & I can't believe I've read 16 Irish Country books now! ( This book can easily be read as a standalone if you haven't been reading the series but be warned, once you've read this book you'll want to read the rest of the series!). This novella is much shorter than the other more lengthy installments in this series but no less charming! Set in the fictional Irish village of Ballybucklebo, the holidays are not so happy and festive for everyone. Doctor O'Reilly and his wife Kitty, along with his colleague, Dr. Laverty showing their typical kindness, set about to make things better for those who are experiencing illness or difficulties. A heart warming story set in a charming Irish village during a bygone era... A lovely escape and a wonderful read to start the holiday season.

Christmas in a small Northern Ireland village for a country doctor and the friends he has made over the years seemed just the thing. Until I spotted this book, I was unfamiliar with the Irish Country Doctor series, but a warm, cozy story and characters in the Irish village setting in the days before tech took over begged me to reach for the book and settle in near the fire with my blanket and my hot drink.

An Irish Country Yuletide is the sixteenth release in this long-standing series about an irascible country doctor to the Irish village of Ballybucklebo in County Down. It worked fine as a standalone. I noticed as I was perusing the earlier books that the series begins years earlier, but hops around in time to go back for the early days with some characters. It has a meandering approach to everyday events for a country doctor and the village so it was easy to slip into this segment of their lives during the 1965 Christmas season.

Doctor Fingal O’Reilly is the middle-aged doctor who has recently married his long-time sweetheart in a second chance romance, lives in a comfortable house attached to his examination rooms, and employs a housekeeper-cook, Maureen ‘Kinky’ Kincaid of many years. Kinky is newly engaged to the milkman. And, Fingal gets a wonderful early holiday gift when his younger associate, Barry Laverty, leaves specialized medicine in the city to rejoin him in country practice and his new fiancée’.

However, before they can all settle into the Yuletide festivities, the local lord of the manor must have Fingal’s help welcoming home the prodigal brother who, is gravely ill. And, Barry must help a young girl suffering from chicken pox and the grief of her parents recent separation find some Christmas cheer and maybe a miracle from Santa.

An Irish Country Yuletide introduced colorful, quirky characters, the Irish country village, and Irish Christmas celebrations. Most of the story is Northern Irish customs and people, but Kinky and the new little girl Jilly and her family are County Cork so there were a few regional phrases, holiday customs, and attitudes. There are some country doctoring going on, but mostly the focus was on the people and their preparations for the holidays and making things right within the MacNeil family as well as memories of time gone by. Fingal receives a packet of his old letters to Kitty when they were first dating and it was neat to see how their romance grew in the beginning. I always felt hungry because Kinky’s delicious food was described in mouth-watering detail when she served up whether at home for the holidays or the community parties.

It was a gentle, comfy piece that exuded the holiday spirit and makes me want to go back to the beginning for all the earlier stories of life as a country doctor in Northern Ireland of the 30’s through the 60’s. Those who enjoy rustic life and every day happenings, soft-colored situation and settings should definitely give these historical fictions a go.

This lovely Christmas novella takes us back to the fictional village of Balleybucklebo in Northern Ireland, 1965. Doctor Fingal Flahertie O’Reilly is set to spend Christmas with his wife, Kitty, colleague Barry Laverty, and other friends and neighbors, but sadness, illness, and division threaten to ruin the holiday. This is Book 16 in the Irish Country Doctor series. Although it can be read as a standalone, I would recommend reading the whole series.

I truly enjoyed the village of Balleybucklebo and its residents. The Christmas season arrives, along with a chickenpox epidemic, and the doctors are busier than ever. We are transported almost immediately to wonderful Christmas traditions, including caroling, tree trimming, Christmas Mass, gift exchanges, and delectable treats. We are also given a little bit of Irish folklore and legend during the story. While there is some sadness and hard news in this book, there is also faith and joy. The doctor’s quiet assistance to his fellow villagers is more than just medical, and his housekeeper, Maureen Kincaid (Kinky), who is “fey,” or “gifted with the sight,” is dependably on hand to provide insight and delicious food. As always, there is a selection of recipes at the end.

Longtime fans of this series will be overjoyed to visit Balleybucklebo once again at Christmas. New readers will want to learn more about this town and its people. Highly recommended for anyone who loves Christmas stories and/or Irish historical fiction.

I received a free copy of this book from Forge Books via Historical Novels Review Magazine. My reviews are voluntary and my opinions are my own.

An Irish Country Yuletide is the sixteenth novel in Patrick Taylor's Irish Country series. To be fair, I accidentally jumped right in the middle of this series (whoops!). But honestly? I have no trouble following right along. Oh! And don't forget, this book (and series as a whole) contains actual recipes within the pages. It has been a hot minute since I read a book that blended together like this, so that was a fun surprise.

The year is 1965, and Christmas is right around the corner. One quiet and charming town, Ballybucklebo, is getting ready for all of the festivities, with citizens such as Doctor Fingal Flatherie O'Reilly and Barry Laverty looking forward to singing carols and the likes.

Unfortunately, the universe frequently doesn't understand what a holiday break is. As such, the town will still have to deal with a chickenpox outbreak and more before it is all said and done.

An Irish Country Yuletide is such a charming read – that really is the best way I can describe it. Charming. Also, don't read this book while hungry, as the recipes may just wake up your stomach if you're not being careful.

I've honestly never read something like An Irish Country Yuletide before. I love how the historical and fiction elements merged to seamlessly with recipes. It's such a, dare I say, cute idea! Maybe this is more common than I'm aware, but I really enjoyed this break from what I normally read.

I'm honestly not sure what else to say about An Irish Country Yuletide, so I'm going to leave this review short and sweet. Go read it, as this is such a perfect holiday book to pick up!

A lovely entry in the Irish Country series by Patrick Taylor. Full of all the goodness you can imagine at Christmas, with a few mishaps and illnesses thrown in. All your favorite characters are back: Dr. O’Reilly, Kitty, Dr. Laverty and many of their friends and neighbours.

I have been eagerly anticipating this return to Ballybucklebo and this book was everything I had hoped! The novella fills in a gap in the story over the Christmas between Barry's year in OB/GYN training and when he rejoins O'Reilly's practice as a partner GP. We get to know some characters in the MacNeill family a bit better and fill in a bit more of Barry and Sue's story. I was very sad to hear this will be the last installment and we won't return to the previous timeline to see Barry and Sue's family grow, but I am so thankful for this beautiful series and An Irish Country Yuletide will definitely brighten the holiday season this year!

I enjoy reading this series as the books are always interesting and enjoyable.
This long novella is no excepetion: it's heartwarming, festive and talks of family&forgiveness.
It's a pleasant read that works as a stand alone.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

An Irish Country Yuletide by Patrick Taylor is an entertaining throwback to an earlier era when country doctors called on their patients when necessary. Doctor Fingal Flahertie O'Reilly lives with his wife, Kitty, with whom he had been in love many years before, but had only recently married, and their housekeeper, Mrs. Kincaid (Kinky). Kinky was a little fey but a lovely cook. The all lived happily together with Kitty who still commuted to Belfast where she carried on her work as a nurse. This is pretty much a slice-of-life novel, which puts me in mind of Acorn TV's Dr. Finlay, although that takes place in Scotland.

These people live a simple life and love every minute of it. Much of this story revolves around the return of the brother of a friend of Fingal's from Australia where his father had sent him many years earlier in retribution for the life he had been leading here at home. It involved complex familial relationships, which resolved in different ways, all happily. There was the day-to-day doctoring and decorating for Christmas to round out the story. Fingal and Kitty were happy with their later-in-life romance and it shows in the way they treat one another. This is a very homey book and should be read for comfort, which it supplies in a good quantity.

I was invited to read a free e-ARC of An Irish Country Yuletide by Forge, through Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are mine. #netgalley #forge #patricktaylor #anirishcountryyuletide

An enjoyable addition to the series that has all the right seasonal touches to get you ready for the Christmas season.

4.5 stars
It’s December 1965 and everyone in Ballybucklebo, Ireland is getting ready for Christmas. Dr. Fingal O’Reilly is looking forward to spending it with his wife, Kitty, and his young colleague Dr. Barry Laverty is back in town to work and also to celebrate the holidays with his girlfriend, Sue. However, a couple things are putting a damper on the holidays for some families. The black sheep of a prominent family in town comes home from Australia for the first time in many years because of a grim medical diagnosis he has received. In addition, a chicken pox epidemic is spoiling Christmas for several of the young ones in the village. Fingal and Barry, with the help of some good friends, do what they can to help everyone they can to have as wonderful of a holiday as they are anticipating.

I have read several of the books in this series, but not all of them. This story works well as a standalone for those who haven’t read any of the other books. For those who do follow the series, the last few books have taken place in 1969, but this story goes back a few years prior to that. Fingal is my favorite character and I enjoyed seeing some of the history of his romance with Kitty through several love letters he had written to her before they were married. This is a lovely addition to this heartwarming story.

An Irish Country Yuletide is described as a novella, but it’s longer than most novellas I’ve read, but is the perfect length for a holiday story. In addition to following a few typical days in the lives of country doctors Fingal and Barry, there is a lot of information included about the Irish holiday traditions of the times. In addition to the romance between Fingal and Kitty, these were some of the best parts of the book. Topping off a sweet ending to the book are recipes for some of the dished mentioned in the story and a glossary with several words and expressions from the province of Ulster in Northern Ireland.

Thank you to NetGalley and Forge Books for providing an advance copy of this ebook. The book was provided to me at no cost, but my review is voluntary and unbiased.

Ballybucklebo at Christmas in 1965. I know (and so do you) that this was not necessarily a kinder and gentler era but Taylor has created a world where yes. there are troubles, but there is also a positive community spirit of unity and goodwill. Centered around Doctors O'Reilly and Laverty, it takes the readers back in time. It's a short heartwarming read. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. Don't worry if you haven't read the others in the series- this will be fine as a standalone. Fans of Call the Midwife will welcome this.

As comforting as a BBC holiday special, I was quickly drawn into the everyday dramas of a small North Ireland village in the 1960s. Perfect reading for a snowy December evening. While this is the 16th book in the series, it's the first I've read. It won't be the last.

Sweet little Christmas story for familes reuniting and learning to grow together instead of apart. Forgiveness for the holidays!