Synopsis (From Netgalley, the provider of the book to review)
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From Globe and Mail and Toronto Star bestseller Karen Swan comes another unmissable cozy and escapist festive story about a group of old friends snowed in over the holidays.

It's three days before Christmas and just starting to snow. Against her better judgment, Libby Pugh has been persuaded by her best friend to stop in on their university reunion on her way back from a wedding in North Yorkshire with her boyfriend, Max.

The host is Archie Templeton, the playboy of their group, who has finally inherited his father's title and estate - even if the latter is more of a stately heap than a palace. Libby is surprised at how good it feels to catch up with old friends. The night is a great success but when they go to leave, the road is now impassable, and she and Max are given a bed for the night.

At first, being snowed in with old friends is rather lovely - the next day is spent in high spirits as they wait for a local farmer to clear the snow. But as the hours pass and he doesn't come, everyone grows restless. Christmas is two days away and everyone has plans, and other places to be. Then the power goes out.

By the fireside and by candlelight, the old friends must hunker down together as they await help. They reminisce about times past, good and bad. But as the cracks in their relationships start to show, Libby is confronted with a truth she has long tried to deny.

It is NOT Christmas without a Karen Swan book (or a summer read by her either!)…my shelves are groaning with her books but I re-read them ALL THE TIME. (She is one of only three fiction authors for whom I have every book in hard copy!!! … frankly most get Kindle due to space limitations as one bookcase is just these three authors!**

I had managed to get an ARC hardcopy from a friend so had already read the book so that is why this is a quick review as I was waiting for it to show up on NetGalley.

This is another sweet holiday romance that will sweep you up and keep you enthralled all while reading it. You will be enthralled by its location (a country pile at its best) and the characters: I am not even a fan of Christmas (too much stress, too much family) but I do love her books as they are always like a warm hug on the page. If you have a reader in your life and you need a gift, this is the perfect read as it is escapist and easy to get caught up in. Highly recommended, along with her other books, of course --- Canadian authors are (usually) so easy to love.

#shortbutsweetreviews

Trigger Warning — Rape

The characters in this book were likable from the start. The dynamics in the group are good and you easily get interested in their past and how things will play out for them all. —The story goes back and forth between 2023 and 2014. I was more interested in the 2023 storyline though the past and present affect each other. Once they got stormed in I was excited to find out what was going to happen between everyone — and what would be revealed about their pasts — about 50% into the book— a bigger disaster strikes and makes the situation more then just being snowed in and amps up the intensity between the characters. The author is very good at writing the tension into the story and it seemed to become like an Agatha Christie story the closer we got to the end of the story and the past meets the present . Lots of twists and turns as we get closer to the end and some unexpected others were predictable. Overall , a great read and well written ! Recommended.

Thank-you to Netgalley and Pan Macmillan for this ARC , This is my honest review .

This book felt a bit like a Christmas present in itself. I went in expecting a Christmas romance, but it turned out to also include a dual timeline between 2014 and 2023, some secrets within the friends circle, a mystery and finally also some romance. All in all I enjoyed this book very much and it was well written in my opinion.

The characters were quite likeable and especially Libby and Archie were my favourites. In total the book covered a friends circle of 9 people, with some being more prominent participants in the story and others more side characters. Libby was an interesting one being a successful lawyer and I enjoyed discovering how her decisions in the past affected her present.

All in all I will read more of Karen's books, as this was my first one and it did not disappoint.

Quaint, mysterious, and heartfelt!

Christmas by Candlelight is an alluring, compelling tale that takes you into the life of Libby Pugh, a young, successful lawyer who, after keeping a distance from her university roommates for the past nine years, excepts an invitation for a brief reunion-like dinner at Archie’s isolated country estate only to find herself snowed in shortly after she arrives with no power, no connection with the outside world, and a few days with nothing to do but confront secrets and hurts from the past, and finally acknowledge and accept the feelings that have been brewing for years.

The prose is vivid and expressive. The characters are flawed, witty, and intelligent. And the plot, using flashbacks and a back-and-forth style, is an enticingly nostalgic tale full of secrets, lies, friendship, tension, chemistry, attraction, tender moments, strong emotions, self-reflection, relationship dynamics, and love.

Overall, Christmas by Candlelight is another absorbing, uplifting, festive tale by Swan that does a brilliant job of highlighting her exceptional ability to create endearing, multilayered characters, idyllic wintery settings, and engaging storylines that thoroughly captivate from start to finish.

Cozy and compelling!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

Locked room mysteries are one of my most favorite tropes and thow in Christmas and I'm all in!

This book moves between 2014 and 2023 and weaves its way around secrets, lies, attraction, and tension between 9 friends while snowed in with no power or connection to the world outside.

I was enthralled from beginning to end.

Another good read by Karen Swan…. A long overdue get together of college friends, revealing their past and how it had affected their futures….interesting story and great ending.

It really wouldn’t feel like Christmas season has started without a Karen Swan book. For over a decade now it has become a tradition I look forward to and this year she did not disappoint! Christmas by Candlelight includes everything Karen Swan does best - the sizzling chemistry, tension and creating such an immersive mood and atmosphere with her descriptions of setting. The friendships and their history and brewing tension between Archie and Lib’s unresolved feelings reminded me of the sizzling chemistry and loveable group from the perfect present, one of my favourite Swan books. The history shared, bond and loyalty between the characters felt so real and natural. Some very difficult topics are addressed in this book so gut wrenching to read the characters go through such an awful experience. I really fell in love with every one in this friend group and how they rallied to support each other (Charlie has a special place in my heart- his devotion) and teabag as well <3 I really enjoyed getting to see so much of each of their journeys and I find myself hoping for a sequel to visit this group again. The dual timeline and building the anticipation to find out how everything had happened back at university and would unfold in the present was so well done and kept me engaged.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an advanced copy.

Although I have read every Karen Swan novel, my favourites are always the Christmas ones. I absolutely loved Christmas by Candlelight - in fact, it is now my all-time favourite. The friendships, the turmoil, and the chemistry between Libby and Archie, are so well written. It's atmospheric, with just the right amount of "Christmas". I will definitely be re-reading this one.