The Christmas Promise: The cosy Christmas book you won’t be able to put down!
‘I love all of Sue Moorcroft’s books!’ Katie FfordeCountdown to Christmas with your new must-have author, as you step into the wonderful world of Ava Bliss. Perfect for fans of Trisha Ashley, Carole Matthews and Katie Fforde.On a snowy December evening, Sam Jermyn steps into the life of bespoke hat maker Ava. Sparks fly, and not necessarily the good ones.Times are tough for Ava – she’s struggling to make ends meet, her ex-boyfriend is a bully, and worst of all, it’s nearly Christmas.So when Sam commissions Ava to make a hat for someone special, she makes a promise that will change her life. She just doesn’t know it yet…Readers LOVE The Christmas Promise – and soon you will too!“Simply gorgeous Christmas story with a difference” Reader review“Superb novel!” Reader review“Perfect pre-Christmas read. I promise.” Reader review“When a book keeps you reading until five o’clock in the morning, it’s a sure sign of a fantastic read!” Reader review“Original, poignant, relevant and romantic.” Reader review“A wonderful cosy Christmas read.” Reader review
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Published by AVON
A Division of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd
1 London Bridge Street
London SE1 9GF
First published in Great Britain by HarperCollins 2016
Copyright © Sue Moorcroft 2016
Cover illustration and Design © HarperCollinsPublishers 2016
Sue Moorcroft asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
A catalogue copy of this book is available from the British Library.
This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins.
Source ISBN: 9780008175528
Ebook Edition © October 2016 ISBN: 9780008175535
Version: 2017-02-06
Table of Contents
Chapter One: Christmas Begins in Blaggard’s Bar
Chapter Two: The Trouble With an ex-Boyfriend
Chapter Three: Not Currently Dating
Chapter Five: Princess Leia Claus
Chapter Six: A Christmas Kiss for Ava Bliss
Chapter Seven: Not Dating at Gaz’s Caff
Chapter Eight: A Hat, but no Kid Gloves
Chapter Nine: Seeing, Not ‘Seeing’
Chapter Eleven: No Blame or Shame
Chapter Twelve: The Beautiful Business of Hat Making
Chapter Thirteen: The Christmas Ball
Chapter Fourteen: Football Stars and Booby Ruby
Chapter Fifteen: Wendy Gets a Real Buzz
Chapter Sixteen: Mixed Messages
Chapter Seventeen: Village Affairs
Chapter Eighteen: Putting the ‘Trick’ in Patrick
Chapter Nineteen: The Gallery of Shame
Chapter Twenty: The Zombie Formerly Known as Ava
Chapter Twenty-One: A Pretty Cheeky Idea
Chapter Twenty-Two: Hats Off to Ava Bliss
Chapter Twenty-Three: The Collateral Consequences of Criminal Convictions
Chapter Twenty-Four: Bubbling Under
Chapter Twenty-Five: Bubbling Over
Chapter Twenty-Six: Going Viral
Chapter Twenty-Seven: Ava’s Hotspot Goes Bad
Chapter Twenty-Eight: Stuck Between Christmas and a Hard Place
Chapter Twenty-Nine: The Final Faux Date
Chapter Thirty: Not on the Christmas Agenda
Chapter Thirty-One: Trust Issues
Chapter Thirty-Two: Christmas Spirit and Black Roses
Chapter Thirty-Three: The Best Christmas Ever!
Battling her way along the crowded pavements of Camden High Street, under the red and green Christmas lights and past the huge boots and aeroplanes displayed on the shop fronts, Ava didn’t feel entirely in the mood for going out and having a good time. Today, her first day as a ‘casual’ stallholder in the West Yard market, had seemed endless. And she was pretty sure there would never be a second.
‘Even though I’ve been home to warm up, my feet are still burning and freezing both at the same time,’ she complained to Izz. They’d linked arms to share body heat as sleet danced in the air around them but she wished her dress would magically transform itself into a thick waterproof coat until she reached the warmth of Blaggard’s Bar. ‘It’s only the beginning of December and I’ve already had enough of Christmas shoppers who browse without buying, try on without buying, and especially, especially those who gasp, “How much? For one hat?” and drop one of my precious samples. Also without buying.’
Izz’s teeth chattered, although she was marginally more warmly dressed in glittery jeans and a top. ‘Sales were a bit thin, were they?’
‘To the point of being anorexic, even though I slashed my prices and prayed that none of my bespoke customers would appear and demand to know why they’d previously paid double.’
‘Your hats are amazing. You should be charging more, not less.’
Ava gave Izz’s arm a squeeze. ‘Aw, thank you! But needs must. I do need to eat, even if I can manage without luxuries like restaurants or the gym. I get anxious every time I think how much I spent on tarpaulin, skirting cloth and display stands, all of which look likely to end up on eBay after Christmas. If another casual hadn’t offered us a lift home I’d probably have stuffed the lot in a bin. I should have listed my stock on Etsy or Notonthehighstreet and saved myself a lot of freezing disappointment.’
She gave a little skip to keep up with Izz’s long stride. ‘I hope this drinks party is worth coming out for. It’s a bit early for a Christmas do, isn’t it?’
