#BookReview: Why Mummy Drinks At Christmas by Gill Sims @whymummydrinks @IndieThinking @HarperCollinsUK @fictionpubteam #WhyMummyDrinksAtChristmas #GillSims #FestiveRead #Recommended

Book Synopsis:

Mummy has always loved Christmas. Sure, the kids turn into demons, the dinner gets burnt to a crisp and Aunt Louisa’s general staggering inappropriateness sends Mummy reaching for the nearest maximum-strength festive tipple, but nevertheless, for her, Christmas is always special.

This year, she wants nothing more than to perfectly fig up the pudding and sit by the fire reading aloud from A Christmas Carol to a rapt, rosy-cheeked audience. But, just like all Mummy’s best-laid plans, this year’s Festive Vision is in danger of being totally derailed by her chaotic family. There’s not much chance of any action under the mistletoe, and the kids are just not playing ball.

Can Mummy find her silver lining after all and bring the whole family together for one moment of harmony, so they can finally proclaim ‘Verily You Are the Queen of Christmas’? Or should she get stuck into the festive spirits and just let it all go?

My Review:

Why Mummy Drinks At Christmas is a funny, relatable book that makes you feel better about your own parenting experiences.

Firstly I have been a huge fan of this series from the start and have enjoyed following the family through all their ups and downs. The story is told from the present day as Mummy tries to come to terms with the possibility of a Christmas without the kids and through a series of flashbacks detailing Christmases past. As a mum of three I found this book hugely relatable and often found myself laughing out loud from all of their Christmas experiences. I did find the book unexpectedly emotional too as it made me think about Christmas’s in the future when my kids might not be around. It definitely made me want to embrace the chaos of Christmas more while I could.

I thought this book had a great pace to it and even in the quieter bits I was just happy reliving Christmas with the family and glad that the chaos described wasn’t happening to me for once. This book had a lovely message to it that it’s best not to try and get to stressed about Christmas or to stop making it too perfect as it will never happen as you think.

Huge thanks to Indie Thinking and Harper Collins for my copy of this book which was perfect for curling up with over the festive period.

About The Author:

Gill Sims is the author of the hugely successful parenting blog and Facebook site ‘Peter and Jane’. Her first book,Why Mummy Drinks, was the bestselling hardback fiction debut of 2017, spending over six months in the top ten of the Sunday Times bestsellers chart, and was shortlisted for Debut Novel of the Year in the British Book Awards. The four Why Mummy titles have sold nearly a million copies across all formats to date and are published in eighteen territories worldwide.

She lives in Scotland with her husband, two children and two Border terriers, because apparently one terrier didn’t cause her enough trouble.

Gill’s interests include drinking wine, wasting time on social media, trying and failing to recapture her lost youth and looking for one of the dogs when he decides to go on one of his regular jaunts, while trying to stop the other one eating unspeakable things.