Snowed In by Catherine Walsh @CatWalshWriter @colm_gleeson #RoisonRankin @HachetteUK @bookouture

the setup…
Five years ago, Megan O’Sullivan left her fiancé Isaac Quinn waiting at the altar and ran away to Dublin. Now her brother who lives in New Zealand is coming home for Christmas and her mother wants her there, too. Christian Fitzpatrick is dreading going home for the holidays, too, as his three siblings are all in committed relationships and he doesn’t want to be the only one on his own. When he stumbles into Megan at a Dublin pub, they reconnect as friends as they not only grew up together, he was the only witness to her flight from her wedding. As they share their reluctance to go home, Christian comes up with the bright idea for them to be in a fake relationship. He can support her with her family and vice versa for him. It can’t possibly work, right?

the heart of the story…
Megan’s fears about returning home are well founded as her old friends sympathized with Isaac and abandoned her (it didn’t help that she didn’t defend herself). I really liked Christian who has a wicked sense of humor, is smart and successful in his own right. He’s got a great family who loves him, though he seems to believe they don’t expect much from him. The fake dating actually benefitted both of them in ways they never anticipated. Of course, their bond deepened and sometime during the holiday the friendship morphed into a romance.

the narration…
I loved that both narrators are Irish as that enhanced the authenticity of the story. And, they were wonderful storytellers who embraced the essence of their respective characters.

the bottom line…
It took some time to learn why Megan ran away from her fiancé and I always suspected there was a lot more going on than cold feet. Christian’s issues were a bit more complicated, too. All of that made for a more layered story, adding a bit more depth than I’d anticipated, a very good thing. It was great to be reunited with the Fitzgerald clan, including Andrew and Molly from the first book. Megan and Christian were wonderful characters, individually and as a couple. This holiday story is something special.

Book Info

• Release Date: November 1, 2023
• Series: Fitzpatrick Christmas #2
• Narrators: Colm Gleeson & Roison Rankin
• Audio Length: 10 hours, 38 minutes
• Publisher: Hachette UK – Bookouture

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