1225 Christmas Tree
Lane
By Debbie Macomber
Publisher: Mira
Release Date: September 27, 2011
4.5 Stars (from a sentimental series fans)
3 Stars (from an objective reviewer with an eye toward the
new-to-series reader)
Debbie Macomber began
her Cedar Cove series a decade ago with 16 Lighthouse Road in which readers met
Judge Olivia Lockhart as the pivotal character, In that first book Judge
Lockhart denied a divorce to Cecilia and Ian Randall, added a love interest to her own life, and worried
about her daughter Justine making a bad choice, the stubbornness of Charlotte, her
aging mother, and her friend Grace’s desperation over a missing husband. Twelve
books later (plus a novella and an “extra” Christmas novel) Macomber ends the
series with 1225 Christmas Tree Lane.
Olivia and company make appearances in the final book as do most of the other
characters from the long-running series.
The focus of the twelfth
book is Beth Morehouse for whom Christmas is unusually hectic given the success
of her Christmas tree farm, the anticipated arrival of her two daughters, and
the responsibility for ten lab mix puppies that need homes. As if life were not chaotic enough, her college-aged
daughters, scheming to reunite their divorced parents, have manipulated both
parents into agreeing that dad will spend the holidays with the family. His
arrival with a beautiful “very good friend” was not part of their plan. Neither
was Beth’s warm friendship with the local vet.
It is fitting that a series which has devoted so much attention
to marriage in all its stages should end with the focus on Beth and her ex Kent
whose divorce was free of drama and recriminations. This marriage could be
labeled “Canceled due to lack of interest.” Reading about how they lost one
another and drifted apart reminded me of the closing lines from Edna St.
Vincent Millay’s poem “The Spring and the Fall”: “’Tis
not love’s going hurts my days, / But that it went in little ways.” The
question is whether two people who let love go can recapture the feelings they
once shared.
While Beth and Kent’s
story is central, finding homes for the puppies and the gatherings that are
part of a Cedar Cove Christmas allow for the appearance of characters from
earlier books. I didn’t check off names, but all of the characters I remembered
show up in a credible fashion. Readers have an opportunity to be updated on the
changes in the lives of their favorites, all of whom we feel certain will
continue to live happily.
The novel closes with a
one-sentence paragraph: “It was the kind of town anyone would love to call
home.” That’s a fitting tribute for the town that brought Macomber’s career to
a new level and gave her hometown a festival that attracted national and
international visitors. It’s a town that readers have taken to their hearts,
and surely there could be no better ending than Christmas when family and
friends gather, happy to be home for the holiday.
You will note that I
gave the book two grades. I loved the book. Even though some of the inclusions
of earlier characters seemed contrived, I was so delighted to see the
characters that I barely blinked as the numbers rolled on. I expect most fans
of the series will react in a similar manner. But this is not a book for a
reader new to the series. I can only imagine that such a reader would be
confused and irritated by the more than sixty characters. New readers will do
better to start with the first book and enjoy the full journey.
How do you feel about Christmas books? Have you read any of the
2011 releases?
1 comment:
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