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Release date: October 16, 2018

Publisher: Park Row

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

Blurb:

A formidable matriarch learns the hard way that no family is perfect in this witty, sparkling debut novel

Dearest loved ones, far and near—evergreen tidings from the Baumgartners!

Violet Baumgartner has opened her annual holiday letter the same way for the past three decades. And this year she’s going to throw her husband, Ed, a truly perfect retirement party, one worthy of memorializing in her upcoming letter. But the event becomes a disaster when, in front of two hundred guests, Violet learns her daughter Cerise has been keeping a shocking secret from her, shattering Violet’s carefully constructed world.

In an epic battle of wills, Violet goes to increasing lengths to wrest back control of her family, infuriating Cerise and snaring their family and friends in a very un-Midwestern, un-Baumgartner gyre of dramatics. And there will be no explaining away the consequences in this year’s Baumgartner holiday letter…

Full of humor, emotion and surprises at every turn, Evergreen Tidings from the Baumgartners brings to life a remarkable cast of quirky, deeply human characters who must learn to adapt to the unconventional, or else risk losing one another. This is the story of a family falling to pieces—and the unexpected way they put it all back together.

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for Evergreen Tidings From The Baumgartners! If you would like to follow along with the tour please check out TLC Book Tours for the full schedule.

Review:

Ahh this is the perfect read to indulge in before the craziness of the holiday season begins, if anything it’ll make you feel better about your own family because The Baumgartners are crazy in a fun way and you will definitely laugh at some of their antics AND there are a few scenes that had me hysterical, which is always a bonus!

Violet is the matriarch of the family and she was insane in the best possible way. She’s a classic Midwesterner but she has her own unique quirks and above all else she adores her family even if she is over the top and extremely overbearing. You also see the perspective of Cerise, her only daughter and then Richard, her best friends husband. Interspersed between chapters are various forms of correspondence that were so fitting to the plot, this was my favorite aspect as it was so telling. The entire cast of characters was just a fun group of normal people caught up in some wacky situations and while I could most sympathize with Cerise, Violet was my absolute favorite simply because she was so wacky.

This was a family drama that was just plain fun, there was a tiny little mystery that I sussed out really fast, but that wasn’t a huge part of the story anyway, it was more about family and how they pieced themselves back together after falling apart. It also had a few tender moments between the hijinks and was written in a really heartfelt manner and had a good overall message about love and loyalty.

Evergreen Tidings From The Baumgartners in three words: Humorous, Quirky and Sincere.

Overall rating: 4/5

Thanks to TLC Book Tours and the publisher for my review copy.