Title: Christmas at the Chalet
By: Anita Hughes
ISBN: 1250166675 (ISBN13: 9781250166678)
Author’s Website: http://www.anitahughesbooks.com
Brought to you by OBS reviewer Andra
Summary: 
Christmas at the Chalet is a delicious love story about a bridal designer showing her new collection in the Alps during the magical week of Christmas where hijinx of the heart ensue.
It’s the day after Christmas, and Felicity Grant is at a gorgeous ski chalet in St. Moritz for the biggest fashion show of her career. Felicity is a rising star on the bridal design scene, and this is her best collection yet. But when her boyfriend gives her a spa day instead of a diamond ring for Christmas, she has to face the possibility that she may never walk down the aisle in one of her own stunning designs.
And then there’s Nell, the top model headlining Felicity’s show. Nell is planning her dream wedding to her wonderful fiancé with one catch: her divorced parents can’t stand each other and threaten to no-show if the other is there.
Add to that Felicity’s race against the clock to create a special gown for a prestigious bridal salon, and what both girls need is a Christmas miracle. What better place to find one than in the Swiss Alps with its dark forests and sparkling vistas?
But for Felicity it’s hard to recognize a miracle even when it’s right in front of her, and for Nell one miracle might not be enough to fix the past. Can dreams really come true or is that the stuff of Swiss fairytales?
Anita Hughes’s Christmas at the Chalet is full of romance, gorgeous gowns, and the stunning scenery of the Swiss Alps. It’s about love and forgiveness, and creating one’s own miracles during the most festive time of year. (Goodreads)
Review:
Christmas at the Chalet began slowly, but picked up speed and kept my interest throughout. I have had Anita Hughes on my to be read pile for a while now… certainly glad I have had the opportunity to read one of her books. I certainly will read more! Christmas at the Chalet has all of the major components I look for in a romance… mainly a good love story (or in this case, two), likeable characters, throw in a swoon worthy moment or two, hope and of course a twist or two.
The tale begins with Felicity in St. Moritz seven days before the fashion show. Due to conflicting work schedules, Adam, Felicity’s boyfriend, is not able to join her. In fact, just before she left they had a fight (Felicity wanted to become engaged, Adam not so much – at least at this time in his life). So Felicity is in St. Moritz concentrating on her big fashion show and fretting about her relationship. Meanwhile, one of the top models, Nell, is trying to convince both her parents (they had a less than amicable divorce is an understatement) to attend her wedding.
We get a day by day update of how things are going in St. Moritz for both Felicity and Nell. Felicity was just a tad bit annoying in her back and forth about her feelings for Adam, though I guess who could blame her as all she wanted was her boyfriend to propose. At first, I was surprised at the friendship Felicity fostered with the local doctor, Dr. Gabriel Innes and how she sought him out when she had to sort through her feelings about Adam’s behaviour. That can only lead to trouble… Not only was Felicity worried about her relationship with Adam, she was also concerned about the fashion show as success her could virtually insure her place as a prominent bridal dress designer. Added pressure – Felicity had to come up with two unique designs to submit for an opportunity to be in Bergdorf’s spring bridal show. Now this is a BIG deal… and Felicity did not want to share this opportunity with Raj (her business partner) until her designs were accepted.
Nell’s storyline involving her parents was very entertaining. I loved how she juggled both parents in St. Moritz so that neither knew the other was in town. I got totally exhausted with all Nell’s juggling! I was sceptical as to whether she could pull it off. Definitely upped the fun factor in the story.
The descriptions of the wedding dresses that Felicity designs were so descriptive and comprehensive – I could just visualize her creations. I could hardly wait to see what happened at the fashion show. I continually felt as if I was in St. Moritz enjoying all the town has to offer.
Christmas at the Chalet is a feel good contemporary romance that kept my interest throughout. There were twists and turns (and surprises) that happened along the way to a happy ending or two.
I would like to say that I will definitely be on the look out for more romance books by this author as my interest was kept throughout, the storytelling was engaging and the characters and their challenges were believable. Thank you Anita Hughes for penning such a delightful story.
