" A Proper Family Christmas" by Chrissie Manby

Annabel Buchanan has lived a life that many dream of.  Like the generations of her family before her, she is beautiful, wealthy, and has impeccable manners.  Or so she likes everyone to think.  A tragedy is about to show the cracks in her perfect image.

Annabel’s teenage daughter Izzy is in need of a kidney transplant.  They are desperate to find a donor and Annabel must turn to her family - her real family.  It turns out that Annabel was given up for adoption by her teenage parents.

When Annabel first meets the Bensons, she is embarrassed and put off by who she discovers.  The Bensons are, well, let’s just say not as well put together as Annabel is.  And the Bensons aren’t exactly impressed by Annabel’s pedigree.  

As Christmas approaches, Izzy’s situation becomes more dire and the Bensons and Buchanans soon find themselves growing close as they race to find a donor.  Maybe this holiday season, Annabel will discover that you really can’t choose your family.

A Proper Family Christmas is the second book in the Benson Family series by Chrissie Manby.  Humorous and tons of fun, it is a great holiday romp.

I absolutely loved the first book in this series, A Proper Family Holiday.  The Bensons are the perfect chick lit family and I absolutely enjoyed their hijinks while on vacation.  Chrissie Manby is one of my favourite chick lit authors and that book was the best I have read by her.  Which is why I was thrilled to find out that the Bensons were a series.

And once again, I was absolutely thrilled by them. I really enjoyed how this novel kept the hilarity of the first while introducing new characters and a bit more seriousness to the situation.  It was very moving to see the way two very different families came together in a time of need.  In fact, this novel got pretty deep into the themes of adoption, illness, family, and perceptions which made it more than a light holiday read.  It is a moving story about relationships and what really makes up a family.


But there is still lots of Christmas cheer, fun, and laughter in this book.  Chrissie Manby has a knack for writing loveable characters that find themselves in all sorts of crazy circumstances.  There is one more book in the Benson family series and I really look forward to reading it.

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