If you’re looking for something great to read this Christmas or just a good stocking filler, Cecilia Ahern’s seasonal novel; The Gift is one to look out for.
The story is set in the run up to Christmas and follows three main characters, Lou Suffern, a high-flying businessman who ignores his wife and two young children opting instead for a bigger office and an affair with his secretary. Gabe, the guardian angel; an ominous homeless man who is definitely not everything he seems to be, and an exasperated policeman dealing with a young boy on Christmas Eve who has stolen his mother’s turkey and thrown it through the window of his father’s house.
The book’s main focus is on the troubled and very busy life of Lou. He is introduced as the ‘Scrooge’ of the tale, he cares about no one but himself and the impression he makes on his demanding boss so it is shocking that he should meet Gabe a vulnerable homeless man begging on the street and offer him a job in his office. Gabe has a very big secret, one that we can only speculate over throughout the story and his character becomes even more interesting when he gives Lou the gift of headache tablets, little does Lou know when he wakes up in the morning having taken a tablet he is about to meet himself face to face.
The characters are all unexpectedly connected to each other in a very clever and witty way that ignites hope, love and the promise of second chances throughout the book and makes you think about the important things in life and especially at Christmas, the big twist in the final chapter is a mountain of a tear-jerker, so make sure you have your tissues ready.
