I do love a good saga and that's what Christmas at Emmerdale is. Although there's obviously a link to the famous soap, this is also just a cracking good story in its own right, so if you're a fan of the soap then great and if not then that's also great.

The story revolves mainly around two women: Maggie Sugden and Rose Haywood. In 1914 Maggie has just married Joe Sugden. A brute of a man, she only married him because her father was ill and, having sold their family home, they needed somewhere to go. That somewhere is Emmerdale Farm. Rose is the vicar's daughter, 18 and desperate to have a life away from the overbearing ways of her father.

There are many other characters too, some with recognisable names such as Dingle and Skilbeck. All help to convey that village feel, where everyone knows each other and all the gossip. There's a busybody in Ava Bainbridge, wife of the landlord of the Woolpack Inn and then there's Lord and Lady Miffield of Miffield Hall, whose house is requisitioned as a hospital, not forgetting the other colourful people whose individual stories make up the whole.

The book concentrates around the first year or so of World War One and so many of the menfolk from the village go off to war. It was heartbreaking to read of the casualties - small villages did suffer so badly. Maggie is left to run the farm by herself, a task that nobody thinks she is up to, but they haven't bargained for her tenacity and her hard working nature. I loved Maggie and was absolutely rooting for her all the way through. I also really took to Rose and think she's going to enjoy the next part of her life.

There's a real sense of community, although Maggie has to work to be a part of it. I was moved by the terrible consequences of the war but yet the Yorkshire grit came through and everyone rallied round. Pamela Bell has a lovely warmth to her writing and I didn't want to put this book down. It really was a pleasure to read.

The title of the book mentions Christmas and we do experience an Emmerdale Christmas but it's by no means a book that can only be read at Christmas (just saying in case you want to put it on your Christmas list!). It's a warm, spirited, moving story of the effects of war, life in a small village, friendship, love and loss. Perfect for lovers of the well-known soap and those who have never watched it, I highly recommend having Christmas at Emmerdale this year. Oh, and it's book one in a trilogy and I absolutely can't wait to get my hands on book two, Spring Comes to Emmerdale, to find out what happens to Maggie and Rose next. ( )