The Friday Night Knitting Club {Series} by Kate Jacobs

Every knitter stitches with love, even when they're just starting, all red-faced and frustrated. Why else would we create? Especially in a world that doesn't need homemade anything. That's when we need homemade everything. It never matters if things don't end up just the way you planned. Every moment is a work in progress; every stitch is one stitch closer. There may be worse, but there's always better. When you wear something you've made with your own hands, you surround yourself with love, and all the love that came before you.

-from The Friday Night Knitting Club by Kate Jacobs

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!! I want you to know that I am really, sincerely thankful that you're reading my blog. Whether it's your first time checking it out, or you're a faithful reader, thank you! I love to read and review, but it makes it a whole new and exciting experience to interact with other readers through blogging. At the end of this review is a special giveaway to express my gratitude!

I found Knit the Season around this time last year and planned on reading it but somehow the holidays interrupted my reading plans. It was actually a blessing in disguise because I learned it was the third book in a series and I wanted to read them all. When I found out my library had all three of these books on audio, it became the perfect thing to listen to while I knit and relaxed, immersing myself into the feeling of the holidays.

The Friday Night Knitting Club is the story of a group of eclectic women who meet up once a week at Walker and Daughter, a yarn shop in New York City. At the head of the group is Georgia Walker, single mother to twelve-year old Dakota, a strong and independent entrepreneur who became that way simply because she had to. Second in command, Anita Lowenstein, is Georgia's NYC mother-figure who gave her the loan to open her shop many years ago. Accompanying these women are a colorful cast of characters, including Peri, the law school drop out turned knit purse designer; Lucie, the quiet professional with a ticking biological clock; K.C., a no-nonsense professional looking to make a drastic career change; and Darwin, a feminist grad student who just wants to study the group for her thesis. Together these women meet once a week to help each other through the ups and downs of life. All of these novels read kind of like a soap opera with different relationships layered together and intertwined, following the lives of all the characters and their relationships with each other.

It may not sound glamorous to everyone, but the idea of a knitting club to me just makes me giddy! The idea of owning a yarn shop makes me melt! While I only loom knit, it was still incredible to listen to these women join together communally knitting together. This story was great to listen to while I knit and the narrator, Carrington MacDuffie, really brings the characters to life. I feel that reading the book might not have been as entertaining because there were so many characters to keep straight, but listening to the book was like a production and very easy to follow. Some of the storylines were predictable or too perfectly coincidental, but suspending my disbelief for a sweet story about female friendship was worth it in the end.

While any of these novels can be read as a stand alone, I recommend starting from the beginning to get a good feel for the characters and allow them to organically grow on you, especially your anticipated love for Georgia. It will also  help you keep all of the characters straight! The holiday edition is an extra special tribute, revisiting where the women have been and how far they have come in love and friendship.

Bottom Line: If you're looking for a light series about friendship and the strength of women, this is a must read! I especially recommend the audiobooks. I would probably rate these as 3.5 stars individually, but as a series I'm round up! 4/5 Stars

Do you want to get your hands on Knit the Season to put yourself in a festive holiday mood?! Well, you're in luck! I have 2 hardback copies that I want to give away as my Christmas gift to you PLUS a Knit Together by Love scarf! A great read for yourself or to give away to your closest girlfriend! :) All you have to do is leave me a comment telling me what you're most thankful for or how you're getting ready for the holidays! And a bonus entry if you follow The Book Barn on BlogLovin (or another blog reader)! TWO winners will be chosen next Thursday! 

Good luck and HAPPY HOLIDAYS! 

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