I was beyond excited when the lovely folk at EDPR sent me a surprise copy of Milly Johnson’s latest book, Let The Bells Ring Out, because she’s one of my favourite authors and a fabulous human being to boot! If you head here, you’ll find my other reviews of some of Milly’s books and realise why I was so delighted to receive this latest one.
It’s my pleasure to share my review of Let The Bells Ring Out today and as Milly will be two miles up the road from me at Molecey Frost Fair at the end of the week, selling and signing copies of Let The Bells Ring Out, I’m very much looking forward to getting my copy signed.
Let The Bells Ring Out was published by Simon and Schuster on 23rd October 2025 and, as well as at Molecey on Friday evening and Saturday, is available for purchase through the links here.
Let The Bells Ring Out
Seven people, four days and a snowy Christmas on board a luxury sleeper train. This festive season getting away from it all takes on a new meaning…
The Yorkshire Belle is a glamorous steam train all decked out for an escapist festive getaway. It is not supposed to be where a group of people, all trying to get to their destinations for the holidays, will spend their Christmas.
Seven people, each with their own hopes and dreams, secrets and sorrows, board the train as strangers, but as the snow keeps falling and they realise they are going nowhere fast, they are forced to slow down and embrace the present.
This Christmas on board the Yorkshire Belle, will the friendships they make change their lives forever?
My Review of Let The Bells Ring Out
Seven passengers are stuck in the snow on a steam train.
Before I began reading Let The Bells Ring Out I had anticipated that it would be another of Milly Johnson’s warm and lovely stories about friendship, and it is. But it is so much more besides. I adored it. I laughed aloud and I shed several tears, both for the characters, for myself and for others I know who are akin to the characters in the book.
Those characters are quite fabulous. Ranging across five decades in age there really is someone here for any reader to relate to. And given what is going on in their lives, there’s a situation for every reader to recognise, empathise with, or learn from, too. You see, in Let The Bells Ring Out, the author has gone beyond her usual understanding of the innermost hopes, fears, vulnerabilities, strengths and weaknesses in the people she creates, and given them even greater depth that transcends mere entertainment. I loved every one of them wholeheartedly, from the slightly wacky Roo to the wise Jane.
The setting of the Yorkshire Belle train is fabulous. There’s such an intimacy at being cocooned in the carriages and cut off from the outside world that it’s impossible not to be aboard too because of Milly Johnson’s vivid descriptions of the luxury. It’s been a lifelong ambition of mine to travel on the Orient Express, and Let The Bells Ring Out has made me feel as if I’ve partly achieved that ambition. I adored the Christmas references with the decorations, the food and drink, music from the real BBC and the wonderful sense of community that the narrative creates. The real world could benefit from a touch of Milly Johnson’s perceptive insight into what we really need at Christmas – not material gifts, but instead love, companionship, belonging and understanding. The title is inspired too. Real bells are heard, and are frequently associated with Christmas which is the timescale for the story, but bells are also sounded to toll sorrow, alert to danger and in celebration and the reader discovers all these aspects in the narrative.
Indeed, it is the themes of Let The Bells Ring Out that are truly the masterpiece of this story. We delve right into the heart and soul of Roo, Elizabeth, Vincent, Jane, Tim, Frank and Grace to discover love and loss, grief and happiness, anxiety and joy. There’s a sensitive portrait of marriage and family, friendship and kindness so that I finished the book feeling exactly how Jane describes such experiences (but you need to read Let The Bells Ring Out to discover what that is!). In addition, there’s a real irony that whilst these characters are isolated, unmoving, on a snowed-in steam train, they go on the greatest emotional journey of discovery of their lives.
There’s also an added extra layer of mystery in Let The Bells Ring Out but to say more would wander into spoiler territory. I found that aspect thought-provoking and again it led me into deeper contemplation. Just how much of coincidence is coincidence and how quick are we to judge others and allow flawed perception to cloud the truth?
In case it’s not obvious, I loved this story. It entertained me unwaveringly. It made me think and it brought me enormous pleasure. There’s a real skill to bringing unalloyed joy into other people’s lives and Milly Johnson has it in spades. Don’t miss Let the Bells Ring Out. It’s glorious – the magical spirit of Christmas in book form.
About Milly Johnson
Milly Johnson was born, raised and still lives in Barnsley, South Yorkshire. She is the author of 23 novels, 4 short story ebooks, a book of poetry and a Quick Reads Novella (The Little Dreams of Lara Cliffe) and was an erstwhile leading copywriter for the greetings card industry. She is also a poet, a professional joke-writer, a newspaper columnist and a seasoned after dinner speaker.
She won the RoNA for Best Romantic Comedy Novel of 2014 and 2016, the Yorkshire Society award for Arts and Culture 2015, the Romantic Novelist Association Outstanding Achievement award in 2020, the Goldsboro Books Contemporary Romantic Novel Award in 2021 and the Richard Whiteley Award for Inspiration to the County of Yorkshire in 2022.
She writes about love, life, friendships and the importance of community spirit. Her books champion women, their strength and resilience and celebrate her beloved Yorkshire.
Her 23rd novel Let the Bells Ring Out is available now.
You can follow Milly on Twitter/X @millyjohnson and Facebook, or you can visit her website for more information. You’ll also find Milly on Instagram.
English (US) · 