The Christmas Note movie (2015)

Some times it can be overwhelming to keep track of the hundreds of hours of holiday entertainment airing on TV during the holidays.  One of the things I do to stay on top of it all is to pay attention to the individual networks that premiere new Christmas programming.  One such network is HMM--or Hallmark Movies & Mysteries, a sister network to the Hallmark Channel.  Each year HMM seems to grow their holiday programming--an exciting development to those of us that love Christmas entertainment.  On the HMM schedule this year, you can find the debut of five new Christmas TV movies.  I recently had the opportunity to preview a new HMM Christmas TV movie, The Christmas Note which debuts on Sunday, Nov. 29th at 9pm(ET).

One of the things that stands out to me is that The Christmas Note is adapted from a book written by the popular novelist Donna VanLiere. This is exciting news because there have been four previous popular Christmas TV movies adapted from her best-selling books. Remember the TV movies The Christmas Shoes in 2002, The Christmas Blessing in 2005, The Christmas Hope in 2009, and The Christmas Secret in 2014?

Melissa is played by actor Leah Gibson (left) and Gretchen is played by Jamie-Lynn Sigler.

In the new movie The Christmas Note, Gretchen and her son Ethan move back to her hometown of Wilsonville to be near her mother. Gretchen's husband Kyle is recovering from his wounds in a distant military hospital after serving two tours of duty in Afghanistan and she needs to feel close to family. Gretchen meets her new neighbor Melissa under the worst of circumstances--Melissa's mother has just passed away. Gretchen extends herself to her new neighbor offering her friendship and support during a most difficult time for Melissa.

A family mystery unfolds from an unfinished note written by Melissa's mother.

But times get even tougher for Melissa when the two women discover a note left behind by Melissa's mother. The note confesses a secret: Melissa has an older sibling that was given up for adoption. Gretchen and Melissa undertake a complicated journey together as they search for more clues about Melissa's unknown sibling. Although Melissa feels conflicted about her difficult upbringing, Gretchen reminds her that family can be the best Christmas gift of all.

Melissa and Gretchen's friendship grows as they look for more clues to reveal the family secret.

This mystery story doesn't focus on a romance--like many Christmas TV movies. Instead it builds a strong friendship between two women which is a refreshing change of pace. Will you join me in watching the premiere of The Christmas Note on Sunday, Nov. 29th, at 9pm(ET) on HMM?




This trailer highlights a second Christmas note in the movie--one written by Gretchen's son Ethan--asking Santa Claus for nothing more than his father to return home from a military hospital for Christmas. Have you ever written your own Christmas note?

 
One of the things I enjoy about watching Christmas TV movies is recognizing some of my favorite actors.  The character of Gretchen is portrayed by Jamie-Lynn Sigler, the same actress from the popular TV series The Sopranos.  Sigler played head of the family Tony Soprano's daughter Meadow. Have you been watching the new Christmas TV movies this year?  Any new favorites?