Oh what a treat – a new Tilly Tennant book. Tilly is one of my favourite authors and so I felt so excited to read this new book. I did have to temper myself though, and make myself read it slowly, in order to savour every moment, rather than rushing through and then feeling sad because I had finished it so quickly!
To say that I loved this book from start to finish would be an understatement – although I did find Emma’s being used by Dougie a little frustrating! This is a real ‘newfound’ story – a story of newfound friendship and newfound love, all set in a beautiful Dorset village location. The descriptions of the village were such that you really felt as though you were there yourself, and the strong female lead characters were painted such that you felt as though they could be amongst your closest friends. This is a story about two women triumphing over adversity in the most spectacular way.
Emma is torn between being thrilled for her little Sister and sad at losing her to a new job for a year, studying volcanoes in Iceland. She feels as though she needs a new challenge in her life, now that her baby Sister has gone. She’s fed up with being walked all over at work and at home, by her erstwhile fiancé, Dougie.
In Emma,the author has created a very likeable, selfless character. The way that she gets something new in her life, in the form of bringing the Honeymoon Hotel back to life, is inspiring to all women. Her friendship with Tia is a bit of a tease; at first I thought Tia might have been a former school bully – but she actually comes across as an entirely genuine young woman and the way these two women share their hotel dream is delightful. Just add a bit of romance to the plot, in the form of the builder Brothers Blake and Aiden, and you have the perfect story to while away an afternoon.
Thank you for this most enjoyable book @TillyTenWriter – I can’t wait for your next book!
Milly gets thrown under the bus both physically and metaphorically, when she gets run over by an actual bus and comes out of a coma to discover her ex has arrived to visit her; the ex that she discovers has been keeping in contact with all her family, since he became her ex!
The author creates quite a shocking, but I fear realistic scenario as Milly tries to get back into work, when it appears that having been in a coma is not a sufficient excuse for not delivering on the work front. To add to Milly’s misfortune, her flat mate visits her in hospital, just to evict her! As things are portrayed, they certainly need to start looking up for Milly.
The only things that seem to be going well for Milly in this book are her Family and Friends. Jed in particular, her ex, is incredibly supportive; the sort of friend everyone would like to have in their lives, and he made me feel happy, let alone Milly!
In Jed, the author has created such a likeable character; a good looking, wealthy man, oozing with kindness. I felt desperate for Milly to let him back into her life, but she seemed to want to push him away, almost as though she’d didn’t feel worthy of his love.
I perhaps read more into the prose than intended, but when Milly had the cast removed from her broken arm, it was as though she changed, as if the removal of the cast was a kind of metaphor for her removing her old self – she certainly seemed to change, and most definitely for the better!
Milly joked about having to be hit by a bus to see where her life was going wrong; I loved the way the author was empowering Milly in this way, to change her life for the better. Of course no one wants to be hit by a bus, but as a reader I felt as though I was given food for thought about my own life choices, and that the text was far deeper than one might originally have thought. It was as though Milly’s life was thrown into disarray by the accident, as a sign that she deserved a better life than the one she was living.
I found myself becoming entirely invested in Milly’s future and her desire to be a better person. I loved her relationship with Hector the dog but loved the way the author wrote about her friendship with Jed even more. I felt that the author handled the relationship very sensitively, whilst leaving the reader on tenterhooks for the optimum outcome.
Please read this book for yourself, so you can see how Milly became a better person, less reliant on mobile devices, but as to any hints of romance – I’m not going to spoil things for you, apart from to confirm that Milly loved Hector very much.
This author did something fairly incredible, in creating such a likeable, endearing story, from such a potentially tragic beginning, with the accident. As much as I enjoyed this novel, I felt that there was still more story to tell, beyond the surprise epilogue, and it would be very good news indeed if this book turned out the be the first in a series about Milly and her Friends and Family.
I loved the tag line about being able to teach an old duck new tricks. It sums up this book in a nutshell; a group of older ladies on holiday, going home at the end having rediscovered themselves, eager to make changes at home and try new things. What a beautifully refreshing change from the formulaic approach of some modern fiction. I am fortunate in that I can pick and choose which books I review and so I enjoy the vast majority of books I scrutinise. This book I thoroughly enjoyed and struggled to put it down. (Mental note to self to keep the Kindle out of the bedroom at night!) I think that the things that I will take with me from this book, are that you are never too old to have fun, and regardless of your age, it’s good to learn to say ‘no’.
I was reminded of @judyleighwriter with this book, and that is a genuine compliment as I so adore her books. It is always refreshing when books steer away from the normal and have older characters as their mainstay. This book did not disappoint. Sophia was a fantastic main character, on her first holiday abroad by herself since the death of her Husband 8 years ago. She has ostensibly come to Rhodes to get away from a doomed affair and do some work. Her male counterpart, Theo, provides a potential romantic interest, and the way he is described and the way he acts towards Sophia is just beautiful. I found myself hoping for more and more interaction between the pair. I love that in this book, romantic interludes are not limited to ‘beautiful young things’ and the older ladies get a look in! I loved the comment from Sophia ‘I could still still learn new skills, find new friends, grab everything the world had to offer me. I was determined I wasn’t going to just give up and spend the rest of my life thinking about what I could have done.’ The author recognises that if there is to be some kind of relationship between Theo and Sophia, it will be different this time around; at their ages they don’t have time to dither around. I liked this recognition; I found it comforting and wholly appropriate for the characters involved.
Sophia has gone to Greece for a holiday, and also seemingly to get away from Lucian. Upon reading this Sophia endeared herself to me, as I love a strong female character that knows her own mind. Sophia certainly does know her own mind, having decided that she definitely doesn’t want to speak to Lucian. I think his condescending attitude and behaviour would wind me up too, to be honest! I don’t think Sophia realises it herself, but she is desperately in need of some female friends and a bit of fun. On a mission to complain about the partying noises well into the early hours, she meets the ladies of a similar age holidaying next door and they pretty quickly become friends, and ‘The Old Ducks Club’ is born. Sophia is struggling to get into the editing work she was meant to be doing for her ex, Lucian and instead finds herself out on a day trip around Rhodes with Theo, who owns her holiday let and is also a neighbour.
The new friends spend an increasing amount of time together, but as a reader I could not help but detect a hint of jealousy when on the day out with her new girlfriends, Sophia spots Theo in a restaurant with a woman. By this point I was feeling so interested in the book’s characters and Sophia in particular and found myself willing Theo’s lunch assignment to be an entirely innocent occurrence that wouldn’t get in the way of anything between Sophia and Theo.
I am disappointed in myself, but when characters come across so well in a book, I can’t help but feel invested in what happens to them! I know it’s only a book, but when the author draws you, the reader in so competently, like an angler landing his catch, you can’t help but care about these people!
Much as I liked both Theo and Sophia and would not be adverse to some romance between them, I did feel proud of Sophia and liked the assertiveness bestowed upon her by the author. I appreciated the way that women were shown as being able to speak their own minds, without having to be subservient to men! You will have to decide for yourself whether Sophia should have asked Theo straight out about the woman he had been seen with!
A nightclub trip for the Old Ducks? Manna from heaven for an author such as Maddie Please; ‘what can possibly go wrong?’ they said. ‘It’ll be fun’ they said. The potential content seems endless, from wardrobe malfunctions and general clothing disasters, to overdrinking incidents – the list of possibilities seems endless, but from what I had read I knew that Maddie would treat this subject matter with fun; I was surprised, to say the least at what happened; fun, laughs and originality abounded!
When 3/4 of the Old Ducks. Went home (it was. 2 week stay for most of them, but a 4 week stay for a Sophia), I thought at first that I was nearing the end of the book, but was pleasantly surprised to see I had nearly 1/2 a book left. I wondered at how the author could keep up the standard of fun, laughs and surprises throughout the rest of the book.
I laughed out loud, partly at the awkwardness of it all, when Sophia turned up for the lunch that she had been invited to by Theo’s Uncle Nico. She was expecting a cosy lunch à trois, only to discover that the whole extended family had been invited to a massive party! Sophia was only too aware of the family politics involved and just wanted to please everyone and be liked to them all. The scene was very ‘Vicar of Dibley-esque’ – the episode where Geraldine ends up eating several Christmas dinners on one day. Sophia found herself having to try every dish that had been brought to the lunch by various family members – she couldn’t get away with trying one person’s food without trying them all, for risk of offending someone. Theo practically has to roll her home! The scene was so descriptive I could close my eyes and imagine it was happening at that very moment in my own house!
I loved the sense of community portrayed in this book. On the one hand, as Sophia finds out, everyone knows what you are doing, but I also sensed that she was cosseted and no harm could come to her, due to the fact that so many people cared about what she was doing and what happened to her.
Was there any future in a relationship between Sophia and Theo, or with so many miles between them is this a story about a holiday romance? Will Sophia go back to the hideous Lucian. All questions that need answering…….
The next best thing to spending quality time with a superlative group of girlfriends must surely be reading about this kind of fun. In order to do just that and buy this book for yourself, please just click on this link: https://amzn.to/2P2uKDE
In short, I loved this book. A beautiful, timeless read; a story spanning several generations; a feel-good, sympathetic story, set in the most amazing location, about love, friendship, betrayal. About family and their relationships current, lost and found again. About forgiveness and how knowing the truth can help you build upon the positives. The author builds up the tension with regard to the unknowns and then gradually releases the truth to us, the readers, leaving us desperate for more. The resultant happy extended family situation is just perfect. I would love to read more about what happens to the family, almost as much as I would like to holiday in the chateau with this family!
I always find that death is a sad way to start a book, but from that dark kind of situation one hopes that things can only get better! Pixie is trying to decide what to do now her Husband has died unexpectedly, when she gets some news from their bank manager. With her Husband, she had bought a chateau in France a decade or so ago, under a French scheme whereby you only actually gain title to the property when the current owner dies. She finds out that the previous owner has been dead for over a year and Frank, her Husband has neglected to tell her this. As to why, this is surely a mystery worthy of the novels that Pixie earns a living writing; unfortunately she doesn’t write mysteries though.
The author quickly establishes an air of mystery and builds upon the intrigue in layers, for example when the local B & B owner reveals that Frank stayed there the previous year, unbeknown to Pixie, and the fact that there is no key to the cottage in the chateau grounds. The plot thickens even more when it transpires that Frank had visited with a woman the previous year and had installed this non rent paying woman and her young Son into the cottage. My heart sank at this revelation as despite not having met Frank, I wanted him to have been a good man; I didn’t want him to have had a love child, especially since he had been unable to conceive with Pixie, despite several attempts at IVF,
Other puzzles come to the fore – who is doing the gardening and cutting the grass? Why is there a stash of Frank’s clothes in the wardrobe? What’s in the locked barn? Why are there British brands of food in the larder. I did find the woman in the cottage the most compelling mystery – is it Frank’s ‘other Woman’ or perhaps a long lost Daughter?
The truth is delivered suddenly, but causes immediate pain to Pixie. Can she recover from this shocking revelation? It never ceases to amaze me, the propensity we have to hurt the ones we love most dearly yet still we find the strength to recover and I feel that the author caught this balance of emotions perfectly. Please do read this book for yourself, to find out what has been going on, you will not be disappointed.
A beautifully written piece, covering a multitude of emotions. The characters are, without realising it, in the midst of a terrible emotional tangle, reminiscent of Mauriac’s ‘Noeud de Viperes’, full of tragedy and misunderstandings owing to a unique chain of events. The book brought out so many emotions in me, I found it difficult to put down, seesawing between wanting to know what happens next and dreading what terrible event might happen next! This book exudes a rare sense of fragility and sentiment.
Lauren never imagined her future self being a single Mother, working in a restaurant, but then how many of us would have been able to predict our future accurately, when asked as a teenager? Equally Johnny never imagined being ‘outed’ as a father to a small child that he knew nothing about, especially several years after the child was born. Who knows where the links that make up your life story might lead!
Picture the zemblanity which leaves you, through no fault of your own, waking up to a perfectly normal day, only to find yourself left to look after a child that you had no idea existed. Johnny’s sequence of events were more than unlucky – more like downright tragic, yet as a reader it all seemed to gel together as a cohesive story, one which left me feeling empathetic towards both Johnny and Lauren.
This author is imaginative; of that there is no doubt. You must have imagination to come up with the name Trees Serenity Pure (TSP). She was nothing but kind towards Johnny, when it would have been all to easy for the author to present her as the obvious bitter, resentful soul. I found it refreshing that the author doesn’t always take the obvious path, and is prepared to tackle more difficult, emotional scenarios. Equally the author didn’t take the obvious routes with potential romance, for example between Johnny and TSP or between Johnny and Lauren. Much contemporary fiction is rather formulaic, which made this book all the more refreshing with its original storyline.
The book starts with Johnny and Will, two great friends on a ‘last hoorah’ road trip before Will settles down with his Girlfriend, ‘TSP’; Will however leaves Johnny feeling let down though, when he declares his intention of abandoning the road trip, after speaking to TSP and her begging him to come home.
I love the analogy the author uses about life and the Rickety looking 1920s rollercoaster – the implication that life can be like a rollercoaster, full of ups and downs, and if it’s a rickety wooden one, it can feel as though your life could just fall apart at any moment, such is its precarious fragility. (As I read, I could picture Forrest Gump saying ‘Life is like a rollercoaster’), A sobering thought, made exponentially more sobering as the sequence of events unfolds, such is the clever layering of pieces of the story as the reader progresses through the book. I think that Johnny’s rollercoaster ends up having more troughs than peaks.
Cheesed off at Will imminently abandoning him, Jonny embarks on a solo boozy night out in Santa Cruz, where he meets Lauren. They immediately click, partly thanks to their mutual love of music, a theme which is a constant throughout the book. Johnny ends up spending the night with Lauren, and they part with the agreement that he knows where to find her, once he is ready, and he will come back for her. Lauren is adamant that there is no need to exchange surnames, social media details or phone numbers, as he knows where to find her. Will then drops a bombshell; that he has spoken to TSP and he’s staying for the road trip after all. This of course puts a dampener on Johnny’s plan to go back and be with Lauren.
In an attempt to calm their mutual unease, the two lads make the cataclysmic decision that before continuing on their trip, Johnny should nip back and get Lauren’s details and explain that whilst they are continuing with their road trip, he will be back; shockingly disaster strikes, in the form of a terrible RTA. Johnny wakes up from a comatose state three months later in hospital in the UK. Akin to the two lads, I certainly didn’t see that one coming! Johnny’s friends and family are very supportive. He feels bad that he never got back to Lauren, but life moves on. TSP is especially supportive and seemingly desperate for a happy ending, buys him a ticket back to LA to try and catch up with Lauren, but for various reasons he never goes.
Fast forward 5 years and Johnny quite literally has his five year old son dumped on his doorstep one morning! Crikey, a real ‘Oh my gosh’ moment! It really is hard to imagine Johnny’s emotions at this point, ranging from love through to fear and anger. One presumes that on the one side Johnny would feel betrayed that he knew nothing about the child, Luke, whilst on the other hand Lauren would have felt her own betrayal at Johnny never coming back, when he promised he would. Fate certainly was working against the pair of them, that ‘morning after’. Luke has been left because Lauren is unable to look after him herself.
I found myself rooting for Johnny as he learns to look after Luke and such was the emotion in the book, that I felt each bump along the way and found myself yearning for a happy ending to an already tragically sad story. At times I just felt deluged with emotion and cried real tears.
I mentioned that this book made me cry real tears at times, but the end was emotional and I found its quiet simplicity utterly heartbreaking.
An intriguing story, set in the most beautiful location. The language is such that you can almost smell and touch the surroundings, as if you’d been transported to Italy yourself. I felt instant chemistry between Piero and Zia, and just hoped that they didn’t turn out to be long lost cousins! I felt so intrigued by the unanswered questions in Zia’s life, that I found myself rooting for her to find out all she needed to know. The start of the book made me genuinely care about Zia and her solving the jigsaw that is her life.
Zia is endeavouring to become an Italian citizen and finds herself searching through old papers belonging to her late Mother. She is mystified to find the birth and death certificates of a woman with the same name as her mother. She searches through the papers with her good friend Ursula. The letters also make mention of a woman called Lucia Costa and Zia’s Mother driving to Italy to fetch Zia from her. Zia is curious about her Mother’s connection to Lucia Costa is and wonders whether Lucia would be able to explain about the mysterious young woman who had the same name as Zia’s Mother. It seems that Lucia could be the only person still alive, to provide any answers.
Fast forward and with no answers to any mystery, the action moves to Italy, with Zia and Ursula renting the mysterious Lucia Costa’s holiday villa. Lucia’s home is on land adjacent to a vineyard and its estate. Piero, the Son of the vineyard owner is under pressure from his Father and his Father’s girlfriend, to sell his share of the vineyard. Piero is conscious that if his family sell their estate, Lucia and her Husband will be forced to sell their home and holiday homes too, due to access issues. Zia has some knowledge of property law, and thinks Lucia, her Husband Durante, and Piero are being misinformed. The question is whether this is an innocent mistake, or whether there are underhand dealings going on? Salvatore’s (Piero’s Father) Girlfriend certainly isn’t helping matters, as she clearly wants the whole family to sell up – but is that out of innocent concern for Salvatore or does she have some kind of ulterior motive? Zia is happy to help with the legal issues but seems less keen to come straight out and ask Lucia about her past and in particular any dealings she may have had with Zia’s Mother.
Ursula has her own concerns – alternating between worrying about her fragile relationship with her Husband, and fretting about Zia seeming a bit too much at home in Italy. The last thing she wants us to lose her Husband over a misunderstanding, and her best friend to another country.
Lucia’s reaction when she catches sight of a copy of Zia’s passport, makes it seem pretty clear that they do have some kind of past connection, but it wouldn’t be fair for me to spill the beans on the nature of that connection, although it would be fair to say that I shared Zia’s joy at the thought there was some kind of history between them.
It’s fair to say that the truth about Lucia and Zia’s history does come to the fore, but I won’t give to many spoilers about it. It is also true that mystery abounds in this book. The characters almost seem to almost take on the beauty of their location, if that’s possible! Read for yourself and you will find out the answers to so many questions; will the vineyard and it’s properties be sold? Will Piero and Lucia be able to overcome legal hurdles and remain in their homes without having to sell? Will there be more than a hint of romance between Piero and Zia? Is Harry still alive and what light can he throw on Zia’s early years? Will any progress be made in either Ursula or Zia’s love life at home?
Regardless of all the mystery, this book is worth reading for the spectacular descriptions of the countryside. If you have never been to Italy, this book will make you want to visit, in the hope of replicating some of the beauty and joy within the pages of this book.
I confess to not really knowing where to start with this book, having derived so much pleasure from reading it. A superlative read, with interesting, quirky characters; an hilarious romantic novel, full of gasping (this cannot really be happening) moments! A book packed to the beams with laughter and romance, that you are sure to enjoy. This book is full of awful coincidences – they just keep on tumbling along, one after the other! If a character has an unfortunate ex, you can almost guarantee they’ll turn up in the next chapter! Charles and Di’s ( yes, really, Charles and Di – unfortunate or what!?) wedding week is so packed full of unfortunate circumstances, their relationship is surely destined for failure?
Don’t start reading this book before you go to bed; you will invariably stay up all night, revelling in it’s humour, romance and awkward ‘oh no- surely not’ moments! Even thinking about them will give you the giggles!
Peach enjoys the finer things in life, and thanks to her job as a mystery shopper, she is able to experience these finer things, without having to think about the associated costs. That is until she unfortunately orders an exobsive bitter of wine on room service, by mistake. She is close to her family and they are used to hearing about her fictional fiancé, Matthew, who comes into play while she is producing reports on various wedding venues.
Life is also looking good for Peaches, in that her Sister, Di, has agreed to move in with her, so she will be able to afford carrying on living in her town centre apartment.
I confess to having a laugh out loud moment when, whilst waiting for her Sister’s flight, Peach meets Matt, who is just the uncanniest match for her ‘fiancé’ Matthew, even down to his occupation! A late flight due to strikes, leads to Peach inviting Matt to dinner; he drinks too much and the hotel is full, so Peach invites him to spend the night in her suite, where one thing invariably leads to another………and unfortunately to Matt having just gone, the next morning, as though nothing had happened. Peach has been ‘ghosted’. Still, Peach doesn’t have too long to dwell on her dilemma; it is surpassed by the news that not only has Di met a man, who has proposed after a week, but that the realisation that her Sister is going to be one half of a couple – ‘Charles and Di’ in 2 weeks time!
Surely, reader, things can’t get any worse for Peach? You might want to believe that, but when Peach gets to meet Charles, it transpires that he was the first person she ever slept with, as a teenager; and to add insult to injury, he clearly has no recollection of her at all, let alone having bullied her mercilessly over the incident!
Fast forward to the airport, ready to fly out to the wedding in Italy, and Peach has cocked things up by inviting Di’s ex, Alex, who broke her heart, instead of Di’s friend Lex, and she bumps into one night stand Matt who naturally, turns out to be Charles’ best man! Talk about a knot of vipers!
So many questions to be answered, so many tangles in this web of relationships! Can Peach get things together with Matt? Does she want to? Does Di really love Charles, or does she still harbour feelings for Alex?
You will find out the answers to these questions and more, when you read the book for yourself, but be prepared for laughs and ‘oh no!’ moments aplenty, along the way.
A simple but endearing story about love and romance in the sun; a second chance after a break up, set in the most idyllic location. A story that fulfils your needs for love and romance, based in the most exclusive, radiant location. What’s not to enjoy!
This story starts with Lou trying to persuade her ex, Phil, to give his permission (and to pay) for their Daughter to go to an elite three week music camp in Italy during the summer holidays. He reluctantly agrees in the end and Lou prepares to go too, as Edie’s chaperone. Lou is at first excited at the thought of going away. However, facing three weeks away from home, ostensibly by herself, in a foreign country, and having been described by her Ex Husband on more than one occasion as ‘ordinary and talentless’, reality sinks in and Lou decides to ‘try and find a talent’ while she is away! Surely this wacky decision is destined to end in tears for Lou and laughter for us, the reader?
Nick Romano, Edie’s music teacher comes onto the scene, causing immediate sexual chemistry alarms to sound in my head! Nick is gorgeous and Lou seems to concur. Can they keep their hands off each other, whilst away together for three weeks, especially seeing as this a school trip? Surely any sexual liaison between the two of them, would be deemed most inappropriate, whilst in charge of a hoard of minors! There is little doubt of one thing for certain – that Lou’s attraction towards Nick (or Nico, as he seems to be known, to his Italian family) is undoubtedly reciprocated, whether or not either of them actually realise it at first!
Lou tries various activities, in search of her elusive talent, including perfume making, and cheese making, but one can’t help but wonder whether she should be looking closer to home, to find an existing talent.
Will Lou find her happy ever after with Nick and will she discover her hidden talent? I’m not going to spoil this for you, so read for yourself to find out!
An utterly gorgeous story, based upon the most wonderful concept (borrowing a bookshop), set in the most beautiful area. Love and romance abound in this perfect read that I was devastated to finish; I wanted it to go on forever and I can’t wait to hear about the possibility of a sequel. The perfect read to make you feel as though you are on holiday even if you are in lockdown!
Jude is about to graduate and she has applied for the ‘Borrow a Bookshop Holiday’, whereby a couple live out their fantasy of running a bookshop and cafe for a couple of weeks. She has applied with her beau, Mac. The toxic Mac ends up humiliating Jude at her graduation. He is a professor and she catches him in a clinch with another student and she knows in herself that it’s not his first indiscretion. Jude learns that they have been offered a two week slot in the Cornish bookshop, but makes it clear that Mac is not welcome and she is going to go alone.
On Jude’s first evening in the bookshop, Elliott, a gorgeous vet turns up. He has been called and offered a single assignment at the bookshop, so Jude is having to share her dream with a stranger. Jude is uncertain at first but eventually mellows towards Elliot and there are definite sparks between them. It does however seem as though Elliott is hiding something.
Jude and Elliott become increasingly close, but will this be ruined by the seemingly dark secret that Elliot seems to be harbouring?
As Jude’s time at the bookshop comes to a close, will she find out Elliott’s secret and will there be a future for them as a couple?
PerfectIon – it’s a big word, not in actual length, but for certain in impact. It is, quite simply, how I choose to describe this book.
It was with overwhelming pleasure that I picked up the third in the Hedgehog Hollow series to read. (Mental note to self to take it more slowly next time and make it last)! Oh and what a cliffhanger at the end! Please @jessica_redland, please please please put me out of my misery by providing the next episode of HH posthaste!
This is a sublime book, and the author makes the characters come alive to such an extent that the reader truly cares about their outcomes. This is a book about love and families, about the fact that family relationships are not always perfect and proof that those relationships can improve. Personally, I got such immense gratification from reading this book, I find it hard to quantify that pleasure. However, if you only read one series of books this year, make it the Hedgehog Hollow series. Impossibly, each book is better than the last and leaves readers like me, desperate for more. The next book in the series cannot be published fast enough for me!
Life is good in Hedgehog Hollow, with a new engagement, and with the relationships between both Josh and his Father and Beth improving at a rate of knots.
Hedgehog Hollow dosn’t know what has hit it when Chloe, Sam’s petulant, cranky, downright obnoxious cousin appears on the doorstep, having left her Husband James. Sam exists in her own attention seeking, self centred world; she is refusing to say what James has done and is predictably rude and snappy to everyone. She is also madly jealous of Sam and Beth’s blossoming relationship. When we eventually find out what the problem is, a hard hitting secret from Chloe’s past comes to light, which everyone struggles to comprehend. As a reader I cannot help but empathise with her.
On the relationship front:
Josh and Sam’s relationship goes from strength to strength.
There are signs of the start of a fledgling relationship between Sam and her Mother (I have been so very desperate for this to happen).
There are potential signs of life in the relationship between Sam’s parents.
Things don’t look good between Chloe and James.
I have however left you with ‘food for thought’ and unanswered questions; some things you will resolve upon reading the book for yourself, whilst others should be revealed in the next book🦔🦔🦔🦔🦔
Will Sam get closer to her Mother?
Why does Sam keep on having panic attacks?
Can Chloe ever become less self centred and behave like a normal person?
Why is Phoebe, the volunteer who does the centre’s accounts, so jumpy around Sam?
Eatwell Reads-Well 