A Breath of Fresh Air – Jessica Redland

I do so enjoy Jessica Redland’s books, and so was thrilled to be given the opportunity to read and review this new shiny gem. I also relished the chance to both catch up with some characters from the previous book in the Lakes series (The Start of Something Wonderful), such as Autumn, Rosie and Dane, and to meet some equally wonderful new folk.

For me, unassuming Rosie had a certain ‘je ne said quoi’ about her – but if anything that added to her ‘page appeal’, so it was with an element sadness that I noted her green hairy fruit feelings at the start of the book. I could only hope that this might augur well for her chances of the beautiful lakeside village of Willowdale weaving its special magic on her, and Rosie finding her ‘someone special’ in this book. Rosie was such a selfless woman and despite suffering previous romantic heartbreak, never ceased to put others (basically her Mother and her work), first. I would have to be a monster notfeel for poor Rosie, having been disowned by her grandparents before she was born. I was however intrigued by the hint of some kind of connection between Hubert Cranleigh and Rosie’s Mum. This had been echoed at some point by the seemingly unbreakable childhood bond between
Rosie and Oliver, it that had unfortunately diminished during their secondary school years, when he appeared to vie with Rosie’s bullies – contributing to making some of her formative years fairly miserable. Personally I can, on occasion be a complete imbecile, so I must confess to finding the name ‘Dr Impatient Arse’ hilarious. In fact it seemed increasingly funny every time it came up!

It felt to me that with her mother’s poor health, Rosie was balancing precariously along the precipice of being alone in the world, in a familial sense. Thank goodness for the presence of the friends in her life. Dare I use the tiniest bit of energy up in hoping that Rosie and Oliver could revive their hitherto devastated friendship? Perhaps Rosie should call on some of Miss Eccles’ unfailing wisdom. Short of marrying Oliver and becoming Hubert’s full-time carer, how can Rosie possible dissuade Oliver from selling the estate? What would a sale do to Rosie’s Mother’s health?

Autumn is such a loveable character and I found it quite enchanting that Beatrix Potter’s local history seemed to inspire her own illustrations, as if by some bizarre form of osmosis. Together with Dane, they made the perfect couple. I found myself completely immersed in the characters in this book, and Autumn and Dane were no exception, to the extent that I found myself desperate to read their new books, with Autumn’s fabulous illustrations!

I urge you to read this fabulous book for yourself, to immerse yourself in this marvellous Lakes tale.