At arguably one of the most miserable periods of the year, as I try not to dream of Spring, I confess that my heart leaped at having been gifted the opportunity to read and review the latest instalment in Sarah Bennett’s superlative Juniper Meadow series. I am so looking forward to reading Rhys’s story. Even before I picked the book up, it had that ‘Read it’ factor; I was drawn to the cover with its strong, appealing colours and quite I quite simply couldn’t pass it by. What’s more, I just knew that I was going to enjoy this book.
This book can be read as a standalone novel, but if you haven’t read the previous two books in the series, then I urge you to do so, as you are missing a treat.
(Purchase Link – https://mybook.to/Infromthecoldsocial
Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/3jQEYqg)
If however, time is not your friend at this point in time, the start of this book offers a very handy Juniper Meadows ‘Who’s Who’. Indeed it proved useful to me on more than one occasion, being so useful to refer to.
To my mind, Tasha Blake was a veritable heroine from the very start of this book, by virtue of being conscious of keeping inter-family peace, and not being riled by her Mother. Some might suggest that Tasha should stand up to her Mother, but it seemed to me that Tasha was acutely aware that a family christening was not the time / occasion to rock that family boat. Victoria, Tasha’s Mother, really was a self-centred nightmare and my heart just sank for Tasha, as Victoria seemed to choose to erase Tasha’s ill-fated wedding from their family history, when the plan had been for it to take place in the same church as Tasha’s niece’s Christening. On the day of the christening it felt to me as though the lack of actual warmth in the sun was a reflection of the lack of warmth within Victoria Blake. Her coolness was in stark contrast to the loving relationships between Tasha and her Sister Danni, and between the two Sisters and their Father, Adrian.
This book elicited a series of emotions from me, ranging from sadness to laughing out loud, and the hat incident in the first chapter certainly got me chortling! It was a welcome relief from the despair of Victoria’s awful behaviour. considering how Tasha’s relationship ended with a Jonny, I was very impressed with how she handled meeting him at the christening; very adult! Moving forwards, I loved the first meeting between Tasha and Rhys; even from the printed page, the electricity between them was palpable, and I sincerely hoped that Rhys’s story may morph into Rhys and Tasha’s story. Indeed for Tasha’s sake, it might even stop her parents going on about freezing her eggs. I was concerned however at the thought of any burgeoning romance between these two characters, in that Tasha was applying for the camp site manager role under nefarious circumstances, albeit on her ‘real’ boss’s orders. What’s the betting though, that Juniper Meadows will ultimately wreak its own inimitable magic upon Tasha, leaving her unable to leave, even if she wants to, captivated by the estate’s unique spells. The mystery does still remain though, as to what Tasha is actually up to.
I enjoyed the special family vibe within Juniper Meadows. Indeed although the dogs were described as ‘safe in the protection of Juniper Meadows’ own little pack’, this could just as easily be used to describe the human members of the Juniper Meadows clan. I confess to turning into a pile of mush at the imagery of Ben with his Dalmatian puppy zipped into his jacket! How I longed for an actual picture, although some sights are perhaps as good when left to the imagination! As for imagination, was it mine, or did every wonderful family moment amongst the Travers Family, help to some extent to cement in her mind the imperfections of Tasha’s own family. Regardless, Tasha seems to slide easily into the Juniper Meadows family, thriving on ideas for the campsite. We still have little idea as to what Tasha is doing for her ‘actual’ boss Simon though, except that’s she seems to be expected to collect information about the estate. Whatever she is doing, one can assume that it has nothing to do with the good of the Travers family. Will Tasha’s new bond with the Juniper Meadows crowd overcome any loyalty that she has for Simon? I for one am in no doubt as to which entity has the greater integrity and I suspect that Tasha will be unable to betray her new friends. What will happen though if/when The Travers find out about Tasha’s double life?
Purchase Link: https://mybook.to/comerainorshinesocial
Eatwell Reads-Well 