St. Aidan, a place that gives you everything you need, even what you don’t know yet

Synopsis

St Aidan: a cosy Cornish village where friendships are made for life and it’s always cocktail hour somewhere…

The Little Cornish Kitchen is going on tour!
When internet sensation ‘Cressida Cupcake’ has a soggy bottomed TV fiasco and faces bake-off backlash she jumps at the chance to spend some time hiding out in St Aidan, dog sitting for her brother.

Picturesque Seaspray Cottage is meant to be Cressy Hobson’s port in the storm but with her blog sponsors having fled and her book deal gone sideways her funds are running low and she’s forced to turn to the locals for help. Soon her quiet weeks in Cornwall are filled with chasing sheep, saving the local retirement village, taking The Little Cornish Kitchen into people’s homes for baking nights…and keeping vigilant guard against romance.

The one and only time Cressy lost her head to love was over a decade ago while in St Aidan, and she won’t be making the same mistake again – a feat easier said than done when Ross Bradbury looks even better a decade on…and every step she takes seems to put him in her path!

My review

After making a total fool of herself on TV, Cressy Hobson realizes what the backlash can be of bad publicity.
So when opportunity rises to hide at St. Aidan, dog sitting for her brother, she grasps it with both hands. While she wants to use this chance to make up her mind to be back on track with Cressida Cupcake, even with sponsors bailing out on her and a book deal is off the table again, she finds herself surrounded by the locals. What was supposed to be a quiet time, is now filled with chasing sheep, trying to save the retirement village and living together with the man that broke her heart many years ago.
Cressy never expected that going at people’s home for baking nights, under the good name of The Little Cornish Kitchen, would be such a success, also with the help of those same locals would put her back on the map.
But where does leave her? A new start for her much desired career? Or finding finally a place she truly can call home, and a way to clear the air with that person she tries to avoid?

First of all, I want to make something clear. Yes, this is a second book in a series. But it’s not a requirement to have read the first one. I haven’t read it and I could follow very easily. There are some references to what happened in Book One, but what you need to know is explained, and it’s a total new main character.
So I don’t need to read Book One, but I really want too!

When I began this book, I didn’t really like – like Cressy… I found her too focused on the way people saw her. She was trying too hard to be the perfect young woman, and when all fell apart, she is lost.
Of course, making a fool out of yourself on TV is not the best thing to do, so I understood what her feelings were.
And going to St. Aidan seemed also to me the perfect solution to overthink everything.

And when in St. Aidan, I was struggling with the way she behaved towards Ross… it’s obvious that something happened in the past, but not knowing what, made it difficult to understand and agree with her behaviour.

But slowly, we see the real Cressy, and that is a Cressy that is easy to like. While initially she was reluctant to help out when her new friends/acquaintances ask her, Cressy starts to see the beauty of St. Aidan and how well the real Cressy would fit in.

The beauty of this story is how Cressy is changing, for the better, but also finds the courage to address the person that hurt her the most in the past. Even if their start is a real bumpy one, slightly forced by living together, there has to be some kind of communication. And reading how both Cressy and Ross are getting

to know each other again, and seeing the real them, made my heart melt.
When the past is known, so much more made more sense, and I understood Cressy so much better.

This past shows us how people going through the same tragedy, see it differently and just because we see it different, doesn’t mean that the pain isn’t there. Because in this specific tragedy, there were two broken – hearted people, but they didn’t see the pain in each other. Which caused even more hurt.

I loved reading this story, seeing Cressy getting back on her two feet, doing something I also love. But also reading about second chances, how impropable it seems, warmed my heart. And St. Aidan, I want to live there too! The whole community, and even the residents of the retirement village, they all stole a little piece of my heart. And how everyone is determined to help those who need it, well, is there a more beautiful community?

There is not one thing I didn’t not like about this book. And for me, the cherry on top of the cake, were the recipes to be found in the end of the book. Reading about cupcakes, cakes, baking, surely got me in the bake-modus myself, and now I have new inspiration!

How far would you go for your greatest wish to come true?

Synopsis

A gripping, emotional book that asks the question: What does it take to be a parent?
Brand new from the bestselling author of The Last Days of Us

In one split second, Aidan Whelan’s perfect world is changed forever when his wife Rowan and three-year old daughter Milly are involved in tragic accident.
Helena O’Herlihy and her husband James have been struggling in their marriage but a knock on the door telling her that James has been involved in a car crash, has Helena rushing to his side.
When Aidan and Helena bump into each other at Dublin City Hospital, they soon begin to wonder if it’s more than just coincidence that brought them there. Why were Rowan and James in the car together on that fateful morning?
Through their pain and tears, they form a bond as they try to piece together what really did happen on the morning of the crash.
As the lies begin to unravel and secrets are uncovered, can Aidan save what’s left of his family and Helena her marriage?

My review

Helena O’ Herlihy’s greatest wish is to finally have a child with her husband James. But all their attempts were in vain and also had an effect on their marriage.
When James is involved in a car crash, all that doesn’t matter, as long as James is okay. However, when Helena bumps into Aidan Whelan at the hospital, it’s clear that James was in the same car as Aidan’s wife Rowan and their daughter Milly.
Even if James and Rowan were friends, why were they in the same car that day? While Aidan and Helena are sharing the same pain and fears, secrets that will devastate everyone’s life are being uncovered. And decisions are being made that will rock everyone’s lives even more…

Having read another book from this author, I knew there would be tear – jerking moments, so I thought I was mentally prepared…
The secret here is rather easy to guess, but this story is not purely about uncovering this secret, but how people react to it.

Of course, learning that your partner has been in an accident, is a real shock. But in Aidan’s case, losing your wife and fighting to keep your family together, while your little girl is still fighting for her life, I can only try to comprehend how he is feeling.
Seeing how his family is falling apart even more, with his oldest son building up the highest wall possible, broke my heart.
But what I liked about Aidan the most, was his unconditional love for his children. He wants what’s best for all three of his children, but he will not go down without a fight! Even if that fight is an impossible one, and is on top of the fight with his in – laws…

When I started to read this book, I thought I had figured out who the ‘bad one’ was in this story. And while it all starts with pointing in exactly in that direction, the story took a different direction.
I understood Helena’s reasoning, even if the way she handled things was a wrong one. Those doubts would only eat her away, so she had to figure out the truth somehow.
But with the truth uncovered, Helena slowly begins to realize that knowing the truth will not always set you free and grant you your wish.

Despite her initial thoughts, she knows what the right thing to do is, and I admired how she even is fighting against the person she loves the most.  Because loving someone doesn’t mean to be automatically in their corner for each fight.

The more I was into the story, which is impossible to put away despite all the pain that you are feeling, I saw that each decision was not made out of selfishness, even if you would think so, but because of a pain the characters are feelings and a sense of loss and inability to do something.

Without giving away too much, the ending was very fitting. The message that communication is the key to everything, arrived very loud and clear in the end, not only for us as a reader, but also for the main characters…

This was a heart – breaking story about the struggles of two families that have been torn apart, trying to find a way to cope with everything that happened, with making mistakes but also about realizing that mistakes can be undone.
Even if I wanted to scream regularly at the main characters, it made me also made me smile, bittersweet, because in the end, there is nothing we wouldn’t do for family…

The healing nature of Honey

Synopsis

Escape to the English countryside with Liz Fielding’s emotional and uplifting summer romance.

An escape to the country 

A kiss to reawaken them both…

Honeysuckle Rose finds much-needed solace in her great aunt’s garden. But her peace is threatened by her distracting and brooding neighbour, Lucien Grey. Once a high-flying news reporter, Lucien returned from the front line a changed man. Honey can see that beneath his frosty exterior is a heart waiting to be thawed. Can their unexpected but impossible-to-ignore midsummer kiss be the beginning of a fresh start…together?

My review

Honeysuckle Rose inherited her great aunt’s cottage and garden. She enjoys taking care of all the fauna and flora, and found the much needed peace.
But then her peace is disturbed by her new neighbour, Lucien Grey. Everyone knows Lucien grey as a high – flying news reporter but he has returned as a changed man. now he is a brooding man, with no bigger desire than being left alone.
After a first, heated meeting, Honey realizes that Lucien has demons to face. With both needing the other’s help in several occasions and that one unexpected kiss, will they be exactly that one thing they both needed to dare to see a bright future again?

I thought I knew what kind of story I would be reading. And even if this was a rather short one, compared with other tales, maybe this one touched my heart the most…
Because this story goes much deeper, with characters who are facing dark emotions and are struggling to get again a grip on their lives again.

While Honey seems a woman with her head straight on her shoulders, rather quickly it’s obvious she has her own demons to face.
The losses she endured, made her make choices not based on what she truly wanted, but more like what her loved ones expected from her.
Of course, if she didn’t have her heart at the right place, she wouldn’t be using her knowledge as a nurse abroad, or have such a desire to take care of her great aunt’s garden.

But that makes her understand Lucien all the better, because she knows what he is going through. And despite their initial clash, and even the clashes alter on, she truly wants to help him, because lingering in the past will only hold your back.

I can only imagine what Lucien saw and has been through. And I completely understood his state of mind, as it cannot have been easy.
But I loved seeing him opening up, and find his drive again, with the help of Honey.

OF COURSE you and I both know what will happen between Honey and Lucien, no surprise there. But I found it heart – warming that these were two people, both scarred somehow, despite their initial dislike find each other (again?) and help each other to face their fears. Together, with their even perhaps a limited knowledge about the matter, they find a way to process what happened to them.

The beauty of this (too short for me!) story is, beside the love – aspect, that something terrible is finding its place without ridiculing it, but showing the seriousness of it. And that there is a way to overcome it. It may need baby steps, but you can heal from those scars.
Honey is exactly what Lucien needs, with her hands – on attitude, and Lucien and his feelings is exactly what Honey needs to overcome her fears.

This story was wonderful to read, about love, pain and courage to move. But also about a community being there for each other and offer a helping hand, however they can.
And when you know, you just know…

When your security is no longer there, a new plan needs to be made for the future

Synopsis

He needs a wife…
Manchester industrialist William Rose was a poor lad from the slums who pulled himself up by his bootstraps, but in order to achieve his greatest ambitions he must become the epitome of Victorian respectability: a family man.

She has a plan…
But the only woman who’s caught his eye is sophisticated beauty Octavia Marshall, one of the notorious ladies of Carson Street. Though she was once born to great wealth and privilege, she’s hardly respectable, but she’s determined to invest her hard-earned fortune in Mr Rose’s mills and forge a new life as an entirely proper businesswoman.

They strike a deal that promises them both what they desire the most, but William’s a fool if he thinks Octavia will be a conventional married woman, and she’s very much mistaken if she thinks the livesthey once led won’t follow them wherever they go.

In the third instalment of Rachel Brimble’s exciting Victorian saga series, The Ladies of Carson Street will open the doors on a thoroughly modern marriage – and William is about to get a lot more than he bargained for…

My review

Octavia Marshall is the only one for the ladies of Carson Street that hasn’t found love yet. However, love is absolutely the last thing on her mind, as she is having other worries. With her best friends Nancy and Louisa no longer receiving customers, Octavia is the only ‘original’ Lady of Carson Street still working.
But as the future of such houses are at risk, Octavia is thinking about her own future. And in her future is no place for her past, because no matter she used to have wealth and privileges, there is no way she is going back to that hurtful place.
When Octavia meets William Rose, she sees an unexpected opportunity. Because William learns the hard way that no one takes him seriously until he becomes what expected in Victorian times: a family man.
William needs someone to pose as his fiancée and Octavia needs someone to teach her how to become a businesswoman.
With each their own goals, will their deal of being fake engaged change into something with deeper feelings?

Having read the previous parts of this series, there is one thing I have learned… do not mess with the Ladies of Carson Street!
Even if what they do for a living is not something I recommend, all the women are strong, independent and with a mind of their own.
They do what’s needed to survive, and even if 2/3 of the company is now in a happy relationship, they did not suddenly change into a meek woman, ready to just obey their man.

And Octavia… how I understood her so well… she is seeing her friends all having their happily ever after, all deserved of course, but that makes Octavia wonder what her life and future will look like.
She knows that she cannot continue doing what she is doing, not only because of her reaching an age she won’t be that popular anymore, but also because there are people determined to close houses like Carson Street.
And I admired her determination that, once she knows that she wants to learn to run a business, she seeks the right opportunity to get things started. I loved her mentality of forging her own happiness, and not let prejudice dictate would she can or cannot do.  But she is also afraid that she somehow will lose her friends and will be left alone, again. And that vulnerability was a nice new layer of Octavia.

And her meeting with William, a meeting that starts it all, isn’t obviously a normal meeting. Of course, what did we expect with Octavia?
William has made his own success, and I was even a bit proud of him, because he really looks after the people that work for him. and in Victorian that is not something taken for granted.
So I found it also frustrating how society would hold him back in making his business more successful, especially seeing how hypocrite society can be…
What I even liked more about William, is how is not judging Octavia for what she is doing. He understands what brought her to do this kind of life.
But he also sees the pain that still haunts Octavia, no matter how hard Octavia tries to hide it.

Having two people wanting to make the best out of their plans, and making a deal, makes in this case perfect sense.
And yes, it isn’t a surprise how things evolve, but that is also the beauty of this book. And that’s because we have two strong main characters, that will always do the right thing. Even if that means going away from the person you start to love. Or even refuse a very important question, because it isn’t the right time.

Octavia and William may have a complete different background and current lifestyle, but that doesn’t mean that they won’t have anything in common. They see the good in each other and respect each other.

I found this a great latest addition and I liked getting to know Octavia better and getting acquainted with William. It shows us that even in the past there are people that see the real us, and don’t put a label on us without actually getting to know us.
And that with determination, even stubbornness and the right person by your side, you can make a change and turn your dreams into reality.

Picking up the pieces after love broke everything

Synopsis

With the recent breakdown of both her ten-year relationship and her parents’ marriage, thirty-five-year-old Marnie Barnes no longer believes in love. To give her life the shake-up it so clearly needs, she books a ticket to Canada.

Thousands of miles away from her home and her twin sister, she struggles to have the life-changing experience she dreamt of – until she meets Nova, a dinosaur-loving space nerd with a penchant for living in the moment. After a wonderful day together in Vancouver, they part ways. Though gutted, Marnie thinks it’s proof that she’s not meant to find love and tries to move on with her life.

But a few months later, back in England, she bumps into someone achingly familiar. As Marnie navigates her new feelings, takes chances and makes the first move for the first time in her life, can she regain her faith in love – and find it for herself?

My review

Marnie Barnes no longer believes in love. Not only has her own relationship broken down, but also her parents’ marriage is in the past now.
So when she went on a holiday to Canada, it gave her the peace she needed.
Back home in England now, she has to not only make up to her friends and family for disappearing, but also hold on to think peaceful feeling she found in Canada and make again something of her life.
And then someone she thought she would never see again, is also in England. Maybe this is Marnie’s opportunity to believe in love again?

Before I even started reading this book, I thought it would be a real romance, our main character would, after seeing her previous relation getting ended, meet someone new and fall in love and by taking baby steps, believe in love again.
But after reading the prologue, I quickly realized that it wouldn’t be that kind of story. so I was intrigued.

I have to admit, I admired Marnie’s courage to just pack and go all by herself to Canada. That surely wouldn’t be something I would dare to do. I always need someone by my side, just in case!
Although I would have loved to read about her adventures there, she was rather quickly back home and then the story really took off.

It was sweet to read how everybody saw that Marnie got that ‘Canada Glow’ over her, a sign that the trip really did her good. But of course life didn’t stand still and Marnie quickly realizes that while she was away, not everyone knows the truth, making her look like the guilty part of the end of the relationship.

If you are looking for a pure romance book, I understand that you will be a little bit disappointed, because this book is more about the journey Marnie is making, and finding her own happiness again. She is determined to keep that glow with her, and slowly we start to see the real Marnie. And the real Marnie is such a nice, caring person, easy to like.
Even if you would only see the way she interacts with Paislee at school, you would know enough. Marnie is the kind of person and teacher that knows how to get through children and just understands them.

This book takes us through everything that Marnie goes through. The good bits, like her sister and best friend standing by her side all the time, or how she is happy to see Paislee open up more, but also on the not so good bits, like seeing the end of her parents’ marriage or realizing how the truth can be twisted and how people easily believe rumours.
However, the good parts prevail, and also seeing how there may be a love interest, was beautiful to read.

Talking about that love interest, I am not going to say very much about it. Not because I didn’t like it, because I did, and that person may be just the right person for Marnie. But I don’t think the focus of reading the book should be on this aspect…

Seeing Marnie bloom again was the real treat of this book and all the rest was a nice extra. I saw this as a lesson not only of love, but mainly about how it’s okay to fall a little bit apart after a tough time, but by taking your time (no matter how long it takes of how far it takes you), you will be able to pick up those broken pieces again. And that maybe that falling apart is exactly what you needed to find yourself again and be the best “you”.

The start of very peculiar and unexpected friendships…

Synopsis

Abbey Carter should be feeling on top of the world. 

She has the home of her dreams – a picturesque cottage just walking distance from her beloved Primrose Woods. She has a job she loves, great friends, and most exciting of all – a wedding dress hanging in her wardrobe ready to be worn.  So why does she feel so lonely… 

Lizzie Baker loves her job at the Treetops café in Primrose Woods, and she loves being a grandmother even more. If only she could face her fear of flying and see her granddaughter in person rather than on a screen.

Rhianna West is head over heels for her boyfriend Jay. She just wishes he could see her more regularly. His excuses are starting to wear thin, and Rhi’s dreams for the future are beginning to fade.Can the fun and friendships, the picture-perfect scenery and rolling seasons in Primrose Woods help the women find the happy endings they deserve? After all anything is possible if you dare to dream…

An absolute treat of a book. Let Jill Steeples whisk you away into the beautiful countryside for the perfect feel-good comfort read. Just right for fans of Cathy Bramley, Heidi Swain and Julie Houston.

My review

Abbey Carter should feel like she has it all. she has a lovely cottage, just at walking distance from her beloved Primrose Woods. She loves her job and her friends, and soon she will be marrying Jason. So why isn’t she feeling all those expected butterflies?
On the other hand we have Rhianna West, deeply in love with her boyfriend Jay, but he keeps making excuses for not going public. While Rhianna is waiting patiently, she starts to doubt if Jay is really into their relationship just as committed as she is.
But when the truth comes out, it not just one dream that has been shattered.
Broken hearts and faith in mankind destroyed, hearts need to be mended and maybe with some gentle and good-natured interference of Lizzie Baker, who works at the popular treetops Café, new people enter Abbey’s life and new friendships can be made. 

Ooh this was a refreshing, lovely story to read! Of course, as an avid reader, I rather quickly figured out what was going on.
And while it would be easy to start pointing fingers, in this specific case, there is only one guilty party… 

It broke a little bit my heart seeing how Abbey discovers the truth about Jason, especially as she gave him already many second chances.
But then I also thought, that if she wasn’t that sure about that perfect wedding dress, that maybe that was already a sign… 

What I truly liked about Abbey, is her kind character. When she meets Rhianna for the first time, her reaction is an obvious one. But when all the cards lay on the table, Abbey realizes that Rhi is just as much a victim as she is.
And seeing how Abbey and Rhi, accidentally become friends, warmed my heart, as forgiveness is truly possible. 

While the main focus is on Abbey and finding her own peace, she is surrounded by people who love her. Like I said, Rhi is becoming one of those people, and Luke, Rhi’s ex – colleague is also a new addition and also Lizzie quickly becomes more important and then there is Sam…

All of these characters have also a big part in this story, Rhi trying to figure out what she truly wants from her life, after her last disaster.
Lizzie, who has a great desire to visit her daughter on the other side of the world, but is afraid of flying.
Sam, who is afraid of commitment has his own reputation.

Of course there is romance involved, but I didn’t think that was the main focus of this story. This was a wonderful story about starting over, discovering yourself, and love in all its aspects. We have unworthy love, betrayed love, but most important, non – judgemental love between friends, parents and children, love for the environment, new love after having had True Love, and self – love.

I have to admit, while everything went how I wanted for Abbey, I still have a few questions about Rhianna. So please tell me that she will have her own story too???
Because I know for sure that, seeing how I devoured this book, Rhianna’s story will be devoured with the same emotions!

When feelings can risk the close unit of a family…

Synopsis

Welcome to Pepper Bay. A small close-knit community where you’ll find chocolate box cottages, quaint shops, drama, friendship, and love.

Snuggle down with this cosy, feel-good, comfort read that whisks you away to a beautiful bay on the Isle of Wight – Perfect for fans of Christie Barlow, Phillipa Ashley, and Holly Martin.

The Pepper Bay books are standalone stories that intertwine with recurring characters.

Pepper Pot Farm – Tessie Sparrow and Nate Walker have everything a relationship can have, except intimacy. Neither of them want to add it into the mix, for fear of ruining their friendship.

It’s not easy for them to stay apart when they are growing so close, and Tessie’s secret plan to help save Nate’s farm might destroy them forever.

My review

Tessie Sparrow and Nate Walker spend their lives together with their daughters as a loving family. And even if the girls, Daisy and Robyn, see each other as sisters, they are not. In fact, Tessie and Nate aren’t even together.
While everyone sees how perfect they would be for each other, even if there might be some feelings, neither one of them want to ruin the perfect symbiosis, especially as they both have been hurt by love in the past.
However, being all the time together, it’s getting harder each time to stay apart.
Add Nate’s farm being at risk, and Tessie’s plan to help Nate in secret, will this family have the chance to be real one or will it fall apart?

I have read the previous parts of this series, and while I was swept away by the main characters at that time, I always wanted to know more about Tessie and Nate.
What made them so close? And why aren’t they together yet? So many questions I wanted an answer, and FINALLY I got them all!

Even if the most times, it was frustrating that Tessie and Nate wouldn’t take that next, obvious step, I loved reading about they worked as a family even if by blood they actually weren’t.

I found it sweet reading how Tessie and Nate were always there for each other, even in the past and at their most difficult times.
They truly are best friends, wanting only the best for each other. And even if there was one glitch, they found each other again.

It’s not really a spoiler when I say there is a kiss, right? Because when that one, first kiss is FINALLY there, it was just perfection.
Yes, it was not on the most romantic place, or the most perfect timing, but it was perfect for Tessie and Nate…

But what made me absolutely melt, was the unconditional love, not only for each other, but also for Daisy and Robyn. They both are parents of the girls, no matter if they are the “real” mother or father.
And this was for me perfect proof that love is thicker than blood. But again, who would not love amazing kids as Daisy and Robyn?

Obviously, if everything would go smoothly from start to finish, this story would lose a bit of its magic. There are a few blasts of the past, jeopardizing the small happiness created by Tessie and Nate. And while they were all for selfish reasons, there was one really nasty one, but what else could we expect from that specific character?

And then there is Tessie’s secret… at first I thought it would be a more devastating one, but I was quickly reassured it wasn’t that earth – shattering, but more an issue of bruised egos.
Add some terrifying moments too, and I even loved our main characters even more, because realizing what they could have been losing, makes them understand that fear shouldn’t be holding back their feelings.

A wonderful love story, an amazing FAMILY story, main characters that will warm your hearts and the extra charm of seeing our old friends again, playing also a rather important part in the story of two people who have loved, have been hurt, but deserve all the happiness in the world.

This series is the kind that will slowly grow to you and before you know it, you have fallen completely in love with all the characters and Pepper Bay.
And now the agonizing part, waiting for the next chapter to come out!