Primrose Woods, the perfect place to start over again

Synopsis

Primrose Hall is more than Jackson Moody and his fiancée Pia’s home – it’s the heart of the community.

The Sunday craft fairs in the renovated stables are a popular draw for the locals and tourists alike, enticed by the beautiful surroundings of Primrose Woods as well as the irresistible goodies on display. But for Sophie Wright they’re a chance to forge a new life and a new business. After leaving behind a turbulent relationship, Sophie is starting again – and romance is the last thing on her mind.

Drop dead gorgeous Tom Moody, Lord of the Manor Jackson’s newly-discovered older brother, is loving being a member of the Primrose Hall community. Content to muck in where he can be helpful, he’s just happy to be part of the family. But when tragedy strikes, Pia needs Tom more than he ever expected. And when Tom needs a shoulder to cry on, Sophie might be the perfect person to help – if only she hadn’t sworn off romance for good…

Join the gang at Primrose Hall for laughter, tears, friendship and romance, perfect for fans of Cathy Bramley, Heidi Swain and Julie Houston.

My review

After the end of her relationship, Sophie Wright is ready to start over. She cannot wait to her new life to start, together with her new business.
And she for sure counts herself lucky, as at first she had the help from a friend, and now she is lucky to have found her own place, surrounded by the Primrose Woods. A fresh start, with no room for romance.
That is until at the Sunday craft fairs in Primrose Hall she meets Tom. Tom is Lord of the Manor Jackson’s older and just found brother. While the relationship with Jackson at moments is still not easy at moments, Tom loves having found his family. He is ready to help anywhere he can, while trying to think where his future may be. And after breaking up with his girlfriend, love is the last thing on his mind.
But when tragedy strikes, and Pia, Jackson’s fiancée needs Tom’s help, it Sophie that is there for Tom…

What a delight it was returning to Primrose Hall! After the previous books I was left with a few questions so obviously I was thrilled to have a whole new book!

Sophie for sure was a great character to discover. I admired her choices, as how she managed to get out of a relationship before it became really toxic.
And I admired her how determined she was not only to start all over again, but she was also determined to finally chase her own dreams and find a way to make it all work.

Of course, seeing how her relationship ended, I understood why she clearly states that she has no time for romance anymore, and how she will focus only on herself from now on. After what she has been through, she absolutely deserves to create her own happiness.
I liked it how she was able to see how bad her relationship was getting, even becoming dangerous, a downward spiral. So she took the matter in her own hands, before things got out of control.

It was also heart – warming to see how she found a helping in perhaps the least obvious person, but seeing how that friendship evolve, was truly amazing.
But Sophie isn’t the kind of person that is just on the receiving side of help, because she herself is also an amazing friend. Whenever she can, she doesn’t hesitate to help, and she just shows kindness to everyone and everywhere.

And it’s her kind character that makes her connect with Tom, together with an alike ‘sad’ story. Because Tom for sure also deserve all the possible hearts. I can only try to imagine how it feels to find your family. And while his father has been very accepting, it was heart – breaking to see Tom’s attempts to bond with Jackson…

But this situation isn’t one where there is party right and one party wrong… normally siblings grow up together, and that bond is there automatically. But when you just meet as adults, it’s way more difficult and it for sure takes time to get accustomed to each other.

While the situation with Jackson isn’t an easy one, it was sweet to see how Tom finds himself belonging somewhere. The missing pieces have finally been found and put into the right place.
But that is the charm of Primrose Hall and everyone living around the Woods, it’s such a welcoming and open community, where there is room for everyone!

In this book we also have some more Pia & Jackson – time which was absolutely delightful! Perhaps at moments I found Jackson a bit selfish and thoughtless, but let’s not forget where he came from. So even those few missteps are easily covered by the blanked of love! 😊

Yet the main focus of this book is definitely on Sophie and Tom. And they for sure deserve that spotlight! Because they show us not only how a friendship can evolve, but also how sometimes we let fear of rejection hold us back. We see clearly the feelings change into something deeper, but both parties are aware of what has been said in the past, how neither of them was ready yet to love again. And what they have now, is too tender to be jeopardized by perhaps not reciprocated feelings.

But this book is also about family and the sometimes difficult dynamics in it. We see how everyone wants to protect everyone, only having the opposite results sometimes. While things are done out of love, sometimes it’s not always the best choice.
Nevertheless, we see that family loves every member unconditionally, despite the errors, and no matter how long someone has been in the family group. And we also see how much a family wants to help, again unconditionally and full of love.

This was once again a beautiful, heart – warming story, set in a wonderful place, filled with so many nice characters. I found myself surrounded by love, kindness and generosity. Jill Steeples wrote a magnificent story about characters that even if they are determined not to fall for it, deserve all the best kind of love in their lives.