A fresh start with your first love?

Synopsis

Will they get a second chance at first love?

When newly divorced Tara McTaigh spots an advert for a studio to let in Coorie Castle’s craft centre, she packs up her Edinburgh life and moves to the Isle of Skye, eager for a fresh start.

Little does she know that the castle’s estate manager, single dad Calan Fraser, is the man who broke her heart back at university. Thoroughly done with romance, Tara decides to ignore Cal and focus on building her business – creating dollhouses to commission. But Duncoorie is a small community, and the two keep bumping into each other… 

Just as she is starting to open her heart once more to Cal, a change in his life puts everything on the line. When a surprise storm threatens Tara’s safety, will Cal realise in time that love is worth the risk?

An uplifting and feel-good crafty romance for fans of Holly Martin, Sue Moorcroft and Julie Shackman.

My review

After her divorce, Tara McTaigh is looking for a place to start over. When she sees an advert for a studio in Coorie’s Castle, it seems like serendipity, as it also has a craft centre, ideal for Tara’s job in creating dollhouses. As the call of the Isle of Skye is impossible to resist, Tara sets off to Duncoorie. But what Tara doesn’t know, is that the castle’s estate manager is someone from her past. Because Calan Fraser was her first love, and also the person that broke her heart many years ago. Yet Tara is determined to not get distracted by Cal and focusses purely on her business. But no matter how hard she tries, Duncoorie is a small community and there is no chance of avoiding Cal forever. And the more time they spend together, especially when Cal’s daughter is interested in Tara and her dollhouses, the more they realize that beside the hard feelings of the past, also some other feelings are still present. But is it possible to have a second chance with your first love?

The Isle of Skye seems to be the perfect setting for great stories. I have never been there, but reading how much can happen there, I think I definitely need to visit it, and figure out if there is something in store for me there too! 😊

The end of a marriage is never a good thing, especially when the main character has been the hurt party. Yet it has to be said, that I admired Tara. Yes, initially she doesn’t give her ex an easy time, and why should she? But the moment she makes the switch in her head, she decides to walk away, head up high and move on.

I liked Tara not only because her courage to start over again, but I was also amazed by how talented she is, how she is able to create dollhouses, even on commission! I never had a dollhouse myself, yet it somehow has always been a dream of mine to have one!

In a way, this was a very recognizable story. Because we all remember our first love. And let’s be honest, most of those loves didn’t end with a happily ever after, yet that first love is always unforgettable. What makes Tara’s and Cal’s first love story even more tragic is that while it ended in heartbreak, there was more to it than just their love passed its time, that the love has gone.

And as it ended badly, and truly hurt Tara a lot, it does not come as a surprise that Tara is shocked to find Cal as the estate manager of Tara’s new home. And I cannot blame her, as she is unaware of what truly took place years ago, she isn’t all that happy to be spending time with Cal.

But while Tara is disturbed by Cal’s presence, it’s also clear that Coorie’s Castle is the right place for Tara. Not only is it the place that Tara was looking for but it was also Tara that the place needed. Tara fits perfectly not only at the craft’s centre, but also she fits in the mindset of the community. And the fact that she is easily welcomed and embraced by everyone, just pinpoints that even further.

I was eager to read how Tara and Cal would be grower closer again. Because I was wondering if it would be a case of two former lovers finding each other and getting to know each other once again, and feelings grow once again. Or would it be a case of feelings never having truly disappeared and being truly a case of ‘The One That Got Away’ and the main characters never truly got over the heartbreak?

I am always intrigued by romances with second chances, but especially in this book, we also see that even thinking about a successful ending this second time, the air needs to be cleared, the misunderstandings and the fears and doubts need to communicated. The issues and questions in a relationship, or potential relationship, need to be out in the air, there needs to be clear communication and not let things divert in a bad direction.

It needs to be said that there is one force of nature in this book, being Cal’s daughter. Bonnie is not only a delight, but truly a force to be reckoned with. She has this genuine curiosity, genuine acceptance but also the genuine stubbornness that fits perfectly with her age. She for sure adds an extra little something special to this book!

I absolutely loved reading this book, as it shows us that sometimes a fresh start, somewhere new, can bring something old yet something new back into your life. And with age comes wisdom and clarity, and a hope that a second time around, things can be done differently. Yet communication and openness still is a requirement to make it all work.

This was a wonderful, hopeful story about the power of love, how the right love, a strong love, will always finds its way back to the right people.