Book Review: Coming Home To Puddleduck Farm by Della Galton
I am pleased to be welcoming Della Galton to Novel Kicks today. She’s here with the blog tour for her novel, Coming Home to Puddleduck Farm
When your heart’s broken, all roads lead home…
London City Vet, Phoebe Dashwood, finds her partner Hugh and their boss in a passionate clinch beneath the mistletoe at their works Christmas party.
Heartbroken, she bolts to the New Forest, her childhood home to regroup and soul search.
Being home gives Phoebe the chance to reconnect with friends and family and especially with her fiercely independent gran, widower Maggie Crowther, owner of Puddleduck Farm, and makeshift animal shelter New Forest Neddies.
Deciding not to return to London, Phoebe hunts for work locally, hoping she can also help Maggie, who’s clearly swamped and not coping. But will Maggie accept Phoebe’s help?
Her quest is hampered by stubborn grandmothers, meddling mums, an attractive childhood friend, a real-life Lord, a remorseful ex, and a best friend who’s determined to play matchmaker.
Can Phoebe find happiness professionally and personally in the place she calls home, surrounded by those she loves or does fate have other plans for Phoebe?
*****
Coming Home to Puddleduck Farm is the first in a brand new series from author Della Galton.
After seeing the man she loves kissing their boss at the Christmas party, Phoebe retreats from London to her childhood home in the New Forest.
Can Phoebe, who feels so lost, find herself again in the place where she grew up?
From the beginning, this book had such a warm, inviting feel to it that I immediately fell into Phoebe and Sam’s story. I wanted to know what happened. I wanted them to be ok.
Phoebe is, despite everything, a strong woman. She leaves London and, following advice from her grandmother, decides not to go back to her life in the city and that takes bravery, even if she didn’t feel like it was. I liked her very much.
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Book Review: Meet Me on Platform 3 by Zara Stoneley
I’m very happy to be welcoming Zara Stoneley back to Novel Kicks. She’s here with the blog tour for her novel, Meet Me on Platform 3.
Two people. One journey…
Millie loves her city life, her city friends and writing her true(ish) confessions column – but she’s starting to wonder if the grass really is greener on the other side, or if her heart really belongs back in Northumberland, with her mum who is struggling after the death of Millie’s dad.
Joe is happy doing what he does, writing games. He could do it anywhere, but since leaving home he’s lived believing that looking back means you’ve failed, and life is about taking chances and seeing the world.
So when the two meet up surely it can never work, their lives are moving in opposite directions. On different tracks…
*****
Millie loves her job and living in London. When she bumps into her perfect man on Platform 3, she finds she has a crush and a subject for her column. When fate throws them together, have they really found the one or will they end up taking different tracks?
I have really loved previous novels from Zara Stoneley so I was excited to get going on this novel as I really liked the premise.
The style of writing is almost conversational as it’s told from the point of view of both Mille and Joe. I like these duel narratives as it really gives you an insight into the mind of both characters.
by A Moment With… Liz Taylorson (and Harry Brand.)
I am very happy to be welcoming Liz Taylorson to Novel Kicks. She’s here with the blog tour for her novel, Summer Showers at Elder Fell Farm.
A simple holiday just got complicated …
Single mum Amy has been struggling since her mother’s death and now her son, Harry, has been accused of bullying schoolmate Oliver — giving Amy’s dictatorial ex-husband yet another reason to criticise her parenting.
All Amy wants is the chance to spend time with her son. Where better to escape all her troubles than camping at the remote but beautiful Lake District farm where she spent idyllic summers with her mother when she was a little girl?
Her tranquil escape seems doomed when Oliver, and his widowed dad, Matt, turn up on the neighbouring pitch — but at Elder Fell Farm, unlikely friendships can be forged. Are Matt and Amy ready to fall in love again? And will their boys bring them together – or drive them apart?
*****
To celebrate the release of Summer Showers at Elder Fell Farm, Harry, the heroine’s son, having been asked to write a book review for school, has written about this novel. Over to you, Harry.
My Book Review of ‘Summer Showers at Elder Fell Farm’
By Harry Brand, aged 8 and 2 months.
I chose this book to write about because Summer Showers at Elder Fell Farm is all about me and my best friend, Oliver and what happened when we went on our summer holidays. Okay, it’s a bit about my mam, Amy, and Ollie’s dad, Matt, because they were there too, but all they did was, like, snogging and stuff which is gross, so mainly I’m going to write about the other things in the book.
My favourite character in the book is Harry, aka me! He does lots of cool stuff in the book, he finds a den and plays in the beck quite a lot with his best friend Oliver, but he isn’t allowed to go skinny dipping, which is the same thing as swimming in the nuddy, which means with NO CLOTHES ON. But Mam wouldn’t let me … I mean, him. The boys also make up an awesome game called ‘bonky, bonky’ and an air bed got burst, but it definitely wasn’t Harry that burst it, honestly.
by Book Review: The Little Theatre on Halfpenny Lane by Clodagh Murphy
It is my pleasure to welcome Clodagh Murphy to Novel Kicks. She’s here with the blog tour for her novel, The Little Theatre on Halfpenny Lane.
Aoife and her sisters know exactly what to do when they inherit their Great-aunt Detta’s theatre on Halfpenny Lane:
- Restore the dilapidated building to its former glory.
- Perform together on its stage to packed houses and rapturous applause.
- Live happily ever after.
But they didn’t count on Detta leaving a share in the theatre to her godson, Jonathan. Now they’ll have to persuade him to buy into their vision of stardust and magic – or find the money to buy him out.
As they fight to save the theatre, Aoife also battles her growing feelings for Jonathan. Because she can’t let herself fall for the man who’s about to bring the curtain down on their dreams.
*****
Aoife, Mimi and Sive have always had the impression that they’d inherit their Great-Aunt Detta’s theatre on Halfpenny Lane. However, they had not counted on Jonathan, Detta’s Godson inheriting a share.
Now, in order to save their beloved theatre and restore it to its former glory, they either have to convince Jonathan to remain a willing investor or buy him out.
Can they save their theatre or will they lose their dream?
This book was my introduction to Clodagh Murphy and I was excited to be invited onto the blog tour for the Little Theatre on Halfpenny Lane.
I read this novel in one sitting. I couldn’t stop reading. I instantly fell in love with these characters and the setting. I could picture The Halfpenny Theatre and the charm it holds. I could see the stage, the rows of chairs and the overall atmosphere. I wanted it saved.
The plot moves well and Clodagh Murphy’s writing style makes it easy to fall into this novel and get invested in the story. Will they or won’t they save the theatre?
by Book Review: The Split by Amanda Brookfield
I am pleased to be welcoming Amanda Brookfield to Novel Kicks. She’s here with the blog tour for her novel, The Split.
Two decades on from a passionate courtship and marriage, Lucas and Esther are getting divorced.
For Esther, it’s proving hard not to feel bitter watching Lucas enjoying his successful career, not to mention the attentions of his gorgeous, intelligent, and predictably younger lover. She meanwhile is struggling to forge a new life for herself, navigating the pitfalls of modern dating, while trying not to despair at the cost of living as a single woman of a certain age.
Then Lucas faces a shattering accusation at the same time as their children Dylan and Lily, start to implode. When Dylan runs away, and as his father fights to save his reputation, Lucas and Esther find themselves back in each other’s lives, whether they like it or not.
Has too much water passed under the bridge, or will long-forgotten loyalties and feelings bring the family back together, just when they need each other the most?
*****
After a twenty year marriage, Esther and Lucas are divorced. They, and the two children they share, now have to adjust to the new normal.
Esther is finding it difficult to witness her ex-husband’s new life. With a great job and a fiancée, he’s flying high. She knows that she has to find her new place in the world.
However, when Lucas’s life is derailed and their son, Dylan runs away, Lucas and Esther have to communicate, whether they want to or not.
Having previously not read any of Amanda Brookfield’s previous books, I didn’t know what type of novel this was going to be.
The Spilt is a slow burner and it did take me a while to get into it. To begin with, I wasn’t sure I was going to like it. I was very pleased I persevered. What I found was that this was a very interesting and detailed look into relationships between ordinary people. There are many twists and turns. Sometimes I loved the characters, other times I disliked their behaviour but as I progressed through the book, I became invested in them. Oh, and I want to adopt the cat.
by Book Club
