Make Do and Mend a Broken Heart by Katey Lovell #Review #MakeDoAndMend @QuercusBooks

What a delight to be joining in the Blog Blast for Katy Lovell's novel, Make Do and Mend a Broken Heart. 

When you know how, you can make anything from scratch, including a new life after love...
 
When Leanne and Richard bought a dilapidated old seaside cottage to renovate together as their forever home, their future was full of hope and promise.
But heartbreak was just around the corner: fast forward a few months and Richard is gone. With his death, Leanne finds herself stony broke, faced with an uninhabitable home and lacking even the basic skills to do it up herself.

With the help of the friendly woman who runs the library and the reluctant assistance of the man who works in the local hardware shop, the cottage is lovingly restored. But broken hearts aren't so easy to fix... are they?

My Thoughts

This could have potentially been a sad sort of a tale but it wasn't. It was always uplifting and hopeful and the theme of pushing on from heartbreak was always there. I loved the setting by the sea. Naturally, Leanne's cottage always was centre stage and the theme of making do and getting pleasure from making things for it was a lovely touch. As she puts her broken home back together, you see the parallel with her own life.

    There are plenty of secondary characters to add interest and to keep the story interesting and the slow burn romance seemed just right. Of course, I loved Milo- who wouldn't? As you see Leanne begin to deal with grief and loss, you see her strength of character. One of her nice qualities is how she herself doesn't really give herself credit for what she can do and how the villagers see her. With all her little flaws, she comes over as a believable character who you are willing to succeed. 

In short: Second chances and moving on.  

About the Author

Katey Lovell's feel-good novels are about people overcoming everyday challenges with the support of their friends, family and local community. She has also penned a series of coffee-break romances and a hot romance novella for Tirgearr's City Nights series.

Originally from South Wales, Katey now lives in Sheffield with her husband, son and friendly moggie Clarence. When she's not writing she'll most likely be found watching musicals, enjoying live music or reading anything and everything she can lay her hands on.

Make Do and Mend a Broken Heart will be published by Quercus in January 2020. 

You can follow Katey here: Twitter 

Book links: Amazon UK 

Thanks to Katey Lovell, and Katya Ellis of Quercus Books for a copy of the book and a place on the event.

Check out the rest of the event!