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Second Chances at Hollyhock Farm by Georgina Troy #Review #HollyhockFarmBook2

  Welcome back to the blog to Georgina Troy for another in her Hollyhock Farm series. Second Chances at Hollyhock Farm was published by Boldwood Books on November 7th and takes us back to beautiful Jersey.   Festival season has come to Hollyhock Farm… Since his sister Lettie took over their parents' farm on the beautiful island of Jersey at the start of the year, Zac Torel's life has changed completely. Zac loves Hollyhock Farm, and he's determined to help Lettie succeed, but when their insurance company refuses to pay for the restoration of one of their barns in time for winter, the clock is ticking for the Torrels to raise the money themselves. The siblings decide to host a wellness festival, but with the summer already well underway, they've got their work cut out to get everything ready before the season ends. Lettie recruits the help of Melody, a yoga teacher from Edinburgh. New to the island, Melody is determined to shake things up and make a success o

Coming Home to Mistletoe Cottage by Celia Anderson #Review

 

As far as book reading is concerned, we are heading straight into festive season and here's a sparkly, Christmassy book to tempt you! Coming Home to Misteltoe Cottage by Celia Anderson was published by Harper Collins on October 27th. 


Could a sprinkling of magic save Christmas this year?

Amid the salt marshes and rolling fields of Periwinkle Bay, Magda Conway is enjoying her retirement in ivy-clad Mistletoe Cottage.

Yet with three weeks to go until Christmas, as the fairy lights twinkle and the trees go up around the village, her peace is disrupted when she’s left in sole charge of her two mischievous grandchildren.

Before long, she’s at her wit’s end – but high on a kitchen shelf lies her mother’s handwritten recipe book. And as she turns to it for advice, she finds more than just recipes between its tattered covers: there’s a pinch of magic too, and maybe even a sprinkling of love . . .

My Thoughts
This is such a refreshing look at familylife. During the story, you get to look back in the past to try to decipher the difference between how Magda lived and what she wanted for her life and also how real life has turned out for her. It does not take much to realise that the difference between how Magda's  life has turned out and the reality  is quite different. Magda strikes you as a most lonely person.
    This is a dynamic story with several layers between the different characters. I was made aware that the different generations had become  intertwined. I enjoyed how Magda's son had forged a relationship with her. For most of the story, you are unsure whether Magda is imagining the influence of her mother's recipes and the whole story is infused with a wonderful aura of love and homeliness. Can someome find love at 60? I'll leave you to decide on that but what I can say is that Magda can offer so much advice on real life and taking a chance. 
 
In short: Starting over

 
About the Author
 
Celia Anderson lives with her husband as far away from the sea as you can possibly get in mainland UK. She dreams of buying a cottage on the coast, which explains the regular appearances in her books of seaside places with wide, sandy beaches. Celia loves walking, reading, having large, bubbly baths, eating, and drinking wine. Over the years, she has found that all of these activities bar the first may be done simultaneously, although this can be messy.
 
You can follow Celia here:  Twitter  |  Instagram  |  Facebook
                                           |  Links  
Book links: Amazon UK
 
Thanks to Celia Anderson and Harper Collins for a copy of the book and a place on the tour.
 
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