We are returning to France for another great summer read by Gillian Harvey . The Village Cafe in the Loire was published by Boldwood on July 12th. High-flyer Becky Thorne cannot believe what she’s being told. She doesn’t need to be signed off for burnout! Life has been a bit chaotic lately, that’s all. As if dealing with her enviable job and permanent meddling from her mother aren’t enough, she’s also inherited a café in the Loire from an estranged great-aunt, complete with sitting tenant who refuses to budge. But nobody stands in Becky’s way! Ignoring her best friend Amber’s advice, she decides to storm over to France and sort the tenant out. Then she can finally get the café sold and jump back on the career ladder. What she doesn’t count on is the tenant being Pascale, who is six feet of tall, dark, handsome and extremely grumpy about her plans for change. Not to mention the village and the secrets it holds about her past. Becky’s path to succes...
Love Lindisfarne by Kimberley Adams
Take a Christmas trip to magical
Northumberland and find love amongst the stars in this feel-good novel, which
will transport you to iconic Holy Island where dreams really can come true!
Dumped at the office Christmas party, Ellie is about to vent
her spleen on social media when a photo of a cute little dog advertising a
charity catches her eye. Her world suddenly changes dramatically when she is
offered a month’s stay in Northumberland to help look after rescue animals.
Ellie isn’t too sure where Northumberland is, but accepts, eager to start a new life away from London. Her destination is Lindisfarne, and her arrival on the small island in the North Sea is terrifying, fearing for her life on the causeway as the tide comes crashing in.
Ellie finds herself living in a hilltop castle, and far from the cats and dogs she expected she would be looking after, she is faced with all kinds of furry and feathery animals - and she doesn’t have a clue about any of them!
Welcomed to island life by the warm-hearted residents, she quickly embraces living in this special place, and from the moment she spots the mesmerising Zen with the gorgeous coffee bean eyes, her plans to stay single and mingle begin to fade fast.
Thanks to a severe storm, Lindisfarne is cut off from the
mainland, and the islanders work together to salvage the planned Christmas
events. Ellie is kept so busy that she hasn’t much time to think about her
future when her time on the island ends.
Will the universe give Ellie its blessing? Will she find her happy ever after on the enchanting island of Lindisfarne? If it’s in the stars, then it’s in the stars…
My Thoughts
The beautiful setting of Lindisfarne dominates the story as it does the lives of the community. The elements, the tides, the night sky, the harsh weather all lead the action and emphasise how the community must pull together and look out for each other. This is so different to the life Ellie has had in London. Apart from her close band of friends, the city seems to be a lonely place.
The central character of Ellie is a warm, honest and at times, funny addition to the story. There is plenty of humour in Ellie’s attempts to care for the animals but she emerges as a brave and determined figure. There is warmth in the reactions of the community and romance in the form of the gorgeous Zen. With a festive feel, this is an entertaining read full of warmth and wit.
In short: starting over and finding a community
About the Author
Kim might be new on the writing block, but she was first published as a teenager writing happy ever after stories for other teens! She progressed to women's magazines before life and work got in the way. Kim began writing again seriously a few years ago and during that relatively short time has won and been placed in several well-known writing competitions. Love Lindisfarne started off life being shortlisted by Penguin Michael Joseph which gave Kim the impetus to finish it, and Kim turned down the opportunity of traditional publishing because she wanted to keep the cover and content she had dreamed of since the book's concept!
Like buses that take forever then two come along at once, Kim will also be traditionally published this year too, with just one month between the books. Kim was a finalist in this year's Comedy Women in Print competition, and her prize was to see her work (this time based in Newcastle) in the Book of Witty Women to be published by Farrago in September.
You can follow Kim here: X (Twitter) | Instagram
Book links: Amazon UK | Amazon US
Thanks to Kimberley Adams, Shy Bairns Publishing and Rachel of Rachel's Random Resources for a copy of the book and a place on the tour.
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