It’s a real pleasure today to be helping launch the blog tour for Confetti Over Bluebell Cliff by Della Galton, and to share my publication day review: published today by Boldwood Books, it’s now available for kindle (free via Kindle Unlimited), in paperback and as an audiobook. My thanks to Rachel at Rachel’s Random Resources for the tour invitation and support, and to the publishers for my advance reading e-copy (provided via netgalley).
I’ve loved every single book in Della’s Bluebell Cliff Hotel series – in fact, I’ve been so taken with her lovely locations that I’ve even booked a September holiday near Corfe Castle (although I know I’ll search in vain for the hotel itself!). The first in the series, Sunshine Over Bluebell Cliff (you’ll find my review here), was just gorgeous – and I enjoyed the second, Moonlight Over Studland Bay, every bit as much (you’ll find my review of that one here). And then came Shooting Stars Over Bluebell Cliff, perhaps my favourite of them all so far – you’ll find my review of that one here. And then, Sunrise Over Pebble Bay (you’ll find my review here) – and that’s the book where we were introduced to Olivia, whose impending wedding is the reason for that confetti…
Art dealer Ruby Lambert is on a mission to lose her baby weight ahead of her sister’s Olivia’s wedding in 6 months’ time. To add fuel the fire, Ruby has also been ‘honoured’ with the unenviable task of being Head Bridesmaid. So, determined not to let Olivia down, she signs up to a swanky new diet & fitness club, The Bluebell Booty Busters.
Uncertain of what to expect Ruby meets Harry Small, a wealthy local businessman who ‘joins’ Booty Busters, after pressure from his wife, who’s worried about his health and growing waistline.
Ruby and Harry soon team up as diet buddies, supporting each other through their dieting crisis’s. But something seems amiss at Booty Busters when they both discover that if it looks too good to be true; it probably is….
Will Ruby and Harry ever reach their targets? And will Ruby do her sister proud and be the Belle of the Ball?
As her sister Olivia’s wedding approaches, Ruby really doesn’t want to be “the fat bridesmaid” – she’s let herself go a little after the birth of baby Simon (and perhaps eaten too many pastries for breakfast) and really wants to do something about it. So she eagerly signs up for gold membership of the new diet club at the Bluebell Hotel – meals delivered, and including exercise classes – run jointly by social media star Saskia and chef Mr B.
Harry (the only male in the group) has his own reasons for joining – his wife has threatened to leave him unless he loses some of the pounds he’s piled on. The story follows their progress, as they become friends and support each other – and charts both Ruby’s increase in self-confidence and relationship with her family, and Harry’s issues with his marriage (and his wife really is quite a piece of work…). But it also follows the ups and downs of the diet club itself – including the pranks that Mr B is famous for (along with his uncanny ability to swerve any played on him).
Both Harry and Ruby are wonderful characters. Ruby’s focus is now on being a mother rather than her high-powered art dealing career, and her confidence has been rather dented – and it was good to see it returning as the pounds fall away, supported by her lovely family. Harry’s personal problems only multiply – his wife is rather more toxic than he ever imagined, and his situation isn’t one he can control as well as he has his successful business life. The story is told from both their points of view, and the growing relationship between them was one I really enjoyed.
And then there’s the humour – Mr B’s bluster is familiar from the earlier books (although if this is your first, you’ll soon pick up on the theme…), and there are plenty of laugh-out-loud moments as others attempt to get even. But although the laughter and lightness is ever present, there’s plenty of space for issues too – Ruby finding her way, the controlling behaviour in Harry’s marriage, and a continuation of the fertility issues for sister Olivia and husband-to-be Phil. The whole book is really nicely balanced – it’s light, but with enough shadows to keep it interesting and involving. And it is, of course, a romance too – a necessarily slow-burn one, but entirely satisfying and believable.
There’s a real warmth about the author’s writing that I always thoroughly enjoy, along with an ability to create characters you take to your heart and involve you in their lives. This really was a lovely read – and one I’d thoroughly recommend.
About the author
Della Galton is the author of 15 books, including Ice and a Slice. She writes short stories, teaches writing groups and is Agony Aunt for Writers Forum Magazine. She lives in Dorset. Della launched her new fiction series set around The Bluebell Cliff Hotel with Boldwood in April 2020.
Find out more about Della Galton, her books, speaking engagements & workshops, on her website: you’ll also find her on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Bookbub, and you can sign up for her newsletter here.
Thank you, Anne. You always make my day. Much appreciated. xxx
Your lovely books brighten my days too, Della – the review was a pleasure xxx