I’m delighted today to be helping launch the blog tour and sharing my publication day review of Snowflakes Over Primrose Woods by Jill Steeples. The second book in the Primrose Woods series, it’s published today (4th October) by Boldwood Books, and is now available as an e-book (free via Kindle Unlimited), in paperback, and as an audiobook. Many thanks to Rachel at Rachel’s Random Resources for the invitation and support, and to the publishers for my advance reading e-copy (provided via netgalley).
Yes, second in a series I haven’t read before – and although I’ve sometimes found that a difficult experience, Rachel assured me it could happily be read as a standalone (and she was right!). Although I haven’t read anything by the author before (and I can see I’ve missed quite a few…) I do remember really liking the look of the first in the series, Starting Over at Primrose Woods, which came out last February – but the timing just wasn’t right for me to read and review. But I thought this one looked right up my street – and that wasn’t only because it has a gorgeous Christmassy cover, and you’ll know I often find that irresistible…
Winter has arrived in Primrose Woods bringing with it new loves, new adventures and warm hugs on cold days.
Abbey Carter, her boyfriend Sam and their trusty canine companion Lady, relish living in the picturesque village of Wishwell at the edge of their beloved Primrose Woods. The woods and the country park are full of activity as the festive season approaches.
Lizzie Baker is flat out at the Treetops café, serving all sorts of winter warmers, festive goodies and lashings of hot chocolate. And when her daughter and grandchildren arrive to stay, the run up to Christmas is set to be even more magical than she had expected.
Rhianna West has finally found the perfect man to fall in love with – if only Luke wasn’t moving away in the New Year.
As the snow falls on Primrose Woods, and the village of Wishwell sparkles with Christmas lights, could this be the year that every wish comes true for the three friends?
Snowflakes Over Primrose Woods is the perfect feel-good love story to snuggle up with this winter. Just right for fans of Cathy Bramley, Heidi Swain and Julie Houston.
Ok, I really think I’m now ready to break out the tinsel and sparkly lights and welcome the approach of the festive season – if there was a scale of Christmasiness for books, I think this one really would have to be a ten. But it’s also a totally gorgeous story, quite beautifully told, with characters I entirely took to my heart.
Lizzie’s very happy in her new relationship with Bill, and enjoys the bustle of her job at Treetops Cafe as it gets ever busier while everyone picks up their Christmas trees at Primrose Woods. She thought she might really miss her daughter and her young family this Christmas, and has invited her friends to share the day – so it’s a lovely surprise when they turn up on her doorstep, back to stay from their home in Australia. Abbey and Sam are very happy together – she loves everything about Christmas, and is so looking forward to sharing it with the man she loves. While Sam returns from his outdoors job every day freshly smelling of wood and pine cones (my goodness, he’s gorgeous!), she manages a care home – the residents there are getting excited about the season and all the activities she’s laying on too, but she’s a little worried about the change in the home’s ownership and the changes it might bring. And then there’s Rhi, home from her travels, hoping to rekindle her relationship with Luke – she’s missed him tremendously and knows she made a big mistake by walking away – but is devastated when she finds he’s found a new job and plans to move away in the New Year.
This is just the loveliest multi-generational story, filled with romance and with a focus on family – there are some tensions and a little light conflict, but I felt in particularly safe hands as the different threads were developed, and really hoped that everyone would have their happy ending. The setting is wonderful – I’d love to get my boots on and walk with friends in Primrose Woods, rounding it all off with a hot chocolate and a spicy cake in the cafe – and even more so when the snow falls (there’s one little girl particularly delighted by that) and everyone’s Christmas plans are changed a little. All the characters are very real people, perfectly drawn – even the minor ones (I had a particularly soft spot for Bill – and loved Stella, at the home, keen to follow every twist and turn of Abbey’s romance) – and I really felt part of their lives and totally invested as things sometimes didn’t go quite the way they might have hoped for or expected. And the whole book really is quite gloriously Christmassy (just in case I haven’t mentioned that enough already…) and really glows with warmth, a real hug in a book – it totally captures the excitement and heightened emotions of the season, wrapping everything up in tinsel and lights.
This is the second book in a series – I’m really sorry I missed the first, I would have liked to have met the characters earlier, but the whole book read perfectly as a standalone. And I’m already rather looking forward to following everyone into the next book – I’m sure Primrose Woods will be equally beautiful in the sunshine. A really lovely read – and definitely recommended by me.
About the author
Jill Steeples is the author of many successful women’s fiction titles – most recently the Dog and Duck series – all set in the close communities of picturesque English villages. She lives in Bedfordshire.
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