I’m so delighted today to be helping launch the blog tour for Midsummer Magic at Midwynter Hall by Lottie Cardew, and sharing my review: independently published on 3rd July, this is the author’s third book set in Pebblestow, and is now available for kindle (just 99p, or free via Kindle Unlimited) and in paperback. My thanks to Rachel at Rachel’s Random Resources for the invitation and support – the e-copy I read was my own, pre-ordered via Amazon.
I’ve been reading the author’s books for quite some time now – over ten years in fact, and her writing as Valerie-Anne Baglietto always had a rather special touch of magic. I was so delighted when she reappeared as Lottie Cardew, and her first Pebblestow book, A Christmas Wish on a Carousel, was quite wonderful, filled with warmth and heart (and yes, just a touch of the author’s special magic – you’ll find my review here). The second, One Last Dream for December, was even better. One of my 2022 books of the year, and when I closed the last page I felt I was leaving special friends behind – although its ending was beautifully and perfectly uplifting and left me with a smile on my face and a warm feeling around my heart (you can read my full review again here). And now we have a third – let’s take a closer look…
An enchanting, standalone, modern rom-com inspired by Jane Austen’s Emma, about a matchmaking young woman whose heart may be in the right place… some of the time.
Emmeline – Em to her friends – has very little to vex her, except that she hasn’t left her beloved home, Midwynter Hall, in over two years.
But her isolation doesn’t stop her interfering in the lives of others, particularly when it comes to love. As a romance writer, Emmeline obviously knows what she’s doing, increasingly plotting real-life matches rather than fictional ones.
When best friend Polly gets mixed up with the wrong sort of man, Emmeline has no choice but to swoop to the rescue. And when old family friend Jordi seeks solace after women and work troubles, Emmeline has the perfect solution. You see, everything she’s written lately – pairing up lovelorn locals – has somehow (maybe magically) come true. So, if she pens a tale about Polly and Jordi despite their many protests, they’ll thank her eventually, once they’re blissfully happy together.
But no one is more surprised than Emmeline when she finds she wants to write herself into the story, especially if someone she cares about may get hurt in the process.
Because as it turns out, believing you’ve never been in love, doesn’t mean you’ve never (unknowingly) given your heart away…
Inspired by Jane Austen’s Emma – that was an A-level text for me, and I did worry a little that in the fifty-plus years that have elapsed I might not be able to pick up the references. But that didn’t matter one jot – this was the loveliest gentle read, and I really took its adorable and rather vulnerable heroine to my heart.
There was a particular resonance to Emmeline’s choice to live her life in isolation – her home with her father at Midwynter Hall is her place of safety, and I think “home” might just feel that way for many of us after those difficult times over the last few years. Until life became difficult for her, she was a published and successful romantic novelist – she still writes, but more as an escape, writing about people she knows, and perhaps (just perhaps!) finding that her writing influences the course of their lives. But she wouldn’t share that with anyone – certainly not with the on-line writing group run by family friend Jordi (they regularly tease and spar with each other at a distance…), or with her closest (only other real?) friend Polly who visits regularly and shares news of the outside world. When Jordi comes to live at the Hall’s lodge for a while, she sees the perfect opportunity for matchmaking – a couple she thinks are made for each other, and the magic of her writing might just make it happen. But things don’t work out quite that way – she finds that her friendship with Jordi might just be something rather more, and despite many misunderstandings and wrong turnings along the way, it’s time for Emmeline to write herself into her own story and start to live again.
This book does have a very different feel from the other two in the series – it’s a quiet story, gently told, driven by its wonderfully drawn characters. The pace is slow and steady (and that really isn’t a criticism in any way…), and I really enjoyed watching the characters slowly unfold – by the halfway mark, I knew exactly how I wanted the story to play out, and it didn’t disappoint in any way. The emotional touches are just perfect, with real depth of feeling – but there’s plenty of lightness and gentle humour too. The writing is particularly clever – although its very much a contemporary romantic comedy, there’s a definite Regency touch to Emmeline’s interactions and observations that I found absolutely charming. And the well-drawn setting is just wonderful – Midwynter Hall is close enough to Pebblestow to allow us to catch up with the lives of friends through Polly’s reports, but I loved the manicured gardens that bring Emmeline such solace, the neglected walled garden that offers the opportunity to open up her life again, and the maze for those important romantic moments.
I very much enjoyed this one – a wonderful cast of characters, a sympathetic heroine I found it easy to identify with, a story beautifully told, filled with warmth and joy, and an ending I found particularly hopeful and uplifting. And do read the author’s thank you at the end – it’s very touching, and will help you understand where this story came from. A really lovely read – and one I’d very much recommend to others.
About the author
Lottie Cardew writes uplifting, contemporary romcoms set around the picturesque village of Pebblestow, and is an advocate for diversity in fiction.
Regarded as the bossy one at Novelistas Ink, Lottie often subdues the other members if they misbehave (they don’t really) including the popular authors Trisha Ashley and Sophie Claire. She is a longstanding member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association, scooping their New Writer’s Award in her twenties under a different pen-name. More recently, Lottie also joined the Society of Authors where as an active participant in the ADCI group (Authors with Disabilities and Chronic Illnesses) she interviewed bestselling author Holly Smale in 2021 for the first ever Disability Issue of The Bookseller.
Lottie is diagnosed autistic with suspected ADHD. Her home in North Wales is overrun by husband, not-very-small children, and a ball of fluff masquerading as a Pomeranian, so Lottie frequently takes refuge at her desk.
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