It’s a delight today to be joining the blog tour for the latest book from the wonderful Sue Moorcroft, Over the Sea to Skye, and sharing my review. Published on 5th June by Avon Books, this is the third and final book in her The Skye Sisters trilogy, now available for kindle, in paperback and as an audiobook via Amazon in the UK and US – with the ebook also available on all major platforms, and the paperback also available to order from your favourite bookshop (or pick it up while doing your supermarket shop – it’ll also be available in Morrisons, Tesco and Sainsbury’s!). Or you might like to try to win a signed paperback copy? If so, you’ll find the link below my review. Thank you, as always, 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.
You’ll already know that I’m a tremendous fan of Sue’s writing, and have been for rather a long time now – and if you pop her name into my search bar you’ll find reviews of almost every book she’s ever written. Such well drawn characters, locations that come alive, contemporary themes to the beautifully told stories, and the perfect emotional touch – and she might not have tackled a series before, but the first two books in The Skye Sisters trilogy were everything I love about her writing, leaving me eager to read the third. If you missed Under a Summer Skye (you’ll find my review here) or A Skye Full of Stars (my review of that one’s here), don’t worry too much, each book picks up the story of a different sister and could be read as a standalone – it’d just be a shame to miss out on some of the links and character development, quite apart from the fact that they’re both lovely reads!
But let’s take a closer look at her latest…
One summer on a beautiful island could change everything…
Valentina Taylor’s life has been upended. With her marriage over, and unsure of what her future holds, she heads to the Isle of Skye for the summer with her young son, Barnaby.
But the journey there sets her on a new path, when she meets Xander Courage on the train – a charming American, running from problems of his own. After sparks fly, they go their separate ways. But on this small island, they’re never far from one another…
Skye offers Valentina the refuge she needs as she whiles away the long summer days at her beachside cottage, enjoying visits from her sisters, Thea and Ezzie. But when bad news from home throws her Scottish idyll into turmoil, Valentina finds herself pulled away from the place – and people – that she loves.
Valentina knows she must confront her heart’s desires – but can she let go of the past and embrace the future she deserves?
Lose yourself in a heartfelt story of second chances, love, and self-discovery, set against the breathtaking backdrop of the Isle of Skye. Perfect for fans of Sarah Morgan and Karen Swan.
Valentina has been a bit of a background character in the first two books in this lovely series – the third sister (but also adopted, and knowing nothing about her birth family), living on the mainland with the husband neither of her sisters is too keen on and her young son Barnaby, but looking forward to owning a refurbished holiday cottage on the Isle of Skye and being able to spend more time with family. But she hadn’t expected to be travelling there for the summer with just Barnaby, her marriage to Gary emphatically over – and not only has he behaved particularly badly, but the relationship between them is much more difficult than it should be when they share a child.
On the train they meet an American tourist, Xander, travelling to Skye with his teenage nephew Mac – and, at the time, he’s rather preoccupied and distinctly grumpy having lost his wallet. But the two younger members of the party really hit it off, despite the age difference – and when they visit to deliver an apology for their unfortunate first meeting, Valentina finds that Xander doesn’t always wear a permanent frown. There’s actually a bit of a spark between them – but she’s not really ready to do anything about it, and he’s similarly wary. And just as their friendship’s becoming stronger, and there might be some possibilities after all, Valentina’s life is turned upside down – a situation that forces her to return home with an unexpected and distressing situation to deal with.
Something I really loved about this book was the family relationships – Valentina’s particularly special bond with young Barnaby, the joy and support she both draws on and gives her sisters, and Xander’s strong connections both with his nephew and his family back home. But they can cause some of the complications too – in one instance when family members interfere in Valentina’s already difficult life, another when her family history unexpectedly begins to catch up with her, and Xander certainly has more than his share of issues to disentangle.
The budding romance is really nicely handled, its progress seen from both their perspectives – although the prospect of a happy ending looks very unlikely at times when things don’t go quite as smoothly as they might, and the obstacles look insurmountable. But I know better than trying to tell the full story – the author does it so much better, and must say I was wholly engaged in the story and the emotional challenges for the individuals at its centre from the first page to the last.
It’s also the perfect ending to the series – we dip into the ongoing lives of sisters Ezzie and Thea, seeing how their lives have moved on, and quite perfectly rounding off their personal stories. The Skye setting is as gorgeous as ever – and it’s a beautifully told story, perhaps my favourite of the trilogy. But I’ve really enjoyed the whole series, and – much as I’ve always loved her standalone books – really hope it’s something the author will try again. Are the books already on your reading list? If not, I’d highly recommend you add them – I suspect you might just enjoy them as much as I have.
Giveaway
With thanks to Sue and Rachel, I’m delighted to offer one lucky reader the chance to win a signed copy of Over the Sea to Skye plus a bookmark and pen (open to UK readers only).
Here’s the rafflecopter for entry:
Terms and Conditions
UK entries welcome. The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.
About the author
Sue Moorcroft is a Sunday Times bestselling author and has reached the coveted #1 spot on Amazon Kindle UK as well as top 100 in the US, Canada, Germany and Italy. She writes two books a year for publishing giant HarperCollins and has won the Goldsboro Books Contemporary Romantic Novel of the Year Award, Readers’ Best Romantic Novel award, two HOLT medallions and the Katie Fforde Bursary. She’s the president of the Romantic Novelists’ Association, and her short stories, serials, columns, writing ‘how to’ and courses have appeared around the world.
For more information on Sue and her books, she has an excellent website, a Facebook author page, and you can follow her on Twitter and Instagram.
Dear Anne, thanks so much for your long-standing support! And, of course, for this lovely review. I’m so glad that you enjoyed Valentina’s story so much. She had to be patient until she got her book, but I loved utilising everything I already knew about her. Thanks again. xx
Wonderful review Anne. I’m reading it just now and thoroughly enjoying it.
Thanks Joanne – I really thoroughly enjoyed this one!