We’re delighted to be sharing Elena’s thoughts about A Year at the French Farmhouse by Gillian Harvey.
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- ASIN : B0B5CY4RNG
- Publisher : Boldwood Books (29 Sept. 2022)
- Language : English
- File size : 4274 KB
After ten years of loyal service Lily Butterworth has been made redundant. Like any clever woman, she knows the cure to redundancy is a little too much wine and her best friend.
Only the next morning, Lily has more than a hangover . . . she has a whole new house – in France!
Seeing this as an opportunity instead of a disaster, she’s excited about finally moving to France, just as she and her husband always dreamed of. However, Lily is in for another surprise. Despite planning to move there for over 20 years, her husband never actually intended to go.
So begins a year in France, alone, renovating the gorgeous old farmhouse that is held together by wallpaper and wishes.
Will a year at the French farmhouse be just what Lily needs? Or could it be the previous owner, Frederique, that is the answer to Lily’s dreams?
Book Review
Lily’s dream has always been to live in France and own a house there in the country. When her son flies the nest and goes to uni this might just be the perfect time for her and husband Ben to realise the dream. One evening after a few too many drinks she does something completely irrational – buys a dilapidated stone house in rural France, on eBay, after never having seen it!
Full of remorse the following day the realisation soon hits that maybe this wasn’t Ben’s dream after all and that he was humouring her all along! She begins to wonder what would happen if she just went for it and what follows is a massive leap into the unknown in a different country and without her husband by her side.
A Year at the French Farmhouse is just wonderful and I was really attracted to the title and premise as it’s one of those things you can’t help but fantasise about!
I admired Lily’s confidence and gumption and enjoyed reading about her life in France and the brilliant people she meets along the way and the hilarious situations she has to face.
It’s a funny, warm and light hearted read with a lovely heroine who realises her life needn’t be over just because her role of mother/wife has changed.
A delightful read!
Gillian Harvey is a freelance journalist and the author of two well-reviewed women’s fiction novels published by Orion. She has lived in Limousin, France for the past twelve years, from where she derives the inspiration and settings for her books. Her first title for Boldwood, A Year at the French Farmhouse, will be published in September 2022.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gharveyauthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/GillPlusFive
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Bookbub profile: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/gillian-harvey
