Published By: Boldwood
Pages: 376
Released On: 27/07/2026
Leaving behind everything she thought she knew, Grace arrives at Hazelwick Farm with her teenage daughter, Maddie, and her mother, Frances, ready to build a new life together.
Grace has dreamt of fresh air, open skies and days filled with taking care of the animals while building a family business together. But starting over isn’t as simple as she hoped.
Maddie has barely spoken to her since the divorce from her father and Grace doesn’t know how to fix what she doesn’t fully understand. Between strained silences at home, and the demands of getting the farm ready to open for business, Grace begins to wonder if she’s made a mistake.
Yet life at Hazelwick Farm has its surprises. Grace keeps crossing paths with handsome tenant, Caleb, whether she means to or not. Could this unexpected connection be the start of something she never saw coming?
*****
Thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood for the advanced copy of this title in return for an honest review.
I have read 18 of Jessica’s books so far and each one is as delightful as the previous one. I think this is book one of a new series which is always reason for celebration.
A book with 51 chapters means they’re all a good, short length, but not too short.
Within teh first couple of pages I disliked some characters. But I think that might have been the intention. Which is a surprise as in her previous books, whilst some characters are nicer than others, there is rarely anyone I dislike that much. Happily the main target of my wrath – Grace’s former boss – is a bit character so I didn’t have to put up with him for long.
I did like Grace, I thought she was great. She felt very real, very human, and I felt for her, dealing with so much. I also enjoyed this sort of sandwich generation relationships with her daughter and her mum. That felt very relateable.
I found her daughter Maddie a bit grating, particularly at the start. But that’s less about her being a bad character (which she isn’t) and more to do with the fact that I think all youths are loud and messy and loud and loud, so I already had a bit of an issue with her. But this fractured relationship she had with her mum was so real and I think a lot of readers will relate to.
I didn’t really gel with this one overall though which is a surprise. Let me clarify – I still loved it. I love Jessica’s writing, her storytelling, the characters, the sentiment behind it all was lovely. But there was just something at the back of my mind that meant I couldn’t focus on it. Maybe it was because I personally couldn’t relate to the characters or the story, I don’t know, it’s hard to pinpoint one specific thing. But if I had to dig really deep into it I might put it down to there being a lot going on. I love books with multiple plotlines so that’s not a big issue, but we’ve got divorce, house moves, romance, job losses, breakups, teenage angst, bereavement – there’s a lot to keep on top and it felt a bit forced at times and a bit unrealistic, which is fine in say a fantasy novel, but not a contemporary romance I don’t think.
I can’t deny it is a feel good, happy, uplifting, joyful, loving gem of a book. She is a go-to author for those type of books. Perfect for reading on a sun lounger with a glass of cold white wine. But as a winter gremlin, I must say my heart lies with her Christmas novels.
I hate the fact that I’ve put a negative comment in a review for a Jessica Redland book because I absolutely love her and all her books have been first-class so I apologise to Jessica for that. She is still one of my absolutely favourite authors.
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