4.5*
After a short but haunting prologue we meet Marie Johnson, chef at the The Smugglers in Studland Bay, Dorset. She and Stephen, her estranged husband, own the pub, which is run with the help of Baz in the kitchen and their son, Jude. Marie suffers from debilitating migraines and, although she loves her job, is feeling increasingly trapped in a situation she feels she has no control over. The relationship with her husband has deteriorated beyond repair. He controls the finances and bills are piling up while Stephen uses the money for his own project. The only light in her life is Jude, a talented artist who won’t be around to help much longer.

With the 60th anniversary commemoration of the D-Day landings approaching and rehearsals in full swing, Marie is working harder than ever. She escapes to walk the cliffs and spend time at her beach hut whenever possible, which is when she meets Corbin, a quiet and polite American soldier.

Several people feature in Marie’s journey and precipitate change as she struggles to find a way forward—Paxton, another American serviceman based nearby, D-day veteran George and his son Mark—despite misunderstandings and relationship issues. All the characters are flawed or affected by circumstances in one way or another and all are well drawn. It takes Marie a long time to realise it’s up to her to get her life back on track. No-one but herself is holding her back.

Jane Cable has crafted a story full of emotions, from despair and hopelessness through to renewed hope and love. Throughout it all Marie’s love for Jude is a constant and she’s determined he won’t become shackled to The Smugglers. The beautiful, vividly described setting also plays an important part, with the long sandy stretch of Studland Bay, dunes and cliff path to the impressive Old Harry rock formations.

A story with depth incorporating complex characters, a past and present connection, drama, history, romance and a touch of the paranormal. Sensitive issues were explored sympathetically including the terrible and lasting effects of war, and above all showing the necessity for, and happiness that can be brought by, friends and family.

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Enjoyable read. Good storyline and likeable characters.

I noticed with Jane Cable's previous novel that she has a way with descriptions. Setting this book in Dorset, she did a beautiful job describing the area and creating the perfect atmosphere for a book that is part romance, part history and part--everything else. I wanted to be on that beach admiring Old Harry or in the pub awaiting a drink and a sandwich as I read this.

If you enjoy immersing yourself in emotional novels that are well-paced and have a lot to do with the study of a person's life, this one will make you feel right at home. This is not a fast paced book, but it isn't slow or boring either. Marie is a complex character with many different layers that are revealed throughout this novel and even without the addition of great secondary characters, she is enough to make you want to keep reading.

Jude became my favourite character in this novel early on, but there are many that are interesting and will keep you turning pages, wanting to know more about them. This book could have been based on any one of us and it is this feeling of reality and of being able to identify with situations and internal struggles of the characters that makes this such a heart-wrenching book.

I liked the different paths this novel took to get to an ending that is subjective to the beliefs of the reader. Jane Cable gave us enough information to appreciate things that were happening in the story, but not so much that we feel like we can't use our imaginations just a little as well. I think everyone will walk away from this book with a little bit different opinion on what was really going on.

This is an emotional book, with themes of new love, loss and forgiveness included in the story. If you like literary novels, this would be a good one to choose.

This review is based on a complementary copy from the publisher, Provided through Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

Marie Johnson cuts rather a solitary figure and is often to be found walking the headland, near to her home, in Studland Bay. Often lost in her own thoughts, Marie has much to consider, not just about her life and destructive marriage, but also about what she wants for herself and her son, Jude. And as she watches the preparations take place on the beach below for the sixtieth anniversary of a D-Day exercise, Marie gets caught up in the excitement of the commemoration, and also in the history of what happened sixty years ago during World War Two.

As always, this clever author gets right into the emotional heart of a story which looks at all the complexities of living life both in the here and now, and also of the repercussions of the past, which, at times, threatens to overshadow the future. The story is beautifully atmospheric, with lots of enticing threads and thought-provoking layers. I enjoyed seeing how the story played out in the wider context, and of how Marie’s rather lonely character developed and changed as the story progressed. Setting Another You with the stunning Studland Bay as its backdrop allows the author to give full rein to her descriptive talents. It is obvious that a great deal of historical research has been done in order to give the WW2 element such an authentic feel, and as the story progresses both time and place really start to come alive in the imagination.

This is now the third book I have had the pleasure to read by this talented author and I can say that I have enjoyed them all immensely. Jane Cable writes with such passion and love for her subject that each story is a real joy to read.

Jane Cable’s “Another You” has much to recommend it.
A contemporary romantic novel, with a mysterious twist, it is set in a beautiful part of England, mainly focusing on the area around Studland Bay in Dorset. I loved the author’s descriptions of this setting, having visited the region many times myself.
Against this backdrop, the story of Marie and her turbulent relationships unfolds. Marie and her estranged husband, Stephen own and run a pub, with the help of their son, Jude, and two other employees. To escape the arguments with Stephen, Marie often walks along the cliff tops and this is when she meets an attractive American named Corbin. He is a soldier and she assumes he is staying in the area for a commemoration and re-enactment event concerning the Second World War.
After a while, Corbin seems to disappear from the area, but a different American soldier appears on the scene. Marie finds Paxton very attractive and they embark on an affair. This is only one strand of this novel, which also looks at the important decisions that Jude has to make about the direction he wants his life to take.
There is much more to the plot than I’ve written about here, but to reveal more would spoil the book for future readers.
I enjoy Jane Cable’s writing very much. There is a flow to her work which makes it such a pleasure to read. In “Another You” and her previous novels, she shows such a talent for setting the scene, not by lengthy description, but using well-chosen words. There is also the element of “other-worldly” mystery that I enjoy immensely. I also like the realistic depiction of the characters and their relationships – Marie’s stressful life with an unpleasant estranged husband and a son, about to take steps into the unknown, were authentic and rang true for me.
All in all, a very good, satisfying read! Thank you to Netgalley for providing the text, in return for m honest review.

When I reviewed The Faerie Tree, I mentioned the author’s perfect handling of the emotional content – and this time, her touch is even more assured. Marie’s toxic relationship with her husband really hurts you as you read – every barbed comment, every moment he shows her total disrespect, every spiteful put down, every sign that the love has long gone. By contrast, her relationship with artist son Jude makes your heart glow – and when things between them go a little wrong after a moment of carelessness, that hurts too. Marie is eminently likeable, even if she (just sometimes) lacks a bit of insight into how others feel – and when she meets Paxton, at first you really hope it might turn into something rather more than a simple fling. But none of the relationships in this book progress smoothly – Paxton has his depths and issues, then there’s the elusiveness of the lovely Corbin, and the misunderstandings behind many of her interactions with Mark. When life’s progress is so dreadfully rocky, it’s no surprise that Marie suffers with crippling migraines – or that the beach hut becomes a welcome refuge.

There was nothing I didn’t like about this book. The setting is vividly drawn – the landscape of Studland Bay (where I could smell the bacon frying in the beach hut, and picture the dunes and vertiginous cliffs…) and the pub itself, a home, a business and something of a prison. I loved the background story of the D-Day exercise – and the touch of magic surrounding it – and was enchanted by the links with the vanishing seahorses, and the mystery around the necklace.

It’s an excellent story, so well told – there’s romance and high drama, and an emotional complexity that makes it a really satisfying read. Every character, no matter how peripheral to the story, is perfectly drawn – and all the dialogue totally authentic and natural. And I even enjoyed the food – the challenges of running a busy pub kitchen, the putting together of a menu, the preparing of the meals, the joy and the bone-crushing tedium. A really superb read… and I really must mention too the quite beautiful cover, perfectly capturing the story.

This is a strange one, its written well but I didn't find all the ends were tired up to a satisfactory conclusion. It left me thinking, no that couldn't have happened and with all mysteries you have to feel a story is credible. This book didn't leave me with that feeling. I also found the main character Marie very unendearing, to the point where I don't think she would have had the characters falling over themselves to help her. I really wanted to like the book but I'm afraid it didn't leave me wanting more from the author.

Another You is a contemporary romantic mystery set in Dorset, England.

Marie Johnson is a chef at The Smugglers pub in Studland Bay. She runs the business with her estranged husband. Their son Jude works the bar in between studying art.

It has been sixty years since the D-Day landing and the local area is taking part in the celebrations. Studland had been used as a practice ground for many of the original D-Day invasion plans. Exercise Smash, tanks designed to float through water had been trialed off the coast.

Marie and her husband argue all the time and the stress causes Marie severe migraines. When walking along the coast Marie meets Corbin an American she assumes is here for the D-Day reenactments.

Another American Paxton from the local Bovington camp offers Marie an escape from her worries and they have a fling. Ex-British soldier George is also over on Studland reliving some of his war years with his son Mark. They also befriend Marie and offer support and advice with her business decisions.

All the while Marie's thought return to the mysterious Corbin and his old world mannerisms and speech.

A ghostly mystery and a romantic triangle for an older women with plenty of domestic turmoil to muddy the waters. I know Studland and Swanage so the setting was a delight to read, it's great when you can nod your head and think - yes I know where that is, I've been there, it helps you picture the setting.

I was initially interested to read this book because I live in Dorset and know the area around Studland very well. The descriptions of Studland and Old Harry rocks are excellent and I found it interesting the way the details of the original D Day landing exercises were interwoven with present day preparations for the 60 year celebrations.

The main character Marie is a rather depressing soul who runs the Smugglers pub with her estranged husband Stephen and son Jude. She suffers frequent migraines presumably brought on by the stressful situation in which she finds herself. She takes herself off for long walks on the clifftops where she meets the elusive Corbin, Paxton and Mark who are the other three men to feature in her life.

An interesting tale of a fairly normal life with some unusual twists but I found it difficult to like Marie as she seemed rather a weak willed person.

Thank you for Netgalley for providing a review copy.

Jane Cable writes wonderfully imaginative romantic fiction set in great locations which she describes so beautifully you feel you’re there.
Another you is set in Dorset, a place I’ve never visited. As I was nearing the end of the book, I watched the first episode of Julia Bradbury’s new walking series on tv and on her first walk she visited every location mentioned in the book – it was great! I recognised the locations of Old Harry, The Dunes and even the military camp and tank museum which feature in this novel, as clearly as if I’d actually been there – and I had – transported by the pages of this lovely book.
The storyline centres around the narrator Marie’s life. She is a Chef in the pub business she owns with her partially estranged husband Stephen, who after a series of affairs, no longer lives there with her. Their Son Jude who is the light of Maries life lives there and works there too and her always angry and grumpy ex-husband still works there too putting undue stress on Maries life. No wonder she enjoys escaping to the beach hut she owns, and strolling along the dunes. Between stress induced migraines, hard work and long hours in the pub kitchen with cook Baz and argument after argument between her and her ex it’s not surprising that she is drawn to the enigmatic and gentle Corbin, an American soldier she meets on one of her walks but mystery surrounds him and he keeps disappearing when she most feels she needs him to talk to.
Dorset is preparing for a big re-enactment and celebrations of the D-day anniversary and the story is woven around this, as it brings a flurry of new men into Marie’s life and feeling as vulnerable as she does she embarks on a passionate and physical fling with one of them.
Apart from the mysterious old fashioned Corbin in her life, there comes Paxton, also an American soldier with striking physical similarities to Corbin, he is damaged goods, still reeling from ptsd caused by his recent posting in Iraq. Then there’s Elderly ex militarian George here for the celebrations and his amiable son Mark who has sworn off women after his wife treated him like dirt, devoted to his lovely dog Troy he sails around the coast in his yacht licking his wounds and Marie takes pity on his bachelor status, cooking him tasty meals to keep him going.
Meanwhile teenage son Jude is fighting his own inner battles, newly in love with a girl he is keeping Mum about he is the pawn between Marie and Stephen and often finds himself keeping the peace.
Almost every character in the book is flawed and damaged by circumstances, some almost beyond repair and we watch Maries struggle to find herself and work out what she wants from her own future as she begins to wonder if she is imagining things and going a little bit crazy herself.
There is a mystery surrounding a silver seahorse necklace and a frisson of spookiness that keeps you guessing throughout the book which builds to a tense climax and we wonder if Marie is on the route to self-destruct, fired by her own lack of confidence and low self esteem.
This is a delightful read, very real, romantic without being in any way soppy and with enough mystery and suspense to keep the most demanding reader hooked.

This is the third book of Jane's that I have read and what always strikes me about her writing is the almost mystical quality it has. Her way with words means that you are swept into the book immediately with the everyday minutia of life so wonderfully captured. I could imagine it all in my minds eye, the pub, the walks and the boat. Whilst there is always a little bit of a mystery to keep you guessing.

In this book Marie is the narrator and although she part owns a pub and is the chef there, her marital problems and little time to herself make for a woman who is having a tough time.

A series of men come into Marie's life, who bring their own problems with them. Except one of them may not be real - he could be a ghost? I really thought I had this all sorted out in my mind, but as the book progressed I began to doubt myself, what was real and what wasn't?

There is also her son Jude who brings another dimension to the story line with his art studies and love life.

I really enjoyed reading this book and although I've been to the area where the book is set, I also learnt a little more about the geography of it. I really wanted Marie to end up with one of the men - I'm not going to say which one, or if it happened - you will have to read it and discover for yourself.

I'm giving this book 4 out of 5 stars. My thanks go to Jane for letting me have a copy of her book for review.