I enjoyed this book, although found I kept getting the two main chracters mixed up at first - maybe it was because they had fairly common names - or maybe it was that i wasn't paying enough attention to the story!

I love books and therefore a story set around a newly forming bookstore was bound to interest me - I want to go there now and snuggle up in a chair and read!

I’ve had some wonderful debut releases this year, so I was hoping Jen Mouat would carry on with that trend, and I have to say I was not disappointed. Not one to throw around comparisons to other authors, Mouat’s writing and storytelling does carry some of the heart, tone and emotional impact that the earlier works from Maeve Bnichy brought me: and yet there is an original take on a familiar theme: going home, finding a new path, forgiveness and growth that just resonates through this story in all the best ways.

From detailed and well-developed characters that could be your neighbor, sister, friend or even nemesis, Mouat fills the story with ambience and life, bringing unexpected twists, situations and choices that draw the reader in, struggling and empathizing right along with the characters. Kate and Emily epitomize a friendship that is closer than sisters, where you not only gain strength from one another, but neither is afraid to speak out before (or after) a bad choice.

A summer is never long enough to solve every issue, but Mouat uses key moments, daring choices and several unexpected twists to push, pull and prod the characters in new directions, stretching their own expectations and challenging their comfort in doing things as they always have been done because it is comfortable and known. Sweetly affirming, the ease with which the story unfolds draws readers in, and following Kate as she quietly (or not so) moves to recapture the sense of family she felt in Emily’s home during that one summer will leave you believing that with enough desire, determination and love – you can go home again and make things much better than you ever imagined.

A wonderful debut offering that is full of emotion, engaging and redolent of the seaside, a quiet bookshop and family: family is forever and this book shows just how wonderful forever can be.

I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

Review first appeared at <a href=” http://wp.me/p3OmRo-9eE/”> <a> I am, Indeed </a>

Going back to the past is perhaps not always a good idea.

Kate returns to Wigtown, Scotland when her friend from childhood, Emily asks for help. Kate leaves everything behind of new life and goes back to Wigtown, to Bluebell Bank and Emily and her family as that is where she has always felt at home and loved.

But everything has changed.

Emily is very fragile and refuses to talk about the choices she has made and what led her to be back at Bluebell Bank caring for her grandmother, Lena.

Lena is changing by the day as dementia starts to take away the Lena, Kate knew who was able to bring all the family together.

Emily’s brothers, are scattered near and far and an undercurrent is running between them all.

This is not the place Kate thought it was going to be when she returned. Especially when she bumps into Luke, her first love.

This is a book which at first glance you think is going to be a light read, but it isn’t. Aside from dealing with deterioration and care of someone with dementia. We see how alcohol can have an overwhelming effect on family. How paths chosen when it comes to love are not necessarily the right ones and that secrets can lay buried, deep but are there to remind us of our guilt.

It has a strong storyline, but for me there was something missing, I just could not relate to the characters in any way. I was frustrated by them and the buildup to the history between Kate and Emily was rather a let down. The setting was magnificent and I was drawn to the place and the landscape but sadly not the story.

That does not mean this book is not for you – it could well be.

What a lovely and enjoyable read by Jen Mouat. Summer at Bluebell Bank had everything I love in a chick lit novel - romance, humour, books and friendship! This book had me hooked from the start and I enjoyed every minute of it.

I absolutely adored the sound of the bookshop, they made it sound so inviting and cosy! I wanted to go there even when Kate arrived and it wasn't looking its best! I found that the characters were all really lovely and flowed together really nicely - you wouldn't find any part of this novel disbelieving, it was just so enjoyable.

It really is a light hearted and easy read about love, family and friendship. Overall, a great read.

Thank you to Netgalley and to the publisher for a chance to read novel, which I have reviewed honestly.

I can hardly believe this is a debut novel, it is so beautifully written and such an encompassing read. From the very beginning you can tell it is polished to perfection and so easily slips under your skin.

Kate Vincent didn't have much of a family life growing up but when she moved to Edinburgh and became friends with Emily Cotton at school, that all changed. From then on she spent her holidays on the Solway coast with Emily and her brothers at their grandmother's home where she became anointed as one of the family
Now aged 30 and living in New York, Kate receives a message from Emily telling her she needs her and without hesitation she ditches her job, romance and life there and hops on a plane to race to the rescue. Thus starts the story of friendships forged many years previously and getting to grips with how things are now and how they develop with Kate's return.

Set in an area I have visited several times this book does great credit to the area. I'm not surprised to read it's Jen Mouat's region - her love shines throughout this novel, and the characters are so well created and defined that I would expect to bump into any of them were I to visit again.

This is a tremendous story - bursting with love, happiness, reminiscences and even a bit of sadness which all add up to an awesome novel. It has been such a joy to read and I have no hesitation whatsoever in recommending it to others.

I received an arc via NetGalley in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Excellent written not boring at all a look at second chances and development of friendships.
Deginatelly would recommend this book,could also be used in a book club.

I was absolutely hooked on this book from the second I started reading it until the very last page. Absolutely fantastic debut from Jen Mouat. I'm a bit of a sucker for a cheesy chick-lit book now and then, and that's what I was expecting from this story, but it was actually so much more than that! I was surprised at the depth of the storyline, and found myself shocked a number of times at some slightly unexpected twists and turns.

The characters are really well written and I found myself able to relate to quite a lot of them for varying reasons. There was more than one occasion where I had to pause to wonder what I would have done in a similar situation. It's not too often that I'll finish a book and then have to sit and think about it for more than five or ten minutes.

Thoroughly enjoyed this one - will definitely be looking out for more books by Jen Mouat in the future. Thanks again for the opportunity to read this book before it's publication date!

Lovely summer read. All the more wonderful as its set in my home country Scotland. The author made it sound idylic. so much comes with this book. friendship, love, memories, love lost and found. makes a truly wonderful summer read. a book not to be missed

“…because happiness is found in a bookshop.”

Sold! How could I resist a book with a strapline like that? Impossible. Luckily, Jen Mouat’s debut novel, Summer At Bluebell Bank, didn’t disappoint.

In fact, from the cover (I know, I know, not only picking a book for its strapline but also judging it by its cover. Tut, tut) I thought it was going to be a light and breezy beach read, which would have been great, but actually it goes much deeper than that, which was even better.

The way Jen writes the emotional drama between family and friends made me invested in the story to the point I found it hard to put down.

She also does a great job of weaving past and present without interrupting the flow of the story. Not only that, Jen has a lovely way of phrasing things that had me tapping the highlighter option on the Kindle throughout.

We know early on that both Kate and Emily have their secrets (no spoilers, promise) and I really enjoyed the gentle drip of clues, building to the big reveal.

I also enjoyed learning more about Wigtown, which I’m embarrassed to say I’d never heard of before – and I call myself a book lover! Officially designated as Scotland’s national book town, Jen makes it sound like a place I MUST add to the bucket list.

On the whole this book is a thoroughly enjoyable read. It seems to me that happiness is not only found in a bookshop but in reading about them too.

Format: Kindle.

Price: £2.99.

My rating: Four and a half stars.

Thank you to HQ digital for the ARC in return for an honest review.

This is a great debut from author Jen Mouat. My friend recommended it to me as something to read that is the same flavor and feel as Maeve Binchy, and I would agree.

Friendship, family, memories and loves lost and found again. These are just a few of the things Mouat brings into light throughout the novel, in the charming setting of small-town Scotland, with a summer home and a bookstore supplying plenty of fun as a setting.

This book has a lot going on, and by the end a whole large cast of characters that might feel a tad overwhelming. Nevertheless, I liked it very much and would recommend it to fans of Binchy and similar British women's fiction writers.

From the publisher:

Returning home is never smooth sailing…

Summoned by her childhood best friend, Kate Vincent doesn’t stop to think. Instead she books at one-way ticket from New York back to Wigtown, Scotland, leaving her glittering new life behind. Scenes of idyllic holidays at Bluebell Bank with the Cotton family dance in her mind, but not everything has stayed the way it once was… Especially when her first love, Luke, returns to town.

Emily Cotton never expected one email, sent off in a wine-fuelled daze, to bring her old friend barrelling through the front door of her dismally failing bookshop. But life for the Cottons isn’t what it once was; Emily’s brothers are hardly speaking, her beloved grandmother isn’t quite the same and Emily…well, Emily is the one most in need of Kate’s help.

Kate has given herself until the end of the summer to stay in Wigtown. Can she bring the Cottons back together, and save the family who once saved her?

**Thank you to NetGalley for an ebook review copy.**

Thanks Netgalley and the Publisher. This is really a 3.5 and can honestly say that I enjoyed all the characters but after a while had to skip pages as it kept going back over the same thing. Summer read

This by far one of the better books I've read this week. You can not guess the turns that are coming, every chapter has and interesting tale. I hope this author will tell stories about the rest of the Cotton family. I've not read anything else by this author but I will be on the lookout now. Thank you for an enjoyable story.

The book had me captivated from the start, i loved the bookshop it made me want to hunt it down. The characters were well written and the storyline and area it was written in had me wanting more. Family relationships, love and friendship this is a really great read.

New author for me, slow to start but worth sticking to it. Really enjoyed all the diff characters and stories. Will be one I'll be reading again 👍🏻👍🏻

What's not to like about a book about books? Actually it's more about two long estranged friends reconnecting, and working through all the events that made them lose contact with each other. Set in Wigtown, Scotland with all its bookstores and book related items, the book is an absolute breath of fresh air. The reader can't help but like it.

A fantastic summer read, brilliant characters. Definitely one to read this summer

Can an old friend help reunite a family divided by bickering and understanding? Kate Vincent leaves New York to journey home to small town Scotland when her good friend, Emily sends an email bagging for help. Emily’s family is barely speaking, their book store is failing and most of all, Emily needs her good friend Kate to help make sense of it all. Kate has built a successful life for herself in America, but life in Scotland is not without its appeal – especially when her old boyfriend Luke shows up. A sweet story about family, friendship and going home again (yes, you can go home again).