How refreshing to read an adventurous love story about a 75 year old, instead of the main protagonist being in her twenties! I loved Evie, I enjoyed her spirit, her humour and her bravery. Having the twin stories of her adventures and those of her stuck in a rut son was interesting and showed just how much more the ‘elderly’ Evie was getting out of her life. A few tears along the way but in general a warm, life affirming tale.

Evie wants more to life than just sitting in a chair in the care home; she has a dream - so one day she packs a bag and runs away.
This absorbing tale proves that a change is as good as a rest and that it is never too late to follow a dream. I laughed and cried at Evie’s adventures as she left Dublin, caught the ferry to Liverpool then onwards to France. The characters she met on the way were all different, some good some bad, but all very well described.
This is a great advert for France, the food and countryside were so well drawn it almost felt as though you were there. In fact….is it ever too late to have a dream?

Loved this book. I now have my later life idol sorted, I hope I have as much vim as Evie when I'm 75. This book is a real mix of humour and regret/sadness, both from the point of view of Evie and her son / daughter in law. Evie has some hilarious escapades after deciding she is not cut out for care home life and embarks upon travels many of us a few decades younger would be daunted by.

A charming and lively book about the journey of a septuagenarian lady, Evie, who finds herself in a stultifying care home after the death of her husband, to a totally different life she has always yearned for. Through a series of spontaneous and wild decisions, she is transformed into a more independent and open woman, free to pursue her whims for the first time. She is followed by her over-protective son and his wife, and we see them meander in and out of their fraught relationship whilst searching for Evie. It is a wonderfully light, heart-warming novel with thoughtful themes of ageing, independence and the pursuit of happiness, which would make an excellent holiday read. Lie back with a glass of wine and enjoy!

Brilliant book. I absolutely LOVED Evie. I don't remember the last time I love a character as much as I loved Evie. The books has a great mix of adventure, humor, boldness, courage, relationships, emotions...simply heart-warming.. Evie Gallagher is the perfect heroine to make you want to take life by the horns, no matter your age because age is just a number. It is never too late.

A very enjoyable read! I rarely read this genre, but I was drawn to this book due to working in a care home myself several year's ago. I recall one persistent resident who had managed to drag dustbins to a wall to make his escape. It was surprising how far he managed to travel by buses, considering he had no money.

This book certainly had me smiling and is a book that I would happily read again one day. Recommended.

My thanks to Netgalley and the Publishers. This is my honest review.

Review can be seen on Goodreads and Amazon.

A debut novel from Judy Leigh presents Evie Gallagher a 75 year old newly widowed resident of a Dublin care home. Now to be honest, at first I was slightly hesitant over this as I witnessed Evie make her Great Escape from Sheldon Lodge early one morning. I took on board her first jaunt about Dublin and the people and situations that she came across, all seemed perfectly reasonable to me. Even more so when we were introduced to her son Brendan and his wife Maura who were not living in wedded bliss it is truth to say. My first doubts descended when Evie absconds to Liverpool and then when she wins 5,000 Euros on a horse, but for the life of me I can’t remember which came first.

What follows is Evie’s purchase of a campervan, a tour through France (where she meets the nicest people en-route), then not only falls in love but sets up home with the man. In the background we witness Brendan and Maura’s own trials and tribulations as they follow Evie’s jaunt through France. Now I still have my doubts, really, is it likely? Who cares? I am full of admiration for Evie’s energy and joie de vivre (and more than a little bit jealous). It is just fantastic, funny, heart-warming. Need I say more? I don’t think so. Just read it, just love it. I did.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for providing an ARC via my Kindle in return for an honest review.

What an absolute joy of a book! It made me laugh and cry, I loved it! Evie escapes from a residential home for the elderly, has some great adventures and ends up in France. Her big lump of a son, Brendan, infuriated me at times, but is not without redeeming characteristics. Likewise, daughter in law Maura: is introduces as a hard, cold shrew but changes as the book progresses. Ultimately this is a book about love and relationships. I can't wait for Judy Leigh to write her next novel.

What a brilliant adventure this proved to be - escaping from a care home, 75 year old Evie Gallagher sets out on a journey that will change her life and, inadvertently, that of her son and daughter-in-law, too! Evie had been depressed and given up on life after the death of her husband but she suddenly realises how boring life is in the care home she initially moved to in the hope of having more company. Unfortunately most of that company spends their lives sleeping! That’s when she packs her bags, sneaks out and catches a bus at the start of her wanderings. The journey will have her travelling to Dublin, Liverpool and France, meeting people on her way. Some aren’t great folk but Evie has a way of influencing them as her confidence and zest for life - and love - is rekindled through her travels and the people she endeavours to help.

Evie’s only child is her son, Brendan. He loves his Mum but his marriage isn’t what it used to be, it is too routine and the couple seem to have lost their joie de vivre together. However, setting off to ‘rescue’ Evie and bring her back home again takes this couple on their own journey to a very different HEA than they’d expected when they started!

I can't believe this is a debut novel! It is a heartwarming, heartbreaking, funny and poignant story, taking the reader virtually along with Evie on the journey both physical and emotional. It shows that life doesn’t have to follow a set plan and sometimes shaking up expectations can prove life changing - rebellion rules! Although this could have been fraught with danger, things work out well and I found it an engaging, entertaining read, a great reminder that life is for living and not for vegetating to meet the expectations of others! There are plenty of twists and turns and I suspect this is one of those stories that I’ll remembered for years to come with a grin at the memories it evokes. I hope it'll inspire me to have adventures when I'm 75, too, though maybe not quite so unplanned!

I requested and was lucky enough to be given a copy of this novel, via NetGalley, with no obligation. This is my honest review of the book after choosing to read it.

Recently widowed Evie, who’s 75, realises she should never have sold her home and moved into a care home in Dublin. She’s bored and going into a decline. So, she absconds. A four-tuitous (four is her lucky number!) win on the horses gives her the funds she needs to head first to Liverpool and some other cities, and then south for some sunshine. And so she leaves the UK for France, where she encounters some fascinating people and situations. It’s an emotional and developmental journey for her as well as physical one.
Meanwhile, her son Brendan, whose marriage to Maura is floundering, takes it on himself to track hi mother down. He doesn’t have much to go on other than dogged determination. He’d rather go alone, but Maura insists on joining him in the ailing Fiat Panda. Time after time they narrowly miss Evie but in the process learn a lot about themselves.
Part picaresque, part coming of (old) age, and with a touch of travelogue, this book is a total delight from start to finish. Every character is fascinating, although none can outshine our ordinary yet extraordinary heroine. There’s humour and tragedy, conflict and love. It’s simply unputdownable. A grand old novel.

Firstly thank you to Netgalley and Avon for this ARC copy of A Grand Old Time for my honest review.

I loved this book! It's a laugh out loud read, and yes I did get some funny looks at the train station when I laughed out loud! This book also left me crying as I really felt for Evie towards the end. I want to be Evie when I'm 75 and if I'm anything different to Evie, someone needs to step up and say something! This was so much fun and such a lighthearted read! I definitely needed something like this and it truly didn't disappoint. I didn't like that fact that a lot of people Evie met on her travels were very stereotypical and because she is "old" she shouldn't be allowed to travel on her own. She had the right idea and I think I'd have to say "feck the lot of em!"

Evie also found love at 75! Who said you're too old for love? On her trail is her son and daughter in law, Brendan and Maura. I felt for this couple, they were trying so hard, neither of them happy in their marriage but they go on this road trip anyway and 6 weeks later finally catch up to Evie.

I loved the characters and certainly grew attached to them all. This book just flowed and I really didn't want it to end. This is a heartfelt, summery, emotional read. I loved every second of it! For this reason I'm going to have to give a 5/5 rating and I'm now going to have to keep an eye out for more by Judy Leigh.

A Grand Old Time is a lovely heartwarming ,uplifting book .It tells the story of Evie who when her husband died though a Care Home was the answer for her loneliness but realises she has made a big mistake ,so she decides to escape for an adventure before it is too late !Her travels take her to Liverpool where she buys a camper van and decides to go to France .On her journey she meets some interesting characters ,she decides to stay in France and makes more friends especially some from an Irish Bar !! Evie is 75 yrs old but she is so brave deciding to drive her van all over France on her own .She has a son Brendon who is having his own problems so there are two stories running through the book which is so well written it is very hard to put down .Though the story is sad at times it leaves you with a smile on your face .

A lovely book about an older person finding a new lease on life. Evie’s life seemed to be at its end when she moved into the Sheldon Lodge Care Home. It probably wasn’t a bad care home, as these things go, but it was unbearably boring and lifeless. The books on offer chosen to sedate rather than excite the reader’s mind, (poor) wine restricted to one glass an evening (if that), and most of the residents spending their days staring blankly at a TV screen. So, Evie, at a youngish 75 and still in possession of all her marbles, rebels – and walks out.
Her first move is to go to Dublin, buy at hat and then follows a man she has only just met, down a dark alley … [alarm bell start ringing!] to a betting shop, where she impulsively puts five hundred Euro on a rank outsider – and wins. With now vast sums at her disposal, there is no way she is going to return to a life of unbearable tedium. She wants a new life, a makeover, an adventure. Next stop Liverpool, then France.
Evie is such a gregarious, sociable person, who is always open to new experiences. She does take some risks, that even a much younger person might think twice about, but everywhere she goes, she makes new friends, and these friends come to her aid when it is needed. Away from the stultifying Mills & Boon books of Sheldon Lodge, she is introduced to the joys of real literature, and decides to model herself on Simone de Beauvoir, who “had strong views on a woman’s place and what to expect from the world; she believed that women should demand more of life and of themselves”. So, Evie matures from a staid elderly Irish housewife and mother into an independent, free-spirited, free-thinking (and drinking) feminist woman, who is ready for anything the world chooses to throw at her.
Her son, Brendon, is horrified when Evie absconds, and vows to save her from herself. He and his wife, Maura, set off to bring her home, and end up chasing her across France. Brendon and Maura’s marriage is on the rocks. At first, I felt sorry for Brendon – but then realised that for the first third of the book, everything is reported from his (or Evie’s) point of view, and Maura gets little look in. Part way into their trip across France, my sympathies completely switched to Maura, who was desperately trying to keep their marriage together. Brendon came across as a prevaricating, spoilt, selfish, mummy’s-boy, who cannot decide whether his marriage is worth fighting for or not. He sees himself as his mother’s knight in shining armour, and refuses to see that neither his mother, nor his wife need to be saved, they just need his love, and respect.
When Evie decides to settle down again, it is in an area so far removed from Sheldon Lodge as possible. But she is ecstatically happy – maybe for the first time ever – surrounded by good friends, living a good and worthwhile life. The years have fallen away from her, and she is a productive member of a community once more.
I loved this book. Evie reminded me of a number of elderly female relatives, who have never seen age as a barrier to new experiences. One aunt, aged about 85, travelled alone from New Zealand to Italy to go on a language course for several weeks, returning via a three-day stopover in Bangkok. My mother-in-law (UK), now widowed, travels into Europe at least twice a year, although she has said that, now at ninety-one, she may stop. Evie’s travels in her camper van, bring back wonderful memories of the trip around Europe, that my husband and I made, living in a caravan for 15 months, deciding our next destination on the spur of the moment, meeting so many new people along the way (many were older citizens rejoicing in their retirement). Wine played a major part in our trip too.
My only wish, at the end of this book, is that Evie would go to Amsterdam and meet Hendrik Groen and his Not-Dead-Yet” club, so my two favourite elderly fictional characters could share the same story.

It's always good to find a story with an original premise. Starting a whole new life at 75 definitely qualifies.

Evie thinks moving to a care home is the right thing to do when her husband dies; she realises as the youngest there both in years and outlook it's not for her. She needs to escape before it steals away her remaining years. Evie is feisty, good-hearted and independent and likeable. Evie's adventure depends on a lucky break, but that's the beauty of escapist fiction. Her experiences span three countries, countless unlikely friends and an iconic campervan.

Brendan, Evie's only son, is her antithesis, he is dour, dependant and downtrodden. His life doesn't live up to his expectations, but he seems helpless to change it. His relationship with Maura, his wife, is in a rut and he jumps at the chance to leave his life behind when his mother goes missing, and he is duty bound to find her.

This story has many comic moments mostly related to Evie, but there are there are also some slow passages, which make the story drag a little. A charming autumn romance, an excellent assortment of characters, vivid and easy to visualise and beautifully described settings make this a worthwhile read. This hopeful, humorous and poignant story explores life, love and relationships.

I received a copy of this book from Avon Books UK via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

A fun read although I liked Evie's story best and wasn't so interested in Brendan (sorry!). A full review on my blog, linked below (scroll down)

Evie is bored with her life. She lives in a care home, Sheldon lodge. Every day is the same. She wants some excitement. She doesn't want to live the life everyone expects. It's dull and too predictable.

From Ireland to Liverpool and beyond. A little winning can go a long way. She meets some interesting characters and finds a second life.

Evie's son Brendan loves his mother. His life has also become something he didn't expect. His wife doesn't look at him the way she once did. Their lives are too routine. Evie is about to shake things up for them too. Evie has run off from the care home and Brendan has to track her down. A road trip across countries is in order. Brendan and his wife need a getaway this just wasn't what they had in mind.

At 75 life doesn't have to be predictable. Live life to the full and enjoy your self. A Grand Old Time wasn't quite the read I expected but it was an okay read. Evie is unpredictable and a risk taker. She has her son chasing her. It's what he needs he just doesn't know it at the time.

This book is for the rebellion at heart. Evie wasn't really my cup of tea and I would recommend you start with a sample of this books first. Evie isn't really a book reader :s. She also didn't start with a plan. I felt she was a little too naive and this story quite easily could have ended in disaster.

3 stars out of 5.

*I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

What a lovely story that shows you what can be accomplished if you believe in it. Definitely recommended, especially to the more mature reader!

I loved everything about this book - from the depressing places rest homes sometimes are to the places in France that I know. The relationship between mother and son and all the others on the journey. A joy to read and at times laugh out loud

This was a lovely warm story for the most part.
Unfortunately I felt some of the characters were just boring and needed a real good shake long before they got one.
The story felt overly long in places.

I loved this book about Evie's Great Adventure. It's so refreshing to read a book that isn't centred round young people and their joys and sorrows. Though of course Brendan and Maura had plenty of those.
What a character Evie is! Completely impossible (I think) for her to have taken off into France as she did, but it makes a wonderful story. Having lived in the grape growing area I so enjoyed the descriptions of the Cave Bonheur, and of Jean Luc's life.
I would love to read more by this author.
Thanks to NetGalley for an advance copy.