Tori is staying with her best friend Melody after losing the love of her life, Luc ands deciding to take a break from work in London and follow her friends to the countryside and seaside.



What she doesn't expect, is Aidan a handsome stranger she gets predicted to marry minutes after her arrival! Agatha, whom predicts her possible future marriage also leads her astray in her plans for tattoos and piercings, a real rebel lady and quite a character as she predicts more marriages amongst the villagers.



As she is an animator, she also agrees to help make and market an animation for heartberry to drum up some more trade business for them.



Meanwhile, her main reason of stay to partake in fruit picking turns out to be at night, allowing her and Aidan time alone together...



From shared hobbies to finding fiery passion after both having failed in love before with previous partners and shared family drama's, there's a lot the pair bond over and soon enough we see they were meant to be as it's natural how they collide lives. Everywhere sounds so idyllic and I loved Beast the tearaway wild dog who's girlfriend is called Beauty! It was a read to give you a case of the warm fuzzies and it didn't disappoint in any way at all, a cute and love fuelled read!



Many thanks to the publishers for allowing me to review this book for them!

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and the Publisher, Bookouture for this review copy, given in exchange for an honest review. Also thank you to Kim from Bookouture for organising the blog tour and finding me a space on what was always going to be a very popular tour!!

Tori Graham arrives in Sandcastle Bay in the need of a holiday. As a busy animator and also tending a broken heart, she decides to visit her friends and also offer her services as a fruit picker, picking the village’s infamous Heartberry. Her boss, and landlord is the devilishly handsome Aidan Jackson. When the local ‘fortune teller’ predicts that Tori and Aiden will end up married, Tori is adamant that she is not in Sandcastle Bay for any type of romance….whatsoever! As the weeks go on though, Sandcastle Bay isn’t the only thing that Tori falls in love with…..

I absolutely love Holly Martin and was so excited when I heard about this new release. I defy anyone to not love one her books, they are all fabulous! This one was certainly no exception. The setting of the beautiful Sandcastle Bay was wonderful. I could literally feel the sun burning my skin as I was reading it! The descriptions of the Bay brought such vivid pictures to my mind as to what it was like. The characters were all so likeable – there is not one character in this book which you could not like. As usual the story is choc-a-bloc full of handsome single men and matching eligible women! You can see the pairings up of the couples as the book moves on, lining the series up nicely for the other characters stories as has been done in the previous series’ before.

You might say stories like these are predictable and you know what the ending is before it gets there….but you know what, I really don’t care!! The whole fun of the story is not wondering ‘will they?’ because you know they will! It’s more to do with the up and downs of their relationship, the romance, the love and the laughs. There are some superbly funny moments in this book and there are some moments that tug at your heartstrings. The story moves so fast that I was taken on a rollercoaster of emotions that I just didn’t want to get off!! Some of the funniest moments involved the various animals of the village, Dobby was so funny and who could not love Beast!

Holly’s writing is just absolute pure genius! I could not tear myself away from this book! Once I clapped eyes on the first word I was literally stuck to the story like glue! She is most definitely one of my favourite authors of this genre and I cannot wait until the next book!! How she can keep bringing out such amazing books one after the other after the other is beyond me!! Her books leave me feeling all warm and happy inside – there is no other way to describe it!

I would 100% recommend this book! Unfortunately, Goodreads and Amazon say I have only 5 stars to play about with, which is a real shame as this book deserves a 10 star review!! If you buy any book this year, make it this one!!

Review: First I would like to thank Kim Nash at Bookouture for asking me to take part in the blog blitz. I am a big fan of Holly Martin.

The cover for this novel is lovely, I actually cant stop staring at it. It's perfect, so bright and perfect for spring/summer.

In this story we find ourselves in Sandcastle Bay and our main heroine Tori is staying in such a beautiful cottage, I am very jealous, called Blossom Cottage. Blossom Cottage is not only a beautiful cottage but also has a great view of the sea. Holly has created my dream home. Another plus is the handsome owner of Blossom Cottage, Aidan, who also has two brothers who also sound rather nice too. With these characters and Melody who is Tori's best friend and her sister who all have had broken hearts, we have a great set up for a brilliant story. 

Holly has created characters with such warmth and depth to them that you really feel that you understand them and her amazing descriptions of Sandcastle Bay enable you to immerse yourself into the lives of these characters sharing their adventures. This story is full of warmth, humour, love and friendship. It was such a joy to read. 

Sandcastle Bay is the holiday destination on everyone's lips this summer. A for an escape from reality. The Holiday Cottage by the Sea is a smashing read leaving you crying with laughter in places and heart melting in others.

Another fantastically brilliant book from Holly! She really does create the most wonderful setting and beautiful love stories that leave you smiling from ear to ear.

Utterly enchanted by this incredibly romantic story, set in a picturesque location, full of characters with really interesting jobs..... it can only have been written by one of the queens of rom coms - Holly Martin!

I devoured this book and despite not being that keen on fruit, even I wanted to taste the heartberries that were being harvested by the end of the book.

The banter between Aidan and Tori is hilarious and although you sort of know what the ending will be, I never mind when I am taken on such an enjoyable journey to reach that stage. Although what you wouldn't predict is the level of meddling Aidan's aunt Agatha enjoys!

Agatha is utterly hilarious, and she gives Tori all manner of supplies for her first date with Aidan, that you wouldn't expect anyone to just happen to have in their handbag, let alone hand over in a pub to a relative stranger. I was laughing my head off at that scene, and then it got even better!

Agatha also a hand in the henna that Tori has on her back, but even I couldn't believe what the design was. Again revealed in a classic scene that is incredibly amusing.

I loved the names of the places in this book, Sandcastle Bay, Blossom Cottage, The Cherry on Top cafe, all which evoke a certain feel to them just from their names alone. So incredibly creative. I also loved Tori's two best friends and I am predicting each of their stories may get told in future books this year from Holly Martin.

Oh and I haven't even mentioned the animals in this book, Beauty, Beast and Dobby which are nothing like their namesakes. Dobby is the first we are introduced to, and let's just say he is not typical of his species and is a great little character in his own right. Beast and his girlfriend Beauty make a lovely couple, and produce a mixture of funny moments and awww moments.

From the first page this book captured my heart, and I read it in one sitting, completely absorbed by Holly Martin's excellent writing style and story telling. Once again I am astounded by all the small touches that make you really believe in the couple at the heart of the story. I would without a doubt highly recommend The Holiday Cottage by the Sea.

Thank you to Bookouture and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

Tori Graham needs a place to lick her wounds and recover in peace after a painful loss and Sandcastle Bay, where her best friend live sounds like the perfect place. Aidan Jackson is the man who takes care of the cottage that Tori is renting and she soon discovers that she has a lot in common with this gentle and and mischievous man. He, too, has suffered a painful past, has no intention of having his heart broken again. But as the summer wears on, Tori and Aidan find themselves drawn to each other as Sandcastle Bay works its quiet magic on them. A lovely, upbeat story about second chances in a beautiful location