This is my first book by Sarah Morgan, although friends have recommended her, it definitely won't be my last! A really well written and thought provoking story, filled with tears and laughter. Heart-wrenching in places, it really made you love the characters and want them to be happy. Reading about certain parts of the story from four different perspectives was excellent, really enjoyed this book, had me hooked from start to finish.....

I have read and enjoyed a number of books by Sarah Morgan and this one did not disappoint. I was hooked from the first page, the characters were believable people and the story a great mix of happy and sad with a bit of mystery. Thoroughly recommend.

I love Sarah Morgan’s books and this is no exception. It’s a lovely story, well written. I liked the characters in this book and I couldn’t put it down, a comforting read.
I will be putting this review on Amazon too.

Hooked from page one.

Flora is a florist from New York, whom under her bubbly personality is bubbly at all. Flora lost her mum at a young age and was sent to live with her unloving, uncaring aunt, who clearly thought Flora a burden. Jack is a widower with 2 children, whilst continuing with life has Jack failed to notice his daughters are suffering?

Can two people come together and live happily ever after?

Easy to read but captures you from the moment you open the book.

Praise for Sarah Morgan.

The author doesn't paint Flora as the nasty interloper, which is what often happens when a new partner is introduced to the family. Instead she presents both sides of the difficult situation. On one side there is Flora, who has never experienced being part of a family, which is probably why she overcompensates in certain situations. Then the family unit who are reluctant to accept someone new stepping into the role the mother used to inhabit.

It's very much an intense emotional minefield, as Flora tries to navigate the pain and distress of the two young girls that are the entire world to her boyfriend. Molly thaws with each genuine moment of love and attention, but Izzy is determined to get rid of Flora.

To make things even more difficult the awkward foursome reluctantly spend a holiday with the best friend of a dead and very perfect mother and wife. It brings feelings both old and new to the surface, which means there is no choice but to face the truth.

It's women's fiction - a story of upheaval, grief and broken families.

In the last few years Morgan has successfully moved from romance to more complex contemporary fiction for women. She takes her characters to greater depth and her stories cross into more complex topics.

It's a beautiful read, uplifting and incredibly sad at times. Full of genuine emotions and vulnerable people. Morgan hits the mark once again.

This novel speaks volumes about family dynamics, the sense of belonging and also what it means to be part of a blended family. For me it is a typical domestic drama piece of fiction with believable characters minus most of the angst. Yes of course, like reality, there are plenty of bumps along the way but you know when you pick up this book that you can probably expect everything to be nicely tied together with a happy ending. For me it’s pure comfort reading, warm and uplifting and full of love.
Set in Manhattan and the Lake District this is a love story as much as it’s an exploration of family life and all its complexities. Love can blossom (no apologies for the pun!!) when you least expect it and that’s exactly what happens to Flora when Jack visits the florist shop where she works, searching for a birthday bouquet for daughter Izzy. Flora, unused to opening her heart having experienced her fair share of heartache doesn’t quite know what she’s let herself in for. She knows Jack is now a single dad to both Izzy and Molly following his wife’s sudden death which makes embarking on a relationship all the more tricky. Can she be the one to mend three broken hearts??
The author has plenty of sage advice to impart throughout the storyline; being true to yourself and not trying to please others to the detriment of your own happiness, being honest as secrets can damage relationships as can miscommunication. Not trying to live up to an idealised version of someone is another lesson that Flora needs to learn quickly. She is to be admired in her approach to forging a relationship with Jack’s girls, particularly Izzy who is hostile and views Flora as an unwelcome interloper, a potential wicked stepmother. Her past has stood her in good stead to understand the riot of emotions this family of three are enduring, making her far more intuitive of Izzy’s feelings than her own father. Still, nothing can fully prepare her for this rollercoaster of a romance but she gets top marks for not fleeing when the going gets tough!
Molly, Jack’s youngest daughter is a cute character, perhaps the easiest to win over and quite adorable in terms of some of the things she comes out with whilst Izzy’s fragility and worries for the future are abundantly clear. It’s sad to see such a young girl overwhelmed by grief amidst a desire to keep her family glued together.
The author has captured well all the nuances of family dynamics and new relationships, in this case those pertinent to blended families. All the emotions surrounding moving on when a loved one has died are woven throughout the storyline and there is a surprising revelation along the way that I didn’t foresee. The subject matter which is relatable to many is dealt with in a lighthearted way which makes Family for Beginners a pleasant, enjoyable read.
My thanks as always to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read.

Family For Beginners ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5⠀
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I'm quickly becoming a huge Sarah Morgan fan. I devoured this poignant book in one day. It was the perfect book for escapism to get me out of my lockdown reading slump, I was absorbed. So thank you 💕⠀
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Family for Beginners is filled with love. Filled with comfort and filled with wonderful relatable characters and relationships.⠀
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Meet Flora, a bright ray of sunshine who happens to fall in love with Jack. Falling in love with Jack means also falling in love with his two children, one being a grumpy teenager. Flora struggles with living in the shadow of Jack's wife's memory as they spend a summer at the lakes. ⠀
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If your struggling right now to find an uplifting read, I know a lot of us are given the situation then I can't recommend this book enough! Plus it's on an Amazon Kindle deal at the moment. Go go go. ⠀
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Huge thanks to @hqstories for having me on the tour and to @sarahmorganwrites for another fantastic book 📚⠀

I have been a fan of Sarah's work for a little while now. Each time she releases a book, I make it my mission to track down a copy and hibernate until I have finished reading it. Sarah is quite a prolific writer and I haven't managed to read all of her books just yet but I am getting there. I read the synopsis for 'Family For Beginners' and it certainly sounded interesting. I settled down and began to read. Oh my, Sarah Morgan has done it again and written another emotive read. I thoroughly enjoyed reading 'Family For Beginners' but more about that in a bit.
I couldn't help but warm to Flora from the first moment I met her and I began to think of her as a friend of mine. When the story begins she is working in a florist's shop. She doesn't get the recognition that she deserves. Her boss doesn't seem to appreciate the hard work that Flora and her colleagues put in. Flora has quite a vivid imagination and when customers come in to the shop, she creates a whole back story for them. Flora is a nice lass who deserves happiness. One day Jack walks into the florists and Flora is bowled over by him and the feeling is mutual. However there could be a bump in the road as Flora has to integrate into an established family unit as Jack has children and Flora has to live up to the memory of Jack's late wife. What happens? Well you are just going to have to read the book for yourselves to find out as I am not going to tell you.
It took me next to no time to get into this story. Once again as soon as I started to read that was it. I just couldn't put the book down. It wasn't as if the book was glued to my hand but it might as well have been because it travelled everywhere with me. I think part of my addiction to this book stems from the fact that I liked Flora so much that I needed to know how life was going to pan out for her. The pages seemed to fly past in a blur as I charged my way to the end of the book. I was genuinely gutted when I reached the end of the story because I had been enjoying the book so much that I just didn't want the story to end. I won't go into the specifics of what happens but needless to say I was left with a smile on my face.
'Family For Beginners' is very well written but then I think that to be true of all of Sarah's books. She grabs your attention with an eye catching cover and synopsis and she then draws you into the story. Once Sarah has your attention, she doesn't relinquish it until the moment you have read the last word on the last page. Sarah writes emotive stories about down to earth characters, who could literally be the person next door. On more than one occasion I felt myself smile at something I read and not long after I would develop a lump in my throat as I read something else. Sarah uses such vivid and realistic descriptions that I felt as though I was part of the story myself.
In short, I thoroughly enjoyed reading 'Family For Beginners' and I would definitely recommend it to other readers. I will definitely be reading more of Sarah's work in the future. The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a very well deserved 4* out of 5*.

We all know i am the biggest Sarah Morgan fan, having read all her books to date and i am yet to find one i am unhappy with. The reading experience is always such a pleasure.



Family for beginners is wonderful story of love, friendship and blended family's. Flora has always been alone never experiencing a deep friendship, family relationships were strained after she lost her mother at 8 and a father that wasn't around.



Jack has had a family that people from the outside would envy, a perfect wife, two wonderful girls and a pristine home but not all is as it seems, and when Jack finds himself a widow - everything suddenly changes.



When Flora and Jack meet - there is chemistry, but can either be happy? I absolutely adored it. It really dealt with a range of conflicting emotions between everyone not only in the family but in the outer friendship circle.



Flora just wants to fit in and be liked and if that means changing who she is then so be it. Alas, things start to go wrong. Flora is a wonderful character - she is vibrant, friendly, kind and caring. She worries about those around her and her love is endless for someone who has limited experience in their life.



Jack knows his daughters are coping, they are strong and he is on his on way to healing. I feel like Jack was wonderful and whilst he sometimes stumbled through things, his best intentions were always there. With such wonderful main characters - you wouldn't expect all too much drama would you but like all good books, there was plenty of things going on and secrets that needed to be shared.



A Sarah Morgan book is like reuniting with an old friend though, you know you are going to enjoy it and discovering the characters but know there will be enough to keep the pages turning. Its always so well written and everything has real depth and body to it.

Review posted on blog on 4th April

I've been reading and loving Sarah Morgan's books for a while now, and while this is no exception I felt this book had some darker undertones than many of her other books. The prologue felt a little bit like the start of a thriller and the feeling of mystery surrounding Becca and her secrets had me intrigued from the start. It also handles the wide ways we deal with loss and grief, which Sarah Morgan depicts with grace and sensitivity.

Even with it's mysterious edges this book still radiates the author's usual warmth. I identified with Flora and her tendency to people please and fear of rejection. Her growth throughout the book was really heartwarming as was the way relationships developed with the other characters, including Izzy and Molly and the family friends was lovely.

This is a wonderfully uplifting book, valuing the importance of honesty and being yourself. I've given it 4 out of 5.

I read my first Sarah Morgan book in December, A Wedding at Christmas, which I absolutely loved.
I cannot tell you how excited I was to read this book
I love Sarah’s writing. She has the ability to literally make you lose yourself in her books and forget all what is going on around you. The way she portrays her characters, you feel like you are living with them amongst the pages.
This book deals with grief, family relationships, love and secrets. It is told from different perspectives. Again I love the story being told from different perspectives. You get to see what one thing you may do, is interpreted by others as.

If you are looking for a book to lose yourself in for a few hours and to feel the warmth that us readers feel when devouring a good book, then this is the book for you!

Easy 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Another classic Sarah Morgan book, which means it’s absolutely fabulous, it will give you warm fuzzy feelings by the time you hit the end you will wish there was more. I really empathised with Flora trying to compete with a shadow, struggling with a teenager and learning over the course of the book that family is what you make it, I particularly enjoyed this as I have a friend in identical circumstances and could see the parallels with her life and situations she has experienced. It’s so well written, a wonderful story about second chances that also deals with grief and loss. It draws you in and leaves you thinking. A thoroughly touching, emotional and yet hopeful romance.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

Morgan has cleverly borrowed from Daphne Du Maurier's "Rebecca" to insert a character in her novel that is never there and yet dominates the lives of Jack, Izzy, Molly and our heroine, Flora. I enjoyed the exploration of becoming a stepparent in the 21st century, as I am one myself, although in this novel the mother figure is dead from the first page and my husband's ex-wife is still very much alive!

The dynamics of female friendship are touched upon with Flora and her colleague Julia in New York; Becca and Clare (who the family holiday with in the Lake District every summer); Flora and Clare, and between Flora and Jack's daughters, seventeen year old Izzy and seven year old Molly. I felt this was the strongest element of the novel, the actual romance never had much of a 'peril' element for me to worry that the couple wouldn't make it.

There were a few instances where I feel the editor could have been firmer, i.e. there is too much overemphasis on the ham sandwiches that Molly does not like and a scene with Jack and Izzy where he calls her 'honey' a bit too much (for this stiff-upper lipped Brit, anyway) and it's a bit schmaltzy. Plus a reference to a visit to the 'emergency department' by Clare, who as a Brit surely would have said 'A and E'...

That aside, Family For Beginners was a sweet, easy and breezy read. Perfect for fans of One Day in December. Thank you to Netgalley and HQ / Harper Collins for the ARC.

#netgalley #sarahmorgan #FamilyForBeginners #HQ

An absolute gem! - I knew I was in for a treat Morgan's books are always a heart-warming delight but I think this is her best yet.

I found it impossible to put down, the characters draw you into their lives. They are flawed (aren't we all!), realistic and relatable. As the secrets start spilling out you'll be rooting for them to find their happy ending.

The writing is free-flowing and a joy to read, the two vivid perfectly drawn backdrops from the lively colour filled New York to the somewhat less hectic stunning Cumbria.

Don't miss this uplifting story of love, loss, family & new beginnings.

Thanks to HQ Stories for sending me this in exchange for an open and honest review.

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I first read a Sarah Morgan book when I read an advanced copy of A Wedding in December. I loved Sarah’s style of writing and it was an easy choice to review Family for Beginners.
Flora is a beautiful soul and, it seems appropriate that she’s a talented florist. Following in her Mother’s footsteps, Flora creates works of art in the Manhattan store where she works.
Jack is haunted by the loss of his wife, Becca and struggling with raising their daughter Tasha. Not that Tasha is a handful, she’s actually a great kid but trying to fill her Mother’s shoes by looking after Molly, her younger sister.
As Flora and Jack embark upon a gentle romance, they are thrown together by a mishap at Flora’s apartment. This does not sit well with Tasha and relations are tested when Jack invites Flora on their family holiday to England. Flora is tested by Tasha and the fact that they are staying with Becca’s oldest friends. This can’t possible work, can it?
I wholeheartedly recommend this book; the way Sarah Morgan creates characters shows a real empathy with others. I could feel Flora’s heartache and still understand why Tash behaved so badly.
As Jack and Flora become closer, I enjoyed the way Molly immediately saw Flora through her Father’s eyes, but Tasha took her Mother’s position and fiercely guarded her family from the perceived interloper.
To avoid spoilers, I will leave it there but, please read this book and look at Sarah’s back catalogue, you’ll be glad that you did.

A great read - I like how the story unfolds as it it told from the points of view of the different characters.

You feel sorry for Flora, and hope she can find happiness with Jack despite his eldest daughter Izzy trying to scare her away.

This is the first Sarah morgan book I've read and it didn't disappoint.

This is a story about love, grief, loss and second chances. The story drew me in and kept me reading until the end.

I like her writing style and will read more of her stuff in the future.

I always love Ms Morgan’s stories and this one was no exception. Fitting into a ready made family is never easy but when said family have dark secrets it is even harder. Fabulous story with fabulous characters. Highly recommended.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Character-driven, this story focuses on Flora's emotional journey, as she tries to be part of Jack's broken and damaged family. Multi-points of view, showcase the tense relationships, within the family.

Flora is lovely, but lives to please, probably due to the lack of nurture in her childhood. This proves a stumbling block with Izzy, Jack's seventeen-year-old, who resents Flora as an outsider. The story revisits a popular theme, but because of the characters' complexity and relatability, gives it a believable contemporary and original interpretation.

Family, friendship, grief, loss and love are all explored. The second part of the story, set in the English Lake District, draws the story together and reveals secrets. Flora's emotional journey is both, challenging and poignant.

I received a copy of this book from HQ in return for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for this ARC.

I found this book to be a really good and easy read. It is about family dynamics, friendships, grief, coping (or not) with loss and romance. Lovely likeable and believable characters who are trying to find their own way individually and as a family after loss and adapting to change. I thought the book was written very well, and sensitively covered feelings, thoughts and emotions by characters when grieving. The book was told in parts by different characters which I loved. This was a poignant read at times, the book drew me in right from the start until the end. A fab read which I would highly recommend. 5 stars