My goodness, this book was exactly what I needed this past week. Once I picked this book up, I had such a difficult time not finishing it in one sitting.

Lisa Hobman is an amazing author and managed to transport me to the beautiful island of Skye. The scenery the people all of it were so engaging.

This story has it all; friendship, romance, heartache and reconciliation. I can’t wait to read more by Ms. Hobman.

I love this book.
First question is there gonna be a sequel???
It made me cry, smile and fall in live with the place.
I'm so glad everything was ok in the end and juliette got her happy ending.
I can see chewie all in tinsel ready for Christmas.
I cant wait to buy the actual book and reread it and share with my daughters.

A new author for me, and one that I would love to read more from!
Dreaming under an island Skye is set in the gorgeous, picturesque setting of the Isle of Skye, think mountains, heather, cosy cottages and the sea.
Juliette recently widowed takes a three month trip to Skye and finds herself surrounded by lovely friendly engaging people, a lovely job at the local museum and a sense of belonging! Not everything is all happiness and joy and Juliette finds herself at loggerheads with deep, brooding, attractive Single dad Reid on several occasions!
Two damaged lost souls who both deserve a second chance of happiness, grief, mental health,custody battles, paternity issues are all set to test them but will they take a chance on each other?
Beautifully uplifting read with a real feel good factor.
Thank you netgalley for this early read.

What an emotional roller coaster, beautifully written, characters you want to meet and spend time with. Such an enjoyable book. Recommend a box of tissues to be with you as i cried buckets. Although a warning to anyone who has lost someone might be needed as it was so emotionally in captivating that they may struggle with the truth of it all.

I've read most of this author's recent books and always enjoyed the characters, the poignant real-life situations and the wonderful descriptions. This story has all of these and is an emotional, insightful story.

Widowed Juliette is still grieving the loss of her husband, but everywhere holds memories and she knows moving away is the only way to move forward with her life. She chooses Skye because of familial connections and hopes her healing can begin.

Skye brought to vibrant life, by the author's descriptions, draws the reader into island life. The sense of community and reliance on each other is explored well in this story. The characters are flawed and recognisable. Juliette enjoys the anonymity she seeks then welcomes the friendship offered as she heals. Her relationship with Reid is difficult, but she sees his pain despite the emotional barrier he hides behind.

This is a gentle story, realistic and full of hope.

I have not read anything by this author before but I certainly will again.
I loved the characters I really liked juliette who has a lot of support and love from friends and family with losing her partner she feels she needs a bit of time to heal and on her own. The setting is gorgeous and you feel so many emotions. This is just such a lovely read.

I really enjoyed this romantic story set on the idyllic island of Skye.
I liked the characters very much, all except one, but you will know who I mean when you read this book.
A lovely story with ups and downs and an awareness of mental health issues which are so important to raise.

This book really surprised me. I found it offered more than a typical piece of romantic fiction because of the attention paid to feelings and mental health. All in all, I would describe this book as having a bit of “bite” and one that had more depth to the story than I was anticipating.

The book opens with a very sweet meeting between Juliette and her would-be husband. It is a funny scene of a woman being stuck up on library shelves and needing rescuing. Quite literally, Laurie is her knight in shining armour. Fast-forward eight years, and we discover that Juliette is now widowed. Over the course of the novel, we find out a bit more of what happened between her and Laurie and the sadness that envelopes her with fears of moving on. Heading to Skye seems like the most obvious decision, especially as her mother and grandparents used to live on the Island. Wanting to escape the memories of Laurie and the grief that is constantly threatening to drown her, Juliette wants to rediscover who she is in this remote location.

The portrayal of the Isle of Skye is beautifully vivid. Hobman describes it so naturally and I felt like I was exploring the island with Juliette. Meeting the locals, the tight-knit community seem just what Juliette needs and I loved the welcoming atmosphere that is presented. Indeed, the pub scenes were most warming and I think this is what epitomises the attitude of the village. Furthermore, the island games event that Juliette attends adds to the friendship circles that she is developing. A community that offers so much to Juliette, I found myself asking, along with the other characters, why would she want to leave and return to her old life in the Cotswolds?

Hobman has a great cast of characters in this story, including the lovable hound of Chewie! Even though Juliette admits she is not a dog person, she cannot help but full in love with Chewie. I really laughed at Juliette’s reluctance to be “doggy friendly”; I loved the honesty of her character and I think this adds to how raw and genuine her emotions are over the story. Hobman is not trying to disguise Juliette’s feelings: she really is struggling to cope with her grief from losing her husband. Overall, there are quite a few characters in the story that need rescuing, all in their own individual ways.

It is not just Juliette’s vulnerability that is explored in this novel. Reid, the male protagonist who seems to take an instant dislike to Juliette, has a past that is only gradually revealed in the story. Like Juliette, Reid is emotionally suffering and I liked seeing the parallels that Hobman creates between the two characters. Furthermore, I thought it refreshing to see such an emotional male character; Reid literally wears his heart on his sleeve and needs as much support as Juliette did in the early days of losing Laurie. Some of the scenes with Reid and Juliette were full of sorrow and quite emotional. It made me truly sympathise with the characters and I felt a connection I was not expecting in this story.

The symbol of the robin is really clever. It was haunting, magical and romantic all at once. There were times that I felt myself come out in goosebumps and, to be quite honest, I don’t think I will look at a robin in quite the same way again. You need to read the book to fully appreciate this but I think this is another example of how Hobman has created a narrative that is full of both sides of emotion: love and overwhelming sadness.

This book offered so much on many levels. It was enjoyable to read and I could not predict how it would close. It’s a rather emotional story, not just full of love and laughter, and I think this made the read even more poignant. Loving the cast and setting, I really hope Hobman returns to Skye: I would be excited to see what happens next to these characters.

With thanks to Boldwood Books, NetGalley and Rachel’s Random Resources for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This beautifully written novel of love and health issues are dealt with so well. I really enjoyed reading this and I feel that Lisa took extra care to get this book written. I am saving this to re-read at some stage. 5 stars and I recommend you read and enjoy this.

Thanks to Netgalley and publisher for this early ARC.

A word of warning: this book will make you cry. Well, it made me cry. Multiple times.

Widowed young, Juliette starts processing the untimely death of her beloved husband and realises she's got to get away. Choosing to visit the village of her mother's birth, she takes a summer off to visit the beautiful isle of Skye (yes, like the song). There, she makes new friends, finds work looking after the local museum, and runs up against grumpy divorcee Reid.

Written entirely from Jules' point of view, the book also delves into flashbacks explaining her loss - hence the tears. I think there were perhaps a few too many of them - they didn't all feel necessary to the plot or knowing Jules, and they slowed the start of the book down. It took a little while and a few tissues to get to the feel-good part.

Once we got there, however, I found myself charmed by the (mostly) welcoming villagers as Jules settled in. I was especially fond of the kind banter and teasing from Morag and Kenneth, and it is impossible to dislike young Evin and his giant dog Chewie. The book deals with the rather heavy subjects of depression and loss, but in a respectful and honest way as it draws Jules and Reid together in a way that felt natural and ultimately uplifting. The beautiful prose flowed and relationships grew naturally over the summer, even as jealous Leanna and Evin's mother Kate made trouble in the background.

For a hopeful story about love and life after loss, pick this book up - but bring tissues!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher via Rachel's Random Resources; all opinions are my own.

I read the synopsis for ‘Dreaming Under An Island Skye’ and it certainly like just the kind of light hearted, fun kind of read I was looking for. I grabbed a cup of tea, grabbed my Kindle and settled down for what I hoped would be a fabulous read. Oh ‘Dreaming Under An Island Skye’ was certainly that and so much more. I thoroughly enjoyed reading ‘Dreaming Under An Island Skye’ but more about that in a bit.
I loved the character of Juliette Fairhurst and I warmed to her from the start. When the story begins we learn that she works in a university library and she has got herself into a bit of a pickle. She is rescued by Laurie, who Juliette happens to have a major crush on. The rest as they say is history. One day Juliette has the rug pulled from underneath her feet and her world falls apart with the death of her beloved Laurie. Juliette eventually comes to realise that she has to allow herself time to heal from her loss and to carve out a new life for herself. She decides to take some time out and travel to somewhere she has always wanted to visit- her mother’s birthplace. Juliette is such a likeable character and I really did feel for her when she was describing her feelings of loss. I even found that I was comparing myself to Juliette- no I haven’t lost a partner to cancer but my Dad died suddenly of leukaemia and much like Juliette, I kept myself busy so that I didn’t have to think about my loss. I kept everything crossed for Juliette and I hoped that everything worked out for her in the end. What happens? Well for the answers to that question and so much more, you are just going to have to read the book for yourselves to find out as I am not going to tell you.
I fell under this book’s spell from the moment I read the first word on the first page. I think that part of the reason why I enjoyed the book so much was because I liked Juliette so much and I identified with some of what she was saying. I became so addicted to the story that I literally took my Kindle everywhere with me just so I didn’t have to stop reading this gorgeous book. I developed a desperation to find out if Juliette got the happy ever after ending that she deserved. The pages turned over at a fair old pace as I worked my way through the book. Then all too quickly I reached the end of the story and I had to say goodbye to Juliette.
‘Dreaming Under An Island Skye’ is beautifully and sensitively written. Lisa doesn’t shy away from discussing difficult subjects but she does it in a such a gentle and compassionate way. Lisa certainly knows how to grab your attention from the start and draw you into this lovely story. She clearly cares about her characters and describes them so well that they seemed to be just as real as you and I. I also liked the vivid descriptions of Skye, which were so convincing that they made me want to pack a suitcase and go on my holidays. I also loved the fact that my home county (in my opinion THE best county) of Durham got a mention or two as I love reading about places with which I am familiar. I found ‘Dreaming Under An Island Skye’ to be a beautifully and compassionately written story, which kept my attention throughout.
In short, I thoroughly enjoyed reading ‘Dreaming Under An Island Skye’ and I would recommend this book to other readers. I will certainly be reading more of Lisa’s work in the future. The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a very well deserved 5* out of 5*.

When you read Dreaming Under an Island Skye you really do dream about it! Lisa Hobman is a new author to me and I really loved how she described the Isle of Skye. Juliette is reeling after the loss of her husband and needs a change. She decides to go to the birthplace of her mother - a village called Glentorrin on the Isle of Skye. This story deals with grief and depression but also leads to feelings of hope and better things to come. Friendships of all kinds are strong throughout this book. I think it has something for everyone and I highly recommend this book!

TRIGGER WARNING: SOME MENTIONS OF MENTAL HEALTH STRUGGLES AND BEREAVEMENT.

Dreaming Under an Island Skye is my fifth Lisa Hobman novel after A Seaside Escape, A Year of Finding Happiness, A Summer of New Beginnings and What Becomes of the Broken Hearted.

All the characters are very real and I really liked Juliette and Millie and their friendship which has lasted after they were at university together. Juliet has a supportive mother and I liked the way they interacted.

Juliette is trying to move on after the death of her husband Laurie a few years earlier. She lives in the Cotswolds and works at the university library.

After a date that does not go well, she realises she is not moving on well at all and struggling more than she is admitting. We are pulled into her sadness and Lisa Hobman's portrayal of this is excellent.

Millie suggests she should have a break and so it is that she ends up on the Isle of Skye where her mother grew up.

I myself have never been to Skye or Scotland but this novel made me want to go. Lisa Hobman swept me up on Juliette's journey and it was a pleasure to feel a part of this.

Two different communities of friendly people between Gloucestershire and Skye. Will this be enough to really help her move on? Will she find love again?

Chewy the dog was adorable and a welcome addition to the novel.

Dreaming Under an Island Skye is a journey of self discovery, inner and outer transformation, the struggle of loss and trying to move on. It's a well-paced novel which deals with tough issues yet is refreshing too.

Thanks to Lisa Hobman, Rachel's Random Resources and Boldwood for my ARC in exchange for an honest and voluntary review.

4 stars

Juliette Fairhurst is heartbroken and coming to terms with the sudden death of her beloved husband Laurie after a long, hard battle with cancer. Two years later, Juliette has been struggling to get through life – between not allowing herself time to grieve and her battle against depression, she realises that this is the right time to take some much needed time for herself.

Juliette sets off to Glentorrin on the Island of Skye, the place in which her mother grew up. On her arrival, Juliette could never have imagined how her three month stay here would help her, and how welcoming most of the islanders would be in helping her to rebuild herself.

As soon as I had read the description I just knew I would fall in love with this story!. It is undoubtedly a truly moving, emotional story, but it is also full of optimism too – showing that everyone needs help some times and should feel able to reach out for it. I loved following the new friendships that were formed between Juliette and the islanders, especially meeting the lovely boy Evin and his exciteable puppy Chewie! All of the people she met along the way helped her on her journey through her mental health struggles. Alongside a variety of other individual stories we follow throughout this story, there is no denying that this is a truly heart warming read.

Lisa’s writing style is fantastic and really brings the characters to life for the reader. I loved the individuality of them all, with their own life stories to tell, and the ways in which this all added to this beautiful story. The setting was beautiful and I could picture it so clearly in my mind, so much so it certainly had me dreaming of escaping there myself!. Full of drama, love, and healing – this book had everything you could possibly want from a book.

Beautifully written, emotional and full of friendship and learning to love yourself again, I adored everything about this heart warming story.

This is a truly lovely, heartwarming read dealing with some sensitive issues in a caring and supportive manner.

Juliette Fairhurst had gone straight back to work after the shocking death of her beloved husband after he lost his fight with cancer. She didn't really give herself time to grieve properly, suffered from depression and, two years later, has decided to make time for herself. She goes to stay in the village where her mother grew up, Glentorrin on the Isle of Skye, planning to stay there for three months over the summer. She never foresaw how welcoming most (but not all) of the islanders would be, how healing the experience would prove or how she would be able to help others, too.

It is a moving story, but one filled with optimism, too, showing how any loss can prove difficult to cope with but that there are folks to help. It is a story of friendships, recognising and helping those with mental health issues, breaking down barriers around your heart, family dramas and community. It is about recognising when you need help, opening yourself up to talking about experiences, fears, worries and the past to help you move on to a more positive future. There's a lovely lad, Evin, and his rambunctious puppy, Chewie, lots of new friendships to be made and some betrayals to be discovered. There's the beautiful setting, the heartwarming community, even their version of the Highland Games, The Lifeboat House Museum, a troubled artist and new friends in this emotive story which I thoroughly enjoyed reading and highly recommend.

Thanks to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for my copy of this book which I have voluntarily read and honestly reviewed,

Dreaming Under An Island Skye by Lisa Hobman is an uplifting, feel-good read about loss, hope, love and most of all second chances! I found the story really touched my heart. Lisa Hobman is a new author to me but one I will watch for in the future. I found it to be a beautiful and emotional story set on the picturesque island of Skye in Scotland. I loved the sense of community in the small village of Glentorrin and how most of them welcomed Jules with open arms.

The book does touch on some sensitive themes like depression and grief but in a sympathetic and realistic way. It takes you through the journey of healing, forgiveness and getting better.

I highly recommend this to my friends, I didn’t want it to be over.

I requested and received an advance reader copy of this book from Boldwood Books and Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

After three years of marriage Juliette becomes a widow. Needing a change she moves to the Isle of Skye. There she meets new friends and begins to heal and find love again. Lovely book.

What an emotional ride this story was. As I turned the pages, the more on the edge of my seat I was.

There are some fairly hefty issues inside that glorious cover, but they are dealt with in a sympathetic and realistic manner. And the romance was a slow burning cracker, that kept me on my toes.

The sense of community in the story was one of the lovely things about it (along with a lot of other lovely things!), and I've now added Skye to the list of places I need to visit.

As a lover of Island of Skye, I couldn't not love this book. The setting is beautiful and greatly described.
The book touches very sensitive themes like loss, grieve, depression and not in a superficial way. But also gets you through the journey of healing, forgiveness and getting better.
The characters are relatable and well outlined (the bad ones almost too bad to be true, but that is the only negative thing). The story is warm and uplifting.
I loved the idea of "it's OK to not be OK" that runs through the book, it's necessary to admit to not being ok in order to start to heal.
A very nice, uplifting story, highly recommended!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A second chance romance, especially when the people involved are a bit bruised and broken, is always something that I particularly enjoy – but it’s far from the only reason why I thought this book was so thoroughly lovely. After the loss of the love of her life, Juliette’s unbearable grief and sense of acute loss is alleviated a little by the support of her family and her steadfast friend Millie – but what she really needs is some time among people who aren’t aware of the tragedy that’s begun to define her, to take some time to heal. Her mother’s family come from Skye, and she decides it’s the perfect place – and, after an unfortunate first encounter and a rather dramatic incident that places her centre-stage for a while, the village of Glentorrin begins to welcome her as one of their own. She finds a job and a temporary home at the museum in the lifeboat house, enjoys making new friends (but encounters some less friendly natives too), and the prospect of moving on and starting again begins to look increasingly possible.

The community of Glentorrin is quite wonderful – all such well drawn individuals. After a bit of a false start, and with a few stumbles at times, she grows close to artist Reid (not the “grumpy erse” he appears at first to be) and his young son Evin (and, in time, to his over-exuberant dog Chewie): and she finds she’s not the only one struggling with life, but also that she’s ideally placed to catch someone else as they’re falling, and to support them through it. The story could easily have become a little heavy at times – depression, mental issues, a tug of love situation – but the author is assured in its handling and treads lightly, while not skirting the realities. There might be those (well, certainly one in particular… who’s a tad off-balance herself) who feel her “mind-trickery and hippy shit” aren’t needed – but Reid’s path to healing and the faint possibility of a happy ending make it a very realistic and well-told story.

There were so many small things I loved about this book. The setting is quite wonderful – beautifully and vividly described – and I loved the museum (and the poignant stories behind some of its artefacts), those lovely nights in the pub eating haggis and stripping the willow (it might pass some readers by, but how lovely that Greg – from the last book I read – appeared as a “turn”!), and the way everything looks infinitely brighter with a bag of shortbread in your hand. The friendships formed were warm and lovely (Caitlin at the bakery, Archie from the outdoor clothing shop, Kenneth and Morag at the guest house and shop… and so many more): the slow-build and unlikely romance was perfectly paced and handled, and I really loved the relationship she developed with young Evin (and who wouldn’t love to become known as “Sparkly”, however unlikely when she first arrived).

I really enjoyed the set piece of the village games – other than the tear in my eye at the appearance of a summer robin (mmm, you’ll have to read the book to get that one… very nicely done). And I must mention the music, which I remember being a particular feature in the other book I’ve read by the author. And not just the traditional Scots plus Greg on his guitar, but the soundtrack of Radio Skye always in the background – suffice to say I’ve become quite a fan of Lewis Capaldi, whose music and great lyrics had rather passed me by until now.

It’s just a great story – with highs and lows for its lovely characters, and quite a few issues to be disentangled – quite beautifully written, really involving and thoroughly heartwarming. I really didn’t want to leave the characters – or the Isle of Skye itself – behind, and that’s always a sure sign of a book well enjoyed. Very much recommended – I loved this one, and I’m really looking forward to reading more from Lisa Hobman.

(Review copied to Amazon UK, but link not yet available)