Member Reviews
this is the third book in this series, really enjoyed the story, loved the characters, will definitely go back and read the first two books.
Another hit from author Alison Sherlock! Honestly, these books being so warm and full of life really add comfort and warm feels to my day.
I love the sense of new beginnings, community and friendship that come with each new book. Can't wait for the next one.
My thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for a temporary copy in exchange for an honest review
I enjoyed this sweet story. It was such an easy read and although I guessed the outcome it didn’t spoil the story for me. I love books by this author and hope to read more at some point. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.
I Adore Ryan and Katy and so glad that I got to read their story. It was simply wonderful. The book was so good I couldn't stop reading because I had to know what happened next. Loved it so much!!
I just reviewed New Beginnings on Railway Lane by Alison Sherlock. #NewBeginningsonRailwayLane #NetGalley
[NetGalley URL]
Katy Smith is unemployed, she was an deputy manager in the hotel industry and with an ex boyfriend just leaving, she cant seem to find a new job or new home.
Ryan and Ethan Connolly and their farther live at
the railway station apartment in Cranfield had been in the family for years. But it is now a mess. Has a large train workshop
Ryan had been a head chef in Rome, but had been sacked so returned home.
Ethan puts a fake adververt out and then leaves the country. That's when Katy arrives at the railway station after being drunk she then apples for the job and not remembering at all the next day!
We meet Katys new companion's in Cranfield : Libby, Flora and Harriet, could they become her first, true friends? We also meet Bob and Eddie the brother's family who add further depth to the novel. Can they all help Katy get a better work, life balance?
Can both Katy and Ryan work together to turn their beloved station into a successful business? Or is it just to much of a mess to save it at all, let alone come up with any ideas to save it?
And will she have time to do all this before the next high flying job comes along, but when and if it does can she let her head rule her heart?
There are a lot of questions to be answered !
This book has great chapter lengths a long slow building of relationships which makes it very believable.
It also doesn't matter in the slightest if you haven't read the first novel.
The only thing I didn't like was the cheesiest white christmas, fairy lights and warming fireplaces- why does this always happen in novels or the movies!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for giving me a complementary digital copy of this ebook in exchange for a full, frank and honest review. All opinions expressed are completely my own.
A really good instalment of the new Railway Lane series by Alison Sherlock. Enjoyable, easy read with some good characters and a new beginnings theme, which is one of my favourites.
I found this an absolutely delightful story about Katy and Ryan. Workaholic Katy Smith is made redundant from her job in the hotel business in London. Needing a job she answers an advertisement and finds herself in the village of Cranfield. The job is to sort out the station that closed down years ago but is now home to the Connolly family. It’s not at all what she was expecting but she is not one to turn down a challenge. Chef Ryan Connolly has returned to Cranfield from Rome but is being very cagey as to why. Can they work together to bring some sort of order to the railway station and save it from financial ruin and stop the family from losing it as their home? This was a story that had a real sense of community with the characters facing up to things, tackling challenges, being honest, working together and romance.
Thanks to Boldwood Books and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review
Ooh I've never made it a secret how much I adore Alison's books and I'm always excited when I see a new one is out. I didn't know this was in the same series as Heading Home to Lavender Cottage, which I really enjoyed.
I may have preferred Heading Home to Lavender Cottage a smidgen more because I fell in love with the characters and I have more interest in the lavender fields than the trains in this book, but this is an extension of the first book and is still wonderful. Alison has this knack of creating recognisable and familiar characters and scenarios that just have that little added extra, that little spark of magic bout them.
No matter the subject matter, I always have a smile on my face when I read a new Alison Sherlock book. She has a way of creating a romance story that you feel jealous of but admire. Like a true fairy-tale romance but with heavy doses of reality peppered through.
I've discovered I've only read 4 of her books which I can't really believe. It feels as if I've been reading her forever. But on the good side, it means I have many more to catch up on and enjoy.
I wasn't a big fan of Ryan to begin with, but he was thrown into the deep end so I'll give him the benefit of the doubt. And then he quickly became the dashing hero every good book needs. Katy was an interesting main character. She's clearly built some walls up around herself and feels the best way to get through life is to just get through it, without getting attached to anything or anyone. So it was interesting to read whether she would have those walls tested by her new surroundings. Ryan's brother Ethan didn't do much for the storyline for me, he was more of a background character, but their dad Bob was excellent. The sadness and fear, obsession and desperation - it could have strayed into the pantomime but he was excellently created and developed.
There is always a sense of family in her books and it's no different in this one. Family isn't always blood relatives, and blood relatives aren't always family. We make family out of what we can. Out of friends and colleagues and sometimes eve strangers.
I am very much a country girl. I live in a town just outside of London which is getting busier and busier, and I don't like busy cities. I want the little cottage out in the countryside. And that's what this book offers. And it was interesting to see the countryside through Katy's eyes, someone who prefers the busyness of London.
What I really enjoyed about this was the collective desire to revamp the train station and get it going again. I know it's on a large scale, but we get so used to throwing things away, that it was lovely to see a group of people determined to give something new life rather than simply walking away from it.
Like any book series, you would get more out of it if you've read the first book, as you'd get to know the characters and the setting. But this is perfectly readable as a standalone novel.
It's a small point but I loved the chapters set at Christmas time. If you've read my previous reviews you'll know that I am a Christmas obsessive and there's something about reading cosy festive scenes in a cosy rom-com during the heat of May that just gets me all warmed up.
It is such an uplifting, heart-warming, cosy, beautiful, bubbly, gorgeous, happy, funny, human story and I loved it. She's definitely got another hit on her hands and I'm hoping there will be more to come in this series.
I love this author's books and remember the first book in the Railway Lane series well so was keen to head back off to the little village of Cranfield. I really liked Katy Smith's character and whilst she did have some issues which she needed to deal with, she did seem a lovely, likeable character who made me laugh throughout! We meet Katy when she's just been made redundant and has split up from her boyfriend. In a drunken moment, she applies for a job in Cranfield and being the professional that she is decides to stick it out when she is offered the job (the decision is also made easier when her new boss, Ryan Connelly turns out to be rather gorgeous)!
The book flows along so well. It was lovely to return to Cranfield and we get to meet some of the characters we've already met in the first book of the series. I loved the idea of the old Station, even in the previous book, and I had already been imagining what it would be like if it was brought back to life! Of course, I sort of guessed where the storyline was going, but that didn't spoil the enjoyment of it at all, and I loved watching and wondering if Katy and Ryan would ever get it together!
The book was full of fun and laughs, and I couldn't help but chuckle at Katy in her designer high heeled boots! There was some past history which both Katy and Ryan needed to get straight in their lives and this left a vulnerable side to both of them. The storyline was truly delightful though with plenty of romance and friendships, and I was hooked almost instantly! This is a perfect piece of escapism and ideal for a summer read! I can't wait to return to Cranfield! Would definitely recommend!
Picking up a new Alison Sherlock novel is like being welcomed into the arms of an old friend, and being given a giant hug. It's warm hearted, comforting, feels familiar but also the excitement of not knowing just what will be said, what new story might be told.
I felt right at home in this book, especially as soon as we get to Cranfield. I'm a huge fan already of this series and the interlinked previous series too, and am always keen to see how familiar characters are getting on.
Including Dodgy Del who once again does appear, and causes carnage. I so hope one day he gets his own book as I'm sure it would be hilarious and for such a likeable chap, he deserves a happy ending of his own.
But this book was all about Katy and Ryan, well the whole Connelly family in fact. Katy may have only applied for the job while rather drunk, but as she slowly comes to terms with spending some time in the countryside, it has the potential to be transformative.
And not just for her, the changes in all the Connelly men as the story progresses is rather impressive, and is definitely all down to Katy's magic touch in whatever she turns her hand to. She has fabulous ideas for the old Railway station, and seems determined to help the family make sure it won't be sold.
Katy is rather prickly initially, she's very self sufficient and doesn't really have friends, so her immersion into small village life is rather enjoyable to see, from her attempting to protest it, to finally realising things about her own life.
And Ryan I loved, but it was his father Bob that I was rooting for even more. I really felt for Bob and loved seeing him come back to live as the story progressed and the months went by.
Although part of a series this could easily be read as a standalone novel, but why miss out on the first book in the series which I also really loved.
Just another fabulous story that I couldn't read fast enough, I can't wait for the next book.
Thank you to Boldwood books and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.
Oh, I love Alison's stories, they are full to the brim with warmth and love and I think I'll have to book into the railway carriages before they become to popular! Kate and Ryan's story was so lovely and all the characters are so well written that the story flows really well
Loved it! I loved being back in Cranfield and I loved seeing the railway station and carriages come back to life. Katy needed a change and she got it with Ryan and the rest of the community. It wasn’t just the station that was being brought back alive but also Katy, Ryan, Ethan and Bob. Each chapter, each interaction you could see them growing slightly taller and stronger. It was lovely to read.
The slow growing relationship with Katy and Ryan was lovely too, they built up a friendship and supported each other through some tough times without realising what they were doing. I loved that but where they were together but no one publicly acknowledged it, it made me chuckle.
A beautiful feel good read and I loved reading it.
BLURB:
When high flying, workaholic Katy Smith is suddenly made redundant, she needs to find a job fast!
After mistakenly answering an advert online, she quickly realises that the rundown railway station in sleepy Cranfield isn’t the 5-star London hotels she’s used to working in!
But a job’s a job. Right?
Chef Ryan Connelly is having a crisis of confidence after his Italian dream turns sour.
Returning home to try to pick up the pieces of his parents broken marriage, he soon discovers that his family home, the railway station, is close to financial ruin Can Katy use all of her skills and find a way to save the railway station?
And can Ryan rediscover his passion of cooking once more?
As winter in Cranfield begins to sprinkle its magic, perhaps Katy and Ryan can find their very own new beginning on Railway Lane.
MY REVIEW:
This was a cute, light-hearted read set in the English countryside.
The characters are likeable and there are no pesky misunderstandings to get in the way. Just a simple, straightforward plot sprinkled with romance.
Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this book in return for my honest review.
Thanks to the publishers and Netgalley for an advance copy of this book in exchange for a review.
This is the second in the Railway Lane series of books. A quick, easy, enjoyable summer read.
I like this series of books and of course being romance books you allow some flexibility in the realms of reality. This one however was a whole book of 'as if that would happen'. It just didn't make sense.
I liked this book but I found it a bit contrived. I'll read the next one in the series but this one just didn't do it for me. There were just so many details skipped. There was no explanation as to how/why someone would agree to unpaid work, stay there for months and then get a whole house/business signed over to them just weeks after being in a relationship with them. I know it's a 'fluffy romance' but it needs to at least make sense.
A lovely addition to the series. It's so nice to catch up with old friends and to make new ones too. The storyline is easy to read, flows well and is enjoyable, uplifting and warming. The characters are also great too. A nice amount of romance too.
An amazing story . Jane is a hard working woman who only works and have no free time for herself nor friends . When from the hotel she works she gets redundant she is looking for a new job . After a drunken night she come across a weird advert and she apply for it . When she arrives at the railway station in Cranfield and there is nowhere a hotel her first thought is to go back to London . When she meets the stations owners Ryan , his father Bob and his grandpa Eddie something inside her told her to stay and help them tide the abandoned station . Ryan is a chef who worked in Rome before his parents split and he came back home to be with his father . Together they work and make the old railway station a cafe place and a pizza place so the people of Cranfield will have a place to gather and spent time together . When everything is ready will Jane want to stay with her new family in Cranfield or will she go back to London and the hotels she used to work ?
I loved that we see all the girls from the Heading Home to Lavender Cottage and I am hoping the next book of the series is about Ethan and Libby .
I received this book from net galley and the publisher as an ARC. Thank you! All thoughts and opinions are my own .
I had forgotten this was a series but can be read as a stand alone. It was great . In a drunken moment Katy applied for a job to organise the railway station and it led to a lot of laughter, hard work and love. The story drew you in. The two brothers were great characters. You can feel another book. I want to go to the Lavender Spa and have pizza. Read it
After being made redundant at her work as a deputy hotel manager in an upmarket hotel on Park Lane in central London, and then dealing with a breakup, Katy Smith starts job hunting online and soon comes across an ad for a temp job in the countryside— Cranfield—including bed and board.
The apartment in question is owned by Ethan and Ryan Connolly’s family and sits above the railway station in Cranfield.
A month ago, their mom had walked out on their dad, Bob to start a new life in Spain with her lover.
Now the apartment has three occupants—Ryan, his dad, and his younger brother Ethan.
For the past three years, Ryan has been working as a head chef in a fancy restaurant in Rome. Until a few weeks ago, when he was falsely accused of food poisoning by a celebrity customer. The customer later retracted his statement but the harm had already been done because Ryan got fired in the process.
On the same day he got fired, Ryan received a phone call to say that his mother had walked out and he had flown home to comfort his dad.
When Katy arrives at Cranfield, she learns from Ryan that his brother had posted the job ad as a sort-of joke. Nonetheless, she accepts to stay for a week to help clear the station.
After a short visit to the neighboring village Cranbridge, which Katy noticed was buzzing with activity, she decides she could revive the sleepy village of Cranfield.
She had earlier suggested to Bob the possibility of opening a small coffee shop at the train shop and even applied for a permit.
Soon Katy starts making new friends and as feelings between Katy and Ryan develop, Ryan realizes he may have to find a way to talk her into extending her stay.
A feel-good romance novel filled with beautiful characters and beautiful descriptions of the countryside.
Thank you to Alison Sherlock, NetGalley, and Boldwood Books for the arc of this book.