Ellie was made redundant so decides to go back to the village where she was brought up. As her parents are away with work she moves in to their house
While she is working out what to do next she starts up a dog sitting business and works part time at the Dog and Duck, the local pub.
Ellie has hooked up with her ex Johnny but as Johnny is starting to talk long term plans Ellie realises it isn’t what she wants so gently calls it off
Max is a property developer who has just moved into the village when he comes across Ellie who is in a muddy stream trying to get a dog who has run away. When he finds out what she does Max offers her the use of one of his fields to let the dogs run loose on
Will they become friends ?

The best I can say for Winter at the Dog & Duck by Jill Steeples is that I finished it. At one point, I did actually consider giving up on it. For me there seemed to be too much, and yet nothing, happening in the story. But the biggest problem I had was that Ellie, the main character, irritated me. And that, of course, makes my assessment of the book subjective. Others will certainly feel differently.

An uplifting romantic tale about Ellie who returns home from London and starts her own dog walking business whilist working in the local pub.she meets Max one day and so begins the battle of head or heart.

I loved the descriptiveness in the emotion and how there was a wider plot in place . All the side characters were given a good arc and werent just for show. The story for me was written a bit too much on Elsie's perspective i would have liked more on max.
Hiwever this was a first in a series and is made me want to read bookc2.

Thank you net gallery and publisher for a solid 4 star read.

A cute book, but very slow start. It took me awhile to get engulfed in the book, and I had trouble connecting with the characters. It felt a bit forced, but I appreciated the tone and tenor of the book. Tyr dialog didn't seem very natural, but it was an enjoyable, albeit forgettable, read.

A slow, lovely, cozy romance, perfect for curling up with in front of the fire on a cold night. I think I'd like to live in Little Leyton: the setting was idyllic and the community was a perfect mix of characters. I wasn't keen on a few of Max's actions but those aside, the love story was satisfying. The quiet country life more so.

My first book by this author. Ellie has returned to the village where she grew up having been made redundant. She moves into her parents' house (they are away for several months), starts a dog-walking business and gets a job at the pub that's been a sort of home-from-home to her in the past. But the pub, despite being the centre is village life, is threatened as the lease is up and the brewery has sold it.

Inevitably, Ellie's meeting with local landowner Max goes badly from the outset - she's covered in mud, he's mocking. So you know that the course of the book will be their series of misunderstandings and miscommunications - it's a familiar pattern, but not the easiest to handle. Some authors do it wonderfully (think Lizzie Bennett and Mr Darcy, mother and father to the whole trope). Here, it's no more than okay - Max charges headlong into things without asking, Ellie is wilfully obstructive a lot of the time. You want to shake them both. Neither really has a satisfactory excuse for their behaviour, but I suppose that's actually fairly typical of people in general.

Overall, it's a feel-good novel that serves its purpose of being comfortable and unchallenging, despite the visit to the refugee camp that's a pressing issue and deserving of more serious handling. But I still enjoyed it, and may well read further instalments (seems to be first of a series of four).

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, Boldwood Books, for a review copy.

A pleasant, warm and happy book. One to lift your spirits when you feel down and sad. A big part which made me like the book was definitely due to the community and friends support group, which was there to back up our main heroine. We all have this support group, in one form of the other, and these are the ones who makes life matter.
Enjoyable read. My thanks to Netgalley for providing me a copy of the book for my unbiased review.

This is a delightful, warm and cosy read. Jill always writes such heart warming books and never fails to disappoint.

It was a bit dull, really.

There were lots of events in this story, but they were all just ripples in the water, no waves.

Jill Steeples always gives us great books that are a real pleasure to read.. Leaving London and moving into village life with dogs and winter settings, what more can you want from a good story. 5 stars.

Thanks to Netgalley and publisher for this ARC

I picked this book up thinking it sounded cute and it would be a wintery festive read.....boy was i blown away. I absoloutely adored it, raced my way through the story and loved every single page of it. it's gorgeously warm and romantic. I really enjoy the authors writing style, i find it easy to melt into.

Winter at the Dog & Duck is a lovely story, an easy read and has some lovely characters. Exactly what I was expecting from this genre, it did not disappoint.

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for my ARC.

Winter at the Dog & Duck - Jill Steeples

A small village setting with a cosy pub and all its colorful locals - what's not to enjoy! This is my first time reading a book by Jill Steeples and it won't be my last. I found the writing was just lovely and found the characters really enjoyable. This is the perfect book to settle down with (maybe with a hot chocolate, candle burning and fluffy blanket for company) and just indulge in a little escapism!

Thanks so much Netgalley and Boldwood Books for the e-arc in return for my honest thoughts and opinions.

Cute holiday Rom Com that also finds interesting ways to incorporate serious topics. This was an enjoyable book! Thanks #NetGalley

Thanks to the Publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book.

After the fast paced life in London, Ellie is now wanting a simple life and is back home, in Little Leyton, to stay in her parents house whilst they are in Dubai, where her Dad is working.

To ensure she’s got money for expenses, Ellie starts a dog walking business and works in the local pub. She’s loved in the village her whole life, apart from the time she worked in London, so she knows everyone and has a very good relationship with the landlord of the pub, who is also her Dad’s best friend.

One day she meets Max, a businessman living locally, who has plans for the pub, when he becomes the new owner.

Will Ellie like the plans that Max has for the pub?

I highly recommend this book.

BLURB:
Ellie Browne has left behind her high-flying job in London to return to the charming Buckinghamshire village of Little Leyton.

Working shifts at the Dog and Duck pub and running her own doggy-daycare business, Ellie's looking for a simpler way of life in this idyllic English setting.

But Little Leyton's landscape is changing: Johnny Tay, Ellie's ex, wants to pick up where they left off; sultry property developer Max Golding has moved into the village and is ruffling feathers; and rumour has it that the pub, which holds a special place in Ellie's heart, might be sold. Suddenly, life's looking a whole lot more complicated.... Can Ellie overcome all the challenges to finally find her one true love?

OPINION:
Ellie is so enjoyable right away. She is horrible at assuming without talking, but she is a very likable character. Max is aloof to those who don't know him and isn't really the type to put himself out there for people to meet.

The character build was good. Supporting characters made this book great. I loved picturing the town of Little Leyton. My main issue was the miscommunication that Ellie kept putting herself in. The first time, like ok, but she just assumes too much in life!

I would recommend this book. It was well written and enjoyable.

Thank you to NetGalley and all partners for a free copy in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks Netgalley and the Publisher. How I loved this series all the characters and the location. Great read.

OK so it's the end of August and I'm reading a Christmas book. It was a real feel good book with not too much festive mentions. A great book to read sat on the sofa and let the day go by. Enjoyed this one, it made me start to think about Christmas. My thanks to netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

When I requested this, the title seemed a little familiar to me and when I started reading I realised I had already read this story. It must be being republished.
It was quite some time ago when I read this but as I started again, all the characters started to fall into place again and as before I really got into it.
You will fall for all the characters and the lovely little town in which they live.
It’s a perfect read to pick up, settle down and loose yourself for a while.
Definitely worth a read and the sequels will be there ready and waiting for you when you finish!

Feel good book, perfect to curl up on the sofa and get lost in. Well written characters and a sprinkling of dogs, Lovely. Defiantly a cover to make you reach for it off the shelf. Thank you netgalley for the advanced copy