Usually I love a Joanna Nell book – she perfectly captures the joys, fears and sadness of growing older in modern society, with a warmth and humour that always makes me smile and often cry.

That said, this isn’t one of my favourites. We follow Dr Heather Winterbottom as her and her husband, also Dr Winterbottom, retire from their GP surgery and find they have very different visions for the future. While her husband is making new friends and busying himself re-landscaping their garden Heather feels lost without her familiar role and purpose and eventually sets off to fulfil her dream of exploring Greece (more-or-less) solo.

After something of a slow start to her later-life crisis, she has a few adventures along the way, flirts with a little romance, enjoys the glorious food, drinks and landscape that Greece has to offer, and rediscovers that she is a whole person and that life continues after work, marriage and children.

I found the ending a bit too sweetly convenient, wrapping everything up with a neat bow when real life tends to be messier and more complex. Still, this is a fun, light summer read for those longing to experience a taste of Greece vicariously, and Heather’s sunny escape may help to warm you up as the chilly, darker evenings start drawing in.

I've enjoyed all of Joanna Nell's books so far. This one is no different and is another great one.

It actually makes me want to head back to Greece after reading this so don't read it if you don't have the cash to a trip (like me!)

Thank you NetGalley and the Publisher for this ARC.

The Dr Winterbottoms are retiring.
Heather wants a Greek adventure and Alan a chance to connect to his father and brother through a try at self sufficieny.
The separation doesn't go quite the way I expected.
Really good story

I love this authors style of writing, there’s something so feel good about all her novels. This is the third I’ve read by this author and I’ve loved all of them. The main characters are all so relatable and they’re believable storylines.
I really fancy a sailing holiday in Greece now after reading this and learning more about Homer!
I will be recommending this book to everyone, they always make my heart smile.

This book was an easy read, that did give me some food for thought about retirement and making sure your intentions and plans are clear for when that stage of your life arrives.

Heather's adventures were filled with elements of humour and also a lot of sadness, when she hears emotional stories from Dennis.

I enjoyed this quick read of a book.

What a fabulous story! Such an enjoyable read that I was so sad when it ended. Highlighting what a huge change in life retirement is after years of work, this book really illustrates the crossroads and the choices. Doctors Winterbottom both retire, but discover without work they have very different ideas about what to do next. He wants to make a vegetable garden and she wants to explore Greece. Inspired by Homer and a friend passing away, she decides to take a gap year and heads for Grece to have her adventure. This is no Shirley Valentine remake. Totally engrossing, entertaining and makes you feel like you are enjoying the sunshine with her while she works out exactly what she wants from the rest of her life. Loved it!

What a good idea for married G.Ps. Heather and Alan Winterbottom decide to retire together. Heather dreams of long holidays, warm sun and sandy beaches. Alan dreams of vegetables and greenhouses and not going far from the end of the road.

Alan is not listening to Heather, but Heather can clearly hear Alan and she decides that she will do what she wants, to her timetable and sets off to the Greek Isles…… on her own. Although she does sneak the strangest companion with her, someone to keep her accountable.

In the vein of Shirley Valentine, Heather sets out to discover Greece and much more about herself, as we see her embark on differing adventures with some interesting outcomes. As time goes on and her family seem to need her, Heather is faced with some decisions, but then so is Alan.

Full of wit, this book made me laugh out loud but it also made me look round at all the choices that people make when they get to that important stage in their life. Retirement means many things, to different people, including Heather and Alan’s family and it seems they are all adjusting to it.

This authors ability to be able to write about all ages, all types of characters makes her books a joy to read and they are the perfect tonic. Just what the doctor ordered!

This book was like a breath of fresh air! Filled with heartwarming humor and infectious optimism, it had me smiling from ear to ear. The characters were lovable, the dialogue was witty, and the laughs were plentiful. I found myself rooting for the protagonists as they navigated life's ups and downs with humor and grace. A feel-good read that left me in high spirits long after I turned the final page.

I love this author as the characters are always fleshed out and realistic, the stories entertaining and compelling.
Loved this one and it kept me reading.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

I have seen how retiring from steady work at a single occupation can leave people at a loose end. Most of the people in my family who have been in this situation have been men, but I can imagine the subtle differences a woman might encounter.
In this story, after working extremely long hours together in their practice, the Drs Winterbottom have finally decided to sell their practice and retire. Both of them have different images of what their retired life would look like, something that becomes obvious as soon as their 'free time' starts.
After a few run-ins with the people in town and feeling restless, Heather finally takes off on a trip she has envisioned all her life, and since it's something her husband has already done before, she goes alone.
The rest of the book is about Heather and her finding her footing while simultaneously giving us glimpses of the past, how the couple ended up as one, in the same practice, and what came first.
Although I liked the resolution, I found the diverted interest in Heather's case a little annoying. I know it plays an important role in her realising her own worth and that she could still be seen as a woman, but I wanted something different! I have seen versions of this contemplation of romantic entanglements of the heart in the later coming-of-age plots and must admit to wanting something else, even though the ending was well done.
I would recommend this book to fans of the genre and readers who like their protagonists to be at a different age and life point than the average youngster is finding their way.
I received an ARC thanks to NetGalley and the publishers but the review is entirely based on my own reading experience.

This was a nice, cosy read for a winter’s day – thoroughly enjoyed it.

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

This was a delightful read and my first by this author. Heather and Alan are both GPs in rural Devon. Their daughters have both left home and have lives of their own. It’s now time for the couple to spend more time together as they retire from their gp practice.
However things do not work out- Heather has plans to travel and see the world, particularly the Greek Islands, whilst Alan prefers to potter in their garden and grow vegetables. Do they really know each other at all?
After a few months Heather decides to take an adult gap year and really do what she has always wanted- Greece beckons! As her family wave her goodbye will she ever want to return and go back to her previous life?
I really enjoyed this book, maybe because I am a similar age to Heather and embarking on a post work life. Some of Heather’s thoughts are also my own- a desire to travel whilst still able and new hobbies and pastimes are definitely on the horizon.
The characters in the book are well described and are particularly endearing, even Alan who is also floundering, trying to map out a new path after being a well regarded professional for so many years.
I liked the way the book occasionally flashed back to when Heather and Alan first met as it helped to explain their background and made them seem more real.
I would definitely recommend Mrs Winterbottom Takes A Gap Year and will certainly look out for other books by this author.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for my advance copy.

I read this author’s debut novel a few years ago and thoroughly enjoyed it, so I was keen to read this book. Being a lady of a certain age myself, and dreaming of retirement, I could sympathise with Mrs W having an itch she needed to scratch. Joanna Nell seems to fully understand the older generation, particularly women, and I’m sure there are couples out there who will recognise themselves in this book. It was a very lighthearted read and although I didn’t find it as funny as her debut novel, I did laugh out loud several times. It also reminds us about the importance of following our dreams. Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for letting me read and review this book.

I love this author and how they write about relatable life issues with a unique mixture of humour and compassion.

This story is about finding yourself again and how it is never too late to take a gap year. after heather and Alan retire from their lives as the local village gps and now need to re discover themselves and each other and navigate their journey et into retirement.

This book made me smile from the first few pages and I became invested in the characters and their retirement journey.

This was an emotional and engaging read which took you to the delights of Greece which were described so beautifully you could almost imagine you were there and also took the reader on a journey of Greek mythology.

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With echoes of Shirley Valentine in places, this is one fabulous book, about getting to grips with retirement.

For Alan and Heather Winterbottom thought it would be a great idea to retire together, given they had been working together the whole time.

But yet as they give up being GPs, and suddenly have nothing but time on the horizon it appears they may no longer have anything in common.

Alan is suddenly very keen on gardening, and growing his own produce, whereas Heather wants to travel.

It's eye opening that you may think you know your partner, but suddenly you have nothing to say to them anymore.

There are some amusing moments, as well as those that made me smile.

And as Heather finally starts to see Greece, she has an unusual travelling companion with her, which probably shouldn't have made me laugh as much as it did.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading about The Winterbottom's, and also really enjoyed the authors writing style. I must read more of her.

Thank you to Hodder & Stoughton and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

A beautifully written story about gaining in years, but not getting older, and trying to be wiser, whilst making up for lost first times. The gentle flow of retirement does not come easy to Mrs Winterbottom, now wondering about her husband's new plans, which do not align with hers. Full of the laugh out loud moments that I love, and tinged with a sprinkling 9f sadness too. Another goid read.

Heather and Alan have just retired from running their GP practice and are now at a crossroads. Alan wants to mooch and take up gardening, but Heather wants to travel and make up for lost time.
This was an interesting read, I hadn't thought about what happens after retirement before and the author did a good job of showing how lost both the characters were.
I do enjoy reading about an older character, and always like Joanna Nells books.

This book is an entertaining and enjoyable read. It follows Heather on her Gap year to Greece after she retired from her career as a G.P.
The storyline explores how people have different expectations of retirement and what they plan to do next.
This is a good read and o definitely recommend it
. Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for my ARC.

As Joanna Nell does so well, this book is soft, gentle and meandering, with a hint of Shirley Valentine. A nice cosy read.

I enjoyed this. It was nice to read about an older couple and see them navigate the changes in life and relationships. Heather and Alan are suddenly retired together and have to navigate the later years of their lives together, but they seem to forgotten how to communicate effectively with each other about what they want and why they want it.

Seeing Heather and Alan come together and find their new happy was great reading, I really enjoyed it.