In this sequel to The Lido Kate is now living in Somerset and struggling to adjust to life with a new baby in a new village. It should be everything she ever wanted but she doesn't feel how she expected. Phoebe is a mental health nurse whose personal life flounders as she focuses on her patients - in dedicating her care towards them she neglects herself. Both women find a community within a group of local wild swimmers that changes everything for them.

There's a huge focus on mental health with this book (not just because of Phoebe's career). Following on from the themes in The Lido is the importance of friends, family and finding your place. Thoroughly recommend.

Another feel good book by Libby Page! I enjoyed the variety of characters and how they get together for the commubity and supporting each other. It was too motherly for my taste, as I am a child free by choice person, but I understand why Libby wanted to portrait that. I didn't expect The Lido to have a follow up novel and it was a nice surprise. Loved the talk about mental health, is impprtabt to have that visibility regardless of the circumstances.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Orion Books for the opportunity to read ARC of this amazing book, If you have read The lido you are going to love this book like I did .



This book tells the Story of Kate who has moved from London to Somerset with her Husband Jay and has recently just had a newborn baby and is trying to find her feet again after having her baby and one day comes across a local river swimming group where she meets Phoebe who has amazing job helping people as a Mental Health nurse which comes with a lot of issues as Phoebe is trying to help all the amazing clients she looks after but at what cost to her own relationship ? thankfully she finds the local river swimming group and meets kate and what follows without giving away any spoilers is amazing book about, friendship being there for each other in your hour of need and helping each other also in the community in your hour of need and saving people

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my copy of this arc!

I really loved this book, it’s been a while since I have read. Libby Page book but I’ve loved them all. I felt like following both main characters here gave so much depth into the book, it really let you see how being a mother or a mental health nurse can affect you without you ever realising.

I think the motherhood one really hit me as I am not a mother yet it’s not something I realised hit it was good to see this perspective.

The pace of this book was really good and gripping. I read the book in a day and a bit as I didn’t want to put it down! I really think everyone would enjoy this book. A solid 4 star read for me

I read the author's debut novel Lido when it first came out and I loved it so much. Learning that there was a sequel I was really excited to get my hands on it to see if it could possibly live up to the first book I read years ago and have probably built up even more in my head since.

It did. I read it in one sitting. Actually could not put it down until I was done. I think I was exactly the target audience for this book which deals with some quite difficult themes - being a new mother and mental health prominent among them. When I became a young mother mental health was not talked about and I felt so many things that are described in this book that I actually feel a lump in my throat as I'm typing this. I wish somebody could have told me some of the things I just read.

I'm so glad this book exists and even though so far I've talked about the darker themes, there was so much light and love weaved into the people and their lives throughout the book. It really conveyed 'this too shall pass', but (mostly) in a non-trivial way.

This book would be ideal for people going through a rough patch, and for new mothers especially, but I don't think anyone should feel left out when reading it. Even if you haven't experienced these things personally, odds are that someone you know has, and if you're lucky enough to be untouched by it in any way, enjoy it for the sheer pleasure of reading a fell-good book about people from completely different backgrounds coming together and finding something that connects them.

I am leaving this a five star rating, because I know I will love this book when I read it later this year.

However, I cannot read this ARC provided by netgalley and the publishers because the words GROUP, ORION & PUBLISHING are peppered liberally throughout the text - often in the middle of sentences. I am not prepared to reduce my enjoyment of a new LP novel in this way just to read it early.

This proof is unreadable.

An incredibly heartfelt and moving book by Libby Page who can do no wrong in my eyes. Beautifully written and engaging I loved every second of reading this book.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of the book in exchange for a review.

I read the Lido last year, followed very quickly by The Vintage Shop, having enjoyed both of those, I was thrilled when I saw the same author had another book out -The Lifeline.
We catch up with Kate who with Jay and baby Rosie have moved out of London to Somerset and is finding being a first time parent hard and missing the Lido and her friends. She joins a local river swimming group where she meets Phoebe, a mental health nurse whose world has started to crumble around her. The two women become friends and their local river swimming group becomes a lifeline for many of the locals.
I’m not a good swimmer, but I’ve quite fancied wild swimming - it’s too cold where I life and I’m not confident enough but reading about them floating down the river and seeing the wildlife sounded quite delightful.
Another brilliant read by Libby Page 📚

I really enjoyed Libby Page’s debut novel, The Lido. It was one of the first physical books I read after getting back into reading a couple of years ago. When I saw that The Lifeline was a follow-up to that book, I was very excited to see if I would like it as much.

The Lifeline follows Kate, who appeared in the first book and joins her after having had a baby and made the move from London to Somerset. The book also follows a new character, Phoebe, who is a community mental health nurse. The two women end up connecting after joining the local river swimming group.

I think this book was a good and easy read despite the difficult topics included that the main and side characters were dealing with. I did feel that there was maybe just one too many things included which lessened the impact. This book would be very relatable for anyone who has recently had a baby and is trying to navigate the changes that come with that experience. I thought that Phoebe was also a good addition as another narrator, along with the other members of the swimming group who I would have liked to have heard from a bit more.

I did not find this novel as compelling as The Lido, so it could be that Rosemary was the key ingredient for me! This was still an enjoyable read and exactly the type of story I was in need of when I read it.

I am rating this book 3.5 stars (rounded up to 4 stars).

Thank you to the publisher, Orion for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Libby Page goes from strength to strength. This is a follow-on from The Lido, which I much enjoyed. We see more of Kate and feel her emotional struggles with baby raising. We also meet Phoebe, and for me she was a standout character. Having worked, as she does, in mental health, I felt so much for her . Both women find joy in cold water swimming and we learn a lot about the people who join them. Social issues, maybe slightly too many, were well documented. I enjoyed reading this and hope to see more from Libby Page. Thank you to NetGalley for a chance to read and review the book.

Oh my lovelies are you in for a treat… where to start! This was a book that I desperately wanted to read and yet kept stopping myself because I didn’t want it to end! If you’ve read The Lido (and if you haven’t why not!) you will love being back with Kate and Jay witnessing them navigate this new stage in their life.

Having started a family Kate has lived back to Somerset to be near family but is not surprisingly missing the lido, her friends and her old life. Throw in the care of a newborn (which will really resonate with readers who have experienced this) and Kate’s not sure she’s made the right decision until she finds wild swimming and the Farleigh on Avon recreational swimming and other water based activities club (I may be paraphrasing!)

The addition of Phoebe the mental health nurse is exquisite and the river swimming setting divine. Like curling up with a set of old friends… ready for a good natter with, of course, a large glass of wine… there is no doubt I will be recommending this to everyone when it’s finally published.

Thanks to NetGalley and Orion publishing group for the arc in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

I read The Lido some time ago and found it to be predictable and over-sentimental. This is the same. I try to avoid "feel good" novels as a rule because of this. I should have known better. in The Lido, Kate saves the lido. In this one, she saves a river swimming spot with the help of lots of supportive groups of friends. They do have problems to overcome, and there are social issues as themes. In fact, too many; loss and grief, struggles with new babies, cancer, river pollution, mental health, etc. But all is solved in a happy haze of goodwill and cheerfulness. It's a bit too much. I want to know why there is a lifeguard there - if it warrants a lifeguard surely it is more than just a stretch of water? Why does he not have a name, and some issues like all the rest of the characters? And the cold is hardly mentioned - they drift around like it's the med. And finally, I'm tired of authors using hair in a "messy bun" as a metaphor for a state of mind.

What a fabulous read.A wonderful follow up novel to The Lido Libby's first book and I loved everything about this story it was full of really interesting characters and Kate and Phoebe's stories were so inspiring but much more than that honest and heartwarming. Kate is struggling with a new born baby and Phoebe's job as a mental health nurse is very rewarding but mentally draining but when they discover the benefits of outdoor swimming it lifts them as they try to include others who are struggling with their own problems. It touches on so many important issues mental health, depression and mothers who are struggling to bond with their babies but its written so beautiful and woven into the story effortlessly it isn't a sad read its uplifting and beautiful and very emotional at times and it's a book I would highly recommend. A 5 ⭐read

Couldn't put this book down, literally read in about two sittings. Loved the two main characters, Kate who was struggling with first time motherhood and Phoebe juggling an all encompassing job...and their search to find themselves again.
Really well written, rounded characters and a heartwarming plot.
This is a great read.. highly recommend. Loved it and will look out for more by this author.

I loved this book - could not put it down. So heartwarming but also dealing with some quite difficult issues.

Kate - a new mum - and Phoebe - a community mental health nurse are both overwhelmed by their lives - both wanting and being dismayed by their choices. Both find a lifeline in cold water swimming and the community of like minded individuals they meet.

Until that lifeline is taken away and they have to fight to win it back.

A story I will be recommending to others. It deals compassionately with the realities of motherhood with a new born and the difficulties of managing yourself in the midst of work/family pressures. The importance of self care is stressed and recommended.

A lovely read - to be recommended.

'The Lifeline' is the perfect sequel to Page's first book 'The Lido'. We pick up with Kate, now married, living in Somerset and a new mum to Rosie. This book focuses a lot on Kate's transition to motherhood, how this impacts her life and how she adjusts. From following Page I am aware that Kate's journey is reflective of her own experience of motherhood and this only made the book feel more emotional and allowed me to connect to the plot more. I loved reading about different experiences of motherhood and Page captures this through the female characters of 'The Lifeline'.
When reading a sequel it is always a joy to catch up with pre-loved, existing characters and I really did enjoy seeing what Kate and her friends have been up to. 'The Lifeline' also has a new central character in the form of Phoebe, a Mental Health nurse with struggles of her own. Phoebe is a wonderful addition to the book and really slots in well with the vibe Page has created and her and Kate become good friends. I enjoyed reading about both characters immensely, they have different and yet similar stories and I really took them both to heart. Page really has a knack of creating beautiful characters whom the reader can feel deeply about.
'The Lifeline' is a joy to read but be prepared, Page does cover some really tough subjects throughout the book. These are handled sensitively and brought so much emotion to the book. I really did love every page of this book.
Thank you to NetGalley and Orion for an advance copy.

There were no great surprises in this novel but I didn't enjoy it any less for that. A feel-good comfort read which follows on from The Lido and brings us up to date with Kate and co in a new countryside setting.

The Lido is one of my top ten reads ever, so I couldn't wait to dive into this one (see what I did there.)

Sadly, it isn't joining the Lido in top ten reads. This felt very mumsy and whilst I understand that women's lives often continue in that guise ,as a childfree woman it was a total switch off for me.

This does touch on sensitive themes and I'm sure will be a real support to those going through similar, but as I'm not that person, I didn't feel that I was the right reader for this book.

This felt very far removed to the point it didn't feel like a sequel at all.

I am not sure this sequel was necessary, it was a nice story and well written as it was expected from Libby but I just found it slow and a bit samey. I absolutely loved the lido and it’s why I was looking forward to reading this but even though the characters were well developed the story felt very similar and I struggled to relate to them. By the end I could not wait for it to finish cos I knew what was coming and I felt like I had been reading it very slowly

The Lifeline by Libby Page

A follow-up to The Lido and it was love!y to catch up with Kate , Jay and Rosie who have moved on from London to Somerset .
Still an avid swimmer and hoping to forge new friendship s , Kate joins a local river swim group , and we are introduced to Phoebe.

Such another brilliant book by this author , an easy 5 stars .