Once again I had misjudged a book by its cover. The story and the author's writing had a great depth and the flow was just natural. The author was successfully able to capture the struggles of a novice writer and the process of creating a book has been captured really well. It didn't feel documentarylike or boring but managed to secure the essence. The love story was very gentle and the idea to draw parallels with a historic romance was brilliant. Kudos to the author for managing to narrate the tale in an interesting, realistic yet fairytalelike way. Going with a 4-star.

Authors often share the advice "write what you know", which is probably why there are so many books about writers. Unfortunately, this has posed a trap for many contemporary authors who wind up with plodding novels featuring characters with little to say and even less worth writing about. But then, most authors aren't Fay Keenan.

Part of why Coming Home to Roseford Villas, her fifth book in the Roseford series, avoids this is because the main character, Rory, actually writes. Burnt out from teaching, Rory packs up and heads to the quaint village of Roseford for the summer with the intention of finally working on her novel. And Keenan actually makes it interesting, delving into the technical aspects of not just writing, but editing, workshopping, and researching. Rory carefully combing through a local archive and untangling a long-forgotten love story end up as some of the strongest sections of the book, giving her burgeoning writing career almost the same allure as a detective on a high-stakes case.

However, that's only a sliver of the story. Fortunately, because Keenan works hard to make Rory's professional life so compelling, there's added intrigue to her love life—it is a romance, after all. It's only because of her writing that she ends up at Roseford Villas, a rental property ran by Leo, her first true love whom she hasn't seen in twenty years—not since his family moved to Australia. It's a quirky coincidence brought on by a last-minute overbooked Airbnb switch, and Keenan pulls out all the stops to wring as much tension from their early encounters as possible.

As the two navigate a renewed life in each other's orbit, there are some serious questions about whether twenty years is too long to rekindle. It's an interesting contrast to the otherwise cheery Roseford, where charming side characters and absolutely dreamy locales abound. In an idyllic village, who doesn't love a little drama, and Keenan finds plenty of compelling ways to set off some fireworks. As Rory balances her novel and determining what she wants from Leo, Leo struggles with the remnants of a previous relationship and one or two revelations of his own. Even still, this somewhat quiet second-chance romance provides plenty of sweetness.

Ultimately, Coming Home to Roseford Villas should be the kind of romance Rory aspires to write. Fay Keenan has delivered a heartfelt, gorgeous, and utterly swoon-worthy read.

A sweet, delightfully British second-chance romance. The secondary historical plot was an interesting angle. A fun, easy book to read on a vacation!

Oh how I loved being back in Roseford! This is fast becoming a favourite series of mine. All the characters from the previous books make an appearance and if you haven’t read any of them before Fay Keenan makes it easy to work out how they are all connected. ( although if you haven’t read them you’re missing out!) This time round is the story of English teacher Rory who is staying in Roseford for the summer while she embarks on her dream of writing a romance novel. She gets the shock of her life though ( as does he) when she arrives at Roseford Villas where she’ll be staying and comes face to face with her first love Leo. After 20 years apart will they reconnect again? I devoured this in a day as I really couldn’t wait to find out how things were going to turn out. This is full of love, warmth and friendship. I can’t wait for the next visit to Roseford! Thanks to Boldwood Books and Netgalley for the ARC

A story about second chances. Rory and Leo find themselves face to face 20 years after a family move across the world broke up their first love. Now, contending with personal issues as well, we are if a second chance is in the cards. I enjoyed the characters in this one. A part of a series but only in shared locale and very background characters so fine alone.

3.75 stars but rounding to 4

Rory, an English teacher from York, is looking forward to her summer holiday and starting the journey of writing her first novel. A last minute change in accommodation leaves her on the way to Roseford Villas to find out her first love, Leo, is running the bed and breakfast she’s staying at over the summer. Will their love get a second chance in Roseford?

This was an enjoyable, light, summer vibes read! Could totally imagine myself sitting on the beach relaxing with this one. One of my favorite things about this book was the author’s description of Roseford, the town in the English countryside where the novel takes place. It felt like I was sitting in this quaint little town with all of the characters! I wanted to sit in the gardens of the cottage and have some tea with Rory and Leo.

I also enjoyed how Rory’s inspiration for her own novel was a mix of history (both through stories in Roseford and her own experience). It was realistic and I liked seeing Rory process the information she was given through the Archives and her friend Stella and drawing on it for her own inspiration.

The second chance love story was well done and didn’t feel too pushed or rushed. The timing was just right and Rory and Leo were so sweet together!

Thank you NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Read if you love..
Second chance romance
Cozy cottages in the English countryside
Sweet summer romance vibes
Author FMC