A rather slow start but another charming read with lots of information about conservation and, of course, penguins. Everything wraps up nicely in the end giving a nice feel-good read.

I’ve enjoyed all of Hazel Prior’s books so far and this is no exception.
When I read the first penguins book I had no idea there’d be two more! And what a treat they’ve been.
Whilst I loved the first book the most, I’m so glad we got to spend more time with Veronica, Daisy and the penguins.
Uplifting books with beautiful animals.
What’s not to love?

Another great book from Hazel. Having read both previous books it was lovely to catch up with Veronica and friends again. A lovely feel good light hearted read.

I’ve read this authors previous books and love them so grabbed this one when I saw it on netgalley UK and it went straight to the top of my to be read list
In this book ,the third in the series,we meet the same characters again and elderly Veronica, her cleaning lady and her young friend Daisy all determined to walk 100 miles to save a local penguin Charity. In comes the famous TV presenter who offers to take them down to the south Atlantic to the Falkland Islands and onto the Antarctic to complete their walk and revisit some of their penguin friends.
I loved the fact that Veronica in her 80s was not too late to discover love and it’s exactly what you want for her.
I love the fact that the otter Sanctuary near Exeter is mentioned from the authors non-Penguin related novels . I don’t know if it’s just me but I love it on the TV when characters from different series appear and this works just as well in novels
Hazel writing is easy to read clear and flowing with beautiful descriptions and the ability to precisely nail character description. Her cast feel entirely real and like well love soap stars you feel you can predict how they will behave as you know them so well by now.
If you loved Hazel‘s previous novels you’re going to love this one. It has everything the others have plus a bit of romance.

I read an early copy of the novel on NetGalley UK. The book is published in the UK on the 7th of November 2024 by Random House UK Transworld publishers penguin , of course it had to be penguin didn’t it just noticed that
This review will appear on NetGalley UK, Goodreads and my book blog bionicSarahSbooks.wordpress.com
After publication, the review will also appear on Amazon UK

This is the 3rd book in the series, and I enjoyed as much as the others! A light hearted story, following Veronica, Daisy and Eileen’s mission to save a penguin sanctuary! It held my attention and I read it in no time! A great holiday read.

I really enjoyed the two previous books in this series Away with the Penguins and Call of the Penguins and I was delighted to receive a copy of her new book Gone with the Penguins.
Another adventure with Veronica McCreedy when she becomes Penguin Ambassador.
A charming story with likeable characters.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House, Transworld Publishing for my e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

Oh I was so so excited and happy to have been approved to read this before publication.

I fell in love with Veronica in Book 1 and 2 having read both books only earlier in the year.

This trilogy is super heart warming and I don't know anyone who hasn't read these books and not fallen in love with Veronica.

Getting reacquainted with the characters was like a warm hug I didn't know I needed.

I will remember Veronica and the penguins for a long time.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart to the publishers and to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this.

5 stars from me.

I really enjoyed 'Penguins' books 1 and 2, so I was really excited when the opportunity to review book 3 came up. And it did not disappoint. Mrs McCreedy is back and better than ever, alongside Eileen and Daisy, this book makes for a wonderful tale about 3 women/girls doing whatever it takes to protect the environment and, of course, their local penguins. I actually cried at parts of this book, a truly life affirming, beautiful read with stunning scenery and lots of emotion. I loved it!

I have been dreading this day for so long. The day when I finish this gorgeous Trilogy. I’m not ready to say goodbye to Veronica and the journey she’s taken me on. I cried 4 times during this book!! I have loved this trilogy so much. I want to thank Hazel for bringing Veronica and her story to us. I feel so attached to Pip, Mac and all the other penguins 🐧 Gone with the Penguins is a very heartwarming book of friendship, love, conservation and the determination to save our Penguins and raise awareness. The amount of research Hazel must have done for this book is clear to see throughout. In Gone with the Penguins there are some extremely important topics covered with the importance of conservation and the impacts of climate change. I will definitely be reading this trilogy again and I really hope we get to hear more from them in the future. Maybe seeing Daisy when she’s a bit older and seeing where she is now. And of course seeing Pip again.

I absolutely loved this book.
I found it so heartwarming. It was an absolute joy to read & review it.
Like a great big hug in a book!

I’ve read all of Hazels books and I was really looking forward to reading this. In comparison to her others I found this a little slow and I didn’t engage with lots of the narrative. It was lovely to see Veronica, Eileen and Daisy back together and Sir Robert and to find out about Pip but I did skip some pages as they were in my opinion just filler pages.

*Gone with the Penguins* by Hazel Prior is a heartwarming and charming novel that blends humor, adventure, and deep emotional resonance. The story continues following 86-year-old Veronica The novel delves into themes of loneliness, family, and the unexpected connections that can change one's life. Prior’s writing is engaging, with a good balance of wit and sentimentality, making it a delightful read for those who enjoy character-driven stories with a unique setting. The book offers a refreshing perspective on aging and the idea that it's never too late for adventure or change. A lovely end to a lovely trilogy

How do you review such a fabulous book. It is better to have read the other books but following Veronica, Eileen and Daisy was great. It was told in chapters by the three main characters. Lots of twists and a perfect ending. The book held you all the way. I absolutely loved it. There were a few happy tears. Read it.

Having read the previous two books in the series I was looking forward to catching up with Veronica and her friends and the concept of the story is great as she’s devastated to learn her local wildlife centre is shutting down which could lead to the 24 penguin residents having to be euthanised if they cannot be rehoused. She decides to do a sponsored walk to raise money to save the centre and is soon joined by 10 year old Daisy and her housekeeper Eileen. So far so good yet somehow I just failed to engage with the book, I’m not sure if it felt a bit of a negative read or a got a bit fed up of preached at about environmental issues but somehow I just didn’t gel with this. The actual storyline is fine and they travel to some amazing locations, I did actually enjoy Eileen’s storyline but I think she’s quite a relatable character in a lot of respects and she really does develop as a person in this book. The romance storyline however just felt contrived when a strong friendship felt much more right, I know it helped provide a happy ending but I don’t personally think it was right for the characters. Overall there’s some great issues raised and it was good to catch up with the characters but it just wasn’t quite for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK, Transworld for this ARC.

This is the third and final installment of Veronica McCreedy's adventure with the penguins after Away with the Penguins and Call of the Penguins, and it takes place two years after the last book, when 87 year old Veronica realises a local Sea Life Centre is at risk of being sold to a developer and the 24 resident penguins at risk of being euthanised.

She decides to do a charity walk of 100 miles in a month, just like the King penguins do every year. Her menopausal housekeeper Eileen (yes, the phrase "Come on, Eileen" is used) and sweet little Daisy, now 11, decide to accompany her as "The Three Mackateers". The first part of the walking route is in Scotland but her old friend Sir Richard Attenborough, sorry, Sir Robert Saddlebow (come on, we were all thinking it!), arranges for them to fly out to the Galápagos islands before travelling on to the Falklands where Veronica is being bestowed the title of Penguin Ambassador. The last part of the walking journey will be to Antarctica to visit her old friend, little penguin Pip as well as her grandson Patrick and his girlfriend Terry. So far, so wild.

The story is narrated in dual POV by Veronica and Eileen, interspersed by Daisy's penguin blog that gives us lots of facts about penguins in an accessible and easily understandable tone.

I was very jealous of the travelogue. I loved reading about those beautiful places, lovingly described, and with an abundance of wildlife - penguins of course but also tortoises, iguanas, flamingos, blue-footed boobies and sea lions.

Now, Veronica is not everybody's cup of tea, and I can understand why. She is snobbish, brittle and rude, making no attempt to get people's names right for example. But underneath the sniffy façade is a big, warm heart. Veronica loves Daisy, Patrick and the penguins and is very fond of Sir Robert and Eileen who she learns to appreciate a lot more during their voyage. She realises she is getting older and often has word-finding difficulties, but is otherwise sharp as a tack.

Plotwise, there is a lot going on as both Eileen and Daisy battle through some personal crises, and Veronica's plan hits several snags. However, "The survivors are the ones who can adapt most quickly to change", so solutions are found. There is even romance blossoming though it comes a bit out of left field. To be honest, the whole story is pretty unbelievable but when was it ever not?

The one criticism I have is that it's slightly overlong - 50 to 100 pages fewer would have been perfect.

This is a charming, wonderful romp of a book, chock full of quirky plot and characters - a fitting ending to a great trilogy. Highly recommended.

I remember enjoying the first book in the series, was less impressed with the second, and found this the most lukewarm of the lot. I’m not convinced this story needed a sequel, much less a trilogy.

What I noticed as I was reading:

🐧 Veronica is starting to get on my nerves. She’s so arrogant, rigid, rude, and old fashioned. Yes, it’s a caricature but it’s grating after three books. She has to ‘learn’ the same lesson over and over again and, frustratingly seems to reset to default at the beginning of each book making us retread the same ground with her each time. Not only does it get frustrating as a reader, it makes her a lot less sympathetic a lead character.
🐧 I didn’t love how much air time we spent on Eileen’s philandering husband, Daisy’s tedious whining, and Veronica’s silly ‘romance’ thread (which was totally lukewarm and forced). As the books have gone on, they have definitely become more melodramatic.
🐧 I find adults refusing to understand technology and thinking it’s cute or funny to be ignorant really tedious. Like, my grandad was older than Veronica and he was a competent macOS user. The constant ‘I’m SuCh A LuDdItE teehee’ was grating.
🐧 Since reading the first two books, I now live in South Ayrshire and am noticing some geographical discrepancies: Given Eileen lives in Kilmarnock, I assume Veronica is near-ish Irvine (as she’s coastal) and she takes a taxi from there to Edinburgh?! For LUNCH?! That’s like a four hour round trip?! In South America, Eileen refers to Ayrshire beaches as “cliffy”, but err, not really? Sure, we’ve got the Heads of Ayr but our beaches are mostly flat or a little hilly along the coast. Speaking of Scotland, unless it’s changed since I bought my house, the seller is responsible for the home report and survey, not the buyer. Buyers can get choose to get an independent one (as can their mortgage provider), but the seller has to provide a current one.
🐧 I didn’t vibe with the writing style in this book: it felt very young. Some of this could be attributed to adults relaying information to the child, Daisy, but much of it was simplistic, lacked finesse, and was saccharine and cloying. The educational inserts were ham-fisted and dumbed down which might not land with an adult audience. I also got really annoyed by the adults censoring their swearing in increasingly juvenile ways. In Patrick’s case especially, it made them read more like teenagers.
🐧 Weird religious undercurrent to this book that I don’t remember from the other two. There’s also some heavy-handed morality ‘lessons’ in the book that I didn’t care for in an adult book.
🐧 This is the second book I’ve read recently that seems to have overt product placement which feels a bit jarring given the attempted environmental and anti-consumption message. (Although let’s not look too closely at Veronica’s air and boat travel there 🥴)
🐧 That ending was not worth three books.

Despite how that reads, I’m glad I read this: it was a fine way to spend a rainy day and, while a bit long-winded at times, an easy read. On the whole, I’d have enjoyed the series more if it had been one book with a focus on the penguins and environmental theme rather than a drawn out trilogy that gets increasingly melodramatic as it goes on. I think this will appeal to more to women’s fiction and contemporary readers more than it did me. To Prior’s credit, if this gets more people clued up about global citizenship, the plight of penguins, and the importance of planetary stewardship, then I’m glad it exists!

I was privileged to have my request to read this book accepted through NetGalley. Thank you, Penguin! 🐧