Instead of an emotional but healing journey for Stella, the main protagonist, I discovered a darker story with confrontational relationships. Stella is grieving the loss of her idolised best friend. She has spent the time since her death caring for her late friend's daughter and bereaved husband to the detriment of herself, her children and her husband. Her understandable grief is implicit in her behaviour, but her inability to see how her actions affect others leads to a fractured family. The family holiday is not the healing experience they need. I like the complex, relatable characters, the web of relationship dynamics and the evocative setting, which contrasts with the dark emotions. The magical element is implied rather than overt. Stella is struggling with life, as evidenced by her actions and thoughts. She has an element of unreliability that ramps up the story's suspense. It's an atmospheric story, and the toxic ethos culminating in a dramatic event is well-written and allows for an uplifting ending.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

What a beautiful book that Emma has written, set on the picturesque island of Crete. It is a lovely read that allows the reader to escape to the sunshine.

This was a nice sweet story. I loved it! A trip to Greece, family, friends, and new adventures. It was nice to read a story about real issues and the nice people we meet along the way.

I visited the beautiful island of Crete some years ago and was looking forward to being transported back there by reading Beneath the Lemon Trees by Emma Burstall. However this was not the uplifting summer romance read that was expecting.

The prologue promises this to be a novel filled with magic, but unfortunately this aspect was not really explored. I thought this was a shame as that would have made for a more interesting story. Also the housekeeper, Katerina was an intriguing character who I would have liked to have seen more of.

However, after the prologue we are introduced to Stella. She is grieving the loss of her best friend and the breakdown of her marriage. Stella is hoping getting away with her children and another friend will be the tonic she needs. Unfortunately I just couldn't connect with Stella and couldn't understand why she made the decisions she does. I also don't understand the relevance with Stella being accident prone. She was constantly picking at scabs and discovering bruises which she couldn't remember receiving. When a little romance does eventually happen, it's in the form of a sex scene which for me was completely out of place, felt quite jarring and a bit icky.

What I did enjoy was the descriptions of Crete, the scenery and the food. It reminded me of what I love about the island.

Thank you to Boldwood Books and Netgalley for providing me with an ARC for review purposes.

This was a lovely read. I found I couldn’t put it down the writing flowed easily and I was swept along with everyone as they climbed up and down those steep steps every day.

The issues discussed in the book ere quite emotional and I felt they were dealt with very well. Stella was trying to carry so much emotional pain and it was slowly crushing her. I don’t want to give any spoilers but it was quite refreshing to see a family of teenagers going through relatable teen situations and to see a couple that were nearing 50 and still striving to keep the love alive.

The descriptions and views were breath taking and I felt I was there, I felt like I was on holiday as well. A lovely read with a lot of heart.

I found this book to be charming, from storyline to setting, Thoroughly enjoyable read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

From the Blurb I was looking forward to this book, the descriptions were lovely although a little long winded at time the MFC was not very likable and I did not see the reason she made her son go on the holiday, there were a few things mentioned "bland food" but nothing came of them later on, overall I was left feeling like something was missing

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

I enjoyed this book.

The setting is on island that is part of Crete.

The only transport is water taxis and places to see by walking.

Stella books to go with her two children, her friend and her two children.

The past few months haven’t been good for Stella and things have been falling apart for her. Her children too have their own views to what’s happened.

The story covered some hard issues like grief as well as others, it also had a bit of otherworldly parts too.

The story was very well written.

Set in Crete, a place I love and with such a beautiful cover, how could I resist ' Beneath the Lemon Trees'. Breaking my own strict rule of never judging a book by its cover, it serves me right that I was a little disappointed. The novel was not the laid back summer romance that I expected.

Stella and her friend Louise plus their respective teenage children have rented a villa in Crete to give them a much needed break. The holiday did not turn out to be the relaxing one they had expected as there was so much tension between everyone. Unsurprisingly really as Stella, rather an unlikeable person actually, had definitely been asking for trouble with her attitude towards her family.

Transport yourself to Crete with this story of love and loss. It is perfect escapism if you are looking for an easy read full of descriptive paragraphs about beautiful scenery and delicious food.

With thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the opportunity to read and review 'Beneath the Lemon Trees'

A story about loss and grief and allowing yourself space and time to heal and live again.
Stella has been through a lot and it was good to see her recognise that she needed to take time for herself to grieve and feel again.
I loved the descriptions of Villa Ariadne and the town. The beach and coastline sounded idyllic.
The mystery surrounding the villas owners was intriguing and I loved the sound of Katerina and her little off grid house.
An easy read to bring back the summer vibes at the end of the school hols.

This story takes place on a small island belonging to Crete. There aren’t any cars or local land transport, just water taxis & your feet to go exploring. Stella travelled with her son & daughter, with her friend & her two teenage children. There are mixed emotions within the group. Life had been falling apart. The main theme is grief…beware there are triggers. It’s not a romantic holiday read. It’s gritty & deals with tough issues. There’s some ‘paranormal’, which I don’t like. However the story is well written & an interesting read.
I received an Advanced Reader Copy from NetGallery & Boldwood. I am writing a voluntary honest review

This slow burner looks deeply into the abyss that remains when you lose someone you love, and the damage that is done during that time.

Emotions long locked away are brought to the surface in this lovely story, and that's how Stella's soul starts to heal.

In life, much as in Stella's story, its hard not to be a people pleaser, and seeing Stella slowly put herself back together once she starts putting herself first helps remind me that it's ok to do it now and then.

I enjoyed this, and found it a gentle, uplifting read.

While I enjoyed the beginning and end of this book, I felt the middle was a lot of the same.
I felt that the main character, Stella, was very wish washy and wouldn’t stand up to her deceased best friend’s husband. Instead due to her guilt she invites him on a trip that she took with another friend and their kids while she’s trying to move on from her husband and doesn’t seem to understand why her friend is mad and distancing herself.
The sex scene at the end with her husband seemed very out of place after what Stella said at the beginning of the book especially with it right outside in the open. It just wasn’t realistic.
The best part of the book for me was the full descriptions of the beauty of Greece and the descriptions of the food. Additionally I like some of the people that they befriended in town.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.

This book intrigued me from the start. Being Greek, there were quite a few references that hit home for me, specifically in the food descriptions. I really enjoyed the premise of the story, the variety of characters presented and the setting.

I found this book to be quite short, and in turn, some of the characters seemed to be lacking the depth needed to feel truly connected to them. There were also a few moments where I felt the story get lost. The sex scene at the end I found to be unnecessary, especially after what Stella shared towards the beginning of the novel. I also feel like the ending showed a happy family directly after trauma and grief - which doesn’t really fit into a natural timeline.

Overall I enjoyed this quick read.

This book was filled with glorious descriptions, tackled difficult emotions and situations and had a whole realm of quirky, funny characters including a magical villa that chooses its own guests according to need. Fabulous.

Heartbroken after the loss of a friend and the collapse of her marriage, Stella hopes that this trip to the idyllic Greek island of Crete will give her and her family a chance to heal. And when she first steps into the breath-taking Villa Ariadne, with its views over the azure waters and intoxicating scent of lemons, Stella’s troubles seem to melt away.

Until the arrival of an old acquaintance, and an unwelcome revelation, threaten to undermine the peace at the villa, and Stella is forced to make a difficult decision. But with the help of Crete’s beautiful scenery and the kindness of its locals, Stella is about to discover that Villa Ariadne can still offer an escape… and so much more.

This book was okay for me. I wasn't particularly engaged with the story or the characters, but the imagery almost made up for it. That alone bumped it up a star for me. If you want to visit Cyprus, read this book and you'll feel like you're there!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced digital reader's copy (ARC) in exchange for an honest review!

Following her marriage breakdown, and recovering from bereavement, Stella takes her family and friends to Crete. An enchanting villa, to heal wounds and rebuild relationships .Everything does not run smoothly with warnings from a clairvoyant. Well written, interesting story. Perfect summer reading.

In this book, Stella, recently separated from her husband and grieving the loss of her best friend to cancer, decides to take a two-week vacation with her children, her second-best friend, and her friend's children. The vacation, which should be an escape to paradise, is overshadowed by Stella's indecisiveness, inability to say no, and her tendency to be whiny and weak. Her poor decision-making brings an unwelcome houseguest, disrupting the trip further.

While the story offers an appealing escape vibe with vivid descriptions of scenery and village life, the plot is disjointed and lacks focus. The main character, Stella, is frustratingly fragile and inconsiderate, which detracts from the overall enjoyment. There is also a missed opportunity to explore the villa's “magic,” which could have added depth to the story. Overall, the book is an okay read with potential that wasn't fully realized.

I love to read books set in Greece and the Greek islands so this book immediately appealed to me. Whilst some of the descriptions of Crete were very good I wasn’t really drawn to the characters and didn’t really care very much what happened to them. An okay beach read.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC

Stella has gone on holiday to Crete with her children and her friend Louise and her children following the break up of her marriage and death of her best friend Harriet. The break is to give Stella time to heal however it doesn’t appear to be the relaxing break she envisaged. Hector her son doesn’t seem to want to be with them, a lady from the village with ‘the gift’ giving warning messages and then Harriet’s Husband taking her up on the off the cuff offer to come out to holiday with them all lead to arguments and near disaster.
The scene setting was very good and with the description of the food as well I would happily go to Crete.
I however could not warm to Stella unfortunately, although she was understandably devastated about her friends death and appreciate this can lead to acting out of character, she was just too selfish and self absorbed to be likeable.
The spicy content at the end was also unexpected and not sure necessary as didn’t feel like it belonged really, actually made me cringe!
Sorry I could only give three stars as enjoyed learning more about Katelina and history of the villa and the scenery but couldn’t warm to the characters and was getting too annoyed with the main character for this to be a particularly relaxing read.
Thank you to Netgalley nd Boldwood books for an advance copy, opinions are completely my own.