A Fresh Start for the Country Nurse by awesome Kate Eastham is a fabulous start to a new series.

Introducing Lara, who has taken up a role as Practise Nurse in the stunning countryside of Ingleside following a broken romance and a nasty accident. She expected an idyllic life in the country, but she encountered long cycle rides to get patients and the whispers of many residents about “she's not one of us, she doesn't know”. But can she overcome these pressures and settle in the village?

I loved this novel and was enraptured from the beginning! I loved how Mrs Hewitt took Lara under her wing and look forward to seeing if there is a spark between Leo and Lara in the stories to come!

A Fresh Start for the Country Nurse by Kate Eastham is a warm and poignant historical novel. It beautifully renders the life of a nurse. Kate Eastham's writing is filled with compassion, strength, and honesty, making wartime nursing troubles come alive with vivid imagery.

The heroine, Lara, must endure not just the medical horrors of the day but also the individual ordeals of starting anew in a small village in Lancashirr. Her path is one of forgiveness, healing, and gaining a sense of community in the unlikeliest of places. Kate Eastham's representation of the tight-knit village atmosphere brings a sense of charm and warmth, and the period accuracy brings depth and authenticity to the story.

The novel is a mix of inspiration and heartache, providing moments of victory while unflinchingly confronting the challenges of the times. Kate Eastham has a talent for making characters come alive, and readers will be cheering for Lara and the individuals she helps. It's a poignant tribute to the behind-the-scenes heroes of the medical profession in times of turmoil.

Overall, A Fresh Start for the Country Nurse is an interesting read for historical fiction fans with strong, unbreakable characters. It's a lovely story of hope, healing, and the strength of community.

I have read all this authors previous books so was excited to receive a copy of this.
The story was a little slow for me and it has obviously been written with a sequel I'm in mind.

This was a stellar read. As a fan of Call The Midwife, I liked that it was about a nurse’s life but with the change of local from a busy inner city neighborhood to the English countryside. I like books about new beginnings and starting fresh. This was a charming, relaxing read.

July, 1936: Lara Flynn has her heart broken and on the same day is involved in a terrible accident and once she recovers Lara decides to move away from Liverpool, a fresh start and she has no idea is will be a huge challenge. Lara's new job is as a district nurse and midwife at a country practice, in the remote Lancashire village of Ingleside.

Lara rides a bicycle to visit her patients and most live on the outskirts of town and on farms and they don’t like change or new people. Lara has to deal with unpredictable weather, cows, sheep have right of way on the roads, and she never knows what medical cases and emergencies she will encounter from one day to the next. Lara helps a farmer deliver a calf and vet Leo Sullivan likes to stir her up about it and what was she supposed to do just ignore the animal’s noises of distress and cycle past.

Mrs Hewitt the housekeeper and Marion a fellow district nurse are kind to Lara and make her feel welcome, and she becomes friendly with Grace who’s looking after her father and the family farm and an elderly patient Daniel Makepeace and he likes to reminisce about the past.

I received a copy of A Fresh Start for the Country Nurse by Kate Eastham from Boldwood Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. A delightful story about a nurse moving to the country, how she overcomes obstacles, prejudice, bullies and has come up with solutions to medical issues and problems faster than you can snap your fingers.

Lara's character is a kind and caring person and a skilled nurse and I look forward to the next book in the Diary of a Country Nurse series to catch up with Lara and everyone in Ingleside, you can tell the author has a nursing background and has lived in the English countryside by her descriptive writing and I feel like baked rice pudding.

If you enjoyed reading Call the Midwife, you would like this book, and it raises awareness to the struggles women and children faced at the time, including domestic violence, excessive alcohol consumption and poverty and four stars from me.

Been a massive fan of both call the midwife and all creatures great and small this book was right up my street, loved it from the first page, eagerly awaiting the 2nd book.

March 13, 2025
A Fresh Start for the Country Nurse by Kate Eastham #Review



I am delighted to introduce a new series by Kate Eastham. A Fresh Start for the Country Nurse was published by Boldwood Books on 7th March.


Call the Midwife meets All Creatures Great and Small in this first of a heart-warming series about a country nurse and midwife.

July, 1936

After an unexpected heartbreak and a nasty accident on a busy Liverpool street, Lara Flynn is desperate to start afresh and leave painful memories behind her. She takes on a new job as a district nurse and midwife at a country practice, in the remote Lancashire village of Ingleside.

But instead of the friendly rural idyll she pictures, Lara finds she must cycle vast distances to visit locals who harbour an innate suspicion of a newcomer from the city – as well as dealing with unpredictable livestock, an erratic senior doctor and often challenging medical cases. She also rubs up against handsome local vet, Leo, when she helps to deliver a calf!

With time, Lara learns that healing is a two-way street: just as she helps her patients recover from illness and injury, her new life in Ingleside starts to heal her own wounds. But will this tight-knit farming community ever truly take this city girl to its heart?

An absorbing story of compassion, resilience and the power of community, perfect for fans of Donna Douglas and Jean Fullerton.




My Thoughts

This is a promising introduction to a new series set in 1930’s Lancashire. These are the days before war broke out and there are few clues as to what will happen by the end of the decade. In Ingleside, you feel as though you are living in a little bubble, in a tight knit community where everyone knows your business and ‘in comers’ are treated with suspicion. Lara finds herself in this position, having to work hard to prove herself as a competent district nurse.

In the practice at Ingleside, she struggles to settle at first, hoping to find a surrogate family. The demands of the patients give them all a common motivation. Lara emerges as a determined and courageous character who puts on a professional facade and struggles to hide her insecurities and doubts. There is plenty of variety in the daily routine. Each family she visits has their own problems. There are some dark and threatening moments but also many lighter times, full of humour and touching reactions as people warm to Lara’s empathy and kindness.

This first book in the series is all about settling in and establishing relationships. There are plenty of directions further stories can proceed along. Romance is a faint glimmer in the background. Events from Lara’s life in Liverpool may appear within her new life. Most of all, you feel that there is more to learn about Lara and her colleagues and new friends.

In short: new beginnings and new friendships

July 1936- Lara Flynn takes a job as a country nurse after a heartbreak and an accident on a busy Liverpool street make her desperate for a fresh start. I enjoyed this story. It's the first in a series, and I'm looking forward to the next one. I loved Lara! She was a hard worker and was determined to give her patients her best despite the town gossip and harassment from some. She lived with a housekeeper, another nurse, and two doctors. I loved all of the characters, and I'm looking forward to learning more about them since this is the first in a series. It kind of reminded me of Call the Midwife, except it was set out in the countryside.

Thanks to @boldwoodbooks, @netgalley and the author for this arc.

A Fresh Start for the Country Nurse is the first book in a brand new series by Kate Eastham. I do love starting a new series and it didn’t take me long to get stuck into this one. Lara Flynn is the new District Nurse in the small village of Ingleside in Lancashire. Previous to that she had worked in Liverpool and due to personal circumstances she decides she wants to get away and start afresh .
Things don’t turn out exactly as she is expecting and it seems it’s going to take her a while to settle into village life.
This was a wonderful read with a great cast of characters. It didn’t take me long to get to know all the characters and I look forward to meeting them all again in the next book. Although there were sad and emotional parts to this book there were also some lighthearted moments that had me laughing out loud at times. A perfect start to what I know will be a great series.

The story begins in Liverpool, in March 1936. Nurse Lara Flynn completed her nurse training at the Liverpool Royal Infirmary. As she hasn’t really got any relatives, the nurses became her family.
On her 28th birthday, she goes out to a posh hotel with her boyfriend Patrick, but the next day, two upsetting things happen and she decides she needs to move out of the city and do something completely different.
We follow Lara as she moves to Ingleside village, in Lancashire. It’s July 1936 and as the new district nurse and midwife, she is straight in at the deep end. It looks like it could be hard to fit in, as the tight-knit village community see her as an outsider and not one of them.
Lara moves into the doctor’s surgery, where all the staff are based. There’s the grumpy senior doctor Dr Bingham, the much nicer and younger Dr (Angus) Fitzwilliam and the housekeeper Mrs (Edith) Hewitt, as well as Nurse (Marion) Wright and Tiddles the cat.
Soon Lara is getting to know the locals, including the vet Leo Sullivan. I enjoyed the animals featured in the story and how city girl Lara was initially shocked by some of the antics of the farm animals.
The book covers various issues, including some difficult topics like poverty. But overall, it’s a positive and uplifting read.
I like how Lara stands up to Dr Bingham. It annoys me when rude people are allowed to get away with it, but I liked how this young woman stood up for what was right and defended herself when she knew she was in the right about something, even though it was the 1930s.
Marion was a great character too, full of fun and vivacious, and of course the lovely Mrs Hewitt who looks after everyone with her tasty cooking and baking.
I enjoyed following Lara as she dealt with the villagers, how some accepted her and others didn’t, so she had to try to win them round. Having lived in a village myself, I could definitely recognise the close-knit community, how everyone knows everyone’s business and how you are seen as strange if you have another accent. All very realistic.
This is the start of a new series, and I am looking forward to reading more in the future.

I'm reviewing this via NetGalley, as part of a tour with Rachel's Random Resources.

Set in 1936, the story follows Nurse Lara Flynn, who has moved to a quiet countryside village, hoping to start a new chapter in her life. She finds that some residents in the village are more welcoming than others.

On first impressions, Lara seemed like everything a nurse should be; a warm, kind-hearted person who enjoyed taking care of others. I warmed to her almost immediately, and I felt she deserved to be happy and succeed in her endeavours. As I got to know a little more about Lara and her background, I realised that she was also a strong-headed and courageous character. Aside from Lara, some of the other characters made me smile too, especially Marion.

I found the countryside setting quite comforting, and this was heartwarming to read, though it also tugged at my heartstrings in places. I also found it quite easy to read in one sitting, and if you like historical sagas, it would be a good choice if you're looking for a book to relax with.

Thank you to NetGalley, Rachel's Random Resources, and to the author and publisher, for the opportunity to read and review this.

It's July 1936 at Brock Farm, Ingleside Village in Lancashire, UK.
Lara Flynn is a district nurse and this is her first community post in rural Lancashire, having trained in the city of Liverpool before.
At first people are very sceptical of her including the doctor at the surgery ( Dr Bingham) but the other staff at the practice are very friendly towards her, as too is the local vet, after she helps to deliver a calf. Soon she is travelling around the area on the back of fellow nurse Marian's motorbike, but when a young mum brings her daughter into the surgery with a bad scold to her face Lara does her best but is told not to go with them to the hospital but Marian will be going instead, so she has to deal with the very angry father. There are many situations that Lara has to deal with during her daily work, some good and some bad, prejudices too as she is new to the area and job. Soon friendships are made as the residents take to her and welcome her into their community. She is welcomed to join in the fun at the village dance but is then called out to deal with a young woman patient who desperately needs her help. Then in the days that follows her friends certainly need her help more than ever, but will it be enough?
When a child desperately needs medical help, can Lara help or will the parents blame her again? Through good times and bad Lara finds out that she has certainly got some good friends but unfortunately some enemies too.
A lovely story that draws you into the characters lives and families in a great location.
Fans of Call the Midwife and All Creatures Great and Small will love this story which is set in a lovely rural community in the 1930s and full of community spirit as well as having village busy bodies who need to know everyone's business. I really enjoyed reading this book and was gripped from the beginning and couldn't put it down, it's one of those books where you have to read just one more page. A well deserved five-star read from me.

#afreshstartforthecountrynurse
##Boldwoodbooks
##Netgalley

Quite a heartwarming tale of Lara's new life in the country. She's definitely an old-soul and fits in well with most of the community. It's sad that she has a few hiccups along the way but given the time in which it's set it's not really surprising. The story gives a glimpse into the lives of the villagers and there relationships while Lara finds her feet as the community nurse.

Lara's colleagues all sound really supportive and I like how they get on and take care of each other. It's a tough job and they work hard to serve the villagers.

I thought it was a fun read with some interesting events to liven up Lara's experience of country living. There were some tense moments but the community spirit shows that she'd been accepted and wasn't going to be run out by one idiot. Her relationship with Mr Makepeace was particularly moving and reminded me of the relationship I had with my gran.

Okay. Raise your hand if you love Call The Midwife or All Creatures Great and Small on PBS! I love both these shows. This book is based in a small village about a nurse who happens also to be a midwife. She recently moved to the country after an unfortunate accident.

Right off, Lara Flynn delivers a baby. A baby cow!

Lara does have her ups and downs while trying to find her place in this new village.

I enjoyed the story and hope to find out more about Lara in the future.

This new novel is the first in a series and great for historical saga fans. I've not read this author before but I enjoyed the setting and would enjoy reading the next installment in the series.

OMW.....what we women had to prove to get the slightest bit of recognition way back then!! A lovely feel good tale which took us on a journey of a new district nurse and the few disapproving persons who gave her a difficult start. She showed her mettle and showed that she was well up to this country practice with all it's unusual patients........even a cow in labour!!
I enjoyed this book but can't say that it gripped me.
Many thanx to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for allowing me to read and review this book

This is a great story about Nurse Lara who has arrived in Ingleside from Liverpool to be a District nurse .Lara left Liverpool after a bad experience there.Doctor Bingham gives her a hard time and is always trying to find mistakes with everything she does but Mrs Hewitt the housekeeper tells her things will be alright.One of the problems is that everybody knows everybody and what is happening in the village as soon as it happens.Will Lara fit in and be accepted in Ingleside.Thank you to Netgalley and Boldwood

A Fresh Start for the Country Nurse - a title that was definitely right up my street - and it was definitely that, a fresh start for Lara.

A Liverpudlian born, bred and trained as a nurse/midwife and district nurse - she needed a new start after a relationship with a cad. She then had an accident that meant she sought pastures new.
This was, literally, as country life was completely new to her -this was a mixture of all those 70’s TV programmes of vets, medicine and rural life.
The surgery she was attached to had disparate characters that all added to the mix and enjoyment of the book.

Kate Eastham had obviously well researched her subject- which I had noticed in her previous books - and the book was well written. Fast paced but not so fast that details were lost.

Lara took almost the whole book to be accepted by most of the villagers - but there is ample opportunity to further the lives of many of the characters so I look forward to meeting them all again and finding out more about their lives.
And it seems almost inevitable that there will romance for Lara - just who with is more of a conundrum.

Can’t wait for the next instalment

I really enjoyed this story and think it's an excellent first instalment for the series. I can't wait to read more!
The main character is Lara, a nurse who has previously worked in Liverpool. Due to a relationship breakdown and an accident, she takes a new job in the rural village of Ingleside. The book follows her journey of working as a district nurse/midwife as she tries to fit in to village life.
I loved Lara as a character. She is kind and caring, but a bit naive about country life. I liked that she had to work hard to prove herself to the locals before they would accept her.
The other characters at the surgery and in the village were interesting. I enjoyed the drama - both medical, and personal. I liked the hint of a blossoming romance on the horizon for Lara.
The in depth descriptions meant I could really picture the village in my head.
I liked that the book includes topics such as domestic abuse, poverty and alcoholism which were portrayed realistically and addressed sensitively.

Very much enjoyed this quick paced story that packs in depth without being preachy. I appreciated the chapter length - not too long and not too short, appropriate to keeping my attention in manageable chunks. There are several potential love interests for Nurse Lara and I'm pulling for the veterinarian -- although Angus is also an intriguing option. This was an introduction to Lara and the reasons she left a larger city for nursing in the country, and it is an effective way to get readers up to speed with the cast of characters and townspeople without being pedantic. Suffice it to say I am looking forward to the next installment AND I am about to seek out other Kate Eastham works in the meantime.