Book Review and pamper night 💜💙

It’s my turn on the blog tour today for Under One Sky by @zoefolbigg

I love books that take you to places without leaving the house. Travel is one of my passions and I was excited to read this. Set in several countries this was right up my street.

Norway is on my list so I really enjoyed getting to read about the country. I would love to go and see the northern lights.

Cecilie and Hector meet in an online chat room. I loved how the story started and left you wanting more to see how the start of an online chat could end up when they wasn’t in the same country. I was intrigued as there was also another story line going on and I couldn’t work out how they all joined up which was exciting.

I was invested in Cecilie and was routing for her happy ending. Along with Hector he has a sadness about him. I loved the chat room talk and enjoyed how the dual timeline allowed the story to build up slowly and kept me hooked.

Even though it felt like a slow burn romance I raced through this.

I love destiny and think this element of the story drew me in.

Captivating, romantic and in wonderful locations it’s a must read.

I also loved Zoe’s first book The Note with Train Man That’s a must read too 😍

Thank you for letting me be part of the blog tour. @rachelsrandomresources @theboldbookclub

Two strangers meet in an interchat room. They form a friendship but as they live in two different parts of the world.
Both hiding feelings, but getting on with their lives. Will they ever decide to take it further?

The settings of this book are so beautifully described from the heat and bustle of Mexico to the calm cold of Norway and the sparks between Hector and Ceci, across the internet, are fantastically written. However, I found Kate a distraction and it was hard to place where she belonged in the story really from the outset...I felt she was superfluous in many ways and spoiled the flow on occasion!
The ending is just as it should be and overall the book is a good read.

I am a big fan of Zoe Folbigg and all her books, Under One Sky is a wonderful example of why I do. I love how she is able to draw me in, she weaves her spell over me as much as she weaves her plots over the story and the characters , so much that I don’t want to leave her pages.

I love how much emotional she makes me experience on the characters journeys, the pain and struggles they face and how they change their lives, choose their paths. I adore how she always manages to surprise me, when I realise she’s been throwing hints throughout the story it’s a magical journey I take too.

No spoilers because I never ever spoil a book for anyone, but I can say I loved the ending and it’s simplicity, it felt so perfect and true to the story and was a wonderful reward for all the book anxiety.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Under One Sky by Zoë Folbigg is a heartwarming and emotional romance that explores the transformative power of love, the challenges of overcoming personal struggles, and the beauty of taking chances on the unexpected.

Cecilie, a young woman living in Arctic Norway, leads a life defined by routine and familiarity. She works at a local café in her small town, where she’s grown up and where everything feels safe. When she stumbles across Hector Herrera online, her world is turned upside down. Hector lives thousands of miles away in Mexico, and while they begin chatting casually, it quickly becomes clear that there is a strong, undeniable connection between them. Over time, their conversations blossom into something much deeper, and they realise they might have fallen in love, even though they’ve never met in person.

However, Hector is running from a tragic past, and Cecilie is rooted in her small town, uncertain whether she can make a leap of faith for someone she has only known online. The distance between them is not just physical but emotional, as both characters are dealing with their demons and facing difficult decisions about change.

The novel beautifully captures the complexity of their relationship as they try to navigate their feelings for one another while confronting their fears and insecurities. Cecilie, in particular, must decide whether she can leave behind everything she knows to pursue something as uncertain as love with someone so far away. Hector, too, must confront his past and find a way to embrace the possibility of a new future.

Under One Sky is a story of hope, vulnerability, and the power of connection. It’s a journey of self-discovery, where both characters must face the pain of their pasts and decide whether they are ready to take a chance on love, no matter the obstacles. Their love story is about more than just crossing distances; it’s about crossing the emotional divides that separate them from their true selves and each other.

With beautiful descriptions of the contrasting settings—the cold, stark beauty of the Arctic landscape and the warmth and vibrancy of Hector's life in Mexico—Folbigg creates a story that feels both intimate and vast, illustrating the physical and emotional distances we must sometimes overcome to find happiness and love.

This is a book that will make you reflect on your own life and the risks you take in the name of love. It’s emotional, poignant, and ultimately uplifting, reminding readers that sometimes love finds us when we least expect it and can change the course of our lives forever.

Read more at The Secret Book Review.

My favorite part of this book is really the descriptions. The author has does a great job of building the scene so that you feel like you are in Mexico, Norway and England. Kate's story feels disjointed and out of place in the back and forth of Hector and Cecilie's relationship. I did enjoy their texting and messaging banter. It was fun watching two people from very different places come together over a common ground. Overall, I thought that the differing timelines and perspectives made the story hard to follow and less engaging. I did struggle through this as a result.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Thank you Netgalley & Bolwood Books for my review copy. These are my thoughts:

Cecilie lives a quiet, uneventful life in Artic circle in Norway. Hector lives halfway across the world in Mexico. His life is colourful and lively in comparison to Cecilie’s. They met in a chat room and bond over their love of Depeche Mode. As their friendship grows, so do their feelings but the timing isn’t right - they live worlds apart and Hector isn’t exactly available. But even though it feels like destiny, can they bridge the distance and come together? In England, Kate leads a suburban life - housewife and mother of three, her greatest concerns revolve around her family and all the PTA and WI meetings and events she is a part of. When her seemingly perfect life is put to the test, she must decide if this is a path worth continuing on or whether it’s time for a change.

And Zoe does it again! The story revolves around Cecilie and Hector, and Kate seems to be thrown in the mix without belonging to their plot. She does and she doesn’t. That’s what I love about Zoe’s stories - the way she weaves plots and subplots and the surprise element, with clues and hints that you pick up along the way. The contrast of the settings and cultures, was well infused into the personalities of each character.

Cecile and Hector share a connection that goes beyond the internet. Though morally questionable at times, they feel conflicted - Hector because he’s slowly drifting away from his old ways; while Cecile lacks the courage and motivation to change, even though her life has become dull. And Kate finds that her life didn’t pan out how she’d imagine and her husband turns out not to be the person she thought.

This is an emotional journey. The characters must face their pain and struggles and decide what is best for them. Change is hard and when all three characters are faced with it, their decision to embrace change or not, will determine the course of their lives.

I have to say, I loved the ending. It was simpler than I had imagined and felt like something that could have happened in real life. It was worth all the worrying and back and forth from the characters.

I very much enjoy Zoe’s books. This is probably my fifth and I love that I can tell it’s a Zoe Folbig story from her writing style, which its very much her own. Can’t wait for the next one!

Set in the stunning country of Norway, Cecile and Hector fall in love yet with any relationship there are struggles and things aren’t always straightforward. I was confused at times and struggled to follow the story when it kept switching between different years. I loved the different settings this book is set in ~ Paris, Mexico, Norway , the descriptions make you feel like your there and also made the story interesting to read. I found the frequent use of swear words annoying and not needed. I also didn’t like the amount of times text messages where included, there was 5 pages in a row at one point.
Thank you to Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book, all opinions expressed are my own.

I’ve been a fan of Zoe Folbigg ever since reading The Three Loves of Sebastian Cooper. The memory of such a cleverly constructed and emotional story stayed with me for a long time after I had finished it. Since then, I’ve also read Five Days, which I also thoroughly enjoyed, but have to admit Christmas in New York has not yet been added to by TBR pile. After just finishing Under One Sky, that’s about to be remedied.
I have to say I simply love Zoe’s writing. The way she breathes life into her characters and makes them feel very real, their situations deserving of our sympathy. On this occasion there are three - Hector in Mexico, Cecilie in Norway and Kathy in England. Hector and Kathy go way back and were involved when she was in her teens and helping out at an orphanage Hector had spent time in as a child. Cecilie is his on-line friend who met him on a Depeche Mode fan forum. Their long-distance relationship has blossomed from friendship to something more, although they have never met face to face. My main sympathies were with Hector and Kathy, both of whom had to deal with difficult relationships – Kathy’s awful husband who she suspected of having an affair, and Hector, whose party loving wife even resorted to stealing money from him. Cecilie’s issues were slightly different. She longs to break away from her ‘safe’ life in Tromso with her brother, but lacks the confidence to make changes.
It’s a cleverly woven story. A romance with a difference and definitely another well-deserved five star award for me.
I would like to thank Boldwood, the author and Netgalley for an ARC of Under One Sky in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed the story, but it did take me a while to work out who was who and the timeline.
It’s a beautifully written book and it was fascinating to read the descriptions of all the different parts of the world.
I was rooting for Cecilie and Hector from the start and the story has a beautifully happy ending. Definitely check this one out - off to recommend it to my friends!

An easy enough read but I got confused with the timelines at points and didn't really feel that there was a lot of point to Kate's parts.

My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book.

This was a good read with great characters. Not a conventional love story but a love story all the same. The descriptions of both Cecilie and Hectors lives give a vivid and vibrant picture and you can easily imagine them as real. The input of Kate was at first a little strange and incomprehensible but became clearer later on.

A decent read

first of all i would like to thank the publishers Boldwood and Zoe herself for letting me review such a wonderful read .

I read Zoe's last book and i fell in love it very much , i got to meet Zoe last year i can tell you she is a wonderful person and i love her imagination,she loves diving in to the human emotion and the way we think as humans when it comes to love or any emotion she says it like it is i think that is wonderful .
The plot to this book i did not see coming very different ,the fact the characters have not yet got to meet each other i am always sceptical of romance like this ,but wow Zoe writing made it so dreamy yet real all at the same time that is power of good writing .she so clever at making you feel what the Characters is feeling . loved how it was a small town vibe , with them learning about each other's life . you can see that Ceclie and Hector are soul mates to be so different yet just the same . i loved all the characters , they all blended so well, I loved their personality you could really connect with them all .

i think if you love Zoe books you will love this just as much highly recommend .

i am giving the book 5 emotionally charged stars

Your reaction to this book might depend a little on your expectations. Yes, it really is the “utterly gorgeous romantic read” the publishers promised – but it was never going to be a conventional love story when Hector lives in Mexico and Cecilie in Norway, both living very different lives on opposite sides of the world. Their initial common ground is a love of Depeche Mode, as they “meet” on a fan forum – but their on-line relationship slowly develops into something considerably more.

We learn about their lives through a really innovative but easily followed timeline. Cecilie lives a small life, never having travelled, the mother who she lives with in some luxury a rarely present politician, her father having committed suicide by jumping from the harbour bridge – but she’s quietly quirky and fiercely independent, works different jobs at the library and a few cafes, has a number of close friends and a good relationship with her brother. Generally, she’s very “together”, but there are developments in her life that throw her off kilter, and Hector’s support – albeit at such a distance – becomes increasingly central to her well being.

Hector, now a commercial artist, had a very different upbringing – his care was shared by his grandfather and the local orphanage he still supports. Through his own relationships, he finds it increasingly difficult to distance himself from a former dissolute lifestyle and the involvement of gangs in his everyday life – and his much-needed connection with Cecilie provides a stability that becomes more and more important to him. And that timeline? It swirls, but is always clearly signposted – we’re there for their tentative early contact, through the heartbreak of Hector’s marriage and its aftermath, through their breaks in contact, and into the present day when the possibility of them meeting becomes real.

There is an additional complication to the story’s telling – a third point of view in Kate, a mother of three in England, endeavouring to cope with the suspected infidelity of her husband. We slowly learn that she and Hector have a past – a very distant one, when she helped out in the orphanage as a teen. Her particularly touching story unfolds along a separate track – it was one I rather enjoyed – with all three of their lives converging towards the book’s end.

However unusual the story’s telling or its highly original premise, something the author does incredibly well is to bring her characters to life on the page, to make them sympathetic and real, and to make you believe in the love story that’s slowly building through their on-line exchanges. I particularly loved Cecilie, with the vulnerability and lack of confidence that she conceals behind her less than conventional appearance – the dreadlocks and DMs – and her determination to be always in control, but with a heart that’s open to love and very easily broken. But I really felt for Hector too – so very much to cope with, and so difficult to find a way through it all.

As you might expect if you’ve read her other books, the author’s emotional touch is just perfect throughout – but the other thing she does particularly well is to capture the very different cultures. I suspect there might be those who’d question the authenticity of the Mexican setting, its general seediness and the level of threat and violence – but it certainly felt wholly real to me. And I particularly loved the depiction of Tromso in Norway – on the edge of the Arctic circle, and I could feel the cold in my bones while admiring its icy calm through the quite wonderful descriptions. And I am deliberately avoiding any mention of the book’s ending – but it was every bit as perfect as I wanted it to be, particularly well handled throughout the closing chapters, and not without a few painful stumbles as the final hurdle drew closer.

If you like your romance trope-focused and smoothly told through a rather more simple sequence of events, I’d understand if you might think this book isn’t for you. And yes, it really is very different – but that was what I’d rather expected (perhaps even hoped for…), and I always rather enjoy it when an author steps outside conventions a little and absolutely nails it. I have to say, this was a book I really loved – and the author is most certainly one I’ll be adding to my personal favourites.

Under One Sky” is an interesting, multi characters read. As the story unfolds, you learn of the challenges and perspectives of each. As well, their stories intertwine. The story is set from Norway to Mexico to Paris. It was a solid read. Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for this advance read. You can pick this book up March 4th on its publication date.

Under One Sky by Zoe Follbig, I love the get to know you romance created in this author‘s books and I found this one to be a little different from her other books. I love the way Cecily and Hector were almost faded to be together and had many missed encounters but I did not like the way Cecily would go off into some daydream I mean I really had to stop and wonder if the author was making her clairvoyant or psychic or was she just daydreaming for daydreaming sake. it also irritated me with the third POV of Katie in England because until you know why she’s even talked about it’s just some random person story but having said all that negative I would still recommend this book. There’s a lot to love about the authors books and I have read many of them and love most. She really has a knack for riding a great story and although this one wasn’t one of my favorites I definitely still recommend it. I also want to say I was so rooting for Hector‘s happy ending because despite his fraud childhood he seemed like such a likable guy.#NetGalley, #TheBlindReviewer, #MyHonestReview, #ZoeFalberg, #UnderOneSky,

Zoe Folbigg delivers an emotionally rich and beautifully written story in Under One Sky, weaving together themes of love, fate, and human connection in a way that is both heartwarming and deeply moving.

The story follows multiple characters whose lives intertwine in unexpected ways, creating a tapestry of emotions and experiences that feel authentic and relatable. Folbigg’s writing is lyrical and immersive, making it easy to get lost in the different perspectives and the overarching theme of how people are connected despite distance, time, and circumstances.

What stood out most to me was the depth of emotion in the storytelling. Each character’s journey is compelling, filled with moments of joy, heartbreak, and hope. The pacing is steady, allowing each storyline to develop naturally, and by the end, everything comes together in a satisfying and poignant way.

Folbigg has a talent for capturing human emotions with authenticity, and Under One Sky is a perfect example of that. It’s a novel that reminds us of the power of love, destiny, and the invisible threads that tie us all together.

Having read other Zoe Folbigg books I was thrilled to receive this ARC.
This took a little bit of perseverance to get into it and despite incredible contrasting settings I struggled to connect with the main characters.
Kate- a married mother of three with a husband who really needed to try harder.
Hector- a Mexican political cartoonist who spent much of his adolescence in a orphanage.
Cecile- a Norwegian twin in love with a stranger half a world away.

I was really looking forward to reading this novel, but ultimately this missed the mark for me. It was distracting that there were multiple POVs and multiple timelines as well. I would not recommend.

A really interesting read. I loved Cecile and Hector's story after they meet on line it's a complicated relationship as they live in different countries and there is so much more to learn about each other. There are plenty of interesting characters woven into to story which make you want to keep reading I was really rooting for them to finally get together. I really enjoyed it