Really enjoyable read. Good characters and a Good story. Well worth a read. Think others will enjoy.

I am currently reading The Secrets of Ivy Garden and am loving it. It is the perfect book to read this spring time and I am loving the descriptive writing of Ivy Garden and wish I could visit it as I think it is the perfect place to sit for a day, in the sun, and read a book and enjoy the peace, quiet and the wildlife and insects that are in the surrounding gardens.

Thank you to the publishers. Avon, and Catherine for inviting me onto the tour and I will publish my review as soon as i finish the book.

I really enjoyed the book, it has everything I love in a novel from start to finish. I can’t wait to read what the author has planned next!

Not sure where Dean comes into things - I can't remember him ever being mentioned...
Anyhow, Dean or no Dean makes no difference to the story - it's a delight form start to finish. I liked Holly's voice and the way the author teased us with the various secrets, revealing them gradually, one after the other. I loved Layla! Ms Ferguson managed to portray a typical teenager with great accuracy. I enjoyed the way Holly grew and developed, and faced her fears. I loved the way it all came together in the end.

The heartache was manageable (no sobbing on the train for me, thankfully!) but there wasn't really a great deal of horticulture. However, this didn't detract from the story, though I really, really want a secret spot like Ivy Garden!

This was quite an enjoyable book but at at times a bit far-fetched and at others slightly predictable. Holly seems to rather bumble along through life with little ambition and still working as a cafe waitress when she is about 30. How she can afford to take so much time off work and revamp the cottage is beyond me. Some of the character names were a bit twee - Holly, Ivy, Sylvian. I'm not convinced that I would read another book by Catherine Ferguson.

I really loved this book it has got to be one of my favourites.

The characters are all lovable, so friendly and so easy to get to know

Holly is a city girl living in Manchester so when her grandmother dies and she goes to the village of Appleton in the Cotswolds to clear out her house and put in on the market she is well out of her comfort zone, especially as she has always hated countryside and open spaces! Holly soon gets stuck in but then she discovers her grandmother's diary and is determined to get to the bottom of the secrets in it

While sorting out garden and house she starts to make friends in the village and gradually realises the benefits of living in the country rather than a city but are their any special friendships that might be enough to make her want to stay?

A lovely warm hearted book that leaves you with a smile on your face - great characters that you really feel that you know - definitely an easy reading beach read

Everything about The Secrets of Ivy Garden by Catherine Ferguson, from the cover to the story told within its pages, was absolutely divine. This was the first of Catherine’s books that I’ve read before and I have to say what a fabulous introduction to her writing it turned out to be. I adored every second that I was lucky enough to spend with this delightful little book, one that really was so lovely and heart-warming.

As Holly receives the devastating news that her beloved grandmother has passed away, we see her get on the train from Manchester and make the journey down to Appleton, an idyllic location in the Cotswolds. Determined to get her grandmother Ivy’s house, a place she is all too familiar with from her younger years, ready to be sold soon after arriving in Appleton she begins clearing out Ivy’s possessions. In doing so she comes across a diary, one that belonged to her grandmother and one that reveals things she never knew, things that have the potential to completely change her life. As the days go by and she starts to understand exactly what the diary has revealed, Holly finds herself staying in Appleton for far longer than she ever thought she would. Will she ever be able to leave?

The Secrets of Ivy Garden is a story that is full of a whole bunch of lovely characters who all help to make this story as wonderful as it was. Holly is most certainly one of these and is one who has clearly experienced so much negativity in her life that you can’t help but follow her story and hope that everything turns out well for her. With her fear of the countryside, the reasons for which all become clearer as the story progresses, Holly’s character came across as being incredibly realistic one who sometimes lacked confidence and often under-estimated herself, things which helped me to connect with her even more than I already did. As the novel progressed it was clear to see what a truly caring person Holly was and it was a pleasure to read of the relationships she developed with those around her, particularly young Layla who with Holly’s support really did change for the better.

With the element of mystery that surrounded the secrets that the diary revealed, Catherine Ferguson has written a story that kept me both interested and intrigued from beginning to end. Her writing style is quite simply beautiful, full of a variety of unforgettable moments some of which pulled on my heartstrings and others which left me with a smile on my face. With some gorgeous and vivid description throughout, Catherine successfully made the village of Appleton come to life and it really captured my imagination.

From the very first page I had a good feeling about this book, that it would be one that I would love and that certainly turned out to be the case. I am so glad that I made the decision to pick this book up, one that makes for the perfect reading particularly at this time of year. I highly recommend The Secrets of Ivy Garden and will definitely be back to read more by Catherine in the future.

When Holly's grandmother dies, she has to go to Appleton to sort the cottage out and then she wants to put it up on sale. When she is going through her grandmother Ivy's things, she finds her diary, which tells her things she didn't know about, but can really affect her life. Holly is trying to solve the mystery that surrounds the diary and also take care of Ivy's garden that was very important to her grandmother. Holly didn't intend to stay in Appleton for a long time,but unexpected events kept her there longer. While taking care of everything, Holly gets closer with locals and also meets two guys, who'll have very different yet important part in her life. Will Holly solve the mystery and find the right guy for her?

It was my first book by the author and I really enjoyed it. I found all the characters likeable and realistic and the mystery was very well written, I didn't have a clue until the very end. It's a great book to read during spring/summer time.

this is my first foray into the world of Catherine Ferguson's books and this novel was sweet and an enjoyable read so I am glad that I picked it up! We get to meet Holly who seems to be a little overwhelmed with the world. She is still mourning he loss of her grandmother and doesn't really want to leave the life she has built for herself in Manchester but she is duty bound to return to the Cotswolds and finish what her grandmother started. I could totally sympathise with Holly, we all know what it is like to be forced out of our won little bubble.

There are a host of supporting characters who literally support Holly on her journey, she meets some interesting people in the little village that she lived in with her grandmother when she was younger. I loved the relationship she built up with Jack and his sister Layla. I loved seeing Layla develop, alongside Holly, as the book progressed. Holly also meets Connie who is a great ally to her and means more to her than Holly actually realises.

Of course there is the mystery that is alluded to in the title of this novel. Holly finds a diary that belonged to her grandmother and the mystery unravels from thee. I found that I wasn't as interested in this aspect of the storyline, not being as interested in mystery novels as other genres, but what I did enjoy about the storyline was the amount I learned about gardening the the restoration of houses. I saw one reviewer describe this book as a relaxing read and I really did find a sense of calm whilst joining Holly in the countryside and watching her grow and learn.

I like it when you start to read the first chapter of a new book, just to get a feel of it and right away you feel right at home. This is probably the best description I can think of for this book.

It is set in the Cotswolds, which isn’t a place I have ever been before but somewhere I really want to visit. After finishing this book however, I felt like I had been there! The descriptions made me feel like I was standing in the middle of Ivy’s garden with the sun beating down on my neck and the faint sounds of buzzing bees.
We start the book with Ivy and her granddaughter Holly who are saying goodbye to each other following a visit and Holly is going back home to Manchester. There is something that Ivy is wanting to tell Holly but time gets in the way and they part vowing to discuss at a later date….

The story then moves forward a couple of months and we discover that sadly Ivy has passed away and Holly is once again visiting the Cotswolds but this time on a much sadder occasion.

Although Ivy isn’t actually in the book for that long, I felt that she is kept alive by Holly and the diary that Holly discovers in her grandmothers cottage. Although Holly is determined to return back to Manchester, the lovely Cotswold village works its magic on her slowly whilst she is working on the garden that Ivy had lovingly restored over the years. Along the way you are introduced to some lovely characters (and some not so nice characters!), Layla a gruff sounding teenager who slowly comes out of shell and becomes close to Holly, her much older brother Jack who seems to get under Holly’s skin….

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and enjoyed the relationships and interactions that Holly had, Sylvain being an amusing character!

I’ve not read anything else by this author but I will definitely look out for further books and would recommend this lovely easy going read to anyone that would like to find themselves whisked away to the Cotswolds for a few days….

I was luckily enough to review a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

Holly’s beloved grandmother Ivy has died and she needs to go back to Appleton, which is in the Cotswolds to clear her cottage and garden before she can decide what she wants to do with her life. Molly has an aversion to the countryside, she hates the open spaces and especially the roads where her parents were killed in a car crash when she was four.

Holly lives in Manchester, so she travels back to Appleton to begin decorating the cottage and clearing Ivy’s garden. Whilst clearing the cottage she finds her grandmother’s diary and discovers Ivy had a secret affair with someone called Bee so Holly, with the help of feisty teenager Layla sets out to discover who her grandfather is.

This book has so many good characters, Layla who Holly took under her wing and helped give her the confidence to try different things, Prue and Jack who are Layla’s mum and brother and Sylvian who wanted Holly to join his harem in Cornwall.

This was a light easy read which I would recommend.

I loved this story. I loved the writing style as well as all the characters. Catherine has a lovely writing style that lets you see everything vividly in your minds eye. It was nice to try to figure out who Bee might be. Ivy Garden is a wonderful place to escape to, a light and easy read that I would recommend to readers of woman's fiction.

Thank you to Avon books and Netgalley for the copy

I really loved this book it has got to be one of my favourites.

The characters are all lovable, so friendly and so easy to get to know.

Holly is the main character, she embarks on a journey to sort and tidy her grannys house and garden. Whilst doing this Holly comes across Ivys diary which reveals a lot of secrets Holly wasnt aware of.

The mystery of whats in the diary kept me gripped to the end, I couldn't wait to find out the truth.

This book is really light and easy to read.

Great heartwarming story finished this book with a big smile of my face. Absolutely adored Holly as a character

What a lovely heart warming and sweet story The Secrets of Ivy Garden is, Set in a charming location of Appleton, in the Cotswolds, it tells the story of Holly who is determined to put her beloved grandmother's cottage up for sale, and then discovers Ivy's diary.

Within the diary it gives a secret and mystery that Holly is determined to solve, added to her new day to day existence of trying to renovate part of the cottage, and put Ivy's "secret" garden back into order.

While doing all of this, you need to bare in mind that Holly has a fear of the countryside, which does get explained, and I think she surprises herself by how many friends she makes in the village. From the Rushbrooke family - Prue, the mother who never goes into the village and wants to hire Holly as a gardener, Jack the older son, who is trying to be a rock for his family and Layla the teenager who seems misunderstood by her family but makes a firm friend in Holly.

Then there is Connie in the deli shop and the man who tries to teach Holly not only about meditation but also about a whole different way of life, all of which help enrich Holly's time in Appleton.

While Holly is in Appleton she learns a lot about herself and also proves what a lovely friendly person she really is. There are a couple of potential love interests, and I was kept guessing until the final pages as to whether the pairing I wanted, would ever be made!

I found The Secrets of Ivy Garden to be a very pleasant read, nice and easy to get into and I really enjoyed getting to know the characters . It was a story I finished with a smile and a whole host of good feelings.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Avon for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

Sometimes life seems throws so many terrible things at you, it seems impossible to go on. Holly has recently separated from her boyfriend when her beloved grandmother, Ivy, dies. Holly has no time to wallow in grief, she’s in charge of sorting out her grandmother’s estate. As she goes about sorting through the pieces of her grandmother’s life, Holly learns things about her grandmother she never expected. Having to sort through the belongings of a loved one after they have died is one of the hardest things, most poignant things we have to do. This book reminded me of the terrible time after my dad died and my sister and I had to sort through his things. It was heartbreakingly sad, sometimes funny and so poignant. We discovered he’d kept every card we had ever given him in an old suitcase at the back of his closet. Ferguson’s book captures those feelings, sadness, hope and the knowledge that love never really dies