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Emily is happy with her life just as it is. She has a career as a midwife that she loves . She enjoys living on her own as a single woman. But she's also feels it's time for a change and a spot of some sea air. So when her best friend Rebecca asks whether she'd like to spend the summer cooking on a 'puffer' boat just off the Scottish coast, she jumps at the chance. But she barely has time to get to grips with the galley before she finds herself with a lot on her plate. Rebecca is heavily pregnant and is thrilled to have her friend on board doing most of the work. Then there's Emily's competitive and jealous kitchen assistant who thinks she should be head-cook, not Emily. And there's Alasdair, the handsome local doctor who Emily is desperately trying not to notice. Because if she falls in love with him, as he appears to be falling for her, will she ever want her old life back again?… (more)
User reviews
I started this book wondering why I had bothered. It seemed cliche-ridden and like writing by numbers, as though the author had a list of things that were going to happen regardless of timings and whether they worked for the plot. For instance it was all very convenient that just as Emily is despairing of her job a friend she hasn't seen for years rings and asks her to drop everything and cook on a boat. Really?!
But...and this is a big but...I found myself getting drawn into what was a lovely, sweet and easy to read romance and it became a case of so what if it doesn't ring true. It's light and pleasant, has a lovely setting and it's just pure escapism. It's made me want to read the books between Flora's Lot and this one now. If you want great literature then this isn't it, but if you want a feel-good story then that's exactly what you will get.
The writing felt very old-fashioned. I had my children nearly forty years ago, but even then there was no fuss about home births if no danger to mother or child. And all the people who constantly tell Emily she must marry and have children also seem out-of-date with today's world where most women have careers and choices. Both doctors seemed stereotypes; actually, a lot of the characters were stereotypes. Drama such as the dreaded "OTHER WOMAN" seemed forced and trite. This really wasn't a book for me.
But Scotland!