The Pet Shop at Pennycombe Bay
Sheila Norton
Rating: 4 stars
Jess is looking for a fresh start and facing an uncertain future.
She takes refuge in the beautiful Devon seaside town of Pennycombe but her confidence is at an all-time low after losing her job. She's treading on eggshells living with her cousin Ruth, who seems to be permanently angry with her, and although she enjoys her new job at the local pet shop, with boss Jim pondering retirement, it's soon threatened with closure.
But with faithful dog Prudence by her side, Jess decides it's time for her to overcome her shyness and make a life for herself in Pennycombe. After volunteering for Pets at Therapy she soon becomes more involved with the local community and makes new friends, including handsome Tom and his son Jacob. But her hopes of romance are dashed when she sees Tom with a mystery woman.
Will Jess finally get her happy ending and feel at home at Pennycombe?
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I always get really excited when I see a new book by Sheila Norton. Her style of writing draws me in straight away and I always feel I'm right there next to the main character. She also instantly makes you want to visit wherever the book is set and this novel of hers is no different! I love that once again animals are included and are quite a main factor in the novel and I also like the cover. I enjoy the bright, summery colours and the little cute parade of shops at the top of the cover.
When this one started, I didn't relate to Jess as much as I would to Sheila's other main characters. I'm not sure why I didn't warm to her at first - I thought that she was a bit of a pushover and I didn't like the way she let people talk to her. I understand that she was very shy but didn't understand why she let cousin Ruth (who she lives with) talk to her terribly! I did feel really sorry for Jess throughout the start of the novel, and perhaps this was what made me warm to her in the end.
I love the use of the animals throughout the novels and found little Prudence sooooo cute! I absolutely love animals so I feel like this is why I love Sheila's novels! As well as the animals, we heard a lot about the secondary characters and I love the community feel in this particular book and that everyone looks out for one another. I really liked Jim, Jess' boss, he was really kind and I liked their relationship with feisty Vera and her new cat Doc! I also loved the setting, it sounded so beautiful and I found myself on more than one occasion wishing I could live somewhere as idealistic as Pennycombe Bay!
I was actually surprised that this novel was released as one whole book at first (unless I completely missed the four different parts being uploaded separately on Netgalley?!) but actually I preferred reading it as one big story as you don't need to wait to hear that happens next! I'm not patient in the slightest so selfishly this book being released as one big novel worked out perfectly for me! Overall, I feel like this novel was a lovely and entertaining and easy to read book that I really found myself enjoying. As always, Sheila Norton has pulled it out the bag! Thank you to the publisher for a chance to read this novel via Netgalley, which I have reviewed honestly.
I always get really excited when I see a new book by Sheila Norton. Her style of writing draws me in straight away and I always feel I'm right there next to the main character. She also instantly makes you want to visit wherever the book is set and this novel of hers is no different! I love that once again animals are included and are quite a main factor in the novel and I also like the cover. I enjoy the bright, summery colours and the little cute parade of shops at the top of the cover.
When this one started, I didn't relate to Jess as much as I would to Sheila's other main characters. I'm not sure why I didn't warm to her at first - I thought that she was a bit of a pushover and I didn't like the way she let people talk to her. I understand that she was very shy but didn't understand why she let cousin Ruth (who she lives with) talk to her terribly! I did feel really sorry for Jess throughout the start of the novel, and perhaps this was what made me warm to her in the end.
I love the use of the animals throughout the novels and found little Prudence sooooo cute! I absolutely love animals so I feel like this is why I love Sheila's novels! As well as the animals, we heard a lot about the secondary characters and I love the community feel in this particular book and that everyone looks out for one another. I really liked Jim, Jess' boss, he was really kind and I liked their relationship with feisty Vera and her new cat Doc! I also loved the setting, it sounded so beautiful and I found myself on more than one occasion wishing I could live somewhere as idealistic as Pennycombe Bay!
I was actually surprised that this novel was released as one whole book at first (unless I completely missed the four different parts being uploaded separately on Netgalley?!) but actually I preferred reading it as one big story as you don't need to wait to hear that happens next! I'm not patient in the slightest so selfishly this book being released as one big novel worked out perfectly for me! Overall, I feel like this novel was a lovely and entertaining and easy to read book that I really found myself enjoying. As always, Sheila Norton has pulled it out the bag! Thank you to the publisher for a chance to read this novel via Netgalley, which I have reviewed honestly.
