I owe serious thanks to Katie Fforde for pointing me in Sue Moorcroft’s direction after I moaned on Twitter about wanting something to read. I discovered the Middledip stories and soon became a confirmed fan. What I didn’t expect was to find a wonderfully supportive ambassador for the romantic fiction writing community and those who also support writers in other ways. Sue is currently serving as President of the Romantic Novelist’s Association. I am happy to say that while I have a few favourite authors, Sue is one of my ultimate favourites. If you’d like to look at a couple of my earlier reviews, you can follow these links: A Summer to Remember and The Christmas Love Letters.
I’m grateful to Rachel Gilbey of Rachel’s Random Resources for the blog tour invite and to Avon Books for providing my digital review copy via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. You can read my thoughts below.
Synopsis
A Scottish island. A stranger from the mainland. A summer of possibilities…
Escape to the Isle of Skye this summer with the Sunday Times bestselling author, and lose yourself in the first book of the Skye Sisters Trilogy.
A chance encounter is about to change everything for Thea Wynter.
The moment she arrived on the Isle of Skye, life changed for Thea. Running from a succession of wrong turns, she comes to the island in search of blue sea, endless skies, and mountains that make the heart soar. Here, she feels at peace.
As head gardener at Rothach Hall, life is exactly how she wants it, with her days spent working in the glorious clifftop garden and her evenings in the cosy village pub.
But an encounter with a stranger from the mainland brings with it an unexpected turn – and she is left wondering whether he is friend or foe.
It seems that even on Skye, life can catch up with you, and Thea is soon faced with the past she left behind – and with it, the family she’s never met…
From old lives to new beginnings, lose yourself on the beautiful Isle of Skye with Thea as she discovers how many possibilities life can truly hold if you look hard enough.
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Review
This book opens at the scene of an accident between a car and a cyclist. The story then leaps forward nine years and catches up with Thea Wynter, who works as head gardener at Rothach Hall, a stately home on the Isle of Skye. A quick recap tells us that Thea has two sisters and that they are all adopted. We also learn that Thea had a successful career in television with a role not dissimilar to those of Charlie Dimmock. There is also a hint that Thea is avoiding contact with a cyclist from her past.
As the story gets going, we are introduced to an applicant for a vacancy on Thea’s team. She’s sure that he’s called Tim or Tom, but he turns out to be called Deveron Dowie. Their meeting is sudden as he rescues a young dog from a tangle of weeds and water in a local burn. His heroics serve as a perfect interview for his role. Of course, there’s a back story to his presence at Rothach Hall, and his ulterior motive could cause Thea’s world to implode.
It’s immediately obvious that an extensive volume of research had been invested into this story as the Isle of Skye came to life as I was reading. The landscape, ever-changing through the different parts of the day, captured my imagination and led to a desire to revisit that area of Scotland. I’ve not been as far as Skye, but I have travelled up the West Coast and seen the rugged beauty that is exquisitely described. I paid particular attention to the tutorial on local pronunciations.
Sue has a real knack for creating and navigating family dramas. The bond between the three sisters is as strong as steel, but an unforeseen weakness challenges their relationship. Thankfully, Sue’s storytelling remains flawless, and we are able to follow the developments at a safe distance.
I cannot recommend this book enough; it serves to show how accomplished Sue is with her storytelling. The warmth is tangible, and the story is totally relatable and told through beautifully developed characters.
I’m really excited that this is the first in a trio of stories, and I am already looking forward to learning more about the other sisters.
Author Bio
Sue Moorcroft is a Sunday Times bestselling author, and her novels have been #1 on Kindle UK and Top 100 on Kindle US, Canada and Italy. She writes two books a year for publishing giant HarperCollins and has won the Goldsboro Books Contemporary Novel of the Year, Readers’ Best Romantic Novel award, a HOLT Medallion and the Katie Fforde Bursary. She’s the president of the Romantic Novelists’ Association.
Her novels, short stories, serials, columns, writing ‘how to’ and courses have appeared around the world.
Social Media & Weblinks
Giveaway to Win a Signed copy of Under A Summer Skye, plus Sue Moorcroft Pen and Bookmarks (Open to UK Only)
*Terms and Conditions –UK entries welcome. Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below. The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.
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Book Escapes with BabsW67 
Thanks so much for your glorious review, Babs! I’m thrilled to bits that you enjoyed the opening book of the Skye Sisters trilogy. Thanks for joining the blog tour and for all your support, always. x
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You are incredibly welcome and I truly hope that you get a huge boost from this tour. Xx
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Aw, thanks so much. x
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