Penny Parkes is among my favourite authors, her Larkford series is amazing, so I made sure this was on my list of must reads when I heard it was being published and positively jumped for joy when I was offered a place on the blog tour.
This novel feels different to Penny’s other novels, more grown up, making me think and feel more, concentrating deeply on developing Anna, our protagonist. It’s the same compelling reading as her previous books and I really felt myself gradually understanding Anna better and better.
I was fascinated by Anna’s job as a house sitter, it sounds very unique, and I guess it is as Anna has done it full time for a number of years, whereas everyone else in her agency done it for maybe a few weeks in a year. Anna looked after some very nice homes, and seemed like she’d have plenty of time to read, sounds amazing, though I think it would be difficult if you were in a relationship or had other ties.
Anna as a character was interesting. I didn’t instantly warm to her, don’t get me wrong, I didn’t dislike her by any means, but she was a bit of a closed book. However, as the book went on, gradually you get to know Anna who is complex, and, though she won’t admit it, seems a little bit lost.
It was interesting seeing her meet new people on her travels like Henry, who helped a lot in Anna completing her journey so to speak. My only regret is that I would liked to have heard more from Henry. An under-used character I think. Callie was probably my favourite character, she made me smile.
I loved this book, I enjoyed the time it took to really delve into Anna’s character, her past, her present and how she developed by meeting all these new people to start thinking about herself. I could have binge-read this book, but I didn’t want to, I wanted to take my time and savour every moment with Anna.
Released 8th July 2021
Published by: Simon and Schuster
Gratefully received by the publisher in exchange for an honest review
Thank you so much to Team BATC for inviting me on this tour! Make sure you check out everyone’s posts!
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Pre-order: Amazon UK | Waterstones | Book Depository | Amazon US