Kate Field

One Sentence Summary: Mim has lost everything except her car, until a chance encounter with a sweet, yet wealthy couple gives her the option of a new life and more than she ever dreamed of having.

Finding Home is one of those saccharine fluffy novels I normally avoid, but this is described as an uplifting read and just sounded so sweet that I decided to give it a try. I must admit there was one, or two, times I was tempted to quit or put it down and never pick it back up because it was fairly predictable, but I'm glad I soldiered on because it turned out to be sweet, but in the best possible way.

The Plot: One Woman's Journey to Finding Family

After the unexpected death of her boss, Mim is both out of a job and a home because her boss's daughter hates her. Stuck with living out of her car, at least until the new year when she can look for a new job, she unexpectedly comes across Bea and Bill Howard, a wealthy couple from Devon. They're in desperate need to get home, but their car has broken down. Mim offers to drive them, unaware of how drastically this one kind gesture will change her life.

Yes, Bea and Bill are disgustingly wealthy, but they have big hearts, and so do their four grown children: Corin, Ros, Olly, and Lia. They all take to Mim and include her as one of their own. But, after years of being on her own, Mim is dead set on making her own way. At the same time, there's just something about this family that makes it difficult to say no to them.

Told from Mim's perspective, Finding Home really is a sweet, uplifting story without being cute. If anything, perhaps the Howards were a bit too perfect, but that doesn't mean they didn't have their own problems. Anyways, it's really the beautiful story of a thirty-something woman who essentially has nothing, but who gains everything through the course of the story.

At the beginning, I admit I was a little bored. It all seemed very predictable, especially the love interest. Usually, I abandon those kinds of stories, especially if they're romances because predictable doesn't keep me interested. But, since the publisher had offered this one to me, I felt obligated to keep reading. I'm actually very glad I did because it absolutely was an uplifting read of true love and found family. Everything the description promised, it gave.

I did go in expecting the romance to be at the forefront, in all the ways that makes romance romance. But Finding Home didn't actually do that. It was amazing how well it managed to skirt around the romance while also providing a rather realistic love story. I thought it was amazingly well done, and was just so sweet and beautiful. I also loved reading Mim's journey, which overtook the romance, so I missed all the formulas of romance to really enjoy a story about people and the goodness in their souls.

That's really what this book is about: the good in people. The Howards have all this money, but no real direction. It's clear they each want to do something more, something better, to prove they're not rich and spoiled, but they needed Mim because she's so down to Earth, so beaten down without having her spirit beat out of her. I loved that both the Howards and Mim needed each other, and the inherent kindness in each of them just came out so easily. I also appreciated all the wrenches thrown in their ways because it proved just how strong they all are, how big and caring their hearts are.

Finding Home is a lovely, fluffy story, but, looking deeper, there's an incredible, rich story of people, and I did find myself enjoying it by the end.

The Characters: A Hardworking Woman and a Wealthy Family

Finding Home is Mim's story, so it's centered around her. Raised mostly in care, she never had a stable home until hired to help run a hotel for ten years. But that ended abruptly, leaving Mim living out of her car. Mim, though, does what she does best and survives. She knows only to rely on herself and work hard. I really loved that Mim felt like an older, seasoned human being. She's seen the good and the bad and endured it all. Hers is a hearty spirit, and, despite having things torn from her throughout her life, she's still cheerful and so witty. I couldn't help but be charmed by her. I especially like that she's in her thirties, so she comes across as mature, steady, and thoughtful with a fierce loyalty.

Finding Home also has some incredible secondary characters, from the Howards to two ladies Mim takes to swimming with to all the people of Littlemead. They were all well-crafted and played their roles to perfection. The Howards behaved suitably wealthy, but with really beautiful hearts under all that money. The villagers, most of them, were charming and friendly and really took to Mim. I did get confused more than once between the two women Mim swims with, though. As for the love interest, he is, in every way, a perfect match for Mim. It's almost too perfect, but he himself isn't, which made their relationship really lovely.

The Setting: By the Sea

Finding Home is set in a lovely idyllic village on the sea. Everything about it felt beautiful and wonderful, and it all thoroughly charmed me. I loved how present the sea was in the story. It did make things feel a little chilly weather-wise, but I did love the sense of being right by the ocean. The village wasn't exactly well-described, but it felt like a typical charming English village, so it was easy to fill in the gaps.

Much of the story, though, is set at Vennhallow, the Howards' home. Described as a massive place, it did indeed feel massive, both inside and outside. It clearly came off as the home of a wealthy family, but the family itself was so warm and inviting that only their naivete about what ordinary people go through brought out the social divide. Mim lives on the grounds on Vennhallow in a caravan, one of many that play a role in the story, and I couldn't help but picture a lovely little meadow.

Overall: Everything it Promised to Be

Finding Home is a sweet, fluffy story, but, underneath, it's also something more. Uplifting and heartwarming, absolutely. Light on the romance, surprisingly. I loved how it focused on Mim's journey, making it more than just a light, fluffy read. It is a quick read, though. The writing is tight and the pace perfectly even, so it's easy to just breeze through it. Finding Home is a perfect light read with a lovely balance of story and romance, and absolutely delivers on everything it promised.


Thank you to Claire Fenby from One Chapter More and NetGalley for a review copy. All opinions expressed are my own.… (altro)

Probably a 3.5 !!!!

What do I say about a book that I read in one single sitting without ever putting it down because it’s so well written and enticing to read, but I don’t really know what I feel about the characters. It’s a very realistic emotional read while being equally frustrating and I don’t think I’ve ever struggled so much to rate a book.

Mary is such a realistic portrayal of the lives of so many women that it just pained me to read her story. Due to her childhood abandonment issues, she chose a life of safety and contentment over that of love and passion and has spent the next two decades dedicating herself to the welfare of her family. Her work revolves around making sure her husband is successful without ever getting credit for her massive contribution and her home life is all about making sure her kids, her mother and mother-in-law are happy, irrespective of her feelings on any matter. Even after the disastrous way she learns about her husband’s affair and the subsequent divorce, it falls to her to keep the peace, make sure the kids don’t lose their father and co-exist happily with her husband’s new partner.

I can understand the responsibility that Mary feels towards her family and wanting to make sure that her kids are able to get through the divorce and the new reality without a lot of hostility. But she suppresses every part of her personality and her heart for this to happen; she is essentially a doormat for most part of the book and I hated it. I hated it more because it’s also very accurate and hit quite close to home and I guess I just wanted her to finally reach for her happiness instead of settling for what others expected of her. It takes a long time for her to realize her own worth, decide that she deserves her own life outside of her family and even though she does change her mind later, I thought it was too late in the book and I was already on the verge of exasperation.

The major problem I had with the book is that I disliked most of the other characters. Her ex-husband Leo is a selfish, lying, cheating, manipulative jerk and I didn’t like that he got everything that he wanted in life, but never really had to answer for any of his wrongs. He is never called out, Mary never confronts him and she doesn’t even really think that he has wronged her, and is happy to remain his friend. I was very disappointed with this take that a man can get away with anything and a woman will forgive him. Mary’s mother felt very condescending and kept reminding her to choose her family and keeping everyone happy over her own life. Her mother-in-law seemed like she wanted more for Mary but she never tells it outright and when she does, I again thought it was too late. Mary’s 14-year old daughter Ava is supposed to be a typical parent-hating teenager, but I especially disliked that she showed so much disrespect towards her mother who did so much for her, while seeming to accept her father’s decisions so easily. Her son Jonas is the only one in the household who seems to care how his mother feels and though he speaks very less, he definitely succeeds in conveying his support for her. And her brother-in-law Ethan is the one person who tries very hard to poke and prod and provoke her to realize that there is more to life than feeling contented and encourages her to come out of her shell and let herself fly.

The writing is seamless to get through and it felt very hard to put down. Every single character and emotion is portrayed very close to reality and that’s what made it such a difficult read. The feel of a small town and it’s dynamics are captured very well and I could really feel being in the setting. There is also a whole subplot about a Victorian author Alice Hornby and Mary’s adoration of her writing which I thought was done really done well. I could totally feel the love that Mary had for books and the bookstores she visits are described beautifully, especially Archer’s and I felt totally transported to those places.

If you like realistic fiction with very accurate true to life portrayals of characters, then I think you will enjoy this one more than I did. I just didn’t feel satisfied with the end and also with the way everyone got away with their lies and manipulations. I also think I just wanted Mary to be more assertive and decisive earlier in the book and I definitely would have loved an epilogue to finally see that she is truly happy.… (altro)

This a story about Miranda Brown and how her life changes dramatically after helping an older couple who are stranded.

Miranda goes by the name Mim. She has been living out of her car after losing her job but she takes all this lightly as her life had not been easy. She never knew her father and was abandoned by her mother by the time she was eight years old, grew up in foster homes and had to make her own way in life.

Bea and Bill Howard are old enough to be her parents; they are stranded just before new years and need to get from Lancashire to their home in Devon. Mim spontaneously offers to help and drives them home knowing they will refuel her car and she can head back north. Work is scare at this time of year so she can take the time to drive this nice couple.

When they arrive in Devon she is invited to stay at one of their holiday caravans for the night. There will be a wedding the next day and Mim is offered work with the catering service, perfect for someone like her with former hotel experience. The family has four adult children and they are so very nice; not at all stuck up rich despite the estate and ammenities they grew up with. This is a bit of a Cinderella story without the royalty.

What I liked: The setting in Devon was nice. It was also nice to read about Mim's first experience viewing the sea. With the exception of Janet the characters were all likeable as was the plot. The cover is quite pretty and that would have drawn me to pick up the book in a bookstore and see what the book was about.

What I didn't like: Mim was described as stubborn and proud but sometimes her refusal or taking exception to a free cup of tea or use of heat in the caravan went too far. Yes, we get it that Mim was not a charity case and she was proud but that could have been toned down a bit.
Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book. This will be published April 16, 2021.

Genre: General Fiction/Romance/Women's Fiction

Sharing with Joy for British Isles Friday.… (altro)

I received an ARC of this book to read through NetGalley in exchange for a fair review. A Dozen Second Chances by Kate Field is a story about Eve Roberts, school secretary, new empty-nester who is about to turn forty. Once upon a time Eve had a hot boyfriend, an exciting career in archeology and plans to travel around the world, it all came crashing to a halt when Eve’s older sister overdosed and Eve became guardian to her two-year-old niece. The boyfriend left and Eve needing safety and security to raise her niece Caitlyn moved to a small town and trained to be the school secretary. When Caitlyn leaves for a year in Paris as an au pair, she gives Eve a collection of small cards Be Kind to Yourself vouchers that Eve is to fill out and send to Caitlyn. The history lecture Eve treats herself to for the first card leads to meeting her old boyfriend, Paddy Friel, who has a successful career with an archeology television show. Her friends and family conspire to keep them meeting up again, and Eve begins to wonder if she could ever trust Paddy with her heart again. Light Steam Publishing Date February 6, 2020. #NetGalley #HarperCollinsUK #HarperCollins #OneMoreChapter… (altro)