Country Loving - Cathy Woodman
Published: 01/08/13
Publisher: Arrow
Pages: 448
Having not read any of Cathy Woodman’s books before was a little confused to open the book and find a hand drawn map of a village at the beginning. After spending 10 minutes or so googling Cathy I realised that Country Loving is part of a series of books set in the fictional village of Talyton St George. In fact it is the 6th installment of the series and I honestly don’t know how I have missed the other 5!!
This story focuses on Stevie, a city accountant with and ideal life and a brand new fiancé. She is suddenly summoned back to Talyton St George to help her ill father and save the family farm. Agreeing to return, for what Stevie thinks will only a weekend, she realises the job is much bigger than she thought and she decides to stay for good. She breaks off her engagement (which is no bad thing as her fiancé is a bit of a idiot!) and embarks on a project to bring the farm into the modern era. Along the way she make several new friends (and enemies) and develops one special relationship. However a life changing event means not everything goes to plan.
The characters are well rounded and I enjoyed the different relationships Stevie had with them all. Her father is a grumpy old stick in the mud but you cant help but feel sorry for him. He is aging, quite ill and has lost the farm that he has worked so hard on all his life.
Her new friendship with Jennie, the wife of the farmer next door is sweet and, without giving the plot away, gives Stevie the female supports she needs when the time comes.
Stevie’s developing romance with the locum vet maybe a little clichéd but that’s the charm of this story – you often see the twist and turns coming but they are the twists and turns you want the story to take so its all good!
I enjoyed the way Cathy Woodman describes the technical side of farming. She was a vet before becoming an author and from what I can gather the other books in the series focus a lot on the vets of Talyton St George. Aspect of farming are described quite often throughout the story but it is clearly explained, without too much technical jargon and as a reader you understand the process. Don’t let this put you off – I thought it added authenticity and the story was better for it being included.
The writing flows well and the story progresses at a good pace. The ending was a little obvious but it made me smile and it was definitely the ending must suited to the story.
I really enjoyed this book and it didn’t matter that I had not read any other stories from the series. Of course there are references to people and incidents from other the other books but it works well as a stand alone story. I will certainly read the rest of the series now.
Publisher: Arrow
Pages: 448
Having not read any of Cathy Woodman’s books before was a little confused to open the book and find a hand drawn map of a village at the beginning. After spending 10 minutes or so googling Cathy I realised that Country Loving is part of a series of books set in the fictional village of Talyton St George. In fact it is the 6th installment of the series and I honestly don’t know how I have missed the other 5!!
This story focuses on Stevie, a city accountant with and ideal life and a brand new fiancé. She is suddenly summoned back to Talyton St George to help her ill father and save the family farm. Agreeing to return, for what Stevie thinks will only a weekend, she realises the job is much bigger than she thought and she decides to stay for good. She breaks off her engagement (which is no bad thing as her fiancé is a bit of a idiot!) and embarks on a project to bring the farm into the modern era. Along the way she make several new friends (and enemies) and develops one special relationship. However a life changing event means not everything goes to plan.
The characters are well rounded and I enjoyed the different relationships Stevie had with them all. Her father is a grumpy old stick in the mud but you cant help but feel sorry for him. He is aging, quite ill and has lost the farm that he has worked so hard on all his life.
Her new friendship with Jennie, the wife of the farmer next door is sweet and, without giving the plot away, gives Stevie the female supports she needs when the time comes.
Stevie’s developing romance with the locum vet maybe a little clichéd but that’s the charm of this story – you often see the twist and turns coming but they are the twists and turns you want the story to take so its all good!
I enjoyed the way Cathy Woodman describes the technical side of farming. She was a vet before becoming an author and from what I can gather the other books in the series focus a lot on the vets of Talyton St George. Aspect of farming are described quite often throughout the story but it is clearly explained, without too much technical jargon and as a reader you understand the process. Don’t let this put you off – I thought it added authenticity and the story was better for it being included.
The writing flows well and the story progresses at a good pace. The ending was a little obvious but it made me smile and it was definitely the ending must suited to the story.
I really enjoyed this book and it didn’t matter that I had not read any other stories from the series. Of course there are references to people and incidents from other the other books but it works well as a stand alone story. I will certainly read the rest of the series now.
Nancy