Jane Lovering | But I Smile Anyway...

Once Upon A Thyme by Jane Lovering #BookTour #Blog Tour @rararesources @janelovering @BoldwoodBooks

Thrilled to welcome Jane Lovering and her latest book, Once Upon a Thyme, to the blog!

The Blurb

All her life, Natalie Fisher has been taught not to ask questions. Why risk uncovering uncomfortable truths, when you can stay in the safety of blissful denial?

Since taking over the family herb farm, Natalie has stuck with what she knows, rarely venturing much further than the nearby village where her invalid mother now lives. But then, one day, everything changes with the arrival of unexpected visitors.

First comes Zeb, employed by Natalie’s mother to help with the business but soon hinting at other motives. Then comes Simon with the famous band he manages, wanting to film in Natalie’s beautiful garden. The band causes chaos and the attitude of one particular member throws Natalie’s ordered life into confusion.

Over one magical summer of revelations and of uncovering secrets, Natalie starts to blossom and by the time autumn arrives she knows nothing will ever be the same again. Will she finally get an answer to the mystery of her childhood? And can she embrace the fresh start she so deserves – but which means she’ll have to take one enormous and brave leap of faith?

An uplifting novel about fresh starts, family secrets and finding love when you least expect it.

My Review

Once Upon a Thyme by Jane Lovering
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Tally is a woman in her late twenties who runs a herb farm. It has always been a part of her family, first belonging to her grandma, then her mother, before Tally buys it outright from her mum.
It’s a tough gig, especially as she has caring responsibilities for her mother, unwell with an unknown illness, but she loves being with the plants, and her guinea pigs, and especially Big Pig, her sow.
She ends up with Zeb, a marketing consultant appointed by her mother, tagging along as she goes about her life.
A chance visit from an up-and-coming band who want to use the farm to shoot videos gives Tally the chance of some more income, much-needed funds to continue her small, struggling business, and under the guidance of Zeb, she hesitantly agrees.
But there are lots of things going on, with thinking about a certain band member, as well as looking out for her mother, and trying to quell feelings that are building about someone else.
It’s a slow-rumbling romance, with a slightly darker moment when secrets are uncovered; however, it’s a lovely summer read.
A gorgeous story filled with love, a twist of mystery and a lot of hope.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for an ARC.

About The Author

Jane Lovering is the bestselling and award-winning romantic comedy writer who won the RNA Contemporary Romantic Novel Award in 2023 with A Cottage Full of Secrets. She lives in Yorkshire and has a cat and a bonkers terrier, as well as five children who have now left home.

Social Media Links –

Facebook: @jane.lovering

Twitter: @janelovering

Newsletter Sign Up: https://bit.ly/JaneLoveringNews

Bookbub profile: @janelovering

Happily Ever After by Jane Lovering #BlogTour #RachelsRandomResources @rararesources @BoldwoodBooks @janelovering

I am thrilled to be on the Blog Tour for Happily Ever After by Jane Lovering!

Andi Glover loves nothing more than a good book.

Any book in fact because when you’re raised by unconventional parents who think school’s for squares, alongside a deeply conventional sister who escapes home as soon as she can, fiction is eminently preferable to reality.

The only problem is that fiction isn’t the best way to learn about the real world. When Andi starts her new live-in job at Templewood Hall for the eccentric Lady Dawe and her enigmatic son Hugo, it’s tempting to think she’s fallen into the pages of one of her favourite gothic novels.

But the plot twists at Templewood Hall are stranger than fiction and it’s not long before Andi questions if she’s living in a romance novel or a whodunnit. Bumps in the night, a missing heir, ghostly apparitions and secrets that have been kept for generations – the mysteries mount up. Then there’s the inscrutable gardener who seems to appear when needed – is Andi right to hope for a happily-ever-after end to her story?

My Review

Happily Ever After by Jane Lovering
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Happily Ever After is a Gothic-inspired mystery with a slow-burn romance that picks up pace towards the end.
Andi arrives at Templewood Hall and is accosted by a rude gardener before she is interviewed for a position that she hopes she’ll get because she has no qualifications for anything else and nowhere else to go.
She lived a pretty unconventional life with her parents, moving around regularly and living in a converted bus. An opportunity arises for her to have a more normal life, though I’m not sure her position at Templewood Hall is anything close to normal!
Tasked with cataloguing the many books in Lady Tanith Dawe’s library, Andi lets her love of books create a whimsical dream of falling in love and marrying the rather gorgeous son and heir, Hugo. However, she is covertly given the real reason for Lady Dawes’ wanting the library organised, and it has a bit of a twist.
Is there romance? Yes, there is, but it doesn’t pick up speed until the book’s latter pages.
But Andi’s love of the classics is evident in her dreams of what might be, and the chapter headings are a great nod to those classics. Some may find Andi a difficult character to like. She doesn’t always appear to help herself, but things change as the story progresses, and she has the ending she deserves.
I tell you what, that Lady Dawes – she is a piece of work! A bit deluded!
For me, the hero of the book was the feline, called The Master (we never find out his real name!), who smells of fish and takes a real shine to Andi, being her shadow, trying to sleep in her bed, and even getting her out of some scrapes!
Many thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for an ARC.
Purchase Link https://mybook.to/happilyever

Author Bio –

Jane Lovering is a bestselling and multi-award winning romantic comedy writer. Most recently Jane won the RNA Contemporary Romantic Novel Award in 2023 with A Cottage Full of Secrets. She lives in Yorkshire and has a cat and a bonkers terrier, as well as five children who have now left home.

Social Media Links –

Facebook: @jane.lovering

Twitter: @janelovering

Newsletter Sign Up: https://bit.ly/JaneLoveringNews

Bookbub profile: @janelovering