Thursday 7 January 2021

Guest Review: New Arrivals at Hedgehog Hollow by Jessica Redland

With new arrivals comes new responsibilities...

The sun is shining, wild flowers are blooming and Hedgehog Hollow is officially open for business.

For Samantha, the proud owner of this beautiful rescue centre, life has never been busier. But with an influx of new hogs and hoglets to take care of, not to mention a full-time job and ongoing family issues, can she accept the possibility that she has taken on more than she can handle?

Fortunately, she has the love of her life, Josh, by her side for support and encouragement. But Josh has his own family troubles to deal with. And soon he must decide if he's ready to do the one thing he swore he’d never do - forgive his father.

For both Samantha and Josh it's a season of change and for figuring out whether the past can ever truly be forgotten.

Review: This is the sequel to Finding Love at Hedgehog Hollow by the same author. Jessica Redland has kindly begun by presenting the reader with a ‘story so far’ summary, so that they may enjoy the present story even if they have not read the first part. As with the previous book, the action here takes place predominantly in the picturesque Yorkshire Wolds. I thoroughly enjoyed the first book in the series, and was looking forward to this sequel. It did not let me down; I found it a quick read as it kept me engrossed from beginning to end.

Once again, the central character is Samantha Wishaw, although her boyfriend, Josh, plays a major role in this story as well. Samantha’s hedgehog rescue centre is well established at Hedgehog Hollow farm, but she is finding it hard going with steady numbers of adult and baby hogs being brought in for her to look after as well as working full time and dealing with her troublesome family. Busy vet Josh is on hand to help when he can, but the strain is still telling on Samantha and she may be forced to make a decision to give something up. Samantha’s mother is still upsetting her with her strange attitude which Is so difficult for her to understand. Josh also has a troubled family history which is coming to a head. With all that’s going on in their lives, can they find time for each other and let their relationship progress?

This was another lovely story from Jessica Redland, filled with friendship, love and emotion. The author deals sensitively with some difficult topics. I can highly recommend the book to other readers, especially if, like me, you like hedgehogs and are concerned for their survival. There is a great deal of detail about the dangers for these little animals and how much care they require from rescue centres such as Samantha has set up in the book. I liked the way in which the narrative is presented, individual chapters telling the story from either Samantha’s or Josh’s perspective. As in the first book of the series, the characters are likeable in the main, although there is a group of nasty individuals lurking. I don’t know if there will be any more stories in this series, but I would love to follow Samantha and Josh and see how their relationships with each other and their families develop.

To order your copy now, just click the link: UK or US

No comments:

Post a Comment