This was a brilliant read. As soon as I started reading this book I just knew I was going to love it. Highly recommended

I really enjoyed this book was a cosy read the setting of this book was brilliant had me laughing out loud at some parts it was bitter sweet and really want to hear more about nell really liked the story line enjoyed the characters in this book made me feel all fuzzy inside.

I have read a few books by Christie Barlow which I enjoyed, so I was looking forward to reading "The Cosy Canal Boat Dream".

This book had an absolute amazing setting. I really loved the canal, the boats and the marina. Nellie living on one of those canal boats was really great and I enjoyed the scenery and atmosphere a lot.

The story was entertaining with several up and downs in the lives of the characters. Some things came very surprising and others were a little bit predictable. Overall the mix was fine and I enjoyed reading the book. Sometimes the story wanted a bit too much and especially in the end there was a little bit too much drama. The characters were likable and sweet but still weren't anything special.

I liked the writing style and the book was easy to read.

A warm and cosy book about finding love after loss. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy.

Really enjoyable read. Good characters and a Good story. Well worth a read. Think others will enjoy.

I really loved this book, my favourite so far from Christie, you know her novels are always warm and cozy, feel good book.

I love the little community she created in this book, and I loved the main character Nell. It is an emotional story, but it is really heartwarming story about moving on.

I have had this book a while and had not yet got to reading it as I had previously read some other books based on a canal boat and did not want to dilute this one. In hindsight I should have just ploughed on with it as it is totally different to the previous ones and was a wonderful story.

Nell is still grieving for Ollie, her husband who tragically died some two years previous. She has sort solace in working at her best friends deli and tends to just consumer her waking time with being busy. Nothing could possibly heal her from the heartbreak she feels.

Then in bounds Sam and knocks her flying but it is Sam's owner, Guy that knocks her heart into gear again and they begin a friendship which looks like it might develop. But Guy is only here temporarily to help his brother, Ed and perhaps he hasn't been truthful about his own past that he has left behind.

Add into the mix of this story, a dilapidated old cinema which needs recusing from developers, a Deli of the Year competition, Nell's mother hiding secrets in shoeboxes and behaving oddly and a well-known actor mooring in the marina and plenty of babies.

So much goes on that ties all the characters together that this a book to get completely lost in and thoroughly enjoy. Christie Barlow's writing seems to be getting with each book I read and I think she would really be good writing a series of books where we can really get to know the characters and enjoy them and the setting - such as this marina, the canal boat, the cinema and the delicious sounding deli again!

I really enjoy the chic lit books a lot of fun and great reads. I look forward to more fun reads by this author soon.

Review: A perfect read especially if you are sat by a lake or river or any kind of water come to that. When I saw this on NetGalley and having read another book by this author I just had to download it. I am so glad I did.

Sometimes when you read another book by a particular author that you like they can be different in small ways and not so good but this was not the case. I adored this book. Water for me is a calming factor and this book was very calming to read. What I would call an easy but exciting read that keeps the pagers turning.

Meet Nell Andrews who's live is turned upside down but she has a safe haven, her trusty friend her canel boat. Nell gains courage with support from her best friend Bea and decides it is time to move on. Could a handsome Irish man help? Nell has a project that will help her to move on and needs help but there is something mysterious about this man. I love a hidden past that may threaten the future. 

A great refreshing book.

I just lost my review so here goes... 2nd time around...
Brilliant book another favourite author of mine, i couldn't put the book down and read it in 2 sittings even with 4 kids around.
We have Nell who lives on a canal boat and works with her best friend Bea in the local Deli/cafe.. everyone in this book has a secret and none wants to let the cat out of the bag. Nell has no secrets other than her husband died and she drowning in sadness over it. She meets the irish man who keeps loosing his dog and their sexual chemistry is so ALIVE if they don't do anything the canal banks will burst. But Guy has a huge secret to tell and doesn't tell Nell until its too late.
Bea owns the deli and has a reason why she has stayed away from her family for many years and that story makes you feel for her. Then we have Nells mother who is acting all odd when Nell wants to know certain things so Nell has to go snooping to find answers....
Christie Barlow has such a fabulous way with her book, its almost like a psychological thriller with a twist town in and you think you know whats happening but you don't.....
Nell sees the old picture house going up for sale and has always wanted to do something like this with her dead husband and thinks its a sign and goes along to the auction to buy it. She has to fight in there, she has to question her mother, she has to pull back from Guy and everything comes head to head just before the auction... does she buy it?
Towards the end, things are going well for everyone and its a happy ending with no questions.... what happened next.... Brilliant read, cannot wait for my next one.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for this book in return of a honest review.

I really loved this book! Excellent story with brilliant main characters. I would recommend this book.

I normally love this author, but I just couldn't get into this book.. It's a real shame as I wanted to like it, I just found the plot a bit weak and the characters not that interesting.
It wont put me off her though - I will definitely give any other books of hers a read!

I wanted to read this because of the canal boat setting, but it wasn't entirely my sort of book. It was frothy and easy going, however, and I know it's being much enjoyed by many readers. I'm sure it will do really well.

Good read bit slow in places.
Girl gets the decent boy in the end

I love anything to do with canals and narrow boats, so this was always going to be a hit for me. I found that I wanted to run back to this book and carry on reading to see what would happen. It had tinges of sadness but an overall message of hope and positivity that can come after a season of loss and heartache.

It's easy to warm to the Little Rock Marina community, they are friendly and supportive and very believable. Nell and her husband were living the dream until fate intervened and left Nell broken and lonely on the Nollie that once embodied all her dreams. The cafe run by Bea is full of interesting characters and provides a backdrop for much of the action.
A second chance beckons in the form of Guy, a gentle Irishman but he has dangerous secrets which threaten Nell's new found happiness. He's is not the only one and as Nell finds a way of giving her partner the legacy he deserves, the secrets start to unravel with upsetting consequences.
This is a romantic tale, which spans the generations and makes you want to know what happens next at the Little Rock Marina.
Nell and Guy are great characters and it's easy to empathise with them.
I received a copy of this book from Harper Impulse via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

This is a wonderful story, easy to read and enjoy by a well known author. We meet Nell, her friends and her canal boat "The Nollie". There is a bucketful of emotions thrown at you, with a happy ending, of course! Just the book to cheer up a dreary winters day.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book - a tale of love, heartbreak, grief and moving on. It is an emotional story - I needed tissues close to hand! but is also funny in places. Really heartwarming with a feel good factor. Sensitively and well written the author really brought the characters to life and I was drawn into the story from the start. Plenty of ups and downs throughout the book and a fantastic twist which surprised me.
I loved the setting of Little Rock Marina and would love to live in a canal boat there and eat a bacon buttie in the deli!

I look forward to reading more of Christie's books as she is a new author to me. Highly recommended.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Another lovely book by Christie Barlow. I am such a fan.
Loved the setting of the book on what seems to be a gorgeous marina with a local coffee shop.
All the people in the book worked so well. Loved all the relationships between them.
I read thus become book on holiday and laughed and cried in equal measure so I did get some strange looks from holiday makers.
Loved the character Nelllie who had a Major tragedy in her life and was basically trying to live again. Thanks to her friends and family and then comes along Guy Cornish. Not giving away any more.

If you want a feel good book this is for you. You won't be disappointed !!!

Cosy read! Really enjoyable read to curl up with. All the characters were relatable and likeable, and I finished this book wanting to live on a canal boat too!

I hadn't read any previous books by the author, but this was very well-written, easy going and well-crafted. It also had the benefit of being very realistic and real life, unlike many similar books of this genre, which often tend to dramatise.

I'd definitely recommend - perfect winter read!