Today I'm delighted to be kicking off the blog tour run by Canelo for the latest festive instalment from Darcie Boleyn - Christmas at Conwenna Cove. Although this is the second book in the Conwenna Cove series, it can be read as a total standalone novel , that said, if you read Summer at Conwenna Cove then there will be a few familiar faces making small cameo's.

Christmas at Conwenna Cove is a great, sweet read and perfect to curl up with this winter if you are after a delightfully romantic festive read.

We return to Conwenna Cove with Grace and Oli's story, Grace being in the area to help her parents settle in to their new home to see out their retirement years, and Oli is the local vet.
Grace and Oli meet quite early on into the story and although the attraction is obvious, both are wary and for good reasons too, I won't go into details too much as I dont want to ruin the bulk of the plot lines for you so lets just say they both have fragile hearts and over the course of the festive period,  we see Grace not only grow closer to Oli bit to his two young children, Amy and Tom, too.

Darcie Boleyn has perfectly captured the essence of Christmas - not only does she write giving a great description of Conwenna Cove in Winter, she has also managed to capture the emotions of the characters - I often felt my heart breaking and eyes watering at the same time as chuckling away at the optimism and enthusiasm of 5 year old Tom, who for me was my favourite sub character bringing light relief to the heavier story lines and, lets face it - a child's excitement is what makes Christmas, right?!

Christmas at Conwenna Cove left me feeling warm and fuzzy with its wonderful characters, beautiful settings and in depth story lines - a brilliant festive story.

I have a confession to make . . . . I usually love books by this talented author, so I'm always on the look out for anything new by her. This time, however, she has surpassed herself. This is such a moving story with great characters, set in delightful community and written with such feeling it had me in tears at times (especially the beach scene saying bye to Sam - that isn't a spoiler, you'll need to read it yourself to discover just why it is so poignant).

Grace Phillips is a successful author who usually lives in her flat in Cardiff but she's planned to stay in Conwenna Cove over Christmas to help her parents as they move and settle into a cottage there. The community is so friendly and welcoming Grace is going to find it hard to leave. There are some lovely animals in the story, too, including a cat and her three kittens and a greyhound Grace names Hope. All have their roles to play in this story which has some really emotional moments and some cuddle up cosy ones, too.

Her first encounter with the local vet, Oli Davenport, is anything but friendly - he's downright rude! He's also a widower, has two delightful children and really cares about animals, too, so maybe he isn't quite so bad, after all! He's reticent to start anything as he doesn't want to pain of loving and losing again after his wife died almost two years ago from cancer. As the snow starts to fall over this community, can the Cove work its magic and help these two with tragedies in their past find romance together? The chemistry is certainly there but will they be willing to risk their hearts again?

This is a fantastic festive read I have no hesitation whatsoever in highly recommending. I've loved other books by this author in the past but I think this is my favourite title from her so far!

I requested and received a copy of this novel, via NetGalley, with no obligation. This is my honest review after choosing to read it.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this book. It’s one of those books that sucks you in from the first chapter. A cosy heartwarming story. A beautiful well written book. Great characters and storyline. Like most good books it was believable.

A beautiful and captivating read that will get anyone in the mood for Christmas. I very much enjoyed watching Oli and Grace's romance unfold and found myself hooked from page 1.

I’ve been looking forward to reading Christmas at Conwenna Cove – I really enjoy Darcie Boleyn’s books and I don’t say this lightly, but this is the perfect Christmas read.

I’ve shed tears over this novel, not something I do routinely but this one has everything .. setting, occasion, realistic characters, families, children, romance, great food and a hint of sadness teamed with a great story and wonderful writing. My tears have been both happy and sad, and this is not a story I will forget easily. It is a class above, without a doubt .. and yes, I share my name with a character – not something which happens every day!

If you want a festive read to get you in the holiday mood, you can’t go wrong with this one. It gets a full five glittering, pulsating stars from me and earns each and every one.

With grateful thanks to Canelo who approved my arc via NetGalley in exchange for my honest, original and unbiased review.

Oh what a truly wonderful and delightful read, which had lots of Christmas cosy moments throughout the story. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this whilst curled up on my sofa. 

The author draws you right in to  the story pretty quickly with meeting and getting to know all of the characters and experiencing the illidicit setting and location, was so very easy to lose myself in this story. 

As for the storyline, it was brilliant, lots going on from one character to another.  It was so very well written, plus a few emotional moments thrown in that I wasn't expecting, just so heartfelt.

Oh and this review wouldn't be complete unless the animals got a mention as they do play a very important role within the story and I loved them all, so wanted to take them all home with me.

This was a warm, delightful, romantic book. The perfect Christmas read.

Grace, a successful author from Cardiff, is in Conwenna Cove to help her parents settle into their new home. As a family they mourn the loss of Sam, Graces older brother. Dealing with this and the lasting impact Sams illness and subsequent death, the last thing Grace is looking for is a new relationship.  

Oli is the local vet in Conwenna Cove. Kind, helpful and handsome, he himself is also dealing with a tragedy of his own. The loss of his wife two years previous and being a single father to two young children has taken a lot from him, mentally and emotionally.

A chance meeting in a cafe one day puts Grace and Oli in their own individual turmoil. They are clearly attracted to ome another but will they be able to overcome their own self doubts enough to build a future together?

This was a lovely story by author Darcie Boleyn and even though you had a good idea of where the story was going, the journey was none the less enjoyable. The writing was straight forward and honest, leaving you wanting to embrace the likeable characters within tbe story.

A thoroughly pleasant read that I would recommend!

This was a very enjoyable, and very Christmassy, story set in beautiful Cornwall.

All of the characters were so lovely and friendly and the whole book had such a lovely warm feeling to it.  Grace was in Cornwall helping her parents settle into their new house and planned on staying until after Christmas, before moving back to her flat in Cardiff.  She is an author so can really write anywhere.

Oli is a widower with two young children and the local vet.  Grace and Oli soon strike up a friendship, although neither one of them is looking for a relationship.  Oli's wife died two years ago and he thinks it is too soon for him to have a new relationship, and Grace's brother died 9 years ago of a possible hereditary condition so she has vowed never to have children and isn't interested in a long distance relationship anyway.  But of course Conwenna Bay starts working it's magic on both of them and they start getting closer over the Christmas period.

There was also a greyhound rescue centre (with one poor abused dog in particular looking for a home), kittens looking for a new home and a really cute little boy (Oli's son).  Really I'd just like to pack my bags and move to Conwenna Bay, it sounds like a wonderful place to live.  I  haven't read the previous book to this - yet - but that didn't detract from this book at all, just made me want to go back and read about Eve and Jack's story!  Lovely feel-good book.

Cornwall, Christmas, Conwenna Cove, Children, Cute animals, Kind hearted humans are all the key ingredients that make up this fabulous book. At times I felt really emotional reading this due to what Oli and Grace have suffered in their pasts, and the rest of he time I was smiling and wishing I was part of the families in the book!

This is a second book set in Conwenna Cove, but it definitely works as a standalone. In fact we don't see a whole deal of Jack and Eve in this story, so if you haven't read the first book it won't affect your enjoyment of this one.  That being said fans of Summer at Conwenna Cove will be delighted to see soe familiar faces, in and around the town. 

To me it isn't Christmas without children, and thus this book wouldn't have been anywhere near as good had it not been for Tom and Amy, who are local vet Oli's kids, and about to have their second Christmas since Linda died.   

Grace is only in Conwenna Cove to settle her parents into Rosehip Cottage, and then intends on going back to Cardiff. Yet as she spends longer in Cornwall, she finds herself drawn to Oli and his family, despite not really wanting to let anyone in. 

Grace's parents are fabulous, I loved the way Simon (her dad) is a great cook, and between them make Oli and his family feel a lot happier. There are great people who aren't without their own heartache, which makes them really relatable too, and I would have loved them as my parents. 

There are some adorable animals in this book, I especially loved Hope, and the family of cats. This really is just a great heart warming book from Darcie Boleyn, and I am hoping that we will see more from Conwenna Cove in the future. 

Thank you to Netgalley and Canelo for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book as it included Christmas (my favourite holiday) and greyhounds (I am just about to rescue my 4th). I didn't know their favourite position was called roaching, so learned something on the way.This romance was tinged with sadness and different relationships which made it a good book to read

This is a delightful story that grabs you from the start. A lovely book to read at this time of year approaching the festive season.

This was such a delightful read.  It was a treat to return to Conwenna Cove and I was completely romanticised again by the landscape.  The fictional coastal village that the author has created sounds so idyllic with its quaint cottages and the little independent shops together with the beachside ambience but what makes this story more heartfelt is the occupants of the village.  There is a real sense of community in the village from those that were born in the village to those that have sort solace and have been welcomed with open arms to this wonderful seaside location.  I feel like I want to pack my case and have my own Conwenna Cove hug.

This story focuses on Grace Phillips who has travelled down to Cornwall from her home in Cardiff to help her parents settle in their new cottage in the Cove.  Grace and her parents have suffered such a terrible loss and her parents are hoping that this new start will bring a new perspective to their life, a chance to reflect and a chance to embrace what life throws at them.  Grace is an author so staying with her parents for a short while is no hardship to her career as she can work from anywhere.  When Grace meets the village vet Oli Davenport she is struck by his handsome features but his aloof persona doesn't help him win friends too easily.  However, given time Grace discovers more about Oli and with his huge commitment to the health and welfare of animals and to his devotion to his children, eleven year old Amy and five year old Tom, Grace appreciates this side to Oli.

Oli Davenport loves his children and loves his job but he is still grieving for his wife who sadly passed away two years ago.  When he first meets Grace he is struck by her beauty but this sets off a chain reaction of confused emotions in him.  His first priority is his children and he also feels like he shouldn't be having any feelings for any woman since becoming a widower.  However, the more Oli and Grace get to know each other the more they understand that they each are holding a heartache and are still grieving.  

Will the beautiful landscape, the wonderful honesty in children and the sad plight of the animals in need that Oli faces daily help these two people learn to love again?

A wonderful, heartfelt, festive read that left me sighing with contentment.

The storyline involves the characters Grace, Oli, Tom and Amy on the run up to Christmas. Although a bit predictable a totally enjoyable read that keeps you turning the pages and leaves you with a festive warm feeling.