Philippa (known as Pepper to her friends) has lived her whole life in the picturesque coastal town of Aldeburgh in the East of England. A life numbed by grief following the accidental death of her sister Bethan two decades ago; a life only partly lived as Pepper has given up her dreams of travel and ambition to become a professional artist. Instead, she has sought refuge in teaching art through her own community project ‘Arts For All’. Outside of work, she socialises with a few close friends and her mother. A mother whose remote distant existence has been defined by her younger daughter’s death and no one, not even Pepper can find a way through to her.

Into this world Pepper’s older and feisty friend, Josephine, cajoles her to come along on a trip to Lisbon to try and discover what happened to Josephine’s first and true love, Jorge. What Pepper does not realise is that Josephine’s invitation becomes the catalyst which alters her entire life.

Wow! As the pair arrive in Lisbon the novel truly takes off and luckily this is only the first of five trips abroad that Philippa ends up making.

Lisbon is described in glorious lush technicolour detail, capturing the mesmerising beauty of the city and its people. The author paints a vivid image of the capital, the serenity palpable through the wonderful and magical depiction. I felt transported to Lisbon (and later the other destinations); yet I must reinforce that at no stage is the energy and ease of the narrative sacrificed for the sake of the locations.

Travel is so much more than sightseeing and this is case for Pepper who finds herself transformed through her travels and experiences. First in Lisbon she meets a German named Finn and the two of them seem destined to be together. As the story moves back to Aldeburgh, then to Hamburg, Barcelona and Guernsey, Pepper finds increasing creativity and freedom within herself as she faces the guilt of moving forward with her life, both personally and artistically.

“Guilt that her own pain did not run deep enough, that she dared to hope for elation in the wake of tragedy.”

Excerpt from ‘Hello, Again’.

Romance is interwoven throughout the book and interestingly played out across the various generations. Whilst the love interest between Pepper and Finn dominate, her enigmatic friend Simon becomes a frequent presence in her life. The romantic life of Josephine and even that of her mother and father also are explored with sensitivity and warmth.

Through this powerful portrayal of love, loss and friendship I found myself drawn ever deeper into the lives of all the characters, hooked by their tangled romantic encounters and I cheered along as they found a life beyond sadness. Nothing is predictable and the continual surprises ensure this is a rewarding, thoughtful and entertaining book.

Finally, a note to myself! How has this author not been on my radar! ‘Hello, Again’ is Isabella Broom’s eighth book and I now look forward to catching up with some of her previous works. I think I’ve got my summer reading sorted!

I received a free copy of this book from the publishers via Netgalley in exchange for an honest and impartial review.

Once again another well written, enjoyable book. It just proves that sometimes we have to act outside our comfort zone in order to get out of a rut (even when we haven’t realised we are in a rut!).

I always love Isabell’s Broom’s writing and her ability to take me all over the world with her books.

I adored the travel aspect of this book because we get to go to some more unusual locations. I loved visiting Lisbon, Guernsey and Hamburg in the novel. I loved the sights and the sounds as well as the food and the drink of course. This author has such a way with words you can fall in love with a place and have the urge to visit even if you hadn’t even given it a second thought before. I also love her writing because you can literally taste everything her characters are eating, I just wish I didn’t feel the hangovers as much after the wine!

Pepper is an interesting and complex character. I will admit that I did struggle to connect with her a little over the course of the novel. She has had a certain amount of tragedy in her life and acts accordingly. I do feel like she is a little selfish at times but when we get to know her and her past, especially her family life we can see why. Then we have Jospheine who is definitely a positive influence in Pepper. She also has a selfish streak but in a ‘I don’t care what you think of me’ kind of way which is really hard not to love.

Of course we don’t just have a love story when it comes to travel and location in this novel, we also get to meet Finn who takes a liking to our Pepper. Again though I did struggle to connect with him on the page a little, I was wishing someone better would come along, I guess I just have very different tastes to Pepper and that is just fine.

I loved the travel in this novel, I loved the writing and as always Isabelle Broom has left me with such vivid pictures in front of me thanks to her wonderful description and I can’t wait to see where she is going to take me next.

A heartfelt story of a journey of self-discovery following the loss of a loved one. Pepper has never recovered from the loss of her beloved sister and her relationship with her mother is fractured. Josephine her elderly companion offers her an opportunity she can not refuse that leads to a whole lot of soul searching and a love affair. Lovely characters and a great narrative. Thank you netgalley.

This was a very slow burner for me. I feel like it needed some kind of big hook because it didn’t draw me in at all and I struggled to find the enthusiasm to move forward, often prioritising other reads despite starting this one twice.

Even when you’re expecting a sordid story about a friend’s past, it doesn’t feel like there are any real juicy parts. And, although the characters were loveable, I didn’t feel invested until somewhere around chapter 45.

The chapter-breaks also felt a little random, a few times awkwardly splitting a conversation rather than the end of a scene, and then other times jumping a whole week ahead and into a different country.

Plot points were occasionally frustrating too, for example Pepper (our hero) doesn’t even Google the man they’re trying to hunt down in Lisbon until about day 3 of the spontaneous trip there. Who doesn’t Google someone to try and locate them before making a trip?

I did, however, enjoy the chemistry between Pepper and Finn, a bashful British prude and a smooth-talking German make for a wonderful yin and yang. And I very much enjoyed reading the personal revelations they taught each other as the story progressed.

If you’re looking for a slow-paced, slightly-cheesy pick-me-up, with a slice of late-blooming first-time love and splash of family drama, then Hello, Again is a perfect choice!

Favourite quote: ‘You are cheesy,’ she informed him. ‘But luckily for you, I am crackers.’

Hello, Again will be released on the 9th of July 🎉

I give this one 3.5 stars. This story is about a girl named Pepper who has befriended an older woman named Josephine. Josephine convinces Pepper to travel to Lisbon with her in search for her long lost love. During their travels, Pepper finds romance, the arts, and also does some soul searching. Such a great read if you love the arts, romance, and travel. It was a quick read that kept me entertained the whole time. Thanks to Net Galley for an advanced copy of the book.

This had all the ingredients I needed for now, a nice comfortable read describing one city, Barcelona, that I love and one that I have always wanted to visit, Lisbon. Lockdown prevents me visiting Lisbon so this should have been the next best thing, that combined with a short attention span because of a nice hot day and lockdown fedupness. Sadly my experience of this book seems to be amazingly different to all the reviews....I really did not enjoy it and found it to be predictable, superficial and very simplistically written...so sad I was looking forward to reading it. Thank you Netgalley for the ARC.

What better way to spend a hot summer day than wrapped in a good book, sipping a cold Sangria. And what better read can you find than Hello, Again by Isabelle Broom
Philippa Taylor (Pepper to her friends) has big dreams. When she closes her eyes, she can picture exactly who she ought to be. The problem is, it’s about as far away from her real life in a small coastal town in Suffolk as she can imagine.

So when her elderly friend Josephine persuades Pepper to accompany her on a trip to Europe, she jumps at the chance to change her routine. And when Pepper bumps (literally) into the handsome Finn in Lisbon, it seems as though she might have finally found what she’s been looking for.

But Pepper know all too well things are rarely as they seem. Her own quiet life hides a dark secret from the past. And even though she and Finn may have been destined to find each other, Pepper suspects life may have other plans as to how the story should end.

I read Hello, Again in one day because I enjoyed it so much I couldn’t put it down. It is a story of friendship, love and new beginnings where not every romance turns into “they lived happily ever after”. It is that story that tells you it’s not always about the destination but rather the journey itself. I loved the butterflies, the love at first sight, the live in the moment without regrets. I wanted the fairy tale but in the same time I absolutely adored the reality check of it all, the decisions and the partings.

Pepper is my kind of girl. She is an insecure talented artist with a crazy dress style and in spite of everything she went through, she grows so much throughout the entire story, turning into a wonderful and strong woman teaching us all that although our past may shape who we are, it doesn’t have to necessarily determine who we become in the future

If I am to be honest, I wanted to read a bit more about Josephine and Jorge, to discover the nostalgia of it all and savor every detail but in the same time, I was happy to live in the present and enjoy the love between Pepper and Finn. I hoped for Samuel and I got so mad with Pepper’s mum, with her incapacity of accepting the past without blaming everyone.

Isabelle Broom wrote such a wonderful novel, perfect for the times we currently face. Hello, Again is the go to summer read

An enjoyable romance set in beautiful European cities. Pepper Taylor and her mother don't often see eye to eye. Pepper has done her best to move on from the tragic accident which killed her sister, Bethan. Her mother has not. Pepper enjoys her work as an arts and crafts teacher in Aldeburgh, though she remains in her home town partly from a sense of duty towards her mother. When her best friend, Josephine, asks her to accompany her to Lisbon and Barcelona to help her relive her youth, she is thrilled.

In colourful Lisbon, Pepper meets the man of her dreams, just as Josephine had done many years before. She thinks she knows everything about him. Then he tells her something that makes her see another side to him. A great love story with beautiful descriptions of the fascinating cities she visits and an unexpected twist towards the end.

A somewhat formulaic light read. There was some sadness in Pepper's family's relationship. There were no surprises in the story.

Warning! This book will make you want to:-

Visit Lisbon
Visit Hamburg
Visit Barcelona
Book a short break to Aldburgh
Eat Portuguese custard tarts
Enrol on a mosaic course

This book is just perfect for a daydreamy, holiday getaway while we are all in the grips of lockdown. Isabelle has done it again and really should be on commission from tourist boards all over the world, as she certainly knows how to sell a location.

I may be a little biased, having devoured all her previous books and I inhaled this in a day and a half (sorry, family!) It has the perfect blend of humour, tenderness, entertainment and lovable characters and I would not hesitate to recommend it wholeheartedly. I loved the descriptive use of words and there are some fantastic similes. I particularly liked the sails of the Thorpeness windmill described as "forever frozen in a kiss" and the swimsuit that "had seen better decades".

Read this book with easy access to Google, as you will frequently want to pause to look up the beautifully described locations.

I would give this book 10 out of 5 stars.

Now, I must go and see about enrolling on a mosaic course ...

I love all of Isabelles' books as they are always set in other countries this one took us to Portugal, Germany and Spain - perfect!
Pepper is an artist and lacks self confidence with her art. She is tortured by her past - her sister died when she was younger and Pepper feels that her mother blames her. An opportunity arises for her to be a companion for her good friend as she travels to Lisbon and Pepper goes. She meets Finn and it is love at first sight but Pepper doesn't belive in love at first sight.
This is a lovely story full of emotion of female friendships , love , self belief and grief. Perfect summer read.

i enjoyed this romantic novel very much. The characters were realistic and well depicted. Highly recommended!

Hello, Again is Isabelle Broom’s new novel and I devoured it over the weekend. This book follows Pepper Taylor and her life in a small Suffolk seaside town. Her elderly friend Josephine persuades her to accompany her on a trip to Europe and the bright lights of Lisbon and Barcelona beckon. With a love interest along the way and a few family secrets this book packs a lot in. Beautifully written with some great characters I’m sure everyone will enjoy this book. Thank you to NetGalley, Hodder & Stoughton and the author for the chance to review.

I have mixed feelings about this book. Whilst I appreciated the descriptions of all the places Pepper visited, I sometimes felt they were too long - almost as though I was reading a travel guide. The romance element wasn't satisfying, both because of the speed of it, as well as the ending the author decided to use. I'm not saying Pepper ended up with the wrong guy, but I think too much was made of one male character and not enough of the other. I found it a tad unbelievable that it took 20 odd years for Pepper (and her mother) to deal with trauma from the past. What was lovely was the way Pepper's confidence grew in her art. A good story, but a bit mixed up I felt.
With thanks to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

If you prefer a romance where everything ends neatly in a sugary sweet HEA, then this is not the book for you. It's more of a women's fiction novel with its ambiguous, open-ended conclusion. But that shouldn't take away from this book's merits, because everything about this reals authentic, realistic, and genuine. This book starts on the anniversary of Pepper's sister's death, which hits her and her mom hard every year. When her friend, widow Josephine, asks her to come along on her European trip as a companion, it's the perfect chance for Pepper to try something new and do something her sister always wanted. So, in a quite predictable yet adorable meet-cute, Pepper runs into the hot, German-accented dreamboat in Finn on her first day, and immediately he only has eyes for the colorfully dressed protagonist. She definitely believes in fate and true love at her core, and I can already tell it'll be a fun holiday fling/romance from those early chapters. The book follows their relationship across various cities and countries as they pursue a relationship, the highs and the lows included. Finn is the perfect, sweet, admiring, and all-in love interest and while it's charming, it feels a bit too charming because there's a big truth bomb on the horizon that'll shake Pepper to her core. Once he reveals what's going on, he immediately wants nothing to change and them to be okay, but it's not just about them anymore, so that made me dislike him a tad.

So, obviously there is some romance, but that part moves so quickly, and there's a possibility that they won't end up together by the time he drops his truth. Sure, he taught her to open up and be herself, but they do love each other and that's all that should matter. Boo, that ending makes me sad because I wanted to invest in them together. Then, there's an epilogue, but the two of them aren't really addressed as the two of them, and like, I just want to know what happened to them. I mean, I hope hope hope that they found their way back to each other because his "first piece of love" title of her work may indicate that or if they both move on or if they never do. I just want more, more answers, more of the captivating story.

I love Isabelle Broom’s style of writing and this latest charm is no exception. Featuring Pepper (Philippa) who has been broken since the tragic death of her younger sister over twenty years ago and her lively older friend Josephine who has happy memories of her travels in her teens in the sixties. Pippa has lived a small life having never travelling abroad before but an opportunity to travel to Portugal and Spain with Josephine bring brightness and love into her life.

Pepper is a wonderful character, held back by the past and her fractured relationship with her mum yet she adds joy to the lives of many through the art classes she runs. I loved reading about her travels and the artistic discoveries she found,, the locations were brought to life so well and they were all very enticing. The parallels between her art and personality were very intelligently written and really made me think about the experiences we have and the impact on us.

This is a prime example of the right book at the wrong time. Typically I would be drawn to this easy breezy read filled with adventure, romance, drama and everything else in between but I just wasn't able to make a connection. Characters were likable and during their trip, as a reader you can help but hope Josephine finds her long lost love and Pepper to find the courage to give love a chance with a man she met aboard. This is definitely on my list to re-read down the line when I am at a better head space and perhaps in the second go around, Finn would warm me like Samuel, who I had been rooting for since the get-go.

Awh I so wanted to like this book was so excited when I received the free copy
I have read other books by Isabelle and really enjoyed them. Sorry but just couldn’t get into this one there really wasn’t enough to capture my interest so .... and really hate this I didn’t get very far into it before giving up

Hello Again is my second buddy read from Isabelle Broom and once again it was a pleasure to read alongside my stateside friend. I can’t claim to have read all of Isabelle’s offerings I own them naturally, but what I can say is she has an uncanny habit of sweeping me off my feet. She also has a habit of giving me a bad case of wanderlust and seeing as holidays are being cancelled and work is still lacking I needed a little dose of vibrancy and this is exactly what I was given in abundance.

Hello Again in some aspects is a slow burner with a lot of the adorable Philippa’s (Pepper to her friends) secret sadness left until later on in the story. We are told pieces of the jigsaw but it’s left pretty open for a while leaving you as a reader wondering and turning those pages quicker and quicker.

When Josephine asks Pepper to accompany her on a trip to Lisbon this is when the story takes hold and the colour and warmth start spreading into the story. Pepper has longed to travel but guilt and grief have kept her existing for far too long. The trip sees a massive shift in her thought process and in being there for her friend. Lisbon is also home to the unexpected encounter which brings Finn into her path. She doesn’t realise just how much she needed to meet him until later in the story- it’s safe to say he opens her mind to a new mindset which also unlocks the door on her creativity.

This is so much more than a love story – as ever Isabelle takes us on a rollercoaster ride across Europe also taking in Hamburg and Barcelona. The mention of Barcelona piqued my interest as it’s one of the destinations I know and love and I could visualise it all. Making me long for my cancelled trip but also filling that gap in my life. It’s also made me think on about the other destinations with longing and wonder.

There are some further unexpected turns in Peppers friendships and family life. I adored seeing Pepper realise what she needed to do for both her friend and that of her mother. I also adored the fact this story has a cross generation I love hearing about older people amongst the young, we often can learn a lot from each other and I believe that was the case with Pepper and Josephine there story had me laughing and crying with equal measure.

Once again I truly loved the variation of characters Isabelle has created and I always adore a Hayley popping up in a story I enjoy. There are some complicated and in parts some heartbreaking themes to this book but it’s been done so with such grace. I don’t want to mention them any further as I don’t want to spoil the reveals.

Hello Again is a vibrant wonder in a complicated world. Alongside Pepper we are all shown the value of living in the moment and being true to ourselves. I like Pepper have also doubted myself and my capabilities over the years. Just like her I’m a work in progress looking to embrace and enjoy the simple pleasures I love in life. I will be recommending this book threefold and I definitely need the paperback of this beauty for my collection.