I’ll be honest, there are women’s fiction books with this style of cover around a lot but I don’t tend to reach for them. To me, they often feel light, fluffy and formulaic/predictable. However, I really enjoyed this book!

First of all, allow me to rave about the audiobook. The narrator does an incredible job and I miss her voice now I’ve finished! The book is set in a small village in Wales and the narrator has a lovely Welsh accent that gave the book a warmer, more wholesome feel than I’d have had from just reading the words on the page. Therefore, I’d highly recommend the audiobook!

The story follows our protagonist Wanda. Her family own a camp site in a small Welsh village by a lake and a (almost) mountain. Wanda has always wanted to travel the world but things have cropped up and stopped her going. The book mainly begins where Wanda has to look after the camping site when her mother breaks her hip!
While the story focuses a lot on Wanda, we meet friends, family, neighbours and other village members. The reader is never given the opportunity to get bored and there’s so many characters that there’s a lot going on! Stories discuss past traumas, abusive relationships, loss of loved ones, absent parents and of course, relationships. It’s very absorbing and I wish the village was a real place I could visit!

Oh no! I didn't enjoy this! I feel bad as I was so excited for a cosy summertime read. But it just lacked any real storyline.

I read this as an audiobook and I must say that the narration was fab. The narrator was excellent. I enjoyed her story telling and voices, the Welsh accent was really very fitting to the story, it had a twee feel to it.

I was hoping for more from the romance with Wanda but this seemed to disappear into the background.

The premise was fun and flirty and relaxed. And I listened to this on a lovely summers day so the setting was right. However the story fell flat to me.

I'd read more of this authors work as she seems a competent writer and the prose was well structured and flowed well. It was just the plot I didn't warm to. Bring me sunshine was very good, so this was a let down.

As Wanda (our main character) sets about resurrection the aging family campsite, we meet a whole array for villages that help her along the way.
Ultimately Under a Starry Sky is a tale of love, loss, friendship, forgiveness and hope.
A feel good, heartwarming read that has you putting your feet up and wanting more.

Thank you to the publishers and Netgalley for a pre publication audio copy in exchange for an honest review.

Warm and human, Laura Kemp's latest novel tells the story of Wanda and her family - mother and sister - who run a small campsite in a Welsh village. When her mother breaks her hip, Wanda, who's been working elsewhere, returns to find her sister expecting twins and the campsite run down and tatty and in need of some prompt and decisive refurbishment.

Fifteen years earlier, the lives of Wanda and her two best friends have been devastated by fire - now Annie and Lew both reappear in Wanda's life and offer her their help and support. But dark secrets lurk beneath the surface and threaten their newly-restored friendship and the happiness that each is trying to grasp.
The story of the rebirth of the campsite, named Under Starry Skies, complete with customer reviews in the visitors' book, and of the three friends' reintegration into community life is well told, although I got a bit tired of Wanda's yearnings to be off on her travels - I actually found Annie the more interesting of the two women, and wanted her budding relationship with a single father and his young son to succeed; while Wanda and Lew endlessly failed to find opportunity to decide what, if anything, they wanted from each other, I got a little impatient with them. They made me feel rather old, as I wanted to tell them to grow up!

Despite the undercurrents and past heartbreak, there is laughter, fun and community spirit to be found in Gorbaith - listening to the book is a bit like being part of the village, you feel you could easily just pop down Blod's shop for a loaf of bread and a catch-up with the gossip!

Claire Morgan narrates, voicing each of the many colourful characters with distinctiveness and what I assume is a native Welsh accent. She has a pleasant voice and reads with an easy fluency - I'll happily listen to her in future audiobooks. Diolch i bawb!

Thanks for offering this audiobook. Regarding the technical aspect, it appears as though some glitches I noted in other audiobooks were resolved, like the constant pausing and resuming from the start of each chapter.
As far as this specific book is concerned, I thought the narrator gave a vivid, colourful rendition of the novel. Her voice is pleasant and the variations and accents were quite fun.
Unfortunately, I didn't connect with the story for some reason. It happens. Sometimes you click with a novel, sometimes you don't. It's all about personal taste. So, don't let my experience keep you from giving it a go.

This book was wonderful and heart warming. And I got way too into the relationships of these characters, I have so many notes on my phone screaming in frustration or joy at the developments in the story as it progressed 😂.

I will keep this spoiler free but the ending to this book was so beautiful and satisfying, my heart just melted and I was smiling as I read the Epilogue.

Laura Kemp created a wonderful romance story set with a stunning backdrop of the Welsh countryside to help create atmosphere.

I recommend this book for a perfect summer read to enjoy and make you smile.

The narration of the audiobook is wonderful as well, Claire Morgan did a spectacular job. Her voice helped make the story flow and she really bought the characters to life, especialy the Welsh accents! Her voice really helped to bring the story to life as I listened to it. Claire was wonderful and I hope that I get to listen to antihero audiobook by her.

This is an easy listening story set in beautiful Wales. The story starts with an 18 year old Wanda about to start her life journeys, including kissing a bloke she always had extra feelings for - Sliding doors get in the way and her direction is changed by tragedy.

The story centres around Wanda, her family and friends lives in their cosy, tourist village.

I would describe this as a general fiction read with an undercurrent of a love interest, which to be fair is slightly frustrating at times, they're adults now not 18!

It isn't a fast-moving story, but I enjoyed all the everyday life moments along with the many highs, lows and dramas they all go through.

I really liked Wanda, she's a trooper running the family business while her family are unable. She's very real in the fact that she has issues to work through

This is a book to pick up and get lost in a lovely Welsh village, surrounded by beautiful scenery with a vibrant mixture of personalities to keep you entertained.

I have to say I loved the narration, their voice carried the story perfectly, I could listen to them reading for hours.

Thanks to #Netgalley, #Orion and the author #Laura Kemp for providing me with a copy of the audiobook of #UnderaStarrySky in exchange for an honest review.
I loved this audiobook, the narration was amazing you felt you knew the characters and could not wait to find out what happens but did not want to finish the book either. The book is so well written and even though I live in Wales made me want to go and find Gobaith. This was a wonderful escape from normal life and I cannot wait to pick up more from this author