I am always delighted to see books coming out from author Jill Mansell. I have not read them all but I do love to pick one up and allow myself to become absorbed in her storylines.
I adore her characters and her storylines while they deal with real heartfelt issues, they bring a comfort to her readers.
We meet Didi and Shay in this story...💕
You can feel the love and tension between them coming off the pages.
So much unfinished business between them as they each try to move on with their lives.
Their story began when they fell in love in beautiful Venice...
First love, young love and then a misunderstanding drives them apart.
You can't help feel the need to sit these two down in a room and sort it all out for them.
Didi is the manager in her family hotel and she is engaged to be married.
She feels she is happy but when Shay comes back into her life when he comes home to help his dying dad, she is thrown and doesn't want to admit she has feelings for him.
The will they won't they kept going throughout the pages.
Past secrets begin to unfold and I did feel I turned each page hoping they could put the past behind them and admit the love they had for each other....
A wonderful read, very well worth your time.

This was a wonderfully escapist read. I love it when a romance read transports to me a beautiful and enchanting setting, and this book takes you to not one, but two. The descriptions are detailed and evocative, so you are able to feel like you too are there with the characters.

This is also a dramatic read with lots of twists and turns along the way. It is definitely one that has given me all the feels due to all the ups and downs.

It is a clearly character driven story, and I was introduced to a whole host of likeable main and supporting characters.

This book is a feel-good, uplifting and easy read that is perfect for fans of this genre and authors such as Milly Johnson and Jessica Redland. Jill, for me, has definitely set a high standard for her work and I look forward to reading more by this author, and finally digging into her expansive expansive and impressive back catalogue.

I've always loved books by Jill Mansell - she's one of a stock few authors that I can rely on to give me a book that hits the spot every time. A feel good book that's not all hearts and flowers, there is always a deeper story to discover that will leaving me smiling.

We meet Didi and Shay as teenagers in Venice. Both there as guests, to celebrate friend Layla’s 18th birthday. A more romantic start to a book you couldn’t imagine. It’s the early hours of the morning, it’s snowing and Didi unable to sleep, goes out into the snow, finding herself in St Marks Square where she sees Shay building a snowman. They’re friends by association, from polar opposite backgrounds yet are drawn to each other, she helps him with the snowman, they end up playing in the snow, sharing a bottle of Prosecco and sharing a magical moment that kickstarts their short lived gromance. A romance that was doomed from the start, Didi’s family are wealthy, owners of a luxury hotel, Shay only has his dad, a dad that lives the life of a criminal, in and out of jail - Shay has had to fend for himself, is hard working but not 100% trusted - an incident occurs and when his name is put in the frame as ‘like father like son’, their fledgling relationship crumbles.

Fast forward 13 years and Didi is now the manager of her parents hotel when she comes face to face with her past. Shay is back in town, his fathers seriously ill, his dying wish is to end his days in the home Shay grew up in. To say Didi is shocked to see him would be an understatement - she’s engaged to be married but her equilibrium is seriously rocked on its axis. She never expected to see him again and definitely not in her parents hotel! The chemistry is evident and as a reader you knew there would be more to this tale - the inner turmoil and obvious attraction leapt off the pages but I loved the fact that there was respect that life had moved on for them both - oh but I crossed my fingers that they would reignite what was kindled in Venice.

As in any Jill Mansell book there is a plethora of characters that add depth to the story. In this case their stories don’t just add depth but are integral to the plot. Their stories beautifully stitched together and in enough detail too - Rosa, widowed mother of Didi’s best friend Layla was one of the most beautiful, kind hearted characters I’ve encountered in a long while. Her heart was breaking, yet she still found a place in it to show friendship, kindness and empathy to Red, Shay’s dad - a hardened criminal that despite being ill most other people would have shunned.

Then there was best friend Layla, Rosa’s daughter. She was adorable, such a trusting, gorgeous character, I absolutely loved reading about her on line dating and budding romance. However, I was shouting from the sidelines for her to see what was under her nose though.

The virtual tango of Didi and Shay was at the heart of And Now You’re Back obviously, both honourable in their present lives, but clearly still attracted to each other, drawn like magnets, then repelling each other as life had moved on for both of them - after all, they’re no longer 18 and have their lives mapped out - their story pulled at my heart strings. There had to be a way to come back together. Their past and present colliding, had to be fate, secrets from the past are revealed that highlight you shouldn’t make assumptions - not everything or everyone is who they seem.

I loved how Jill counter balanced the more serious, sad parts with humour, romance and wit. Once again I finished a Jill Mansell book with a satisfied sigh, glad that almost everyone seemed to get their happy ending. This is a compelling read, for anybody who loves contemporary, romantic novels, with some serious elements to add depth and bones to the story. It's gentle enough for a quiet Saturday afternoon but with enough plot twists and surprises to keep the pages turning, you'll want to get to the bottom of the many inter woven stories.

Another uplifting book by Jill Mansell. Great characters, a mix of ages, lots of romance and misunderstandings. Will be sharing a full review on the blog tour next month. Thank you Jill for an escape from reality.

I'm a huge Jill Mansell fan but this one didn't quite capture me and whisk me off to a fluffier, funnier place like they usually do. An easy, light read.

Didi had a secret first love with Shay which blossomed on a trip to Venice, building a snowman. Things ended abruptly and when he turns up unexpectedly at the hotel she runs, things are destined to take a whirlwind turn. The characters are so vividly drawn, you are interested in everyone. Jill Mansell has such a beautiful writing style- you really engage with the story and characters. You can imagine yourself in the middle of everything.I was swept away and so sorry to come to the end!

I've never read a book by Jill Mansell that I haven't loved. She's one of my go-to authors and I usually find I'm engrossed within a few pages.

However, despite the story grabbing me instantly, I felt the first hour or so of the book felt a little disjointed. I wonder if the NetGalley edition was an unedited version? The problem I had was that I would be reading a scene, then it would switch to another scene without any separation - such as a new chapter or even a few asterisks between the paragraphs ***. It was easy enough to pick up after a few lines, but it did cause me to reread the paragraph.

That said, I loved the story, the characters, Jill's style of writing, and had it not been for the above, this was easily a 5 star read.