Cover Image: The Kindness Project

The Kindness Project

Pub Date:   |   Archive Date:

Member Reviews

Thought this sounded sweet, and it definitely was, but think it erred too much on the side of convention at times.

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I must firstly apologise for the amount of time it has taken me to provide a review of this book, my health was rather bad for quite some time, something that had me in hospital on numerous occasions and simply didnt leave me with the time I once had to do what I love most.

Unfortunately that does mean I have missed the archive date for many of these books, so It would feel unjust throwing any review together without being able to pay attention to each novel properly.

However, I am now back to reading as before and look forward to sharing my honest reviews as always going forward. I thank you f0r the patience and understanding throughout x

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A warm-hearted story, well written and easy to read. A good book to read in bed, or to take on vacation. It will give you some ideas of how you can incorporate and encourage more kindness into your life

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Devoured this book and it was like a warm cup of cocoa

It is lovely, heart warming, thought provoking and just wonderful. It is a real feel good read and stays with you long after finishing the last page

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A nice little story with likeable characters and a happy ending. Perfect for those who enjoy reading chic lit.

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The start was too sad and a bit too close to home for me to enjoy. I put it down and couldn’t pick it up again unfortunately

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I love these cute types of feel good reads and the Kindness project definitely fit the bill.
Premise
Step 1. Help the lonely baker start again

Step 2. Find the true calling of the village shop owner

Step 3. Call a truce on a decades-old feud

Step 4. Forgive me . . . ?

The locals of the Cornish village of Polperran are grieving the sudden loss of Bea Kimbrel, a cornerstone of their small community.

Now her reclusive, estranged daughter Alice has turned up, keen to tie up Bea's affairs and move on.

But Alice receives a strange bequest from Bea - a collection of unfinished tasks to help out those in Polperran most in need.
I love the tasks that help out the people in need or when someone fills a bucket list or carries out someone’s wishes. It was a very sweet read and definitely had me shedding a tear or two.

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This book was a delight and I thoroughly enjoyed every page. I loved the amazing variety of characters and the unique and interesting story and slow build of plot. This is a lovely sweet and thought provoking book highly recommended

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

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I absolutely loved it. The Kindness Project is an utter delight from start to finish.set in a small Cornish village it centres around a collection of unfinished tasks. But it’s so much more than that; it’s about humanity, it’s about forgiveness,

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I really enjoyed this story, I could really relate to the central character Alice’s mental health struggles, the descriptions of her panic attacks were written very well, and really emphasised how crippling anxiety can be. I loved watching Alice’s journey develop and how she slowly thawed and began to let people in. I would have loved a little bit more romance developing throughout the story between her and Luke. I was pleased with the ending of the book but felt the focus on their relationship wasn’t strong enough throughout the story, I didn’t feel any real chemistry between them for most of the book. The main plot focusing on Alice and Bea was beautifully written and I was teary several times when reading it. Overall a beautiful story, and I would recommend this book.

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This is a lovely book which I thoroughly enjoyed reading. Not knowing what to expect from the story I loved the way that it built slowly, introducing such varied and detailed characters building in to a most unusual story line that definitely gets you thinking about the fundamental elements of relationships and connection. I felt that the romantic suggestions perhaps detracted from the story line and felt as though the writer believed they needed to be included to appeal to a wider audience but overall this is a lovely gentle but through provoking read with a beautiful evocative setting.

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After Alice receives a letter from her mother's solicitor informing her of her mother's death; Alice must travel to the village of Polperran to sort her estate and fulfill her mother's last wishes.

Unknown to Alice is that her mother has left her a few small projects which will lead to a family secret that has been hidden for years.

Personally, I found this novel slow and the narrative sometimes disjointed.
Although themes were hinted it felt as though scenes were added in to give a conclusion to a certain narrative that had formed.

However, some of the themes that ran through this novel were very touching and meaningful; such as to beware of what you have until it's gone, telling us that life is too short and showing forgiveness even when it's hard.

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A lovely read for a rainy day. Beautifully written, thought provoking and descriptive. I really felt as if I were in this village with the characters myself. The story is emotional but also heart-warming and the message is something I think everyone can learn from.

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Thanks to @HeadlineBooks and @NetGalley for providing me with a proof copy in advance of publication. 📚⁠

This is a story about a young woman's grief, dealing with the loss of her mother, Bea, who she hadn't even seen in 7 years. She goes to the village in Cornwall her mother lived in and her mother takes her on a mission to take care of the other inhabitants of the village via well-timed letters. Alice meets Luke, the gardener, lifeguard and all around town helper, Sally, who works in the village shop, but is run thin with two young kids and an elderly father with a debilitating disease she needs to care for, and the bubbly solicitor who is exacting her mother's last wishes and delays Alice's plans to return to her comfortable, academic life back in Cambridge. ⁠

Will this little break from her daily routine set Alice on a new path, bring her closer to her mother? And why does Bea want Alice to help people around the village? ⁠

This is a perfect cosy Sunday kind of read, it envelops you and gives you the space to feel big and complicated emotions while introducing you to a lovely cast of locals who welcome you to the little village of Polperran.

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What a good read. On the surface Alice has a successful life as a Cambridge University academic. We meet her en route to Polperran in Cornwall, where her mother has recently died. We discover Alice isn't as pulled together as she'd like to think - something has clearly happened at university although we are teased with this for a long time. Alice's mum left her and her dad in Cambridge to move to Cornwall when Alice was 11. Summer visits were tolerated by a young Alice although she made no effort to integrate with her mum's new life. We never truly found out why Bea had left her family behind, although we do learn of her reason for being where she is. Alice thinks she's there to sell her mum's cottage and clear out, until she is presented with a series of letters written by Bea when she knew she was dying, tasking Alice with acts of kindness to people in the village. When we learn what is behind this project we realise how well Bea actually knew her daughter. Alice is a sad character and it is lovely to see her push herself out of her comfort zone. Some moments of comedy, some of pathos and an overall message of love and kindness. #thekindnessproject #netgalley

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I really enjoyed this book from beginning to end. Sam Binnie is a new author for me and I look forward to more from her (and reading her 3 previous books). I would love to visit the village of Polperran and meet all the characters who were so believable. The way the story was written was really good and I had a roller coaster of emotions, especially as the story unfolded and we found out the reason for Bea being there. I would welcome a sequel to this to see how the characters progress. I highly recommend this book.

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The title of this book captures what should be in everyone’s head right now….”kindness” this book takes you on a journey, Alice is a bit of a recluse living in Cambridge, when she finds herself in the small Cornish village of pelperran after the death of her estranged mother. She’s there to pack her mums house up and sell it so she can return to Cambridge as quickly as she can. However her mother has left her some envelopes with tasks she needs to complete “the kindness project”. Alice finds herself looking at these tasks and wondering why her mother wanted her to do them! Whilst doing these tasks from her mother Alice finds herself deep in thought about her past and finds solace swimming in the sea. Sam Binnie has used such thought provoking words to really set the scenes in this book and she describes the village and its people so well you actually think you are actually a character in the book. Safe to say i was enthralled by the book and loved reading it! I wont tell you want happens to Alice and the village, you will just have to pick up the book and read it yourself!!

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Thank you to #NetGalley and #Review for allowing me to read #TheKindnessProject.
When Alice’s estranged mum Bea dies, Alice is her sole beneficiary.
Going down to Cornwall to see Bea’s solicitors and close up her home, she thinks she will be back in the safe space she has carved for herself in a few days. But Bea has left her a set of tasks to do before she can leave. Follow Alice’s trials as she try’s her best to follow Beas wishes.
You will laugh and you will cry as Alice finally understands just what her mum was trying to tell her.

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A beautiful book that reminded me at times of PS I Love You as Alice is left letters from her mum Bea who has sadly passed away. Each of these letters ask Alice to help out someone in the village of Polperran and I found these so moving to read and you could see that these letters weren’t just to help Bea feel better but also to help Alice as well.

The village of Polperran and the residents who lived there were all so wonderful (well some of them anyway) and all I wanted after reading was to live there and become part of this amazing community. The author is fantastic at the details and her descriptions of the village, gardens and characters are all so rich and vivid that you have such a clear image in your head of the people and places.

Through the letters Alice receives from her mum she embarks on this ‘Kindness Project’ which was emotional yet uplifting to see as Alice finds herself, begins to deal with her anxiety and uncover family secrets along the way.

Overall this was such a lovely read exploring grief, kindness and learning to open your heart to others. If you’re looking for the perfect bit of escapism this summer then this is the book for you.

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This is the perfect, heartwarming summer read I didn’t know I needed. It does start off a little hard to get into, but that quickly changes. It ended up being one of those books you wish you could jump into and be part of. I’m going to order copies of this for my in laws for when they’re on holiday because I know they’ll absolutely adore it. Thank you!

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