Member Reviews

This was another enjoyable read by Sue Moorcroft.

It was everything that I could have hoped for as a holiday read. So descriptive, i felt like I was there and I was instantly able to connect with the characters.

Thanks again for the opportunity to review.

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Thanks to Netgalley and Avon, Harper Collins for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

Set on the remote and beautiful Isle of Skye, Thea has taken refuge there away from the rat race and enjoying the anonymity and calm there.

A surprise encounter with a handsome man turns things around, can she escape her past and look forward to a happier future?

Another emotional journey from running away from secrets and finding out some family truths to acceptance of her new life and who she can share it with!

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This took a little while to get into but once I did I was hooked. It was wonderful to read of an adoptive family so secure and dedicated to one another, and even more heartwarming for a reconnection with a birth parent. The main characters were wonderful and the two villains of the story made my blood boil. Absolutely loved this book and can’t wait for the next instalment of life on Skye

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I do love me a Sue Moorcroft book, she's talented and inspiring. Loved this book and look forward to the next instalment. The characters are engaging and interesting.

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Whilst hard to get into at first, it was enjoyable at the end and took you on an emotional rollercoaster.

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Sue Moorcroft is an amazing author and this book is no exception. A great summer read sat by the pool. I cant wait for the next book that she releases.

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such another good book to read from sue never failing to give you a good storyline that will keep you involved throughout the book telling a lovely story set in scotland of thea and her 2 sisters lives staying together through good and bad and of course with all there troubles comes a happy ending for all

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Well I am loving this first book in Sue Moorcroft's new trilogy.

I loved the setting and the closeness of siblings Thea, Ezzie and Valentina, as well as the incredibly interesting themes that are discussed in the book.

I also especially loved Daisy, her entrance into Thea's life and just about every scene she is in, she is a scene stealer!

This was a cosy but at times emotional book, full of all the warmth you would expect from this author

It was a pleasure to read and I already can't wait for my next visit to Skye.

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

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I have read a number of Sue Moorcroft’s books and always find them enjoyable. This one is about Thea, who while in the public eye had a road accident with an unpleasant man and while the accident was not Thea’s fault she tried to help the injured man by attending road safety events which the he was promoting. To escape the publicity the accident had promoted Thea goes to Skye to work as a gardener in a stately home which is open to the public and where one of her sisters lives. Dev is trying to get an angle on Thea and the accident for a magazine he works for and has turned up in Skye only for Thea to think he has come about a seasonal gardening job. He arrives just in time to rescue a stray dog from a lake. Thea adopts daisy and employs Dev and he decides not to write the piece he was employed to as he starts falling for Thea. The book touches on many things including the use of social media and also family issues. Thea and her sisters were adopted and her adoptive parents have passed away so when Thea gets a chance to meet her birth mother she is torn. I liked the characters in the book but one of the most significant things about it is the description of Skye. Having never been there, the story really promotes the beauty of the island making any reader want to visit. Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me an ARC of this book.

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Sue Moorcroft never disappoints and this story lives up to her formidable backlist. If you can't afford a holiday, but this book instead and have a virtual holiday in a wonderful landscape, peopled by beautifully written characters you will want to befriend. Loved it

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Really enjoyed escaping to Scotland . Love the beautiful descriptions and getting to know the characters.
Once again Sue does it with her descriptions and allowing us into the characters.

A number of topics are explored but the main one is Thea trying to discover who her birth mother is . Will people discover Thea’s secret or is it safe?

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I loved this escape to the isle of Skye, Thea and her sisters were great characters and with a good storyline and beautiful Island backdrop this a perfect summer read

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A lovely read.
What I really loved was the way the author described everything, how you feel you are there seeing what they are seeing, feeling what they do.
As you read the characters really grow for you and you really hope things work out for them.
Definitely a must read.

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Thanks to netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Thea escape to the Isle of Skye to escape a run of wrong turns. She secures a job as a gardener at Rothach Hall and life starts to become exactly how she wants it until an encounter with a stranger brings an unexpected turn.

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You can escape the daily trudge through life via this book. It is well written and evocative of a beautiful place that many of us would love to visit. Combine that with a developing relationship and a family mystery and it is a pretty perfect combination. Throughly enjoyable light-hearted read.

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Sue Moorcroft does it again!
You are instantly transported to wherever she wants to go. You make friends with the characters and everything gets wrapped up in a nice big bow.

This was one of the deeper stories I've read from this author. It dealt with some really tough subjects and dealt witb them well.
This made the story and the characters all the more realistic.

That being said, it's only 3.5 from me, as I found the plot quite predictable.
An enjoyable read, but no twists and turns.

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Firstly I would like to thank the author, publisher and Netgalley for my free ARC.

I was totally hooked by the very instance of the meet-cute. What could be better than our tragic heroine Thea happening upon a handsome stranger rescuing a dog! I’m all about the dogs so this reeled me in.

Thea and one of her sisters Ezzie moved together to the Isle of Skye to start new lives at Rothach Hall, whilst their elder sister Valentina was being a lawyer on the mainland. As head gardener Thea was enjoying her little cottage home and simple life and then Deveron (Dev) shows up.

Romance, dogs, gardens, and beautiful Skye, who could want for more. This is a great spring / summer read, perfect for a little escapism.

I recommend Under a summer Skye by Sue Moorcroft as an easy summer read.

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I really enjoyed my visit to Skye and meeting Thea and her sisters.

Everything about this story was enjoyable from the cute dog, to Thea's job at the Rothach Hall, to the hunky gardener who isn't who he says he is, and the mystery surrounding Thea's recent past and her childhood.

I experienced all emotions reading this story and shed more than a few tears.

A great read and I can't wait to return and follow the next story of the sister's lives.

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This was a simple, fun, easy and quick read. The perfect type of book for your holiday, beach, pool kind of read. This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and I would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you very much to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

3.5/5.

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Somehow I had never read a book by Sue Moorcroft despite seeing lots of her books around on social media. But now I’ve finally rectified that and what a gorgeous story this was and I know for certain I’ll go back and take a look at some of her previously published books. Under a Summer Skye is the first in a trilogy following three sisters, Althea, Esmerelda and Valentina. This story focuses on Thea and opens with a brief prologue which gives the reader a glimpse into Thea’s life. An incident with a cyclist which wasn’t her fault leaves Thea’s world altered and her tv series, Garden Gladiators comes to an end as does her relationship with camera operator Ivan. Fast forward nine years and Thea is in a very different place. She now calls the remote isle of Skye home and is head gardener at Rothach Hall where her sister Ezzie also works. Here she has found comfort, sanctuary and security but the past is about to come back and bite her and despite her best efforts to avoid it it’s time to face the realities of that incident all those years ago.

Right from the outset there is a lovely feeling surrounding the story. It has such a nice, relaxed pace but yet there is a lot happening, but never did it feel like it was being rushed or situations and details were being glossed over. Both the character and plot development were excellent and you certainly get a lot more than you bargained for with some serious issues being dealt with but in a way that fitted perfectly with the overall tone and feel of the book. The theme of the family unit, the question of identity and how the cult of social media and its vultures can disrupt the life of someone are all explored here and things are slowly revealed at just the right times.

The setting is what makes this book as well as having a well-structured and thought out plot not to mention the brilliant diverse characters. The setting of the isle of Skye and specifically the hall and the surrounding small village was absolutely superb. Everything was so vivid with such evocative and detailed descriptions.Those that are fans of gardening and flowers will love how Thea’s job is described and even I did and considering gardening wouldn’t be my thing that’s saying something. I built up such a wonderful and beautiful picture of the gardens and hall in my head which really helped with my overall enjoyment of the story.

Lately, it’s taken me awhile to settle into books or for the book to find its rhythm and settle down. But right from chapter one I was drawn straight into Theas story as she is forced to jump into the burn (a stream) to rescue a stray dog who is in distress. Through this event she meets newcomer to the island Deveron (Dev) and from this moment the peace and serenity that she has craved and is enjoying is shattered. Dev is handsome and there is a connection there that over the course of the book develops into something more but it’s not without its complications which become more apparent the further you read. She had been expecting a different man to interview for a summer job in the gardens and Dev bends the truth a little bit as to how he came to be there and with very little gardening experience he gets the job. The rescued dog whom Thea names Daisy goes on to be a star of the book and Thea’s love and enthusiasm for the little bundle of fluff becomes infectious. Little Daisy brings Thea new life and excitement and you become eager to see her escapades.

Dev came to the island with one goal in mind. Everything has gone wrong for him. His business, marriage and home are all gone and he is burnt out thanks to the actions of others. He is a journalist specialising in sport but desperate times call for desperate measures and he is forced to write for a seedy celeb website in order to earn some cash. The owner of said website wants an article on Thea who has done her best to stay out of the spotlight and would hate for everything that she has established on Skye to ripped from under her. Dev is torn. On the one hand he needs the money but morally after to getting to know Thea and working in the gardens and seeing the new life that she has created for herself he just can’t do it. I thought OK here is a man with a conscience and for once he is deciding to do the right thing and he is thinking of others and not just of himself. He fell into the job and in doing so met Thea who was getting back to herself after such a tricky time. Who was he to come and disrupt all that?

I was so glad he chose to do the right thing but that didn’t mean his boss was happy nor was the person who wanted the article written. I’m being evasive here because the article forms a big part of the overall plot and to say much more would ruin the story. Suffice to say, I had great respect for Dev because of the decision he took but I just had the feeling whilst reading that said decision would come back to bite him and keeping secrets from Thea perhaps wasn’t the best course of action. But on the other hand did he really have any other choice? Once he arrived and he couldn’t explain the exact truth as to how he came to be there he got in too deep and couldn’t back out without destroying what he had with Thea or ruining the lovely working experience he was having and the new life he was establishing albeit on a temporary basis for the summer months.

The plot could have solely focused on Thea and the article and the story would have been good but instead the author branched out introduced the question of family and this really upped things another gear. This could have come out of nowhere and been very implausible but thanks to wonderful writing that had the reader really caring for the characters and what happened to them this didn’t become the case. My enjoyment of the story only grew and grew when we are told that all three sisters had been adopted by their musician parents. Valentina, who lives and works on the mainland and is a super serious lawyer, meets an old family friend who reveals some startling information about Thea’s birth mother. What Thea learns is very upsetting for her and it sends her off on a whole other trajectory and bang the book takes a different turn and boy was I there for it all. Again this could have dominated the plot and already there was a lot going on but the deft touch of Sue Moorcroft meant everything melded together so well and I loved seeing Thea discover more and battle with her emotions with what she learns.

Thea was a fabulous female heroine. I loved that she didn’t take any messing around from anyone when it came to her job and the love and devotion she had for it was evident for all to see. But on the other hand there was a vulnerability about her that she tried to hide from people and it was clear she had been deeply affected from the events of nine years ago that unless she truly confronted them then she could never move on. I loved how this aspect of the story was there was quite a surprising twist to it and I was kicking myself that I hadn’t seen it coming. It showed how selfless Thea was to still be living with the fallout. At times I thought she was a bit immature in some of her actions and that she over reacted but that showed that she wasn’t all perfect and did have flaws. The troubles that Thea fled from come knocking at her door but will she open it and confront them? You definitely have to read this fantastic book to find out.

Under a Summer Skye was a fabulous and thoroughly enjoyable read and it’s brilliant to know that there is more to come. I’m already looking forward to reading Ezzie and Valentina’s stories and can’t wait for the publication of A Skye Full of Stars. This book is the perfect escapist summer read full of raw emotions, hidden secrets and twists and turns which all made for a great read

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