Didn't enjoy this as much as the borrow a bookshop series. It's a light hearted beach read. .

This book is the start of a new series by this author, and is the perfect opener, with lots of characters introduced, and plenty of hints at stories that could follow.

Ally is helping out at her family's repair shop after a relationship break up and a job loss. When scandal strike the repair shop and Special Constable Jamie Beaton arrives on the scene, Ally has to help clear the name of the repair shop and face her feelings for Jamie himself.

A sweet slow burn romance, with some emotional moments. It is well written, easy to read, a great summer book. One gripe I did have was the constant use of Jamie's full name, it became very irritating very quickly. However, looking past that, I'm waiting for book two!

Another fantastic read from Kiley, I can’t wait to read the rest of the series when it comes out.

After a sudden relationship breakdown Ally has to find her way through life, she works in the family run repair barn and after an issue with the barn receiving stolen goods which entailed the police and the investigation into what happened and who was responsible for the stealing. The barn ends up loosing customers until Ally and Jamie special constable get them back onside after telling them what really happened.

As Ally and Jamie get closer what will happen when they have new jobs to go to and will the relationship continue to blossom or will it be the end for them?

Ally meets Jamie when he is temporarily in her home town. They start spending time together, but he is still leaving so where does that leave them? A great setting for a book.

Heartwarming, hopeful and another great book with great scenery. I love a book that could be part of a series and i hope this one will. I would love to read her brothers story too. This was a great read, romance, friendship and fixings. I liked Jamies story and his family, i loved Ally’s realisation that everyone is in the same boat and is just muddling along trying their best.
This was warm, gentle and a wonderful book.
Thank you netgalley for this arc in exchange of an honest review.

The tale of Ally and Jamie, two people who meet and build a relationship. Ally has had a bad relationship and is working to assist her father at the Highland Repair Shop. Jamie has had a few issues in his path a dis currently on placement as a special police constable. As things unfold with various ups and downs, our intrepid pair move on together and we see romance develop. A nice gentle read.

Fixing a Broken Heart at the Highland Repair Shop is a charming and emotional read set in the beautiful Scottish Highlands.

Kiley Dunbar brings together themes of love, healing, and community with warmth and wit.

Ally and Jamie are both relatable characters with heartfelt journeys, and their romance develops in a gentle, realistic way.

The setting of the book is filled with cozy details and caring people and it all adds up to the comfort of the story.

For me, a book is really special when it makes you want to visit the places it describes.

It means the author brought the setting to life in a way that feels real and exciting. You can picture yourself there, walking the streets, seeing the sights, and experiencing what the characters did.

That kind of book doesn’t just tell a story—it makes you feel connected to the world in it and for me the author does a pretty good job in this book 📖

While a little predictable at times, the uplifting tone and engaging plot make this a feel-good read that leaves you smiling.

A lovely start to a promising new series.

4 ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

Loved the startof a new series by Kiley Dunbar and can't wait for the next book. Transported to Scotland and The Repair Shop. Friendships, romance and a bit of drama. All the good feels of The Borrow a Bookshop series.

Ally McIntyre is living a quiet life, back at her mum and dad's while her twin is doing the big fancy career thing (or so he makes out), working part-time as a tech support person and helping out at the repair cafe they run on a Saturday. She's got an OK boyfriend ... then suddenly even that's gone, with a healthy dose of public embarrassment. More embarrassment when the cafe accidentally stumbles on some stolen goods, but at least there's Special Constable Jamie Beaton to make friends with. Jamie's asked for a secondment to this Highland village so he can retrace the steps of the last family holiday before his mum died when he was really young. Can their growing friendship and the community around them help them both to heal and move forward? And will Ally's developing confidence as she organises community events help her to get the fancy new job she's decided to try for?

I loved that, although there's a Highland setting which might not be too diverse, Ally's dad's best friend is an Indian Scotsman who likes playing his Bhangra hits in the cafe, and Ally's twin is gay. A sweet story with depth and lovely descriptions - I will certainly look out for more in the series.

Blog review published 25 July 2025: https://librofulltime.wordpress.com/2025/07/25/book-reviews-kiley-dunbar-fixing-a-broken-heart-at-the-highland-repair-shop-and-michiko-aoyama-the-healing-hippo-of-hinode-park/

This is a lovely read set in the beautiful Scottish Highlands which are always a winner in my eyes. Something about the rugged hillsides just evokes the emotion that is perfect for a romance novel.
I did think that there was lots going on here, the repair shop, the crime, Murray's secrets, Ally's friendships, Switzerland, plus a budding love story. With all this going on, I did struggle a little to figure what the main thread was meant to be, some of them were so interwoven it was hard to tell.
I did love the scenes when Ally met up with her old friends, it was super emotional and I really felt that for all of them.
The setting and scenery is beautifully described, I love that descriptive setting build up in a book.
This appears to be the first in a new series, and I'm intrigued as to where it will go next so would definitely read more.

Loved this book, in fact at one point I really wanted to open my own repair cafe 😂
The community of Cairn Dhu, a place where everyone knows what’s going on, full of colourful characters.
The connection between Ally and her family was lovely then add Jamie the volunteer policeman and you’ve got a great mix full of fun and romance.
Heartwarming stories such as Jamie’s repair story and the folklore stories really added to the storyline.
A great read and I cannot wait to read more from this author.

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I am a huge fan of this author and loved her last series. I had high hopes for the start of this new one and I wasn't disappointed. 

There is a great range of characters in the book and I loved the majority of them.

I loved the concept of the Repair Shop and it's descriptions especially with it being a community hub.  My heart went out to the McIntyre family as they tried to overcome the trials and tribulations they endured. 

Ally and Jamie were 2 lovely characters, both down to earth and completely relatable.  I loved their budding romance and was rooting for them, especially with them both having past issues to deal with.

The author has a way of writing her books that convey a sense of family, friendship and community spirit and this is all wrapped up in a heartwarming and engaging read. 

I'm already looking forward to the next book.

McIntyre’s garden workshop has always been overflowing with things that’ll come in handy one day – all organised in crates and boxes, and neatly labelled. And it’s a broken paper shredder – he had just the right part – that gives birth to the idea of setting up a repair shop for the community of Cairn Dhu, the small village in the Cairngorms. Everyone there has really embraced the idea, bringing in their broken items of all kinds rather than throwing them away. There’s now a cafe too, run by two distinctly quirky sisters – but their baking is to die for – and a good sized group of people who bring their different skills. Including McIntyre’s daughter Ally – she’s their techie, working there on Saturdays (during the week, she works at home for an IT call centre), dreaming of changing her life. Her twin brother did just that, with a dream job based in Geneva, regularly travelling the world. Her love life’s a bit of a disaster area too – but perhaps she’s better off without Gray in her life.

Enter Jamie – a special constable, hoping to join the force, but currently volunteering to prove his capabilities. Their paths first cross under rather unfortunate circumstances, but he can’t get Ally out of his mind – although there are good reasons why it’s impossible for them to be together. But just as the barriers start to come down – and Ally’s interventions help him with some of his own rather complex issues too, as well as making his heart beat rather faster – the opportunity she’s been waiting for suddenly appears. And his time in Cairn Dhu is coming to an end too – it’s time to return to Edinburgh, pursue that application for a permanent job. Perhaps it just wasn’t to be…

And, I have to say, there’s considerably more to this lovely story – different threads and unexpected developments, moments of really well written drama, and times when the future of the repair shop looks distinctly shaky. I always love a community with strong and well-drawn characters – a little quirkiness never goes amiss either, or the opportunity for some laughter. Friends and family – that’s something else I always enjoy, and I especially liked Ally’s efforts to reconnect with her friendship group who seem to have moved on with their lives and left her behind. And all those lovely emotional touches – especially when they involve a bothy when the mists come down, or the healing possibilities of repairing the voice chip in a highland cow.

The setting is so perfectly drawn – I’m not familiar with the Cairngorms, but the author captures the scenery so beautifully. There’s a little folklore too – something I really enjoyed. And I liked the whole theme of sustainability – it’s not laboured, but nicely woven into the story, along with the whole notion of fresh starts, making things (and people) whole again, and new beginnings.

And then there’s the writing. I loved the way the story was told from both Ally and Jamie’s viewpoints – I took them both instantly to my heart. And I really enjoyed some of the (for want of a better word) “asides” to the reader – explaining things like the setting or the Scottishisms, often bringing a smile. And, although I’ll tell you nothing about it – that would be unforgivable – I really loved the ending, which wasn’t entirely what I expected, but I wiped away a stray tear and it left me in just the right place to look forward to whatever comes next in this series.

I do rather hope the next book might follow Ally’s brother Murray – there’s certainly a “to be continued” story there I’d like to read – but there are so many individuals in this book I’m looking forward to getting to know better. A really lovely start to the series, a feel-good and uplifting story I thoroughly enjoyed, and a book I’d very much recommend to others.

I really loved this book! It was such a heartwarming read, it was so good I read this in a day a bit I just couldn’t put down. I loved that everyone got involved and had their own wee jobs in the repair shop but everyone had each other’s backs as well and they were there to help no matter what. I loved the family element as well and how Ally did what she did for her family and the community.

I would highly recommend reading this book if you love a heartwarming read. I look forward to the next book in this series.

I would like to thank Boldwood Books and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book early.

A book set in Scotland immediately gets my attention and I am so, so happy that I read this book! I was in dire need of a bit of a feel-good read and this really hit the spot :)

Ally is living with her parents in a little village in the Highlands of Scotland. She has a twin brother, Murray, and whilst Murray is jet-setting all over the world, she feels stuck. Her father runs a repair shop from his barn and bit by bit, she starts to regain her confidence in her abilities and rallies the whole community whilst she is about it.

One day, Ally meets Jamie, a lowlander who is temporarily stationed in her village, but their meeting is less than ideal. What is going to happen between them, especially since Jamie makes it clear that he is only staying for a short period of time.

This book is all about relationships - family relationships, community relationships and a romantic one as well. It is all very positive and I LOVED Ally's family so much. The community members gave the book some lovely local flavour as well. Thanks for the tablet recipe too :) I love Scottish tablet.

I wish there were more books like this out there. Can't wait to read the next book in the series!

5 stars from me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books.

Really enjoyed this book, very wholesome and cosy romantic story. The main character Ally was great and very relatable. I liked that the story line allowed for the other characters stories to develop and that it wasn’t just a one sided POV.

A great story about friendship, romance and community.

Thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for this ARC.

A s warm cosy read with sustainability sg the heart of its message so building on a very topical theme. The start of a new series and it will be interesting to see where it goes with its cast of interesting characters. Will the current main characters remain central and realise theirs teams. Interesting character depiction and mixture of storylines

I read this book and felt like I was there with the characters in this small-town setting. The build up of the romance between Ally and Jamie was so sweet and comforting as they looked inside themselves to find what they were looking for. This was the perfect book to read on a summer day.
Thank you NetGalley, Kiley Dunbar and Boldwood Books for the arc of the book Fixing a Broken Heart at the Highland Repair Shop. This is my personal review.

OMG I loved this book so much! It is The Repair Shop meets romcom, in the absolute best way possible.

Meet Ally McIntyre and Jamie Beaton. Ally's stuck in her remote job and helping her dad with his community repair shop on Saturday's. Jamie is volunteering with the local police. They're both a little stuck, but maybe together they can get unstuck.

I recently discovered the tv show, The Repair Shop, and I love watching old items become new again, and the look on people's faces at the big reveal. It is just magical. For that reason alone, I knew I'd love this book, but not how much! I fell in love with the Highlands, the little community repair shop and instantly began rooting for Ally and Jamie.

This story is about community and love, and is definitely one of the best British romcoms I've read this year. It just took my breath away, had me crying and laughing at just the right moments. Absolutely recommend to everyone! Now excuse me while I go book my ticket to the Highlands!!

What a lovely story to start a new series. This is so heartwarming but also has plenty of drama, secrets, and covers family, friendship and community. After finding herself single and in a job that doesn’t push her Ally McIntyre feels at a crossroads. Along with her parents and members of the close knit community of Cairn Dhu she volunteers at the repair shop and cafe. Jamie Beaton is a Special Constable who is only there for the summer. However he has other reasons for wanting to be in Cairn Dhu. When there is an incident that puts the repair shop under threat Ally and Jamie meet. There is an instant attraction but can they let themselves act on it? Will Ally change jobs and what happens when Jamie leaves once the summer is over? They have to decide whether to follow their hearts or their heads. I really liked how the stories and events surrounding the two main characters were entwined through the main thread of the story. Thanks to Boldwood Books and Netgalley for the ARC