Billie Summers hasn't really got going, her career is non existent, her last relationship ended in betrayal, her house is mess but she does have the best BF. Together the friends run writing retreats and one of these is attended by a BIG NAME AUTHOR who is a pain in the neck but rather handsome. Billie makes a list of things she wants to do and sets about doing them.
A Year of New Adventures is a laugh out loud story of self discovery and love. Who could not like a heroine who wears silver lace up brogues and has been adopted by 'NotMyCat'.

Billie Summers is a frustrated author (or not). She's been trying to write an historical romance for years without success. In the interim she's held a series of short-term minimum skills jobs. At present she is working part-time in her uncle's book shop, making cakes to order and hosting writers retreats.

Billie and her BFF host a writer's retreat for a group of writers. Unfortunately one of them is a best-selling author who thinks the world owes him a living and acts like a prima donna. With his commandeering the room on the ground floor, demanding food at specified times, sneering at the food on offer and inhaling coffee all the time Oliver Frost is the worst imaginable guest and a PITA.

I really enjoyed this, it was funny, clever and like wallowing in a bath of high grade chocolate.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

I enjoyed the parts of this book where Billie was running writing retreats and catering for Oliver best. I laughed out loud a couple of times and wondered what on Earth she was doing at others.

I'm very torn between 3.5 & 4 stars for this book but after reading some very brilliant 5 Star books recently I had to be fair.

29 year old Billie Summers is organising a writer retreat when a difficult guest turns out to be someone famous and influential, this triggers an overhaul for Billie (who seems somewhat cast adrift and stagnant in her 'safe' life) and so commences a year of changes and new adventures.

This is a book about chance encounters, being brave and true to yourself in your journey of discovery.

Billie appears older than her years in many ways, which I know some young people can, I just felt it a bit difficult to connect with her on a really emotional level, and I am left wondering if this experience is because possibly the author is a bit older and wiser than 29 and the character portrayal reflects that? Anyway, it was hard for me at times to "feel" an emotional attachment to the characters, as sweet and funny as they were. Maybe I've just turned to stone.

However, there were some very amusing moments and I was caught laughing out loud several times which is a huge plus and Maddie Please's delivery of the humour is excellent, mostly from Billie's internal dialogue. The last 20% of the book really hooked me in and everything seemed to ramp up tremendously so this was such an enjoyable conclusion, with a window for more to the story.

My favourite character was the cheeky but charming Not My Cat who I think steals the show (as well as food but I think he gives Billie much in return in the end).

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this copy to review honestly.

*Book provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review*

I really don’t know how to start this review. At several times during reading I was tempted to just put it down, because I just didn’t find a connection to the story and the characters.

I found it really hard to get into the story. The mixture of characters was weird and confusing and parts of the storyline didn’t make any sense. I felt like certain things were not well thought out and the ending was bizarre.

The story has some cute aspects and I liked following Billie around. Unfortunately, that’s it. I really wanted to like this more, but I didn’t.

Billie organises a writing retreat with her friend and they get a mixed bunch of authors. One turns out to be quite well known but very brusque. I loved the sound of the retreat- the authors share experiences and get inspiration from others. Surprisingly Oliver is quite helpful after hearing them read from their current work in progress.
Maddie is told that she should make some new experiences and memories and it does actually make her sit up and think about her future. When her part time job becomes unavailable when she gets back she decides to offer her spare bedroom out for more personal writing retreats. I loved the sound of the bedroom and writing room. I could just imagine spending a few days somewhere peaceful - especially if I was capable of writing a best seller myself.
She has some interesting characters and inbetween she tries to tick off some items on her bucket list.
There are some lovely sparks of romance. The characters are well drawn- so you feel that you get to know them well.

Of course you know there has to be an ending that makes things work out for Billie, and what she wants is something with Oliver. And we do get there, after some lovely moments with new and quirky authors, a scare with her Uncle’s health, the constant presence of ‘notmycat’ and Billie’s rather scattered approach to everything in her life except when cooking, the story brings the ending you’d hope for in spades. It’s just an interesting journey to get there: a bit unfocused in the progression (much like Billie herself) with plenty of sidetrips to visit with secondary characters, complaints and struggles with her mother, her Uncle’s relationship and shop, and even a return of the boyfriend who badly misused her. Through it all, there is a sense that Billie will soon be moving on to the next thing, and her ability to provide authors with the sort of care and an ear that is friendly and open, making her little ‘retreat’ venture a true growing concern especially with all of the good word of mouth from well-known, best-selling authors. With a grand gesture (delayed with her Uncle’s bout of appendicitis) and yet another limo ride that drops her at Heathrow without much explanation, the story is a perfect curl up with tea and escape sort of read. Just don’t use the ‘travelogue’ from Logan to Ludlow – you’ll have the longest and most unlikely route: much in the wrong direction, if scenic.

I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review: all conclusions are my own responsibility. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

Review first appeared at <a href=” https://wp.me/p3OmRo-9BV”> <a> I am, Indeed </a>

Billie is quite content with life, her little cottage and part time job and then she meets a man that changes everything, questions her life and then the changes happen. You will enjoy her journey!

A nice story about kick starting your own life and biting the bullet. She's a very quirky character and like many of us can fall into a rut and not see what's infront of her. There's an annoying but very handsome man on the scene, work in a bookshop but there could be more in her life. So she starts to make a list and gets on with things. I really enjoyed seeing her change and try things. A quirky yet determined character who develops nicely in the book. Not sure about the ending but the story as a whole was a nice way to escape to the Cotswolds.

Really enjoyable read. Billie meets Oliver at one of the writers retreats she runs, and at the end of the retreat it seems he has helped everyone else out but her. Then a series of events occur that he has set in motion and she gets to know the real Oliver.

This was my first book by this author and will not be the last I absolutely loved it from the first page and was hooked with great characters and storylines. If you love books they you are well away when there are so many different writers in this book. Excellent book to curl up to and get totally hooked from the first page and wants you reading more to see what happens. Totally excellent book would love a follow on.
Billie has split with her boyfriend and really isn't sure about herself she goes with a friend on a writers retreat and she isn't cooking for everyone while there. She is looking forward to it till Oliver arrives and is snappy, rude and selfish from the moment he arrives at the retreat. He stays in his room and every time bilie tries to speak he is rude to her and the others as he says they are making to much noise she is so unsure of him yet has strong feeling at the same time that she is trying to push aside. She goes back home and her job in the bookshop is finished for a time as it's flooded and she's so unsure what she wants to do until she gets a phone call from olivers PA asking her to go away and do all the cooking for a group on a retreat she accepts thinking it's in wales but soon learns it's in America and she still finds Oliver rude and can't understand him at all. When she comes home she is given the idea to turn her spare room in to a room where authors can come and write in peace and quiet can she make a go of this and when someone she wasn't expecting turns up how does she take it and can she find romance or is it just something she can't do.
This is an excellent read perfect easy read with plenty of romance and books highly recommend.

I was really looking forward to this new one by Maddie Please. I'd quite enjoyed Maddie's first novel and was looking forward to reading another by her. This one, I feel, was written better than the first, the narrative easier to understand and follow. I also felt as though I related to the character better as well. Sometimes life throws things at you unexpectedly and I feel that Billie took Oliver's words in her stride and planned to make her life better.

The book turned out to be brilliant as the story went on and I really enjoyed the storyline. It had some great laugh-out-loud moments, but also sometimes where you really felt and understood Billie's actions. I loved that Billie changed her life around, by wanting a new everything - a new career, love life and so on. Although, I'll be honest, I loved the fact that Billie creates writer retreats, it's different and I really found it interesting to read about.

I will admit that the ending struck me as somewhat abrupt, and I wasn't expecting it, however pushing that aside I still did end up enjoying the overall storyline. I felt as though I related to the main character and that for me is a big part of a book. If I do not relate to the main character then I just can't get in it. It was another novel by Maddie Please that I enjoyed. As with Maddie's other covers, I found this one to be really stunning. The bright colours drawing you in, and I adore the little village in the background!

Overall, an enjoyable story - but not my favourite ever book. Thank you to Netgalley and to the publisher for a chance to read this novel, which I have reviewed honestly.

What a delightful story. Billie, a young, almost 30, woman, starts out the book by hosting an authors' retreat with her friend. Rude and barking orders to one and all is Oliver. Naturally the sparks are there, and Billie is attracted while also angry at him. She speaks her mind a few times, and he is actually appreciative of her comments. Word of mouth helps her set up a small retreat in her home, and a slew of authors sent by Oliver helps her to earn a living. Enjoyed this book a lot, and especially liked the sparing between the two. Also, liked the humor reflected in Billie's thoughts and note taking. Chuckled a lot while reading this one, and I highly recommend this book and author. A sweet story, and it especially works with the start of a new year, since one of the things she does is create a list of things to change and improve her life. Great read.

A Year in New Adventures by Maddie Please

A Year in New Adventures was a delightful narrative directed by Miss Billie Summers’ original thoughts and quirks. A mothering sort, Billie’s take on life as an almost-30 single white female is filled with quirky humor and warm sentiment as she navigates her independence in picking a new career, love and life. It was a delight to see Billie slowly change her life and be her authentic self in all moments of smallness and bigness. All characters played an integral part in bolstering up Billie, and their dynamic in conversation made a natural flow for the reader to take part in.

As Billie was such an entertaining character to discover (as she was discovering herself), I felt the ending came and I was unprepared. I wanted more time spent in Billie’s head planning writing retreats and participating in banter with cranky, borderline alcoholic writers. I can cope with the loss by envisioning a sequel.

Overall a pretty cute read but the ending was strange and out of place. Enjoyed reading about Billie's life and new business. The relationship with Oliver was not well thought out or delivered in a clear way. Why would he fly back from Boston to the U.K. just to say hey I still like you and will be back next week? Surely that's what the phone is for.