This was a vast improvement from the first book in this series written by different authors. I found the descriptions to be beautifully written and the characters to have more depth. The reason why I wasn't able to rate it higher is because I'm not a fan of instalove. I get that each of these books are roughly 100 pages long, but I've read other novellas of similar length that can still make the romance more believable. It made it difficult for me to get into the story.

Special thanks to the author and publisher for approving my request to read this ARC through Netgalley!

Starting over by Susanne Bellamy.
Mindalby, a small town, a community, a home. But when the mill that supports the local cotton farmers and employs many of the town's residents closes unexpectedly, old tensions are exposed and new rifts develop. Everyone is affected and some react better than others, but one thing is certain: living on the edge of the outback means they have to survive together, or let their town die.

When fashion designer Serena Quinlan arrives in Mindalby for the annual cotton festival, she is hoping to do two things: meet local leather worker Paul Carey and check out all the 50–year–old men to see if they might be her father. She doesn't expect the explosive attraction she feels towards Paul, nor the untimely and unwanted arrival of her ex–fiance. When her search for her father leads to unexpected results, Serena will be torn between the past she came searching for and the possibility of a future she never expected.

This was a fantastic read with brilliant characters. I loved the characters and how they were. Especially Serena and Paul. My favourite was when Paul was on the catwalk. 5*.

I have travelled back to the country town of Mindalby and am finding out more about the people who are struggling with drought and a cotton mill closing down, these farmers are the backbone of our country and they are doing it tough and MS Bellamy has bought to life the characters in her story, I loved getting to know Paul Carey and Serena Quinlan as they journey a tough path to a beautiful HEA, make yourself comfortable you are in for a great read.

Serena is a fashion designer and has been asked to design some clothing for the Mindalby Cotton Festival and she needs to talk to local Paul Carey but rather than do everything online she decides to make the trip to Mindalby in person, you see she has another matter that she needs to sort out and that is to find her father, a daunting task but one she will not give up on. Her first meeting with Paul goes totally different to what she thought it would, there is a spark, a pull not good considering that she has recently broken up with her fiancé, and life throws some different balls at times and Serena shows the strength to catch those balls.

Paul is big on family and their family has been through a lot with the cotton farm and then the closure of the mill, his parents and brother are running the farm while he keeps up with his art as he is very gifted but he is struggling with the fact that he will not be getting paid for the beautiful leather panels that he has been contracted to do and then in walks the beautiful Serena and life as Paul knows it is going to change so many ups and downs but he cannot deny his feelings for Serena for too long.

There is a lot going on in this story both Paul and Serena have been through a lot but now is the time for them, Paul has always put everyone in front of himself and Serena is just such a beautiful caring person they deserve to find happiness and love and they do in such a gorgeous way, loved this one and am loving this series, always great to make friends with the characters in a story thank you MS Bellamy, this is one that I do very much recommend.

I’m really enjoying this series of Australian romances about Mindalby, a small outback town whose residents all depend in one way or another on the local cotton mill for their livelihoods. When the mill suddenly closes down unexpectedly and the owner goes missing under a cloud of suspicion, the residents must find ways to survive and figure out a way through the crisis.

While this is a series, each of the books can be read as a standalone. There are a few characters who appear in several books, and a few events too such as the mill closure as they all seem to be happening in approximately the same time frame.

In Starting Over, a newcomer to town arrives at just the wrong moment, when tensions are running seriously high. Serena is a fashion designer from Sydney who has created a range for the upcoming Cotton Festival, now in serious doubt. She does have an ulterior motive for coming to Mindalby in person, though, searching for the father she’s never known.

When she meets up with saddler and leatherwork artist Paul Carey, who she’s commissioned to make accessories for her range but never met, sparks fly right away. The path to true love is definitely not going to run smooth with an entire town in turmoil, though, and there are lots of interesting twists to the story as Serena tries to work out who her father is (Paul’s father is even, briefly, a potential candidate!) and Paul tries to work out how he’s going to survive in the town with no business coming in.

I’ve lived in a small country town completely dependent on one major business and this series has, so far, depicted perfectly how the population react the moment there’s even the hint of a threat to their livelihoods. The authors writing the series are doing a tremendous job of covering those gritty realities and not letting escapist fantasies take over - it would be terribly easy to have a billionaire move to town and fall for a local girl, investing to solve everyone’s problems, but that’s not the way things happen in the real world. Instead, people get angry, they drink too much and make reckless decisions, their loved ones make desperate interventions and at the end of the day perhaps, working together, they’ll find their way to a happy outcome.

It’s rather like how real-life relationships work… there are bumps in the road, but with patience and love, you can pull through and find a happy ending. The realism in these stories makes them wonderfully vivid, and I’d highly recommend to anyone who wants a taste of real life in an Australian outback town. Five stars.

I thoroughly enjoyed this modern day love story. It had all the normal happenings; love at first sight, family issues, misunder-standings, ex-boyfriend and all with a bigger problem to solve happening in the background. As is usual, no one talks to each other; conclusions are formed without conversation or substantiation.

All in all, a very good book that served it's purpose, it entertained. My only drawback was the Australian colloquialisms that I could only guess at their meanings.

This book was gifted to me by the author in return for an honest review.

A nice enjoyable second book of this series. More on my blog https://heyjustreadit.wordpress.com/2018/07/20/starting-over-by-susanne-bellamy-review-netgalley-escape-publishing/

Serena Quinlan arrived in Mindalby after a long drive from Sydney, tired and ready to relax. She was a fashion designer and was meeting with Paul Carey regarding the annual cotton festival, and what she had to offer the town. But the local cotton mill had recently closed, and the workers were out of work with not much chance of receiving the money they were owed. The festival would possibly not even go ahead. Serena’s meeting with Paul was unexpected on his part – he hadn’t checked his messages – but the instant attraction they both felt toward one another was a shock to them both.

Serena had an ulterior motive for her trip to Mindalby. All her life it had been just the two of them; she and her mother Dawn. Serena had never known who her father was. Her mother’s recent health scare had Serena wanting to find her father – and the only thing she knew was Mindalby featured in that past. But when her ex-fiance, reporter Max from Sydney, arrived unexpectedly, Serena knew there would be trouble.

What would happen to the people of the small town, where tempers were frayed, and deceit had occurred? And would Serena find her father – or was he nowhere near Mindalby?

Starting Over is the 2nd in the Mindalby Outback Romance series – a multi authored series of novellas, with this one by Aussie author Susanne Bellamy. Mindalby is a fictionalized town set in rural NSW, inland between Newcastle and Dubbo – the story revolves around the closing of the cotton mill, and the actions of the town to help each other find a solution. Recommended.

With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my digital ARC to read and review.

The second story in the Mindalby series, I was hoping it might include the characters from the first book a little which was slightly disappointing, but I still thought it was a great read. The town of Mindalby's population is growing with each chapter. I thought Paul's character was great though both him and Serena often jumped to conclusions about the other a bit too often, what would be best for the other without asking said person, saying this I liked the way the whole story and Serena's reason for coming to town was resolved.

Thanks to NetGalley and Escape Publishing for a copy in return for an honest review.

"Starting Over" is the second book in "A Mindalby Outback Romance" series where every book is by a different author. This book tells the story of Serena Quinlanin and her search for her father as well as other dealings in Mindalby.
Even though the story is short, the characters are well developed and likable. I really liked Serena and Paul. This story is entertaining and romantic, it also has some depth to it. I would recommend it to people who enjoy reading romances in the outback setting.

Loved it good read enjoyable would recommend reading it and the author amend other books in series won’t disappoint

Starting Over is a pretty good romance. I enjoyed the plot and the outback setting. The author is new to me and I expect I will check out more of her books.

Starting Over is the second book in the Mindalby Outback series, and this one is written by Susanne Bellamy. I love these short stories and the amount of background and content that each author has managed to include in each book.

The characters are well developed and the story keeps the reader entertained until the end. I look forward to the next book and discovering another fabulous author.