I was drawn to this book by the beautiful cover, and the location in the Scottish Highlands. I had heard of the author, but I had not read any of her books before. I was offered an early preview copy from Netgalley, and I decided to read it.
Lily's Mother had died, and then she was made redundant. She decided to visit her Mother's shop to get it ready to sell. She finds herself questioning her future, when she discovers parts of her late Mother's life that she was unaware of.
This is a lovely heart warming and feel good book. The characters are interesting, and the location is stunning. It is well-written and easy to read, even though it is fairly predictable. It is a perfect holiday read. I will definitely read more books by this author.

This was a sweet romance set in Scotland on a loch - somewhere I can't wait to visit. It goes beyond just a light story since both protagonists are coming through their own tragedies and finding out what's next in life. Still it would make a great choice for a vacation read.

I loved this , it’s happiness in a book. I admit I adore Scotland so this is perfect for me. But it has loveable characters, lovely slow burn romance, a couple you really want together and happiness. A lovely feel good book and perfect summer read. Highly recommended.

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

Life didn’t give Lily Ballantine lemons, it threw them at her. Losing her job and the man of her dreams in one ugly day has sent her into a tailspin. Luckily she’s recently inherited a little gift shop in a tiny Scottish village, so she heads there to lick her wounds. It’s only supposed to be a temporary respite, but the shop, a cat named Misty and the local villagers (okay, one cute guy in particular), just might convince her to make her stay a permanent one. Who doesn’t want to live in Scotland? Conway writes to the heart of every soul who’s ever needed a second chance

I think it's fair to say that Lily likes her life to fit into certain parameters. She enjoys the routine and knowing where her career is headed. She is more than shocked when her her imaginary romance and promotion all fall flat in a matter of moments when she is fired by the man of her dreams. All of her plans disappear in flash.

She travels up to Carroch to deal with the small shop her mother bequeathed to her in her will. The differences between mother and child become quite clear as the story evolves. How did the free-spirited mother manage to raise such a structured and rule loving child?

Lily doesn't expect to make connections in such an isolated and yet superbly quaint village, where everyone knows your name and nobody is a stranger. She most definitely doesn't expect to find somebody she is attracted to. Oh, and let's not forget the pesky wee cat who comes with the shop.

It's all about Lily learning to enjoy what life has to offer no matter where she is at any moment in time. Learning to take a breath and see, and not just build her life around her career. The result is a heartfelt exploration of the person she thought her mother was and who she was for the people around her. Those two pictures are completely different, something Lily has to come to terms with.

It's light on the heart-wrenching emotions and romance, it's the perfect mixture of both. The kind of read that doesn't ask for a piece of your soul and instead just invites you in for a nice cup of tea and piece of cake. It's contemporary romance, an uplifting and delightful read.

I wonder if that's the last we will hear from the small community of Carroch. There are plenty of threads and characters to follow up with.

Thank you NetGalley, HQ Digital and Maggie Conway for this free advanced digital copy.

I am so happy I stumbled across The Little Gift Shop on the Loch. This was such a feel good, charming, sweet story.

Lilly has just been let go from her job, a job she very much loved. So with her wounded pride she heads north to Carroch, a little Scottish village on the Loch. A place she hasn’t returned to since her mother past. As Lily is feeling lost and much heartache while trying to clean out her mother’s charming shop, thinking she is going to sale and head back to Edinburgh, she finds herself falling for the beautiful shop and Jack our sexy Scottish highlander.

While this story was predictable, it was still very much enjoyable and I absolutely could not put it down. I loved all the characters even the cat Misty. And the location was so beautifully described that I absolutely fell in love with this charming little village.

Maggie Conway is a new to me author but I will definitely be checking out her previous books. I am also very much hoping a return to Carroch for more stories from a couple of her other characters. (Adam, hint hint)

I’m a sucker for a girl down on her luck finds love story but this is so much more. She finds friendship, she finds a sense of family, and she finds a renewed relationship of sorts with her mother who has passed, through people who really knew her well. Mostly, Lily finds herself. After a lifetime of choosing the safe way, she finds work that brings her joy. I don’t want to discount the romance, Jack has been hurt and struggles a bit but they reluctantly embrace the possibilities.

The story of Lily and Jack.

Lily has just been made redundant, and flees from Edinburgh to Carroch. She hasn't been to Carroch since her mother died, so it is difficult being back, neding to sort out her mother's belongings and decide what to do with the shop she owned.
The longer she spends away from Edinburgh the more she is able to relax, even though she doesn't have the routince she always needed.

She meets Jack on her first day there, and remember him from her childhood holidays in the area. The more time she spends with him the more she falls for him, but he has told her he wants nothing serious, so will she give him and shop a chance?

I loved the setting of the book - it makes me want a holiday in Scotland!

I received a free copy for an honest review from Netgalley.

If you like HEAs, one book romances, or highlanders, this is for you. This is about a woman who’s world collapses slowly- familial loss, job loss, loss of self direction. But, finds herself, her lost family, and love. This isn’t one of those love at first sight or insta- love stories. (Though I love those too) This is a story of accidentally falling into love in the best way possible and finding who you want to be while doing it. Though this can be a really serious book at times, it just made me smile. I look forward to the author’s next, as I hope to see some of the other characters find love too.

Lily is shocked when she's fired from her beloved department store job amid hard times and feels humiliated her boss and crush James could just get rid of her like it's nothing.



Reeling from it all and the loss of her hopeful promotion, she realises she has to take care of everything her mother, Patty left behind after she'd passed now she has time including surprisingly, a cat called Misty, she knew nothing about at all!



As she travels to Loch Carroch, she finds the quaint gift shop her mother had bought before her sudden death and meets back up with Iris her mum's best friend. She also meets Jack whom she remembers from holidays there years ago and Angus, a kind old man who finds herself reminding her of a father figure she wishes she'd had.



As she discovers Jack's past and his love of whisky the pair form a friendly bond until suddenly James reappears and it seems Edinburgh hasn't seen the last of Lily yet as she faces a new, better job back there, but will it be what she wanted after all?



After putting work first for so long, will Lily finally discover it's time to take a chance on other life things too?



The idea of the book is super quaint and idyllic sounding and is in the book too. Lily transforms in the book from being set in her ways to finding some roots and family ground to build on her future. A quick relaxing romance read.



Many thanks to the publishers for allowing me to review this book for them!

While a predictable read, it is still very enjoyable. Lily gets laid off from her job in the city, and heads to the small village in norther Scotland where her mother had left her a small shop and an apartment overhead. Naturally, there is a lot of fun characters in town, including handsome Jack. I liked this one, and found it a nice easy summer read. The only issue I had was her wanting to sell and head back to the city, where from I could see she wasn't going back to anything or anyone anyway. Sounds like it would be a nice place to visit. Highly recommend.

What a lovely holiday read.

Lily put work before everything, thinking it would lead to promotion. She also thought her and her boss would soon be in a relationship. When her boss makes her redundant she doesn't know what to do with herself. Her late mother had a shop in Carroch, a place where Lily and her mother had spent many holidays. Lily had been putting off going to Cannoch and sorting out her mothers flat and shop but with nothing else to do she decides to sort it all out and put the flat and shop up for sale.

Once In Carroch Lily starts to see the past differently and wonders whether her future could lie here instead of Edinburgh. The village welcomes her, in particular Jack who runs the boatyard, and who is always on hand to help her.

Misty, the cat who lived with her mother, initially seems a nuisance but Lily soon starts to enjoy his company. Lily's dilema is, stay and run the shop or go back to the life she left behind in Edinburgh.

Although the story is predictable I really enjoyed it. It had interesting characters and the area it is set in was described so beautifully.

This was a really good beach read, a gorgeous setting, interesting characters and a really thought out story. Would recommend it

Thank you to Netgalley and HQ Digital for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. I have really enjoyed reading this book. This was the perfect book to curl up with after work and escape real life. I became completely engrossed in this book, I didn’t want to put it down.

The little gift shop on the Lock is a great read something ideal for a beach read could not put the book down,great description of the village and the development of the main characters through the book a relaxing and enjoyable read can't wait to read more of Maggie Conway books.

The Little Gift Shop on the Loch is a very enjoyable and quick read - great for the beach! Once you pick it up, you'll want to finish to find out how Lily moves forward. She has had some big life changes recently, with the death of her Mum and getting laid-off (made redundant in UK-speak). Along the way, Lily has to discover what she really wants, which not be what she always thought she wanted for herself. The supporting cast of characters is well developed and fun - including her new-found friend, Misty the cat. A great summer read!!

I don't think I'd read a book so quickly before. This novel just kept me hooked and I couldn't put it down. I hadn't read many novels by this author before and was so looking forward to reading this one as I'd heard good things by Maggie Conway! It was enjoyable, quite emotional in parts and very well written. I loved the location and related to the characters. Overall, a really entertaining novel. I'll definitely be looking out for more by this author in future.

The Little Gift Shop On The Loch by Maggie Conway is a most delightful contemporary tale about finding your true identity.
Too often we rush through life immersed in our jobs but never really discovering what is really important. “How easy it was to rush around, never stopping to appreciate something simple.” Within the novel an unexpected redundancy becomes a new opportunity. What starts as an escape to lick one’s wounds soon becomes the lifeline to a new dream.
The story is about loss. “Time was meant to be a healer but… it wasn’t. You simply found ways of dealing with it.” Sometimes we become so busy to avoid facing our loss. Sooner or later we must slow down and meet our loss face to face. Losing loved ones hurts but the blow is softened by knowing how much they loved and how much they were loved by others.
There is a wonderful community feel to the tale. Small town living means people pull together. They welcome strangers into their midst. This warm feeling contrasts with the cold anonymity of city living.
A cat, Misty, completes a house, turning it into a home, after it has taken up residence in a heart.
Big corporations threaten the fabric of small town living. Some change is good as we need to adapt or die.
I really enjoyed my visit to The Little Gift Shop On The Loch. I could not put the book down and read it in just one sitting. Why not escape for a few hours to a Scottish loch and recharge your batteries? You will be glad you did.
I received this book for free. A favourable review was not required and all views expressed are my own.