Evie Stuart is hiding away on the family farm in picturesque Scotland, trying to forget about her ex-fiance who turned out to be married with a baby on the way. She is scared of being judged by the people in the village so stays on the farm as much as possible.
Her family hire out yurts to guests and Callum arrives from America searching for his biological grandfather, armed only with his grandmother's letters as clues. He is a fire fighter, haunted by the family he couldn't save. Can Evie and Callum heal each other's hearts...?
The Little Village of New Starts is a warm and gentle romance novel with a dash of passion. Evie and Callum are both vulnerable and likeable so I found myself willing them to love each other!
The other character that really stands out is Agnes; Evie's nan is a great character, full of life and enthusiasm as well as wisdom. She has her own love interest and shows us that age is just a number and shouldn't be an impediment to finding love.
There is a subplot of the Jampionships: I am quite tempted to try making jam! This adds an extra dimension to the book and supports the main plot of Evie and Callum's developing romance alongside their mutual search for his grandfather.
There is a richness and warmth to the descriptions, plot and characters that make The Little Village of New Starts a real feelgood book.

I do love a girlie love feel good book and this was just the ticket , great read, wonderful story line and well written

This was a lovely book. I loved all the characters even the nasty one!!! This book described Scotland so well and brought it to life, I could picture the mountains, the rain and the cold. It was a very sweet read with a lovely ending I was really hoping for a happy ending. I am wondering whether the author will write another about these characters as I feel this could go in further.
All in all a good book to relax and enjoy.
My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

The Little Village of New Starts by Donna Ashcroft is a contemporary romance that takes readers to the Scottish Highlands. The story is one of opposites attracting as the two main characters, Evie Stuart and Callum Ryder, could not be any more different from one another.

After jumping into things in her past and things going horribly wrong for her Evie Stuart is now playing it safe and hiding out on her family’s remote farm in the small village of Lockton. Callum Ryder on the other hand is thrill seeker to his core and used to jumping into things with reckless abandon. After a unfortunate incident on his job as a firefighter Callum decides to head to Scotland to trace his roots landing him right on Evie’s doorstep.

The Little Village of New Starts was another heartwarming read from Donna Ashcraft with solid writing that I’ve come to expect from her having read a few of her novels in the past. The story has a lot going on in it besides the romance between our main characters giving readers plenty to keep the pages turning to fly through this sweet tale. With a great story, setting, and characters this would certainly make a wonderful beach read this summer.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

Thank you NetGalley, Bookouture and Donna Ashcroft for lending me an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!
Evie Stuart is hiding out at her family’s farm in Scottish Highlands, scorned by after finding out her dream man and loving fiance is actually married with a child on the way. She has sworn to never allow love in and to stay away from anyone and everyone who knew her and Liam. She now spends her days helping with her family’s vacation yurts and the guests that rent them while being tailed by a goat. Her life has become anything but exciting, just what she wanted.
Callum Ryder has come to Scotland for answers and maybe a little bit of boring himself. A thrill seeker from New York, he arrives at Buttermead Farm after his firefighting career becomes toxic and he needs a break to screw his head on right. After losing both parents as a child, Callum was raised by his grandmother, Ida. While going through her belongings after her death Callum comes across love letters from a mysterious man, L.M., who fell madly in love with his grandma in Scotland in the 60’s.
With the pushing of Evie’s Nana Agnes, Callum and Evie find themselves spending their days searching for clues about L.M.. Callum brings lights a spark in Evie she thought she’d lost and no longer trusts, but it may prove to be more than she can fight.
This was my first Donna Ashcroft and to be honest, I wasn’t expecting to love this one as much as I did. This was a charming and heartwarming book. Evie and Callum have real chemistry that started as a slow burn and soon engulfed them (no fire puns intended... well maybe a few). Nana Agnes really stole this show for me, though. Agnes reminded me so so much of my own grandma who is my closest friend. I loved her spunk and honesty. Everyone needs someone in their life who can give you tough love when you need to but still supports you when you mess up. This was a 5 star for me!

The Little Village of New Starts was another great book by Donna. I devoured this book in one sitting, I just had to find out how it would end. I loved it. I’m hoping there’s a sequel to this, I think there’s scope to add another book. So fingers crossed there will be.

A sweet uplifting book which will put a smile on your face and in your heart. A perfect read for these troubled times.

Someone switch on the fan because it has gotten hot in here!!!! I would say, ‘so take off all your clothes’, just like the popular song goes, but I think Callum has done more than his fair share of stripping!

Callum has flown to Scotland on an adventure to find his Grandad, also known as the mysterious ‘L.M’. What he didnt bargain for, however, was a certain redhead to get under his skin in more ways than one. Poor Callum has a bit of a wounded soul after losing his mum. Not only is he dealing with the grief surrounding that, hes also dealing with an horrendous bout of guilt.

Evie, like Callum, has a wounded soul, but for reasons completely different to his. Different they may be, yet they still leave their emotional scars on the characters.

Donna Ashcroft’s new novel is the much needed light at the end of the tunnel. The storyline may be fictional, as are the characters, however the message behind the novel is something readers can hone in on, and believe, during these unprecedented times. The feeling of hope gave me such joy while I was reading, when I felt as though there was no joy to be had in the outside world.

This storyline is steamy at times, and if you blush easily then make sure you read it in the garden so that you dont need to try and explain anything haha.

The family dynamics of Evie and her family were humbling, genuine, and absolutely hilarious. When I grow up I want to be like Nanna Agnes – that woman reminded me so much of my great grandmother, Waddy, it was uncanny! I was just waiting for Waddy’s trademark phrase ‘golla golla cats meat’ to come out of Agnes’ mouth!

I must mention my favourite character though as they are an absolute legend…..

….Miss Daisy, come on down! Omg! I never knew a goat could be like that! (If they cant really, dont tell me as I want to believe that they’re all like Miss Daisy!).

I throughly enjoyed delving into Evie and Callum’s story – the most uplifting read I have read in a while. Donna Ashcroft made her characters come alive in a way that readers will keep on remembering, refusing to forget the sheer joy those characters brought to their lives, albeit temporarily.

Ashcroft is definitely my go to author when I need something to put a smile back on my face. I dont think you can put a price on that really, can you? A diamond in the rough, a shining star in the night sky, Donna Ashcroft is my hope when the going gets tough. I cannot recommend this enough.

I never read Ashcroft before this cute novel, but I will definitely be seeking her out in the future. I felt the story was great and sweet and the characters were quite likable. While it was a little predictable (it’s a romance after all), I loved the journey to get there. I’m ordering this for my library and will be recommending it often.

A really lovely read. This is a typical chic lit/ comedy read with sexy naked American fireman in lochs. Yes, it's set in bonny scotland and one fireman comes looking for his unknown grandad and stays in a yurt on buttermead farm which is a small family everyone needs.
Evie is recovering from having her heart injured and trampled on by her ex, liam. So shes not interested in the fireman..
Her nana agnes is after one of the local distillery men in the village. As Callum and evie unpeeled the truths about the areas, letters and people of the area, they find his grandad.. who is he?
Read the book.
Thank you to net galley for this read for a honest review. Loved it.

I'm sure most of us can relate to Evie's broken heart; the question is how to move forward and open up to new possibilities. Agnes is the match-making grandmother who make it her mission to encourage Evie out of hiding. Callum is the handsome American who has come to Scotland looking for his grandfather, and dealing with his own hurts. A beautiful setting, some great characters (human and otherwise!) and romance make for a great read.

A beautiful heartwarming story by author Donna Ashcroft, the story slowly unveiled Evie's story, filled with pathos initially until life surely and completely found her again.

Deciding to lose the impulsive persona, she wanted to be careful in her decisions until she met up with Vallum who was the complete opposite. And an adventure ensued which helped Evie find her fun side.

A captivating tale with beautiful descriptions of the Scottish landscapes, the story was a winner in my heart as it inspired me too. I fell in love with the story right from the beginning and was completely ensconced in Evie's life.

This book was pure sunshine and happiness, for me.

This is a lovely read, and a story I think most people can connect with.

Evie lives in Scotland and is happy with her own company, keeping her life simple after a relationship break up. She helps look after yurts with her mother and father and her goat. She enjoys the peace of her life.

Callum has booked a yurt, he is escaping from New York, and is in Scotland to find his grandfather. His first encounter with Evie is when he is stripping to swim in the lake! There is an obvious attraction between the two but both have built their walls very high.

Evie’s grandmother agnes is very taken with Callum and takes every opportunity to throw the pair together. Will her match making work?

A lovely story of finding family, self and new opportunities for happiness in a small highland village. Evie has retreated to home, working with her family after a relationship went horribly wrong. The formerly impulsive and daring Evie is now second-guessing her every move and trying to protect herself and her heart from further injury. Callum has booked a month in one of the glamping yurts, he’s trying to deal with stress from his work as a firefighter and discover the secrets revealed only after clearing out his mother’s things after her death.

These two are adorable and wonderful together – from the sparks and snark to their genuine attraction that springs from the pages. Both have issues with their pasts and relationships, and neither is quite sure what to do with the attraction. Evie has chosen to avoid it, and much of her ‘old self’ while Callum isn’t willing to just let her go. Full of laughter, family and some serious sharing on both sides, Evie starts to move forward, with a push from her best friend and family, while Callum has found his ‘answers’, taken the first gruff reactions as truth and is leaving.

Full of as much heart and hope as one would expect, the family, the people" and the two animals who provide comic relief and a bit of ‘advice’, along with a subplot for Evie’s grandmother, the village ‘jam festival’ that brings entries and preserves from around the world, and some grand gestures and this is a lovely ‘getaway’ story, sure to please fans of Ashcroft’s gentle romances.

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

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

I really do love Donna Ashcroft's books as her stories are ones that make you happy. Every book always give you that cosy, uplifting feeling with such picturesque idyllic settings. Add in a dash of romance and you are good to go and you know once you begin reading you'll become completely lost in the world she has created. To be honest I was hoping for another book based in and around Sunflower Island as I thought the last two books that author has set there were simply brilliant. But that wasn't to be the case and this new book The Little Village of New Starts takes us to the Scotland and to the home of Evie Stuart on Buttermead Farm. Within the first chapter my disappointment at not returning to Sunflower Island quickly vanished as I just had this feeling that this setting, these new characters and the plot that would unfold would be just as magical and special and I was delighted to be proven right. It still strikes me, even though I read lots and lots of books each year, how you know more or less pretty early on that such a book will hit the spot for you as a reader whereas others just don't give off that feeling of I desperately need to continue reading this. I loved every minute of this wonderful book and I didn't want it to end so much that I hope there will be a return visit to Buttermead Farm in the not too distant future.

Evie is living on the family farm with her parents, Grant and Fiona and her granny Agnes. They have yurts which they offer to holiday makers as a sideline to the running of the farm. Evie is in charge of these and she loves the work and the farm. I have to say the descriptions of the farm and the surrounding area were just superb throughout the entire book, the magnificent scenery and the inclusion of wonderful descriptions of nature and wildlife really added to the book. The nearby loch which Evie likes to visit for some quiet time to contemplate different things plays an important role throughout especially as Agnes informs Evie of a legend regarding the loch that she swears by. I can't forget to mention Daisy, the little pygmy goat, who follows Evie around like a little puppy. It's always great to have a furry friend featured in a book to add that aww factor and to also laugh and smile at the comedic value they offer.

Evie was a carefully constructed character, very well rounded in that we saw all sides to her but still she held some things back and was afraid to truly let go and give into feelings that emerge throughout the book. She was someone willing to push herself out of her comfort zone and help others when they needed but I wondered was she always able to do that when it came to herself? She did bury herself away on the farm to avoid people but I loved that when best friend Meg needed help to save her shop that Evie wasn't obstinate and she did help her out. I loved this strand of the story with Meg and it popped up throughout at just the right points to take the reader away from the journey of Evie and Callum and let us focus on some other challenges. The Jampionships provided some funny moments but were also a great idea to bring some of the strands of the overall story together.

Clearly Evie is hurting from something in the past and when this situation becomes known to the reader you do feel desperately sorry for her and can understand how much of a head wreck it must have been given she had placed her faith and trust in something that turned out to be built upon lies and deceit. The feelings of guilt and hurt creep up on her often and all her family members are worried about her but maybe she just needs time to come to terms with things. She does have a boyfriend, librarian Jason, but you can tell that she is just going through the motions and from the little we see of him he really isn't the man for Evie. With the arrival of an American guest, Callum Ryder, who has come to find someone in the area that could be related to him things are up scuttled for Evie and she's not sure if she is happy or confident the direction her life begins to take. But I thought maybe this is exactly what needs to happen to show Evie there is life outside of the little cocoon of unhappiness she has created for herself and OK she may have sworn she would never allow the same thing to happen to her again but at the same time she has to take risks and chances in life. A broken heart is no excuse for Evie to hide herself away from life. She is fearful of making mistakes again but if we all adopted that attitude we would get no where in life.

Callum's arrival is a catalyst of change for Evie but that's not to say she welcomes him with open arms after all he is a guest. Callum is escaping his problems in New York but really our problems don't remain where they originated, they stay with us until we find the courage to resolve them no matter how long that may take. Callum from his descriptions was gorgeous and fit seen as he was a fire-fighter and yes you really wanted him to connect with Evie. His main aim is to find his long lost grandfather. A series of letters with just an initial as a signature is all he has to go on but using the descriptions of the countryside mentioned in the letters Evie sets about helping him to hopefully uncover the truth. I did have my suspicions fairly early on as to who Callum's grandfather could have been and I was proven correct. I felt quite smug about the fact that I had guessed but I was eager to see what were the exact circumstances surrounding everything.

Callum in a similar way to Evie was hiding things and hurting and his back story and the reasons for his reticence in speaking about his past were truly understandable when things do become known. I wouldn't have thought such a topic would have been dealt with in a women's fiction story that some people may think to be light and fluffy and very easy reads but I was so glad that the author chose to bring this issue to the readers attention. I thought it was handled in the most perfect way and it showed Callum's sensitive side and that despite him being all masculine and strong and a lover of the great outdoors that he did have his vulnerable and emotional side in a similar way to Evie. If they could both admit and confront their fears then maybe the journey they embark upon together to find Callum's grandfather will prove more fruitful in more ways than one.

Callum brings plenty of surprises to Evie's life when all she wanted was for her life to be safe and predictable and I can see this book is neither of these things. It's a pure joy to read from start to finish which teaches us so many life lessons and the characters are really taken out of their comfort zones. It shows us how family, friends and of course community play such a vital role in our lives and they should never be underestimated. Evie and Callum's story had me from page one and didn't relinquish it's grip until the final word. If you want to take your mind off everything going on right now I wouldn't hesitate to recommend The Little Village of New Starts it's such a fabulous enjoyable read.

I have been a fan of Donna's for a fair while now. I love the way in which she writes fun, charming and at the same time moving stories. When I heard that Donna was due to release another book, I just knew that I had to read it as soon as I could get my hands on a copy. Well I did eventually get my hands on a copy and I devoured the book (not literally because that would be weird) in just under a day. I absolutely ADORED reading 'The Little Village Of New Starts' but more about that in a bit.
'The Little Village Of New Starts' developed a hold over me from the moment I first picked the book up and that hold lasted until the moment I read the last word on the last page. I immersed myself into the story so deeply that I lost all track of time and I lost track of how quickly the pages were turning. When I first looked up to check on my progress, I was surprised to learn that I had already read over a third of the book. For me, 'The Little Village Of New Starts' was an unputdownable, page turner of a book. I was gripped from start to finish. I loved the character of Evie and I cared about what happened to her. I soon raced through the story and I reached the end of the book far quicker than I had wanted to.
'The Little Village Of New Starts' is really well written but then I think that to be true of all of Donna's books to date. She grabs your attention from the start and draws you into the story. She writes moving, emotional but ultimately uplifting stories that will make you chuckle away at certain bits of the story but others may well make you feel emotional. I felt as though I was part of the story myself and that's down to Donna's fantastic and very vivid storytelling.
In short, I thoroughly enjoyed reading 'The Little Village Of New Starts' and I would definitely recommend this book to other readers. I will definitely be reading more of Donna's work in the future. The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a very well deserved 5* out of 5*.

If you’re looking for a lovely, heartwarming contemporary romance, grab yourself a copy of this delightful story – it really is a fabulous, sweet romance! Yes, there are problems to be overcome and quandaries to be faced but it is such a fantastic story with not just one romance involved in it!

Lockton is a small village in the Scottish Highlands and the community there is brilliant! There’s a recalcitrant whisky distiller, a witchy grandmother, a cheeky parrot and a pygmy goat with a crush as well as a hot American firefighter and a lovely Scottish lass who has been burnt by love and is now hiding herself away on her family farm. Together their stories are skilfully interwoven to create a picture of rural life in this dramatic location. The American is Callum Ryder and he’s come to stay for a month whilst he endeavours to find his biological grandfather but he never anticipated just how it would change his life . . . .

This is such a superb read, a great story to escape into with all the trials and tribulations, competitions, secrets, mystery and romance intertwined to make a really relaxing, absorbing page turner. I have absolutely no hesitation in highly recommending escaping into it and I’d love to visit this idyllic location and community (obviously only virtually during the current lockdown).

Thank you to the publishers for for gifting me a copy of this book via NetGalley. This is my honest review after choosing to read it and thoroughly enjoying doing so.

A well written entertaining romance. Good plot, believable characters and a beautiful setting. I received an arc from the publisher and Netgalley and this is my unbiased review.

This was such a beautifully written book and has really given me a desire to visit Scotland! Evie was a very likeable character which made me become invested in her story. The story flowed really well and her grandmother Agness was developed so beautifully - providing light relief and funny comments, as well as using the wisdom of her age to give Evie some much needed life advice! I really enjoyed this book and would love there to be more books in the series with some of the other minor characters developed even further.

I was really looking forward to reading this new novel by Donna Ashcroft. The cover caught my eye immediately and just looked so inviting that I couldn't wait to dive in and start reading all about Evie and Callum. In particular I love the ombre sunset sky and the colourful flowers along the top of the cover.

As mentioned this story focuses on Callum and Evie's life and relationship. Both of the characters had been heartbroken but in very different ways. Callum has come over from New York for 4 weeks to try and find his grandfather who he believes lives in Lockton, in the Highlands, which is where Evie's families farm is situated. Evie has decided to hide out on her parents farm for the foreseeable future after being humiliated by the man who she thought was The One.

The pair join forces when Callum asks Evie for her help to find his grandfather, and I believe he's in for the shock of his life when he finds out who it is! I must admit, I had a bit of an inkling about 30% into the novel as to who it could be but the book kept you guessing and on the edge of your seat wanting to find out who the mystery grandfather could be.

I did enjoy this novel, it was quite emotional in places and not all that lighthearted but it was a pleasant read nonetheless. I took a while to warm to Evie, as her character seemed quite cold on more than one occasion, however the more you read about her past the more you understand why she acts like she does and why she finds it so hard to trust anyone. Callum, again I wasn't sure on at the start. Simply because of his background and what he had been through himself. Even so, I believe I liked his character more than Evie as he seemed so kind and fun.

Overall, a nice book to read to pass the time. Thank you to the publisher for a chance to read an advance copy of this novel via Netgalley, which I have reviewed honestly.