This book is a definite 3 ⭐️ for me. The writing style is good, quirky, easy to read. It’s just the story was dull. The title is The Dog Share and yet there’s not a hint of sharing a dog until 48% of the way through. So much useless background information. Then in the end it was all rushed to bring it to the conclusion. So much more could have been done to make this book more enjoyable.

The characters were interesting and not in a good way. Ricky was very weak and just went along with whatever. Suzy was more likable but still a bit lost. You expect the characters to be much younger than middle age based on their immaturity. I never really felt any of the characters matched their age. For instance I thought Cara was in her 70’s. Turns out she was 38. There were also random side characters with random side stories that had zero to do with the plot. Suzy’s sister, Arthur’s mom’s story, Scout’s owner, etc.

I am sure there some readers who will enjoy this book but I wasn’t one of them.

Thank you Avon Books UK for the ARC..

Based in the Hebridean Islands, the story is narrated from the main characters point of view. We are quickly introduced to Suzy, her husband Paul, Ricky, his girlfriend Meg and his son Arthur. Then there’s Arthur’s grumpy grandad Harry, oh and of course not forgetting Scout, the friendly and much loved island dog that no one seems to own.

Having been let down and dumped, Suzy’s life at 48 appears to have taken a wrong turn. She finds herself alone on the Island of Sgadansay with a huge financial burden and the challenge of her life. One evening Scout arrives at her door and she’s no longer alone. And slowly things begin to become clear and things begin to change.

I found myself rooting for Suzy as she bravely took on the challenges she was faced with. Friendships were formed and slowly she gained the respect and confidence to start again.

A feel good, light and easy read.

This was a cute story, but not exactly what I expected. Based on the title, cover, and synopsis, I assumed I was getting a romantic comedy featuring a connection through a dog. While the title does fit, I do feel it’s a tad misleading to label this as a romance.

Told through both Suzy and Ricky, both in their 40s, it felt more like a story of rebuilding your purpose and the significance of family. Primarily set on a remote Scottish island, Sgadansay, I really enjoyed the setting and even more so the crotchety father of Ricky, Harry. Suzy, an obituary writer, and Ricky, a music teacher, were great characters and their separate stories involving their children was lovely.

My main complaint is the fact that Suzy and Ricky don’t cross paths in any significant way until over halfway in. While Scout, the most adorable canine companion, does somewhat tie them together, the failed distillery project left to Suzy by her ex seemed more significant to their connection. And even after their initial introduction, I’d say there was much less focus on the romance.

There’s absolutely nothing wrong with this story. The fateful way a dog led Suzy down a different path in life was really sweet, but like I said, I expected something different.

I hadn’t read any of Fiona Gibson’s books previously and wasn’t sure what to expect with this book. I really enjoyed her writing style and the female lead was likeable. I loved her descriptions of the Scottish island it is set on, it made me want to visit Skye or somewhere similar as it sounds beautiful. The story is gentle, with not too many ups and downs and was an enjoyable light read. I’m going to be reading more by Gibson in the near future.
Thanks so much to netgalley, the author and publishers for gifting me this arc in exchange for an unbiased review.

This is a really cute story which made me smile! Suzy is a middle age woman who has a huge challenge in front of her. In facing the challenge head on, she finds friends, love, and herself....with the help of a cute dog!

If you are looking for a light, fun read this book is for you!

Thank you Harper Collins Publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this novel.

I thoroughly enjoyed visiting the idyllic Hebridean island, even though Suzy has so much to rectify and a financial mess to make right, after being abandoned by an ex, there are positives, one meeting a dog who has also been deserted and encountering a friendly lady, Cara, both of whom come into her life for a reason.
From the quaint colourful cottages to the lighthouse on the beach, onto the treacherous long ferry ride, back to York where Suzy lives, you’re absorbed in her life, hope & dreams through to a perfectly splendid ending!

A lovely story set on a beautiful Hebridean island. A cute, friendly dog to pull it all together, romance, friends and a distillery to sort out. Loved it!

Suzy's ex has just walked out and left her in a fiancial mess and a distillery business in tatters. Could much else go wrong? A lovable dog Scout appears on Suzy doorstep. Scout changes Suzy's world for the better. Not only that Scout seems to be cheering up other people too.

This was a sweet book that focused on family and friendship more than anything. The setting of a herbidean island also made it feel more tightly knit as well as bringing in the importance of tradition. The the storyline was cute and enjoyable.

I think Scout was the best thing in this book. The descriptions that Fiona Gibson gives makes Scout feel like a really dog that you want to give a good cuddle to.

However, I really struggled with the pacing of the book. I felt that the only thing that was keeping me going for the first half of the book was Scout himself. None of the dog share occured until over half way through the book. I felt that if the dog share aspect of the book was brought forward then further development of the relationships and characters on the island could have happened. I thought in particular that Henry Vance's character was could have done with a bit more screen time especially as he is quite an important character.

Overall, I enjoyed this book as it was heartwarming and sweet. I have read better blot-wise but all in all it did tick a lot of the boxes I wanted it to. This is definitely a book for dog lovers!

*I receive this eARC from netgallery in exchange for an honest review*

I’ve read and enjoyed all Fiona Gibson’s books, and this one didn’t disappoint.

The story, set on a Scottish island, is about Suzy and Ricky, and a stray dog called Scout. I know from personal experience how a dog can support and love you through a bad time, and bring so much happiness into people’s lives.

A lovely book to curl up with on a winter evening, it has the ‘feel good factor’!

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for an advance reader copy in return for an honest review.

I was SOOO excited when I was approved for a e-ARC of this on netgalley as I LOVED ‘When Life Gives You Lemons’ but sadly this latest book didn’t grip me like the last.
Don’t get me wrong, the book was a nice read (although it took me a while to read) but I just didn’t click with it.
I liked the chapters being split and titled from Suzy and Ricky’s perspectives and even the group chats Suzy has with her family being included in chapters. I also liked that the chapters weren’t too long or short - they were long enough to get enough detail in but not too long as to drag on.
I would’ve liked to see the situation between Paul and Suzy from Paul’s perspective as at the beginning of the book I felt he was quite an important character but as time went on, there wasn’t much about him even though he was the reason for Suzy ever going to Sgadansay and the whole story unfolding?
I also felt that there was a LOT of talk about what happened to Arthur’s mum, and then it was all played out briefly in the last part of the book. To say there was so many times it was mentioned, the actual reveal etc. wasn’t what I thought it would be.
Overall, I did enjoy the book and I will more than happily read future and past releases of Fiona Gibsons! ☺️

I have to admit I didnt enjoy this until about the last 3 chapters when it all came together and made proper sense.
I've read Fiona Gibson before and this wasnt as good as previous books. Having spoken to other people about this book I know I'm in a minority and other people have enjoyed it.
Personally I loved the chapter at the end from Arthur and I wish there had been more chapters from him. Maybe even one from Harry

Sadly I wasn't a fan of this one. The title is a rather misleading - I was expecting a romance which starts with two people sharing a dog (which it wasn't). It was very confusing on parts as well and slow going. The only good points were that the characters and setting are good and that it was easy to read.

Poor old Suzy was definitely having more than a bad day, let me tell you, more like a bad couple of YEARS! However, the way she tackles her issues made me really like her :)

This is a more complicated book than I had originally thought. I picked it up because I was in dire need of a cute dog story so I could forget about things for a bit (in my case, recovering after surgery) and although it didn't turn out to be the type of story I thought it was, it was a very nice story in its own right. It is a bit of a slow boiler, that is true, but don't give up on it!

Suzy visits a remote Scottish island with her partner and he decides to buy a distillery, as you do. She should have known this wouldn't be the best idea he had ever had, since he clearly was unable to hold down a job for very long, but still, I can see how she ended up in the position she did. Sometimes you want your partner to succeed, even if they have not had the greatest track record in the world, you kind of hope that THIS time, it will all work out. Unfortunately for Suzy, her partner turns out to be a complete rat and she is left holding the baby, err, distillery.

As Suzy is figuring things out in a little cottage on the island, she comes across a scruffy pooch. She calls him Scout and of course, he is just adorable. She also meets a lady called Cara, and they become friends. The two of them both love Scout and they end up meeting a man and his young son on the beach one day. And that is where the dog share idea starts to ramp up. Scout has plenty of love for everyone in his life - the humans are still trying to figure things out!

Lots of subtle reminders about the power of love and how animals bring us together in all sorts of ways, I really enjoyed that aspect of this book. It gets complicated at times, and I just had to hope that everything would work out for Suzy in the end, because she deserved it.

Not the kind of book I thought I was picking up, but an enjoyable read nevertheless.

4.5 stars from me.

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon.

First of all, thank you NetGalley, Fiona Gibson and Avon Books UK for the ARC of the Dog Share.

The overall plot was not what I expected after reading the blurb and seeing the cover. I expected this to be your typical romance about a dog romantically bringing together two people.

While this does occur, the two said people don’t meet until over half way through the book.

It is more about a woman whose coincidental meeting with a four legged friend changes the course of her life - it gave me all the dog owner feels.

Overall, I enjoyed this book. I am a big fan of different POVs throughout a narrative and this was ever present in The Dog Share. The chapters were short and snappy - another favourite writing style of mine.

It was heartwarming and seriously cute and just a joyous quick easy read on the whole.

I would definitely recommend this to anyone who is a fan of easy heartwarming reads.

Thank you NetGalley, Fiona Gibson and Avon Books UK for the ARC The Dog Share. This is my personal review.
I was excited to read this book as soon as I saw the title. The concept of sharing a dog would make for a great story and a wonderful way to meet people- everyone loves Scout! But then the story just went flat the further I read. It was an ok story on it just did not hold my attention. It was a slow read for me.

I listened to this as an audiobook - nice easy to follow story, some good characterisation - I have read most of Fiona's books and often enjoy them

It's interesting how important pacing is in a book and it's not until halfway through this book does the actual Dog Share begin. That's a whole heck of a lot of build up. The dog is super cute and brings several characters together. This book is told from multiple points of view and you know that they will connect, likely through said dog, and that also takes awhile. The setting is a picturesque island in Scotland. This is a perfect read wearing a cozy sweater, with your favorite tea, and a dog at your side.

** An eARC was provided to me courtesy of Netgalley and Avon Books UK for an honest review. Thank you! **

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

The Dog Share is another book I picked up because “dog!” and that might be the book’s one saving grace. He’s not as prominent as I would have liked, particularly as I got further into it, but he has enough sweet moments that I could slightly forgive everything else.

Apparently romance means something else in the UK, but from a branding lens in the US, I have no idea what this book wants to be. The romance is lackluster and feels forced, the characters are numerous and lack anything that really drew me to any of them, and the connection between POV characters took forever to establish itself beyond the tangential.

This book was a bit of a mess in my humble opinion, and I’m glad to know that I’m not the only one who felt the same, judging by some other early reviews. However, I think your expectations will largely depend on how you feel about branding vs. storytelling choices, and perhaps even taking into account your own experience relative to where you live, given that UK readers are the primary market, even though these are available to US readers.

Thank you to the publisher for a copy for this book. The first half of the book was really slow and I was trying to figure out where this book was going. The second half redeemed it and provided the connections I was looking for. The book was predictable but it was cute.

This was the second book by Fiona Gibson that I’ve read and I wasn’t disappointed. A lovely gentle read that makes you wish for your own Scottish island retreat.
I feel that there were a few loose ends that needed tying up but that didn’t detract from the general enjoyment of the book.