I thought that this book was a little bit different from Penelope Janu usual books but I absolutely loved it! The characters are wild bunch. The plot is romantic, mysterious and has a great edge. It had a few layers that I enjoyed discovering. A outback romance with plenty of heart!

I want to start by say I am an absolute fan of Penelope Janu's work.

Shelter from the Storm, just wasn't the book for me, I have taken awhile to write this review as I was hoping my feelings for it may have changed when picking it up again I ended up DNFing at about 1/2 way. I had hoped I would pick it back up again but its been almost a year and I dare say I probably won't now.

I am keen to read more of her work in the future and feel incredible bad that I couldn't love this book like I had hoped to.

‘Prim said we remind her of a Jane Austen novel. Have you read Persuasion?’

Penelope always guarantees an engaging read with her books and I am excited to say that Shelter From the Storm is my favourite of hers thus far. There is just so much to this tale which kept me engaged from beginning to end, especially if you love second chance romance with flavours of Jane Austen’s Persuasion.

‘If I were on the ocean, I could search the stars to navigate. I’d know where to look for the lights. How do I navigate now?’

With much on offer, this really is more than your standard rural romance. Of course, there is a super relationship with a wonderful leading man but it is clearly evident the research that Penelope has gone into for this book. There is an engaging mystery with the environmental issues which I always loved about Peneolope’s books. As always the Australian Outback is on display and I have added a few more locations to my bucket list. There is small town rural living and the whole community that comes with that which is always fun to read - I really need a Greta in my life #loveGreta. A special aspect that Penelope often includes is for all the animal lovers out there - especially those who love horses.

‘There are fences to keep things in, and fences to keep them out. On what side of the fence do I belong?’

Yet for me I was enamored with themes concerning confronting childhood trauma and facing/overcoming fears with the inclusion of Patience being a math genius. This was a wonderful novel with a story of self-discovery, healing and being brave enough to go after your dreams. With tensions brewing, family dramas, environmental issues, Shelter From the Storm is a must read.

‘A river, a creek and a sandstone house. A shelter from the storm, a place to call home.’









This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
When Patience Cartwright is forced to take a secondment to the childhood hometown she vowed never to return to for the sake of her naval career. Thrown together with Hugo Halstead, her one time love tensions rise and when Patience become seriously I’ll Hugo’s mother takes her in.
I loved the characters and setting. Books that tackle environmental and social issues are among my favourites to read, especially when there’s a great romance to lighten the mood a little.

I love Janu's writing and am a fan of her books, but this one fell a bit short for me. The author's usual character formula has been applied - there's a country girl with horse-related trauma (I don't hate it, but it's weird it's this specific thing in every book, right?) who is not looking for any close relationship; there's a guy who is tall and handsome and smart and capable who is obsessed with her (in this one he's not Scandi-European, though I note he is half-Austrian so partial credit??)
I do blame my own personal frog-phobia for failing to fall completely for the MMC Hugo, who is an amphibian expert, but he's also a little inaccessible compared to previous Janu heroes - I didn't really get a clear idea of what was going on in his head. The FMC Patience was a bit vanilla, a bit bland, a bit boring - I just couldn't cheer for a girl who basically just mopes around but who also legit thinks she's an actual spy for the Australian Government even though she's just a navigation officer in the Navy.
The suspense sub-plot was pretty OTT, not much credibility there but it was fun. There's always a bit of unexpected violence in Janu's books and this was no exception, nothing gets your heart racing like some psycho threatening and beating our heroine because we know he will get his come-uppance.
Things I did like - the wonderful homey Halstead farm and loving matriarch Greta, cameos from Patience's sisters who have been in other books, Hugo's beautiful old house. But these weren't enough to elevate the book to the greatness I expect from Janu and in conclusion, an average 3-star read for me.

Shelter From the Storm by Penelope Janu is my first 5-star read of 2023. Penelope Janu is one of my favourite authors, and I look forward to reading her newest release each year.

Shelter From the Storm was something special, whether it was the way it was written, or the main character Patience herself, I found myself fully absorbed in this story, I felt I was reading every single word and at a slower pace than I normally would (this wasn't the case, it just felt that way), I don't really know how to describe how reading this novel made me feel other than I felt I was reading something special.

Patience is the second of the Cartwright sisters to tell her story as we met Phoebe in Clouds on the Horizon.

When the story starts Patience, a lieutenant in the navy is on base after being discharged from her ship. The reasons surrounding this draw attention to the power a commanding officer can have over their subordinate and how hard it can be for women especially to deal with unwanted behaviour from other officers. And this isn't only within the armed forces but in all different jobs and circumstances.

Patience has an affinity for numbers and often looks at things differently because of this, she uses counting to deal with stressful situations and can look at things and reel numbers and statistics off the top of her head. I felt a real connection to Patience, though I don't deal with stress and anxiety quite the same way, she spoke to me on a deep level. Patience is described as secretive and self-contained, and as her background and fears are uncovered it makes sense why she is the way she is.

Patience has a past with Hugo a biologist who is working on an important project. It has been years since Patience had her heart broken by him, but the impact it made on her has reverberated through her life and continues to do so. When they are reluctantly brought together again, the depth of emotion they are carrying from their previous friendship strikes deep in both.

The romance in this novel is full of so many ghosts and emotional baggage and I loved being there with Patience and Hugo as they work their way through their messy past and unpack everything in order to discover if there can be a future for them together. I felt Patience's emotions, her heartache and confusion about what she was feeling in my own being as I read her story. And Hugo was one special man, but then I've found Penelope Janu only knows how to write wonderful male characters as her leads (and side characters). I loved that Hugo completely 'got' Patience and accepted and loved her the way she was.

Hugo's family were a great support system for Patience along with a few side characters I've met before. Patience and Hugo's coworker Rick was also a great character, I appreciate that Penelope Janu gives us such a vast variety of people with an array of characteristics, in Rick's case he is a neurodiverse character and I think she did a really good job of portraying one of the ways this can play out in an individual.

Another thing I really enjoy about Penelope's novels is her love for the environment and how I always learn something new from each novel, in this case, I learnt a great deal about frogs and their habitats and the ecosystem that surrounds the waterways they live in.

This was a wonderful novel and is one of my favourites by Penelope Janu so far, a story of self-discovery, healing and being brave enough to go after what you truly want. I am really looking forward to the third Cartwright sister, Prim's story next year.

Shelter from the Storm was a lovely surprise! I have never read anything by Penelope Janu and usually choose to read crime novels over rural romances however, I liked the sound of this story as it contained an environmental element. The two main characters Patience Cartwright, a naval officer, and Hugo Halstead, a biologist have a complicated past and both find themselves back in their childhood town of Horseshoe Hill where drama ensues. I really liked Greta, Hugo’s mother of Austrian descent and Hugo’s nephew Ryan, because he hates maths as much as me! Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for my digital copy of this book.

This was an interesting take on a rural romance. It has all the typical elements of country life and local characters but it had new elements that brought an interesting difference.
Patience is a lieutenant in the Navy but a string of events leave her assisting her childhood love, Hugo on an environmental project. She ends up getting a bacterial infection that leaves her recovering at Hugo's parents farm where the truth comes out about events from years earlier.
This is told from Patience's POV and she has a brain that is always counting something to try and calm her emotions.
It is not a book that focuses a lot on the sexy side but I enjoyed the slow burn of this childhood romance.
Thanks to Harlequin Mira and Netgalley.com for my complimentary eARC copy.

I have enjoyed reading all of Penelope Janu’s books, her writing style flows well and the storyline is very descriptive.
This novel started slowly for me but I enjoyed the characters and detail given as the story unfolds.
The main character Patience isn’t treated fairly by her superior, she finds herself reassigned to work on a secret mission!
Patience never wanted to return to a place that holds so many bad memories, she’s forced to work on a team with someone she’d rather not see!
There are many tense and confronting moments, the characters are given situations that will push them to show their emotions and work together.
Patience has a challenging history but is slowly learning to move on and trust those around her, particularly when she’s injured! Hugo was a big part of her life and Patience learns to understand and forgive.

I appreciated the opportunity to read and review this book, sincere thanks to the publisher, NetGalley and author for my copy.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Penelope Janu just gets better and better! In Shelter from The Storm she has created two complex characters who clearly belong together from the first moment they appear together on the page and yet they have to fight so many obstacles to achieve their happy ever after that at times I wondered whether they would succeed.
Patience and Hugo are very ably supported by a cast of wonderful secondary characters including her sisters, his parents particularly his mother Greta, and his nephews. All of them helped to create a strong sense of family, caring and commitment, themes that are strong in all of Penelope Janu’s books.
This story is set mostly in the NSW countryside around Dubbo and this setting is beautifully depicted. It was very easy to imagine I was watching the scenes unfold. The plot is packed with twists and yet they are all tied up neatly by the end. This is a fabulous addition to my bookshelf and one I will treasure for years to come. Thank you so much @HarlequinAus for the opportunity to read an advance reader copy.

Shelter from the Storm is about love, trust and respect. Naval officer Patience Cartwright loved the naval; it was her only natural home. However, after an incident and to save her career Naval Officer Patience Cartwright excepted a secondment to an environmental team. The team includes biologist Hugo Halstead who Patience Cartwright promised never to forgive. The readers of Shelter from the Storm will continue to follow Patience and Hugo to discover what happens.

Shelter from the Storm is another fantastic book by Penelope Janu. I am never disappointed in books by Penelope Janu, and Shelter from the Storm keeps the tradition alive. Shelter from the Storm is another book I could not put down until the last page. Penelope Janu does a fantastic job of portraying social issues that can affect people in rural communities.
I love Penelope Janu's portrayal of her characters and how they interact throughout this book. Shelter from the Storm is well-written and researched by Penelope Janu. I like Penelope Janu's description of the settings, which allowed me to imagine being part of the book's plot.

The readers of Shelter from the Storm will learn about the different Australian frogs and their importance in the environment. Also, the readers of Shelter from the Storm will understand the fear that can happen after a bad fall from a horse.

WOW I have been waiting for Hugo’s story since Starting from Scratch and pairing him with Patience Cartwright, who I got to know a bit about in Clouds on the Horizon was just perfect, Hugo and Patience have a past, one that had many ups and downs, but will they finally find their happiness?

Patience is a naval officer and extremely independent this comes from the childhood she had were she stood up for her sisters to protect them, home is where she lays her hat is her saying, after leaving Horseshoe Hill years ago with a broken heart she vows never to return. But her career is on the line at the moment and she is offered a secondment to help out a group of biologists and scientists as they research water and the environment. This though will take her back to Horseshoe Hill and Hugo and his wonderful family, how will she protect her heart.

Hugo has bought a property in Horseshoe and is working hard with the environment team but when he learns that Patience will be helping them out he is not happy at all there are requirements of this secondment that he knows Patience does not have but he has no say in the matter and is drawn to his Imp where will this lead them?

Patience is working hard and getting on with the team when she falls dreadfully ill and ends up in hospital and needs time to heal, Hugo’s mother insists on taking her in to care for her, this brings her closer to Hugo but their relationship is still turbulent but as a reader I could feel the love between them they had so many issues to get over from the past, Hugo is so protective and Patience so independent and with the secrets Patience must keep this adds to the angst between them.

I loved this story, I have never missed a Penelope Janu story and I just think they keep getting better with each one, as I said Hugo has been a favourite of mine for a while and I loved Patience and being back in Horseshoe Hill. The research that must have been done is clearly seen in the story, the maths never my favourite subject was so interesting, hearing about Hugo’s favourite reptiles frogs the best, there are some wonderful characters in this one that also add to the story, this one is beautifully told with caring and love and it is a story that I would highly recommend, can’t wait for the next book MS Janu thank you for so many hours of reading pleasure and Hugo’s story.

My thanks to Netgally for my digital copy to read and review.

Fiercely independent naval officer, Patience Cartwright has never had a place to call home, but she knows where she doesn't belong. After an unhappy childhood and a badly broken heart, she'll never return to the country.

But to save her career, Patience is forced to accept a secondment - to an environmental team working near the town where she grew up. There she encounters once more the infuriatingly attractive biologist Hugo Halstead - the very man she's sworn never to forgive.

Given their history, Hugo, as self-assured and honest as Patience is secretive and self-contained, has vowed never to trust her again, but that doesn't stop him feeling just as helplessly drawn to her complicated mix of courage and fragility as he ever was.

As Patience recuperates from a life-threatening illness in the small country town of Horseshoe Hill, she realises the beauty of the landscape and close-knit community promise something very different to the future she's mapped out.

But could the secrets she keeps and the shadows of her past, send her adrift all over again?

An interesting read, the story focuses on the heroine and her overcoming her difficult life in order to find love and happiness.

This reads almost like a saga, and is more women's fiction than romance.

Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this book in return for my honest review.

Penelope Janu has a unique voice and writing style that I would recognise anywhere. Sleek and organised. Descriptions that provide wonderful comparisons of nature to the landscapes of our lives. Like her previous books, I really enjoyed her latest offering. Shelter From the Storm shines with Penelope’s masterful eye for details. Her legal background comes through, too, in the plot along with her passion and experience with horses. She wonderfully weaves her equine knowledge into the storyline. I particularly enjoyed all the horse scenes as I am also a lover and past owner of these gorgeous animals. I agree with the theory of fear in how ‘a horse is less likely to act unexpectedly if he feels safe.’ I think this behaviour reflects in people as well.

This story’s setting begins on the coast with Patience Cartwright. She has had a run in with a superior officer and she has not handled the situation well. This has put her position in jeopardy. To smooth things over, she must accept a secondment to work with an environmental team back in the country town near where she grew up. But there is more to this assignment than others know. She is on a secret mission to uncover potential fraud in the team. This makes her task hard but even harder is the requirement to return to her once familiar territory that embodies terrible memories of her past. She fled this area due to an unhappy childhood and a failed romance. Does she want to go back to the place that singed and broke her heart? Of course not. But she must. Unfortunately, one of the scientists working on this project studying the habitat of amphibians is Hugo Halstead, her childhood friend and past love. How will she deal with such a confrontation? The tension thickens as Penelope provides some incredibly tight and emotional scenes between these two.

Australian naval officer Patience is in many ways a fascinating character. She has an unusual gift— a mathematical mind that counts everything and measures her world through numbers. She is also very good at her job. But like most people, she is not perfect and even though she is a very independent strong woman who can tackle extreme challenges in her work realm, she is afraid of horses after having a bad fall when she was younger. To her credit though, she is determined to overcome her fear and get back in the saddle. This creates much concern for Hugo, which then reveals his true interest and care of her.

The topics of fear, abuse and bullying are a great part of this novel: three things that Patience has known in her life. Her father is a troubled man and has left many scars on his family. Thankfully, Patience has two loving sisters Phoebe and Primrose (names that start with P!). There are some great heart to heart chats that give us more insight on these women’s lives.

When Patience becomes injured and falls to a severe infection, she must stay with Hugo’s parents. Greta is a kind motherly lady (and an excellent cook) who takes care of her while she recuperates. It is a valuable reprieve for Patience who reconnects with the beauty that surrounds her (the garden scenes are heavenly). Here is where she begins to work out the matters of the heart. Forgiveness is on the horizon like a ship on the sea, edging closer to shore. Also, during this time, she learns of a secret between Greta and her mother.

As stated in the story, fate has a way of working things out. The reference to a puzzle is mentioned again and again. This novel is beautifully rendered so that the pieces come together in a tender and triumphant way. I truly loved the journey as the sights, sounds and layers of meaning rise like mist off the land after a summer rain. I highly recommend Shelter from the Storm. 5 Stars. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Many thanks to HQ (HarperCollins Au) and Netgalley for my review copy.

Shelter from the Storm by author Penelope Janu is another stellar read set withinn and around Horeshoe Hill and the Halstead's farm. I love reading about the characters of Patience and Hugo - two characters who are so tortured - separated by events and time - and who have so much history, so much chemistry and who were so rightly depicted for each other. Both characters equally strong, equally vulnerable - Patience's character garnered more than a few cheers from this reader in the course of reading the book as she had more baggage and torment than any character within the narrative to overcome. There were many notable characters that rated a mention in this story, none more so than Greta! What a charming persona who radiated warmth from the start.

There are so many layers to unpack in this story that it was so easy to completely fall into the reading window created by Ms Janu - Shelter from the Storm is a story that is captivating to its conclusion with twists, turns, secrets, revelations and equally riveting characters that easily keep you glued to every development within the narrative - a story that was easy reading and one that I just wanted to continue.
Review copy received from Harlequin Australia via Netgalley

Patience Cartwright is an officer in the Australian navy, she’s had issues with a superior and how she handled the situation has her career on the line. Patience is sent to work for a different organization, an environmental team, their studying the biodiversity and habitat of amphibians and it’s near her home town. One of the scientist is Dr. Hugo Halstead, her childhood friend and he’s the person who broke her heart years ago. Patience’s boss wants her to look into some suspicious activity within the research team and she has to do this without anyone noticing.

Hugo is extremely confident, dedicated to his job and has recently purchased an old property near his parents property. Patience is a loner and lives on base, she loves her two sisters Phoebe and Primrose and they have their own busy lives. Patience joined the navy to get away from Horseshoe Hill, her father’s a troubled man, when her first crush ended badly and she vowed never to return.

Patience falls ill, she has to recuperate from a potentially fatal infection, and she stays with Greta and Derek Halstead at Horseshoe Hill. Patience has to overcome her ill health and deal with experiences and memories from the past, they make her feel extremely uncomfortable and scared. Greta is the best cook in the world and a real mother hen, as Patience slowly regains her strength, she can relax and she starts to notice the beautiful scenery surrounding her and becomes reacquainted with people in the township that she trusted as a child. Patience has her future all mapped out, having the time to reflect on her career and choices she’s made, has her questioning if she’s on the right path, the feelings she still has for Hugo and should she follow her heart?

I received a digital copy of Shelter from the Storm from NetGalley and Harlequin Australia in exchange for an honest review. This is the first book I have read by Penelope Janu, it won’t be my last and the story had me hooked from the first page. A well written and extensively researched narrative about being a woman in the Australian Navy, a smart one with a gift for numbers, math and finding out who’s been committing a crime. It's also an interesting story about the environment, biology, herpetology, frogs and how important they are to the ecosystem. The chemistry between the two main characters of Hugo and Patience is rather steamy (hotter than Greta’s bathing room) and Greta’s character is so kind, funny, her antics made me laugh and five stars from me.