Jenny Colgan is the quintessential atmospheric fiction writer, the interesting, quirky settings so beautifully intertwine with her characters and the plot. The School by the Sea series is another shining example, but the setting is less about the unique nature of the physical natural environment (though the side trip did bring the area to life) and more about the social environment of the educational systems in England through a boarding school but also a public school. As an American and as a teacher, this element was fascinating. I'm not quite ready to move and teach at a posh boarding school, but the antics were quite amusing. Colgan's characters are always impactful- quirky, multidimensional and so easy to love. Maggie and David are perfect for each other and I'm glad Colgan finished publishing this series. A side note though, I know I am greedy, but I wanted more closure for M & D, maybe an epilogue. If Colgan ever decides to dabble in this world again, I think there are plenty more stories to tell.
Thanks to #Avon and Harper Voyager, Avon and #NetGalley for the Arc.

I am a longtime fan of Jenny Colgan’s fiction and have loved reading Colgan’s boarding school series, filled with Colgan’s trademark descriptive prose and quirky characters. For me, however, Studies at the School by the Sea was a bit of a miss. I found myself skimming midway through, as the plot just wasn’t holding my attention, despite my investment in the series and a genuine interest in learning what was to become of its many characters.

Two and a half stars, rounded up due to Colgan’s characterizations and strong sense of place.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Avon for a complimentary ARC. Opinions are my own.

Maggie and David teach at two very different schools, one posh and one more working class. As they continue to see each other, plans are made for the students of both schools to have some activities together. The students are a group of characters that were not that interesting to me, and it felt more like a YA type of book. Not my favorite of Colgan’s, but will appeal to those who have read the previous books in this series. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Maybe it is because I could see myself being friends with her characters? Maybe because they just feel so very real? Or maybe because I fancy myself having some of their same adventures? Whatever it is, I can't seem to get enough of the worlds Jenny Colgan writes in. Sure the hills and castles of Downey House sound romantic, but instead we get teen angst mirrored by Maggie's own confusion. I love how things were tied up, loosely but with the belief that everything is going to be okay. I'll miss the girls and hope that perhaps some of them might make appearances in future works.

Maggie and David face some tough decisions on where their lives will go from here. Will they stay together or is the pull of Maggies hometown take her back. As they face graduation Fliss, Simone and Alice face a new life.. And a new class comes in at the School by the Sea.

I get soo excited when I see a new Jenny Colgan book come out because I know what I'm in for. Cozy small town life, interesting characters, always a sweet love story, and location, location, location! I want to visit Scotland one day in hopes to meet Jenny but also to be in the setting of her books. Studies by the Sea is the last book in the series of the "class" books and I was happy to have the series wrapped up. I enjoy anything that Jenny writes however her cute bake shop books and of course the bookshop books are my favorite. The Bookshop on the Corner will forever be my favorite book.
In Studies at the School by the Sea we follow Maggie Adair as she teaches at the prestigious Downey House boarding school for girls. Maggie loves her students and feels settles in her life teaching and in her love life as well. After breaking off things with her long term boyfriend back in Scotland Maggie is swooning over David her teaching partner. With David everything seems new and exciting and she can see their future together being a happy one. But when Maggie is called home due to a terrible accident with her ex all the old feelings come back when she sees him. Everything about being home feels right but Maggie is torn between her past and her future. As Maggie's students are set to graduate she wonders if this is her time to graduate and spread her wings as well. Maggie will need to stop thinking about what people expect her to do and finally do what she knows is right for her happiness.

Studies at the School by the Sea
by Jenny Colgan
Pub Date: March 26, 2024
Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
The long-awaited and never-before published finale in New York Times bestselling author Jenny Colgan’s delightful School by the Sea series.

After all those lessons, it’s time to graduate....
I enjoyed the first 3 books in this series, but (maybe as it's been so long since the last one) this fell a bit flat for me. Felt a bit rushed and frustrating to read. Not my favorite.
3 stars

It was good to be back at Downey house! I felt that while the surroundings were familiar and it was good to catch up with the dorm girls and Maggie and David, it was also refreshing to have some new characters in the mix. It left me wanting to know what happens next!

Studies at the School by the Sea by Jenny Colgan. The first three School by the Sea novels were just what I needed when I contracted a mild case of Covid. With few symptoms other than being tired, I wanted entertainment as I quarantined and these boarding school tales delivered. They form one book with each an installment of one school term. Studies at the school by the Sea is the fourth and final installment in the series. Read it if you’ve read the first three in the series to see if Maggie and David’s romance lasts. It isn’t as compelling as the first three books.

It's the summer holidays, and our Scottish teacher Maggie is off for a trip with the smoldering David in his ancient convertible. Alas, the phone rings, bringing news that Stan, her ex-fiancé, has been terribly injured and the expectation — from his family, from her family, and even a bit from Maggie herself — that Maggie will race to his side. Conflicted, Maggie does go to see about Stan, leaving David wondering where he stands.

In the fourth book in the School by the Sea series, Maggie returns to the posh boarding school she loves but finds that her relationship with David suffers from miscommunication and awkwardness. David returns to the poverty-stricken students he is trying so hard to help and the stress that comes with that job. The students, meanwhile, are fully consumed with teenage angst and hormonal upheaval.

That Colgan's School by the Sea series is not more well known is truly a shame; it's sweet and tender toward both the adult and the adolescent characters and comes with a hearty helping of Colgan's sharp humor.

This sequel to The School by the Sea has the same charm and gentle storytelling as the previous novel. The world of Downey House School returns with new triumphs and heartaches for students and teachers alike. I love the tender but uncertain relationship between teachers David and Maggie, whose bond is tested by the circumstances of David's decision to stay at the troubled nearby Philip Dean school and Maggie's loyalty to her Scottish family and former fiancé Stan, who suffers a serious accident. The girls at Downey House, navigating adolescence, exams, the trials of social media, and first love, offer some serious challenges to Maggie, while David is consumed by the need to give the less privileged students at his school a chance at success, often neglecting Maggie in the process. This boarding-school tale is reminiscent of many older stories, from The Little Princess to Harry Potter, and this novel has notes of those stories with an adult tale of troubled romance and divided loyalties thrown in. I enjoyed the novel a lot and would recommend it to readers looking for a tender, absorbing light read.

This one was a little slow to start and I had a hard time coming back to it. Of course it ties up neatly at the end as Jenny's books normally do.

Cornwall, England - Present Day

Maggie Adair is back at Downey House in Cornwall after her summer break at home in Scotland. Not only is she preparing her curriculum for her literature class, but she's hoping to re-establish her relationship with David, who is back to teaching at the inner city school. Maggie and David's plans for a summer trip together came crashing down when Maggie received bad news from home, forcing her to return, instead, to Scotland. David proceeded with the trip, and Maggie was hoping that nothing had changed in how close they'd become before the break.

Maggie's favorite students at the all girls school have also returned, some happier than others. Scholarship student Simone, bright, but unsure of how she fits in at the posh school, and her boyfriend, Ash, are still in love, but how will she do in her final exams? Felicity, aka Fliss, lives in the shadow of her older sister, and has parents who don't know how to deal with her. Alice flounces through life as the lovely rich kid who couldn't care less about school, and Isme, another scholarship student who, like Simone, struggles with her future, but has a distinct need to improve her life, and others in her situation.

David and Maggie fall back into a routine, even though she has to maintain her room at Downey House, and he is constantly working on keeping his students in line. Maggie is at odds with how difficult it is to share David with his students, and to wonder inwardly if she's really just the inner city girl from Glasgow and is in over her head. She loves being a teacher, she loves Downey House, and she's pretty sure she loves David.

STUDIES AT THE SCHOOL BY THE SEA is book four in this delightful series by Jenny Colgan. Set in the windswept moors of seaside Cornwall, readers are drawn into the lives of adults and teens with various backgrounds and needs. Maggie is from a working class family who are perplexed by her leaving home to teach, and David is the odd-man out of a military family. Both want what is best for their students, and how they work that out is paramount to this story. But how will that affect their relationship?

Readers of Jenny Colgan will thoroughly enjoy this sweet, thoughtful story and its myriad of delightful characters. Don't miss STUDIES AT THE SCHOOL BY THE SEA.

A satisfying conclusion to the series featuring Maggie and the Downey Girls school. Over the four books I feel like I have gotten to know the characters and couldn't wait for the next book.

This is the fourth book in the School by the Sea series by Jenny Colgan. I’ve read several other of her books and especially like the Bookshop series. I've read other books in School by the Sea series and enjoyed them as well. In book 4 we continue with some of the same students from earlier books and also get to know some from David’s new school. He is now at a public school after having left the boys equivalent at Downey School, where Maggie still teaches the girls. David and Maggie’s relationship continues but at an extremely slow pace, but I still like these characters. I hope there is another book in this series because the story ends with a huge cliff hanger I definitely want resolved. The summary indicates this is the last book and mentions several questions to be answered about the students and teachers futures. So let’s hope there is one more!
Thank you to Netgalley and Avon Books for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Loved it. I'm a total fan of Jenny Colgan's writing, and this one did not disappoint. We catch up with all the main characters at Downey House school from the previous three novels, and I hope this isn't the last. One of the things I do appreciate about Colgan's characterization is that she doesn't write cartoon characters. Even the most extreme are nuanced (okay, except perhaps Ms. Starling, the Deputy Headteacher). We are taken back to the joys and difficulties of childhood, as well as that of coworker drama. I do wish there had been a followup of the Deveral/McDonald connection, but that was a minor wish. A fine, enjoyable read.

If you haven’t read Jenny Colgan, I highly recommend that you give one of her books a try. Studies At The School By The Sea is the fourth book in the School by the Sea series. Each book goes through a year in the life of students and staff at an English boarding school. This was not my favorite book in the series but still enjoyable. A quick, easy, read.

I had a hard time connecting to the characters even though I’ve already met them in one of the author’s earlier novels. I liked the setting and the dialog felt real. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to finish this one.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and publisher for an advanced reading copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

As much as I love Jenny Colgan and purchase her for the library, I find that this entry into the School by the Sea series falls a little flat.
The students and their POVs were fun but incomplete. Nobody figured out the Korean IG location sooner?
The main characters don't actually seem to talk to each other. Our protagonist, Maggie, behaves unrealistically. I can't believe she just sat around home for an entire summer because her ex was hurt. It's not like she was needed to provide nursing assistance.
Could Maggie and David compromise by getting jobs at the same posh school closer to Maggie's family?
I would have liked for Maggie and David to discuss his previous girlfriend's issue with him and have him demonstrate his changes. And if not, whether they continue as a couple.

Lots of interesting points raised but the finish falls flat.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

I love Jenny Colgan books and have read almost all of them, including the School by the Sea series. I really enjoyed the first three books, but this last book in the series really let me down. It felt like the author just wanted to wrap it all up, and didn’t take time to further develop any of the characters. Their motivations and behaviors were really confusing and didn’t make sense. It is often the case that a good, clear conversation will solve most issues, but that was so true in this book that it was painful. The main characters, Jenny Adair and David MacDonald, fumbled their way through this book without really talking to each other, making nonsensical assumptions, and then in the end, never resolved anything at all. It was very hard to connect to them, even after reading the first three books and understanding their backstory. The students’ characters were similarly underdeveloped, and there was nothing to really hold my attention at all. Furthermore, previously interesting characters, such as the headmistress Veronica Deveral, were not even mentioned. This book overall was an enormous letdown and left me confused about how this could be the finale of a four-book series.
Thank you NetGalley for the advance copy! I will keep reading Jenny Colgan - one disappointing book cannot cancel out her stronghold of lovely, entertaining books.