It's a cosy romance, with all the right ingredients for a proper wintery romcom. Unfortunately, the fact that this is book 4 and that I had read none before it kind of showed. I couldn't shake the feeling that I was somehow outside looking in, never managing to properly get into the story. Don't get me wrong, it can most certainly be read as a standalone, but I personally don't like jumping right into the middle of a series. I'm more of a one-shot kind of romance reader.

Winter Magic on Railway Lane by Alison Sherlock was a great read, read in one sitting I really enjoyed it. Chocolate and romance is just a great combination and there was plenty of both in this fab book. Great to go back to Railway Lane and to relive what all the characters are up to in this new book. Made me feel all Christmassy and looking forward to Alison’s next book.

A perfect, cosy read. Beautifully written and full of delightful characters, I really enjoyed this book

I have really enjoyed this series and was keen to see fiery Libby have her turn in the spotlight, even if this is the last book set at Railway Lane. Libby’s story is just as good as the others of this series, although I did find that her chocolate making meant I felt constantly hungry!

I loved how this book reflected the time I was reading: starting off in autumn, it moves to Halloween and then Christmas. It is a great winter read and I don’t think there was too much of the Christmas vibes if you are not a fan of festive fiction.

When we first meet Libby, she is returning home after losing her job. She isn’t thinking straight and is particularly, and understandably, cross with the world. Libby’s backstory is rather touching as Sherlock reveals how Libby is pretty much looking after her dad and has been hiding her skills as a chocolatier because of fears it will bring back painful memories of her mother.

Yet, an opportunity arises for Libby to make money once again, except doing something she loves. Libby’s life as an airhostess is portrayed as lonely and exhausting: she is ready to put roots down in Cranfield – a lot like her nemesis, Ethan. I loved how their paths cross from the beginning of the story and, whilst you know how this relationship will conclude, I relished in seeing them move from enemies to lovers.

This was a great story because Sherlock brings the steam train alive for the finale. Reading the entire series, this trainline is a significant feature in the story and I think it was fitting to see the steam train bring Cranfield together once and for all. It emphasised the community spirit that I have come to associate with Sherlock’s books and it was lovely to see Ethan’s family (including the infamous Dodgy Del!) have the train serve Cranfield for the festive season and beyond.

I don’t think this story was too obvious and I enjoyed finding out about Libby and Ethan’s secret. Furthermore, the change that Ethan and Libby’s father undergoes is quite touching. Many of the characters in this series are in some sort of recovery and I found it sweet how Libby’s father moves from being an isolated recluse to becoming involved in the community and helping others.

Undoubtedly, this is a feel-good read and I have really enjoyed all of the books. The characters are warming and ones you would consider as friends. The closeness portrayed is idyllic and I will be sad not to see these characters in the future.

With thanks to Boldwood books and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley, Boldwood Books, and the author for the chance to read this book.

I have loved everything about the Railway Lane series from Alison Sherlock. This is book 4, and I assume the last book. The friendships and community depicted throughout the stories give you warm and fuzzy feelings. There is always plenty of drama to be had which keeps things interesting.

In this story, we finally get to find out what went on between Libby and Ethan. Libby's character has been the most reserved throughout the series, so I enjoyed getting to understand her better.

It's such a great series that I highly recommend.

o how i do like to read these books by alison and this christmas one is no exception back in the village of cranfield telling a christmas story of all the friends who live there along with the trains involved this story revolves round libby and ethan through their ups and downs they finally get it together at last and create a merry christmas

Lovely story of trying to get an old railway back up and running and an.old romance back on track. This is very Christmasy and perfect to get into the Christmas season and with the added joy of chocolate lol.

Welcome back to Railway Lane! Winter Magic on Railway Lane is a fabulous follow up to the other Railway Lane series by Alison Sherlock.
In Winter Magic, we get to hear Libby and Ethan’s story and learn what happened to these childhood friends. In previous books, you know Libby has a lot of disdain for Ethan, but we do not know why. Not only do we learn what happened, we also find out a shocking secret that no one else knows about! Trust me - it is a good one!

Libby Jacobs has been a flight attendant and while her friends all think she leads an exciting life, she spends too much time in hotels dreaming up chocolate recipes. When she loses her job, she wonders if this is her chance to do more with her chocolate making. but worries about supporting her Dad who has suffered a stroke.

She also needs a bigger kitchen and the only person with one available for her use is Ethan Connolly. The only problem is Ethan and Libby are no longer friends and he is the last person she wants to ask for help.

Ethan just purchased the old schoolhouse and is converting it into his home - at least for when he is in town. Ethan has been living abroad for years and only making rare visits back. He still has too many bad memories of his parent’s marriage.

Libby does end up using Ethan’s kitchen and they have a tentative truce, but Ethan is scheduled to leave for another long-term job. When his grandad collapses and ends up in the hospital, Ethan knows he will stay and help both his dad and granddad see their dream of reviving the Christmas train. They want to see it run once more, but it will mean getting the steam engine literally back on track and having the entire village pitch in.

Both Ethan and Libby have their own pasts to deal with before they can see what the future holds. They will need the magic of winter on Railway Lane for their second chance to become a reality.

I enjoyed finding out more about Libby and Ethan as well as revisiting the other characters. The other storyline about Libby’s dad was great too. Definitely a feel-good story with a holiday twist. 4.5 rounded up to a 5 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for a chance to review an advance copy of Winter Magic on Railway Lane in exchange for my honest review.

I loved the first three books in this series and this book, book 4 was just as lovely. You could read it as a stand-alone as the focus is on other characters, but I would once again highly recommend reading the whole series in order as the characters from the first three books reappear in this story.

I feel like I can't say it enough... these bugs are just like a great big warm hug and with the Christmas time and the whole atmosphere it was just all that much better. I simply love the people in the village of Cranfield and would happily buy myself a one way ticket there! Libby and Ethan were great characters both scared of commitment and love, but also clearly both already in love with each other even if they could not admit it to anyone, let alone themselves. It's a real slow burn and closed door romance story, but the whole community is just as important here as the romance side of the story.
I loved it!

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is a cozy, heartwarming, delightful Christmas novel. I enjoyed it a lot!

A lovely wintery tale of love, friendships, priorities and trains!
As you read through this story and get to know our characters better (it is part of a series but easily read as a stand alone) you will become more invested in them and their futures!
The writer really gets across what this small village looks like as well as the sense of community there. All the characters will tug on your heart strings in this one.
I did enjoy it, centred around Christmas and trains but it just didn’t grab me quite as much as some other books of this genre. I’m not sure why, it was well written, I could imagine everything well. Maybe I’ve read a few too many stories where our main characters have denied themselves love for several decades!
Sometimes I did just want to reach into the book and tell them just to be honest and talk to each other!!

All in all a lovely read.

I love a Christmas tale and what's better than a Christmas tale featuring characters and a community that you already know and love!?

This might be potentially the last book in this series as all the main characters now have their happily ever afters. It is a heartwarming tale of forgiveness, finding your own path and staying true to your feelings. This book features Libby, who has always had a love-hate relationship with Ethan. We've known these characters throughout the other books but not really known their back story or Libby's family history before.

Featuring heavily in this book is also the Cranbridge and Connolly steam train that has been getting done up for what seems like forever! Fantastic ideas, chances to be an entrepreneur, businesses thriving and locals looking out for each other. I love the community in these books, its like coming home to a warm hug each time I open a new Alison Sherlock book!

I hope there is a new series on the horizon, I'll be signing up in a heartbeat!
My thanks to Alison Sherlock for a beautiful book and Boldwood Books and Netgalley for the opportunity to read it. All opinions expressed are my own.

A nice read with a different storyline - trains! I enjoyed reading about the friends’ relationships and the chocolate making however I did find that the overall feel of the book was a little stilted and I was hoping for more descriptions of the chocolates being made

This book is actually the last book - book four - in the Railway Lane series. They are all written as a stand alone book but do have a lot of cross over characters and themes.

In this story we find out all about Libby and Ethan who used to be childhood best friends but fell out due to an unfortunate misunderstanding.

I absolutely loved the small-town setting and honestly just wanted to go and live in this story!

I really enjoyed this gorgeous, festive story, it was heartwarming and Christmassy and also had that all important happy ever after…..

Winter Magic is the fourth and sadly the final book in the Railway Lane series.

Cranfield is another of those places that's always a delight to return to and catch up with friends old and new.

This was Libby's story and it took us on quite the emotional journey, but she had the love and support from the community rallying round her, so she wasn't alone with her feelings.

It's heartwarming, uplifting and it's Christmas, so was a definite win for me!

I absolutely loved the book and the series, and I'm definitely going to miss Railway Lane.

This book aproaches so many things. We can see grief, sadness, disabilities and at the same time friendship, kindness, a sense of community and love. 

Libby returns home after being fired from her job as a flight assistant. But.. hey, maybe it's a good thing as she can now go all in as a chocolate maker (her dream job and passion). 
Ethan's a electric engineer, that is home for a small amount of time to help his dad and grandad help with the steam train. In the beggining he feels that he doen't belong and then he starts to crave all the familiar thing he once wanted to run away from. 

Libby and Ethan were once friends, but even in their teen years, they had a thing for each other, but some bad things happened, and they grew very appart. Being in the same small town and constantly into each other company makes them reignite their friendship and them makes them fall for each other all over again. But it's a slow, slow, slow burn in this one. 
Their path isn't an easy one. They must struggle to find their place and feel worthy of what they can accomplish.  They have an amazing support system (friends and family) to help them, and it's endearing to see them all helping them when they need!

The story has a fall kind of vive and then all of a Chistmassy feeling. It makes us want a cozy blanket and just enjoy the ride!

Such a great read! Highly recommend this one.

Many thanks to the author, the publisher, and Netgalley for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

In this cozy winter romance novel, Alison Sherlock brings readers back to Railway Lane for a snowy December. Libby Jacobs might have lost her job, but time in her home village of Cranfield will allow her to spend more time on her chocolate making hobby, perhaps turning it into a business. Ethan Connolly has a large kitchen she can use, but they’ve been on the outs since high school. Ethan has his own troubles with fulfilling his granddad’s dream of a Christmas train in time for the holiday. Libby and Ethan might get a second chance at realizing their dreams and finding the magic of winter in Cranfield after all. Libby and Ethan are complex but realistic characters, and their problems parallel each other nicely as the novel unfolds. Their complicated history only adds to the challenges and plot points of the novel, and it builds up the tension and will-they-won’t-they between Libby and Ethan. As for the setting of Cranfield and Railway Lane, they are charming and sentimental, bringing the idea of home and winter to the forefront of the novel. With all of the charm and heart in this novel, fans of Sherlock’s other books are sure to love this return to a snowy Railway Lane.

What a cozy read this was, loved going back to railway lane. The perfect book to read if you just want to snuggle on the sofa and lose yourself in a cutesy love story. Loved reading about Libby and devoured this book in a couple of days.

BLOG TOUR REVIEW


Review for 'Winter Magic On Railway Lane' by Alison Sherlock.

This may be the first book I have read by this fantastic author but it most definitely will NOT be my last and I cannot wait to get stuck into the rest of her previous and future books. It is also the fourth book in Alison's 'The Railway Lane' series but can be read as a standalone, as can the previous books in this series.

This is a fantastically written book that has vivid descriptions which will make you feel that you are breaking your heart and then feeling it repair again, breathing the Cranfield air, feeling the festivities, and falling in love!! It takes you on a journey to Cranfield and I was devastated when I had to pack my case to come back home and leave Cranfield behind 😭 The title, synopsis and cover suit the storyline perfectly.

Well, you may have noticed I have started reading festive books regular and very early considering it is only September but it doesn't matter if you are the type who doesn't want to hear the word Christmas until the day or whether you have already started thinking about getting the decorations down because regardless of how you feel about Christmas you will absolutely LOVE this adorable story!! As I have mentioned it is the fourth book, and sadly the last, in this series. However, the good thing about reading book series out of order is that I get to go back to the first book in this series which is called 'Heading Home To Lavender Cottage' and get stuck into the series from the start!!! The storyline itself is absolutely ram packed with love, friends, Christmas, chocolate, broken families, family, secrets, comedy, community, romance, redundancy, stress, second chances, emotional angst, health concerns and absolutely everything you could want in a beautiful novel!! It made me smile, cry, scream, shout, angry and jump for joy!! This gorgeous book tells us the story of Libby and Ethan. Libby has just lost her job as a flight attendant, she hated her job anyway but is now worrying how to make a living. to not only support herself but also her father who is living with. What she does love is to make chocolate but can she find a way to turn a much loved hobby into a successful career? Ethan has been avoiding relationships and family ever since he watched his parents marriage collapse. Love is all around him in Cranfield and his first instinct is to leave. However, he realises he needs to start changing his ways and making better choices. Libby and Ethan who were best friends during childhood but lost touch due to a lack of communication and Ethan's commitment problems. Everybody else can see that they are perfect for each other but they fail to see it themselves. That is until it dawns on Libby how much Ethan means to her and she sets out to get Ethan to understand. Can Ethan get over his commitment phobia and can Libby make her dream job come true? Well, grab your copy of this absolutely stunning festive page turner to find out for yourself!! I promise that you will not regret it!!! With Alison's absolutely stunning evocative, vivid and emotive writing skills and descriptions you really can see, feel, hear, taste and smell everything that the characters are from the stunning smell of chocolate to Ethan's beautiful home and kitchen, the Halloween decorations to the Christmas decorations. the love to the sadness and absolutely everything and anything in between!! Alison does an amazing job of weaving Ethan and Libby's storylines together perfectly using multiple protagonist perspectives and I loved seeing how they were both feeling and what they were both doing throughout the book which takes us on a journey from August to January. I absolutely devoured this stunning storyline in one sitting being unable to put it down and I cannot wait to get hooked on to the previous books in this series. Congratulations Alison on an absolutely gorgeous, cosy and heart-warming page turner.

Although this is the fourth and last book in 'The Railway Lane' series I had absolutely no problems reading it without any of the others. Any details or events that have previously happened are mentioned in just the right amount of detail to let a new reader know what has happened and yet not too much to bore a previous reader. However, I would recommend reading it in order as I do with most book series and I'm looking forward to going back and reading the previous books.

There were so many large and unique personalities in this book and thanks to Alison's amazing writing skills each and every one of them came alive. My heart went out to Libby with her losing her job and it feels like she is under so much pressure with needing money to pay the bills. I was invested in her immediately and was rooting for both her and Ethan who, although could seem distant at times, I still really liked. There were so many characters that I loved meeting that I could go on about them forever but it would be much better if you grabbed your copy and met these fantastic, unique, memorable and larger than life characters yourself. They all have their own personalities, strengths, flaws and weaknesses and thanks to Alison's brilliant descriptions it feels like you are standing next to them throughout!! They were all great together and I loved seeing their interactions and watching their characters, personalities and relationships grow and develop through the pages. Alison really has created such amazing characters that I became immediately invested in and was sad to say goodbye to. I absolutely LOVED watching all the separate relationships develop and change between the characters and I cannot wait to go back to the previous 3 books to see how they got to where they are now!! This book was filled with a lovely range of characters so a huge WELL done to Alison for bringing them to life!!

Overall an absolutely gorgeous, festive, feel good, page turning novel filled with friendships, love and family that will keep you up late at night.

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