Set in the moors of North Yorkshire, this story follows folklorist, Dr Rowan Thorpe and Irish historian, Professor Connor O'Keefe as they battle over the same site for different reasons. Rowan is extremely protective of The Fairy Stane in the moorlands and won't let anyone lift it, while Connor thinks it might be a Roman marker for a lost Roman settlement and thinks lifting the stone will tell him the information he needs.

In the end, neither are right and the final result is much sadder and more emotional than anyone could have originally thought.

There is a lot of loss in this story - Rowan has been widowed at a young age and lost a pregnancy that may or may not have been a pregnancy and Connor was tricked into falling in love with a married woman and mother of two young children. But after a rocky start, they find solace in each other.

I thought the story was well written and covered the sensitive topics of loss and heartbreak really well. But there was no real build up to Rowan and Connor's relationship, it went from them first meeting to Connor needing a place to stay and moving into Rowan's spare room, to the two of them being consumed by each other without any real story about the two of them in the middle. It was like a switch flipped one day and they decided they loved each other and couldn't keep their hands off each other.

Overall, an emotional read and I liked the way Connor and Rowan seem to compliment each other in the end - just would have been nicer to see them build their relationship a bit more.

Thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

SInce I love the small town, soft rom coms of Jessica Redland, and Beth Moran, it wasn't a hard sell for me to start "the Start of the Story". Rowan's story moved me, and being able to watch her and Connor fall in love was delightful. I really enjoyed this sweet book.

I like a good enemies to lovers romcom so thought this could be a good read.

Unfortunately I found the prickliness of Rowan rather wearing and the story took a long time to get anywhere.

A nice story but not one I’d recommend.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me a copy of this story in exchange for my review.

The moment I see a Jane Lovering book up for request, its a no brainer... I need to read it!
Rowan and Connors story is captivating, heart-warming and simply wonderful from beginning to end.

An interesting read. I wasn't sure if I was going to enjoy this story at the beginning but when I got into it it was really good and the mythical Fairy stane was quite a beautiful part of the novel. The location was great and I was so pleased that Rowan could move on after a devastating loss. A charming well written book

This was such a good story, and the way it was wirttenn was great... it's definetly a "show not tell" type of book and I love that.

I like the reverse sunshine/grumpy trope and this was done perfectly. The fact that the characters had a lot to unfold makes them really interesting, the portrait of grief and how it affects the characters. It is so well done you can actually feel all the emotions too, and at points its heartbreaking but in a good way (if that makes sense)... in the end it also has fun, romantic moments worth your times.

Rowan meets Connor and instantly dislikes what he stands for. When she ends up renting her spare room to him will that change matters? a great read, and I liked the setting too.

Dr Rowan Thorpe and Professor Connor O’Keefe do not get off to a great start when he is determined to access an archeological area that is of significant folkloric interest to Rowan. Hard to believe these two could possibly belong together, but sharing their individual griefs might just be the beginning of a real relationship.

I had not read anything by this author, but I will definitely be checking out more of her work now! This was a sweet tale of love and loss, and finding love again. Rowan was pretty salty, but I could not fault her for it. She had been through a tough loss, so it was understandable that she felt the way she did. I absolutely adored Connor though! *swoon* I loved how he gave Rowan her space, while also making his presence known. He did not back down, but knew when to back off a bit. Overall, it was a great story that kept me reading so that I could find out how the story was to progress.

An absolute delight to read.. I love books like this one as it's such a pleasure to settle down and just read it in one sitting. I always enjoy Jane's books. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

This is a really sweet enemies to lovers romance. This book was really good, though I found it a bit confusing at first after reading a blurb and then being in Yorkshire, England. I quickly settled in and kept reading and found myself really enjoying the pacing, as well as the characters. I love the backstory with the folklore of fairies and the history, and loved the descriptions of Rowan's cottage. Connor is a visiting professor, and oh how I loved his humor and how well mannered he was even in spite of everything. All in all I found this to be a pleasing read.

Thanks to NetGalley and Jane Lovering for this e-Arc!

In this charming, heartwarming romance novel, readers meet folklorist Rowan Thorpe in her charming cottage in the Yorkshire countryside where she researches local legends when Irish historian Connor O’Keefe arrives and threatens to undermine local legends and remove the fairy stone at the heart of her work. Both with complex and tragic pasts, they have struggled to move on, and their differences in work and interests in local history have Rowan and Connor butting heads upon their first meeting. With an unexpected snowstorm and forced proximity in the small town where they both are doing research, Rowan and Connor have no choice but to interact and come to an understanding despite their differences. With fascinating characters, a charming and idyllic location, and some fun wintery and romance tropes (forced proximity, rivals-to-lovers, canceled holiday plans, secret relationships, and so many more) abounding in this novel, Lovering’s characters are the star of the novel, and Rowan and Connor’s dynamic is fascinating to follow as it develops over the book. They are both complex and clever characters with tragic backstories, and they narrate chapters separately and together as the book progresses, giving readers the chance to see the story develop from multiple angles.

I thought I would try a different t type of book this time and while I enjoyed it it just wasn’t something for me. If you enjoy more folklore this is for you!

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

This was a fun book. I enjoyed reading it!

Unfortunately I found this book so slow that I actually stopped reading it, read several others then came back and finished it. Nothing happened until I was over 80% of the way through, then everything was resolved very quickly.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

Really enjoyed it and would give the book 3.5 stars. Rowan was not my favorite character. It definitely took time to warm up to her. At times she was off putting, unfriendly and downright rude. Who am I kidding? It wasn't some times, it was pretty much every time she was around someone, especially Connor. The very lovely, handsome Connor with all his Irish charm. Connor would be the only one able to get through Rowan's hard exterior. Rowan does nothing except work, spend time at home, work, work some more and feed her gang of ducks toast crusts. She's extremely possessive of the Fairy Stane. Poor Chess had to deal with Rowan at work everyday. Loved reading about Rowan and Connor and getting to know them better. It explained why they acted certain ways. They had a great relationship with each other when Rowan wasn't fighting or insulting Connor. Loved when the truth about the Fairy Stane was finally revealed. I never expected what it turned out to be.

Definitely recommend the book. Loved the characters (mostly), writing style and story. The ducks were the best part of Rowan's cottage. Although, they did get scary when not fed their toast. At times the story is lighthearted and fun and other times it's serious and sad. Look forward to reading more books by the author.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Boldwood Books through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Dr. Rowan Thorpe works for York university researching folklore and Professor Connor O'Keefe is from Ireland working on Roman occupation in the area and they are both brought together by the fairy stane, a stone located high up on the north Yorkshire Moors which according to legend has fairies living underneath it. As Rowan has a spare room and Connor has nowhere to stay she offers him the spare room, somewhat grudgingly, but he accepts. As you gradually learn about the secrets and background information about both of them you start to wonder if more will come of this relationship. Especially when Connors ex turns up in the middle of a stormy December day, will Rowan throw both of them out? Rowan also has a difficult past that she is finding it extremely hard to let go of, will Connor be the one to mend her heart?
Set in the the North Yorkshire Moors in the area around Pickering, Helmsley and York, an area where I have visited and love very much.

A story of relationships, grief, families, new beginnings and friendships.
I really enjoyed reading this book and the landscapes where it is set gives it a great atmospheric feel to it.

#netgalley
#thestartofthestory

Jane Lovering's writing style will swoop you right in to not want to put the book down. Absolutely amazing, such a loving story with a little bit of mystery in there. You almost feel as if you are in the book.

This book just wasn’t really for me. The storyline just didn’t appeal to me. If you like folklore and fairytales, slow burn romance and enemies to lovers you might like it, however the fmc irritated me even once we found out her backstory. Its very very slowburn and has a heavy focus on the fmc’s grief from her husband’s death. Once you stick with it, it does get better- it’s just slow and confusing at first.

Thank you to Netgalley and Boldwood books for this ARC.

Whilst a pleasant story my biggest problem with this book was I just didn't like the female mc - Rowan. I understand she'd been through trauma but the majority of her behaviour came across as rude and ignorant.
Connor by comparison was delightful.
I was fascinated by the secret of the little people and their stone.
I am usually a huge fan of Jane's work but only lukewarm for this one.