The Little Barn of Dreams

Thanks to Aria &Aries fiction and NetGalley for a copy of this fabulous novel in return for an honest review.

💕The use of imagination and playfulness in this book is what makes it so wonderful. Capturing our inner childishness, the author has thrown off any thought of what is expected of an adult and encouraged the dreamers to be released. The story is described as 'whimsical' and that is a perfect word to use.
The tale follows the life of a family who were torn apart by a tragic event. It uncovers the reason behind it's main character's need to run from the real world. Florence is considered 'different' and finds it hard to fit in, but she still believes in magic and hopes that one day, she will find somewhere to belong. When she trusts her Nanna's advice and takes a trip back in time, she meets Jo. Can he help her to overcome her shyness and bloom?
Jo and Florence are unique, book-loving adventurers who find their happiness in daydreams and escapism. Who amongst us hasn't wanted to return to our carefree childhood adventures, fighting sea monsters and slaying dragons or imagine ourselves as Princesses and Princes, Pirates and Wizards? This book allows all of those dreams to come true.
This book is different from the author's other stories, but nonetheless wonderful. I love that Lucy has reached out and done something different with her writing. It's perfect and an absolute joy to read, which makes it worthy of a 5⭐️review.

What an absolute smasher of a summer read! Take all the nostalgia of a perfect childhood summer holiday, add a couple of unique and quirky characters, a pinch of tension, a handful of literary references, lashings of potential and you have a shimmering cocktail of delight.
What I truly loved most about The Little Barn Of Dreams was how Florence is not your typical leading lady, she's clumsy, bookish, introverted, sensitive and gets lost in elaborate daydreaming, yet her defences are high and she carries a lot of trauma; this made her captivating and so interesting to read, to see what lies beneath the surface and what could make a difference to help her find her happiness again.
The psychotherapy link between trauma and the lasting impact on our interactions with the world and daydreaming was a really good hook and I think for anyone who spent time, as a child or adult, living in a dream world or with a. cast of imaginary characters as comfort, this is a book that speaks to that inner child; encouraging us all to be that little bit kinder, be your true self and nurture creative self-expression.
I don't want to give too much away but there is a café featured in this book that is my absolute dream of a place and I adored the characters that work here, I'm hoping they will have their own story coming at some point as there's certainly a lot there to explore.
An all-round adorable read to enjoy right as we need a little bit of escapism & hope!!

Another gorgeous book by this incredible author. Lucy writes the most heartwarming stories and I always look forward to reading new books by her

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.

“Perfect for book-lovers everywhere”.
Florence, who always loves to read works in a company, but doesn’t really like what she does. She loses that position and now, she has to make some changes. Find something that she loves to do.

Her Nanna, Margot, tries to persuade her to spend a week at Camp Calla Lily. But Florence hasn’t been there since her parents were taken away from her.

But she goes, and upon arrival, she’s filled with memories, happy ones and sad ones. Then she meets Jo.

Pretty much straight away, they are both together all the time as they share a love of books 📚.

Suddenly Jo’s gone back to London and the happy bubble that they existed in has burst, for Florence it’s time to ho back to the real world, find a job and look after her Nanna.

Florence, is wishing that her summer, which was like a fairy-tale was or could be her happily-ever-after. But for that to happen, she’ll need to enter the chaos in her real-life……..

Another enjoyable read from Lucy.

Recommend it,

Wow wow wow. At first I was not sure but then bang it just took me away. Read in less than 24 hours. One of those books that you were thinking about when you were not reading it. The main characters Florence and Jo were lovely.. Gosh you felt for Florence. I loved how books helped her escape. I loved the camp and Florences grandmother. An amazing read. A story of trust, love and faith. Absolutely brilliant. Read it

Thank you NetGalley, Aria & Aries and Author for this advanced book copy!

An odd bookworm Florence loses her job she decides enough is enough!
when a.sweet lady named Nanna tells Flo she should.go and spend some time at Camp Calla Lily. But only one
Little issue with that is she hasn't been back there since she lost her parents
When she returns her emotions are all over the place until she meets Jo.
They become close and connect instantly but when Jo leaves suddenly for a job in London Flo's life come to halt and she's is devastated!
Will Flo be able to find her happy ever after!?.

I just loved The Little Barn of Dreams it was so full of life, I found myself smiling like alot throughout this story!
This book makes you feel all warm and cozy. Loved it from start to finish in fact I finished it in one sitting!
Great character development! The characters were simply amazing! Loved them all!
Overall this was a quick, cute fun read!

\what a lovely book, Lucy has again written a fantastic story with great characters and very descriptive settings. This is well worth 5 stars and I highly recommend you all go and read this, I am sure you will enjoy doing so.

Thanks to Netgalley and publisher for this ARC

Today I am delighted to be kicking off the blog tour for the lovely Lucy and her latest release The Little Barn of Dreams.

Well where do I start, once again Lucy has created vibrant characters that capture your heart and take you on a wonderful journey. When I read Lucy’s last book, I had a new favourite and now I am torn as this one was equally as wonderful.

Florence is a wonderfully quirky character that I instantly connected with, she reminded me of my constantly daydreaming daughter and I loved how she has been encouraged to be herself by her Nan and not change despite the influence of her best friend. When Florence’s Nan books her a holiday to Camp Calla Lily she reluctantly embarks on an adventure that she has been avoiding since being left heartbroken after her last visit. On her arrival at the Camp Calla Lily she fell in love with the magical setting of the wooden huts with their fairy lights and piles of books to devour whilst relaxing.

Lucy has a wonderful way of creating characters with wonderful endearing quirks and Florence and Jo were the ultimate dreamteam, I loved the references to Little Women one of my absolute favourite books scattered throughout. From the moment I picked this up, I just wanted to keep reading as I was so invested in the new friendship that continued to grow between Florence and Jo, and was keen to discover why Jo was really at Camp Calla Lily and whether he was there to help or hinder his Grandfather.

A story that left me feeling warm and fuzzy and I would happily sit and read over again. The perfect book to curl up with in the garden and enjoy the summer sun whilst losing yourself in the gorgeous destination of Camp Calla Lily.

What a beautifully written book that captured my imagination and transported me to a camp with cabins, a lake and a barn ripe for transforming into a magic place. I loved the characters, Florence and Jo had known heartache but lost themselves in the world of books. This is a book I will keep and revisit - pure magic. So pleased to be sent a copy to read and review. Five stars isn’t nearly enough.

A bookworm's dream romance!

I've loved Lucy's writing since reading her first book. She writes with such heart and emotion that I'm incapable of putting her books down once I get started! Her characters are always kind and sweet - the perfect best friend's on the page.

Florence was a wonderful, quirky, day-dreamy character and the settings Lucy created were a bookworm's dream. Who wouldn't want a little hut to sit and read in and a handsome, equally quirky hero to bring you tea?! Throw in a good amount of romantic tension and you've got yourself a great summer read.

This was another fantastic, uplifting and wonderfully dreamy read from Lucy and I can't wait to see what she brings us next.

What an absolute joy it was to read 'The Little Barn of Dreams'! Lucy Knott has created a delightful and instructive story about the balance in life while dealing with horrible trauma. It was enchanting as Florence went to camp after she lost her job and there faced her worst fears and found the potential for her greatest joy. I would give this book a dozen stars if I could, and highly recommend it.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

A fantastic book filled with hope, imagination in bucket fulls, love and a nana who loves and believes in you no matter what. Flo is not an up to date, fashion conscious twenty something girl. She much prefers to wear what she wants, prefers books to people and has a habit of drifting off in a storybook world. Her nana decides she needs a holiday to re fuel and books her a week at Cala Lily Park. However this place is filled not only with lots of happy memories it also holds the key to a devastating memory, that Flo has locked away. Is the holiday a nightmare or does it open up her dreams, wants and wishes. Which of course include her own knight in shining armour. Simply wonderful

I don't even know where to begin! I've actually just finished reading Luc's 6th book before it gets sent to her publisher for the first time, so I'm currently in a hazy bubble of Lucy's book world and I don't want it to pop! Luc just keeps getting better and better. Her ideas are so unique and so much fun and her writing gets more descriptive and more humorous with each book she writes! I can't divulge anything about book number 6, so I will happily dive into book number 5 for the last day on 'The Little Barn Of Dreams' blog tour!

I've said it in videos and on social media, but 'The Little Barn of Dreams' is the one book I've read the most of Lucy's and no matter how many times I read it and then how much it changed, I loved it every time. I loved her idea from the get go and I adored how she executed it. She seriously blows my mind with every book she writes and honestly I'm not saying that because I'm biased, she really, really does!

Her books are a breath of fresh air to me. I know when I pick them up I'm going to get something that feels real, with characters that have depth and emotion and stories that offer a unique take and vibe. She certainly did that with 'The Little Barn of Dreams' and I love her for it. I especially love this story, because she wrote it around the time the new 'Little Women' came out. We were both obsessed with the movie and then read the book and it just filled our hearts with joy. Luc then sat down to pen her 5th novel with her head swimming with Louisa May Allcot's words and the beautiful story of the March sisters. To me, the tone and voice of 'The Little Barn of Dreams' is so in tune with the aforementioned classic novel that it made my heart so full. I am simply awestruck in how Luc can get an idea in her head and then sit down and make the words appear the way she (and I) had envisioned them.

Key point: Florence is a book lover to her very core. Daydreaming about her favourite novels suits her better than having to attempt to fit into the real world. She feels safe within her book worlds and who can really blame her? She's been hurt by life a few times, so is much more content with her characters than with real people. This doesn't change!!! and this is why I love my sister! Florence doesn't meet Jo and find someone who suddenly snaps her out of her daydreams and makes her see that the real world isn't all bad, sure he helps her see that she can be loved and doesn't need to be scared and face life alone, BUT he accepts her for who she is and enjoys what makes her her! So many times we act like the people who are a little quirky and unique need to realise that they should snap out of it and conform to societies standards, when in actual fact, more of society should be accepting of people's quirks and uniqueness and adapt to them.

I'll end up ranting in a minute so I'll quickly talk about my other favourite things, but seriously I do love that Jo just gets and accepts Florence. It's a beautiful thing to watch unfold. The dialogue they share often had me grinning from ear to ear and giggling to myself and I just felt so happy and cosy around them. I have a certain actor in mind for Jo, but I don't want to spoil it, I just really want to see this become a movie so he can actually play him. Let me know if you have any ideas, because I just swooned every time the two of them were together, picturing it play out in my head!

The setting was magical from every angle. I loved the whole vibe of Camp Calla Lily (Calla Lily...if you know, you know!) and I very much wish I could just grab a backpack full of my favourite books and curl up in a chair outside my pastel pink hut! They sounded so utterly perfect! Not to mention the barn, the lake and the campfires. Yes to all the smores under the stars please!! It was all utterly idyllic!

Another delight in 'The Little Barn Of Dreams' were the friends Florence made at a certain café, that I may or may not have had a hand in helping Luc come up with names for. This was so much fun and again I just adore Luc's imagination when it comes to things like this. Caffeine Heights would definitely be on my must visit list. It's the perfect place for bookworms to read, write, chat and have a coffee or tea!

In conclusion and if you can't already tell, I LOVED 'The Little Barn of Dreams' and hope you will to. It's whimsical, dreamy, romantic, bookish and wonderfully endearing! An absolute must for those of us that find solace between the pages of our favourite books!