The Cornish Hideaway by Jennifer Bibby | #bookreview | @jennyfromthewr1 @SimonSchusterUK @TeamBATC

The Cornish Hideaway is a gorgeous uplifting story about friendship, new beginnings, believing in yourself and finding true love when you least expect it. I really hope there will be a sequel as I’d love to read more about the seaside community of Polcarrow and its inhabitants. Lola’s story next maybe?
The Cornish Hideaway is my debut novel and I hope you enjoy your trip to Polcarrow. Please feel free to follow me on twitter for sea, scones and story inspiration @jennyfromthewr1 Happy reading!
My thanks to Sara-Jade at Simon & Schuster for sending me an ecopy of the book.
The Cornish Hideway is available in ebook and you’ll find buying options
on the Simon & Schuster website here: A Cornish HideawayAs a lifelong lover of stories, I spent my teenage years wowing various teachers with historical epics before finding my feet writing modern love stories. I enjoy exploring the lives of women as they set out on life changing adventures, which usually lead them somewhere picturesque and full of new friendships and of course, the promise of romance. I adore a romantic hero with a dark backstory, the typical bad boy turned good.
Heart-warming, heartfelt and romantic, The Cornish Hideaway is a novel of community, friendship and learning to love again, for fans of Jenny Colgan, Cathy Bramley and Heidi Swain.
The Cornish Hideaway‘s setting in the seaside village of Polcarrow is full of wonderful characters I found impossible not to take to heart. There’s octogenarian Alf, an ex-fisherman who likes his morning visit to the café along with his dog Scruff, dishy vicar Tristan and Freya’s wonderful friend Lola. I even had a soft spot for the nosy WI ladies!
About the book
And then there’s brooding mystery man Angelo. When he blows into town on his motorbike he raises a few eyebrows and ruffles a few feathers. He’s got a past he wants to put behind him but something about it won’t let him go. He and Freya are drawn together by their creativity and for a while it looks like their art will be so healing for them both and maybe just bring them together but Angelo still has some issues to face. The way Jennifer Bibby writes about these two makes you really get an understanding of them and made me so long for them to find happiness together. Although there are times when Angelo’s actions need a lot of understanding!
My Thoughts
Oh my goodness my heart went out to Freya at the start of the story. Imagine failing the degree that you’ve set your heart on, after getting a first class undergrad in pretty much the same subject area. The time, the effort, the money, the disappointment, the knock to your confidence and humiliation. And then the same day, her pig of a boyfriend decides that’s the day to split up with her. Poor Freya, no wonder she wanted to find somewhere to hide away. I just wanted to give her a big hug.
In addition to being a bibliophile (my to be read pile is embarrassing stacked all around my house) I love classy cocktails, cake and dressing in the vintage style – never leaving the house without my signature red lipstick. I’m happiest by the sea, or stomping around a muddy field and I love to travel (Venice is my absolute favourite place, it’s so enchanting and calls to the artist in me.) I love medieval history, steam trains and firmly believe dinosaurs improve everything.

About the Author
Cornwall is a popular location for books and it’s not hard to see why. It’s a beautiful place full of pretty little villages, beautiful beaches and dramatic scenery. It’s also a place where community seems to matter a lot. All great ingredients for an engaging story. The Cornish Hideaway has an idyllic looking seaside village location on the front cover and I was looking forward to my visit to Polcarrow.
All Freya has ever wanted to do is paint. So when she fails her Master’s Degree in Art, on the same day that her boyfriend decides he needs a ‘more serious’ partner, to Freya it feels like the end of the world.
 
Luckily, she has a saviour in the shape of best friend Lola, who invites her to the sleepy Cornish village of Polcarrow, to work in her café. With nothing keeping her in London, Freya jumps at the chance of a summer by the sea.
 
Freya needs time to focus on herself. But then dark and mysterious biker Angelo blows into town on a stormy afternoon, with his own artistic dreams and a secretive past, and Freya’s plans of a romance-free summer fly straight out of the window…