The Farmer’s Friend in Aussie Readers

Sep 02, 2021 Brenda rated it it was amazing

Shelves: aussie-authors, sent-by-publisher, 2021-release, reviewing-by-request, 5000-2021, medical, own-read, arc, romance, rural

Gracie and Jed’s arrival in Featherwood in rural New South Wales was a relief after their long journey from Roma in Queensland. The drought had bitten hard and their purchase of a rundown rural store called The Farmer’s Friend which had a house at the rear, was a blessing in disguise. The house and store both needed a lot of TLC, but within two weeks they were having a grand opening with a sausage sizzle for the townsfolk. Gracie was seven months pregnant, and healthy, able to help Jed as much a Gracie and Jed’s arrival in Featherwood in rural New South Wales was a relief after their long journey from Roma in Queensland. The drought had bitten hard and their purchase of a rundown rural store called The Farmer’s Friend which had a house at the rear, was a blessing in disguise. The house and store both needed a lot of TLC, but within two weeks they were having a grand opening with a sausage sizzle for the townsfolk. Gracie was seven months pregnant, and healthy, able to help Jed as much as he’d let her.

Nell arrived into rural Featherwood at the same time as Gracie and Jed, after leaving Sydney and three years of trauma behind her. She’d bought a run-down allotment with a small acreage, and as she’d driven into town, she’d spied an old woman selling a pup – the last of a litter. Nell named him Grin, as that was all he did, and the two of them settled into their new home, with Nell determined not to interact with anyone…

Liam was Molly’s brother, a quiet, taciturn man who was a returned serviceman from his time in Afghanistan. His PTSD hovered silently in the background while he helped Jed with the store; helped anyone who needed things done – he needed to keep busy. With the heat rising and the bushfire season on them, they all prepared their homes, activating their fire-safe plan while the new people joined the local Rural Fire Service. Jed brought experience with him – they all learned as a team. When bushfire threatened Featherwood, the RFS swung into action. What would be the outcome for Featherwood and the people who lived there?

The Farmer’s Friend is another heartwarming, heartbreaking rural novel, set in NSW not that far from Armidale and along the Waterfall Way, by Aussie author Fiona McArthur. I know the area, have been there several times and love it, and while Featherwood is a fictional town, the blending of small towns into Featherwood is incredibly realistic. I always enjoy this author’s work, and The Farmer’s Friend is no different. Highly recommended.

With thanks to Penguin Random House and the author for my ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.
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Aug 21, 2021 Helen rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: review-copy-from-publisher

Another gorgeous story from the very talented Fiona McArthur, this author knows how to put heartfelt emotions into her stories, to bring her characters to life and have her readers feeling like a part of the story this book was almost a one sitting read, it was so hard to put down I loved meeting Gracie, Nell, Mavis and the town folk of Featherwood, my heart soared with so many emotions in this one.

Gracie and partner Jed have just bought a rural supplies store with a house in the small town of F Another gorgeous story from the very talented Fiona McArthur, this author knows how to put heartfelt emotions into her stories, to bring her characters to life and have her readers feeling like a part of the story this book was almost a one sitting read, it was so hard to put down I loved meeting Gracie, Nell, Mavis and the town folk of Featherwood, my heart soared with so many emotions in this one.

Gracie and partner Jed have just bought a rural supplies store with a house in the small town of Featherwood, there is lots of work to be done on this beautiful old house and Gracie is expecting their first baby and soon, but together they are determined to do it.

Nell is a midwife and has arrived in town fleeing Sydney and the pain and secrets she left behind, ready to start a new life and keep to herself and stay under the radar but that changes when she meets Jed and Gracie and neighbour Liam who seems to have some problems himself.

Mavis is a long standing member of the community she lives on her farm with great grandson Archie and at time gets forgetful but is still really strong.

Jed’s store The Farmer’s Friend is soon doing really well and many of the community find it a welcoming meeting spot and many friends are made. It shows the strong community feeling and what they will do for each other. Gracie gets closer to her due date and the weather is heating up they have been in drought for years now and the threat of bushfires is stronger than ever and when they arrive this community stands together.

I loved this story so much and yes there were many tears throughout, it shows what people in small town communities do for each the love and caring and the strength and courage, these people are filled with love and friendship and Fiona McArthur has pulled this town and its people together in a beautiful rural story that involves the birth of new life in precarious time. So beautifully written the characters of this town are people I recommend you get to know because they will become friends, I loved them all. Thank you Fiona for another wonderful story that made me cry and smile so much, a must read.

My thanks to the publisher and author for my copy to read and review.
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Mar 12, 2022 Bree T rated it it was amazing

Shelves: library-reads, romance, australian, contemporary, rural

I really love Fiona McArthur’s books so I’m not sure how I missed this one being published last year! I came across it randomly and immediately requested it through my local library and it was the perfect choice for a Sunday morning read.

Young couple Gracie and Jed are expecting their first baby and crippling drought in Queensland has forced them further south into New South Wales, where they’ve purchased a feed store and attached house in Featherwood, a small country town about an hour out of D I really love Fiona McArthur’s books so I’m not sure how I missed this one being published last year! I came across it randomly and immediately requested it through my local library and it was the perfect choice for a Sunday morning read.

Young couple Gracie and Jed are expecting their first baby and crippling drought in Queensland has forced them further south into New South Wales, where they’ve purchased a feed store and attached house in Featherwood, a small country town about an hour out of Dorrigo. Thanks to a waterfall, it’s a small ring of green in a dustbowl but that doesn’t mean it’s immune from the whims of the hot summer weather.

Nell is a former midwife who has fled Sydney and purchased a small property. She intends to keep to herself, the idea of people finding out about her giving her anxiety. But Nell finds herself drawn in by the locals and Gracie especially, befriends her. Nell slowly finds herself opening up to Gracie, the two having a shared understanding. And then there’s Liam, a tall and silent ex-Armed Forces man who unnerves her in lots of different ways.

This was just so wonderful! I loved the tiny community of Featherwood and meeting all of the locals and learning about their involvement in things like the local fire fighting service. Jed and Gracie are an adorable couple – Gracie has a lot of tragedy in her past which shapes her relationship with Jed in the present and she’s forever worried about their financial future. Jed is a dreamer, a bit of a “she’ll be right” man, trusting that everything will be okay in the end. That people deserve credit and they’ll pay when they can. But for Gracie, that’s not enough. She needs financial security and she needs to be able to rein in Jed’s more outlandish dreams and generosity.

This is taking place during a significant drought and at the end of a long, hot summer with obviously no rain which brings with it the terrible danger of bushfires. Currently northern NSW and southern QLD are actually experiencing incredibly devastating floods, but a few years ago, the spring and summer fires of 2019 were quite horrid and the community in this book has to deal with the terrible threat of fire, one that will destroy parts of their community and threaten lives.

The way Fiona McArthur wrote the evolution of this fire was incredible. It was so vivid and felt like I was in the middle of it, watching it unfold, watching the community come together to deal with it. I’m pretty lucky that although I’ve lived in some places that are often devastated by fires, I haven’t ever lost my home. This is realistic and gritty and shows just how terrifying fires can be, the swiftness of them, the loudness of them (which so many people always report being shocked by), the way they can burn properties to the ground but leave places untouched, spared in this inexplicable way.

I really enjoyed the characters – I loved learning both Gracie and Nell’s backstories and the ways in which they bonded over sharing their secrets with each other. I liked Jed (impossible not to like Jed) even as he did make me slightly concerned for Gracie. But they loved each other and you just wanted everything to work out for them. I also developed a soft spot for the silent Liam and the small amount of his story we learned was enough to understand his character. I also deeply appreciated the narrative of Mavis, an 80-something local who has her great-grandson living with her full time, who provides an interesting contrast to the narratives of Gracie and Nell.

Loved this! Absolutely engrossing from start to finish.
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