Summer in Bellbird Bay (Bellbird Bay series #1) in Aussie Readers

Feb 16, 2022 Brenda rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2022-release, aussie-authors, contemporary-fiction, first-in-a-series, 3500-2022, read-on-kindle, reviewing-by-request, own-read, arc, gift-from-author

Ailsa McNeil and her husband Bob had lived in Canberra all their married life and now had two grown sons, Pat and Nate. The boys lived their own lives while Bob and Ailsa had drifted apart. Bob’s moodiness was getting her down, but she didn’t expect to hear what he told her. The invitation from her good friend Bev Cooper to visit her in Queensland’s Bellbird Bay couldn’t have come at a better time. It was a long drive, but Ailsa arrived safely and immediately relaxed in Bev’s home overlooking th ...more

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Feb 27, 2022 Helen rated it it was amazing

Shelves: review-copy-from-author

I am always excited when there is a new series coming from a favourite author and I do love the ocean and the peace it gives me so arriving at Bellbird Bay was wonderful and getting to know Ailsa McNeil and see her find love and happiness that is well deserved after her marriage has fallen apart and with someone from her past.

Ailsa is heartbroken when her husband ends their marriage, their two sons are at university now and he felt it was time to be honest and Ailsa needs some time to come to te I am always excited when there is a new series coming from a favourite author and I do love the ocean and the peace it gives me so arriving at Bellbird Bay was wonderful and getting to know Ailsa McNeil and see her find love and happiness that is well deserved after her marriage has fallen apart and with someone from her past.

Ailsa is heartbroken when her husband ends their marriage, their two sons are at university now and he felt it was time to be honest and Ailsa needs some time to come to terms with it all and with an invitation from her best friend Bev who lives in the beautiful beachside town of Bellbird Bay in Queensland, Ailsa jumps at the chance and takes off for sunny Queensland for two months she does not ever think she will run into Bev’s twin brother Martin again after all of these years and he does bring back some memories.

Martin Cooper is a freelance photographer who has won many awards and traveled the world but at the age of eighteen he wanted nothing more than to get out of Bellbird Bay but when his life is turned upside down he goes home to his sister to re-think his life, finding Ailsa there is not what he expected and he needs to steer clear of her as feelings from long ago are surfacing and he is remembering that one night long ago.

When Bev is hurt Ailsa and Martin join together to help and this brings them closer together, both have things that they need to sort out in their lives and they find it easy to open up to one another and before long feelings are getting harder to ignore and a pull towards each other is building. Family and life can get in the way at times and Ailsa is so unsure of what the future olds and when a misunderstanding pulls them apart it takes a phone call to get them back on track. A beautiful story filled with emotion and feeling as two people journey an up and down hill battle find their HEA in the most beautiful of settings and ways, I do look forward to more in this series. I loved this one and can highly recommend it.

My thanks to the author for my digital copy to read and review.
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Oct 02, 2022 Catsalive rated it liked it

Shelves: aww, 2022

A very pleasant & easy read. I particularly enjoyed the setting: scenery, town & people. Ruby Sullivan is an interesting character & her cakes sound so delicious, I'd love some of that lemon sponge.

Ailsa McNeil is not a particularly likeable character, she is so self-centred. When presented with her husband's revelations she didn't once considered how he must be feeling. She has had a shock, yes, but she supposedly loves this man, yet it wasn't until much later, when other people said 'oh, poor ...more

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Oct 31, 2024 Janine rated it it was amazing

Again another superb novel by Maggie. I’m so far behind with her books but like to read them in order! This book is the first in a new series and tells the story of Ailsa who visits a long time friend to escape her troubled marriage and get some thinking time. She reunites with a long lost love and life gets complicated with her friend having an accident which means she has to stay longer, then her son deciding to come and stay too.

Really enjoy Maggie’s books and this one had some characters fr ...more

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