Free-spirited Flora Dunbar is heartbroken at the news that she must close down her beloved little flower shop on the high-street. As she packs away her pretty pots and vases and locks the door for the very last time, the only spark of hope is an offer from Ned, a gorgeous farmer with an irresistible twinkle in his eye, to come and start a new life on his family farm.
Arriving at Hope Corner, Flora’s heart sings as she takes in the stunning landscape that surrounds her new home. But it’s not long before she realises that her creative, romantic thinking has no place in a household built on tradition and strict routine.
Pulling up her signature striped socks and throwing herself into her chores, little by little Flora blossoms as she learns to love the order and patterns of life on the land, feeding the chickens every morning and checking on the cows at night. But the more she understands about her new home, the more she suspects it’s under threat, and worse, that Ned is hiding something from her…
But this time, Flora’s not going to run from her problems, especially not when she was just beginning to let herself believe that Ned could really be The One. Can she find a way to save her relationship AND the first house she’s ever truly called home?
Many thanks to Bookouture via NetGalley for my copy of The House at Hope Corner to review and to Sharon for having my review on the blog.
The House at Hope Corner by Emma Davies has such an attractive and beautiful cover that instantly draws you in and makes you want to pick up this book and read it as soon as possible. The line on the cover says it is the perfect feel good holiday romance novel but to be honest the romance very much takes a back seat here as when we meet Ned and Flora the romance has already occurred. They are moving on to the next stage and this story follows how the cope with what ensues following their declaration of love and commitment to each other. It didn't bother me in the slightest that we didn't get an in-depth account of how the pair came to meet and how their whirlwind relationship developed into an engagement. In fact it was refreshing not to have this because we have all read this storyline umpteen times over.
Instead the focus turns to how Flora settles into the new life that Ned brings her to. I say how Flora settles because it is she who is uprooting herself from Birmingham where she has sold her florists shop after running it for several years. She is completely taken out of her comfort zone and transported to the countryside and to Hope Corner Farm where she is taking the biggest leap of her life. Yes this may be a huge jump for Flora but deep down it feels so right and she firmly believes she has made the right choice despite the speed of said decision. Ned will take her away from everything she knows but she is following her heart and the love she has for Ned is deep rooted. But will this new life vision be everything Flora wants it to be?
Hope Corner Farm seems like an idyll and the descriptions of the farm and surrounding landscapes and countryside were glorious but will it live up to Flora's dreams? Flora is a person who lives her life according to her own intuition and is not someone to look back so once the decision to up sticks and move in with Ned on his farm was made she didn't waver and set to it. From the outset it was clear to see that Flora was a quirky character who didn't follow convention even in terms of the clothes she wore. She liked to stand out but deep down I could sense there were certain insecurities she was harbouring. I felt by coming to Hope Farm she was slightly adapting and hiding some of her qualities and opinions and that's simply because of Ned's parents.
I really could see the two sides of the story and I thought they were both explored very well. On one hand you have this couple - Hannah and Fraser – who have been married for years and have run their farm the same way for as long as they can remember. Son Ned slotted into the equation and the daily routine remains a constant that is never ever altered. So when someone completely new comes on the scene and takes up residence as Ned's future wife of course they were going to find it hard adapt and change the ways which have been set in stone for as long as one can remember. I don't blame Hannah for being the way she was, obsessed with housework and the daily meals or making marmalade etc, but as with Flora I thought there could have been a lot more compromise and a willingness to meet in the middle.
It was new territory for everyone involved and talking through things and not keeping things hidden and brushed under the carpet should have been the way to go. But I suppose sticking to what they had always done and not contemplating change was what Ned's parents knew best. On the other hand although I understand how nervous and awkward Flora must have felt I thought she could have just stepped back that little bit and taken the time to get to know the lie of the land. I know everything was thrown at her and she had to take on things that she had no clue about nor did she approve of but still like Hannah a little bit of give and take wouldn't have gone amiss.
Flora is a person who challenges perceptions. Someone who has until now been brave, adventurous, quirky and non conformist but maybe she would have to rein in some of these qualities in order to fit in at Hope Farm. Should she have to do this or should Ned and his parents maybe step out of their comfort zones. I suppose Ned was just as much to blame as in my mind he spent most of the story out tending the land and milking the cows rather than being there for Flora and helping her settle into this new life which was hopefully going to be forever. I thought he very much neglected the relationship and left Flora to fend for herself without ever backing her up when it came to situations with Hannah. It was clear they were all treading rocky waters and at times tiptoeing around each other and that sooner or later something would have to give. The question remained what would come about to cause this change or would things meander along as they had for the first half of the novel?
It's only as we reach the second half that I felt the story really picked up its pace. At times up until that point it had become slightly repetitive and something needed to happen to liven things up a bit. Fortunately two major things occurred which forced everyone involved to take their head from the clouds and confront things which had been kept hidden. Gender seemed to rule but when weaknesses and lies begin to make themselves apparent, will a more equal division of labour and an admittance of some home truths mean the lives of those at Hope Farm are about to change once and for all and maybe for the better.
I loved the addition of two other characters who were the polar opposites of each other. Grace worked in the local village shop and she herself lived with an unusual situation but I loved how she became a confidante of Flora's and understood who Flora was and how she didn't want to lose all of the qualities that made her the person she was. The complete opposite was Caroline, the greatest busybody to ever grace a book. There was not one characteristic which endeared me to her and I desperately wanted Flora to give her a good slap and really break down and tell her what she thought of all Caroline's interfering. She was a know-it-all with clear ulterior motives and my god she needed a big come uppance. Again this goes back to the fact that Ned to me seemed entrenched in the way he had been brought up and how things were expected to run at the farm. It was like he had no voice and when he should have been there for Flora or welcoming her attempts to want to help him he shut her down and remained absent. He had fallen in love with Flora and she had jumped out of her comfort zone for him yet it was like he wasn't willing to completely follow through with everything and there must have been reasons for this being the case.
I enjoyed the aspect of the story which dealt with Flora's passion for flowers, plants and nature and this should have been encouraged at all times. The area surrounding Hope Farm was ripe for exploration and to allow her to sketch, paint and make prints and continue her craft but I thought she was being curtailed and forced to conform. Nature and art save her sanity but can these things also save the entire story when big things are revealed? Everything really kicked off in the last 20% or so and at times I wondered would there be happy ending considering this was modelled as a feel good holiday romance. The way things ended I did think there is definitely room for another story and I would like one because this was a good story although the very first few books published by Emma I think will forever remain my absolute favourites. But I would certainly recommend The House at Hope Corner for a nice, relaxing read this summer which gets that little bit juicer the more you progress through the story.
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