Book Review: Pippa’s Cornish Dream by Debbie Johnson

Since the tragic loss of her parents at an early age, Pippa Harte has been responsible for both raising her younger siblings (Patrick, Daisy, Lily and Scotty) and managing the family farm. She spends her life in muddy wellies, putting any thoughts of her own life on the back-burner, at least until Ben Retallick comes to stay. Ben books into one of the holiday cottages on the farm and quickly becomes part of day-to-day life on the farm, endearing himself to Pippa and her siblings with his good looks and easy-going charm.

Pippa is an immensely likeable character. She has put her entire life on hold to care for her orphaned younger siblings. She has a brave and loving nature, always putting others before herself and doing her best to keep things on an even keel, even when thoroughly out of her depth. With Ben’s appearance at the farm, we see Pippa start to see a future beyond her overwhelming farming and mothering duties. It is heartwarming to witness Pippa develop as a character and start to re-discover her enjoyment in life, beyond the remit of her much-loved family.

Ben is also a hugely likeable character. He is handsome, clever, fun and caring. He immediately lends his hand to helping out Pippa and quickly becomes part of the family. Ben helps to introduce Pippa to a more lighthearted side of adult life. However, life is never as simple as it can appear and Pippa quickly discovers that Ben does come with a secret past. When that past is dramatically exposed, Pippa has to face dealing with unwanted attention from the national newspapers.

The relationship between Pippa and her siblings is an important aspect of the story. Theirs is a dichotomous relationship whereby in some moments, she is their sibling, running around and having fun with them, yet in other moments, she is their parent, making the difficult decisions and having sole responsibility for their upbringing and well-being. The younger siblings do not pose too much of a problem, however Pippa is struggling to rain in rebellious teenager, Patrick.

The book is chock-full of humour, such as when we first meet Pippa whilst she is attempting to fix a toilet. The humorous element contrasts well with the burgeoning romance between Pippa and Ben and the touching story of Pippa and her siblings.

Pippa’s Cornish Dream is a wonderful summery romance full of country charm and shenanigans. It contains a handsome hero, rebellious teens, family dramas, romance, humour, great characters and a fabulous setting in glorious Cornwall. It is an easy and charming read with a real feel-good ending, absolutely perfect for a summer read.

Debbie Johnson lives and works in Liverpool, where she divides her time between writing, caring for a small tribe of children and animals, and not doing the housework. She writes romance, fantasy and crime – which is as confusing as it sounds!

Her first humorous contemporary romance, Cold Feet At Christmas, a seasonal tale of snow-bound fun, was released by HarperImpulse last year, and became an Amazon top ten best-seller. Her next romance, Pippa’s Cornish Dream, is out on July 2.

You can also find her supernatural crime thriller, Fear No Evil, featuring Liverpool PI Jayne McCartney, on Amazon, published by Maze/Avon Books.

Debbie also writes urban fantasy, set in modern day Liverpool. Dark Vision and the follow-up Dark Touch are published by Del Rey UK, and earned her the title ‘a Liverpudlian Charlaine Harris’ from The Guardian.