Starting over

by Robin Pilcher

Liz Dewhurst is devastated when she discovers that her husband Gregor is having an affair. After years of security she now faces a new and frightening world, where every day feels like a struggle for survival. But things soon begin to change when Liz's son suggests renting out a room to bring in some extra income. The person he suggests, his eccentric German tutor Arthur Kempler, is funny, charming and hits it off with everyone. And when Arthur goes on holiday to Spain and persuades Liz to join him, Liz meets the last person either expected to Arthur's son.

Genres: Fiction, Romance, Scotland, Drama, Chick Lit, Relationships, Adult Fiction

Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Robin Pilcher was born on 10 August 1950, the eldest son of author Rosamunde Pilcher, née Scott (aka Jane Fraser) and Graham Hope Pilcher.
He has been a cameraman, a songwriter, and a farmer, co-managed a mail order business, and has had numerous other jobs.
He lives with his wife and children near Dundee, Scotland, and in the Sierra de Aracena mountain area of Andalusia, Spain, where he plans to establish a writing institute supported by the Pilcher Foundation of Creative Writing.

Reviews

[Teresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

So here's the thing....there is nothing great about this book. In fact, it's very mediocre. It's a light, quick read, not particularly well-written, it's sentimental, sappy and the premise is highly improbable. But I LOVE this book. Why? Simply because it made me feel good. After I read it I didn't read anything else for a couple of days because I wanted the feeling to last. I never had that feeling before and I haven't had it since. I don't keep many books, but this one I kept because I want to be able to go back to it, and do, every once in a while.

[Sidna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Years ago I read a book called "The Shell Seekers" by Rosamunde Pilcher and fell in love with it. After that, I read several of her other books. Some were better than others. When I saw this book on the shelf in the library used book store, I wondered if Robin Pilcher was related to her. Turns out he is her son.

I mostly enjoyed this book, although I had a little difficulty getting into it at first because there is a lot of detail about golf and golf courses, which did not interest me. Rosamunde's books mostly take place in Scotland and this one does, too. The main character is Liz, a woman living on a farm in Scotland that her family has owned for generations. She has been married to the man whose family owns the next farm and the two families have been in business together since their marriage some 20 years before. However, they are now separated and her husband is living with his mistress in the house where he and Liz lived together. Running the farms together has become complicated. Liz lives with her father and son, who is in college, on her family farm next door. To add to the tension, a group of investors wants to purchase both farms to build a new golf course. She doesn't want to let the family farm go, but her husband wants to take the money.

I'm not sure why she is hanging onto the farm so desperately. Her son is on the college golf team and wants to play golf professionally. He certainly doesn't want to farm. To top it off, neither farm is doing well and the bank is about to foreclose on both of them. The golf course offer sounds like the ideal solution to me.

Liz gets involved in a couple of romantic entanglements which are new to her since she has known her husband all her life and had never dated anyone else. There were a couple of problems with the book. Liz's son invites a man he barely knows to live with them when the man is thrown out of his lodgings because he is difficult to live with and the woman who owns the boarding house is mean. Liz's father also invites a woman he has met once to live with them because she is in the same boarding house and the landlady is mean to her. I don't know anyone who invites strangers to move in so quickly or people who would quickly move in with people they don't know.

The ending was a huge disappointment. It really came out of the blue and didn't make sense. The book is 386 pages and I had the feeling that the author just got tired of writing and threw in the most convenient ending he could find. The book was going a completely different direction which would have been more satisfying.

To my surprise, Robin Pilcher has written serveral books. I would enjoy reading another one of his books.

[Tracie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had hopes that Robin Pilcher's novels would be as pleasant to me as his famous mothers were.
Sadly, I am disappointed but perhaps he has other novels that are more impressive. Not that his novels aren't good, they are okay, but some of his mother's novels are truly great.
I typically give 1 star for poor, 2 for fair, 3 for good, 4 for great and 5 for the most impressive of works. I give this novel a 2&1/2 rounded up to 3 in hopes his writing improved over time.

[M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Major spoilers ahead…



I really enjoyed this book but had to deduct a star because of the ending…she should’ve gone with the new guy…I thought her ex husband was not worthy of a second chance, and also there was no build up to that ending, it was very unexpected and out of left field…there was no real apology on his part or talk of reconciliation until the last few pages…it was too rushed for the amount of damage he did not just to her but the whole family

[Lorraine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a lovely book about getting over the bad things that happen to us and learning to know yourself again. Liz Craig is a woman whose husband has left here for another woman. She lives with her 18 year old son and her father on a farm in Scotland. The farming business is a losing proposition and a local group has opted to buy her farm, and her husband's farm, to build a golf course. She is very opposed to this, but has no choice but to sell. Then an unexpected chance of a trip to Spain gives her a chance to get away from home for the first time in her life, and she begins to see her life differently.

[Timi Waters · Rating 4 out of 5]

Slow but an easy to get into read about rediscovering self, love, loss, family, and the beauty of Scotland. I recommend 👌🏾

[Angie · Rating 2 out of 5]

So-so story. Couldn't get into it. Easy reading but just not my kind of story.

[Jane Watson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Re-reading this one. It was okay, perhaps not one of his best, although I think he only wrote four. It warms up towards the end but quite a cryptic ending.

[Maggie Shanley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Liz and Gregor are separated, Gregor has been fooling around. Their farms are in debt and there is plans for a golf course on their land.

[Eileen Mandell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just finished this book and was totally amazed at how great it was. It had several stories all weaving in and out of the book at the same time and all were easy to follow. I am excited about reading another book written by Robin soon. This book tells the story of many people starting their lives again after tragedies. All different ages and all with different solutions. Very inspiring.....

[Andrés Ochoa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This books has an amazing message, it's not only a novel about a woman. It's a really interesting story about what everybody must do, everybody must know people, forget those problems from the past which are destroying the present. Everybody must go on and become better people. This book is perfect to understand how life can become and how strange is to give us so many surprises Everytime.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Stick to his mother's books.

[Bonnie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book started out very good I thought, and went down hill. By the time I was 2/3 of the way through I scan-read the rest.

[Aline Soules · Rating 2 out of 5]

Okay but not great

The story's okay but the long descriptions are often clunky and I wouldn't read through all of them. Skip it. Not his best.

[Dana · Rating 3 out of 5]

After separating from her husband, Gregor who is engaged in an extramarital affair, Liz lives with her recently widowed father and her 18 year old son on the family farm near St. Andrews, Scotland. Unfortunately, both her father’s farm and that of her husband are set to go into foreclosure so Liz and Gregor must work together to entice developers to buy their land to build a golf course. Liz is invited to accompany her elderly tenant on a trip to Spain where she plans to enjoy a much needed break. When she meets Will, her tenant’s son, she considers what it would mean to start a new relationship but she is torn by her ties to her homeland.
Well, it took me forever to read this book because I found it very boring and predictable for the most part. There’s not a lot of romance which is good in my opinion but there’s also not much of a plot or character development either. So, I read 400 pages of fluff? It wasn’t totally horrible so I rounded up to 3 stars.

[Lindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've read many of Rosamunde Pilcher's novels, and loved them, so I thought I would try this one by her child, Robin Pilcher. I was enjoying the story, but quickly realized it was her son, and not her daughter. Describing the main, formerly married, couple, it is the husband, the philanderer, who is glorified, and the wife, the victim, who is scorned, by the small town. Really, now? The author attempted to recover from this misogynist attitude, and he did, eventually. I am glad that I continued the story, and I may attempt one more of his novels. But, it is very obvious this was written by a man.

[Deirdre · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I looked at the title of this book, I thought maybe I had read it years ago, but nothing seemed familiar. I am glad I continued to read- because I had never read it before, and I am really glad I did read it! Great characters and the descriptions of the land and area of the setting are awesome. When the main character traveled- I felt as if I were on the trip with her- This was well written and an enjoyable story! I wasn't exactly sure how the author would choose to end the story, as I had a couple different solutions, but his was a great ending.

[Kim · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars The blurb on the back of my version of this book was misleading. I was expecting more of a romance and mainly only one main character. There were about 5 mains and very little, or too subtle romance. I might have enjoyed it more if I'd expected this type of story. But, then again, maybe not.

[Maggie · Rating 3 out of 5]

After a broken marriage Liz Dewhurst moves back into the family farm with her teenage son. To make matters worse the farm is in serious financial trouble. However there is a way out if she accepts it. A group of investors wants to build a golf course on her property. Her son has his own ideas, renting a room out to help pay the bills. He has one of his professors from university move in.

[Dora T. Laredo · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Journey of the Heart

A very well written novel. In the beginning the stage is set For us. The characters and life situations are spread out. Then before we know it we are deep in the book and everything blends together. It's a very good escape book, read it you'll see what I mean.

[Ellen · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story of a Scottish farming family. Their property is being bought to become a golf course. Each person has a story to follow. They each learn something throughout the story line. Son is a golfer. Parents separated. Parents have history. Death affects several of the characters. All brought back together in the end. All is good for each person. Tried to put to much into the story line.

[Kelli Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was "ok". I felt there was a lot of stuff that the story didn't need and it was very predictable. SPOILER.....not happy she took her cheating husband back even though I could see it coming!

I LOVE Rosamunde Pilcher so maybe I'm always comparing. It was a quick read and it was "ok".

[Marge · Rating 4 out of 5]

Liz Dewhurst, separated from her husband, is back on the farm that’s been in her family for five generations. A financial consortium is looking to build a golf course on their property plus the neighboring farm—which belongs to her soon-to-be ex-husband.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Poor ending

The writer gave no reason for the abrupt turn of events leading to the conclusion. The characters were interesting and well-developed, the story line was unique, but the ending, not one I hoped for.

[Lissa · Rating 1 out of 5]

How exactly did she start over? Smh, just went back to the SAME man living the SAME life. He did not leave the OW until she started messing around on him. Honestly, I'm tired of these 'authors. ' Boring book.

[Brenda Gardner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well crafted char actions story lines

From the very beginning each character captured my attention and made me wish to know them better. The multiple storylines kept my interest through the weaving them.

[Pearson, · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lovely recreational read. All the necessary elements.....

[Mich · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok

[Mary Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoy books by RObin Pilcher. It must be in his genes and he takes full advantage of making the story such a fine read. I went on to read several more by him.

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not great literature by any judgment, but a comfortable read, with characters that I cared about and a plot that moved along. Liked the descriptions of the Scottish coastline. Just a nice read.