Educating Maggie

by Debbie Chase, Virtual Voice (Narrator)

When Maggie Sears, alone after the death of her beloved husband and in a rut, meets old flame Stephen Gates in her workplace, Bloomers the bakers, Maggie’s situation seems to be on an upswing. Unfortunately, a meeting with Stephen’s grown up children Vanessa and Jake change all that and her circumstances take a decided turn for the worse, then Mum becomes ill and Maggie hits rock bottom. Out of the blue a new job opportunity in the local school appears only to be spoiled by curvaceous co-worker, the evil Stella Atkins. With the support of Stephen’s daughter-in-law Lauren, Maggie’s sister, Lynette, and, surprisingly, a new found friendship with local Town Clerk, Kath Emmerson, can Maggie overcome what seems like insurmountable problems to gain her heart’s desire?

Audible Audio

Published March 3, 2025

Reviews

[Andrew Levy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Educating Maggie is set in a kind of quaint, faux England - it's like the England I live in but nicer. It's a standard girl finds boy, girl loses boy, girl... (OK, no spoilers here). The characters are a bit thin and the plot a bit predictable. It's a lightweight romance that doesn't pretend to be anything else. So, why the 4 stars? Because I really enjoyed it! Once I stopped looking for faults, I quickly started finding virtues - the imaginary England, repeated descriptions, thin characters and predictable plot - well it works for J.K Rowling, so who am I to object! The quaint English village, its independent shops with terrible puns in their names, the benign local council with its fun events, the petty politics and gossip, could all pretty well describe the real village where I live. As for the story, soon enough I was cheering the heroine and booing the villain. Educating Maggie reminded me of something important: sometimes you just have to let go and enjoy things - and I did. Very much.

[P.S. Meraux · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a delightful story! Maggie is a middle-age widow who gets an unexpected opportunity to make a heart’s desire from her teen years come true. Who wouldn’t adore such a fantasy! But like much of real life there are obstacles aplenty to the budding relationship, namely some bratty, interfering offspring and a jealous colleague.
I enjoyed her descriptions of Cobby-- so much so that I thought it was a real place in England, it isn’t. But it’s a testament to the writing that I thought it was.
Maggie’s personal life is not without problems either, she has to deal with an aging mother who has health issues and a know-it-all little sister -- who has problems of her own.
The author develops a nice community of people here for Maggie to interact with but I do wish their characters had been a little more fleshed out.
That said, the novel moves at a steady pace, predictable in spots but still enjoyable. For anyone of a certain age, thinking about a second chance at love -- this is a nice wholesome romance. You can curl up on the couch on a rainy weekend and devour, Educating Maggie. I highly recommend it.

[Debra Newby · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't normally read this genre as I'm a fan of crime stories. However I found this a refreshing read and could relate to the rollercoaster of emotions felt by Maggie, the main character, through the experiences she was going through in her quest to be happy with the man she had fallen in love with. There were hiccups along the way in her story and I was routing for Maggie the whole way through the book! I want to live in Cobby - it sounds like a delightful place to live! I enjoyed reading this book and I would recommend reading it.