A Leap Of Faith

by Trisha Ashley, Julia Franklin (Reading)

Sappho Jones stopped counting birthdays when she reached 30 but, even with her hazy grip on mathematics, she realises that she's on the slippery slope to the big four-oh! With the thought suddenly lodged in her mind that she's a mere cat's whisker away from becoming a single eccentric female living in a country cottage in Wales, she has the urge to do something dramatic before it's too late. The only thing she hasn't tried is motherhood. And with sexy potter Nye on hand as a potential daddy - or at least donor - is it time for her to consider the biggest leap of all? It's either that or buy a cat...

Genres: Romance, Chick Lit, Fiction, Romantic Comedy, Rom Com, Contemporary

Audio CD

First published September 27, 2001

About the author

Trisha Ashley is now a full-time novelist, but she has been known to work for stained glass makers and/or plumbers. She likes to paint, eat, drink, and read literary biographies. Her previous hobbies included getting divorced and packing to move. She claims to have once actually eaten Bronte burgers at the Branwell café, but her publisher declines to verify this. She lives in North Wales.

Reviews

[Jodie- Readthewriteact · Rating 2 out of 5]

Have you ever been in the situation where a friend is talking about someone you don’t know in a way which assumes that you do? No introduction to them, no explanation, just straight into a story. You just sit there nodding hoping to feck that your brain will catch up to who the hell the person is before the conversation ends, because you have never heard of them in your life. That is how the first quarter (at least) of this book felt for me. I thought maybe I have missed a bit, so I re-read pages. Maybe I am reading too fast? Ok, slow down. Nope. Still confused. I just felt bombarded with characters and locations. My head hurts. Once I figured out who the hell everyone was I can’t say I was rewarded. This book was a combination of too far fetched and too many storylines. Of course all of Saphho’s friends live in or super close to her seemingly isolated village. Of course they are all writers and the one that aren’t can be because it is soooooo simple. And then there were things that I plain didn’t like. Stalkers need to got in jail or seek mental help, I don’t get the humour. Cruelty to animals isn’t ok either. And, I am sorry the sperm donor storyline was just creepy. There were about a bazillion storylines but looking back I think the book really wasn’t about much at all.

Oh my and the excerpts of Sappho’s book!! These made two things clear. Trisha Ashley is not a fantasy writer and she should never be. Normally I find her romances light (if a bit far fetched) but this one truly didn’t meet the mark. In my opinion it is well below the standard set by other authors in this category and by other books by Trisha Ashley herself.

[Damaskcat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sappho Jones is thirty nine and wondering whether she needs to do something about getting pregnant before it's too late. As she has been celibate for years this could be something which is difficult to achieve. She is a successful author of fantasy novels and teaches creative writing. She has a globe trotting lifestyle but has decided to take up residence in a run down cottage on the Gower Peninsula which she has owned for several years. Here she meets up with old friends Mu and Miranda who each have their own problems to solve.

That brief description doesn't do justice to the lively and amusing prose and dialogue or the eccentric characters - Sappho herself with her extremely long hair and unusual height as well as her habit of wandering around everywhere in bare feet; Miranda - the expert cook with her controlling husband; Mu who wants a baby and will go to any lengths to achieve her aim; not to speak of Sappho's ex - Dave who is probably the wrong side of sane but who insists she needs him in her life. Then there's the charismatic Nye - the potter and Lili who goes after everything in trousers.

This is a marvellous roller coaster of a read which will cheer you up if you are feeling a bit down. It is an ideal read for a sunny summer afternoon. I thoroughly enjoyed it and I'm glad it has been republished as I didn't manage to find a copy of its first incarnation as 'The Urge to Jump'.

[Suze · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sappho has a nice cottage in Wales and she spends most of her time writing, which is a profession that makes her happy. She has a successful career as a fantasy writer. Sappho also has good friends and she doesn't think there's anything missing in her life. This changes when she realizes she has just one year left before she'll be forty years old. If she wants to have a baby she has to find a man as soon as she can. Meanwhile she's helping her friend Miranda to make sense of her difficult marriage. Men are complicated, which is why Sappho isn't interested in them. She's much happier on her own, only there will be no baby without the help of a man.

Nye is a skilled potter. Sappho finds him interesting, but he can never be someone she'd fall for as Nye is definitely not her type. She doesn't like blonde men and is into dark and mysterious types instead. They often run into each other and when Sappho realizes something important about Nye, she might see him through completely different eyes. When strange things are happening Nye keeps an eye on Sappho. He's often there to catch her and Sappho discovers that sometimes it's nice to have two strong arms nearby to break the fall...

A Leap of Faith is a wonderful story with plenty of romance, compelling mysteries and countryside gossip and schemes. I loved this book from the first sentence. Sappho has a great, original voice. She's tough, she can be fabulously sarcastic and she is honest and loyal. I love strong women in books and really enjoyed reading about her. She's a good friend and does everything she can to help the people she loves. I liked how Trisha Ashley weaves Sappho's thoughts into the dialogue. This way the reader can see exactly what she thinks and how she feels, which is insightful and funny at the same time. Sappho has quite an active social life, so fortunately there are many things she can comment on. The personalities of the other main characters are all different and fascinating and I enjoyed seeing them through Sappho's eyes.

I love Trisha Ashley's writing style. The text enhances the individuality of her characters. I often felt I could look into their minds and that makes this books so special. The story is fast-paced and every chosen direction makes sense and surprises at the same time. Trisha Ashley always manages to find the exact right tone of voice. She combines that with vivid descriptions of the countryside and all the dreamy professions of her characters are amazing to read about as well. While I often had to laugh when I was reading A Leap of Faith, I was impressed by the more serious side of this book too. Trisha Ashley writes about difficult topics with compassion and warmth.

A Leap of Faith has a riveting ending. There are a few mysterious disappearances that made me really curious and I liked the finale very much. The unexpected twists and turns kept me on the edge of my seat, which is something that always makes me happy. I'm glad this fantastic book has been republished, it's a heartwarming story that deserves to be read by as many romantic readers as possible.

[Rachel Gilbey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've had very mixed feelings throughout reading this book. Initially I was surprised from words in the foreword, as I hadn't been fully aware that his was a new edition of an early work by the author called The Urge to Jump, although I was thankful that I hadn't read it previously, as I don't tend to re-read books.

I then spent the beginning of the book highly confused, and just slightly wary as it turns out Sappho, who is the lead character, is an author of fantasy novels, that seem loosely based on her own life. She slips in and out of thinking about her characters, and we occasionally see sections of what she is writing..but I am not a fan of the genre, so just felt a bit off-centred as I encountered this so early in a book, before I had a chance to even get to know Sappho.

However once the plot settles down, and Sappho is settling into her cottage in Gower, Wales, we start to learn a lot more about her, from the stalker ex boyfriend, to the person in a village that bares a striking resemblance to one of her characters. We also learn about her two best friends Mu and Miranda.

Mu is willing to try anything to become pregnant, and not just end up as a crazy cat lady, and is even willing to try the unorthodox idea her mother in law suggests, which is quite amusing.

It is though Miranda's story that got completely under my skin leading to sections of the book where I couldn't bare to stop, even though I was exhausted. Miranda is a lovely woman, who is just lacking self-confidence, mainly due to her husband Chris. Chris is one of the villains of the book, and I am so glad that Sappho could not only see through him, but also encourage Miranda to start thinking more independently.

There is a lot of plot in this novel, so it takes some time for it all to come together, as well as a large cast of villagers, to get your head around. There are a couple of small mysteries going on in the background too, which add to the intrigue.

Honestly at the start I was very dubious as to whether I was going to continue reading this book, but I took A Leap of Faith of my own, in my knowledge that I tend to really enjoy Trisha Ashley's books, and persevered and I think it was around the half way point, where the story all clicked in my mind and I realised just how much I was enjoying it.

This is not my favourite book by the author, nor would I perhaps say its the best one to get a first taste of her from, but if you are a fan of Trish Ashley, or similar authors then I am sure you will enjoy this story too.

[Yesha- Books Teacup and Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full review - https://booksteacupreviews.com/2022/0...

Leap of Faith is fun and heartwarming women’s fiction that revolves around fantasy writer Saphho moving to her cottage in Wales and drama that comes with settling down, staying near her best friends, and realizing she soon will be forty and she needs to work on getting pregnant without any relationship. The story is about friendship, life of artist, love, new phase in life, along with manipulation, stalking, and fertility issues.

I have read stories with this plot of getting pregnant, looking for donor, and falling for the potential donor but this is different. This is more than what is said in synopsis. She suddenly realizes she is 40 and that’s it. I didn’t find her desperate for kid at all. She talkes about it with her friends but her life at the cottage is pretty normal. Most of the story revolves around problems in her friends’ life and surprising mystery around weird things happening in the village that keeps story intriguing. The main thing about Saphho meeting the man and falling for him happenes in second half and it all happenes much more differently than I imagined or what we expect from synopsis and I loved that author kept that part simple and believable. There are lots of amusing subplots with eccentric characters which is the real charm of the story.

Both Mu and Miranda’s situations are serious and relatable but I liked how amusingly it is dealt without losing its importance. There are also other crazy characters and mysteries. Best part of the story is subplots of Mu and Miranda’s life, and small mysteries of missing person, and wierd things happening in village. Characters are also best. Apart from that I also liked Saphho’s fantasy story and we see glipse of it intermittently, how her story’s characters’ are based on her, Dave, and Nye. I liked how she got ideas for story but it is little cofusing at some point.

Why 4 stars-

No matter how much I enjoyed eccentric charatcers and amusing plot, it took me some time getting used to the story. Maybe because we are thrown into it without proper introduction. I liked Soppho’s fantasy story but like I said some of it is confusing even for me, a fantasy lover. I think non-fantasy readers woouldn’t like it.

Overall, Leap of Faith is fun, entertaining, refreshing, and unusaul women’s fiction with eccentric characters and amusing plot.

I recommend this if you like,
Ecccentric characters
amusing plot
small town setting
romance mixed with humor and mystery
Author’s writing
getting pregnant theme but different from other such stories

[Sharon Goodwin · Rating 4 out of 5]

http://www.jerasjamboree.co.uk/2016/1...

With all the loaded trestle tables out on the island of Lefkada to celebrate Sappho’s 39th birthday she makes it obvious how she’s feeling about being single. Her ex Dave who is still keeping tracks on her and has been sending gifts for years doesn’t faze her (although friends Mu and Miranda are wary of him! and I have to say with good reason …).

The fun starts when Sappho moves to her cottage in Bedd, Wales. I loved the friendships with Mu (living not far away in Pembrokeshire) and Miranda. Mu pursuing her dream makes for some great humour – oh Simon with the turkey baster and everyone turning up! But also a dilemma. Miranda is the character we see grow the most. A husband who not only takes all the glory of a cookery show and cookbooks but is manipulative and controlling has kept her self-confidence at zero but she flourishes with Sappho being around. These three together are fabulous.

They’re not the only fabulous characters in the story. I think all the characters in the village are entertaining or intriguing. Although we only see Aunt Pops and Jaynie on a brief visit, they certainly add colour to Sappho’s background. Lili on her manhunt provides conflict and Gil with his missing wife intrigue.

When Sappho meets Nyle she realises he’s a character in the Vengeane series she’s writing. The parallels have a fun part to play. There’s no agonising will they won’t they in this relationship! With ex Dave on the scene too we get to see some great alpha moments

[Ann Cooper · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Trisha's books and this is one of the best! So glad to see it come out again.

Trisha's mastery of the English language is second to none and her descriptive passages are just wonderful! I love Sappho and her friends and their attitude to life (all very different). But being so different meant they worked well together. Sappho's denial of her attraction to Nye was so funny and they way he just ignored it was masterful!

Please buy this and you won't be disappointed. And count how many names the pub has - I laughed at each and every one!

[Jo · Rating 2 out of 5]

I would say Trisha is one of my favourite authors but I'm afraid I just couldn't get into.this one. I found the characters getting on my nerves as few seemed to have any redeemable qualities. Storyline was disjointed and verged on the silly at times. Disappointed as I expected much more and found myself plodding my way through to.the end.

[Amber Grenville-Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great laugh out loud book with lots of great characters.

[Sherrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Easy reading chick lit. I read the reprint edition retitled A Leap of Faith and as before, not so good as her later fiction.

[valerie QUICHAUD · Rating 5 out of 5]

the book is about women especially 3 of them who want a major change in their lives ..they want to have a child despite they are a bit at a limit of age

there is sappho (main character and narator who is 39) who is a paranormal writer , writing her book and who moves a lot to write ..she is an excentric single woman as she described herself ..her only problem is her ex boyfriend dave who is not stopping loving her after years of break ..truly breaks ..

we also have mu (39 soon)who desperatly want a child from ambler they are trying different methods to try to have a child and after she will try alone ..

and miranda a shy woman under the big influence of her husband chris who only wants her wife to help him in his carreer and to stay in his back ..but miranda discovers that she can do somthing else despite the disapproval of her husband ..

as men we have nye a potter who will be part of the history and gil as gilbert who has lost her wife in an unknowned way and who tries to discover why
and of course dave and chris

the story takes place in a small village bedd (spelled beth) where sappho miranda nye chris gil are all living (sappho has just moved back after travalling a lot ) ;a very small village ..mu lives in another place but come to visit her friend sappho a lot with special gifts ..

so we see all those characters evoluating in an action place and to want to change life and especially sappho who is looking for the right man to have a child with ..but dave is so jalous and make sappho life so difficult and so stressful but she seems to be less stressed than her friends with this problem

will sappho succeed to find a good man ?
will miranda succeed in changing her life and existing for herself ?
will mu succeed in becoming pregnant ?
that's the 3 questions about the book

i was really happy to read the book especially as i'm 39 too . and i found trisha ashley's book really good, as usual, with lots of new developments ; news and i like to see how sappho changes her mind about a friend ..i won't spoil ..
i was a little afraid to have a book dedicated to 'i want a child desperatly woman ' but it isn't all about that this is more about writing books for sappho ,developping new jobs for miranda and the life in the village .and lots of problems due to dave ..the reasearch of gil's wife ..so it wasn't in a stereotype of i truly want a child ..which relieved me so much

as you will see urge to jump has 2 meanings in the book but i can't tell otherwise i will spoil the story too
well done trisha

[Rebecca · Rating 1 out of 5]

Jesus, I totally forgot what this book was about and it was a bitch to find a recap! I do remember, I kind of didn’t comprehend this book too well. It was weird. Women who writes like sci-fi stuff realizes she is getting old and does she want a kid or not? I don’t remember nor do I care that much.

Grade: N/A

[Leanne · Rating 2 out of 5]

I usually love Trisha Ashley books, but I found this book so hard to enjoy. I found it hard to connect with the main character, most probably as there was no real introduction to her. The reader was given little snippets of information about her throughout the book, but it made it hard for me to like her.
I felt the story seemed to drag, but the ending was rushed.
Not one of her best works.

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sappho Jones, at the centre of this lively and well written book, has a past, present and future. Brought up by a remarkable pair of women, she has travelled extensively on her own and is a successful writer of travel guides and a fantasy author. Her present is marked by her friendships, including Bob who runs a creative school on a Greek island and several women with whom she was at university. Her future is suddenly determined by her realisation that it is her thirty ninth birthday, and the only adventure that she has not tried is motherhood. Not that she wants a relationship with a man at present; she is still pursued by Dave, a photographer who she was involved with at college and who will not take no for an answer. Sappho is a remarkable woman who has a vivid imagination and sees some of the people around her in terms of her characters, which adds to the humour of an already very funny book. Even her name is a memory of an ancient poet who jumped from a cliff, but Sappho has far too much to live for despite her tendency to stand on cliff edges; she has a cottage in Wales that has just become vacant and as it is near to her friend Miranda’s house she intends to collect up her possessions and move in. The novel is a story of a momentous time in Sappho’s life as she aids and abets her friends to change their lives, only to discover that her own lifestyle and choices become strangely affected by one of her characters come to life.

Sappho is a striking woman, tall and with very long hair, and she is instantly recognisable. With a firm independent streak she pays her own way with her not inconsiderable income, and can advise and help her friends. As she moves into her cottage in the memorably named Bedd, she discovers that a very determined woman, Dorinda, has disappeared in mysterious circumstances leaving her husband Gil under some suspicion. Miranda is distraught as her tv chef husband, Chris, who has always used her recipes, has sent her to Wales to live in her inherited cottage as she no longer fits in with his image. Sappho encourages her to rebel against him, especially when it seems he may be setting up situations which make her doubt her sanity. Another friend, Mu, is happily married to Ambler, an adventurer, but wants a baby more than anything. Meanwhile Lili is a woman who is determined to attract Nye, a potter who lives in Bedd, which leads to some interesting situations. As parties and more happen in the small village there is no secrecy, so odd events create a lot of interest. Sappho of course is often at the centre of them.

This is an enjoyable book in lots of ways, and there is a lot of fun in the story of a remarkable woman who is convinced of what she wants, until things change. As always with Ashley’s books, there is a community of friends which plays the part of a family, and each character is carefully drawn with great depth. As one of her older books there is a shortage of contemporary references to computers and phones except in passing, but this book is none the less a strong read which much to recommend it. It is a funny, dramatic and engaging read which I really enjoyed.

[Helen Gaye Brewster · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ve read other books by Trisha Ashley and One More Christmas at the Castle is one of my favorite happily-ever-after books. So I was a little disappointed in this one. I know it’s one of her early books and maybe her writing has changed a bit. I couldn’t really like Sappho, the main character. I didn’t hate her, but she just didn’t appeal to me. Some of it, I admit, were the descriptions of her looks. Six feet tall, hair to her ankles, giant breasts? And Sappho herself disparaged her looks. It was a bit insulting to all tall girls with long hair and curves. And, she went barefoot almost everywhere, including into cafes, which just seemed weird. (Don’t you have to wear shoes in restaurants?) I didn’t love her personality either. She didn’t really seem to like herself very much, which I realize is often used in romance books, but I’d have liked her to have a bit more self-esteem. I’ll give it to her that she lived her life to please herself, which I admire, but she didn’t seem to enjoy doing it.

Ok, so on to what I did like. I loved the bond between her and her two best friends. I enjoyed the parts where she was writing her latest fantasy novel. I realize they were a little far-fetched, but they made me laugh. I liked how much she encouraged Miranda, who had less self-esteem than the other two women. I liked that she didn’t judge Mu for her choice in how she would get pregnant. (I did wish she would have at least talked with her about the potential for complete disaster with her choice, though.) I very much liked that there were recipes at the end of the book for some of the foods in the story!

I thought both Miranda and Sappho were a bit too unconcerned with all the mayhem with the men in their lives to be realistic. I mean, I know these books are not supposed to be super realistic, but this went a little too far. If my husband murdered my dog I’d have enough sense to be afraid of him and if my ex-boyfriend had stalked me for years I would have at least considered trying to get a restraining order!

Overall, though, there was enough to keep me going to the end and even though I didn’t fall in love with Nye, the romantic interest, I at least liked him enough to want them to be together at the end of the story. And, I did enjoy the side-plots with little mysteries throughout the story.

Because I liked the other books I’ve read by Trisha Ashley, I’m sure I’ll read another one, but this one fell a little short for me.

[Annette · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sappho is looking the big 4 – 0 in the eye. For most of her life, she has traveled the world and done what she wants to do. She writes fantasy novels and is successful. She has no responsibilities to anyone and she likes that a great deal.

She has purchased a cottage in Wales and has decided that will be her home base,
at least for a time.

She has two very close friends who are both married. One considers using another man’s sperm in order to have a baby. The other one is married to a man who has stolen all her cooking ideas. He is a television star whose career is based on his recipes and cooking ability. In reality, everything is actually based on his wife’s talent.

The small village is populated by some interesting people. One of the most interesting is a potter who is a super star in his field. He is as devoted to his creativity and work as much as Sappho is devoted to her own creativity and work. She uses nearly every thing around her in her stories. I did laugh at her inner thoughts as she was going through life. Each tiny scene became a big scene in her work in progress.

I wanted to like this book. On some levels I did.

At times, I felt there were too many different events and characters brought into the story. There was also disgusting treatment of an elderly dog. That made me step back and take some time away from the story.

For me, there were too many little side tracks that seemed to just be thrown into the mix.

I am a fan of Ms Ashley’s writing. I generally enjoy getting to know her characters. But, this book had several people who were really off putting for me.

I am sure this is all just me. I just cannot say I fell in love with this book. I did not even fall in very deep like.

[Ruth Haigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really made me laugh. I have recommended this book to everyone as I just loved it. There are some brilliant one liners , fabulous characters and a really good story.
We start in Lefkada on the 39th birthday of Sappho Jones. She is absolutely amazed that next birthday she will be 40. Deciding to return to Wales and live in a cottage she bought many years ago (but has been renting out) so she can be close to her two best friends and finally put down some roots.
During her life she has tried just about everything except motherhood and now feels its the time to try this a her next adventure. However, not having a partner or being interested in sex might mean this adventure will require a little thought.
As one of her friends resorts to a turkey baster and the other one is just too busy hosting parties for loads of strangers Sappho becomes friendly with the local potter!

[Hayley Marsland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although this one took me a couple of chapters to settle in, I really enjoyed it.

Author of fantasy books, Sappho Jones is approaching the big four-oh, and whilst she feels as though she has done quite a bit with her life so far, there is one thing she hasn't tried, motherhood.

Sappho decides to return to Wales, and live in the cottage she bought sometime ago, and she gets to be nearer to her best friends, Miranda and Mu, at the same time.

It is here that Sappho meets, the rather gorgeous Nye, could he be potential Daddy material - or at least donor - ?

Well it's either that, or get a cat !

There is quite a bit more to the story than this obviously, but I'm not going to get into all that here, but there are quite a few twists and mysteries in there, and plenty of quirky characters.

All in all a good book, and I know I have lots more to enjoy from this author, in future.

[N.W. Moors · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every once in a while an author creates a character that you just love. Sappho Jones is a fantasy writer, happy in her life until she realizes she's teetering on the edge of menopause and the last chance to have a child of her own. There's a sexy potter, Nye, who's a possible candidate for fatherhood and a roster of eccentric but lovable characters to cheer her on.
This is a quirky and fun story, a quick read with a lot of laughter thrown in for the reader. Sappho is a delightful heroine and I truly appreciated her and want her as my best friend. Ms. Ashley is a good writer and this is one of her best.

[Dils AB · Rating 1 out of 5]

I don't know if I can categorize it as romance, but it does seems to be the main plot, but the heroine, Sappho is so very into her world and her thoughts that there are barely enough for any other living thing, even a cat.

I like her matter of fact-ness and assured-ness attitude. Very refreshing. Though it seems like all of her friends, lover and even her place of living is eccentric. I can't stand the eccentricities. It also feels like there is barely a story contained in this book.

She maybe portrayed better as tv series perhaps, but a book, it feels a little stretchy.

[Lauriel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Started reading on a Sunday morning around 6.3oam (dang wandering dogs waking me up!) and didn't stop until was finished.
It's one of Trisha's earlier novels, one I'd been meaning to read forever but could never find (yay for reprint!) so I'm glad it got treated to a rewrite and reprint.
Trisha's usual easy-to-read witty words had me in stitches a lot of times and I enjoyed every page of the story of Sappho and her friends Mu and Miranda.
Can't wait to try the recipes Trisha put at the end of the book either!!

[-BeautifullyBookish- · Rating 4 out of 5]

Before I review this book I must firstly say that the first 50% of this book was somewhat slow and not at all a romance. I was thinking it was mistakenly labeled and was actually some kind of cozy mystery but somewhere around 60% the romance appeared.
I loved the romance and wished it were present throughout the whole book. I did, however, enjoy the mystery aspect as well as all the secondary characters and their stories.
Overall this was a truly unique book and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it, I just wished for more of the relationship/romance stuff.

[Sarah · Rating 1 out of 5]

Couldn’t finish it

I feel awful leaving a low rating but I just couldn’t get into this at all... I don’t know why, it was well written and the characters had the potential to be interesting but it just didn’t grab me... I limped along to 26% but my rule of thumb is if I’m not enjoying it by 1/4 of the way through it’s not for me...

I love to read but was finding myself playing games on my phone instead of wanting to dive into my book like I normally do!

[Mary Stagg · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book. Yes, it's very far fetched, yes, the characters are larger than life, yes, the plot line is weird and there are lots of them but I was so drawn into Sappho's life. I loved the characters of Mu and Miranda both with their own problems, I loved the strong friendship between them, I loved the subplot of the disappearing wife, but most of all I loved Sappho. She's an entrancing character and I was left wanting to know what would happen next.

[Shelley Tracey · Rating 2 out of 5]

The stars are for the humour and the turn of phrase, but everything else is so formulaic. Three friends, one big, one small, one overweight, now you see the hero, now you don't, now she likes him, now she doesn't, villains with anti-animal habits and a problem with stones ... I preferred her other books. I think this was an early one, and perhaps she was trying her skills out?

[Vanessa-Ann Dowsett · Rating 3 out of 5]

Generally I am a fan of Trisha Ashley, this book where it still has the humour and clever quips that she injects into her work, for me, this story doesn't hold together as others. It was a little slow to begin with and I must admit becoming a little confused about who was whom. Perhaps I was listening on a poor day for me. I will revisit it again in a few months and re-read

[Pippa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think having now read 3 books by this author I can assume that I am likely to enjoy her others, admittedly some will appeal more than others but I suppose that is only to be expected. It is a charming story with a good cast of characters and Trisha Ashley does not write as though her readers are barely literate or of limited intellect. Not too mushy or fluffy.

[Anne Libera · Rating 3 out of 5]

I very much enjoy living in Trisha Ashley's world even when (as in this book) the story as a whole doesn't quite hold together. There are great quirky characters, a creative small town British (Welsh) setting and antics. This one has a feeling of "throw a bunch of events at a wall and see what happens" vibe - I liked it while I read it but it doesn't hold up when I think about it after.

[Lydia · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a little gem! I love Trisha Ashley’s books, they have the most cozy vibe to them and always make me feel like moving to the UK countryside is the recipe for contentment. Characters are quirky and you can’t help but be fond of them. This story takes on a mysterious element which I enjoyed and our heroine is so brilliantly bolshy. I’ll be back again Trisha!

[Mary Geraghty · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quicksilver brain, brilliant!!

Didn't know if I was reading about age, travel , writing or pottery. There may have been a hint of all of the above. Very enjoyable read. A bit of Sappho in all of us? 😃