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Fiona MacDougall #3
Where The Heart Is
Widowed, broke and unemployed, Fiona moves to the country to save money. But she is not prepared for the realities of country life… or for whom she will meet.
236 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 28, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
June 9, 2019
I loved this book. Everytime Gran spoke, I could here my Grandmother.....even if she never called me stupid but it was so much like Gran's attitude. Fiona was a great character too. Definately a great read
July 31, 2019
Fiona's life has been turned upside down by her hubby's untimely demise but rather than mourn his passing, she must focus on her survival and that of her delinquently genius brother, Patrick, who is in her care. Without some much needed cash, they soon would be out on the streets of Melbourne. Faced with working in a job she knows nothing about places Fiona in a fantastically hilarious mess. A lifeline from Fiona's Granny, a drill sergeant of a woman with a keen eye for lies and little patience for foolishness, takes Fiona to life in the countryside. An 'idyllic' cabin awaits. Roughing it would be an understatement as she comes to terms with her new reality. With nothing to keep her sanity but her independent cat, Moses, she reluctantly welcomes a new addition, Finnegan, a raggedy but lovable dog who needs her as much as she needs him.
Ms. Ormiston-Smith expertly crafts her characters with great care and nuances that make them relatable and entertaining. To boot, there are clever excerpts that frame each chapter discussing proper etiquette which is a great juxtaposition to Fiona's tumultuous life. I hope you enjoy this book as much as I did.
Ms. Ormiston-Smith expertly crafts her characters with great care and nuances that make them relatable and entertaining. To boot, there are clever excerpts that frame each chapter discussing proper etiquette which is a great juxtaposition to Fiona's tumultuous life. I hope you enjoy this book as much as I did.
June 9, 2019
I was delighted when Tabitha Ormiston-Smith contacted me to read and review this book. I’m a huge fan of Fiona and her wicked little brother Patrick.
It is hard to feel sorry for Fiona, even if she did recently lose her husband Tim and finds herself without money. She is so self-obsessed and lazy that frankly you just root for her as otherwise the poor cat Moses will find himself homeless. Luckily her no-nonsense battle axe of a grandmother steps into the breach and offers the girl a place to live.
You can feel the frustration of her gran as she tries to teach Fiona some much needed life-skills. The one decision which baffled me a bit first was the decision by the Grandmother to make Fiona adopt a huge Deerhound, it seemed a bit odd to trust this girl with such a huge responsibility. Will Fiona be able to cope? Well you will have to read the book, and like me I’m sure you will have a few giggles finding out.
In my view you can never have enough animals in a story and the big Deerhound certainly added a lot of comedy moments. Patrick too was again on fine evil form and I’m rather sad this is the last in the series.
It is hard to feel sorry for Fiona, even if she did recently lose her husband Tim and finds herself without money. She is so self-obsessed and lazy that frankly you just root for her as otherwise the poor cat Moses will find himself homeless. Luckily her no-nonsense battle axe of a grandmother steps into the breach and offers the girl a place to live.
You can feel the frustration of her gran as she tries to teach Fiona some much needed life-skills. The one decision which baffled me a bit first was the decision by the Grandmother to make Fiona adopt a huge Deerhound, it seemed a bit odd to trust this girl with such a huge responsibility. Will Fiona be able to cope? Well you will have to read the book, and like me I’m sure you will have a few giggles finding out.
In my view you can never have enough animals in a story and the big Deerhound certainly added a lot of comedy moments. Patrick too was again on fine evil form and I’m rather sad this is the last in the series.
July 20, 2019
A very funny book. After her cheating husband's death, Fiona learns she won't be settling the estate and getting his money any time soon, so she's forced to get a job (what a drag). She finds out she can work in BDSM, but forgets a client in the sensory deprivation chamber and gets fired. Whoops. She has a yard sale, but doesn't make much money. Meanwhile she has to deal with her younger brother, who keeps getting in trouble at school and would rather live with her than their parents.
Finally Fiona moves to her grandmother's cottage in the middle of nowhere, where she has to deal with a lack of water and other miseries of living in the country. She eventually adopts a dog.
The book is funny and fast-paced, an enjoyable read!
Finally Fiona moves to her grandmother's cottage in the middle of nowhere, where she has to deal with a lack of water and other miseries of living in the country. She eventually adopts a dog.
The book is funny and fast-paced, an enjoyable read!
May 29, 2020
I really enjoyed this book. Where The Heart Is by Tabitha Ormiston-Smith was a delightful story about a clueless young woman, Fiona MacDougall, who suddenly lost her cheating husband and found herself having to make it on her own. Some of her hair-brained schemes to try and make a living for herself while she waited on her husband’s estate to settle was priceless. Her younger brother was always getting into scrapes, but somehow he always seemed to be a step ahead of his sister in the brain department. I enjoyed the story immensely and I would highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys quirky humor. Fiona is a cross between Lucy and Pollyanna and she will leave you wanting to read more as you try to figure out what she could get herself into next.
June 8, 2019
Even with high expectations for this book, Tabitha Ormiston-Smith has once again surpassed my hopes. The author has a true gift for bringing first person to life, leaving the reader fully immersed in the story. Once more, Tabitha's clever and quirky humor is on full display, pushing Where the Heart is from delightful to brilliant. It was a truly satisfying read, and I would gladly recommend it to everyone.
April 26, 2020
Fast paced read.
The clueless character Fiona, reminded me of a very dear friend of mine, and her hapless younger brother was such an inspirational teenager. Their antics had me giggling and I couldn’t put it down. If you’re looking for a good laugh, this book was a treasure chest.
The clueless character Fiona, reminded me of a very dear friend of mine, and her hapless younger brother was such an inspirational teenager. Their antics had me giggling and I couldn’t put it down. If you’re looking for a good laugh, this book was a treasure chest.
April 20, 2020
This delightful book is just what I needed to lift my spirits, during the wretched Covid 19 lockdown. Twenty-three-year-old airhead, Fiona MacDougall, is widowed when her philandering husband, Tim, is killed in a car accident on the freeway. He wasn’t short of a bob or two, and Fiona expects her comfortable lifestyle to continue, probably more happily, without him. However, she doesn’t bargain for the lengthy legal hurdles, which occur when someone dies without leaving a will. With no access to her husband’s considerable funds, she finds herself near destitute and faces the possibility of eviction from her apartment. Her precocious, bordering on genius, testosterone fuelled brother, Patrick, is living with her because his parents need a break from his constant, self-inflicted problems with his school, and long-suffering teachers. You’ll need to read the book to discover just how bad, and how hilarious, Patrick’s escapades are. Together, brother and sister stumble in and out of trouble. To cut a long story short, Fiona is rescued by her grumpy, controlling Grandmother, who offers her a run-down cottage, rent free, at the bottom of her garden, in a country town. Having failed miserably to get a job and earn some money, (thereby hangs a whole ‘nother, hilarious scenario) Fiona accepts her grandmother’s offer and moves into the dilapidated cottage. Accompanied by her much loved cat, Moses, and armed with her trusty Isabella Beeton’s ‘The Book of Household Management’, what could possibly wrong? When a huge deerhound, named Finnegan, comes into Fiona’s life, the tale (no pun intended) becomes even more entertaining. When I wasn’t smiling, I was laughing out loud. My thanks to the author for a thoroughly entertaining read.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews