Old Friends, New Friends

by Margaret Thornton

It is 1945 and in the Yorkshire market town of Middlebeck, fifteen-year-old Maisie Jackson is waiting for the return of her sweetheart Bruce Tremaine. Her teenage euphoria doesn't last long however, for when Bruce arrives he has a 'friend' in tow - the beautiful Christine Myerscough, who is determined to make herself Bruce's wife. Crushed and betrayed, Maisie realizes that her life needn't be confined to Middlebeck, and that there are many opportunities for someone with her ambition. When she finally finds her true vocation she convinces herself she is over her young love - but has Bruce forgotten about her?

336 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2007

About the author

Margaret Thornton was born in Blackpool and has lived there all her life. She was a qualified teacher but retired in order to concentrate on her writing.

Thornton has two children and five grandchildren. Her previous Blackpool sagas are available from Headline and have been highly praised. To date, she has written 24 novels.

Reviews

[iris · Rating 3 out of 5]

it was fun to read overall , but i only began enjoying it near the later half. it includes SO MUCH information. like literally all of the history surrounding anybody who ever had any connection with maisie jackson. it was quite boring for me and i often found myself zoned out. i also found it confusing when it kept jumping forward with the time periods. especially the jumps between years. eventually i got used to it but i think it would be less confusing if there was more of a clear indication to the change in time. however , i like the overall story and themes. it’s a story of hope , love , and uncertainty. at one point , maisie was convinced that bruce was the only one for her but guess what? many years later , she found a stable love which she would not have expected in her earlier years. it’s a beautiful story but i just got pretty uninterested in times.

[Julia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Old Friends New Friends by Margaret Thornton is a wonderful conclusion to the fabulous Yorkshire Saga series.
The novel is set in 1970 mainly in Leeds but also in the small Dales town (that looks like Reeth to me on the cover).
Once more we see the value in good friends who help us through all the seasons of life. There is the loyalty of friends who stand up for each other and who rescue us from our situations.
We witness the strain that a young family can put on a life, as well as seeing the joy that children bring.
As the swinging sixties becomes 1970, the youth experience a freedom not known to their parents. With this freedom comes choices, particularly around the area of morality.
Accidents happen, and when they do, as well as the emergency services, it is best to bathe them in prayer.
I have loved this Yorkshire Saga series and am sad to see it end.

[Heather Copping · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this trilogy of saga stories set in Yorkshire, what I especially liked was that the same characters were present from book 1. A great set of books and this author is now on my list to look out for more books by her.

One thing to note is that the description on the goodreads page is nothing to do with this book.

[Emma Young · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book to be quite adventurous. It is set in the years after the war; it is refreshing to read a book about a young woman who focussed on her aspirations rather than give her heart to a man.

[Terena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Continuing the story of Maisie Jackson and the residents of Middlebeck in Yorkshire, just as WW2 has finished. Nice easy read with plenty of incidents in, so that you wanted to continue reading.

[charlotte · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant sequel

This book was brilliant sequel
It was an enjoyable book to see how it worked out with all the different people tied together

[Ruth Ellis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wi loved this series and melted into the books,now what to read?

[Linda Hobson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book

[Angela Atherton · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lovely holiday read by the beach. Good characters and brought me back to the 70’s. The book moved along at a good pace and never bored me.

[Someone · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm currently reading this book.
But I have to say, the writing style is really getting on my nerves.
In this one sentence, there are 5 'and's and 4 commas. 5 Bloody 'and's!!
I mean, my English is down right bad, but even I can see that there's something wrong with this sentence.
Also this main character (or more like this author) keeps adding in unnecessary information for either no reason at all or for a very minor reasons. Why do we have to learn the history of all her friends and family in ONE CHAPTER? I know the first chapter is meant to be a bit of an introductory chapter, but was it necessary to put more than 20 names of unimportant people in there?
I don't know what kind of character the author wanted to build up for Maisy, but from what I've read she sounds like a day dreamer who constantly goes into outa space thinking of all the past about her family and friends all the time. In the first chapter she was snapped out of her thoughts 3 times. She's at a bloody celebration party! Normal people would not be thinking about their abusive step father or her friends adoption process. Not to mention how she starts thinking about how she and Bruce first met WHILE singing in front of a whole crowd. She was worried that she'll forget the words a bloody paragraph ago!! "but then it would not be his style, she told herself".... You're supposed to be singing!!! not telling yourself things in your head!
And what's with all these super observant characters. They see each other for less than 10 minutes and they already know each other in details like how that person likes someone, or how someone seems determined to date someone. It's like the author thinks the readers are dumb creatures that can't decide for themselves. Stop narrating a decision for us!! I can clearly read that the woman is only after the money, you don't HAVE to emphasise that through the conversation of other characters who only met them once. I wouldn't complain about this if this only happened once or twice, but within 3 chapters I've already seen 3 super observant characters talking about every little details, making judgements for us.

[Kate Campos · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book is not part of a series, but a majority of the narrative reads as though it is, leaving the book wrought with pages of back story. It lacks a central plot line and instead moves between a handful of smaller plot arches, failing to truly engage the reader. The author was repetitive in mundane details, as though she'd forgotten she already made mention of them. I think Thornton attempts to make Debbie's love triangle a major plot point (since that's the resolution that happens at the very end of the book); however, throughout the book itself, the details such as Debbie's self-reflection and emotional cause/effect scenarios (details that enhance the reader's engagement in this triangle) are by and largely ignored. Thus the "resolution" comes both unexpectedly and unbelievably).

All in all, the book was dull, and unfortunately so. I looked forward to reading the story of a young Englishwoman's college experiences in the 1970s, but it read like a religious-grandmother-approved narrative, lacking the authentic and sensory details otherwise associated with an era of colorful change.

[iris · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars
i mean, it's an okay book. it's not bad. i like it. but i don't like it as much as i was hoping. i'm still reading it and honestly it bores me a little. maybe it's the style, i'm not a huge fan of the english style. i like the characters and it's nice to read but there's nothing special about it. it's a nice story but doesn't make me feel much.

[Kath · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is like an extremely long edition of the sort of story prevalent in the magazine 'People's Friend'. Alternatively it could be a Channel 5 afternoon programme which you might watch when poorly on a dreary day. Completely predictable and 'nice'.

[June · Rating 3 out of 5]

It appears a gentle story of post war Britain in a small village

[Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great continue

[Marie (UK) · Rating 2 out of 5]

A pleasant enough read, if not inspiring or earth shattering. It was reasonably well written but i wouldn't necessarily go looking for more of the same