The Cornish Guest House

by Emma Burstall

A new couple have arrived in Tremarnock, but will these glamorous strangers fit into village life?

Tremarnock is a small fishing village, crowded with holidaymakers in the summer, but a sleepy Cornish backwater at other times of the year.

Here Liz has found refuge with her young daughter, Rosie, after her relationship with Rosie's father came unstuck. Now happily married, all seems set for a quiet autumn and merry Christmas. But strangers have bought the local guest house and seem to have big plans. Why is he so charming and confident, but she so frightened? Are they who they say they are? And what are they really doing with the guest house?

Genres: Romance, Fiction, British Literature, Contemporary, Audiobook, Chick Lit

Paperback

Published April 6, 2017

About the author

Emma is the author of nine novels including her bestselling Cornish series, Tremarnock. These books in order are - Starting Over In Cornwall, Christmas At The Cornish Guest House, A Summer in Cornwall, A Cornish Secret and The Girl Who Came Home To Cornwall.
Her latest book, The House On Rockaway Beach, came out in September 2022 and she's currently working on the next one.
Emma read English at Cambridge University and began her career as a cub reporter on the Western Morning News in Plymouth, later becoming features editor of Woman and Family Circle.
She loves films and the theatre, yoga, pilates, wild swimming, hiking and spending time with family and friends.
She lives in South West London and has three children and two grandchildren.

Reviews

[Malia · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book took me way too long to finish, but I finally made it! The story started off well - even if, at the beginning, I was confused by the many characters being introduced very quickly. After about the half-way point, though, it started to feel like a slog and became too predictable. The writing was good and I liked many of the characters, but I will probably give the rest of the series a skip. I don't want to fault this book too much, because I think it probably delivers what the summary would suggest, but I was hoping it would be a little more absorbing and a little less predictable.
Find more reviews and bookish fun at http://www.princessandpen.com

[Jaline · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book to be much more interesting and a more satisfying read than the first one in the series. The characters developed more although I was disappointed that Rosie’s step-father fell so far from the pedestal of calm, reasoned, and sensible that he had been placed on in “Tremarnock”. The research on scams enacted on elderly and vulnerable people was excellent and was written realistically and with frightening accuracy. There were many scenes and incidents in this book that contributed to the overall plot and they were woven together very well. I enjoyed this book and may have even enjoyed it more as a standalone novel independent of its predecessor. I recommend it to people who would like to know more about the subtleties involved when people fall into the trap of a scam. May all such people be blessed to be part of a strong supportive community like Tremarnock.

[Bookread2day · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read the first book Tremarnock and loved it. Although some of the characters that I fell in love with in the first book are back in this second book The Cornish Guest House, for me I much preferred Tremarnock.

[Sherrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Better and grittier than this type of book usually is, and highlights the dangers of phone scams.

[Mel · Rating 1 out of 5]

SPOILER....................................................
This really struck me: A young man who everyone in the village has known and loved forever, OVERNIGHT becomes a pariah, because of a slick talking newcomer whispered allegations. It was so disturbing to me to say the least.

I really disliked this book, every.single.thing. is ridiculous.

[Kara Hansen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm giving this book a barely there 3stars. Was not nearly as good as the first book. The first half was just boring- and I found it odd that the author felt the need to write the same scene of the Christmas Day swim! Once the second half of the book approached, things sped up and it did become a little more exciting. I'm glad I read the first book in this series, but this book was no go for me.

[Shruti Badole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazing book! Liked it SO much more than the first one in the series!

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

This wasn't my normal fare at all, but I knew Emma from university so I thought I'd give it a go. I wasn't sure at first as it starts off quite slow, even pedestrian, with a lot of what seems like extraneous even mundane detail, but then the author drops a couple of intriguing events in and some colourful characters, seemingly quite innocently. You find yourself gradually getting hooked to the point where I found it hard to put the book down. I'm very impressed. The characters really grow on you and there's a story of substance and subtlety. Emma is very clever, I'll be more careful what I pick up casually next time!

[booksandcarbs]

Cozy goodness. I'm dubbing Emma Burstall the Maeve Binchy of Cornwall.

[Lorraine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This the second book in the Tremarnock series and was a very good read. A new couple has arrived in the small village and have renovated an old building into a luxurious guest house. The husband, Luke, is a gregarious and handsome fellow, but his wife, Tabitha, is withdrawn and unfriendly. Loveday is tired of working at Robert's restaurant and is delighted to get hired to watch their two year old son. Then she's asked by Luke to work at his office a couple of days a week. Liz is happily enjoying married life and Rosie has received all clear reports from the hospital. But there's someone ripping off seniors, causing them to lose all their savings.

I enjoyed this book as much as I did the first. I couldn't really see the map of the village on the e-reader and there were so many names of characters to remember, but I enjoyed it very well. One memorable story involved a dog getting stuck in a rabbit hole, and the trick employed to get the dog out.

[Rachel Gilbey · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 Stars

The only slight issue I had with this book was that I could predict roughly where the story was going. However despite that I thoroughly enjoyed the journey, and there are some fantastic characters. Tabitha is a hard character to gel with however as I got to read her back story I found myself really impressed with not only her, but the depth in the book. I found The Cornish Guest House to be oddly compulsive to read and although I remembered bits from the first book, it can easily be read as a standalone too. Really looking forward to starting book 3.

[Anji · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok, was kind of what I was expected, very light, cliched characters, predictable plot, bit dull for the first third but then became a bit of a page turner.
Served it’s purpose, as a charity shop buy, as a sandwich book. When I finish a really good book I struggle to move on to a new book, so read a book like this to bridge the gap.

[Kate Dunkley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this book. Like the first one, it is a great book with characters you care about but with a dark thread. Can’t wait for the 3rd one! Xx

[Clare G]

Really loved this book, cosy and comforting- good to revisit the familiar characters with some new ones thrown in too.

[ImA · Rating 1 out of 5]

3 chapters in and I’m choosing to pass on it, it’s just not grabbing my attention.

There’s a Tremmarnock series but it’s hard to see where this fits in!? I find this somewhat curious.

Anyway, sadly, it’s a 1⭐️ from me.

[Lorraine Harris · Rating 3 out of 5]

(AUDIOBOOK) Better than expected. Thought it would be fluffy but covered financial scams, and mistreatment of women. Girl moves to Cornwall because her husband bought a guest house. She's clearly frightened of him. The accents were a bit grating.

[Penelope · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice easy read and although predictable I still enjoyed the journey through Cornwall. Good characters and highlights scams targeting older people with bank savings. Sounded plausible to 80 year old, masterminded by clever scheme posing as Police. Page turner - recommend read

[Heather · Rating 1 out of 5]

Very poor book! Just couldn’t read any more. How these badly written books get published is beyond me!

[Zoe Adams · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. What a great series.

[Una Sherring · Rating 3 out of 5]

Slow to start but got better as you progressed.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed it A bit grittier than most of these types of books

[Cath · Rating 5 out of 5]

about Tremarnock village.
Kept me reading until it finished
Loved it.

[Lynn Hutchinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book exploring the scams employed by some unscrupulous people and also the behaviour of men towards women.

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable read set in a Cornish village. Main focus was a rich couple coming to the village where the husband was involved in fraud with OAPs. Borrowed from Emma.

[Susanne Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

I throughly enjoyed revisiting these characters. What a fantastic and engaging plot. I loved that the story was unraveling right until the very end. I loved Jesse and was a little sad he didn’t get his happy ever after, however I’m holding out hope that he’s in the next book and his story continues. I loved the amazing birth, bringing everyone together again.
Lots of issues raised in this book hit home personally with me, a child growing up and not needing you as much, a partner not always listening to you, feeling like things are spiralling out of control. The friendships were so heart warming especially how there was always someone to turn to.
The story of Tabitha and Luke was brilliantly written, keeping you guessing all the way through, I never liked Luke from the start but it was really interesting seeing his fool all the other characters and how they all suspected Tabitha was the one to watch.
I can’t wait to read the next books.

[Lynda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the second Tremarnock book in the series and this one is by far the better of the two. The story is based around a group of villagers in a beautiful Cornish village, who are an extremely close knit community. A new couple, Luke and Tabitha have bought "The Stables" and open it as a Guest House. Although the villagers do everything they can to make them welcome, Tabitha holds a terrible secret that causes her to reject their friendliness. Luke however has thrown himself straight into the community spirit, making him the most popular of the two.
Liz and her family from the previous book feature quite strongly throughout the book as do all the other characters. As you read through the book it becomes quite clear what Tabitha is so frightened of and is her husband Luke as saintly as he appears?
A good read full of warmth, charm and few shocks along the way!

[Val Blackburn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book to be a nice bit of escapism. I read it straight after Tremarnock, (#1) so I knew most of the characters already (and there's a fair few). It's a bit of a pity that we were shown Luke's true nature straight from the off. I'd have preferred to have believed the charming character that everyone else saw and then been hit with the surprise.

As with Tremarnock, the big event around which the story revolves, is revealed in the prologue. As the reader's already been told what's happened, it's not hard to work out who the culprit is. Therefore Liz's uneasy feelings, hinting at the big reveal, feels a bit awkward as the cat's already been let out of the bag.
However the story is very enjoyable. I like the characters, the setting and the community spirit. A nice easy read.

[Claire · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ve given this book 3 stars because even though it’s enjoyable I didn’t like it as much as the first one. I found it hard to understand how everyone was so easily duped by a handsome newcomer and how they turned their back on one of their own. It’s the only thing I didn’t like about it, unfortunately it was the main storyline. I also didn’t like how Liz and Robert disagreed about Luke and Liz ended up second guessing her marriage.
I did like the way they all (predictably) came together at the end and showed their community spirit.
I’m hoping the third is more like the first, fingers crossed!

[Ellie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A deceptively deep book. The cover art makes this look like the typical cheery seaside story (à la Jenny Colgan et al) where there’s a little bit of jeopardy but everything works out in the end. And while yes, it’s true (spoiler!!) everything does work out in the end, the themes of domestic violence and coercion, as well as vulnerable people being scammed, are much more than a bit of jeopardy, which makes for an interesting story-line.

My one criticism of the book is the number of characters. It’s a little hard to keep track of who’s who, and I can’t help feel some trimming both of characters and scenes could have been done.

[Shereen Lang · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story started off well - even if, at the beginning, I was confused by the many characters being introduced very quickly. After about the half-way point, though, it started to feel like a slog and became too predictable. The writing was good and I liked many of the characters, but I will probably give the rest of the series a skip. I don't want to fault this book too much, because I think it probably delivers what the summary would suggest, but I was hoping it would be a little more absorbing and a little less predictable.