Showing results by author "Kate Hewitt" in All Categories

Anna Holley, the third of four sisters, has always felt a little bit forgotten. A family tragedy when she was a child had her retreating deep into shyness, and social anxiety kept her on the fringes of the cozy chaos of the busy vicarage. After several years away from home, Anna returns for Christmas, and an important announcement from her father. As much as she once loved the village, coming back is hard and puts Anna’s social capabilities to the test. Avoiding her sisters’ bossy questions, she heads out to the local pub one night, and meets a handsome stranger nursing a pint. 

1938, Salzburg. Johanna, Birgit, and Lotte Eder have always lived quiet lives, working in their father’s clockmaking shop and helping their mother in the house. But like many other Austrians, they find it impossible to ignore the changes in the world around them. At first Johanna finds it hard to believe the Nazis pose a real threat. But then her father hires Franz to help in his shop. He’s kind and soulful, with dark eyes that twinkle with intelligence. But he’s Jewish, and as Johanna falls for him, she realizes that loving him puts them all in danger.

When Ava arrives in Greece, it’s with a heart that’s shattered into a thousand pieces. But as she pulls up in a tiny village nestled on a cliff above the glittering Ionian Sea and steps out in front of a tumbledown house that once belonged to her grandmother Sophia, everything changes. At first Ava almost wants to laugh at this bizarre inheritance - a home that has been uninhabited since the Second World War - that appears as close to collapse as she herself feels. But with nowhere left to run to, her only choice is to start putting the house together again.

Rachel Holley has always dreamed of a wedding - the white dress, the fairy tale, and, of course, the happily-ever-after. But when her fiancé breaks it off the night before, claiming she doesn’t love him, Rachel’s fairy tale ends in ashes. Homeless, hopeless, and feeling like her life has been completely derailed, Rachel must start over in all sorts of ways - and hold her head up high in the fishbowl of her tiny village.

As the youngest Holley sister, Miriam has always been a bit of a rebel. After spending several years backpacking through Europe and Australia, she’s now back home...unemployed and pregnant, with no boyfriend or husband in sight. At first, Miriam only wants to hide away from the shocked and prying eyes of her father’s parishioners, but her sisters won’t let her. Determined to help her find her way, they urge Miriam to accept a job working as an assistant to Simon, the new vicar...and to think about what will happen when the baby comes. 

When Laurel West discovers her estranged sister Abby has checked herself into rehab and wants her to take care of her 14-year-old son, she doesn’t hesitate to step in. Abby was there for Laurel a long time ago, and she longs to be able to offer the same. However, as a single woman who still dreams of the fairy tale, Laurel isn’t prepared for teenaged Zac’s sullen moods or silent rage. When he’s expelled from school, she decides to take drastic measures and temporarily relocate them to her great aunt’s cottage on the windswept hills of the Orkney islands north of Scotland?

Anna Vere has escaped to the Cotswolds for Christmas to try to heal from her broken engagement and, far worse, her broken dreams. When her reserved room at a bed-and-breakfast is flooded, she takes up the offer of camping out in Willoughby Close, the converted stables of the nearby manor house...and is taken under the wing of sexy local carpenter Colin Heath. What starts out as merely helping a neighbor in need turns into far more as Colin and Anna share a surprisingly intense and emotional connection, weaving their own Christmas magic as they spend the holiday together. 

In the pretty, privileged college town of Milford, New Hampshire, everyone is friendly, and everything is safe. And on this cold autumn day, as red and yellow leaves begin to fall from the trees, and everyone wraps up for the first time, it would be easy to believe nothing bad could ever happen here. Until a screech of tires is heard, a thud, a child’s scream. The crash that sees Jenna’s six-year-old daughter, Amy Rose, being hit by a car driven by 17-year-old Maddie.

Esther Holley, the eldest in the family, has always had her life firmly in control until a miscarriage knocks her off course. Two months later, still emotionally spinning, she separates from her husband, Will, a sheep farmer and man of few words and moves back in with her parents. Life as a singleton 30-something living in her parents’ house is miserable, but Esther is determined to reboot her life, including going on a few unfortunate dates. She’s shocked when tight-lipped Will shows up on her doorstep determined to woo her back.

After her husband unexpectedly dies, Ava moves to Willoughby Close, trying to keep her chin up and to herself as she’s always done - not answering questions, not making friends, and not seeing much of a future. Her marriage was far from perfect, but it offered her a much-needed security that has now been ripped away. She’s not sure what to do now that she’s 35, widowed, penniless...and unexpectedly pregnant with her late husband’s child. 

Laura Neale is grieving. A year after her beloved husband’s death, she is still left with far too many questions and is struggling with feelings of guilt, anger, and grief. Hoping to rebuild her life and her children’s, she moves to Wychwood-on-Lea with her two troubled kids. The warm community of women who have lived in Willoughby Close welcome her with open arms, and their friendship helps Laura find a semblance of peace. But when she finds herself with an entirely unexpected attraction to her son’s teacher, James Hill, Laura is gobsmacked.

1944, London. When Lily meets enigmatic GI Matthew in war-torn London, she doesn’t expect to fall in love. While her sister starts a reckless affair with another GI, Lily tries to hide her growing feelings for Matthew. But Matthew has a devastating secret. One that could change their lives forever.

Ellie Matthews has come to Wychwood-on-Lea to find a new start for her and her daughter Abby. But, life there doesn’t start out as idyllic as she had hoped. While Ellie loves her cute cottage in Willoughby Close, the Yummy Mummies at the primary school seem intent on giving her the cold shoulder, Abby has trouble fitting in, and her boss, Oliver Venables, is both surprisingly sexy and irritatingly inscrutable.

Berlin, 1936: From her beautiful new home Liesel Scholz barely notices the changes to the city around her. Her life is one of privilege and safety thanks to her father’s job working for the new government. But soon a chance encounter with Rosa, the daughter of their Jewish housekeeper, leaves Liesel in no doubt that something isn’t right. Frankfurt, 1946: An idealistic American captain, Sam Houghton, arrives in Germany to interrogate prominent Nazis on trial and to help rebuild a battered country. He hires an enigmatic and damaged woman named Anna as his interpreter.

Harriet Lang had the perfect life, so she’s left reeling when everything is taken from her in one fell swoop. Suddenly, Harriet learns her beautiful farmhouse in the Cotswolds is double mortgaged, her husband Richard’s been unceremoniously fired - and he’s become a little too close to his young, sexy assistant. Harriet moves into Willoughby Close with her three children, trying to hold her head up high. With the help of her neighbor and newfound friend Ellie Matthews, Harriet starts to rebuild her life - but dipping a toe in the dating pool feels strange.

Glamorous city girl Hannah Ford wasn’t thinking when she walked out of a Christmas party and drove 300 miles into a snowstorm; she just needed to escape. Thankfully local carpenter Sam Taylor comes to her rescue, and the unlikely pair is forced to spend a snowed-in Christmas together. 

When Simon Blacklock, a handsome, whimsical stranger, breezes into her shop and buys a cupcake and then returns the next day and the day after, Olivia begins to dream. Can romance blossom amid the sugar and flour? And after a lifetime of living on the sidelines, is she brave enough to star in her own story? 

Alice James has been a drifter her whole life, working her way through several foster homes before ending up in Wychwood-on-Lea, feeling anchorless and invisible. When a chance encounter leads to Alice accepting a position as a caretaker and companion to Lady Stokeley, she starts to feel as if she might finally be able to put down some roots and live the way other people do. Then, Lady Stokeley’s nephew, city banker Henry Trent, storms into Willoughby Manor, seeming to find fault with everything, including Alice. 

Belinda "Lindy" Jamison has moved to the Cotswolds for a fresh start and to open a dancing school - her lifelong dream. Pushing 40 and still looking for Mr. Right, Lindy is determined to no longer wait for happiness but to reach for it with both hands. Soon Lindy has a motley crew of would-be dancers. But her most intriguing pupil is Roger Wentworth, a 40-something bachelor with a shy and awkward manner, but a heart of blazing gold.

Emily David didn’t want to move to Willoughby Close. She was perfectly content in London, but when her boss, Henry Trent, asks her to relocate, she’s left with little choice. Emily prefers living on her own and finds comfort in her routines. But the well-meaning residents of Wychwood-on-Lea are determined to include her in their friendly circle - a prospect Emily finds utterly alarming. When sparks fly with local pub owner Owen Jones, Emily’s safe and fragile world threatens to shatter. She has too many secrets to keep, and Owen’s gentle understanding could be her undoing.