Guest Review: Healing Hearts at Bumblebee Barn by Jessica Redland

Welcome to Bumblebee Barn, home to wonderful animals, stunning views and spectacular sunsets - and resident young farmer, Barney.

While Barney loves his life at Bumblebee Barn - a farm that has been in his family for generations - he's struggling to find someone to share it with. The early mornings quad biking through muddy fields and the long hours looking after the crops and animals are proving to be a deterrent to finding love.

So when his sister, Fizz - desperate for Barney to find his soulmate - sees an advert for Love on the Farm, a new reality TV show to help farmers find love, he has nothing to lose by applying. After all, he isn't meeting anyone suitable down the traditional route and surely he won't be picked anyway...?

Thrown into the chaos of reality TV, Barney could never have expected that his whole life would be turned upside down, with buried secrets to be uncovered and his heart on the line. With his family and friends rooting for him, could the magic of Bumblebee Barn heal his broken heart and help him find love on the farm?

Review: I have read all of Jessica Redland’s books, and particularly enjoyed her Hedgehog Hollow series; I know I was not the only reader to feel the loss when the series ended. It was nice, therefore, to discover that the rescue centre and some of its staff were to play a part in this new book, which is a standalone story set in the same area of the Yorkshire Wolds. The book has a really attractive cover showing Bumblebee Barn and the two central characters on a lovely summer’s day. I quickly devoured this new work and would rank it one of my favourites from this author. 

This is the story of Barney and Amber, how they met and what happened next. Barney is a farmer at Bumblebee Barn, a farm that has been in the family for many generations and which was passed onto him by his grandfather. Amber is a television producer, working on a variety of programmes, including a successful series on countryside life. Barney has been unsuccessful in finding a girlfriend who is willing to fit into his lifestyle and is persuaded to take part in a reality TV series aimed at finding partners for farmers like him. Much against her principles, Amber is going to be the producer on the show, which has been sold to her as having a family-friendly format. Things do not go as planned, and Barney finds himself becoming attracted to Amber, and she to him. She is far too professional to allow this mutual attraction to interfere with her job, but what will happen when filming is over?

I absolutely loved this romantic love story and can definitely recommend it. Who could fail to be attracted to handsome but lonely farmer Barney who is working so hard to keep the family farm going? He was so patient and understanding throughout this story, no matter what was thrown at him. Amber was also a lovely character, doing her best under difficult circumstances. I liked the way in which the story was told, with each chapter being narrated by one or other of the pair, putting across their own point of view. Of course, I loved to be returning to Hedgehog Hollow and meeting up with Fizz and Samantha again, not to forget a few spiny creatures. This is a wonderful new tale from Jessica Redland; I’m only sorry it’s a standalone as I would love to know what the future holds for this lovely couple. 

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