Guest Review: Heading Home to Lavender Cottage by Alison Sherlock

Welcome to Alison Sherlocks brand NEW series, full of heart warming characters set in the idyllic English countryside.

With nowhere else to go, Harriet Colgan has returned to the sleepy village of Cranfield to sell her beloved aunt and uncle’s cottage, the only place she ever called home.

When she arrives at Lavender Cottage, Harriet discovers plans to replace the beautiful lavender fields, her uncle’s pride and joy, with an industrial warehouse.

With time on her hands, she realises she must fight to protect her family’s legacy and the village of Cranfield as well.

Workaholic businessman Joe Randall was expecting an easy purchase of the lavender fields. But suddenly his quiet life is disrupted by protests from angry locals, organised by Harriet.

Can Harriet show Joe that there’s more to life than just work? And can Joe change his mind and help Harriet save the lavender fields?

Over a long, hot summer, and with the help of a stray dog, perhaps Harriet and Joe can find their way home too.

Review: This is the first book in a new series from Alison Sherlock. I really enjoyed the stories in her last series, set in the little town of Cranbridge and was interested to find that this new series features the small neighbouring village of Cranfield. It was good to meet the new characters and places in this story, while visiting some familiar locations in Cranbridge. I was quickly drawn into this story and found it compelling reading. 

The story centres on Harriet Colgan, who finds herself simultaneously without a job and home and sets off for her late aunt and uncle’s home, Lavender Cottage, in Cranfield, a house where she spent the happiest times of her childhood. Harriet is sad to be sorting out the house ready for putting it on the market. She is appalled to find that the fields adjoining the cottage, where her uncle cultivated lavender, are about to be sold to developers. Determined to save the village from industrial development, Harriet organises protests, much to the dismay of Joe Randall who was hoping for a quick purchase of the land on behalf of his father’s company. However, he begins to be won over by Harriet’s arguments against the development at the same time as enjoying the slower pace of life in the small community. After a rocky start, could it be that Harriet and Joe are becoming close? 

I very much enjoyed this book and would recommend it to others. It is filled with amazing characters with interesting back stories of their own, including friends Harriet made when she visited the village in her younger days. In addition to the central storyline, there are a few other stories dealing in particular with the local farm and the now defunct  railway station. In the course of organising her protests, Harriet was befriended by a rather adorable stray dog, who became her constant companion; I for one enjoy a cute dog in a book. I loved the author’s descriptions of the village and the activities arranged by the locals; the feeling of community just oozed out of the book. This is a village that readers are bound to want to visit. I cant wait for the next book in the series. 

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