Ivy Lane: Part 2 (Summer) by Cathy Bramley

The Blurb:

Romance ripens at Ivy Lane . . .

Tilly Parker is feeling happier than she has done since her life completely changed nearly two years ago. As she flourishes under the summer sun, she throws herself into life at Ivy Lane, complete with strawberry planting, chinwags with Gemma and cups of tea with Alf.

And excitement reaches fever pitch when a TV crew descends to capture life inside a modern-day allotment, bringing out the best (new wellies and lipstick) and the worst (parsnip rivalry) in them all.

As Tilly's broken heart slowly mends, she attracts the attention of not one but two suitors - but is Tilly ready for romance and what secrets is she still keeping from her friends at Ivy Lane?

Ivy Lane is a serialized novel told in four parts - taking you through a year in the life of Tilly Parker - with Summer the second part.

My Review:

Hooray, Tilly and the Ivy Lane allotment gang are back! I loved the first part of this series (Spring) and was so excited about getting stuck in to find out what happened next. I wasn’t disappointed!

In the first part we met Tilly Parker, the main character, who had recently moved into the area and had taken on an allotment. We don’t yet know all her history, but we do know that a guy called James has left her broken hearted. We also met a number of other characters, all of whom are involved in the allotments. The first part was fast paced, fun and I really liked the characters so was eager to get reacquainted with them.

Summer brings a camera crew to the allotments. They are there on and off over the summer to film the goings on at the allotment, and in particular follow one of the new members...cue the unwitting Tilly taking centre stage.

In the first book we met Charlie who seemed like he could become a love interest. In this book we still have Charlie, who is definitely keen, but we also meet another man....Aidan.

I loved hearing more about the characters, particularly Gemma who is becoming one of Tilly’s best friends. She has a teenage daughter and some of their scenes really made me laugh remembering my own rebellious teenage years.

The story is only 95 pages so it is a good quick read that totally engrossed me. I found it hard to put it down and do day to day things wanting to follow the story.

The big mystery of the story is around James. What happened to him? I found myself trying to make guesses throughout. Then, just as I thought we were getting answers..........

The story ends on a massive cliffhanger and has left me desperate to know what happens next. I cannot wait until the start of September to see what is going on.

I found the story so well written, easy to follow, fun and it has left me really wanting an allotment of my own to make friends like those at Ivy Lane.