Many thanks to Rachel’s Random Resources for having me on this birthday blitz and sending me a copy of the book to review.
The Book: Book 1 of 4 in the heartwarming Hummingbird House series.
April needs somewhere to live – and peace and quiet to heal her wounds. The tenants of Hummingbird House have other ideas.
When April moves into Hummingbird House, she is intrigued by her mysterious landlord, Dai.
With a bruised heart and a distinct lack of furniture, she spends the summer getting to know the other occupants. As she smartens up her home and makes peace with her recent past, she befriends Paul, a solitary ex-chef, and Betty, an elderly lady who lives in the basement flat.
But Hummingbird House holds many secrets, and the relationships of the tenants are not as straightforward as they seem. April learns some shocking truths one eventful night and realises that victims and villains can look the same.
The Landlord of Hummingbird House explores unlikely friendships, unexpected love interests, and family relationships. Here, everyone is in need of a second chance – and appearances can be deceptive.
Purchase Links
The Review: I’m going to start off by saying I loved this book, though I was a little unsure of it in the beginning. I wasn’t quite sure what to make of it when I started reading and then as the story progressed I realised what was happening. What this book is, and what has been done really cleverly, is to give the reader snippets of the tenants lives. Mostly April because she’s the main character for this book, but to varying degrees the other tennants of Hummingbird House.
It starts off with April moving into the house and then continues over a period of 2 months or so. April is starting over after some life changes and is having to adjust to living somewhere new. Through her living in Hummingbird House we get to meet the other residents particularly Paul and Dai. The story is told from the perspective of someone popping into the flats and building every now and then and, as I said, getting snippets of their lives. One instance we might read of someone cooking a meal, another one might be April planning to buy some more items for her flat. They all lead on from one to the other, none of these are unnecessary though they do sometimes feel a little random.
What this book is, is what you would see if you were able to watch your own neighbours. You’d see them living their lives, adjusting to changes, meeting new people, dealing with loss and finding new opportunities. But also doing the things that sometimes get pushed aside in life, making food, cleaning, having a lie in of a morning.
I really enjoyed watching the characters, seeing how they changed as they got settled or got to know each other. This is a story that reminds you that life is about the little things and well as the big ones, that there are challenges but also times of joy, and that you never know what is going on in someone else’s life.
The Author:
Jane Harvey is a pen name. ‘Jane’ crafts fun fiction for the thinking woman, where she enjoys exploring unexpected friendships and writing happy endings. In ‘real life’, her (prize-winning) fiction is a little bleaker.
She was born and raised on the beautiful island of Jersey, CI, and lives with two males and a dog.
Social Media Links –
Instagram.com/jane_harvey_novelist
Facebook.com/jane_harvey_novelist
Bluesky: @dreenawriting.co.uk
