Today it's my turn on the BlogTour The Old Girls Network by Judy Leigh.
Judy Leigh is the bestselling author of Five French Hens, A Grand Old Time and The Age of Misadventure and the doyenne of the ‘it’s never too late’ genre of women’s fiction. She has lived all over the UK from Liverpool to Cornwall, but currently resides in Somerset. Click here to sign up to Judy's newsletter
Follow @judyleighwriter on Twitter, on Amazon, on Facebook, on Bookbub, on Goodreads, Visit judyleigh.com, Buy The Old Girls Network
About the book
Is it ever too late to change…
After a health scare, 77 year-old spinster Barbara goes to convalesce in the sleepy Somerset village of Winsleigh Green with her sister Pauline, who is now a widow. The sisters are like chalk and cheese - Barbara, outspoken and aloof and Pauline, good natured and homely – so it’s not long before the tension starts to rise.
But when Pauline accidentally knocks down a vagrant who goes by the name of Bisto Mulligan, the ladies find themselves with another houseguest. As he recovers, it becomes apparent that Bisto is not who he first seemed, and as the sisters get to know the kind and courageous man he really is, it’s clear Bisto has the potential to change both of their lives.
As the spring turns to summer, and Winsleigh Green comes to life, can the three friends make the changes they need to, to embrace fresh starts, new loves, new lives and new horizons. Or do old habits die too hard?
When Barbara goes to stay with her widowed sister Pauline to recover from some medical issues, it isn't exactly what either of them want. Well one expects it and the other accepts it reluctantly. It doesn't take very long for the differences between the two to create tension.
Everything changes when Pauline accidentally knocks over a man called Bisto. She invites him to stay until he is better and it is fair to say that his presence changes all three lives.
It's a cosy read with mature characters. A feel good have a chuckle and comfortable read.
I do believe Leigh has found a bit of a niche when it comes to writing about women of a certain mature age bracket and relationships, love and life. I think everyone assumes life grinds to a halt for women above sixty - I want to say fifty really because I am convinced the majority believes it is all downhill from that point.
Of course nobody thinks of men in the same way. They become grey foxes and mature wise gurus of the less youthful stage of life. Those who aren't trying to desperately recapture their youth with a cabriolet, a daughter-wife and a new outlook on life. Women however just become old.
It's refreshing to read characters that blow away all of these presumptions and misconceptions. I also enjoyed the way Leigh created the chalk and cheese sisters - oh my gosh, tell me about it. The way each of their lives has been completely different and how the relationship between the two has a imbalance when it comes to power. Old habits die hard and often follow us into adulthood.
Buy The Old Girls Network at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Boldwood Books; pub date 16 Jun. 2020. Buy at Amazon com.
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