#BlogTour Fresh Eggs and Dog Beds by Nick Albert

Today it's my turn on the BlogTour Fresh Eggs and Dog Beds: Living the Dream in Rural Ireland by Nick Albert.

About the Author
Nick Albert was born in England and raised in a Royal Air Force family. After leaving College he worked in retail management for several years before moving into financial services where he quickly progressed through the ranks to become a training consultant. As a very passionate and reasonably talented sportsman, Nick had always wanted to use his training skills towards creating a parallel career, so in the mid 1980's he qualified and began coaching sport professionally.

After a health scare in 2003 and in search of a simpler life, he and his wife Lesley, cashed in their investments, sold their home and bought a rundown farmhouse in the rural west of Ireland - a country they had never before even visited. With little money or experience and armed only with a do-it-yourself manual, they set about renovating their new home, where they now live happily alongside a flock of chickens, two ducks and several unruly, but delightful dogs.

In 2017 Nick was signed to Ant Press to write a series of humorous memoirs about his life in rural Ireland. Fresh Eggs and Dog Beds (book one) was published in September 2017 and soon became an Amazon bestseller. Book two in the series was published on 1st June 2018 and book 3 in August 2019. Book four is due out in early 2020.

Nick is also the author of the twisty thriller, Wrecking Crew, the first in a series of books featuring reluctant hero Eric Stone.

Follow @NickAlbertautho on Twitter, on Instagram, on Goodreads, on Youtube, on Amazon, on Facebook and NickAlbertAuthor on Facebook, Visit nickalbert.co.uk  nickalbert.allauthor.com  nickalbertauthor.blogspot.com, Buy Fresh Eggs and Dog Beds

About the book
Nick and Lesley Albert yearn to leave the noise, stress and pollution of modern Britain and move to the countryside, where the living is good, the air sweet, with space for their dogs to run free.
Suddenly out of work and soon to be homeless, they set off in search of a new life in Ireland, a country they had never visited. As their adventure began to unfold, not everything went according to plan. If finding their dream house was difficult, buying it seemed almost impossible. How would they cope with banks that didn’t want customers, builders who didn’t need work, or the complex issue of where to buy some chickens?

Review

What is a nightmare to one person is a dream to another. A series of events in Nick's life lead him to a new path in life. He wants to change the way his life is built, the way he spends his time. No more being a hamster powering a tiny wheel in the huge machinery of his industry.

It's interesting how some events can seem almost like an omen or a sign, perhaps more so because some of us perceive them as much, whilst many of us just ignore them and carry on. A health-scare  jolts Nick and Lesley into action, it awakens forgotten wishes and a need to be relaxed instead of constantly stressed.

Albert wrings the comedy from the eccentricity, the boldness and the determination. Simple tasks often become mole hill to mountain situations, so it's easier to cope when you can laugh at yourself and others.

This is a humorous memoir, the beginning of a series of books that explore life in rural Ireland. A chosen life, as opposed to a life that is forced upon us as we try to navigate the problems and find pleasure in the small moments. Nick and Lesley take the bull by the horns and do what many of us would like to do - build a life that gives not only stress, but also peace, fulfilment and happiness.

Aside from that if you come away with anything from this read it will probably be the love of Ireland. The reverence, admiration and love for the surroundings is palpable.

Buy Fresh Eggs and Dog Beds at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Ant Press; pub date 25 Sept. 2017. Paperback Audiobook. Buy at Amazon com. Paperback Audiobook