When Birdy Finch imagined running away from her life, running into her best friends wasn’t quite what she thought it would be.
Firstly, her best friend has no idea…
Secondly, Birdy must pull of pretending to be a world-class sommelier at a luxury Scottish resort…
…and finally, she needs to do all that whilst trying not to fall head over heels in love for the first time in her life with a man who thinks she is someone else!
What a brilliant debut novel from Lizzy Dent!
I wasn’t sure when I began reading whether I was going to like Birdy, and thought my dislike of the main protagonist would hamper my enjoyment of the whole story. I felt it hard to believe a grown woman would think it ok to play so fast and loose with her best friends career simply on the whim of needing a place to stay. However, as the reader gets to know her back story and discover her character progression it is easy to take a shine to this clumsy, misguided, go-lucky girl.
I would find it hard to put this book into a specific genre as there were several themes. There was comedy, friendship and romance but also alcoholism, child abuse and loneliness. For me the resounding feeling was of personal growth. How somebody selfish can realise the error of their ways and strive to be better and make amends. Dent manages to convey this message in such a light-hearted way that this novel still falls effortlessly into the beach read category.
There was only one part that irked me slightly and that was, what I felt to be, a bit of a plot hole.Of which I won’t go into the details off, as I refuse to post spoilers in my reviews.
All in all, this book had some hilarious moments cleverly intertwined with more serious topics all set against the beautiful backdrop of the Scottish scenery.
An effortless read filled with a likeable and relatable cast.
* Thanks to Viking, via NetGalley, for this ARC *