What happens when two medical professionals–ex Army medic from a village in the Scottish Highlands and an inner city nurse from inner-city London—switch jobs for three months and become unlikely pen pals?
Lissa, is a nurse in a gritty, hectic London neighborhood. Always terribly competent and good at keeping it all together, she’s been suffering quietly with PTSD after helping to save the … suffering quietly with PTSD after helping to save the victim of a shocking crime. Her supervisor quietly arranges for Lissa to spend a few months doing a much less demanding job in the little town of Kirrinfeif in the Scottish Highlands, hoping that the change of scenery will help her heal. Lissa will be swapping places with Cormack, an Army veteran who’s Kirrinfeif’s easygoing nurse/paramedic/all-purpose medical man. Lissa’s never experienced small-town life, and Cormack’s never spent more than a day in a big city, but it seems like a swap that would do them both some good.
In London, the gentle Cormack is a fish out of the water; in Kirrinfief, the dynamic Lissa finds it hard to adjust to the quiet. But these two strangers are now in constant contact, taking over each other’s patients, endlessly emailing about anything and everything. Lissa and Cormack discover a new depth of feeling…for their profession and for each other.
But what will happen when Lissa and Cormack finally meet…?
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This is the feel good book of the year. I loved every character and I never wanted it to end.
I just finished this yummy new book and I adored it. It made me feel like I too (along with our heroine Lissa) moved to the quaint Scottish village of Kirrinfief in The
Scottish Highlands, just on the edge of Loch Ness.
This sweet distance romance between Lissa and Scottish medical man Cormack was just lovely.
There was also an organ donation sub plot that, of course, made me cry happy tears.
I finished this a few days ago and this is one I needed to sit on for a bit before writing the review. I read that it could be read as a stand alone, but I think that I would have preferred more backstory into the setting. I adore all things UK, particularly related to Scotland.
Lissa witnesses a shocking crime and her job relocates her in order for her to give her some relief from PTSD. Lissa leaves London and swaps places with Cormack, a Scottish Highlander. Both find stepping into the other’s shoes opens up unexpected opportunities and begin a long distance pen pal relationship. Lissa and Cormack are endearing characters and I loved the way Jenny built in the blossoming relationship through messages rather than proximity.
This is my first book by Jenny. With zero expectations, I find that I like her style and am anticipating reading her backlog.
Another loving beautiful book by Ms Colgan
This was my first Jenny Colgan book and I immediately found all her others which are on my TBR list. The characters are wonderful and the endings happy (so good in these pandemic days) but not cloying or without bumps in the road. A truly enjoyable read!!
I loved this story, I really did and I struggled to put it down; it was totally addictive. The build-up in the story was fantastic and had me hanging on there right to the end. Set in London and the little town of Kirrinfeif in the Scottish Highlands, it really is a story of contrasts. I loved the comparison between the two places and how they both affected and grew on the two main characters.
The characters were great, beautifully crafted and I fell in love with them both. I really felt for Lissa, her experiences in London and how they affected her, leaving her terrified, were so well written I could feel her terror. Cormac, well Cormac is wonderful. I really enjoyed his reaction to being in London, how the hustle and bustle compared with his quiet home.
This being the third book in the Scottish Book Shop series.it was lovely to catch up with Nina and Zoe too. I just love this little town and all the marvellous characters.
I cannot recommend this story highly enough, it was a joy to read. I do hope there will be more stories from Kirrinfeif.
Five Hundred Miles From You by Jenny Colgan a five-star read you would go Five thousand miles for. This is number three in the Scottish Bookshop series but they truly can be read as stand-alone as I haven’t read the other two as I didn’t realise it was a series, I will be going back to read them though as I adored this one and if they are about who I think they are I can’t wait to hear more. This is a moving story and shows how life can change in an instant, and how everyone should carry a donor card, I have carried one for over 25 years now and live in Wales so even if I don’t have my card on me I know my wishes will still be followed. But that’s not all this novel is about, its about dealing with the aftermath of life and fixing the broken pieces back together again. Reading about Lissa and Cormac as they swap roles and email back and forth with patient updates made me smile, but it was the doodles that did me in, they just made me catch the light and showed me a different side to the story one that made the sunshine come out. Even after a few false starts through the fair and a fancy bar I loved seeing where this story ended I enjoyed this so much.