Promise Me: The most heart-warming novel of 2023

Product Information

En ondanks de voorspelbaarheid van het genre, weet Jill je in dit verhaal toch weer te verrassen met wat leuke en spannende twists in het verhaal. Dit is een hartverwarmend verhaal over de kracht van aandacht en omkijken naar elkaar, over echte vriendschap, liefde, begrip, eerste indrukken en verandering, over kiezen voor geluk, wat miscommunicatie en interessante afspraken, over charmante façades en twee gezichten, over verdriet en vreugde. De warme, vloeiende, luchtige, beeldende en vlotte schrijfstijl van Jill Mansell zorgt zorgt voor uren puur leesplezier en dit fijne en meeslepende verhaal zal je feelgoodhart als een zonnetje verwarmen!

He was gesturing at the majestic Georgian property constructed from custard-coloured Cotswold stone and overlooking the small town like a Roman emperor surveying his subjects. It was solid and square, with symmetrical rows of six-paned sash windows on three levels, a silver-grey slate roof, wisteria climbing up the walls and impressive stone pillars flanking the front door. Fine, let’s get it done.’ There was a gaping hole in the side of the carrier, so Lou stuffed the Merlot and doughnuts into her shoulder bag and used her own. When she’d finished scrubbing the floor, she said, ‘Look, why don’t you write out an advert and let me put it in the newsagent’s window for you? I can do it when I leave here. Get yourself someone who can come and tidy the house up once or twice a week, how does that sound?’ He sighed as loudly as if she’d asked him to run a marathon. ‘I’d need them here more often than that.’ But if anyone can handle him, I guess it’s you. Look, I’ll call again in a bit, OK? I should definitely be home by six.’Lou is surprised to see the size of the estate that Edgar is living alone on. It is evident that he needs help to maintain his home and she soon learns that he has gone through a series of caregivers. When he offers Lou the job she explains that she already is caring for a woman in the town she lives in. He continues to pursue her and shortly thereafter her circumstances change. To sweeten the deal, Edgar offers to leave his estate to her upon his death. Bijna iedereen die feelgood-boeken leest, heeft weleens iets gelezen van Jill Mansell of in ieder geval haar naam gehoord. En terecht, want het zijn heerlijke boeken voor in de zomer. Haar humoristische romans zijn vermakelijk, gemakkelijk te lezen en uiteraard grappig. De cover van het boek straalt ook een en al vrolijkheid uit. Een heerlijke plek, waar toevallig ook nog Remy woont, de aantrekkelijke oudere broer van Lou’s vriend Sammy. The last thing Lou wants is to move to a tiny Cotswolds village. She certainly doesn't intend to work for curmudgeonly eighty-year-old Edgar Allsopp. But Edgar is about to make her the kind of promise nobody could ignore. In return, she secretly vows to help him fall in love with life again. The book is filled with a diverse cast of interesting and well-developed characters including a woman from Edgar’s past and her family. I enjoyed the sweet romances in the book and the special bond that Edgar forms with his rescue dog. It was the special relationship that develops between Edgar and Lou that made this book such an enjoyable read.

Overigens was hij meteen mijn meest favoriete personage in dit boek. Wie kan er nu niet houden van een heerlijke oude brompot als Edgar? En wat zit er schuil achter zijn humeur? I didn't have much to complain about Jill Mansell's prose - the pacing was fluid, the shift between character POV's was very well-handled - the cast themselves, were such a whimsical and playful and colorful lot, that as you bounced from each of their lives - it is how they inevitably were connected with one another is what made it such a delightful read. 💞💞 If she’d been on her own, she might have joked, ‘Are you telling me he’s a mad axe murderer?’ But since Edgar was sitting less than six feet away, she said, ‘That’s right! I’ve just made him a mug of tea.’ What? I don’t have a wife. Never been married.’ He regarded her with fresh suspicion. ‘How can you not know that?’ I love a story which features a cantankerous character and eighty-year-old Edgar was the perfect complement to Lou’s sweet demeanour. It was a joy to watch the relationship between these two develop into something more than employer and employee. This is my first book by Jill Mansell, but it certainly won’t be my last.Meanwhile Sammy’s brother Remy has begun to catch Lou’s eye. Handsome and charming, with women falling at his feet, Lou is determined that she will not become another notch on his bedpost. Resisting temptation is not easy! Even though I knew exactly what was going to happen, who would end up with whom. I still was fully invested in the storyline and loved it. I wanted to see the journey through and enjoy how we get to the happy endings.

Didi en Shay ontmoetten elkaar 13 jaar geleden in Venetië, waar ze de 18e verjaardag van hun gezamenlijke vriendin Layla vierden. Tijdens een sprookjesachtige sneeuwnacht waarin ze allebei het hotel uitglipten, bleken ze een speciale klik te hebben en ze waren al gauw onafscheidelijk. Totdat een schandaal ervoor zorgde dat Shay halsoverkop vertrok, hij haar hart brak en zij hem nooit meer zag. Tot nu. There are many different characters and storylines to get accustomed to that I am not actually sure who the main character was supposed to be even though the story is apparently about Lou. I suspect that I simply went into this book expecting way too much and maybe being misled by the synopsis. Taking the job means she's living close to old school friends, including the gorgeous Remy, in the tiny, picturesque Cotswolds village of Foxwell.

Dit jaar heeft Luitingh-Sijthoff Amsterdam flink uitgepakt. 'Het zonnetje in huis' schreeuwt lente. Wat is het toch een prachtig exemplaar! Met fleurige bloemen die de cover én de edges sieren. Mooi vanbuiten, maar is het ook mooi vanbinnen?

Lou had a good job, and a flat in Birmingham, but every changes overnight and she’s homeless and unemployed. Lou recently stayed with her friend Sammy in the Cotswold village of Foxwell. Whilst there, she was offered a job by eighty-year-old loner Edgar. Edgar is probably the most offensive, grumpy old man ever created and Lou has avoided his numerous calls so far. However, needs must and when he makes an offer that she can’t refuse, she decides to give it a go and becomes Edgar’s live-in carer. So ten minutes ago you thought I was a mugger, yet now you’re happy for me to poke around your house.’ Lou is een personage om wie je meteen gaat geven: ze heeft een groot hart, tomeloze energie en een positieve instelling, ze is zorgzaam en altijd op zoek naar manieren om andere mensen gelukkig te maken, al laat ze daardoor ook wel eens over zich heen lopen en is ze redelijk naïef, ondanks alles wat ze heeft meegemaakt. Haar omgang met de knorrige en botte maar eenzame Edgar maakt je vrolijk, ze zorgt ervoor dat hij weer onderdeel van de gemeenschap wordt en bezorgt hem echte blijdschap door een nieuwe vriend op zijn pad te brengen: de lastige hond Captain Oates, die voor grappige en ontroerende momenten zorgt en de held van het verhaal wordt. No worries, I’m fine. I’m in someone’s kitchen,’ Lou said cheerfully. ‘We met in the supermarket car park, then he broke his glasses so I had to drive him home.’

Now read the opening chapter of Jill’s latest book…

Dit verhaal bracht mij pure ontspanning. Het kwam precies op het juiste moment. Rijkelijk gevuld met feelgood, doorspekt met humor, soms wat voorspelbaar én toch ook een beetje hartverscheurend. Jill Mansell heeft weer een succesformule op het papier weten te vangen die het begin van de lente inluidt. She found a pen on the dresser along with a battered tear-off pad. When she placed them in front of him, Edgar said, ‘You can write it. Six mornings a week, general cleaning, cooking and helping out.’ He paused, then added generously, ‘They can have Sundays off.’ Lou heaved a sigh. This was getting silly now; she’d got herself into a situation with a truculent pensioner who was a stranger to manners. And much as she wanted to say no to his demand, her conscience wasn’t letting her. Jill Mansell is a incredibly talented author who has delivered flawless books over and over again and her latest novel Promise Me is no exception. We have the warmth and depth of emotion that we are accustomed to in Jill’s novels but there is also a modern spark to this storyline too. Oh now, you always say that.’ The cashier was evidently accustomed to his crabbiness. ‘And the prices haven’t changed since last week, my love.’