Book Review: One Summer’s Night by Kiley Dunbar
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I bought this book as part of a three for £5 deal in The Works. It appealed to me for many reasons. Firstly because I’ve been to Stratford-Upon-Avon, which is where the book is set, and also because I love an easy, romantic read and this ticked all of those boxes!
The path of true love never did run smooth…did it?
Kelsey Anderson is stuck in a rut so big, she’ll need a 4-wheel drive to get out. She’s just been made redundant from her dead-end job, and boyfriend Fran is so busy climbing up the career ladder that he’s forgotten how to have fun. She needs to change her life – and fast.
Stumbling across an advert for tour guides in Stratford-Upon-Avon seems like the perfect way to bring the sunshine back. In an impulsive move, she moves from her small Scottish village to Shakespeare’s birthplace, armed only with a suitcase and her battered copy of Shakespeare’s Sonnets.
Kelsey quickly falls in love with the place, her job as a tourist guide allowing her to explore every inch of the picture-perfect town, from cosy cafes to the picturesque banks of the river.
But it’s not just the town that captures her heart, as she finds herself torn between the actors Will and Jonathan who both vie for her affections.
But will beautiful Peony, the lead actress at the Oklahoma theatre company where Jonathan is playing Oberon in A Midsummer’s Night’s Dream, play a role in keeping Kelsey and Jonathan apart?
Or will flirtatious, charming Will, the fellow tour guide who has set his sights on Kelsey, keep the star-crossed lovers from finding their happy ending?
One Summer’s Night is the debut novel by Kiley Dunbar and I really enjoyed it. The main character, Kelsey has just been made redundant from her job in a photography shop. In addition, her relationship with boyfriend, Francis isn’t going too well either. Feeling as though she hasn’t done much with her life, Kelsey impulsively applies for her dream job as a tour guide in Stratford-Upon-Avon.
Having visited the birth town of Shakespeare with her family when she was a child, Kelsey has grown up with a love of Shakespeare and his work. So one day, Kelsey is surprised to receive a phone call not long after applying for the role of tour guide in which she is offered the job.
The problem with this is that she hasn’t told Francis that she’d applied for the job. It also means moving from Scotland to Stratford-Upon-Avon. This in itself will be a challenge considering Kelsey doesn’t have a lot of money.
Throughout the book we follow Kelsey on her journey to Stratford-Upon-Avon to start her new life as a tour guide. We get to meet some wonderful characters along the way including Will, Jonathan and Peony.
I really like the author, Kiley Dunbar’s way of writing. It flows well which makes the book both easy and enjoyable to read. I’m really looking forward to reading her next book which will be out in the Autumn of 2020.
