This wasn’t my favorite book in the series. It was a slow-burn read with Maggie and David pulling their classes together to give the students a different perspective on life, but not giving their relationship a chance to blossom. I didn’t like the beginning with the whole Stan episode. Why did Maggie really need to be there? That ship has sailed! I also didn’t like the ending of the book. It’s supposed to be the last book of the series but I had so many questions about what happened next and I didn’t get the closure I was looking for. I would only recommend this book to fans of the series.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon & Harper Voyager for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you NetGalley, Avon and the author for a digital ARC of this book. Studies at the School by the Sea is the fourth and final book in this delightful coming of age series by Jenny Colgan. A beautiful setting on the English coast, romance and teenage angst continue from the earlier books. Teachers Maggie and David are getting serious about their relationship and Maggie’s class of boarding school students are ready to graduate. David is now teaching at a vastly underfunded inner city public school. Students from both schools are brought together for various extracurricular activities and begin to realize they are much more alike than different. Perhaps one of the most important lessons learned that year. This is a charming heartfelt series which would appeal to readers looking for something light. The characters, both adult and teenage, grow and evolve throughout the series. I highly recommend reading the books in order. All in all, a very nice finale with possibilities for future books!

This story started with so many varying points of view, but the more the different strings wove together the more interesting it became. The teen drama and class drama was so familiar and unfortunately accurate. It was nice to see an example of times when those walls can be breached.

#arc
#netgalley
#studiesattheschoolbythesea

Jenny Colgan writes the most wonderful small town, slice of life stories. Atmospheric, real and relatable, charming characters. Evenly paced and well written

A wrap-up to a favorite series. I've loved the first three books in the School by the Sea, but this final volume felt strangely flat and less charming than the previous books. I still enjoyed spending time with these lovely characters, but the overall experience was only fair.

I have absolutely loved this series! This is the finale of the series and was a bittersweet read for me. I'm not ready to leave these characters behind!

Teachers David and Maggie are in a relationship, but the relationship is put to the test when David chooses to teach at a school with underprivileged children, where Maggie stays at Downey House, whose students are well off. With David devoting countless hours to his students, Maggie begins to feel a bit neglected. Will their relationship survive the teaching assignment?

I really liked the dynamics of Maggie and David, and of their students. This is a great feel good summer read.

I enjoyed reading Studies at the School by the Sea by Jenny Colgan. You will fall in love with all the characters. Happy Reading! I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley and the publisher. This is my honest and personal review.

This latest installment of Jenny Colgan’s boarding school series is enjoyable to read but still seems unfinished. For some reason I thought this was the conclusion of the series, but maybe I was mistaken since not much seems to be have been resolved. I understand that this last installment was written later than the first three, and that changes had to be made due to the passage of time and especially the rise of social media. Good effort, but the story still seemed incomplete.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Sweet ending to the School by the Sea series. I enjoyed getting to know some of David's students, and keeping up with the Downey House girls.

Thank you Netgalley and Avon and Harper Voyager | Avon for the ARC!

Studies at the School by the Sea is the 4th book in a series and as much as I love Jenny Colgan books, I think maybe 3 could've told the whole story. I wanted more of Maggie and David and less of the students. This felt very much like a YA book. 3 stars

“You’re like a fish trying to figure out what the birds are doing.”
“But it’s so hard.”
“Yes” said Calvin “Niw you’re getting it. Other people have it tough.
“I know.” Said Fliss “But I didn’t make it that way.”
“You didn’t,” replied Calvin “But we all have to start changing it.”
I adore this series so much. The characters, the setting, the story, it all just hits me right in the feels. The gentle and tender yet uncertain relationship between teachers David and Maggie, whose relationship is tested by David’s choice to teach at the local school and give the underprivileged children a much needed boost while Maggie has her loyalty to Downey House, whose girls are navigating the typical teenage issues of social media, exams, peer pressure despite their affluent backgrounds. When David and Maggie bring the two schools together, they find that they’re not so different after all and Maggie and David both want nothing but the best for their students but also want a relationship. Can they figure out how to have the best of both worlds?
A sweet and thoughtful story with loads of characters to bring a bit of everything to the story and a setting in Cornwall to escape to. Perfect escape read.
Thanks to Avon Books UK and NetGalley for this eArc in exchange for my review.

Studies at the School by the Sea is the fourth and final installment in Jenny Colgan’s Maggie Adair series. It features story lines for a small group of students boarding at the all-girls school, Downey House, as well as a couple teachers. 

This time around, students from David’s new public school, Philip Dean, are added to the mix. Ms. Colgan somewhat unbiasedly presents the coarser, less privileged students juxtaposed to the entitled, spoiled, posh students at Downey House. The girls at Downey continue to provide much of the drama and angst. Their teenaged drama is so very typical of the age group which makes it sympathetic and empathetic to any reader who has had children or been a teenager. David takes on his new charges with diplomacy and compassion. The mild romance between David and Maggie plods along in slow-burn fashion with many hurdles from family and career. 

The denouement of both the Studies at the School by the Sea and the series is satisfactory and expected. While I enjoyed the characters and story arc, I would have liked a faster pace to the storytelling and a little more action in the plot. The series is a sweet, charming read where I easily saw the writer’s obsession with boarding school stories. I read two of the books and listened to two books in the series. I have to say that the audio books really enhanced my experience.

Studies at the School by the Sea is The Fourth School by the Sea Novel by Jenny Colgan.
This story was just as good as the first three in the series.
I love that she writes such good-feeling and a happy stories. Her books are always witty combined with heartfelt characters.
I loved being back in the amazing company of Maggie Adair and at the Downey House girls boarding school in Cornwall.
She always brings the characters in her novels to life in such a realistic way.
Jenny Colgan is a favorite author of mine and every time I’m excited when I see she has an upcoming title being released.

Thank You NetGalley and Avon for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

This is the 4th book in the series. I do recommend reading the previous books. There is much back story you need to know about the main characters.
Maggie is now in her 4th year of teaching English at the boarding school. So much has been going on in her life as well as the girls she teaches.
The story has a bit of everything…..romance, relationships and humor.
Thanks NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read this book for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Jenny Colgan always writes a charming story with a good plot. Her beloved characters endure ups and downs all the way to the end. This is the last of the School By The Sea series, but can be read independantly of the previous volumes. When Scottish private girls' school teacher, Maggie, broke her engagement to her long term boyfriend, her parents were deeply disappointed. Boys' school teacher, David, recently divorced. Maggie and David meet when their schools propose joint activities with the two schools. Naturally, the girls are eyeballing the boys and the boys aren't sure what they think. Some boys and girsls are naturally good students and some are naturally good athletes. What will happen as they interact and get to know one another? There is intrigue and insight and some bad behavior. As Maggie and David get to know each other, they have real interest and attraction. At the end of the semester, the students from both schools participate in a joint outdoor, outward bound event. What will they learn? And, will Maggie and David return as a couple?

Jenny Colgan writes a great tale . Not too wordy as to exhaust the reader into losing interest, but long enough to tell a good story. She has the talent to engage readers in down to earth stories.

I received this ARC in exchange for my opinion. My thanks to the Jenny Colgan and Harper Collins.
You will love this one. I recommend it!

Jenny Colgan is the quintessential atmospheric fiction writer, the interesting, quirky settings so beautifully intertwine with her characters and the plot. The School by the Sea series is another shining example, but the setting is less about the unique nature of the physical natural environment (though the side trip did bring the area to life) and more about the social environment of the educational systems in England through a boarding school but also a public school. As an American and as a teacher, this element was fascinating. I'm not quite ready to move and teach at a posh boarding school, but the antics were quite amusing. Colgan's characters are always impactful- quirky, multidimensional and so easy to love. Maggie and David are perfect for each other and I'm glad Colgan finished publishing this series. A side note though, I know I am greedy, but I wanted more closure for M & D, maybe an epilogue. If Colgan ever decides to dabble in this world again, I think there are plenty more stories to tell.
Thanks to #Avon and Harper Voyager, Avon and #NetGalley for the Arc.

I am a longtime fan of Jenny Colgan’s fiction and have loved reading Colgan’s boarding school series, filled with Colgan’s trademark descriptive prose and quirky characters. For me, however, Studies at the School by the Sea was a bit of a miss. I found myself skimming midway through, as the plot just wasn’t holding my attention, despite my investment in the series and a genuine interest in learning what was to become of its many characters.

Two and a half stars, rounded up due to Colgan’s characterizations and strong sense of place.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Avon for a complimentary ARC. Opinions are my own.

Maggie and David teach at two very different schools, one posh and one more working class. As they continue to see each other, plans are made for the students of both schools to have some activities together. The students are a group of characters that were not that interesting to me, and it felt more like a YA type of book. Not my favorite of Colgan’s, but will appeal to those who have read the previous books in this series. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Maybe it is because I could see myself being friends with her characters? Maybe because they just feel so very real? Or maybe because I fancy myself having some of their same adventures? Whatever it is, I can't seem to get enough of the worlds Jenny Colgan writes in. Sure the hills and castles of Downey House sound romantic, but instead we get teen angst mirrored by Maggie's own confusion. I love how things were tied up, loosely but with the belief that everything is going to be okay. I'll miss the girls and hope that perhaps some of them might make appearances in future works.

Maggie and David face some tough decisions on where their lives will go from here. Will they stay together or is the pull of Maggies hometown take her back. As they face graduation Fliss, Simone and Alice face a new life.. And a new class comes in at the School by the Sea.