Cute and soft - I found the pace too slow at times for me, but this is actually the kind of gentle love and sweet friendship books you can hunker down with during a cold afternoon or a dismal evening with a cup of hot cocoa in hand

The perfect book for this weird and troubling days. It's heartwarming, sweet and it talks about love, friendship and starting again.
Stella is a great character, you cannot help rooting for them, as you cannot help liking the other fleshed out characters.
The setting is lovely and vivid, the plot flows and it keeps you hooked.
It was a heartwarming, engrossing and entertaining read.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

Current status: I’m not crying, you’re crying *sniffs*. (Please note these are the happy-sappy kind.)

In my humble opinion, there’s just something about a Katie Ginger book that warms the heart.

And, I don’t know about you, but I needed that this week.

Can you imagine the courage it takes to leave behind all you have known and start afresh somewhere new? *whispers* Between thee and me, I have considered this a time or two, but you know, *shrugs* mother plus two cats (RIP Gizmo) means I’m grounded, lol. (I repeat myself; I know. *rolls eyes*)

A bit heart-sore following her divorce, Stella’s move to Swallowtail Bay is a chance to finally follow her dreams. Throwing herself fully into her new venture, Stella embraces her new beginning, no matter how scary it may feel. She may be alone at the start (with the exception of Frank, of course), but that’s all about to change...

This is a story of love (the slow burn kind) and friendships. The friends we treasure most, those who lift us up not bring us down, hold our hands in times of trouble and become the family we choose for ourselves. And the love we least expect.

I have to be honest and say that I wanted to stretch a certain character’s neck like a giraffe. I know, I know *waves hand* – bad Laura. Violence is not the answer, kids 😐.

I’ve been a fan of Katie’s since her debut release back in September 2018. With each book her writing just gets better and better. You simply forget you’re reading a story.

Along with Stella, Miles, Lexi et al, prepare to laugh, smile and cry in equal measure (not forgetting an irate or cringeworthy moment or two *smirks*). But most of all, be prepared for a feeling of happiness when you finally find where you belong.

*blows nose*

One final thought... scratch that – make it two.

1. You never know the lives you touch.

and

2. Sorry, but I have to disagree. #ColinFirth4Eva *snorts*

This a great story set in the seaside town of Swallowtail Bay. It is about love, friendships, and new starts. It follows Stella, who wants a fresh start after her divorce so she moves to Swallowtail Bay and buys a shop and works very hard to make it a success. She becomes great friends with Lexi, a single mother of two who is having financial problems. She also meets her snobby neighbor Miles, who desperately wanted to buy the shop & is not happy that the owner sold it to Stella. Stella and Miles have a lot of misconceptions about each other at first and along the way learn some valuable lessons.
You can't help but root for as Stella. . Lexi was a wonderful character who deserved to have a happy ending as much as Stella did. Lexi and Stella were both in need of a best friend and I was happy that they found each other. Miles was a bit annoying in the beginning but warmed to him as the story progressed. His character development was excellent, and I enjoyed his interactions with Stella and though they had great chemistry.

Would recommend this book and hope there is a sequel.

This was such a sweet and delightful book to get lost in for a while!

I have not read any of Katie Ginger's other books but I plan on picking some more in up the coming days ahead. This was an easy and engaging read and I just loved Stella. Honestly I wish I could move wherever they are and make friend with all of them they seemed that lovely and REAL.

The only slight downside is that it wasn't as "laugh out loud" funny as I saw claimed but it didn't need to be. It was perfect as it is.

This is the perfect book to read for an escape or during a vacation this summer.

Thank you to NetGalley and HQ Digital for an eARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This is a moving tale about love, friendship and new beginnings. Stella, a recent divorcee moves to Swallowtail Bay and puts all her money into a questionable gift shop and a couple of holiday lets. And so begins her chance to start again.

As well as Stella, there is also a super cuteKing Charles Spaniel, her arrogant next door neighbour Miles, who may not be quite as he seems, and Lexie who has two young children.

Swallowtail Bay is a charming place, that will sweep you in and make you wish that you could go there for real. And I cannot wait to visit it again in the next book!

This is the story of Stella. She has used her divorce settlement to buy a gift shop and holiday lets in the idyllic Swallowtail Bay.

She makes a new friend in Lexi, and meets a grouchy, miserable neighbour, Miles. He is put out by Stella buying the gift shop before he could.

With wary locals, an ex husband about to remarry, Stella has a tough start, but with her friends behind her will she succeed and find some happiness?

I found this to be an absolutely charming read. A tale of love and friendship, something much needed these days. Pure escapism and a warm cuddle of a read.

Thank you to Sian at HQ Stories and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this for free. . This is my honest and unbiased review.

4.5 Stars

Spring Tides at Swallowtail Bay by Katie Ginger is a heartwarming story about love, friendships, and fresh starts. Set in the idyllic little seaside town of Swallowtail Bay, it follows Stella, who wants a fresh start after her divorce. From there, we see Stella work very hard to make her business a success. The villagers are welcoming and she quickly finds herself surrounded by a supportive group of friends, and there's a possible romance with Jay, a handsome web designer. She becomes great friends with Lexi, a single mother of two who is having financial problems. She also meets her snobby neighbor Miles, who desperately wanted to buy the gift shop and holiday lets and is not happy that the owner sold it to Stella instead of him. Stella and Miles have a lot of misconceptions about each other, will it ever be cleared up?
This was such a delightful and engaging read! Stella is a lovely and kindhearted character and you can't help but root for as she works hard to build a new life for herself. We also follow the POVs of Lexi and Miles, which I enjoyed. Lexi was a wonderful character who deserved to have a happy ending as much as Stella did. Lexi and Stella were both in need of a best friend and I was happy that they found each other.
I didn't care for Miles in the beginning but warmed to him as the story progress. His character development was excellent, and I enjoyed his interactions with Stella and though they had great chemistry.
I loved spending time with the villagers of Swallowtail Bay and eagerly await the second book.

I received an ARC from HQ Digital through NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

How have I never read a Katie Ginger novel before!? Wow, I was blown away by this story. It was such an enjoyable and happy read that I was gutted when it came to an end and I started quickly looking at what other novels she's written just so I could read more of her books! There is no way I could have given this less than 5 stars. The location, the characters, the storyline, everything just worked together so well and I was so hooked from start to finish.

There are 3 main characters in this novel; Stella, Lexi and Miles. Stella has just moved to Swallowtail Bay after a recent divorce and is hoping for a fresh start. Lexi is a single mum who is struggling to make ends meet and Miles is a local to the town but is having troubles with his fiance. Every character was relatable, I really liked each of their separate storylines. Stella was probably my favourite however as I wished I was as brave as her! Moving to a new town and taking on a new business all on her own.

The setting of this novel sounded so idyllic and beautiful. I loved the scenes where they're on the beach, or where the tourists are exploring around the town. It made me reminisce on similar holidays and gave me the urge to go on another one to a location similar to this! I loved when they all went to the pub with all the locals, the cafe with its friendly workers. It was all so lovely and I couldn't put it down. I think the storyline was well thought out and ended up working out really lovely (even though some parts *about Vivien in particular* made me feel quite emotional!).

Overall, a really brilliantly written and heartwarming story about friendship, new starts and new relationships. It was fabulous from start to finish and I really recommend you give this book (or maybe other novels from Katie Ginger!) a read. Thank you to the publisher for a chance to read an advance copy of this novel via Netgalley, which I have reviewed honestly.

This is not my usual style of book at all, I was very nervous about it and really thinking I would be out of my comfort zone by WOW I loved this book! I instantly loved the characters and could relate to them. I wasn’t surprised by the story or really anything that happened but I was looking forward to picking it up and I found it a really easy and comfy read. It is so uplifting and the story of friendships and relationships was just beautiful! Definitely keeping my eyes peeled for my from Katie

If you are looking for a heartwarming story, this has to be your next read, sweet and cozy Swallowtail Bay will welcome you with opens arms!
When Stella decided to move to Swallowtail she was looking for a fresh start, she never expected to find a welcoming village, some amazing women and maybe love was waiting for her! As you know the beginnings are never easy, but Stella will quickly connect to Lexi, a mum of two who has some money problems and she is still missing her husband; Vivian, an opera singer; Miles, the temperamental traveler; and of course Frank, the dog. All of them will add some colour to this story; because I am sure that you are aware that in a neighborhood the most eccentric and charming are the most funny and interesting!
There are a lot of characters in this story, with their problems and lives that will make the story more interesting. I was so invested in the story that I wanted to know more about the other characters a side from Stella! I hope there will be a new add to the series and the Swallowtail villagers have continued with their lives.
Spring Tides is an easy and quick read, it was so easy enter to the story and being part of the neighborhood; there are so many interesting plots in the story that it will melt you heart and make you want to move too to Swallowtail Bay!
This is a happy book, to disconnect from your life and stress for a few hours, are you ready to dig in?

A hugely enjoyable book; lighthearted and heartwarming.

I love small town romantic dramas so this book really fits the bill. Stella is a lovely and down to earth character. I took to her instantly as she grappled with a plumbing issue and asked her adorable dog, Frank, for advice! Lol

Stella's new life is far from plain sailing and her handsome but difficult neighbour doesn't make things any easier. I really enjoyed the interactions between these two and I couldn't wait to see how their relationship was going to develop.

This was a lovely, quick read and I can't wait to visit Swallowtail Bay again and check in with the residents.

Stella, well, she gets her groove back in this lovely novel of a woman who starts over after divorce. She moves, buys a gift shop, and two rentals in this seaside town and discovers friendship. Yep, it does take a village sometimes and here that village is filled with nice people, even when it looks a little grim. Miles wanted to buy the shop and he's really a downer at first but things do turn around (no surprise for fans of this genre). He's got a good back story, as does Lexi- hopefully we'll learn more about some of the others in future installments! Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A pleasant read.

This is such a light, delightful read! I absolutely adored both setting and characters. Stella is an instantly likeable character and you can’t help but cheer her on as she fights to build a bright and shiny new life for herself. Unfortunately the spring tide can bring in all sorts of flotsam and jetsam, some of which is mightily unwanted and Stella does face more than her fair share of challenges. This a wonderfully engaging, escapist read about starting over, friendship and the reminder that first impressions aren’t always as they seem. I thoroughly enjoyed it, it was like a breathe of fresh, sea air! Oh and Frank is absolutely adorable, he was by far one of my very favourite characters. Thoroughly recommended.

Many thanks to the lovely people at HQ Stories for inviting me to take part in this blog tour and for my review copy.

I would like to thank HQ Digital and NetGalley for the early copy and to be apart of the blog tour.
Welcome to Swallowtail Bay!
On impulse Stella moves to Swallowtail Bay to essentially run away from the past but she wants this to be a fresh start, a time where she can find herself and make her dreams come true. One of those dreams is to have a successful shop. Her move to Swallowtail Bay involves buying of a gift shop and holiday lets but before she can open up for business they need a lot of work and add to this a grumpy but handsome neighbour who seems to be making life difficult Stella begins to feel she has taken on more than she can handle. To top it off she finds out her ex is getting married!
However, there is some friendly people about town and right next door to the gift shop is the cafe where Stella meets Lexi, who other than having a great style in fashion sense she also becomes a great friend. Lexi is by far my favourite character in the story (although Frank Stella's King Charles Spaniel is super cute) and I enjoyed reading about her struggles and how she overcome them. I love that we really get to know her story as it unfolds alongside Stella's, two strong women.
A brilliantly written story that is full of surprises and exciting characters. I am very excited to read the next book in this series to catch up with whats happening to these characters.

Swallowtail Bay, I would love to live there with the characters, I would feel right at home. This has been so well written that you feel as though you are part of the area. This has plenty of twists and turns with happiness and sadness, love and more love.
I am giving this 5 stars and recommend you get a copy and enjoy it as I have done.

I really enjoyed this book, I thought it was really well written, loved the characters and how they interacted with each other. I loved the description of the area and felt like I was on holiday reading it! My first by this author and I would read more from her.

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

This is the start of a series of books by Katie Ginger, set in the glorious Swallowtail Bay.

Here in the first, Stella recently divorced puts all her money into a gift shop with some questionable gifts in it and two holiday lets in Swallowtail Bay. She has nothing to lose apart from all her money, but she has escaped what she knows and this is her chance to start again.

With only her dg Frank for company, Stella throws herself into the gift shop and starts to make a small success of it, even if some of the locals are slightly perturbed that it was her who managed t purchase the shop.

Miles had his eye on the shop as he is fed up with travelling and wants to put some roots down in the only place he has known as home - Swallowtail Bay. The gift shop seemed ideal until Stella came along.

Stella starts to fit in and make friends, single mum Lexi is trying to make ends meet by working in one of the local cafes next door and her friendship grows with Stella. As it does with some of the more older residents of the seaside town.

But even if Stella seems to be making a success of the little gift shop that you could spend a lot of time browsing in, her holiday lets are going to test her even further. You never know who you are going to get rent them. It proves for some interesting actions and reactions.

Some of the local residents seem to have a lot to say about Stella and when she is then invited to her ex husbands wedding she wonders whether it was all worth it and she is going to fail.

This really is a book full of warmth. Friendships forged and never forgotten. The cross generational divide which brings communities together works in Lexi's favour and her passion for all things vintage I am sure would make a book on its own. Of course there is a romantic element within the book and whilst of course these things don't always run smoothly sometimes the best things for people are simply staring them in the face!

A great book to escape to on a wet day or a hot day. Swallowtail Bay is a place you will want to visit again and again.

A good, relaxing book. The storyline was entertaining, the characters very frustrating at times, the setting lovely, the dog a real personality and the path to true love did not run smoothly. What’s not to like?

This was a quick read, very cute, and I could totally see this as one of the Hallmark movies that I love so much!