The reason I chose to read this novel in the first place was the setting of a Yorkshire village. It is touted as being ‘laugh-out-loud funny”, so just what I was in the need of…

Grace’s character was probably the most vividly portrayed. I particularly enjoyed the scenes where she was teaching in her classroom. The author herself was a primary teacher so those scenes are well done.

My favourite character was Matilda. She was highly intelligent and a very precocious girl. I’ll admit some of her scenes did make me smile.

I know that I am in the minority when I say that this wasn’t that funny, nor did it really hold my interest. Yes, the setting and premise held vast potential – but that potential was squashed under the weight of too many characters. Just when you get to know one character, the author switched out to another character. I was always uncertain as to whether this new person was a family member, a friend, a mere acquaintance of the previous character. Oh, and all of the characters had children, and I couldn’t for the life of me keep straight as to which child belonged to which parent…

The writing flowed well and the descriptive prose was vividly rendered, yet due to the plethora of characters I just couldn’t appreciate the rest.

Recommended for readers who enjoy delightful settings, entertaining escapist fiction, and who don’t mind reading beside a spreadsheet of who is who…

A Village Vacancy by Julie Houston

After returning to Westenbury after her husband left to find himself. She returns to teaching and gets involved with the local widower father of one of her pupils.

A reason well written book set in Yorkshire although a bit of a slow burn.Worth sticking with this story

There is humour and some interesting characters and few twists in the story.

Lovely feel good book. Nice plot that plays out well. Lovely characters. Once you begin the book you do want to keep going. See what happens next. Well written

I enjoyed reading this book very much. The author has a real skill in portraying the highs and lows of village life. I have read many books by this author and they are all very good. This is no exception and I heartily recommend it.

I have read (and loved) a few of Julie Houston's books in the past, so was very excited to read this one too and I am so pleased to say that as always Julie Houston does not disappoint. I love her emotional and light-hearted writing which fully draws the reader into the story.

Set in lovely Westenbury Village in Yorkshire ( another reason I was drawn to read this book) we have returned to the village as the loss of a well-loved villager impacts the villagers, This tells the story of Grace who has decided this is the time to leave her husband behind and start a new.

This is a lovely and incredibly light-hearted read, there is drama and a serious subplot which will have you oohing and awing and wondering what will happen. Wonderful characters who you can't help but like and follow on this journey.

This book has it all; you will laugh, cry and sigh in utter delight, it's a huge joy to read and will leave you with all the summery and happy feelings..

Another lovely book by this author and great to be back in Westbury. Full of great characters and village life it a pleasure to read. Grace is a lovely character and so you are willing for her and David to have a happy ending making it a perfect lighthearted beach read

Such a lovely read. It was lovely and the characters were so warm and rich it was a very hygge book. I enjoyed the dimensions between the characters lots. Fab book. Thank you for the opportunity to read it.

Another good read from Julie Houston. I find her books really enjoyable and like that they also make me ask questions of myself!

Felt completely lost throughout this story as I kept wondering who was who and what was what... This constant having to question everything killed the enjoyment for me. I get there needed to be that village feel where everyone knows everyone, but as readers, we don't know who everyone is, so this did feel like being parachuted in and expected to know everyone, yet leaving the reader more confused than ever

Loved this read! Couldn't put it down and decided to read it all in one sitting, definatly did not disapoint! Thankyou author!

I did not finish this book. I just. could not get into the story and did not enjoy it very much. Not much to the plot at all.

I found this a bit of a slow burner and quite hard to get into, possibly because of the amount of characters. Nice story once I stuck with it.

I received a copy of the book from Netgalley to review. Thank you for the opportunity.
A lighthearted yet heartwarming read, filled with a cast of likable characters. The writing is good and deeply evocative.
A good read.

I thoroughly enjoyed another visit to Westenbury Village and to find out what all the friends were up to. There are some lovely humorous touches and the children are as amusing as ever. There is a large cast of characters to meet but the main focus is on Grace who is undergoing some real changes in her life. There is a lot of background information to digest about her past life and you really get the sense that the characters are rooted.
This isn't just a single narrative. There are numerous other strands running through and there is a lot to learn about June, the local GP. Not everything goes to plan for her and there are a few surprises in store. There are also some unsavoury elements in the background and the outside world does intrude, involving the younger members of the community. This is a great story to escape into and does not disappoint.

In short: A warm, witty tale
Thanks to the publisher for a copy of the book

A lovely fun story another wonderful visit to Westenbury .A group of women who by now feel like friends there new adventures. romances really delightful,A series that I really enjoy reading a town a enjoy visiting.#netgalley #aris

This book was good it wasn't bad, I only gave 3.5 stars because as many have stated it was all over the place and I was having a hard time at all times identifying who was who or what was going on, many times I was laughing by myself because I was completely lost with so many situations and characters.

This is the story of Grace who decided to start a new life and to move on without her hubby, moving to Little Acorns to teach a few crazy teens that are determined to make her life a little more adventurous no matter how she tries otherwise her life because even more challenged with these brats

A Village Vacancy will keep you glued to your hair and will make your heart laugh so much, it is funny and irreverent and Grace is also kind of all over the place so that will make this story even more worth reading.

The feelings that I got while reading this funny book was, warm and pleasant as everybody knew everybody so that made it more real and more little villa, small-town vibe. Another amazing and wonderful reason to read this book was the friendship between the women was beautiful and awesome, not many we can share the bond they had and it was so enjoyable Harriet, Juno, and everybody.

A Village Vacancy was lighthearted, funny, irreverent, and very cozy for this winter and time.

Yet another fabulous visit to Westenbury. Julie Houston has a knack of making you feel like you're actually there, watching what's going on and living the country life. Full of humour and fun, as well as its fair share of serious moments, this is definitely a must read! I loved it. Thank you Netgalley!

An entertaining and fun story that made me smile and root for the characters.
Even if there's a lot of characters and I was bit confused at moment I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Good character and plot development, humor and a well written plot.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

I loved the last book (A Village Affair) by Julie Houston, but honestly A Village Vacancy gave me whiplash! Trying to keep up with who was with who, made me feel like I needed to put together a chart, just so I could keep up.

But I did enjoy Grace’s character, her determination to do the best for her children, even if it breaks her heart. I enjoyed the relationships between all the characters and I was cracking up with the no so subtle surveillance operation. I

A Village Vacancy is a great story, despite the whiplash. Julie Houston is a marvelous writer and I can’t wait for her next book

The setting of Westenbury in Yorkshire was glorious, the characters were all spot on hilarious, serious, modern women. The families were complicated - there were yours, mine and ours multiplied over and the story could not be called women's fiction because I think men will enjoy the story too.

The ramifications of a village life, the handsome widower now being eyed by many women in the village, he is rich and handsome and also a kind soul. Then there is a bunch of attractive professional women around too. I sometimes felt in the story that it was a little too crowded with characters and got a tad confusing.

Overall the story was entertaining and just what anyone needs after a dose of heavy reading. Descriptive and engaging.