The Silver Ladies Seize the Day by Judy Leigh

I received an advance review copy for free thanks to Rachel's Random Resources and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Blurb

Cecily Hamilton is months away from her ninety-second birthday. She’s lived life to the full, choosing work over romance, friendship over love. And now she has a host of silver-haired friends living nearby, ready to fill her time with picnic lunches, prosecco and cheer!

Cecily thought she was content. She thought her cup was full…

But when the granddaughter of Cecily’s first and only love arrives on her doorstep, claiming that her grandfather, Eddie, is still in love with Cecily after all these years, Cecily wonders if there might be room for a little romance after all. Especially since, one by one, her friends keep falling head over heels for old flames and new.

Can the oldest silver lady of the bunch really hope for her own second chance at love? Is it finally time for Cecily to seize the day?

My Opinion

It was lovely to catch up with the Silver Ladies. Judy Leigh has once again shown that her older characters are still able to have fun. A heart-warming and fun read with some great characters. Judy Leigh is definitely an author that I would highly recommend reading.

Rating 4/5

BLOG TOUR REVIEW


Review for 'The Silver Ladies Seize The Day' by Judy Leigh.

This book is extremely well written with vivid descriptions setting the picture perfectly in the readers mind. The title, description and cover works perfectly with the storyline.

Yet another fantastic book by the extremely talented Judy Leigh!! One of the things I absolutely love about several of Judy's the fact that the characters in this book are all of the older generation which I really enjoyed reading about as it makes a change from the majority of the books that I read where the main protagonists are in their 20's and 30's. these women all have different life experiences, have learnt different lessons and have different outlooks on life but they form an unlikely friendship which fills the story with laughter, love and fun! I absolutely loved having these strong female protagonists, being female myself. It wasn't just Cecily, Minnie, Lin and Josie I loved though but there was an absolutely wonderful array of larger than life characters that surrounded them that made me smile and laugh and feel good after an awful month!! Judy captivated their individual personalities perfectly and her evocative writing skills made each of them jump out of the pages and come to life. This gorgeous book is ram packed with laughter, lost loves, tears, community, humour, friendship, fun, joy, sorrow and all the emotions and fun you can think of and Judy captured them all perfectly with her evocative descriptions! I enjoyed watching their personalities and friendships develop and change throughout this book as well as seeing them enjoying life!! This book really does go to show and prove that age should never be a barrier to living your life!! I would love to see this book turned into a movie with Dame Judie Dench being involved, of course!! It really did turn my frown upside down and whisked me off to Middleton Ferris in Oxfordshire seeing everything and everyone come to life in front of my eyes. I absolutely devoured this book in one sitting of several hours as I just could not put it down and I most certainly didn't want to leave the location or characters behind for a moment! I absolutely loved this book and would highly recommend it to anyone and everyone! I am looking forward to reading more books by Judy who has fast become one of my favourite authors!

Clear your schedules and get ready to blow your worries away in this fantastic, fun and unputdownable escapism!

The characters are strong, realistic and I became completely invested in each and every one of them. They all had their own problems, secrets, feelings and all had unique personalities and I just absolutely loved getting to know them all. I felt each of their love , friendship, pain, heartbreak, happiness, anger, sorrow and so much more. I loved the main protagonists who were both such strong females but were also very realistic having their individual strengths and weaknesses which I enjoyed getting to know more about. I love seeing strong female leads in books being female myself and these two were both fantastic women. I loved seeing their personalities change and develop as individuals as well as watching them bond with each other as the storyline went on. Judy does an absolutely amazing job of bringing the story to life and the characters leap out of the pages as your turning them thanks to her evocative writing skills!! It is so hard to say what I feel about the characters without giving anything away so I won't say anymore about them as I don't want to go into too much detail at the risk of spoiling it for other readers but Judy really has done a brilliant job at bringing each of the characters as well as the story to life and I am missing them already. Well done Judy!!!

Overall a stunning escapism book filled with strong women, friendship and a mountain of fun!!

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new installment in series

I enjoy Ms Leigh's books and enjoyed this one. However, having not read the first books of the series, I was a bit lost. I highly recommend starting with the first books. That being said, the characters were engaging and the plot was very lively and amusing regarding the antics of mostly senior ladies. There is some romance, some grief, some what-if's and perhaps more romance in the various senior's future!

Thank you to the publisher who lent me an e-arc via Netgalley with no obligation. This review is optional and my own opinion.

Thanks to the Publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book.

So lovely to catch up with the Silver Ladies.

It was emotional in places. It was lovely to see Cecily and her friends being there for each other, helping out when needed, keeping secrets, sharing the good and bad times. As well as enjoying being together and having fun, and even find love again.

The story had so much going on, it was hard to put down. The sense of the community coming together in times of need also was evident in the story.

I highly recommend this book.

I've read a few of Judy Leigh's books and enjoyed them, this was no exception. I wish I had realised this was a sequel though, as I felt I didn't really get the full measure of all the characters. At the beginning of the book there is a recap of who is who, but it was too lengthy for me to take in. I read on and just went with the flow.

Cecily is nearly 92 and she's a retired teacher who had her heart broken 70 years ago. It was this story that made me want to read the book, but it is only a small part of the story. As the title implies the Silver Ladies seize the day and each of the ladies in the group have their own road they have travelled. They have decisions to make as to whether they stay on that road, or go along another one.

I loved the character of Cecily and she is the one I felt I got to know the most. As the book flips between each of the silver ladies I was a little disappointed when we left Cecily, although she did have a part in each of the others stories too.

A nice gentle read. It's not all roses around the door in the village though, there are a few nasty encounters. A well written observation of life and all that goes with it and some hope and encouragement that life is still for living as we age.

This continues the story of the Silver Ladies, a group of friends who are all of a certain age (or more) but it can be read as a standalone book . The main focus is on Cecily, a retired teacher approaching her 92nd birthday, thinking back to the 1950s when she was engaged to Eddie, before something happened to cause them to split.
This story is full of friendship, mainly of the group of older ladies, but also the younger villagers. Cecily comes across as a very strong character, which makes her self doubt stand out more, but what is certain is the way the whole village respects and cares for her. Again it might not be a totally realistic view of life in a small community, but it's certainly one to aspire to. 4.5* rounded up to 5*, a book to lose yourself in and one that us older readers can relate to.
I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley, however this did not influence my review of the book.

Lovely and enjoyable book about senior people. It makes a change to read a book about the older generation who are very important to us.

Cecily is about to celebrate her 92nd birthday and is happy with life as she’s lived it – work and friendship were more important than love and romance. But when the granddaughter of her first love shows up, claiming that Eddie still loves her, and her silver-haired friends are falling for new (and old) flames, she wonders if life is offering her a second chance at love.

I am relatively new to this author, but I’ve really come to enjoy her books. She portrays older women as women who still have friendship, meaning and yes, even romance in their lives. They experience setbacks and disappointments just like everyone else, and often have skills beyond society’s wildest imagination. The ladies in this book are a great representation of that portrayal, and I cheered for each of them as the book progressed. Yes, the story was predictable, but it was fun to follow along as it reached its inevitable conclusion.

I have read several of Ms. Leigh’s books, and have most of the rest of them on my to-read list. I look forward to reading the next book soon, whether it’s a new book or one from her backlist.

Thank you Boldwood and NetGalley for this ARC!

I loooooooooooved (yes that was a lot of "o"s). This is not by any means my typical pick, Im not really a light-heartened type of reader, but I think that has definitely changed for me. This was cute, sad at times, funny, everything you'd want in a delightful beach read. Amazing work.

Holly Collins

This is a delightful story, continuing the series about the Silver Ladies, a eclectic group of ladies of more mature years who have lunch & all sorts of adventures in & around the fictional Oxfordshire village of Middleton Ferris. What they have in common is the village school, where Cecily taught & the others were all pupils of hers; although now they each lead very different lives they are a close & supportive group of friends. This latest volume focuses on Cecily, the oldest of the group who will soon celebrate her ninety second birthday. As she approaches her birthday she has been reflecting on her life & thinking about Eddie who was the love of her life, but they lost touch years ago after he married her best friend. When she unexpectedly discovers where Eddie now lives, she’s thrown into a state of indecision over what to do. Inevitably her meddlesome friends, Minnie, Josie & Lin, have “helpful” advice for her, whilst also having their own romantic stories to tell. All of these & more, including a new member of the group, are skilfully woven into stories of life in the village, the characters delightfully & convincingly drawn with gentle humour. Many of the villagers were pupils of Cecily at the village school & everyone remembers her with much affection. You could just imagine driving through Middleton Ferris & seeing Cecily racing through the village on the Flying Plum, or meeting all of the Silver Ladies lunching if you happened to stop at Odile’s cafe for lunch.

It’s a lovely optimistic tale of life post retirement, showing that life can continue after retirement with romance, friendships, things to do, places to go….. It’s never too late to have fun, fall in love, & enjoy everything that life has to offer. It also relates the positive side of living in a small village community, where people look out for each other, giving support where needed, & sharing in life’s celebrations. I’d recommend this book as a good summer read. If you enjoy books by writers such as Maddie Please & Debbie Viggiano, I think you’ll enjoy this one!

It's coming up to Cecily's 92nd birthday and she has been reflecting on the life that she could of had. She now has teh opportunity to confront the wrong that was done to her, but can't decide if this is a good or bad thing.
Meanwhile some other members of the Silver Ladies are having their own reflections. Josie lost her beloved Harry two years before and is now faced with a face from the past. Minnie needs to make a decision about Jensen which is difficult with Tina living at her house whilst recovering from her stroke.
In the village, young Florence is coping with motherhood and her relationship with Adam, but the spectre of Darryl keeps popping up and her estranged mother has been in touch.
An easy to read book.

The Silver Ladies join together to help loved ones and foil unpleasant ones in this addictive story. A wise and heartwarming tale of kindness and optimism. I enjoyed reading it immensely.

A beautiful story of self discovery and friendship. This book felt like a warm hug and I loved that some of the character's were women who are in their golden years!

4.5/5 Stars.
It often happens that an author falls in love with one of their characters. With Leigh, she seems to have fallen in love with a whole bunch of them from her book “The Silver Ladies do Lunch” which was a truly fun read. This should have made reading another novel with an increasingly large cast of characters a bit easier for me. However, despite that, I have to admit that this dyslexic continued to get people confused throughout this novel. That said, aside from this one niggle, I found almost no other drawbacks.

So, first we get to recall the amazing original group of (nearly 92-year-old) Cecily and her former students, who call themselves the ‘Silver Ladies,’ which is really fun to do. What I like most about them is that they’re all different, and even slightly scattered, but still make the effort to get together from time to time. In this book, they seem to practically be joined at the hips, since so many things happen to bring them into each other’s lives, either as a group or in different pairs or combinations. I was worried that when Cecily had a fall that this would end up as a sad story, but thankfully, she’s still alive and kicking through the end of this story.

Now, as for all these second chances at love, I have to admit that I think Leigh was a tiny bit heavy handed with them. Admittedly, I’m not a fan of romance, but when it comes to women in my age group, it isn’t like they’re going to have to give up careers to start families with a man. I mean, when you’re older, having a companion – either platonic or more emotional/physical – can be a good thing. This can be especially true when there is “one that got away” in their past. And it’s never too late for happiness, right? As for me personally, I’m probably still too young and it’s probably still too soon after losing my husband to want to get involved with a new man. But I do know widows who actively look to fill that hole, and more power to them.

I should mention that while you could read this book as a stand-alone novel, I really think that anyone who is interest in this particular age group should read her first book beforehand. That way you get the full impact of how these women interact, and how their lives became enriched by just keeping in touch. Believe me, when you grow older, human contact is very important, especially if you don’t have much (or in some cases, any) family around to fill in those gaps. And I don’t mean just for physical well-being, but also for emotional and mental health. (OK – lecture ended.)

Overall, this is just a lovely book and although there’s a huge cast of characters here (even more than in the first book), they weren’t quite as confusing as they usually can be for me. Furthermore, although I’m truly not a fan of romance novels, there’s far more about community and support than the love lives of these women (or lack thereof). However, there is enough of that to make this qualify as a romance novel, but not with any of your traditional bodice-ripping or graphic descriptions – thank heavens! Plus, there are lots of places where Leigh made me smile and giggle. For all this, I’ll recommend this with a very healthy four and a half stars out of five!

A refreshing story about a group of ladies who grab life in both hands and have a really good time. They aren't showing the age and all I can say is hope I'm like that when I get to their age. I enjoyed this book very much. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

What a fantastic story about women of a certain age, and more, as they grasp their second chances in love and life!
Cecily Hamilton is a 91-year-old ex-teacher. She still lives in the village where she taught for her entire teaching career and has forged friendships with many of her former pupils.
Even those whom she first taught are in their 70s, and they laughingly call themselves the Silver Ladies, as they meet regularly.
And all of them have a story, and various barriers prevent them from thoroughly enjoying their lives.
The key part of the story is Cecily rediscovering her one true love. I shan't go into it more, as you need to read it. Still, I enjoyed the complete story, which follows all of the ladies and other residents of the village as they tackle a particular menace, come together as a hive mind to solve a couple of other village issues, and then the gentle romances that are blooming along the way. A beautiful read!
Many thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for an ARC.

Warm wonderful reading! It’s so refreshing to read about a group of mature ladies living their best lives in an Oxfordshire village full of community spirit and consideration for your neighbours!!
Cecily is looking forward to her 92nd upcoming birthday, but it’s also given her time to reflect back on her life, as a teacher. The gorgeous silver ladies group of friends is back welcoming new friends and managing situations as they arise.
Fabulous characters and understandable scenarios, at times a little predictable although this never detracts from the magic of reading the latest from Judy Leigh!
Funny, sad, touching, and unique I just love these tales and recommend for inspiration and hope as the years gather speed and pass!!
Hugely recommended for a holiday read, or for a first flavour from this author, it’s a joy!!
Thank you NetGalley and Boldwood books for the early chance to read!

This is an absolutely lovely book about friendship, love at any age, and the joys and pitfalls of village life. Having characters of all ages there is someone for every reader to identify with. I’d love to have lunch with the Silver Ladies! I love this series but the book could also be read as a standalone. I strongly recommend this book.

Cecily is only months away from her 92nd birthday. She thinks she's done everything she wants in her life until the granddaughter of her first love Eddie turns up. She tells her Eddie's never forgotten her and would like to see her again

This was a super cute, quick read. There is a lot of humor and real life in how this author writes. Great story about friendship and second chances.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me this opportunity to read and review this ARC.