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Title: Heading Over The HillAuthor: Judy LeighFormat reviewed: EbookSource: NetgalleyPublisher: Boldwood BooksPublication Date: 3rd December 2020Rating: 5 Stars
Growing old disgracefully and having a grand old time…
Billy and Dawnie may be in their seventies, but that won’t stop them taking chances or starting again. Their grown-up children have families and lives of their own, so now it’s Billy and Dawnie’s turn, and a life near the sea in Devon beckons.
But the residents of Margot Street (or Maggot Street as Dawnie insists on calling it), don’t quite know what to make of their new neighbours. Billy’s loud, shiny and huge Harley Davidson looks out of place next to the safe and sensible Honda Jazz next door, and Dawnie’s never-ending range of outrageous wigs and colourful clothes, means she’s impossible to miss.
As new friendships are formed and new adventures are shared, Billy and Dawnie start winning their neighbours’ affection. And when life teaches them all a terrible lesson, the folks of Margot Street are determined to live every day as if it’s their last.
Judy Leigh returns with a soul-warming, rib-tickling, timeless tale of true love, true friendship and happy-ever-afters.
Well they say never judge a book by its cover - and in this case I don't mean the cover for this book which is rather lovely and very fitting, but rather that this is the overall message and theme I was feeling throughout this book.
Don't judge on appearances, and there may be more to a person than meets the eye - which you may think sounds rather obvious but when Billy and Dawnie move onto Maggot Street, it shakes things up completely.
They are in their seventies, he is a biker, she loves bright colourful wigs and is the life and soul of any room. At first I struggled to get to grips with them, not because of that, but due to Dawnie mentioning the names of all of her family rather quickly as you enter the book, and I just was a tad lost as to who any of these people were, but I did get to grips with it quite fast after that.
We are also treated to the inner goings on at two of the neighbours. Malcolm and Gillian, where Malcolm is keeping a notebook of the reasons he reckons Billy and Dawnie will never fit into Maggot Street, mostly based on assumptions and its scary in some respects to know there are almost certainly people like Malcolm out there in the world making the same snap judgments but since it was fiction it was rather amusing too.
And Gillian who initially seems to be there purely to do whatever Malcolm wants, but it becomes apparent there is a lot more to her than meets the eye.
The other house we see inside is that of Vinnie and Dilly (his mother). Vinnie is a lovely young man (well in a novel where most of the characters are 70+, 50 is young!), seems to be unlucky in love and is currently back living at home with his mother, but wants more from life.
Dawnie and Billy's arrival on the street shakes things up for all the nearest neighbours in ways you wouldn't believe at the start. It is a huge cast of characters and I wouldn't have it any other way, as they are all so believable, that they started to feel like my own community.
But I have failed to mention the best character - Tequila. He only gets short mentions now and then but if he doesn't make you giggle I'd be shocked!!
It's yet another fabulous book from the talented Judy Leigh and is one that I really enjoyed reading.
Thank you to Boldwood Books and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.
Have now got this on my library tbr - thanks!
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