Welcome to the School by the Sea: The First School by the Sea Novel

Jenny Colgan

Mar 2022 · School by the Sea Book 1 · Sold by HarperCollins

About this ebook

The first book of Jenny Colgan’s delightful new four-part series, set at a charming English boarding school on the sea.

Maggie went to the window and opened it wide, inhaling the lovely salt air off the sea. Why had she never lived by the sea before? Why had she always looked out on housing estates and not the little white hulls of trawlers bobbing off in the distance?

It’s gloriously sunny in Cornwall as the school year starts at the little boarding school by the sea. Maggie, the newest teacher at Downey House, is determined to make her mark. She’s delighted by her new teaching job, but will it come at the expense of her relationship with her safe, dependable boyfriend Stan?

Simone is excited and nervous: she’s won a scholarship to the prestigious boarding school and wants to make her parents proud. Forced to share a room with the glossy, posh girls of Downey House, she needs to find a friend, fast.

Fliss is furious. She’s never wanted to go to boarding school and hates being sent away from her home. As Simone tries desperately to fit in, Fliss tries desperately to get out.

Over the course of one year, friendships will bloom and lives will be changed forever. Life at the Little School by the Sea is never dull…

Ratings and reviews

Welcome to the School by the Sea by Jenny Colgan is the first book in Little School by the Sea series. I later discovered that this is a reprint. It was originally released under the author’s pen name Jane Beaton. The book comes across more as a young adult novel than women’s fiction. I started reading this story and was quickly confused, frustrated, and upset. I thought Welcome to the School by the Sea would be warm, upbeat story based on the description. I was very wrong. In the beginning, we are introduced to character after character without getting much detail. I wish so many characters had not been introduced in one chapter. The transitions are choppy. The main focus is on Maggie Adair who decides to interview for a job at the posh Downey House, a boarding school for girls. She gets the position as an English instructor. Maggie leaves her boyfriend, Stan behind (I really do not know what she sees in him) to take the teaching position. We meet Veronica Deveral, Fliss, Alice, and Simone. Fliss is a new student at the school and is going against her will. She wishes to stay at home with her parents and attend the local school. Fliss (aka Felicity) will do whatever it takes to get back home. I wish we had been told why her parents were so adamant about sending her to Downey House. Alice is a legacy student. Her siblings have attended, and they have not endeared themselves to the headmistress. Alice, unfortunately, is just like them. She acts innocent, but she is usually at the center of the mischief. Simone is a girl lucky enough to win a scholarship to the school (she may be bullied but she will get a first-class education). The girl is a little overweight from all the cakes, pies, and sweets in her home. Simone’s weight is mentioned repeatedly throughout the book. I was not a fan of the fat shaming. There is more to a person than their weight. There is too much bullying in this book. Anyone who has endured bullying should not read this story (it will give you bad flashbacks). There are also numerous references to class differences. Maggie and Simone are picked on because they do not come from wealthy backgrounds like the majority of the students or staff. I had a difficult time finishing Welcome to the School by the Sea. I wish there had been a warning on the book about the bullying, emotional abuse, and fat shaming. I felt bad for Simone. I found the story to be shallow, cliched, and predictable. I was disappointed with the ending. There is also foul language in the book and talk about intimate situations. There were too many storylines stuffed into this one book along the stilted writing. There is a preview of Rules at the School by the Sea at the end, but I will not be reading it. Welcome to the School by the Sea was a disappointment from beginning to end.

About the author

Jenny Colgan is the New York Times bestselling author of numerous novels, including The Christmas Bookshop, The Bookshop on the Corner, Little Beach Street Bakery, and Christmas at the Cupcake Café. Jenny, her husband, and three children live in a genuine castle in Scotland.