Cottage on a Cornish Cliff: Don't miss this heartwarming and emotional page-turning story

Kate Ryder

Oct 2018 · Head of Zeus Ltd

About this ebook

An irresistible Cornish romance, set against a glorious backdrop of sandy beaches, turquoise seas and windswept cliffs. Perfect for fans of Veronica Henry, Liz Fenwick and Fern Britton.

Famous actor Oliver Foxley has made the most difficult decision of all. He has said goodbye to Cara, the love of his life, in order to try and bring his family back together. But there's a magnetic pull towards Cara, and her beautiful home in the Lizard Peninsula in Cornwall, that Oliver can neither deny nor resist...

Heartbroken for a second time in her short life, single mother Cara knows she has no choice but to pick up the pieces yet again. Then she is given the chance to move to the other side of the world and start a new life. Perhaps a complete change of scene would help her, and her young family, carry on? Yet her mind, heart and spirit yearn for the windswept shores of her Cornish Cove...

Cara and Oliver face an agonising choice between following expectations, or following their hearts. How will their story end...?

What readers are saying about Cottage on a Cornish Cliff:

'A gentle love story with a magnificent backdrop' Rosemary Smith, NetGalley.

'Kate Ryder is one of my all-time favourite authors. These two books I could read again and still feel that special magic all over again' Michelle Russell, NetGalley.

'Kate Ryder's descriptions of Cornwall are wonderful and she brings the settings and local characters alive, her own love of the county shining through' Jane Cable, NetGalley.

'I can't wait to read more from Kate Ryder... She creates incredible characters that you can't help but fall in love with' Joanne Dibb, NetGalley.

'I have revelled in this book; everything about it is just so delicious' Grace J Reviewerlady, NetGalley.

'A second-chance-at-love story. But it is so much more. It's love, loss, joy, with laughter and a bit of mystery' Nancy Knox, NetGalley.

Ratings and reviews

Following up the story from Summer in a Cornish Cove, this story brings us back to choices made and chances pushed off for both Cara and Oliver, as their hearts are both searching for something more. I read the first and found the atmosphere of the place, and Cara’s struggles after losing her beloved Christo, her artwork and her friends and family banding together were standouts, and I think the relationship between she and Oliver lost much in the ‘romance’ department for me – as he was married and playing out – even as he refused to see the limitations of his situation. But now we are two years-ish on, and Cara has a new little boy, Toby, fathered by Oliver – and is doing her best to hold it all together, reveling in her children, creating her “Cornwall infused” art, and trying to sort out just why she feels uncomfortable with Greg, now recently widowed and her ‘mentor’ to all things artistic, constantly pushing her to shed the ‘hippie artiste’ veneer and step into the world of the ‘up and comers’ in the art scene. And, poor Cara, content with her own tiny gallery and uncomfortable with all the expectations from Greg – and his constant push to get her to the States and into his bed – it truly is a self-serving (and rather creepy) portrayal of desperation thinly veiled behind a mask of ‘helpful’. But again, Ryder brings the magic of Cornwall to the forefront – as Oliver is struggling in their newly defined marriage, watching his youngest son retreat and withdraw, worried that the young boy is suffering from a similar depression. His wife Deanna is ‘asserting her control’ and showing the many cracks in her own façade – making choices and proclamations for the family without any regard for Oliver – and clearly attempting to punish him at every turn for the summer with Cara. A bit more grasping and cold-hearted than I originally saw her as in the first book – when Oliver fell into her game as she used their youngest son to rein him in – the continued attempts to punish and show herself as in control did them both a disservice -sadly, it took Oliver a bit to put his own guilt into perspective and see that what they had developed was not good for them or the kids. And his depression – worsening and becoming a daily struggle, only lessened by close examination of the painting from Cara’s hand in his study. Despite the less-than-ideal way these two found one another, the love and desire between Oliver and Cara is clear to see. It’s going to take significant time, a quick chance encounter, and a declaration of love worthy of a Hallmark movie to bring these two together again. And Ryder brings us there through multiple moments with friends, family, self-reflection and self-discovery – all neatly detailing and infusing the story with the touchstone of Cornwall and it’s wildly changeable beauty. From the cliffs and giant waves to quiet estuaries, tropically lush gardens, cloudless skies that bring the stars to your fingertips we are treated to both Cara and Oliver reaching for and clinging to the star they built from hope, heart and love into a future full of possibility and potential. This one added the heart and sense of character I missed in the first – and brings a whole new sense of ‘fated’ to this couple. I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

About the author

Kate Ryder has worked in a number of industries including publishing, mainly as a proof-reader/copy editor and writer for a national newspaper, magazines and publishing houses. A member of the New Writers Scheme with the Romantic Novelists Association, in 2013 she published her debut novel, The Forgotten Promise, a timeslip romance and mysterious ghost story, which was shortlisted for Choc Lit's 2016 'Search for a Star' and also honoured with a Chill With A Book 'Book of the Month' Award. Kate lives in a renovated 200-year-old sawmill in the beautiful Tamar Valley with her husband and a collection of animals.