Ivy Lane by Cathy Bramley (Allotment Garden Fiction Book Review)

So, if you don’t already know me, as well as gardening I also have a part time job working in the village Library. Yes, I know, how lucky am I?

A few months ago one of our regular borrowers plonked this very book on the counter to return alongside some others she had borrowed, firstly it was the Shed that caught my eye, then it was the Spade and Watering Can…

“Is this book about gardening?” I stupidly asked. I can’t remember her exact words but she mentioned the word ALLOTMENT and I just knew the book was coming home with me that evening.

I am one of those people that’s got one hobby and manage to incorporate that one hobby into every aspect of my life! When I’m driving the car, I am listening to a gardening podcast, when watching television, it’s a gardening makeover show, and now, when I am reading It’s a gardening related novel! If you can relate to this then I think Ivy Lane is a must read for you!

Ivy Lane is a light hearted romantic comedy, first published in 2014 as a four part ebook series, written by Cathy Bramley. The first in the series is called Spring and the three other seasons follow on book by book, clearly successful, it was then published in print a year later as one addition, and there is also an audio version too!

The book is set in a small market town in Derbyshire called Kingsfield, here you meet the main character Tilly who has a tragic past, within the first two or three pages of the book you are whisked off to Ivy Lane Allotments where Tilly has taken on 16B, a half plot. Relatable to most new Allotmenteers the plot Tilly has been given is an overgrown jungle! As the seasons progress you really feel like you are being taken on a vegetable growing journey.

One thing that is clear from the start is Cathy Bramley really knows her onions, she writes in detail about what Tilly is planting and the woes that all new Alotmenteers face throughout their growing season. What I really like is that each character is instantly recognisable as someone you know on your plot too. It really is amazing how she has captured those characters in great detail.

Below, you will find a video where Cathy Bramley takes you to visit her mums allotment, which was the inspiration behind the book. All I can say is I have serious plot envy!

As I have mentioned above this book is available in Print, Ebook, and Audio from Amazon, and if you’re really lucky you might find a copy in your local library!

If you have recently read a gardening related novel do share it with me, you can do this by leaving me a comment below or on my Instagram, Facebook or Twitter!

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Happy reading.

1 thought on “Ivy Lane by Cathy Bramley (Allotment Garden Fiction Book Review)”

  1. If really liked Ivy Lane, it’s a lovely light story to be carried along in.

    I think you’d also really like Heidi Swain’s Sunshine and Sweet peas in Nightingale Square and Poppy’s Recipe for Life. I came across a review for Poppy’s Recipe for Life shortly before it was released and instantly wanted to read it, Nightingale Square was the first book in the ‘series’ and I love, love, LOVED it!

    I’ve just finished The Secret of Ivy’s Garden and that is another light, easy garden related one.

    Other books you might enjoy are The Botanist’s Daughter by Kayte Nunn which flicks backwards and forwards through time, The Kew Garden Girls by Posy Lovell which is based during the second world war and all about woman being as good at gardening as men, Rootbound by Alice Vincent which is a personal memoir and has some amazingly interesting facts and stories about different gardens and plants. Early Joys and Virgin Earth by Philippa Gregory are but very good and will make you want to fill your garden with tulips!

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