Watch Over Me [Kindle Edition]

Watch Over Me is a poignant and romantic tale, laced at times with sadness, but full of charm, affection and ultimately hope. It tells the story of Eilidh, a woman tormented by her inability to have children, and follows her to a remote Scottish village as she tries to find a new way to live after the collapse of her marriage.

The writing is fresh and engaging, and the multiple characters speak directly to the reader in voices full of sincerity and openness, with plenty of candid humour. There's lyricism to the writing, too, and powerful atmosphere, especially in the lovely half-seen ghost of Elizabeth, who expresses beautifully the sweet-sad nostalgia of life moving on.

Meanwhile the village in which this story is set is as much of a character as any of the people. Daniela Sacerdoti's love of the Highlands shines through: you can see the glimmer of starlight on her crisp nights, feel the crunch of the frosted ground beneath your feet, and warm to the firesides, tea, drams of whisky and easy sense of companionship that fill Glen Avich.

This is a book that encompasses sorrow: the description of Eilidh's despair as she surveys her barren life is extremely moving. Daniela Sacerdoti explores other forms of isolation too, with characters trapped by social expectations, lovelessness, or regret. However, above all this is a book of rebirth, renewal and love. Anyone who enjoys curling up with a story of seemingly star-crossed lovers will relish Eilidh's journey, and be rooting for her to find the happiness she has been denied for so long.

This is a truly beautiful story. I was hooked from the first page and read the whole book in less than two days.

As I read, I felt like I was immersed in the lives of the characters. I cared what happened to them. The characters all tell their own parts of the tale, and they have very individual voices. It was easy to get caught up in the feelings and emotions of each of them.

It's a well written, lovely story. I would absolutely recommend you read it.

(And unlike Daniela, I'm not a writer, so this review doesn't really do the book justice).

As I began to read this book, I was completely unaware of how the author was quietly captivating me and drawing me into the story. If you look at the book as a whole, you realise it is a basic love story, yet as you delve into the layers of the story you find it is so much more. There is magic hiding within the chapters.

The little village of Glen Avich, is enchanting. It reminded me of the mythical Scottish town in Brigadoon, one of my favourite musicals ever. It seems like a town that hasn't aged with time. Everyone still knows everyone else's business and goes about the same thing just as they have done since they were children.

I hated putting this book down, as I needed to find out what would happen and I found myself desperate not to let go of this book, once I had finished it. I was so mesmerised by this beautiful village and its inhabitants, I was sad to finish it. I wanted to find the village and move there. Search out the characters to see how their lives had progressed, because the way they were written had brought them to life for me. There wasn't a character in the book, that I did not feel empathy for. I was convinced I could see snippets of people I know within them.

This book has a strong theme to it. It is about learning to accept the past in order to help you move on with the future. The characters had been trapped by the events of their past, which seem to cloud their judgement of the decisions they should make. However, a little helping hand from the spiritual side of life, helps to bring them together.

The book reminded me of two of my favourite authors. It had the warmth of Beth Hoffman's book and the magic of the books by Sarah Addison Allen. A book I will treasure and read again and again. I feel like I should buy hundreds of copies and give them out in the street. If you want a mesmerising, captivating read that presents the circle of life in such a magical way, then I suggest you read this book.