A Year in the Château

Book excerpt: The hilarious and feel-good novel about escaping the rat race, friendship and new beginnings When Nicola's husband, Dominic, retires they decide not to spend their days finding hobbies to fill the time until Countdown is on channel 4. Instead, they fulfil their life-long fantasy of buying a house in the French countryside and filling it with their dearest friends. Reliving their youth and spending their children's inheritance. Joined by seven of their friends they club together to invest in a château in Normandy. Group dinners, fine wine, beautiful scenery - they're living the dream! But la vie en rose is harder than it first appears. Is there a reason why only teenagers take gap years? The perfect read for fans of Jo Thomas, Cathy Bramley and Veronica Henry!