REVIEW – BILLY AND ME by Giovanna Fletcher

Posted August 30, 2016 by Emma in Blog / 13 Comments

Billy and Me (Billy and Me #1)
by Giovanna Fletcher
Publisher – Penguin 
Release Date – May 23rd 2013
Buy – Amazon | Book Depository

Sophie May has a secret.

One that she’s successfully kept for years. It’s meant that she’s had to give up her dreams of going to university and travelling the world to stay in her little village, living with her mum and working in the local teashop.

But then she meets the gorgeous Billy – an actor with ambitions to make it to the top. And when they fall in love, Sophie is whisked away from the comfort of her life into Billy’s glamorous – but ruthless – world.

Their relationship throws Sophie right into the spotlight after years of shying away from attention. Can she handle the constant scrutiny that comes with being with Billy? And most of all, is she ready for her secret heartbreak to be discovered and shared with the nation?

 My Review
I stumbled upon this book when I saw an interview with McFly’s Tom Fletcher not really knowing that his wife Giovanna was an author and I guess I was very much intrigued to see what this was like. Then I saw this book on Zoella’s WHSmith Book Club picks and although I’m not really a massive fan of her generally, it made me even more curious and it quite simply is unputtadownable. 
In a small village of Rosefont Hill, Surrey Sophie May is incredible shy, after a very emotional ordeal in her childhood – her grief over her father and problems with her mother at home, she has felt very reserved and basically held off all of her dreams of travelling and going to university because of it. However a small, quaint little tea shop of the hill saved her more than she could ever imagine. When Billy Buskin, teen heartthrob actor ends up in Rosefont filming as Darcy in Pride and Prejudice he really didn’t know what to expect of a small town. Probably something very boring to everything else he has in London or LA. But when he enters the little tea shop, he didn’t know that a slice of lemon drizzle cake is the only thing he was going to enjoy but also the person who served it. 
I loved Billy and Me, have I said that!? You really are drawn right fro page 1 and you can’t put it down. Fletcher has such a way with words but also how infectious the types of characters their were. I adored Billy and Sophie, it was how a passion for something else both drew them together but also filling the void that they’ve lived with all their lives. They were literally suited each other two a tea. Despite all the “famous stuff” it was evident that their would be trouble ahead but nothing that a cup of tea and a slice of cake won’t help. But for me, Molly was my favourite character, owner of the Tea on the Hill, she has literally saved so many lives including Sophie’s, mending Billy’s and influencing so many other villagers including Sophie’s mum at finding love. Molly is just such a character really, she is the town’s gossip as well as being the most loving, caring, vibrant personality of the entire book. It’s what every village and ever novel should have. Molly is basically the Guardian Angel of Billy and Me! Her shop Tea on the Hill is where love begins, thrives and has infinite possibilities. 
It’s been a long long time since I read anything like this and it was such a refreshing change. What I loved about it was the innocence of it. It was just your simple, heart-stopping and beautiful romance between a girl and a boy who quite simply found each other.  I really did love it. The characters, the story and also the setting it really was a sweet and cute romance that you can’t help but curl up with. Oh and some tissues maybe in order to sob into at the end. It’s your perfect escapism.
Rating – 5
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13 responses to “REVIEW – BILLY AND ME by Giovanna Fletcher”

  5. Jasprit

    I've actually seen Fletcher's books appearing on my feed, but never really paid much attention to them, so I'm thrilled to see that you really enjoyed this one Emma. I shall definitely be giving it a go when I'm in the right mood for it, it sounds like a beautiful read 🙂

    • admin

      I think you have to be in the right mood for this – but I would so recommend it, such a beautiful and relaxing read to curl up too with a hot coco. 🙂

  6. Shooting Stars Mag

    I've recently learned that this author is married to Tom Fletcher, and it did make me curious to see what she wrote. I figured I'd enjoy some of her books – they sounded really sweet and lovely – and now I know that I need to check some out. This sounds great.

    -Lauren