The community of Heritage Cove, colloquially known as the Cove, is tight-knit and in previous books we’ve seen already how local businesses become as much about interaction with residents as profits. We have the bakery run by sisters Celeste and Jade where regulars are always welcome to chat as they collect their loaves and treats. We have Daniel’s waffle shack at the top of the green which is as welcoming in summer with customers eating on the veranda as it is in the winter when the little log cabin is cosied up with a tree and twinkly lights. We have Barney’s barn, the venue for the annual wedding dress ball, we have the traditional tea rooms run by Etna, Tilly’s Bits ‘n’ Pieces shop, Lottie’s convenience store, the Heritage Inn, the riding stables, Gus’s vet surgery, and Lucy’s Blacksmithing.
For those who have read books 1-5 of the series you will know that the local pub in the village is called The Copper Plough, so the title of this latest release may seem confusing at first! The current owners, Terry and Nola, are moving on and when the pub changes hands the first thing the new owners do is alter its name to The Star and Lantern. This ruffles a lot of feathers. The move causes panic that if the pub has changed its name then this could be the start of upheaval that may result in a pub the community barely recognises. Or, even worse, the village may end up with no pub at all if the new owners don’t know what they’re doing.
A local pub is pivotal to so many villages here in the UK, it’s a place to make social connections, somewhere to go if you live alone, a way to come together whatever time of the year it is but especially at Christmas and in the winter when the days are cold and dark. It’s because of the significance of a local pub within a community that I wanted to feature the pub in Heritage Cove in this story. The community of Heritage Cove needs the local pub, the local pub needs the community in order to survive, and in Christmas Nights at the Star and Lantern we get to see this for ourselves.
Make sure to pick up your copy of Christmas Nights at the Star and Lantern here: https://mybook.to/StarandLanternSocial