Endless Possibilities: Sunny skies and mountains high (The Journey) Paperback – September 4, 2016

Endless Possibilities: Sunny skies and mountains high (The Journey Book 3) Endless Possibilities Craig BriggsThis is the third book of a series that tells of Craig and his wife Melanie Briggs’ move from Yorkshire to Canabal near Monforte de Lemos in the province of Galica in NE Spain. With fluence and ease the author recounts the day-to-day happenings at the point in their on-going adventure when they have decided that they should invest in a rental property to enhance their revenue and add greater challenges to their busy lives. By the time they find the investment property they want, the author has introduced you to both the red and white wines he ferments himself from his own vines; the challenges of having orthopedic footwear tailor-made in Galicia; early attempts at vine pruning and then spraying; a quick car-trip back to the UK; a failed effort to install an automatic lawn-sprinkler system; a visit from old friends and a potted history of how the friendship came about; the challenges of telling jokes that depend for their punchline on a particular accent; how both human and animal sewage are dealt with in rural Galicia; a deal to drill a new well; and the consideration and rejection of a prior potential property.All of these anecdotes, some as gripping as the episodes in a good soap-opera, are told with such humour, sensitivity and insight that you learn a lot you didn’t previously know and so welcome the author’s delaying tactic. In fact, you begin to welcome his strategy as a form of deferred gratification – you know he’s going to take you eventually to the destination and that on the road he will make a multitude of fascinating detours. Some of these will be self-deprecating accounts of how inept the author himself can be with the various maintenance, repair and agronomic tasks he has willingly (sometimes unwittingly) taken on and yet how apt at finding the right assistance to guarantee success.Much of the charm of Endless Possibilities arises from the intentional choice that the author and his wife made to settle in a relatively little-known part of Spain as far as they could distance themselves from tourist developments, overcrowded beaches and look-alike British bars. Craig Briggs, accompanied by Melanie, does an excellent job of guiding you by little-known by-ways through the beautiful countryside into the villages, churches, cemeteries, houses, kitchens, dining-rooms, barns and vineyards of the rural Gallego family – as well as into their own busy lives.And much, much more!

This my first review on his series of books. They have been all great. The reason I decided to review this was cause of all the work they did for their friends. I have some good friends but I don't think I would go to all that work and problems like they did. I don't know if they were getting paid for all that they did and if they didn't I say their friends sure took advantage of them. I think that was the only thing that ticked me off about this book. I hope the last two books in the series has friends returning some of the favors they did. But still a good read.

Having read the first book, i wanted to read more about their leaving England and making their new home in Spain. I found it quite interesting as to how the settled in and what t challenges their new life brought them. I wasn't disappointed. Craig has a way of making things interesting no matter what him and Melanie (his wife)do. Challenges don't seem to bother them. Being from England myself, but now living in the U.S, I was curious to see how he met the challenge he faced. I enjoyed reading this book.

Another wonderful read. I really enjoyed the first two books detailing Craig and Melanie's move to Galicia, and finding and renovating their home. Now they've settled in, Craig is looking for another project. He's turning his hand to wine making, but wants something more...Trying to buy a renovation project is not as easy as it seems, and he gets involved in holidays lets, too. A great addition to the series, Craig's prose is so easy to read, and I can't wait to start book four!

It's a fun story, very much in the first person, of someone learning to live and thrive in a foreign, but not too foreign, land. I need to circle back to the first book to see if they mention where their seemingly endless supply of funds comes from.

Good read. Well written. Enjoyed reading about Spanish countryside and the tourist industry. Good description s. Fun read . Ready to travel ourselves.

I very much like learning about Spain - my daughter has walked the Camino - it's so interesting to read about the area.

Well done.I’m reading them all. Quirky, funny, great reading. Five stars with no hesitation. I think I want to visit Spain now and experience this kind of peaceful.

This is the third memoir of Craig and his wife Melanie and their move to live in Spain.There is a laugh on almost every page; with their gardening exploits, searching for a new renovation project, wine making and hosting several visitors, as well as a few trips away for themselves.Let's hope there is a 4th book on the way, as I really enjoy the stories about their new life.

This was an excellent book which I thoroughly enjoyed from start to finish. This is the third in the series and chronicles Craig and Melanie Briggs’ move from Yorkshire to rural northern Spain. I’ve read both of the preceding books and again, this is very nice, pleasant, easy reading and it flows really well. There are some excellent descriptions of the surroundings and plenty of ups and downs, resulting in a fair few giggles. I really enjoyed this-it was great fun.There are some really good word choices-and I have to say, Craig's third book was reminding me a bit of John Searancke's writing, particularly his ‘Dog Days in the Fortunate Islands’. This is very easy to read, it flows, it's concise, there are some excellent word choices and expressions, refreshing, a little bit different.I like to see a variety of techniques-I love to see actual letters and emails, of which there are some in the book. There is also a table of results from the chemist. There are many enjoyable happenings to read about in here. Craig’s writing has just gone from strength to strength. My only little niggle was Melanie saying “Do be careful” loads of times in the book!!! It was a bit repetitive and I kept thinking “Argh, not again!”-HOWEVER, I do this myself apparently-so my son and nephew tell me-they put on high voices supposed to be me and keep repeating “Be careful!”-it must be a Yorkshire thing!This is definitely the best of his three books-and they're all very good. Can’t wait for the next chapter now!

I must say I’m really enjoying this series of books about Craig and Melanie’s move to Galicia and their hard work in building a new life there. They have established themselves firmly in the local community and have made firm friends with the locals. After the initial problems renovating their home El Sueno the intrepid couple offer to oversee and manage the renovation of another house with the intention of letting it out as a favour for another couple, Bob and Janet. This is also something they want to do for themselves and with this in mind they buy what amounts to a ruin with no water or electricity. However they can see the potential to convert it to a property which they can let out. Naturally nothing is ever straightforward and they have some difficult things to deal with including some medical issues. I have to admire their positivity and the way they face problems head on. I do love reading about Craig’s growing interest in wine making – who knew it could be so fraught with problems!! It did make me laugh as did Craig’s attempts to put in a sprinkler system in the lawn. Craig’s descriptions are so vivid I could actually visualise the chaos. Reading Craig’s book is like sitting down with him and listening to all these entertaining anecdotes. It’s a friendly conversational style. I’m so looking forward to the next instalment.

What a varied tale, highs and lows! Melanie's accident then operation nightmares.Also the lawn sprinklers. One thing leads to another. Interesting looking for another property to buy. Love a fiesta! Enjoyed the visitors, some more than others! Especially the descriptions of the first year of visitors to Casa Bon Vista. The funeral had tears in my eyes. I loved the sign outside the cemetery. Santiago is interesting, as is the grape harvest. Complicated taking a dog on holiday! Big birthday is exciting. Heavy snow is a challenge in Galicia. Administering medication is dangerous! So is building work! You need to read it to find out!

I bought this (on offer) as a change from my more regular Greece related novels & biographies, all of those downloaded I had read. Apart from the Spanish words instead of Greek, it could just as well been set in a part of rural Greece - not a bad thing. I enjoyed the writing style and exploits of Craig, his wife and dog. Clearly they have moved on from their initial settling in as this is his third book, but still learning from and adapting to a different life. I would have liked a bit more about the local Spaniards they encounter (perhaps that was in earlier books), although obviously they do feature. Well done Craig.