Wednesday 21 October 2015

Pretending to Dance by Diane Chamberlain - 5* Review




When the pretending ends, the lying begins . . . Molly Arnette is good at keeping secrets. As she and her husband try to adopt a baby, she worries that the truth she's kept hidden about her North Carolina childhood will rise to the surface and destroy not only her chance at adoption, but her marriage as well. Molly ran away from her family twenty years ago after a shocking event left her devastated and distrustful of those she loved. Now, as she tries to find a way to make peace with her past and embrace a healthy future, she discovers that even she doesn't know the truth of what happened in her family of pretenders.


Molly's story is told alternately though her modern day life in San Diego and her life as a fourteen year old in North Carolina, it tells the tale of an unsure - slightly geeky kid from a really good, close family - albeit a slightly unconventional one. She's extremely happy and has a really wonderful father, until something unthinkable happens.

She hides what happened in her childhood well until she and her husband decide to adopt a child, and the subject of open adoption (where the birth mother is involved in the child's life) comes up, then memories and hidden fears from her past come flooding back, with that and bad news it brings her memories very much to the fore of her mind.

This was a truly wonderful book, one that will stick with me for a very long time. I instinctively felt a huge pull towards Molly's wonderful father, he is a therapist and just handles every situation in the most amazing way - I wish I had his 'answer for everything' way with my teenagers! I also felt a connection with Graham as like him, I too suffer from Multiple Sclerosis, and that's where it got sticky for me. If you read the book you will see that extremely hard hitting issues are tackled that kind of scared me - a lot! However Chamberlain makes it quite clear that Graham has a rare and extremely aggressive form, still made me think and I would probably exercise caution if you are a sufferer, maybe I'm too sensitive - I don't know?

I do still feel the HUGE need to give this book five stars as it was a truly wonderful book and a really wonderful story! It will be a read you won't forget...

Review copy kindly provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.






Tuesday 20 October 2015

Review: A Parcel for Anna Browne by Miranda Dickinson



Anna Browne is an ordinary woman living an ordinary life. Her day job as a receptionist in bustling London isn't exactly her dream, yet she has everything she wants. But someone thinks Anna Browne deserves more . . .
When a parcel addressed to Anna Browne arrives, she has no idea who has sent it. Inside she finds a beautiful gift - one that is designed to be seen. And so begins a series of incredible deliveries, each one bringing Anna further out of the shadows and encouraging her to become the woman she was destined to be. As Anna grows in confidence, others begin to notice her - and her life starts to change.
But who is sending the mysterious gifts, and why?


Anna Browne is a quietly unassuming character working on reception at a Fleet Street newspaper, everyone's friend and to be perfectly honest, quite dull - but she likes it that way. She's gone from living in Cornwall with her frankly AWFUL drunken mother who did nothing but make a spectacle of Anna throughout her childhood, and she just wants some normality.

Then the mysterious parcels start arriving and Anna becomes the centre of attention; just what she didn't need.

The parcels really are something special however, each one perfectly wrapped with the most heartfelt and beautiful gift inside, the only thing that frustrated Anna was not knowing who her kind benefactor was. I did have my suspicions early on who was bestowing these beautiful items on Anna, and I was right as revealed at the ending. It was all very poignant and sweet and left me feeling very satisfied with the story.

The thing with Miranda Dickinson, is she has a natural talent of telling a beautifully engaging and rich story, the likes of which can be compared to classics in terms of their captivating nature. I am a huge fan of her books!

I adored watching Anna's character grow in strength and find the courage to come out of her timid shell, and the supporting characters were all fabulous too.

Well worth a read or to buy as a gift for a loved one, just make sure to wrap it well! 

(Miranda has also included tips from a master on how to wrap the perfect gift at the back of the book...)


Review copy provided via Netgalley in exchanged for an honest review.



Sunday 11 October 2015

5* review - The Blissfully Dead by Louise Voss and Mark Edwards


Available from:

She couldn’t believe that he wanted to meet her. He was famous. She was a nobody. Finally, someone could see how special she was…

When the body of a teenage girl is found in a London hotel, DI Patrick Lennon is mystified. Nobody saw her or her killer enter the hotel, and there is no apparent motive—until a second teenager is found and Lennon realises somebody is targeting fans of the world’s biggest boy band.
As Lennon struggles with both his home life and his rivals on the force, the pressure to catch the killer before he strikes again reaches fever pitch. And when Lennon makes a terrible mistake that ends in disaster, he finds himself in a race to save not only the lives of more teenage girls but also his own career.


I was first introduced to the sublime writing of Voss and Edwards when I bought From The Cradle in the Amazon daily deals last winter some time and was hooked straight away, I've since downloaded all their work independently and together and loved every one (if you haven't before, check out their back catalogues, fans of this genre will not be disappointed). I was thrilled when I saw on their Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/vossandedwards)  that DI Lennon would be returning with a new story! 

On Target is a boy band taking the world by storm, and one of their female fans is murdered, followed by another...the world surrounding the band is under scrutiny, the fans seem to be being targeted through their forum but the clues are scarce, then the murders continue - closer to home now, and suspicion grows - along with tension at the station (I really do despise DI Winkler). Two more fans go missing and the race is on to try and find them while they're still alive.

The suspense in this book is huge, following the form of their past work the story is told by multiple narrators and there was a huge plot twist that was extremely pleasing, I really didn't see it coming. All I can say is this comes highly recommended, although is is book two in the DI Lennon series, you could read it as a stand alone, but it would make more sense to read book one first, especially where DI Lennon's marriage is concerned. 




The first child was taken from her house.
The second from his mother's car.
The third from her own bedroom...
When Helen and Sean Philips go out for the evening, leaving their teenage daughter babysitting little Frankie, they have no idea that they are about to face every parent's greatest fear.
Detective Inspector Patrick Lennon is hopeful that the three children who have been abducted in this patch of south-west London will be returned safe and well. But when a body is found in a local park, Lennon realizes that time is running out—and that nothing in this case is as it seems...
Blending police procedural with psychological thriller, From the Cradle will have every parent checking that their children are safe in their beds...then checking again.
From the Cradle is the first book in the Detective Lennon Thriller Series.

A huge 5* 

Review copy provided courtesy of NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Friday 9 October 2015

Wickham Hall - Part Three: Sparks Fly by Cathy Bramley - 5* review


Buy the Wickham Hall series here:


Autumn is unfurling at Wickham Hall and everyone is excited about the upcoming bonfire night event – set to be the biggest and brightest ever in the hall’s history. Romance is definitely flickering between Holly and Ben too, as Holly’s life at home finally settles down. 
But as one fire is put out another bursts into life, and the whole team at Wickham Hall find themselves under pressure. Will the majestic firework display end in tragedy? 
Wickham Hall is an utterly feel-good story told in four parts – following Holly Swift’s attempt at organising her own happy-ever-after, one catastrophe at a time. Sparks Fly is part three.


Part three of Wickham Hall sees Holly Swift organising the bonfire spectacular, along with waiting for boss/love interest Benedict Fortescue (reluctant heir to the Wickham Hall estate) to return from his trip. They left their will they - won't they? relationship at a sticky point at the end of part two and I couldn't wait to see what would happen between them, especially after the last instalment ending with Holly fearful that they could even be half brother and sister! But now in part three Holly is armed with a little more information to find her biological father which leaves her nervous yet excited - along with helping her mum put away troubles from the past, helping her one step further to conquering her hoarding obsession which has blighted the family throughout Holly's childhood.

Wickham Hall is turning out to be my favourite Cathy Bramley series yet! Warmly written with Bramley's excellent humour and really interesting and believable characters. The descriptions of the surroundings are so beautiful and vivid you could be right there.

Looking forward (with hesitance as I really don't want this to end!) to the conclusion!





Tuesday 6 October 2015

Review: The Trouble With Words - Suzie Tullett


The Trouble with Words by Suzie Tullett is available on Amazon:

Having long made a promise to her husband, young widow Annabel has no intentions of breaking it. What she does plan to do, though, is have a baby. Not the easiest of tasks for a woman with a deceased other half, and having explored all her options, her only choice is to take the unconventional route. Setting out to find her own donor, Annabel meets Dan. Single, fun-loving and definitely not looking for commitment, this unruly blonde, blue-eyed man seems perfect for the job.
Dan wants nothing more than to find his dream woman. But with a mother intent on sabotaging his every relationship, he can't help but think he's destined to remain single. Of course, he knows his mother doesn't really want him all for herself, why else would she keep insisting he meet Maeve? Why else would she insist Dan promise to find himself a wife before she meets her maker?
Forced to negotiate matters of love, life and death, Annabel and Dan seem the answer to each other's prayers. But will they really be able to keep the promises they made? And is having a baby really the solution?




I was delighted when Suzie Tullett asked me if I would like to review her latest book, The Trouble with Words, as I have been a fan of hers since her first novel, Going Underground and I knew I was not to be disappointed.

The story opens with Annabel breaking the news to her husband that she would like a baby, in not the most conventional way. I really felt for her as I was reading and was straight away drawn to her character, and as the story progresses we meet Dan and his mum Gerry. She is desperate for Dan to find himself a wife but she needed to be sure it was the right woman for him, and she was determined to be instrumental in him doing so!

Dan and Annabel seem perfect for each other - if only they would realise it! With both of them having their own trials that seem more important than the dating game, things seem that they will pass them by, but fate steps in to ensure this does not happen. 

There are some really sad, properly tear jerking moments throughout the book, all beautifully written and sincere enough to make you think you are in the room with the characters, and there are plenty of laugh out loud moments to lighten the mood along the way (my favourite being the skateboard lesson - read the book and you'll see!). The ending was poignant, satisfying and well written, as was the whole book. I find Tullett a master of writing believable dialogue that is read in your mind just as you would hear someone speaking it. The characters are well developed and seem to really grown in strength throughout the story, Gerry being my favourite - she definitely deserves Fictional Mother of the Year!

Congratulations to Tullett on providing another well written, perfectly researched and entertaining tale.

Many thanks to Hanna Oliwa at http://safkhetpublishing.com/ for providing a review copy in exchange for an honest review. 


More about the author:




Thursday 1 October 2015

The Trouble with Words by Suzie Tullett - Relase Day Blitz


Safkhet Publishing proudly presents


THE TROUBLE WITH WORDS


by Suzie Tullett


a romantic comedy which releases today!





Promises – easy to make, hard to keep.


Having long made a promise to her husband, young widow Annabel has no intentions of breaking it. What she does plan to do, though, is have a baby. Not the easiest of tasks for a woman with a deceased other half, and having explored all her options, her only choice is to take the unconventional route. Setting out to find her own donor, Annabel meets Dan. Single, fun-loving and definitely not looking for commitment, this unruly blonde, blue-eyed man seems perfect for the job.


Dan wants nothing more than to find his dream woman. But with a mother intent on sabotaging his every relationship, he can't help but think he's destined to remain single. Of course, he knows his mother doesn't really want him all for herself, why else would she keep insisting he meet Maeve? Why else would she insist Dan promise to find himself a wife before she meets her maker?


Forced to negotiate matters of love, life and death, Annabel and Dan seem the answer to each other's prayers. But will they really be able to keep the promises they made? And is having a baby really the solution?


Read below for an excerpt...









Suzie Tullett is an author of contemporary humorous fiction and romantic comedy. As well as The Trouble with Words, her novels include Going Underground and Little White Lies and Butterflies, which was short-listed for The Guardian's 2013 Not the Booker Prize. She has a Masters Degree in Television & Radio Scriptwriting and worked as a scriptwriter before becoming a full-time novelist. And when she's not tapping away on the computer creating her own literary masterpiece, she usually has her head in someone else's.


More about the author:









Safkhet Publishing: http://safkhetpublishing.com/



Excerpt

Opening out the deckchair, she plonked herself down in it. “So how’s your week been?” she asked. She paused, not that she really expected a reply, but it was nice to know he was listening if nothing else. “Mine’s not been too bad,” she continued. “The shop’s still doing okay. Oh, and your mum called round the other day.” Remembering the visit all too well, Annabel tried not to scowl. “She said to say hello.”      
She reached down and dipped her hand into her bag again, this time pulling out a flask of coffee. “Caffeine, just what I need after the hassle of getting here,” she said. “As usual the traffic was horrendous.”
Pouring herself a drink, she knew her ramblings were an attempt at stalling the inevitable; that she was worried about Tom’s reaction once she’d told him what she was up to. While her plans for the future might be a positive move on her part, she certainly wasn't daft enough to think everyone would understand. If anything most people wouldn't, especially if his mother’s reaction had been anything to go by.
She thought it strange how everyone and their dog insisted she move on, yet the second she did they created such a song and dance over it. Although if Tom did choose to join in with the dissenters, then just like them he’d only have to get used to the idea; particularly when this was entirely his fault to begin with. Annabel didn’t want to play the blame game, but just like she’d said to his mother, she wouldn’t be in this position if he hadn’t upped and died in the first place. In her mind’s eye, she could see Tom sitting opposite, his hands clasped as he patiently waited for her to tell him what was really on her mind. The man always could read her like a book.
“Okay, okay,” she said. “Just give me a second.”          
She took a couple of sips of coffee, determined to reveal all. But, in spite of practicing her speech all week, now that it came to it, those well-chosen words seemed to fail her. Resting her cup on her knee and refusing to let her conviction wane, she realised she was just going to have to come out and say it.
After three, she told herself. One, two, three…
She squeezed her eyes shut, in anticipation of the lightning bolt no doubt about to strike her down.

“I’m going to have a baby,” she said.

The Trouble with Words by Suzie Tullett is available on Amazon: