Cover Reveal - The SW19 Club by Nicola May

Here at Bookish Bits I'm delighted to reveal Nicola May's latest novel, The SW19 Club which will be available on July 23rd (Accent Press)

What would you do if you were told you could never have children? 

Faced with this news, Gracie Davies is at an all-time low. But with the support of some new Wimbledon friends, an unorthodox therapist, her hippy-chick sister Naomi and Czech call-girl Maya, she sets up The SW19 Club and begins her rocky journey to inner peace and happiness. Add in a passionate fling with handsome landscaper Ed, a fairytale encounter with a Hollywood filmstar and the persistence of her adulterous ex, life is anything but predictable…

Pre-order here from Amazon.co.uk to drop into your inbox on July 23rd

 

Find out more about Nicola's work here at http://www.nicolamay.com/

My review of The School Gates

Appleby Farm by Cathy Bramley ~ COVER REVEAL!

Pre-order Appleby Farm from Amazon.co.uk

I am very excited to be able to share the cover for Cathy Bramley's Appleby Farm, all four glorious parts in ONE BEAUTIFUL PAPERBACK (and eBook)! It will be released on August 13th and I can't wait for it to nestle into my bookshelf next to Ivy Lane (5* Review here)

Appleby Farm is a charming, funny and romantic story for anyone looking for a feel-good, light-hearted read, from the author of bestselling Ivy Lane. 

Freya Moorcroft has wild red hair, mischievous green eyes, a warm smile and a heart of gold. She’s been happy working at the café round the corner from Ivy Lane allotments and her romance with her new boyfriend is going well, she thinks, but a part of her still misses the beautiful rolling hills of her Cumbrian childhood home: Appleby Farm.

Then a phone call out of the blue and a desperate plea for help change everything…

The farm is in financial trouble, and it’s taking its toll on the aunt and uncle who raised Freya. Heading home to lend a hand, Freya quickly learns that things are worse than she first thought. As she summons up all her creativity and determination to turn things around, Freya is surprised as her own dreams for the future begin to take shape.

Love makes the world go round, according to Freya. Not money. But will saving Appleby Farm and following her heart come at a price?

I can't wait for part four of Appleby Farm to be released on May 7th so I can see how things conclude for lovely Freya, here are my reviews for the first three installments:

Part One: A Blessing in Disguise
Part Two: A Family Affair
Part Three: Where The Heart Is

5* Review: Ivy Lane by Cathy Bramley

Buy HERE from Amazon.co.uk

(Ivy Lane is currently in Amazon's 3 paperbacks for £10 deal!)

Tilly Parker needs a fresh start, fresh air and a fresh attitude if she is ever to leave the past behind and move on with her life. As she seeks out peace and quiet in a new town, taking on a plot at Ivy Lane allotments seems like the perfect solution.

But the friendly Ivy Lane community has other ideas and gradually draw Tilly in to their cosy, comforting world of planting seedlings, organizing bake sales and planning seasonal parties.

As the seasons pass, will Tilly learn to stop hiding amongst the sweetpeas and let people back into her life – and her heart?

Ivy Lane was originally published as a four-part serial. This is the complete story in one package.

Tilly Parker moves to the small market town of Kingsfield in desperate need of a fresh start. She's clearly been through something traumatic which remains a mystery until later in the book. I attempted several theories of what had happened to Tilly, none of which turned out to be correct which I loved, I get bored easily with predictable plots. 

Tilly finds a part time job teaching at a local infant school, and also feels the need to embark on a new hobby to get her out of the house. After a serendipitous moment when a flyer comes through her door advertising a vacant allotment, she decides to take the plunge. She assumed that gardening might be an easy, solitary pass time, one which she hopes that no-one will ask any awkward questions about her past.

The gardening fraternity quickly welcome her and she begins to forge new friendships, some keener than others! The Ivy Lane community is wonderful, each member with their own quirks. Their own stories weave nicely in with Tilly's first person narration; some sad, some funny, all heartwarming. 

As the seasons change we learn the tragic secrets of Tilly's past and follow her on her journey to rebuild her life, which is helped along when reality TV show Green Fingers come to film at Ivy Lane Allotments, along with dishy producer, Aiden. Through the seasons, The Ivy Lane allotments hold many functions and parties in which Tilly plays an active roll, it is like watching a friend rebuild their life which is quite wonderful.

I loved Ivy Lane, and I love Cathy Bramley's writing, I find her the most effortless of storytellers with total knack of drawing the reader in, her dialogue is so 'true', genuine and witty and her characters are extremely well developed. 

She has rapidly become one of my favourite authors, I could read her books every day, forever.

Read what other bloggers think of Ivy Lane and join in the rest of the tour:

Many thanks to Sarah at Transworld books for sending me a copy of Ivy Lane in exchange for an honest review.

Read my 5* review of Cathy Bramley's Appleby Farm part 1 here: http://bookishbits.blogspot.co.uk/2015/02/appleby-farm-part-one-blessing-in.html

As Good as it Gets by Fiona Gibson

Buy HERE from Amazon.co.uk

“Midlife crisis? WHAT midlife crisis?!”

Charlotte Bristow is worried about her husband Will. With her 16-year-old daughter Rosie newly signed to a top modelling agency, and Will recently out of a job, things are changing in their household.

As Will dusts down his old leather trousers and starts partying with their new, fun neighbours, Charlotte begins to wonder what on earth is going on.

So when Fraser, Charlotte’s ex – and father of Rosie – suddenly arrives back on the scene, she starts to imagine what might have been…

I have only recently discovered Fiona Gibson when I bought Mum on the Run to read over the Christmas holidays. I really enjoyed it and wanted to read more from her so was excited when I saw that this has been released. I did then realise I have quite a lot of her back catalogue in ebook and paperback form anyway!

I really like her observational wit and basic telling it like it is! The way she describes family life is insightful, truthful, and hilarious. 

Charlotte's relationship with Will is steadily breaking down. Family matters such as 16 year old Rosie being scouted by a modelling agency (Will has been Rosie's stepfather since she was a baby after Charlotte was abandoned by 'real dad' Fraser) which Will is certainly not keen on, puts a further strain on their already struggling relationship. As does Will's unemployed status after he was made redundant several months earlier.

Charlotte muddles through, happy with her job and her life in general, if only her and Will could get back to a happier place, when things are made even more complicated by her receiving an email from Rosie's birth father, Fraser, her first true love, and when a sexy, fun new neighbour, Sabrina, who thinks Will is some kind of God in the kitchen and out, befriends the family, things start to spiral from bad to worse, leaving Charlotte wondering if the grass really is greener on the other side.

There really wasn't a character in this book that I disliked, well maybe Delph, a bit character model friend of Rosie's, she's every parents nightmare of a friend for their teenage daughter, but aside from her there was nobody that really irritates, a trait I find appealing in a book! 

The story reads well and the ending is lovely. I did find the story line relatively similar to Mum on the Run however, that would be my only criticism? But it certainly wouldn't be criticism enough to not read the rest of Gibson's back catalogue as I really do enjoy her writing style and the way she develops her characters, especially her leading ladies.

As Good as it Gets is a fun read, well written and with plenty of laugh-out-loud moments. 

Appleby Farm Part One - A Blessing in Disguise by Cathy Bramley

Buy HERE from Amazon.co.uk

Freya Moorcroft has wild red hair, mischievous green eyes, a warm smile and a heart of gold. She’s happy working at the café round the corner from Ivy Lane allotments and her romance with her new boyfriend is going well, she thinks, but a part of her still misses the beautiful rolling hills of her Cumbrian childhood home: Appleby Farm.

Then a phone call out of the blue changes everything…

Freya’s beloved Uncle Arthur and Auntie Sue need her help. For the first time in years, Freya is back on the farm feeding the chickens, mucking out the stables, and loving every moment. As her visit comes to an end, she has a difficult decision to make: stay, or go?

How I love Cathy Bramley! I was so eagerly anticipating Appleby Farm after being left bereft when the Ivy Lane series of books concluded (review for the paperback coming soon...!).
How pleased I was to realise that some of the favourite Ivy Lane characters would be popping up in this new series, and that it was centered around Freya Moorcroft who we had met in the latter half of Ivy Lane.

Freya works in the cafe around the corner from the Ivy Lane allotments, it's just a cover job, as much of Freya's employment seems to be. She feels that she has never really settled anywhere, even though she is now in a relationship with Charlie which she thought was going swimmingly until he breaks it to her that it's just 'a bit of fun' and seems quite unwilling to introduce her to his young son.

When she receives a phone call from her Auntie Sue saying that her Uncle Arthur has had an accident while driving his tractor she is devastated. She jumps on the next train to be with them and help out while her uncle is laid up. When she arrives there she feels guilty that her aunt and uncle have aged considerably, she realises this is due to the fact that she has not visited anywhere near as much as she should have in the past few years.

While she is there she feels the comfort of home, as she has always looked upon the farm as, and wonders whether there is anything really to return back to Kingsfield for.
As she contemplates her decision she uncovers a troubling secret that puts the future of Appleby Farm in jeopardy.

Ahhh...to be back in another Cathy Bramley novel, well, I felt a bit like Freya, it's like being back home. There are not many writers that can put you at ease and entertain you like Cathy. She draws you in to the story and the characters, but FYI, I can't stand Charlie (Freya's boyfriend). Freya however is wonderful, as are her friends, and I especially love Auntie Sue and would really love to have been sat around her kitchen table with them all.

I love the new lit trend for serialised novels, as much as I hate it that you're just drawn hook, line and sinker into a story and it ends, it's lovely to anticipate each part of the series coming out and there's not too long to wait for Appleby Farm part two as it is released on March 5th (phew) and it will be great to wait for each of the four parts in turn.

This new series gets off to a flying start and I really can't wait to read the rest! A definite 5* for Part One!