Love Will Tear Us Apart by Holly Seddon

Love Will Tear Us Apart by Holly Seddon
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Fearing eternal singledom, childhood friends Kate and Paul make the age-old vow that if they don't find love by thirty, they will marry each other.

Years later, with the deadline of their 30th birthdays approaching, the unlikely couple decide to keep their teenage promise. After all, they are such good friends. Surely that's enough to make a marriage?

Now, on the eve of their 10th wedding anniversary, they will discover that love between men and women is more complex, and more precarious, than they could ever have imagined. As Kate struggles with a secret that reaches far into their past, will the couple's vow become the very thing that threatens their future?

Love Will Tear Us Apart is a moving and heart-breaking exploration of modern love and friendship, from the bestselling author of Try Not to Breathe.


After reading the two other Seddon novels, I was really looking forward to starting this one. Her other two have been psychological thrillers and that's what I expected from this one. However, this was very different. We are lead to believe early on that there is a 'secret' threatening Kate and Paul's marriage, however I thought it was disappointing and I was left feeling, 'so what?'

This is told through two time periods, when Kate and Paul are growing up and about their lives and then married with two children, which is the present day. For me the book took a long time to get going and I kept thinking, soon something major will happen, but I never got that.

Although I did enjoy this, I found the pace a little slow, it felt like nothing much was happening for the majority of the book. I did finish it, but I felt a little deflated by it. I would still read Seddon's next novel but I am hoping she goes back to what she is good at and that is writing great thrillers.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

The Beloveds by Maureen Lindley

The Beloveds by Maureen Lindley
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

An exploration of domestic derangement in the tradition of Daphne Du Maurier s classic Rebecca, that plumbs the depths of sibling rivalry with wit and menace.
An exploration of domestic derangement, in the tradition of Daphne Du Maurier s classic Rebecca, that plumbs the depths of sibling rivalry with wit and menace.
Oh, to be a Beloved one of those lucky people for whom nothing ever goes wrong. Everything falls into their laps without effort: happiness, beauty, good fortune, allure.
Betty Stash is not a Beloved but her younger sister, the delightful Gloria, is. She s the one with the golden curls, sunny disposition and captivating smile, the one whose best friend used to be Betty s, the one whose husband should have been Betty s. And then, to everyone s surprise, Gloria inherits the family home a vast, gorgeous pile of ancient stone, imposing timbers, and lush gardens that was never meant to be hers. 

Losing what Betty considers her rightful inheritance is the final indignity. As she single-mindedly pursues her plan to see the estate returned to her in all its glory, her determined and increasingly unhinged behaviour aided by poisonous mushrooms, talking walls, and a phantom dog escalates to the point of no return. The Beloveds will have you wondering if there s a length to which an envious sister won t go.



Written in the first person from the central character who is our narrator Betty, The Beloveds is a dark sinister story of obsession and sibling jealousy out of control.

When Betty's mother dies she naturally expects to receive the family home, Pipits, as she is the eldest daughter and it is the way of things. She was never her mothers favourite, that honour went to her younger sister Gloria. So when the house is left to Gloria Betty is furious and vows somehow to get what is rightfully hers.

Bettys' jealousy started from the time Gloria was born. Gloria was such a good baby and developed into a charming child who everyone was attracted to. She had a pretty face and such a sweet character that everyone fell in love with. Betty sees has one of the 'beloveds' - those who manage to get everything in life they want and luck is always on their side.

Against Gloria Betty feels plain and never good enough. Every situation Betty sees as a criticism and so through the years she builds such resentment that she becomes to hate Gloria. Matters were made worse when Betty bought home her boyfriend Henry and once he meets Gloria she looses him to her and they marry. Another thing that gets added to Bettys list against her sister.
Gloria even manages to steal Bettys best friend Alice from her.Betty does marry and although Bert is much older than her it is a convenient arrangement on both their parts.

Betty has always loved Pipits and believes the house talks to her and is willing her to take it off Gloria and Henry and she makes it her mission to do just that at any cost.

This is a dark tale and at times a little voyeuristic because the reader becomes Betty and we spy along with her on those on her list that she wants to destroy. Betty is a psychopath where reasoning and acceptable behaviour don't exist, where she can plausibly justify her actions. She's not a likeable character but there's something that draws the reader in about her, possibly the need to know how far she will go to get what she wants.

Cleverly written with enough suspense to keep you reading and I give this one 4 stars.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

Written in the Stars by Ali Harris

Written in the Stars by Ali Harris
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Have you ever wondered 'What if…?' What if you'd taken that other job, gone on a date with that sweet guy, moved to a different city? Would an alternative life path have led to a happier ending?

Now imagine if you could have taken both paths…

When Bea Bishop slips while walking down the aisle on her wedding day, she is momentarily knocked unconscious. And in a flash, her world splits and two separate parallel lives take her on two very different journeys. In one, Bea flees back down the aisle and out of the church. In the other, she glides blissfully towards Adam, her intended.

Each path will take her on a very different journey. And each will see her life change for better and for worse. But which story will lead to her happy-ever-after?

Oh dear, I found this very boring and repetitive, the ending was so predictable and I found I was really having to make myself carry on reading it. I have to admit I skim read from about the middle of the book as I had really lost interest and only wanted to finish it in case something worthwhile happened, it didn't. I could not connect with Bea who I found boring and indecisive to the point of wanting to throttle her (never a good sign) and I didn't really like her overbearing best friend Milly either. The endless references to flowers and plants was maddening as was her continual references to her father and his pointless letters giving her advice comparing everything to horticulture.

The concept was fine but not a fresh idea and frankly this has been done much better as others have pointed out in 'Sliding Doors' and Ali Harris did not bring anything new or exciting to her take on this idea. From a promising start it just seemed to fizzle out and finished up a mediocre novel and one that is easily forgotten. Sorry Ali I can only give you a 2 star rating for this one, it would have achieved more if you had injected a little life into it.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

The Way Back To Us by Kay Langdale

The Way Back To Us by Kay Langdale
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Since their youngest son, Teddy, was diagnosed with a life-defining illness, Anna has been fighting: against the friends who don't know how to help; against the team assigned to Teddy's care who constantly watch over Anna's parenting; and against the impulse to put Teddy above all else - including his older brother, the watchful, sensitive Isaac.

And now Anna can't seem to stop fighting against her husband, the one person who should be able to understand, but who somehow manages to carry on when Anna feels like she is suffocating under the weight of all the things that Teddy will never be able to do.

As Anna helplessly pushes Tom away, he can't help but feel the absence of the simple familiarity that should come so easily, and must face the question: is it worse to stay in an unhappy marriage, or leave?

A moving and emotional novel not really an uplifting read, I do like a little escapism when I read and this really was to 'real' for me to call it entertaining.

Good characterisation of vivid and flawed people but such an emotionally driven book it was quite an exhausting read. The journey all the characters take leaves the reader feeling such a sense of hopelessness really that I was finding it hard to continue. Well written and tackling a difficult subject but really not an entertaining read. The family start to fall apart with the illness of Teddy and it seems there is no way out of this for any of them, they all find themselves trying and feeling inadequate, slowly but surely Tom (husband) seeks solace in another woman and desperately wants to find 'the way back to us'.

A bit too sad for me, well written, poignant and exhausting - I believe it deserves a 3.5 (rounded up to 4* for Goodreads and Amazon) from me but really not my kind of read.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

The Silence Between Breaths by Cath Staincliffe

The Silence Between Breaths by Cath Staincliffe
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Passengers boarding the 10.35 train from Manchester Piccadilly to London Euston are bound for work, assignations, reunions, holidays or new starts, with no idea that their journey is about to be brutally curtailed. Holly has just landed her dream job, which should make life a lot easier than it has been, and Jeff is heading for his first ever work interview after months of unemployment. They end up sitting next to each other. Onboard customer service assistant Naz dreams of better things as he collects rubbish from the passengers. And among the others travelling are Nick with his young family who are driving him crazy; pensioner Meg and her partner setting off on a walking holiday and facing an uncertain future; Caroline, run ragged by the competing demands of her stroppy teenage children and her demented mother; and Rhona, unhappy at work and desperate to get home to her small daughter. And in the middle of the carriage sits Saheel, carrying a deadly rucksack ...


I had to leave writing this review for several days as I wanted to digest the impact that this made on me so that I could give a heartfelt review. I'm glad that I did this as the book was still as emotionally strong as it was when I finished it. Terrifyingly realistic and unfortunately breathtakingly plausible.

Essentially it's about 8 people who catch the 10.35 Manchester Piccadilly train bound for London Euston except that for me it was 9 people who boarded that train and I was the ninth passenger. You don't read this novel as a bystander you feel you are there taking that fateful journey with them and live to tell the tale that leaves the kind of stain that you will never get rid of. I know if I now make a train journey I will think of Naz, Holly, Jeff, Nick and Lisa with their two children, Meg, Caroline and Rhona along the way. There is also an interesting secondary character who is Saheel's (the terrorist) younger sister Kulsoom whose account that day and her actions back in Manchester does in some way humanise the terrorist for the reader and the impact it has on his own family.

It is a skillfully written stark tense novel that is topical of the day and a timely reminder of the world in which we live. As the 8 passengers are introduced to the reader they take on very real personas some I liked and some I wasn't too fond of. All the people travelling that day are taking that train for different reasons and we learn through the introductions just why they boarded that particular train again highlighting that sometimes things that happen are just fate and it reinforced that you can never know what's around the corner in life.

We are propelled through this novel at the speed of the train, moving ever closer to the inevitable as the train eats up the miles and our terrorist is becoming ever more jittery. Saheel is on the train with one intention and that is to blow it up along with himself for the sake of Allah and as the train enters a tunnel and slows down to stop he does just that. We know that some of the 8 people will not get out alive and the terrible injuries that the others suffer as a result of surviving are just horrific and once the bomb goes off that should be the end of this gripping novel but in a way it's just the beginning for those survivors who are facing a future that will be so different from their past.

It was a gripping read that sadly highlights our modern world and its' troubles in that terrorism is a daily reality and like it or not we are all part of that reality being caught up in a misguided ideology that has no winners in the end. Powerfully written but hard to read in parts as so poignant in places that the reality of the characters having to become collateral damage is hard to accept and too high a price to pay for these sense less acts of terrorism. I have to give this 5 stars for the beautifully crafted characterizations and of both points of view of the victims and the family of the terrorist - this novel will stay with me for a long time.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

Love at the Italian lake with extract

Blurb:
Sophia Bertoni discovers her boyfriend in bed with another woman, and realizes her life is going nowhere. Leaving her high-pressure job, she travels to Italy to stay with her grandmother while she figures out her next move. When Sophia –​ quite literally –​ bumps into devastatingly handsome Joe Lancaster her plans are turned upside down.

 As the two realize they’re both spending the summer in the same town, a love affair seems on the cards. But Sophia and Joe are both burdened by family secrets. Despite their attraction, will the sun set on Sophia and Joe’s romance – or will they find love at the Italian lake?




Extract:

Sophia checked her handbag again for the fiftieth time. Passport, purse and tickets were there just as they had been five minutes ago. Her stomach churned with nerves and she took a few deep breaths to try to release some of the tension. It wasn’t that she was nervous about flying, though. More that she was going away in the hope that being in different surroundings would help her to find a new direction in life. The lack of a more solid plan than this was actually terrifying, because Sophia had always had focus, always known her goals. So the fear in her belly was fear of the unknown.

Her mother and Kaisha had insisted on taking her shopping the previous weekend and it had been a learning curve for the usually clothes-cautious Sophia. Kaisha had asked her how much she had to spend on her getaway wardrobe and when Sophia had told her, Kaisha’s face had lit up. The first purchase Kaisha had encouraged her to make, a pair of oversized Chanel sunglasses with gold rims, had made Sophia giggle. Her usual sunglasses were smaller and selected not to attract any attention. But the size of the Chanel ones alone drew attention to her head. However, when she put them on, she was pleased to find that they suited her face shape and her mother told her they made her look like Sophia Loren.

Something about that compliment sparked something in Sophia and, with her mother and sister-in-law as cheerleaders, she spent a very happy day trawling the shops and splurging on a whole new wardrobe. After being accustomed to wearing her low-key work uniform of suits and blouses, and weekend casuals in beige and cream, trying on clothes that were colourful, daring and with significant price tags, was extremely liberating.


She peered out of the airplane window at the clouds and her eyes watered. It was so bright out there. Hopefully, it was a sign… that her future would also be bright, or at least that the weather was nice in Italy. She pressed her nails into her palms; she was being silly, looking for signs. She just needed to relax and enjoy whatever lay ahead. Be… what was it they
called it… more accepting? More… positive? Even if her new wardrobe did make her feel like she was a bit out of her comfort zone.

Also at Kaisha’s insistence, there had been the almost total body waxing, including her eyebrows. Sophia usually gave her legs and underarms a quick swipe over with a razor but when Kaisha had seen Sophia’s legs in the changing room, she’d immediately dragged Sophia off for emergency waxing. It had hurt like hell and Sophia swore she’d never put her flesh through such agony again. But afterwards, she did have to admit that her skin was extraordinarily smooth. And she liked the way that her new eyebrows framed her eyes so neatly. She’d been worried she’d end up looking completely surprised but the beautician had reassured her that she knew what she was doing. When it had come to permanent makeup though Sophia had refused, horrified at the idea – no matter how good Kaisha claimed permanent eyeliner was. They had reached a compromise by Sophia allowing herself to be talked into buying buy an extra three bikinis and her mother had been delighted.

Saying goodbye to her parents at the airport had been difficult, especially seeing the conflicting emotions war in her mother’s eyes because Sophia was going to visit her own mother. Sophia hadn’t seen her Italian nonna in about ten years. Her parents didn’t visit as often as they’d have liked because of the restaurant, but Sophia’s mother assured her that Nonna Spinoli was as fit and sprightly as ever. She refused to get involved in social media, but telephoned Sophia’s mother every week without fail to fill her in on the ins and outs of her life and those of her friends in the pretty town of Malcesine. What Sophia could recall of her grandmother was a strong dark-haired woman with a personality that filled every room she entered. Even as a child, Sophia had sensed that Nonna Spinoli’s presence had a significant impact upon her mother, and that her mother changed when Nonna was around. 

It was as if she shrunk like a flower in the too-hot sun, as if Nonna shone brightly enough for
the two of them. Perhaps that was another reason why her mother didn’t try to get over to Italy more often; she didn’t like to lose her identity as she seemed to around Nonna Spinoli.
Sophia’s ears popped and she realized that the plane had begun its descent. She held tightly onto her handbag and swallowed hard.

‘First time in Italy?’ the woman sat next to her asked, eyeing Sophia’s white knuckles.

‘No but I haven’t been out here for a while.’

The woman, who appeared to be about the same age as Sophia, nodded. ‘It’s beautiful. You’ll love it.’

‘I hope so.’


‘It’s the land of love and dreams.’ The woman smiled broadly. ‘You’ll find whatever it is you’re searching for here.’







About the Author :

Darcie Boleyn has a huge heart and is a real softy. She never fails to cry at books and movies, whether the ending is happy or not. Darcie is in possession of an overactive imagination that often keeps her awake at night. Darcie fell in love in New York, got married in the snow, rescues uncoordinated greyhounds and can usually be found reading or typing away on her laptop.

Runaway Wife by Rowan Coleman

Runaway Wife by Rowan Coleman
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Sometimes you have to have the courage to start over…

Rose Pritchard has fled her home and her abusive husband with little more than the clothes on her back – and her most precious possession, her seven year old daughter Maddie.

But Rose does have one other thing left – a glimmer of hope that she can build a better life for herself and her daughter, whatever it takes…

Poignant story of an abused wife after years of misery decides to take her 7 year old daughter Maddie in search of a better life in the village of Millthwaite. Spurred on by a letter written to her some years ago she goes in search of its author Frasier in the hope that his kind words will be enough for her to start a new life. Once she gets to her destination its not as easy as she hoped it would be and faced with many obstacles she starts to wonder if she has made a terrible mistake.

I did look at this novel in a realist way, I wondered if I would have chased across country looking for someone who I hardly knew and risk everything taking my 7 year old daughter into an unknown future. I think if you were driven to do this it would be a last desperate act and maybe Rose was at this point but I'm not sure it was realistic enough. During her 'search' she meets her lost father and they build a relationship between them and Rose also meets Rowan her fathers' agent with whom she embarks on a romance.

This is a tale of self-discovery, romance, love, fear and friendship and how Rose and Maddie finally find themselves. It's not a fast paced novel, in parts I found it very dull and it did drag a little but it was gently and sensitively written and for that it deserves 3 stars.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

Another Heartbeat in the House by Kate Beaufoy

Another Heartbeat in the House by Kate Beaufoy
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Two women living a hundred years apart. One home that binds them together.

When Edie Chadwick travels to Ireland to close up her uncle’s lakeside lodge, it’s as much to escape the burden of guilt she’s carrying as to break loose from the smart set of 1930’s London.

The old house is full of memories – not just her own, but those of a woman whose story has been left to gather dust in a chest in the attic: a handwritten memoir inscribed with an elegant signature . . . Eliza Drury

As she turns the pages of the manuscript, Edie uncovers secrets she could never have imagined: an exciting tale of ambition, hardship, love and tragedy – a story that has waited a lifetime to be told. . .


Edie Chadwick works in publishing reading manuscripts for writers while waiting to discover the next block buster she becomes bored and needs a change. Her Uncle needs help closing one of his properties in Ireland and she offers to help eager to escape the boredom of her life.

While helping him to clear the house she finds a diary of someone called Eliza Drury written almost 100 years ago. Like Edie Eliza had also set out on a journey to Ireland in an attempt to change her fortunes for the better and as Edie continues to clear the house she comes across more secrets about Eliza.

The problem I had with this is that it was a 'dual time' book and in order for this to really work it has to have sufficient mystery to keep the reader going which I didn't find with this story. It was disappointing and just a bit boring with no real twists or reveals to want me to carry on. I did read to the end but it was skim read. Only 2 stars from me for this one.

I would like thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

The Versions of Us by Laura Barnett

The Versions of Us by Laura Barnett
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

What if you had said yes . . . ?

Eva and Jim are nineteen, and students at Cambridge, when their paths first cross in 1958. Jim is walking along a lane when a woman approaching him on a bicycle swerves to avoid a dog. What happens next will determine the rest of their lives. We follow three different versions of their future - together, and apart - as their love story takes on different incarnations and twists and turns to the conclusion in the present day.

The Versions of Us is an outstanding debut novel about the choices we make and the different paths that our lives might follow. What if one small decision could change the rest of your life?


This was hard to keep going not because the story was no good but because it spanned several years and had three separate story lines of two characters and it continually jumped between those three which made it disjointed and difficult to follow. It tells the story of Eva a writer and Jim a painter, their lives as individuals and as a couple and how decisions they make/made determine their fate.

It was well written but a bit slow and as I said a little confusing, I struggled to stay with this one which was a pity as it deserves to be read to the end but it lacks pace. Unfortunately I can only give it 3 stars

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

I Know My Name by C.J. Cooke

I Know My Name by C.J. Cooke
My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Komméno Island, Greece: I don't know where I am, who I am. Help me.

A woman is washed up on a remote Greek island with no recollection of who she is or how she got there.

Potter’s Lane, Twickenham, London: Eloïse Shelley is officially missing.

Lochlan’s wife has vanished into thin air, leaving their toddler and twelve-week-old baby alone. Her money, car and passport are all in the house, with no signs of foul play. Every clue the police turn up means someone has told a lie…

Does a husband ever truly know his wife? Or a wife know her husband? Why is Eloïse missing? Why did she forget?

The truth is found in these pages…

This is one of those novels that is not what it seems initially. On the surface you have a mystery of how a woman ends up on a beach in Greece with no recollection of how she got there and no memory of who she is. After a storm wrecks her boat she is washed up on the beach and found by a group of writers who have come to the island (which is apart from them uninhabited) to find themselves in their writing. The group seem to want to help Eloise or at least some of them appear to.

Back in England Lochlan Shelly's neighbour calls him at work to say that his wife is missing and his two children Max and Cressida who should have been at home with her were in fact found alone in the house by the neighbour. The story then slowly unfolds told from the perspective of Eloise and Lochlan interspersed with occasional chapters being told by Gerda and Magnus (Eloise grandparents) and a couple that give some insight into Eloise childhood. Each perspective is crafted well, Eloise battling her amnesia and her desperately anxious desire to piece together how she got to the island of Kommena and the driving force to get home wherever that may be coupled with her unease with the people who have found her on the beach. Lochlan's perspective shows the confusion and desperation of not knowing what has happened to his wife and exposes his insecurities and betrayals.

Beautifully descriptive in parts and good characterisation propels this forward; to say anything more really would give away the essence of this novel and possibly spoil it - it does become apparent what is going on but really not until right at the end. Very enjoyable novel and deserves 4 stars.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

The Bucket List to Mend a Broken Heart by Anna Bell

The Bucket List to Mend a Broken Heart by Anna Bell
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Abi's barely left her bed since Joseph, the love of her life, dumped her, saying they were incompatible.

When Joseph leaves a box of her possessions on her doorstep, she finds a bucket list of ten things she never knew he wanted to do. What better way to win him back than by completing the list, and proving they're a perfect match?

But there's just one problem - or rather, ten. Abi's not exactly the outdoorsy type, and she's absolutely terrified of heights - not ideal for a list that includes climbing a mountain, cycling around the Isle of Wight and, last but not least, abseiling down the tallest building in town . . .

Completing the list is going to need all Abi's courage - and a lot of help from her friends. But as she heals her broken heart one task at a time, the newly confident Abi might just have a surprise in store . .



Typical chic lit and a humorous holiday read, nothing too heavy to digest in this lighthearted book.

Being dumped before her years anniversary Abi is feeling very Bridget Jones ish and shuts herself away in her flat to consume her bodyweight in trash food and weep in front of old movies. Once Joseph drops off her belongings and she is forced to go through them she comes across his bucket list of things to do before he's 40 and she comes up the crazy plan to do them herself and try and win him back.

Anna Bell takes us on the bucket list journey and her new friendships that she makes along the way especially the lovely Ben who helps her complete the tasks.

It's about love, friendship and discovering herself for Abi and eventually the realisation that maybe what she thought she wanted wasn't what she really wanted at all.

Well written with some good bits of humour this book easily sits with the good chic lits out there, maybe not as polished and as funny as the Sophie Kinsella's but still an enjoyable read. Easily gets 4 stars from me.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

The Housekeeper by Suellen Dainty

The Housekeeper by Suellen Dainty
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

When Anne Morgan’s successful boyfriend—who also happens to be her boss—leaves her for another woman, Anne finds herself in desperate need of a new job and a quiet place to recover. Meanwhile, her celebrity idol, Emma Helmsley (England’s answer to Martha Stewart and Oprah Winfrey), is in need of a housekeeper, an opportunity which seems too good to be true.

Through her books, website, and blog, Emma Helmsley advises her devoted followers on how to live a balanced life in a hectic world. Her husband, Rob, is a high profile academic, and her children, Jake and Lily, are well-adjusted teenagers. On the surface, they are the perfect family. But Anne soon finds herself intimately ensconced in the Helmsley’s dirty laundry, both literally and figuratively. Underneath the dust, grime, and whimsical clutter, everyone has a secret to hide. And Anne’s own disturbing past soon threatens to unhinge everything...

For fans of Notes on a Scandal and The Woman Upstairs, The Housekeeper is a nuanced psychological drama about the dark recesses of the human mind and the dangerous consequences of long-buried secrets.


This started off very slowly in fact so slowly that I almost didn't want to bother to carry on. It only really picked up pace by 69 and the start of chapter 7. I must admit from then on in I only skim read this as it was littered with (in my opinion) unnecessary descriptive passages and not enough action.

The novel is built around the main character Anne Morgan a chef who works in a restaurant owned by her handsome boyfriend Anton. All appears to be wonderful in her world until her boyfriend leaves her for someone else and she ends up becoming a housekeeper for a high profile couple the wife of which Anna has been obsessing about and following her blog for sometime. OK this gets my interest, could she be a bunny boiler, so I plough on.

I have to say at this point I was beginning to think the novel might have picked up a bit but really this lacked enough pace to keep the reader going. The book promised secrets that she learns about the family but really they are so lame especially in today's age that there just wasn't anything to hook the reader. This is not a fast paced thriller or a slow burner that develops into an explosion it was, for me a damp squib.

I couldn't connect with the characters who seemed to be one dimensional lacking warmth or realism. I found the story lack lustre really and although it had a couple of interesting developments (couldn't really call them twists) it just wasn't enough to make me want to continue reading.

Overall it was well written but to bill this novel as a psychological thriller and a page turner is a long way off the mark, it is really a contemporary novel and if it had been billed as such then it could be reviewed as that instead of which to review it as a psychological thriller it can't make the grade. It wastes a lot of time with unnecessary detail and lacks sufficient pace to keep the reader engaged.

It takes a long time, effort and personal pain to write a novel and I am sorry Suellen that my review is not the best but I think it's a case of mistakenly putting this into the wrong genre raising expectations in the first instance and then lacking in substance in the second.

There is no suspense or shocking reveals in this book it is just an average contemporary novel that I would rate as a 3 star.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

The Last Piece of My Heart by Paige Toon

The Last Piece of My Heart by Paige Toon
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

When life feels like a puzzle, sometimes it’s the small pieces that make up the bigger picture ... Join Bridget on a journey to put her world back together.

Meet Bridget, a successful travel journalist with ambitions to turn her quirky relationship blog into a novel. But, after numerous rejections from publishers, she accepts an alternative proposition: Nicole Dupre died leaving behind a bestselling novel and an incomplete sequel, and the family need someone to finish it. Bridget is just thankful to have her foot in the publishing door. But as she gets to know Nicole’s grieving family, and the woman behind the writing, Bridget’s priorities begin to change.



I love Paige Toon books and I always look forward to that time of year when she will be releasing another one. This was no exception.

This story follows Bridget, a travel journalist, who has written a small amount in the past but wants to make the move tom becoming a full time writer. She is struggling to get anything major published so is writing a relationship blog, when she gets offered the opportunity to ghostwrite for Nicki, who tragically died suddenly after writing her first book and wasn't able to finish the sequel, she is unsure at first (she is not sure this will be the best way of her getting into writing) but with a little encouragement agrees to the job.

Bridget is determined to continue with her blog, to find her ex boyfriends to ask for the piece of her heart back in order for her to commit fully and be able to move on from them. This has taken her over the world so far and she has a few other to visit in the U.K. Being Nicki's ghostwriter takes her to Cornwall and working in the house with the recently widowed Charlie and his young daughter April.

Bridget is still with her partner Elliot that she reconnected with when in Australia searching for long lost ex's, this a long distance relationship but she is sure that once she has got all the pieces of her heart back again she can begin a new live with him.

This story is predictable but it is lovely and has so much emotion in it. I really was captured from the beginning and felt I had a connection with the characters. I loved all the settings in the book and most of the characters, I wasn't too fond of Kate or Valerie. If you love Paige Toon you will love this addition to her novels, this is going to be one that I recommend this summer to everyone. It truly is a wonderful read, one that has become a firm favourite on my bookshelf. Well done Paige, you have done it again!

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

The One Plus One by Jojo Moyes

The One Plus One by Jojo Moyes
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

One single mum

With two jobs and two children, Jess Thomas does her best day after day. But it's hard on your own. And sometimes you take risks you shouldn't. Because you have to . . .

One chaotic family

Jess's gifted, quirky daughter Tanzie is brilliant with numbers, but without a helping hand she'll never get the chance to shine. And Nicky, Jess's teenage stepson, can't fight the bullies alone.

Sometimes Jess feels like they're sinking . . .

One handsome stranger

Into their lives comes Ed Nicholls, a man whose life is in chaos, and who is running from a deeply uncertain future. But he has time on his hands. He knows what it's like to be lonely. And he wants to help . . .

One unexpected love story

The One Plus One is a captivating and unconventional romance from Jojo Moyes about two lost souls meeting in the most unlikely circumstances.



What made the experience of listening to The One Plus One the most enjoyable?
I really enjoyed the different character voices throughout the performance, it was also really engaging from the beginning.

What other book might you compare The One Plus One to, and why?
I wouldn't compare it to any others that I have listened to before,

Have you listened to any of the narrators’s other performances? How does this one compare?
This was the first from these narrators.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
I did want to although being so long I was unable to, I saved this and listened to it on 2 separate plane journeys, this is something I would recommend.

Any additional comments?
I would recommend this to others, this was the first Jojo Moyes book I have read/listened to and really, really enjoyed it. My previous thoughts were that her books were sad and quite depressing. This book was neither of these and I would now not hesitate to pick up another one of her books.

What a Way to Go by Julia Forster

What a Way to Go by Julia Forster
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

1988. 12-year-old Harper Richardson's parents are divorced. Her mum got custody of her, the Mini, and five hundred tins of baked beans. Her dad got a mouldering cottage in a Midlands backwater village and default membership of the Lone Rangers single parents' club. Harper got questionable dress sense, a zest for life, two gerbils, and her Chambers dictionary, and the responsibility of fixing her parents' broken hearts. Set against a backdrop of high hairdos and higher interest rates, pop music and puberty, divorce and death, What a Way to Go is a warm, wise and witty tale of one girl tackling the business of growing up while those around her try not to fall apart.

I'd probably equate this as a young adult novel. Told through the eyes of a 12 year old girl called Harper it had a charm and evoked memories of the 1980's well. It takes quite a dysfunctional family unit seen through the eyes of a teenager {Harper) who is quite wise for her years through growing up in the 1980's while she tries to make sense of a world of adults, their problems, heartaches and her often witty unique way of handling life.

It was an amusing read, often sad in places but still managed to maintain a lightness throughout. Not really my kind of read as I said it seems more young adult than adult reading but it was still enjoyable. Worth 3 stars for it's nostalgia and craftsmanship but not the best book I've read this year.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

The Comfort of Others by Kay Langdale

The Comfort of Others by Kay Langdale
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Minnie and her sister Clara, spinsters both, live in a dilapidated country house in the middle of a housing estate, built when their father sold off the family's land. Now in their seventies, their days follow a well-established routine: long gone are the garden parties, the tennis lessons and their suffocatingly strict mother. Gone, too, is any mention of what happened when Minnie was sixteen, and the secret the family buried in the grounds of their estate.

Directly opposite them lives Max, an 11-year-old whose life with his mum has changed beyond recognition since her new boyfriend arrived. Cast aside, he takes solace in Minnie's careful routine, observed through his bedroom window.

Over the course of the summer, both begin to tell their stories: Max through a Dictaphone, Minnie through a diary. As their tales intertwine, ghosts are put to rest and challenges faced, in a story that is as dark as it is uplifting.


An unlikely friendship develops between Millie a 70 year old woman and Max an 11 year old boy one summer that helps each one to come to terms with events that have shaped their lives. Max is given a dictaphone for his birthday and starts to record everything that happens to him that summer. It coincides with his mother is asked out on a date bu the boiler man and from that point he becomes something of a fixture in Max's life and not one he is happy about. No longer the focus of his mothers' attention and having to put up with this new man in her life who is less than kind to him he finds solace in sharing his thoughts and feelings on his dictaphone and eventually the old lady across the street.

Millie lives in the house opposite on the same estate and when she was a young girl her family once owned all the land the estate is built on. Living with her sister Clara all she has is her memories and routines hardly ever venturing outside. Millie notices Max from her window recording his days events and she decides to do the same in a diary. The journey for her is both cathartic and painful and eventually when Max and Millie meet they share confidences which make them both stronger.

It is sometimes a difficult read in that it has incredibly sad and poignant events but a feel good factor in their friendship keeps the book moving along nicely. It was nice to see how the author managed to make a connection with the young and old to develop a friendship that developed into a strong bond between the two.

Not my usual read but it was well thought out and executed and although a bit sad it was nicely done if the ending was a bit flat. I would give this a 4 star rating for its' subject matter and managing to bridge the gap between generations so well.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

The Fifth Letter by Nicola Moriarty

The Fifth Letter by Nicola Moriarty
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Four friends. Five Letters. One Secret.

The scandalous breakthrough novel from Nicola Moriarty that will leave you asking, how well do I really know my friends?

Joni, Trina, Deb and Eden.

Best friends since the first day of school. Best friends, they liked to say, forever.

But now they are in their thirties and real life - husbands, children, work - has got in the way. So, resurrecting their annual trip away, Joni has an idea, something to help them reconnect.

Each woman will write an anonymous letter, sharing with their friends the things that are really going on in their lives.

But as the confessions come tumbling out, Joni starts to feel the certainty of their decades-long friendships slip from her fingers.

Anger. Accusations. Desires. Deceit.

And then she finds another letter. One that was never supposed to be read. A fifth letter. Containing a secret so big that its writer had tried to destroy it. And now Joni is starting to wonder, did she ever really know her friends at all?


After reading the blurb of this one I really thought this would be up my street, I haven't read a women's contemporary for a while and really wanted to get back into it. I choose to begin this today, I had a long trip at the hairdressers planned and wanted something good to read. Wow is all I can say, when I left I only had about 70 pages left to read. This was certainly one quick read and one that hooked me in from the start. The writing style is so easy to get into and you won't believe how much you have read in a short period of time, you just get swept along with all the drama in the story to notice.


Set in Australia we follow four friends, Joni, Trina, Deb and Eden. They have been friends since high school and every year since they were 21 they have taken an annual holiday. As the years have gone on, this has not always been easy for them to commit to a date with families and life getting in the way.

We are taken through the story through different points of view and discover their past and their relationships. I really loved that the story was broken up with the confession to the priest, this made it really enjoyable for me as I don't think I have ever read a story like this before. It made it different and interesting.

This year something about their annual holiday is different, yes Joni seemed to mess up when booking their holiday home but they have decided they have grown apart over the years and perhaps its time to rekindle their letter love. (They used to write notes to each other when they were at school.) After a few glasses of wine they all decide this is a good idea. However the night they are writing their letters one woman writes an extra letter, determine to destroy the original and put this in its place. What she doesn't do though is destroy the fifth letter immediately.

This book is full of twists and turns, to be honest I thought I had guessed who had written it half way though and it wasn't until I was about 30 pages from the end that I realised that I had been wrong. I did however guess a few of the smaller 'secrets' to spill.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I would definitely recommend this to others, I would also be keen to read other novels by this author. Overall I give this book 4.5* (rounded up to 5 for Goodreads and Amazon.) The only reason this is not a 5* book is down to the fact I had guessed some elements of this. Saying that, it did not affect my enjoyment of the book.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

The Assistants by Camille Perri

The Assistants by Camille Perri
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Behind every successful man is a busy assistant and Tina’s boss is very successful.

But Tina is tired of being overworked and underpaid.
She’s bored of her damp flat and her mounting debts.
Then a blip in the expenses system sends Tina a cheque.
She’s a good person.
But she’s desperate.
This isn’t stealing.
It’s an administrative error.
Right?

What would you do if you thought you’d get away with it?



Tina works as an assistant to Robert Barlow billionaire entrepreneur and has worked for him for 6 years. Like all assistants Tina does everything for her boss from squeezing lemons into his drinks to buying birthday presents for his wife and children when he forgets, she knows more about him than anyone even his wife and she is discrete and loyal. She is paid a pittance for always being at his beck and call and like all assistants she seems to be 'on duty' 24/7. She is overworked and underpaid with mounting debts, a shabby flat, nothing to look forward to and no friends or time to have a life of her own.


Through a mix up with a flight company and having to pay for Robert's tickets out of her own pocket as she has no company credit card, Tina is sent a cheque to reimburse her when the airline realise how important Robert is and having initially refused to give him a 'freebie' change their mind. Tina put her claim through to get her money back as soon as she had set up the flights and is paid by the company but when she receives the cheque from the airline she is tempted to keep it. She, like most of her assistant colleagues, has a student loan debt that takes a huge part of her salary each month and she fantasises how different her life would be if she could just pay it off. After all Robert pays more on lunch than she does on rent - where's the harm, it's not stealing after all.


She's not a thief and not a bad person but she longs for a better life and so succumbs to temptation and with a couple of clicks on her computer pays off her loan, it's as quick and easy as that, no one knows she's done it and she thinks she has got away with it until Emily Johnson assistant to the director of Travel and Entertainment and who signs off all related expenses for her boss calls her up to the 43rd floor and tells her she knows what Tina did.


From then on events spiral out of Tina's control and she is blackmailed into doing the same for Emily and it seems this is not going to end with her. Great read, funny in parts and good characters who all blend well together. Good pace to this novel, lots of twists and a good ending. Would be a perfect holiday book, a fun light hearted easy read.


Thoroughly enjoyed this book, has to be a well deserved 4 stars.


I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

How to Be Bad - E.Lockhart

How to Be Bad by E. Lockhart
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

When you've had enough of being good, sometimes you've got to try a little bad... Jesse, Vicks and Mel couldn't be more different. Jesse, a righteous Southern gal who's as thoughtful as she is uptight, is keeping a secret that she knows will change her life forever. Vicks is a wild-child: seemingly cool, calm and collected on the outside, but inside she's furious at herself for being so anxious about her neglectful boyfriend. And Mel is the new girl in town. She's already been dismissed as just another rich kid, but all she wants is to get over some of her fears and find some true friends. But for all their differences, the girls discover they've got one thing in common - they're desperate to escape. Desperate to get the heck out of Niceville and discover their true 'badass' selves! Even if it's just for the weekend... One 'borrowed' car later, it's time to hit the road and head for Miami. Hearts will be broken, friendships will be tested, and a ridiculously hot stranger could change the course of everything.

I read We Were Liars last year and I thought it was a really clever book and whizzed through it, this I was drawn to just because E.Lockhart, I was hoping for another cleverly written book with a bit of a shock perhaps.

This is a book about three girls who go on a road trip to Miami for the weekend. Each have their own reasons for wanting to go, some of which we don't find out until quite far into the book. Vicky is a fun, always up for a laugh type of girl, who is missing her boyfriend. He is currently studying at Miami university, although he has only been away for two weeks, he hasn't called Vicky and she is beginning to wonder why. Jesse is Vicky's best friend and a christian, this is where I begin to have an issue with this book. Jesse was constantly trying to bring her views and values into everything Vicky said, she was portrayed as being uptight most of the time and I just couldn't warm to her. I also really disliked the way she seemed to have a problem with Mel. Mel is the final girl on the road trip, the new girl, who moved from Canada. Mel has very few friends and is portrayed as a little insecure rich girl, she seemed to use her money to buy friendships. All the girls are waitresses at the Waffle store, this is how they all know each other. Unfortunately I don't think the characters were that well developed, I felt that even at the end of the book I still didn't know an awful lot about them.

The book is told through the perspective of all three girls along their road trip, and it spans a period of three days.

I did enjoy reading the road trip, however I think that some of the situations the girls find themselves in are a little unbelievable, the alligator close call towards the end I think was a little silly. My favourite parts were going to the keg party, meeting Marco and their trip to Disney.

This was a super quick book to read, I read it in just two sittings. This is a light, summer, contemporary read that is going to be perfect for the beach or during the holidays. I did feel a little disappointed at the end, I didn't realise that it was the end to be honest and I was left wanting a little bit more as I thought it didn't feel finished. Saying this I did like the ending, it was sweet. I am still left with quite a few questions though about a couple of the girls and it would have been nice for these to have been answered, unless this is going to be the first in a series? I haven't heard anything about that though. But then again I don't think this was meant to be a deep book, it was just a light easy going read.

Even though I did have a few issues with the book, overall I enjoyed it and believe it set out to do what it was intended for.

The three different authors I am assuming have written a character each, I personally do not know who wrote which character, however I have only read one book by E. Lockhart and nothing by the other authors. You can find out if you want to know once you have finished reading.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.

With A Friend Like You - Fanny Blake

With a Friend Like You by Fanny Blake
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Beth is a woman in supreme control of all aspects of her life and family, with a stellar career and her house an oasis of calm. Her closest friend, Megan, is very different; somehow she swims through the chaos of her family with ease, the clutter on the stairs, the cat footprints on the kitchen work space. And while they could not be more different, Beth and Megan have a genuine friendship built on years of laugher, tears and true understanding of each other's strengths and weaknesses. Because that's what friends do, isn't it?

But when Beth's daughter reveals a surprising secret, a wedge is driven between Beth and Megan. What begins as mild recrimination and misunderstanding develops into a full-blown row and then a simmering feud. As the two women square up to do battle in the London suburbs, there's everything to play for. All's fair in love and war...

With her wisdom, insight and wicked humour, Fanny Blake shines a light on to female friendships, in this delicious tale of two so-called best friends.

The story centers around two family matriarchs Beth and Megan. A friendship that has spanned many years they are the best of friends although two very different characters.

Beth is the organised professional lawyer with a pristine household with Jon her husband and two daughters Ella and Amy. Ella is not unlike her mother, organised, controlled, knows what she wants out of life and Amy is the complete opposite.

Megan is almost the opposite of Beth; she has a more laid back attitude to life, is a teacher in a primary school married to Pete and has a daughter Hannah and a son Jake. Megan we learn was friends with both Jon and Pete (Pete she eventually marries) who are also best friends long before Beth arrived on the scene but once she became part of the group Megan and Beth became instant friends.

The two women and their families have been very close for a number of years, holidaying together, sharing trials and tribulations, being there for each other in times of stress, each leaning on the other for support. They have a deep understanding of each other intuitively knowing what the other would think or do in a given situation so we are told.

Their easy going relationship suddenly is thrown into chaos when Ella finds she is pregnant and after initially refusing to name the father she eventually drops the bomb. This is bad enough but when Beth finds out that Ella has confided in Megan before she told her mother everything spirals out of control and the friendship of the two women and families is put to the test. Not being able to forgive Megan for not telling her Beth is also hell bent on convincing Ella to have an abortion so that she does not ruin her life.

Fanny Blake takes the reader on a journey through the friendship of both the women, their husbands and children on how this situation affects them all. It is well written and has some good emotive passages. I don't know that I particularly found this book to be funny as such, it was realistic and relevant but not laugh out loud funny as the blurb suggested it might be so that was a little disappointing. I was frustrated that after the initial news of Ella being pregnant nothing significant happened really until around page 256 when another secret is revealed that adds to the drama.

I liked Megan, I thought that Beth however was too wrapped up in herself, it appeared that whatever happened or was said she took personally and it became all about Beth when in fact it shouldn't have been. I felt sorry for Jon who she seemed to neglect, his feelings were not really considered by her she felt that everyone should be considering her feelings above all others which made her appear shallow and self-centered. She seemed to be a control freak and when this was taken away from her she couldn't cope with others taking charge of their lives. She exaggerated every situation blowing it out of all context and I felt that she made trouble and problems where they didn't really exist. I felt so sorry for her patient husband Jon forever trying to pacify her and make her see sense all the elements that she practiced for her clients as a lawyer but she failed to have in her toolbox for herself.

Megan appealed much more to me as a character; she was warm, loving, a bit scatty and easy going. Yes I could understand how she was caught in the middle and collateral damage in the crossfire and I really wanted her to tell Beth to 'get a life' and stop being such a pain in the arse but she was much too nice. And what about Pete? Megan certainly deserved better in my opinion, always away and when he was home he came across as a bit of a drunk and unconcerned in anything happening around him. Poor Megan.

Two women so close who profess to know each other so well, would have I am sure ironed out their differences sooner that these two did. Megan should have known that Beth would react badly to Ella telling her of her pregnancy first and therefore should have refused to keep such a secret from her dearest friend, so this didn't really ring true for me. In turn Beth knowing how easy going Megan was really wouldn't have felt that she couldn't have discussed this with her without turning the whole thing into a battle ground so again given the background of such closeness it didn't work for me.

Why couldn't Ella feel she could confide in her mother? This was never made clear at all. Ella although meant to be driven and focused on her career and future, a sensible logical woman appeared to fall at the first hurdle. It did come across that Ella was spoiled and indulged and perhaps that's why she behaved as she did. She came across as rather cold towards Beth and doting on Jon presumably this added to Beth's behavior in the book.

I felt that the story could have been so much shorter, it was very repetitive in parts and quite predictable in others; there were a couple of curve balls and it was well written which in my opinion saved it.

All in all this didn't really have enough happening in it to keep me sufficiently interested, in fact I felt that Beth was so miserable and self-centered that I really got past the point of caring whether it all turned out well for the two families. I thought Megan and Pete would be better off without the friendship and Megan certainly deserved a better friend and a better deal.

I did struggle to finish this book but it was mainly due to Beth being such a pain and making me feel that I wasn't engaged with her enough to care about whether she stayed friends with Megan, whether the birth of her first grandchild made her relationship with her daughter any better, or whether the long suffering Jon gave up and went to live in a hippy commune somewhere with the lovable Megan - which actually would have made a better ending! Not really believable enough for me I'm afraid. I can only give this one 3.5 stars (rounded up to 4 for Amazon and Goodreads) and that's due to a couple of good twists and liking Megan.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending this in exchange for an honest review.