Nell Mason is extremely happy with her life – or at least, that’s what she tells herself. She’s lucky to have a high-powered job as a lawyer, even if it does come with an eccentric set of billionaire divorce clients. And she’s absolutely fine living with her sweet, if slightly dull, boyfriend Gus in their London flat where they have very sensible sex once (OK, sometimes twice) a week. She’s definitely not stuck in a rut.
But when Nell bumps into childhood friend and first love Arthur Drummond who broke her heart fifteen years ago, she’s more than a little shaken. The seemingly perfect life she’s worked so hard for starts to feel, well, less perfect. Maybe Nell’s been kidding herself all these years. Can she ever get over her first love?
My thoughts: this was a fun rom com, with lawyer Nell working crazy hours for her completely awful boss, then having to temporarily move back to her parents’ home in the wilds of Northumberland to take care of her dad and his broken leg after her mum leaves him. Along the way she rekindles a friendship with her teenage boyfriend Art.
Gus, Nell’s pretentious and quite frankly annoying boyfriend, was the sort of person I actively try to avoid so when Nell and Art start to bond again, I was very pleased. I loved Nell’s family – her dad and his drinking buddies made me laugh, and her mum and her chickens. I obviously loved Wilma the dog, even when she’s a bit of a canine perve.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.
What if the Lift driver who finds your cheating boyfriend’s phone holds the directions to true love?
‘Who are you and why do you have my boyfriend’s phone?’
‘He left it in my car. You must be the blonde in the red dress? I’m the Lift driver who dropped you two off earlier.’
And with these words, the life of the brunette and t-shirt wearing Maya Maas is turned upside down. Having planned to surprise her boyfriend, she finds herself single and stranded in an unknown city on her birthday.
So when the mystery driver rescues Maya with the suggestion that she cheers herself up at a nearby beach town, she jumps at the chance to get things back on track. She wasn’t expecting a personalised itinerary or the easy companionship that comes from opening up to a stranger via text, let alone the possibility it might grow into something more…
Come on this 5* journey to love, laughter and back again, perfect for fans of Mhairi McFarlane, Josie Silver and Sally Thorne.
As a child, Olivia not-so-quietly ‘observed’ (AKA bothered with countless questions) her grandfather — who worked for the biggest publishing house in Romania — edit hundreds of books. And when he wasn’t editing, he read. Everything, all the time. Just like her father, who wrote short sci-fi stories, and was set on building the largest library she’d ever seen and her mother who’s never found without a book…wherever she goes. Her love for words came naturally, and after studying marketing, communications & photography, Olivia worked as a journalist for a newspaper and news television network in Romania.
An unapologetic citizen of the world, she spent a few years in Greece, Sweden, France, before settling in sunny California with her photographer husband and young daughter, where she works in marketing and writes. Oh, and let’s not forget the ever-growing menagerie that completes the family: Pumpkin, the Maine Coon mix, three black cats and a siamese kitten.
When she’s not writing or thinking about writing, she reads (across genres), watches old movies and collects vintage books, vinyl records, and eerie paintings. She loves traveling (and can’t wait until she can do it again, safely), swimming, biking, hiking and of course, photography.
SOMEDAY IN PARIS, her debut, published by Aria Fiction/Head of Zeus in May 2020 became a B&N, Apple, Kobo and Amazon Top 100 Bestseller and was shortlisted for the Romantic Novel Awards 2021. Her second novel, THE MEETING POINT, a contemporary romcom set in Northern California, is set to be published as an e-book on September 2, 2021 and in paperback in December 2021 in the UK and March, 2022 in the US.
My thoughts: this was a lovely, sweet rom com set on the California coast, where two people share one amazing day, by text. A year later Maya returns to see if it was more than just a single day, but something real.
I loved Maya, I hated her crappy boyfriend and mean boss. I was thrilled she decided to hunt out “Max” in Carmel, and then bicker her way round the Bay Area with Ethan Delphy (a name and a few other things perhaps inspired by a certain trilogy of films…) and I am a secret sucker for a happily ever after, just like Maya.
Basically this was a delightful read, made me want to go back to California, and explore a bit I don’t know at all. Curl up with this love story and enjoy being somewhere magical and beautiful, where it’s not freezing cold and raining. And where a text could change everything…
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.
When Alice’s father dies after a tragic hit and run, his death stirs up unanswered questions about her childhood. Who was her mother, why did her father never speak of the past, and why can’t she remember anything before the age of seven?
AN ISLAND CUT OFF
But when she receives an anonymous letter containing a photograph of a refurbished gothic guesthouse surrounded by water, and an invitation to stay, old memories fight to resurface.
Alice has visited before. She is certain of it.
WHO WILL SURVIVE?
Convinced the clues to her past lie at the hotel, she checks in. But once on the island, a wild storm rages, waves crash violently into the rocks, and the house is cut off by the roaring sea.
Then two guests are found dead. And the hotel owner is missing. Will Alice ever uncover her secret past?
And will anyone leave the island alive?
My thoughts: this was a creepy story, set in a forbidding Gothic house on an island cut off from the mainland for most of the day, the perfect place for a deranged killer to take down their victims.
The way the truth is revealed is cleverly done and very sinister. I’ve always thought puppets were a bit weird. Alice’s dad really shouldn’t have left her with so little information – she might have avoided Flynn House if he’d given her at least some idea of their history.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.
Three people live. Three people die. You make the choice.
Like any mother, Chrissie wants to protect her family. She would do anything to keep them safe. So when a mysterious stranger turns up at her door, offering to prevent the deaths of the people she loves, it sounds too good to be true. The only problem: she must choose someone to die in their place. A substitute.
When her daughter Holly has a terrible accident, Chrissie has no option but to enter the programme. In that horrifying moment, she would do anything to save her. But even after Holly makes a miraculous recovery, Chrissie is convinced it’s just a coincidence. After all, who can really control the laws of life and death?
But as the dangers to her family escalate and her chosen substitutes begin to disappear, Chrissie finds herself in an underworld of hidden laboratories and secretive doctors. And the consequences of playing by their rules are far deadlier than she ever imagined…
My thoughts: I’m a member of the author’s early readers club on her website so I was really thrilled to get early access to this book, thank you Susi.
A really clever, twisted and creepy, story of science and how it can be used for harm as well as for good. Chrissie just wants to keep her daughter Holly safe and well, like any mum, but when the mysterious Joseph offers her a way to ensure that Holly won’t die, but someone else will, she takes it.
What starts out sounding like a serial killer fantasy becomes something else as we move back in time and meet two young researchers, who may just have found the elixir of life – a way to bring someone back from the dead, as long as they’ve only just died. No zombies here.
As the plot unfolds it gets more and more sinister, the government get involved with the scientists and Chrissie begins to worry about her deal with the stranger. Who might not be such a stranger after all.
As the answers come thick and fast, Holly is in danger and time is running out to save her. Absolutely gripping and so very clever. Loved every second of it.
The Heights is a tall, slender apartment building among warehouses in London. Its roof terrace is so discreet, you wouldn’t know it existed if you weren’t standing at the window of the flat directly opposite. But you are. And that’s when you see a man up there—a man you’d recognize anywhere. He may be older now, but it’s definitely him.
But that can’t be because he’s been dead for over two years. You know this for a fact.
Because you’re the one who killed him.
My thoughts: this was really interesting in the way it was done. Moving between first person accounts, a memoir and newspaper articles, we learn the history between Ellen Saint and Kieran Watts – the tragedy and hatred that leads to a dramatic climax on the roof of a London apartment building.
Ellen’s memoir wants you to believe she had no choice in her actions – that her behaviour was justified. But both the newspaper articles and her ex-partner, Vic’s account suggest there’s a lot more grey to Ellen’s black and white, that not everything she believes is true.
Louise Candlish is easily one of my favourite writers around at the moment. Her books are clever and engaging, exploring different facets of people’s behaviour and thinking. They often hinge on suburban middle class women like Ellen, someone you might pass in the street and never for a second imagine them capable of the kinds of things they get up to in Candlish’s books. Which is what makes this so good – driven by grief, what would you do?
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.
The endless rotstorm rages over the ruins of the Ferron Empire. Floré would never let the slavers of the Empire rise again. As a warrior of the Stormguard Commandos, she wrought horrors in the rotstorm to protect her people. She did her duty and left the bloodshed behind.
Fight for your family.
Floré’s peace is shattered when blazing orbs of light cut through the night sky and descend on her village. Her daughter is abducted and Floré is forced into a chase across a land of twisted monsters and ancient gods. She must pursue the mysterious orbs, whose presence could herald the return of the Empire she spent her entire life fighting.
Destroy your enemies.
Now, Floré must take up the role she had sworn to put aside and become the weapon the Stormguard trained her to be, to save not only her daughter, but her people…
Ian Green is a writer from Northern Scotland with a PhD in epigenetics. His fiction has been widely broadcast and performed, including winning the BBC Radio 4 Opening Lines competition and winning the Futurebook Future Fiction prize. His short fiction has been published by Londnr, Almond Press, OpenPen, Meanjin, Transportation Press, The Pigeonhole, No Alibi Press, Minor Lits, and more. TwitterWebsite
My thoughts: I really enjoyed this book, I liked Florè a lot – she’s determined, dedicated and tough, but I liked her two cadets, Cuss and Yselda, even more. They’re completely out of their depths but going on regardless because it’s what their captain would want. Fighting goblins and crow-men, meeting species’ they’ve only heard stories about; their mission will take them a long way from the quiet village they grew up in.
The concept was really interesting too – the endless rot storm caused by a battle between gods and the judgment of the final one standing. The way the rot changes people, the insistence that there is “no trial for rot-folk”. The long history of enmity and a fallen empire that once enslaved so many.
The magic system was entirely new – the idea of a pattern behind the universe felt familiar but the way it’s wielded as a weapon – to create fire, and interestingly salt, was clever. The fact that the whitestaffs see it in a different light – studying it and following it rather than applying it directly, was good too – setting up a conflict perhaps in books to come. The twists as the book ends – I need to know what that final scene means!
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.
Acclaimed explorer Rob Nash has lost his way. Grieving the loss of his wife, and blaming himself for her death, he sees no reason to carry on. But when his ‘Uncle’ Frank Douglas offers him the chance to lead a cave diving expedition in the jungles of Papua, Nash can see some light at the end of the tunnel.
But the expedition might not be what it seems. With a decades old Japanese submarine buried deep in a cavern, and a team hell-bent on unleashing the treasures it hides, Nash finds himself on a ship heading for danger. With a lethal band of criminals on board, who will stop at nothing to get the gold, Nash is fighting for his life. Whilst battling his own demons, can he forgive himself for the wrongs of the past – and survive the perils that lie below the surface?
My thoughts: this was a slow start that then gathered up pace as Nash, Douglas and Mia are taken along the river and into the jungle on a boat of terror. In the interior, things go from bad to worse as Sura and Jaap become fixated on getting their treasure at any cost.
I liked the characters, they were interesting – I wanted more of Uncle Frank’s stories, and Nash’s. Both men had had a lot of adventures before this more harrowing one. I did get a bit bored of the whole “Nazi gold” angle, there cannot still be so much undiscovered. But the way it was done was good, and since I suffer from claustrophobia, I wouldn’t have coped well with the underwater caves and tunnels. Rather have my adventures safely on my sofa – through books like this.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.
In the thin light of the moon, the woman’s limp body hangs from the iron fence amongst the redwoods. Looped over the railings is the little gold locket her mother gave her when she turned sixteen. The picture of the girl inside smiles out at a future she’ll never see…
As day breaks over the fairground, Detective Katie Scott forces herself to take in another disturbing scene in front of her. A woman, the same age as her, found slumped in the carriage of the Ferris wheel, red lipstick dragged across her lips, her throat cut.
Katie doesn’t want to believe that the serial killer picking off women across the state has found their way to the small town of Pine Valley, California, but when her team finds a gold engagement ring hanging nearby, it’s a terrifying, but undeniable fact.
With a twisted killer on her doorstep, Katie knows if she doesn’t act fast, she’ll find more women left out in the cold like broken dolls. Her team hit dead end after dead end, but only she can see the vital link between the victims: a connection with Katie herself.
Katie has spent years pushing traumatic memories of her years in the military far out of reach, but she must confront them now or more innocent women will die. But as the killer circles closer and closer to Katie, what if the only answer is to give him what he wants? There must be another way…
Warning – This absolutely unputdownable thriller will keep you up all night! Fans of Lisa Regan, Rachel Caine and Melinda Leigh better hold on tight for a nail-biting rollercoaster ride!
Jennifer Chase is a multi award-winning and best-selling crime fiction author, as well as a consulting criminologist. Jennifer holds a bachelor degree in police forensics and a master’s degree in criminology & criminal justice. These academic pursuits developed out of her curiosity about the criminal mind as well as from her own experience with a violent psychopath, providing Jennifer with deep personal investment in every story she tells.
In addition, she holds certifications in serial crime and criminal profiling. She is an affiliate member of the International Association of Forensic Criminologists, and member of the International Thriller Writers.
My thoughts: this was excellent, another really enjoyable and twisted thriller starring former Army K9 handler turned detective, Katie Scott. This time her past career puts her in the killer’s crosshairs, as the FBI ask for her help. Partner Deputy McGaven and her tracker dog Cisco are on hand to help solve a string of brutal killings.
Katie has really grown on me over the course of reading the last few books and I really like her as a character, each time we learn a bit more about her, and what makes her so good at her job and so determined to solve these crimes.
While not strictly cold case, this is pretty grim and the FBI agent seems to be intentionally messing with her, not giving her all the info, following her and generally being a bit shady – are they a suspect?
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.
With an air of faded splendour, Willoughby Hall was an idyllic childhood home to Ruben de Lacy. Gazing at it now, decades later, the memories are flooding back, and not all of them are welcome…
In a tumbledown cottage in Willoughby’s grounds, Dolly and Olive King lived with their eccentric explorer father. One of the last things he did was to lay a treasure hunt before he died, but when events took an unexpected turn, Dolly and Olive left Willoughby for good, never to complete it.
But when Ruben uncovers a secret message, hidden for decades, he knows he needs Olive and Dolly’s help. Can the three of them solve the treasure hunt, and will piecing together the clues help them understand what happened to their families that summer, all those years ago?
A glorious summer read with a delightful cast of characters from the bestselling author of The Summer We Ran Away.
My thoughts: this was a lovely read, with a wonderful cast of characters; sisters Olive and Dolly, who need to talk more, mad Aunt Marge, Ruben and his daughter Zadie – in need of getting to know one another better, and Dolly’s work partner, Fox, who she finds incredibly annoying.
Back when Ruben, Olive and Dolly were kids, the girls father, a treasure hunter, left them a mysterious treasure hunt across the vast de Lacy estate. Now Ruben’s hoping to sell up and they decide to solve this final set of clues. Tragedy forced them apart, and forced them to grow up fast. Can they find their way back to who they used to be?
Warm, fun, funny and enjoyable, this is peak summer holiday reading. Even if your summer holiday isn’t really happening.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.
Welcome to the Beach Reads Book Club…where love is just a page away… When Lottie Watt is unceremoniously booted out of her uptight book club for not following the rules, she decides to throw the rulebook out the window and start her own club – one where conversation, gin and cake take precedent over actually having read the book! The Beach Reads Book Club soon finds a home for its meetings at Books by the Bay, a charming bookshop and café owned by gorgeous, brooding Matthew Steele, and as the book club picks heat up, so too does the attraction between Matt and Lottie. If there’s anything Lottie has learned from the romances she’s been reading, it’s that the greatest loves are the ones hardest earned. A love letter to chicklit, romance, romcoms, whatever you want to call them!
A former pharmacist, I’m now a medical writer who also writes romance. Some days a racing heart is a medical condition, others it’s the reaction to a sexy hero. With a husband who asks every Valentine’s Day whether he has to buy a card (yes, he does), any romance is all in my head. Then again, his unstinting support of my career change proves love isn’t always about hearts and flowers – and heroes come in many disguises.
My thoughts: I loved this, as a former member of various book clubs I totally agree with Lottie – the best ones are where you read fun books and have a laugh. Yes, literary fiction is great but sometimes you just want something light and enjoyable – much like this book itself! There’s romance, snogging and more! I loved the book club members – Audrey and her gin especially made me laugh, and I really wished I had some delicious cake to eat while reading this.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.
ramblingmads 