Tag: contemporary fiction

blog tour, books, reviews

Blog Tour: Not Quite Out – Louise Williamson*

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William Anson is done with relationships, thanks. He’s starting the second year of his medicine degree single, focused, and ready to mingle with purely platonic intentions.

Meeting Daniel, a barely recovered drug addict ready to start living life on his own terms, might just change that.

There are two problems.

One: William isn’t out.

What’s the point in telling your friends you’re bisexual when you aren’t going to date anyone?

Two: Daniel’s abusive ex-boyfriend still roams the university campus, searching for cracks in Daniel’s recovery.

No matter how quickly William falls for Daniel, their friendship is too important to risk ruining over a crush.

William is fine with being just friends for the rest of forever.

Well, not quite.

Content warning – This book includes references to abortion, PTSD, drug addiction, abusive relationships, and self-harm.

My thoughts:

I really felt for Will, being 19 and at uni is tough enough without trying to come to terms with your sexuality and come out. I know, I’ve been there.

But I’m now in my 30s so a lot more time has passed, those late teens/early twenties are tough.

Plus Will’s new friend, Dan, has a lot going on too, an abusive hovering ex, a drug habit he’s trying to kick and no family to support him. So Will is trying to provide that support while wrestling with his feelings and worries.

The book is very thoughtful, like its protagonist, and his other friends, Peter, Cas and Lilley are also dealing with the things life likes to throw at you, and uni, so there’s a lot going on around Will.

A sweet, sensitive, heartfelt portrayal of working out who you are, what you want, and where you fit in to the world. Friendship, love, pain, heartbreak and joy are all in the mix.

Really worth reading and then pressing a copy into the hands of a young person you know who looks like they could use some solidarity.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.

blog tour, books, reviews

Blog Tour: The Dream That Held Us – Rhiannon Jenkins Tsang*

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“The Dream That Held Us took me on an exquisite exploration if a love that crosses boundaries of time and culture.” Angela Barton author of Arlette’s Story, Magnolia House and You’ve Got My Number

“Deeply imbued with a certain wistfulness and haunting sense of loss brought out by the end of a glorious summer… Rhiannon Jenkins Tsang’s latest novel is a sensitive andskilful exploration of love, longing, and whether life sometimes relents to give us second chances.” Osama Siddique – author of Snuffing Out the Moon

“This book carries a universal message about love and finding your way in the world. I loved it.”
Angela Barton author of Arlette’s Story, Magnolia House and You’ve Got My Number

Another stunning Anglo-Indian love story from the author of The Last Vicereine, Penguin Random House 2017.

October 1985, Ash Misra leaves a blood-stained Delhi for Oxford University. Haunted by a terrible
secret, he just wants to forget. Music and fresh violence bring him to fellow student and amateur violinist, Isabella Angus, but duty and the burden of history keep them apart.

A quarter of a century later against the background of the global financial crisis, Sir Peter Roberts, former Master of Woodstock College, receives a letter from Ash for Isabella. They are no longer young but they had made a tryst with destiny; old terrors and suppressed desires return.

Amazon UK
Amazon US

Rhiannon Jenkins Tsang is a British author whose work focuses on cultural and historical fault lines
and has strong international themes.

Rhiannon was born and grew up in Yorkshire and has studied, lived and worked in Europe and Asia. She read Oriental Studies (Chinese) at Oxford University and speaks Mandarin and Cantonese.

Rhiannon lives in a former farmhouse in rural England with her
family.

Novels
The Woman Who Lost China, Open Books 2013
The Last Vicereine, Penguin Random House 2017

Short Story Anthology

Hong Kong Noir, Akashic Books 2019

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My thoughts:

This was a beautiful, moving book about a love that spans decades, taking in marriages, divorce, children and heartbreak.

First love can be brutal and so it is for Isabella and Ash – he must return to India and an arranged marriage, devastating Isabella.

Twenty five years later Ash sends a letter via the former master of their college, asking Isabella to see him. Will their love be rekindled, despite her husband and children, despite their very different lives?

Beautifully written and tender, this was a truly touching and sweet read.


*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.

blog tour, books

Blog Tour: Father & Sun – Ross Victory

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Father&Sun

Welcome to the blog tour for Father & Sun by Ross Victory! Read on for more details!

Front

Father & Sun

Publication Date: December 20th, 2020

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

Some say family is everything. Some say family are just people we’re assigned to at birth.

Trey Amana, a forty-something, hardworking father of two, discovered his dad’s death five years ago on the day after Christmas. Although Trey has grieved and prioritized his health, holiday music and decorations trigger painful memories. To take the final step toward healing the loss while saving extra cash for his holiday-obsessed kids, Trey decides to close his late father’s storage unit once and for all.

Trey discovers a journal written during his father’s college years. His dad, Art, reveals an outrageous family secret driving Trey into a wormhole of suspicions. With family members en-route to Trey’s home, Trey is burdened by the need for answers while somehow producing a hospitable Christmas.

Father & Sun explores how secrets and well-meaning motivations from the past can have a counteractive generational impact.

Father & Sun contemplates life in the shadows or life standing on the Sun (owning one’s truth), speaking to the passing of the torch from father to son, what it means to be honorable, and the spiritual, emotional, and mental effect on heirs.

Core topics: Family, Generational Curses

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Available on Amazon!

About the Author

Ross Victory Smile

Ross Victory is a singer/songwriter turned author from Southern California. After the back to back loss of his father and brother, Ross dove into self-discovery and healing practices, which reignited his passion for writing and music production. Ross uses his unique voice and social intersections to inspire and entertain listeners and readers through Urban Adult Contemporary music, and literature, with a focus on non-fiction and thematic novelettes and short stories.

Ross Victory | Instagram | Goodreads

Blog Tour Schedule

February 8th

Didi Oviatt (Spotlight) https://didioviatt.wordpress.com

Rambling Mads (Spotlight) http://ramblingmads.com

@esmeralda_lagiggles18 (Review) https://www.instagram.com/esmeralda_lagiggles18/

February 9th

The Faerie Review (Spotlight) http://www.thefaeriereview.com

@tabz_talks_tales (Spotlight) https://www.instagram.com/tabz_talks_tales/

Book Dragons Not Worms (Spotlight) https://bookdragonsnotworms.blogspot.com/?m=1

February 10th

Book Review Crew (Spotlight) https://bookreviewcrew.blogspot.com

Breakeven Books (Spotlight) https://breakevenbooks.com/

Dash Fan (Spotlight) https://dashfan81.blogspot.com/

February 11th

@brendajeancombs (Spotlight) https://www.instagram.com/brendajeancombs/

Tsarina Press (Spotlight) https://tsarinapress.com/blog/

@booknerdkat (Review) https://www.instagram.com/booknerdkat/

February 12th

Bonnie Reads and Writes (Spotlight) https://bonniereadsandwrites.wordpress.com/

Nesie’s Place (Spotlight) https://nesiesplace.wordpress.com

Reads & Reels (Spotlight) http://readsandreels.com

Blog Tour Organized By:

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R&R Book Tours

blog tour, books, reviews

Blog Tour: The Man I Didn’t Marry – Anna Bell*

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Read my review of the author’s We Just Clicked here.

What happens when the man she married can’t remember her?

Ellie has the perfect life: a happy marriage, a gorgeous daughter and a baby on the way. But when her husband Max develops amnesia, he forgets everything about the last five years . . . including their relationship.

Now the man she said ‘I do’ to has become a stranger, and she has no idea why. Yet Ellie is determined to reconnect and find herMax again – he has to be in there somewhere, right?

As they get to know one another afresh, Ellie finds herself seeing Max clearly for the first time. But then she discovers that before his memory loss, Max was keeping a huge secret from her. Will their new beginning prove to be a false start, just as it seemed they might fall in love all over again?

My thoughts:

Halfway through this book, I looked over my husband of two and a half years and said “please don’t ever lose your memory and forget me”, he of course, looked at me like I was crazy.

But the thought of him forgetting even one moment of our 11 years together was horrible.

I know this book is supposed to be a rom com but there is a slight chill to it – Max loses his memory of his wife, his children, everything from the last five years.

I don’t know how Ellie copes, she’s heavily pregnant with their second child, caring for a toddler, and needs her husband around. But suddenly they’re basically strangers again.

It is a lovely and sweet romance as she woos Max into falling in love again, trying to recreate their dates, hoping his memory will come back. But it didn’t half give me a jolt of fear!

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.

blog tour, books, reviews

Blog Title: Fake – Roz Kay*

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James Cowper-art dealer, gambler, thief-is going straight and on the brink of redeeming himself with his disillusioned wife, Imani. He’s still broke, but all he needs to take care of that is a rare art find. Then trouble arrives in the shape of a scheming landlord and an unwelcome dinner party with his boss. As events spin out of his control it appears that nobody, including Imani, is what they pretend.

And over everything looms one make-or-break question for James: can he get a grip on his exploding life?

Then trouble arrives in the shape of a scheming landlord and an unwelcome dinner party with his boss. As events spin out of his control it appears that nobody, including Imani, is what they pretend.

And over everything looms one make-or-break question for James: can he get a grip on his exploding life?

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Roz Kay is a writer and former journalist. Her debut children’s novel, The Keeper of the Stones, was published in March 2020 by Hayloft Publishing and she’s had literary short stories published under the name Roz DeKett. Roz, who now lives in Wiltshire, England, has lived in Ghana, Canada, Malaysia, Brunei, and the United States—including nearly six years in Philadelphia where

Roz, who now lives in Wiltshire, England, has lived in Ghana, Canada, Malaysia, Brunei, and the United States—including nearly six years in Philadelphia where Fake is set.
Fake is her debut novel for adults.

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My thoughts:

This was like an old fashioned farce, especially once the cast assembled for the dinner party from hell. It was darkly comic and thoroughly enjoyable, with some of the worst people I’ve ever encountered on the page – thank goodness I don’t actually know any of them!

James’ wife Imani is probably the best of the sorry bunch and I felt really sorry for her trying to feed the other nightmarish figures, even though she didn’t want them there in the first place.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.

blog tour, books, reviews

Blog Tour: Asking For a Friend – Andi Osho*

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No woman gets left behind.

Three best friends are going to solve their relationship woes once and for all

Forty-something Jemima’s life is on track – well, sort of, she just need to bat her niggly ex away for good.

Twenty-something Meagan is in the midst of her five-phase plan and is nearly ready for phase three: a relationship.

While thirty-something Simi has had more it’s not yous than any I dos.

These best friends decide it’s time to ditch the dating apps and play the love game by their own rules. They’re going to ask people out in real life…but only for each other. What could possibly go wrong?

My thoughts:

This was a fun, funny and smart book about the power of female friendships, working out what you really want from life and falling in love.

Jemima, Meagan and Simi seem to have their lives together but just like so many women, they’re doing their best duck impression, serenely gliding along but paddling madly underneath, trying to juggle careers, romance and their complicated bond.

I laughed and I recognised these women, I know these women. They’re my friends and probably spark a similar recognition in other readers.

A brilliant first book from a great comedian and highly enjoyable.


*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.

blog tour, books, reviews

Blog Tour: The Wife Upstairs – Rachel Hawkins*

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A girl looking for love…

When Jane, a broke dog-walker newly arrived in town, meets Eddie Rochester, she can’t believe her luck. Eddie is handsome, rich and lives alone in a beautiful mansion since the tragic death of his beloved wife a year ago. A man who seems perfect…

Eddie can give Jane everything she’s always wanted: stability, acceptance, and a picture-perfect life. A wife who just won’t stay buried…

But what Jane doesn’t know is that Eddie is keeping a secret – a big secret. And when the truth comes out, the consequences are far more deadly than anyone could ever have imagined…Rachel Hawkins is the New York Times bestselling author of multiple books for young readers, and her work has been translated in over a dozen countries.

She studied gender and sexuality in Victorian literature at Auburn University and currently lives in Alabama with her husband and son.

The Wife Upstairs is her first adult novel.

My thoughts:

I have a lot of issues with Jane Eyre but knew that Rachel Hawkins was a cracking writer and if anyone could redeem that awful, frustrating book, then it would be her, and I was not disappointed.

Her Jane is a lot smarter, savvier and less of a drip that Brontë’s, who quite frankly I have always wanted to shake and tell her “he’s nuts, run woman!” but there we go. Wide Sargasso Sea on the other hand is an excellent book and should be more widely read, so read that, then this.

Modernising and moving the story to the US, 21st Century Jane is walking dogs for uptight, rich housewives, who quite honestly have time in their days to walk their own dogs, when she meets Eddie, supposedly mourning his wife’s death in a terrible boat related accident.

Following the basic plot of the original novel but with updates and twists, in the style of a thriller, this is a lot of fun and with a much more satisfying ending. I really enjoyed it and would love for the author to tackle some more problematic classics – Wuthering Heights next perhaps?

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.

blog tour, books, reviews

Blog Tour: Revenge of the Sluts – Natalie Walton*

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Double standards are about to get singled out.

In this stunning debut, author Natalie Walton tackles privacy and relationships in the digital age.

As lead reporter for The Warrior Weekly, Eden has covered her fair share of stories at St. Joseph Secondary. And when intimate pictures of six female students are anonymously emailed to the entire school, Eden is determined to get to the bottom of it.

In tracking down leads, Eden is shocked to discover not everyone agrees the students are victims. Some people feel the girls “brought it on themselves.” Even worse, the school’s administration seems more concerned about protecting its reputation than its students.

With the anonymous sender threatening more emails, Eden finds an unlikely ally: the six young women themselves. Banding together to find the perpetrator, the tables are about to be turned. The Slut Squad is fighting back!

Natalie Walton has been writing for as long as she can remember, completing her first ‘book’ in second grade. She began posting her stories on Wattpad at the age of fourteen and has since amassed over 18 million reads on her works. Natalie is a Delaware resident and wrote Revenge of the Sluts while being a full-time student at the University of Delaware, working toward her degree in sociology and criminal justice.

My thoughts:

This is a powerful, thought provoking and timely novel about revenge porn, the rights of victims and taking a stand.

Eden is a high school senior working on the school paper, when an email sharing personal photos of seven of her schoolmates is sent out to the entire student body.

The school’s response is lacklustre to say the least and the young women involved are infuriated by the double standards, slut shaming and general disinterest they’re shown in trying to bring “Eros” to justice.

All over the world young women are mistreated for being sexual beings, for having sex, wanting sex, sending nudes (which they’re often pressured into doing by boys) and it is endlessly frustrating how little is done. Laws take years to come into play, and women suffer. Once it’s on the internet, it’s there forever.

The stance Sloane and the other girls take, the support Eden and the newspaper team give them, the way they decide to claim back their narrative, is so powerful and striking and hopefully empowers readers, of whatever gender, to realise that they too don’t have to be OK with the attitude that anyone “deserves what they get”.

It’s a brilliantly written, honest, enjoyable book too, I’m stunned it’s a debut as it’s so confident and assured and I for one can’t wait to see what Natalie Walton does next if this is where she’s starting from.

blog tour, books, reviews

Blog Tour: The Little Swiss Ski Chalet – Julie Caplin*

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It’s time to pack your bags and head to the breathtaking, snow-covered peaks of the Swiss Alps for
velvety hot chocolates, delicious cheeses and a gorgeous love story…

Food technician Minna has always believed that chocolate will solve everything – and it’s just what she needs when her latest relationship mishap goes viral!

So with her bags packed and a new determination to sort her life out, Minna decides to drown her sorrows with the best hot chocolate in the world at her godmother’s cosy Swiss chalet. Chocolate: yes. Romance: no. Until she has a run in on an Alpine train with a mysterious but oh-so-gorgeous stranger…

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Julie Caplin, formerly a PR director, swanned around Europe for many years taking top food and drink writers on press trips (junkets) sampling the gastronomic delights of various cities in Italy, France, Belgium, Spain, Copenhagen and Switzerland. It was a tough job but someone had to do it.

These trips have provided the inspiration and settings for her Romantic Escapes series which have
been translated into fifteen different languages.

The first book in the seven strong series, The Little Café in Copenhagen, was shortlisted for a Romantic Novel of the Year Award.

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My thoughts:

I’ve never wanted to go skiing, but I would love to hit Switzerland for the food, and this book is a foodie dream of cake and chocolate. Not being able to travel at the moment due to gestures *all this* it was a real treat to travel with Mina to her godmother’s delightful chalet to eat cake, cross country ski and fall in love! (With cake, obvs).

Honestly this book was a delight, and the Mini Eggs I ate while reading were almost enough to stop me chewing the edges of my ipad in hunger at all the delicious things Mina got to enjoy.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.

blog tour, books, reviews

Blog Tour: Trobairitz The Storyteller – Celia Micklefield*

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Trobairitz were female troubadours of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. They brought news and sang songs about love, tradition and the role of women in society.

Feisty truck driver, Weed, a twenty first century Trobairitz never gives personal details to other drivers. She avoids the intimacy of real friendship.

Instead, she entertains the truckers by telling the story of ex-courtesan, seventy-six year old Catherine Joubert and the mysterious hold she has over young mayor, Henri-Claude Noilly and his grandfather.

Weed’s themes are those of the original Trobairitz but these are the very subjects causing problems in her own life.

Amazon

After living in Languedoc for nine years I returned to Norfolk where I live surrounded by beautiful countryside and wildlife.

I’m ageing faster than I used to, but I’ve still got ambitions.
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My thoughts:

This was a really interesting book with a story within a story as Weed tells her fellow truckers the tale of a village that no one can find on a map and its inhabitants. Over several months she weaves them a tale in a truck stop cafe, tugging at their curiosity about the grand dame Catherine Joubert and the pompous mayor. We as readers also slowly learn Weed’s story, meet her family and spend time on the road together.

I felt a particular attachment to the book as Weed passes through Bezier in Southern France, where my younger sister was born and my neighbour is a real life female truck driver, though now retired. These little connections were a surprise and made me smile, as did both Weed’s own story and the one she told the other drivers.

A clever book about the power of stories and their tellers, perfect for travelling in your mind while staying safe on your sofa.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.