Now I know we still have another week to go before the actual end of the year, but I always do my Top Reads list before Christmas so I can maybe tempt anyone with a final Christmas present purchase, or for those who are lucky – to help you spend your Christmas book vouchers 😁I am listing my favourite reads by genre and the books are all the books I have chosen are ones I have read this year.
I have read 220 books at the time of writing this post so that means the books I have loved this year is vast. Because I have read for as long as I can remember, it means I have got very good at knowing the sort of books I like and think I will enjoy. This doesn’t mean I only stick with what I know, I do experiment and try new genres and styles.
Many books cross genres, I am going to list them by the genre that works for me 😁
Crime, Thriller, Mystery
Fiction
Come back tomorrow (Dec 22nd) to see my favourite book in Romance, Rom-Com & Historical fiction.
On the 23rd December I will be sharing my Top Reads in Fantasy, Distopia, Young Readers and Non-Fiction.
With all these amazing books I wonder which ones will make My Top 10 on Christmas Eve. I have picked 10 books that are special for many reasons. Then I do have one, yes One! Book that will take the Top Spot of – “My #1 Read of the Year!” Okay, I just made that up 🙂
Many thanks for reading my post, a like or share would be amazing 🙂 xx
I am delighted to welcome you to read my thoughts as I help to kick off the Blog Tour for Boxer Boys Collection by Nick Rippington. My huge thanks to Nick for sending me the 3 e-book set and to Sarah Hardy at BOTBSPublicity for the invite onto the Blog Tour. This collection is a series of 3 books and I will try by best to give you a mini review for each book…
But first how about I let you know what the Boxer Boys Collection is all about…
Some Family feuds just won’t go away… For 40 years the Dolans and the Marshalls have lived side by side on the same rundown housing estate in east London. While teens Gary Marshall and Arnie Dolan forge a close friendship, fighting constant battles to survive both on the streets and closer to home, the relationship between their parents is complicated and, at times, toxic. Gradually family secrets emerge which have their roots in the early 80s… and Gary and Arnie realise their entire upbringing was built on lies.
So first up is Crossing the White…
Gary Marshall is being bullied on the rundown London estate he lives on, local lad Arnie (Arnold) Dolan steps in and saves Gary from a beating. This is the start of a friendship that see’s the boys through their teens and is the start of the Boxer Boys.
It is a story of family, friendship, changing from kids into adults and watching each others backs. Over the course of the story it becomes apparent that Gary is drawn into the murkier side than he really wants to. Things go awry for Gary and his chances at living his dream in a career he is passionate about, instead he takes different route.
This is a gritty read that deals with teens in the sprawling and gang ruled estates of London. There are various things that have been dealt with and it adds to the authentic feel of the story.
A great first book in the collection and it made me want to know exactly what was going to happen next. So much so that I went straight onto the 2nd in the set.
Spark Out
This is a book that goes back to the era of Gary and Arnies parents, mainly the Dolans, but the Marshall’s do have a part to play. The Dolan family is made up of Big Mo & Beryl and, Chuck their eldest, it is also about Clive, Big Mo’s brother.
This has a different feel to it and it was nice to get to know more about the family of the boys I had met in the first book. Big Mo is, well tough to say the least. He has a fiery temper and is the sort that hits first and then asks questions later and he is the leader of a shady small group of friends. The Dolan’s have a reputation not to be messed with.
Clive and Mo are very different in what they want out of their lives. Mo is about power, reputation and money. Clive is about wanting more from his life and this is why he joins the Scots Guards. This is the time of Maggie Thatcher in the 80’s and the Falklands conflict. Nobody thought that would come to anything and so off Clive goes. History tells us that this was something and Clive is not the same person he was when he left.
This is a more emotional read as well as having more violence. It gives a great insight into the families, their priorities and loyalty. It’s all about the family and who they are.
Once again as soon as I had finished this one I was straight onto the next…
Dying Seconds
Back again with Gary and Arnie, or should I say Gareth and Arnie. The previous books were extensive in their groundwork and this is brought to a fabulous conclusion in Dying Seconds. It is 2016 and while Garth is dealing with a job in Wales, Rugby and Football matches, Arnie is having to come to terms with his new lifestyle.
He has had his role in the Boxer Boys changed and the families are fracturing with tension and suspicions are running at an all time high.
There is a lot for the two men to deal with and their responsibilities and loyalties have changed. Gareth’s past is brought up to date and he can finally deal with things that have been hanging over him for the past few years.
This is a tense 3rd book and it is where all the threads are finally pulled together and things slot into their proper places. It is a story full of doubt, suspicion and fear and it is full of pace.
OVERALL – this has been a great series and I really do apologise for being so vague, but I was aware that if I wasn’t careful then spoilers would slip out.
The three stories combine to give a fabulous insight in two main families and the trials and tribulations that go with them. There are so many things that happen along the way for not only the families but also the boys as well.
The style of the story is gritty and it fits so well with the gangland setting. As much as there is violence with the story as you would expect, there is also much more than that. It is a story that show the dynamics of family and society of the respective times the stories are set in. It is about loyalty and friendship and how long they can be stretched before something gives.
This has been a really good collection of 3 stories that are intertwined and linked and that span the years. They each have a connection to each other and yet at the same time each have a different feel in the way they read. After reading Nick’s Bio I can see that he brings his own knowledge and experiences to his writing. This is a collection that I thoroughly enjoyed each one of the books and I would suggest that they are definitely read in order, you could argue that they could be read as stand alone books but for me they worked perfectly as they were set out.
It is one of those collections that falls into several categories. I add my own tags and the ones I have chosen for this is, Urban Fiction, Family Drama, Family & Lifestyle and Contemporary Fiction as well as General Fiction. I think it is one would interest many readers.
A fabulous collection and one I would Definitely Recommend.
NICK RIPPINGTON is one of the victims of the News of the World
phone-hacking scandal you never hear about.
As the newspaper’s Welsh
Sports Editor, he was made redundant with two days notice when Rupert Murdoch
closed down Europe’s biggest-selling tabloid in 2011.
On holiday at the time, Nick
was never allowed back into the building, investigators sealed off the area
with crime scene tape and seized his computer, which contained all the secrets
to his Fantasy Football selections.
Handed the contents of his
desk in a black bin bag in a murky car park, deep throat style, Nick was at a
crossroads – married just two years earlier and with a wife and 9-month-old
baby to support. Options were limited but self-publishing was booming. Having
hit on an idea for a UK gangland thriller taking place against the backdrop of
the Rugby World Cup, in 2015 he produced Crossing The Whitewash.
The book was praised by
many, received an honourable mention in the genre category of the Writers’
Digest self-published eBook awards and more than 25 five-star reviews on both
sides of the pond.
Almost two years after
Crossing The Whitewash came the second in the Boxer Boys series, a prequel
called Spark Out, which was released in paperback on July 1 and for Kindle on
July 10, 2017. The book received an award for best cover of 2017 with the Chill
With A Book website, along with a readers award, before receiving the IndieBRAG
medallion from a prestigious site covering Independent writers and publishers
throughout the world.
The third book in the Boxer
Boys series Dying Seconds, a sequel to Crossing the Whitewash, was released in
December 2018.
Married to Liz, Nick is now a full-time back bench designer on the Daily Star sports desk and has two daughters – Jemma, 36, and Olivia, 8. A Bristolian at heart, he lives near Ilford, Essex. In the past he has worked for the Sunday Mirror, Wales on Sunday and Media Wales in Cardiff as an executive editor.
I am delighted to welcome to my thoughts on Under A Cornish Sky by z Fenwick. I recently read my first book by Liz, it was her latest book A Path To The Sea and adored it. I have a few of this authors books and had not quite got around to reading them. It is slightly embarrassing really especially she only lives a few villages up the road from me! But at least I am getting there, first steps have been made and I have not been disappointed 😊
So then, let me show you what this book is all about…
Demi desperately needs her luck to change. On the sleeper train down to Cornwall, she can’t help wondering why everything always goes wrong for her. Having missed out on her dream job, and left with nowhere to stay following her boyfriend’s betrayal, pitching up at her grandfather’s cottage is her only option.
Victoria thinks she’s finally got what she wanted: Boscawen, the gorgeous Cornish estate her family owned for generations should now rightfully be hers, following her husband’s sudden death. After years of a loveless marriage and many secret affairs of her own, Victoria thinks new widowhood will suit her very well indeed . . .
But both women are in for a surprise. Surrounded by orchards, gardens and the sea, Boscawen is about to play an unexpected role in both their lives. Can two such different women find a way forward when luck changes both their lives so drastically?
In Under a Cornish Sky Liz Fenwick weaves another deliciously irresistible tale set in the heart of her beloved Cornwall.
There are two main female characters in this book and that are the focus of the story, Demi and Victoria.
Demi is a mouselike character who lacks confidence. She has been passed over and generally ignored, and would rather be invisible than the centre of attention. She is in a rut and as she makes her way down to her Grandfathers house in Falmouth, Cornwall.
Victoria is the very opposite, she is confident and definitely knows what she wants and how to progress to get it. She is a woman who knows her own mind and is not afraid to add her voice to her thoughts.
Although the women are complete strangers they have a connection that neither knows about. When a revelation in the reading of a will comes about, well knocking the wind out of their sails, is a phrase that comes to mind. A bombshell is delivered that rocks the world both women think they know. It leaves them confused, dumbfounded and questioning what they believed. A chance for a fresh start for both of them? Well, maybe, maybe not!
This author has a fabulous way of creating interesting and complex characters, she develops there personalities and their traits, she explores their weaknesses and chips away at their strengths and wraps them in a well woven story. The characters have to do some real soul searching and dig deep for their outcomes, it’s not easy for them and there is a magic word called “compromise” that does not come easy, and is hard to do.
Using the Cornish landscape is another thing that the author uses to great effect. It is obvious from her writing alone that she has a connection to the area because it really shows in her stories. At times the landscape can mirror the characters, rugged angry cliffs and calm tranquil creeks!
There is a lot of family history in Cornwall, some families have lived in the same house, or on the same farm for generations. The buildings have altered or been added to over the years, but the land has always been. This means traditions, history and pride have a large part to play and the author nailed that sense of belonging, the feel of that is how it should be and also of things being done right.
This story is captivating and once again the author has effortlessly drawn me into her story. Fabulous descriptions of scenery and setting, wonderful characters who have more than a few surprises up their sleeves all brought together in a fabulous story line that flowed and wove it’s way to a very satisfying conclusion.
Under a Cornish Sky gets a “Definitely Recommended” from Me!
Many thanks for reading my post, likes and share are always appreciated 🙂 xx
I am excited to share my review for Wanderers by Chuck Wendig. My huge thanks to Tracy at Compulsive Readers for my spot on the tour and organising a copy of this book.
Let’s have a look and see what it is all about…
A decadent rock star. A deeply religious radio host. A disgraced scientist. And a teenage girl who may be the world’s last hope. In the tradition of The Stand and Station Eleven comes a gripping saga that weaves an epic tapestry of humanity into an astonishing tale of survival.
Shana wakes up one morning to discover her little sister in the grip of a strange malady. She appears to be sleepwalking. She cannot talk and cannot be woken up. And she is heading with inexorable determination to a destination that only she knows. But Shana and are sister are not alone. Soon they are joined by a flock of sleepwalkers from across America, on the same mysterious journey. And like Shana, there are other “shepherds” who follow the flock to protect their friends and family on the long dark road ahead.
For on their journey, they will discover an America convulsed with terror and violence, where this apocalyptic epidemic proves less dangerous than the fear of it. As the rest of society collapses all around them–and an ultraviolent militia threatens to exterminate them–the fate of the sleepwalkers depends on unraveling the mystery behind the epidemic. The terrifying secret will either tear the nation apart–or bring the survivors together to remake a shattered world.
Wow! Wow! Wow! This was such a brilliant read. It’s a genre I enjoy but, don’t read that often. A story that surpassed my expectations by miles and one that I would like everyone to read. This is a book that will quite possibly feature in my Top Reads of the Year! Yes,I loved it!
The basics are that, some people have mysteriously joined up in a sleepwalking state, they are unaware of their condition, they cannot be woken and, bad things happen when they are restrained. They just walk. Towards where and why is not evident until you get further into the story.
While the world ponders the sleepwalkers, there is something far bigger looming on the horizon, a threat, that is unseen initially. But there is of epidemic of extreme proportions. This epidemic and the sleepwalkers’ fuels fear misunderstanding and extremist reactions as the world falls into disarray and society starts to collapse.
This is a book that has so many things that I love in a story and, the fact that it has a scarily possible realness to it adds something to the tension it exudes. We are all aware that antibiotics don’t always work, that we have superbugs and things are evolving. Add to this global warming, a reliance on technology, politicians that seem to have their own agendas! These worrying trends are something that the author touches on to create a completely addictive read.
In amongst the various themes, he has incorporated many social viewpoints. Conspiracy theories are always a favourite of mine in books and several theories are banded around in this book at the start of each chapter. Other society viewpoints show people in fear of the unknown or believing in a higher purpose. Some of the views are political, religious, racist and range from a basic comment to a more extreme stance.
With so many ideologies, ideas and theories included, I found myself thinking that here is an author who has really thought this book out and from many different angles. In doing this he has created a story that moved and evolved the further I read.
This is a story of a group of people have been brought together. They have family and loved ones who are distraught by what is happening. The families walk alongside those who are afflicted, they care for them as best they can, they do what they can. They form their own group. The main focus of the story is Shana because her sister is the first of the walkers. There are obviously many other characters and some play a far bigger role than others. This is a big story but so very easy to follow. There are some science, tech and abbreviations included and they are explained in terms that I could understand.
By the end of the book, I was stunned, in a good way! I worried about how a big story like this would end, which way the author would go. There could have been various way of ending it, and the way he did, worked so well for me. It felt right as it came to a satisfactory conclusion.
This is a sci-fi story as such, but it definitely didn’t feel like one because it had an air of possibility about it. There are some wonderful characters who become memorable for the part they play. Whether they are good, bad or indecisive, you will make your own mind up. A story that has heart, a story of family, loyalty, doing the right thing and also of fear, anger, extremism, society breakdown, and an apocalyptic, end of days message. It is a fabulous story that I was hooked into immediately and flew through. It is a thriller in some ways, but also of family. It really did not feel like 780 pages at all.
Wanderers by Chuck Wendig is a book I would Absolutely and Highly Recommend!
Chuck Wendig is a novelist, a screenwriter, and a freelance penmonkey. He has contributed over two million words to the roleplaying game industry, and was the developer of the popular Hunter: The Vigil game line (White Wolf Game Studios / CCP).
He, along with writing partner Lance Weiler, is a fellow of the Sundance Film Festival Screenwriter’s Lab (2010). Their short film, Pandemic, will show at the Sundance Film Festival 2011, and their feature film HiM is in development with producer Ted Hope.
Chuck’s novel Double Dead will be out in November, 2011.
He’s written too much. He should probably stop. Give him a wide berth, as he might be drunk and untrustworthy. He currently lives in the wilds of Pennsyltucky with a wonderful wife and two very stupid dogs. He is represented by Stacia Decker of the Donald Maass Literary Agency.
You can find him at his website, terribleminds.com.
See what other Book Blogger think by following the Blog Tour…
Many thanks for reading my post, a like or share would be great 🙂 xx
I am delighted to vbe sharing my review for Flying by the Seat of My Knickers by Eliza Watson. I saw this title on Facebook and the title definitely caught my eye!
Let’s have a look and see what it is all about…
Why run from your troubles when you can fly instead?
When Caity Shaw is fired from her first job that doesn’t require an elf uniform, her older sister, Rachel, an event planner, hires her to work a meeting in Dublin. Caity jumps at the opportunity to travel abroad and escape her pathetic life. However, even four thousand miles from home, there’s no avoiding debt collectors, an overbearing mother, and haunting memories of a controlling ex.
While in Dublin, Caity suffers a series of humiliating mishaps, causing her to lose even more faith in herself. Caity struggles to earn Rachel’s respect—and to keep Declan, her hot Irish coworker, at arm’s length. Declan repeatedly saves Caity’s butt and helps boost her self-confidence, making it difficult to keep her distance from the charming womanizer. When Declan helps her research her Irish grandmother, Caity discovers the mysterious past of the courageous woman she barely knew might hold the answers to her future.
This is the first book in The Travel Mishaps of Caity Shaw. With a title like this, how could I not pick it up?
Caity is full of doubt and low in confidence. This is not helped when she goes to work for her high flying sister, Rachel. Rachel is an event planner and a very successful one at that!
This is a quick and fun read and is one I read in an afternoon. I discovered that there is more to the Caity than meets the eye. She is trying so hard to do a good job, in fact too hard to the point that little mishaps occur along the way.
The reason behind her lack of confidence gradually come out as she helps out on the tour around Ireland.
An interesting and somewhat quirky and fun read. It has a lighthearted and entertaining feel and is one I would recommend. Ideal for a couple of hours of escapism.
This is available on Amazon for kindle and is Free!
Many thanks for reading my post, a like or share would be great 🙂 xx
I am delighted to share my review for Step Sister by Jennifer Donnelly. I won a copy of this book from Readers First so my huge thanks to them.
As a child I loved fairy tales, especially Hans Christian Anderson and the Brothers Grimm. They told of magical adventures and whisked me off to far away lands to meet all sorts of people and beasts. Step Sister is the story of what happened after Ella was found to be the owner of the glass slipper.
‘In an ancient city by the sea, three sisters – a maiden, a mother, and a crone – are drawing maps by candlelight. Sombre, with piercing grey eyes, they are the three Fates, and every map is a human life . . .’
Stepsister takes up where Cinderella’s tale ends. We meet Isabelle, the younger of Cinderella’s two stepsisters. Ella is considered beautiful; stepsister Isabelle is not. Isabelle is fearless, brave, and strong-willed. She fences better than any boy, and takes her stallion over jumps that grown men fear to attempt. It doesn’t matter, though; these qualities are not valued in a girl. Others have determined what is beautiful, and Isabelle does not fit their definition. Isabelle must face down the demons that drove her cruel treatment of Ella, challenge her own fate and maybe even redefine the very notion of beauty . . .
Cinderella is about a girl who was bullied; Stepsister is about the bully. We all root for the victims, we want to see them triumph. But what about the bullies? Is there hope for them? Can a mean girl change? Can she find her own happily ever after?
This is the story of Isabella, one-half of the “ugly sisters”, the other being Octavia. I was really interested to see how or where the author would go with this story. The author took a route that included Fate and Chance, it wasn’t the story I thought it would be. Instead, it was so much better than I could imagine.
I immediately got the fairy tale vibe as I started this story, and I was so glad of that. I think it is important to have this as it follows on from such a famous one. The main focus is Isabella and I learned of her childhood and growing up. More importantly, I discovered what the turning point was in her life for her to turn ugly.
The way the author portrayed the character and showed things from Isabella’s perspective was interesting and became very compelling. Instead of the flippant, high-maintenance and demanding girl instead, I found someone very different. A girl who so much wanted for her mother to be proud of her. A girl who was expected to become someone she didn’t want to be. A girl caught in an endless circle.
As this tale unfolded I was drawn deeper into the lives of the sisters. The story made me think about them in a different way as a new light had been shone on them. The author has given the sisters something different and for me, it worked really well. There was more of a feminism flare to the story, and as this strain started to make itself felt the fairy tale started to fade. There is still the magical feel but it just feels more grown up.
If like me, you still like fairy tales then Step Sister is one you should really take a look at. It has darkness that has been balanced with the various other threads of the story. For me, this version of what happened after is very good and makes for brilliant reading.
It has strong characters, a wonderful storyline and gives great escapism. It gets a Definitely Recommended from Me!
Many thanks for reading my post, a like or share would be great 🙂 xx
I am delighted to be sharing my review for Baxter’s Requiem by Matthew Crow with you today. I was lucky to win a copy of this book on a Giveaway run by the fabulous Anne Cater on her blog at Random Things Through My Letterbox.
Let me tell you a story, about a man I knew, and a man I know…
Mr Baxter is ninety-four years old when he falls down his staircase and grudgily finds himself resident at Melrose Gardens Retirement Home.
Baxter is many things – raconteur, retired music teacher, rabble-rouser, bon viveur – but ‘good patient’ he is not. He had every intention of living his twilight years with wine, music and revelry; not tea, telly and Tramadol. Indeed, Melrose Gardens is his worst nightmare – until he meets Gregory.
At only nineteen years of age, Greg has suffered a loss so heavy that he is in danger of giving up on life before he even gets going.
Determined to save the boy, Baxter decides to enlist his help on a mission to pay tribute to his long-lost love, Thomas: the man with whom he found true happiness; the man he waved off to fight in a senseless war; the man who never returned. The best man he ever knew.
With Gregory in tow Baxter sets out on a spirited escape from Melrose, bound for the war graves of Northern France. As Baxter shares his memories, the boy starts to see that life need not be a matter of mere endurance; that the world is huge and beautiful; that kindness is strength; and that the only way to honour the dead, is to live.
Baxter’s Requiem is a glorious celebration of life, love and seizing every last second we have while we’re here.
What a stunning book Baxter’s Requiem is! Meeting the character that is Baxter was memorable. A grumpy old man on the outside but with a wonderful wit and a huge heart on the inside! Greg is again another wonderful character, he is quiet and withdrawn in an almost moody way. With over 70 years separating these two there are bound to be differences but, actually not that many!
Both Greg and Baxter have personal stories in them. They are kept close and they almost protect them from the outside world. They are precious memories that they have built up and I can understand this almost secretive shield they have around them.
When Baxter and Greg meet it is at the care home that Baxter has been sent to recover from a fall. Baxter sees Greg as something more than quiet and withdrawn, he sees sorrow and pain. Baxter believes that he can help Greg somehow and so the process of building up a friendship and a bond begins.
It is not only Greg that needs help, Baxter does from a care point, but Baxter has something else in mind. He wants desperatley to go to France, it is something that means so much to him. So without realsining it Greg needs Baxter to help him to be able to live his life and break free of what holds him back. Baxcter needs Greg to break out and fulfil a heartbreaking promise to the man he loved.
I read this book 3 weeks ago and it is only now that I am coming back to my paper notes and what I thought. I have a lump in throat as I type this up, it reminds me how beautiful and poignant this story was. It shows that life can be so fragile and fleeting and also so full of love.
I loved the emotions that the author brought out of me with Baxter’s Requiem, smilrking at some of the one liners from Baxter only for the realisation that life has an expiry date. Care homes are often referred to as “Gods waiting room” but in Baxter’s case he sees them as “practising being dead and paying for the privalige”. This cracked me up and then the reality of what he said…
Sadness and a sort of melancholy was what I expected before I began this book. But then I found that it was heartwarming, moving, funny and yes there is sadness and heartbreak. but, this book wasn’t about that. This was a story that showed me a life lived, a life loved, a life apart and a life to come.
If you after a gorgeous, stunning, beautiful read then you seriously need to read this book. It get a Highly Recommended from Me!
Many thanks for reading my post, a like or share would be great 🙂 xx
I am delighted to share my review for The Queen of Wishful Thinking by Milly Johnson. I have had this book on my shelf for a while now and I also have a small confession… I actually own around 7-8 Milly Johnson books and I have not actually read any of them until now! Now that I have read my first one, and have discovered that I have been missing out on some really fabulous reads… it will not be long before I read another.
When Lewis Harley has a health scare in his early forties, he takes it as a wake-up call. So he and his wife Charlotte leave behind life in the fast lane and Lewis opens the antique shop he has dreamed of. Bonnie Brookland was brought up in the antiques trade and now works for the man who bought out her father’s business, but she isn’t happy there. So when she walks into Lew’s shop, she knows this is the place for her.
As Bonnie and Lew start to work together, they soon realise that there is more to their relationship than either thought. But Bonnie is trapped in an unhappy marriage, and Lew and Charlotte have more problems than they care to admit. Each has secrets in their past which are about to be uncovered. Can they find the happiness they both deserve?
The Queen of Wishful Thinking is such a fabulous story. It is all about Bonnie Brookland and the people in her life, be them old friends or new ones, she is surrounded by such a myriad of wonderful characters… well mostly she is!
Bonnie works in an antique… no that’s not quite right… she worked in an antique shop that is now more of a junk shop. Sadly the death of Bonnie’s father saw a change in ownership and the shops demise soon followed. The new owner is odious and is the opposite of Bonnie’s standards and her sense of what is right and fair. Bonnie’s moral compass points her to a new job.
Lew is the owner of “Pot of Gold” and after meeting Bonnie and discovering her knowledge of the antique business he decides she is right for the job. Not only does she have a great knowledge she also has a list of contacts… no scrub that… she has the most flamboyant, amazing, eccentric and superb group of friends a girl could ever want to have in her life. The nicknames are an absolute readers dream, they just fit them all to a tee. Just you wait till you meet them!
Bonnie and Lew are just a great match for the Pot of Gold. I should mention that they are not an item, they are both married to other people. Over the course of the story I had found a sense of something untoward that turned into something a little dark. It caught me unawares to a point, it was unsettling and had me avidly turning pages. I did try on a couple of ocassions to put the book down so I could go to bed. I did that “I’ll just read one more chapter” thing, well that kept going on until I ran out of chapters just before 2am.
If like me you have not had the pleasure of picking up and reading a Milly Johnson book, then I seriously urge you to do so. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, well I suppose I expected romance, a touch of humour and what I got what an amazing story that completely drew me in and kept me engrossed from start to finish. The book is 478 mpages long and I read it in one go… yes in one go until 2am in the morning for goodness sake!
The story is one about people, families, taking a chance in life and I suppose taking a chance on life. There is such a mix of emotions that cover dearth and grief it is humourous and also a dark and nasty turn of events. This author has got a wicked sense of humour and it comes across in many different ways, the characters names, newpaper snippets. The newspaper items had me sniggering and snorting in such an ungainly manner!
This is a fabulous story that I would highly recommend 🙂
Many thanks for reading my post, a like or share would be amazing 🙂 xx
I am delighted to be sharing my review for a lovely little 127 page read today, Spring at The Little Duck Pond Cafe by Rosie Green. Just look at that cover…
Fleeing from a romance gone wrong, Ellie Farmer arrives in the pretty little village of Sunnybrook, hoping for a brand new start that most definitely does not include love! Following an unscheduled soak in the village duck pond, she meets Sylvia, who runs the nearby Duck Pond Café. Renting the little flat above the café seems like the answer to Ellie’s prayers. It’s only for six months, which will give her time to sort out her life, far away from cheating boyfriend Richard.
But is running away from your past ever really the answer?
Clashing with the mysterious and brooding Zack Chamberlain, an author with a bad case of writer’s block, is definitely not what Ellie needs right now. And then there’s Sylvia, who’s clinging so hard to her past, she’s in danger of losing the quaint but run-down Duck Pond Café altogether.
Can Ellie find the answers she desperately needs in Sunnybrook? And will she be able to help save Sylvia’s little Duck Pond Café from closure?
If you are after a quick read for a lovely warm afternoon in the garden, then look no further than Spring at The Little Duck Pond Cafe. I don’t know about you but, if I see a book with a cafe mentioned, the impression of a welcoming community and a mysterious stranger… then yep I am more than likely to give it a read! This book had all that and then, some fabulous characters, a good amount of humour and a great way to the start of a wonderful sounding series.
The Little Duck Pond Cafe would be a minimalists nightmare, for me it sounds brilliant. The owner is Sylvia and she has, well, let us say she has an obsession with antiques and nick-nacks, and they are displayed in the cafe. Sylvia takes pity on a very bedraggled Ellie Farmer when she had a slight mishap at the village pond. Ellie has not made the best first impression as she has already had a run in when she was caught trespassing!
Why Ellie paid a visit to the village of Sunnybrook and the reason for the trespassing soon becomes clear. It is a story that many can associate with and it adds such an emotional angle to the story. Talking of emotions, I do tend to be an emotional soppy sod when it comes to getting immersed in a story. This story had lumps in my throat on a few occasions and the story is only 127 pages! I should also mention that along with lumpy throat moments I also had a few grinning like a loon moments as well.
For such a short read, this book delivered fabulously. It made me feel welcomed into the cafe and the lives of the characters and it didn’t take me long to discover that I was caring about what happened to them. The setting sounds so idyllic and has left me looking forward to the next instalment of this series.
If you are after a quick feel good story then you should definitely pick up Spring at The Little Duck Pond Cafe 🙂
There are a couple of options for this series. You can either read the 5 individual stories, or you can buy the book “A Year at The Little Duck Pond Cafe” that has them all in one place.
Many thanks for reading my post, a like or share would be great 🙂 xx
Well hello once again! I was going to post this yesterday but as I was taking part in the Publication Day Review for Jaded by Rob Ashman I decided I would change the day for My Week In Books rather than have two posts on one day 🙂
Another month gone!!! April has been a mix of sunshine and showers and a bit windy thanks to Storm Hannah, but my garden survived pretty unscathed, thank goodness.
This week has been a better one as far as my reading has gone and I have managed to read a five books.
So let me share the books I have read this week…
The Queen of Wishful Thinking by Milly Johnson.
I have several books by this author and, do you know what? I have never actually read one! I saw a review post by the fabulous Linda at Linda’s Book Bag for one of this Authors books. As I had just finished reading one book and deciding which to pick up next, Linda’s enthusiasm for Milly Johnson made me go to my TBR and pick up The Queen of Wishful Thinking.
This is a good sized book at just short of 500 pages. I will tell you it was so good that I read it in one sitting! Yes it was a brilliant read that captivated me completely. I am really looking forward to reading the other 7-8 that I have and obviously buying the ones I am missing.
Dead Inside by Noelle Holten
If you are a Book Blogger then I am sure you have seen Dead Inside by fellow Book Blogger and now Debut Author Noelle. Check out Noelle’s Blog at Crime Book Junkie I have been excited to read this book and I had been hearing so many amazing things about Dead Inside.
If you like your crime thriller reads to be hard hitting, emotional deeply intriguing and want a real belter of a read then you seriously NEED to pick this book up when it is published. As soon as I had finished Dead Inside I immediately nipped over to Amazon to pre-order the next book in the Maggie Jamieson series. A fabulous debut and one that I would Absolutely and Most Definitely recommend.
Spring at the Little Duck Pond Cafe by Rosie Green
I was mooching around on my kindle not quite sure what I wanted to read next when I came across this gorgeous cover. It is the first instalment in the Little Duck Pond Cafe series. It is a short read at 127 pages but it is a wonderful intro to a wonderful sounding community that Ellie finds herself drawn to. I am definitely looking forward to reading the rest of this one.
Step Sister by Jennifer Donnelly
I was a lucky recipient of this paperback book via Readers First. When it arrived I immediately picked it up to read, one of those right books at the right time things…
This is the story of what happened to the Ugly Sisters after Ella was whisked away by her Prince. I love a chance to remember childhood fairy tales and I do admit that Cinderella was one I really liked. The author has done a fabulous job of keeping the magical fairy tale feel in her story but also injecting moral aspect that I really, really enjoyed. This was a fabulous escapism read on a rainy April afternoon.
The Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware
When I read a Hardback book I always take off the cover so it doesn’t get damaged and also so I can see if there is any other details hidden underneath…I love these Magpies on a white cover. The significance of the Magpies are part of the story in this fabulous read, I have had this book since last year and I am so pleased I have finally managed to read it. It is one of those books that has a sad almost bleak style to it, this is not a criticism at all in fact it is this style that really draws a reader in, it plays on the emotional ties that you start to build with the character. This is a fabulously atmospheric and creepy feeling read that I thoroughly enjoyed.
Books In The Post
I have been very lucky with books this week. I enter a few giveaways, yes it is a bonus to win but I do it to help share the #BookLove it is my way of helping the promotions and Blog Tours in the hope that my tweets will help other readers find “new to them authors”. So, as well as winning a copy of Step Sister by Jennifer Donnelly, I also won a paperback copy of…
A Sister’s Sorrow by Kitty Neale
My copy came from the wonderful Avon Books in a Twitter Giveaway, I have seen but as yet not read any books by this author and I am really looking forward to starting this one.
The Confessions of Frannie Langton by Sara Collins
I recieved my copy of this Hardback, and I have to say it is gorgeous, from Penguin Random House. I entered a Giveaway on Cathy’s blog and you can find her wonderful Blog at What Cathy Read Next. I had seen many wonderful reviews about this book and I am looking forward to reading this so much.
Baxter’s Requiem by Matthew Crow
This is another book I had got on my reading radar, and this paperback copy is one that might just be my next read! Many thanks to Anne who has an amazing Blog at Random Things Through My Letterbox. If I say that Anne has said that she ” adored it” and also that she “adore this author.” I think this is one I will also enjoy!
Well, that’s me rounded up for the week. My total books read for the month of April was 15 taking my Goodreads tally to 72 out of my planned 200 for the year, so still on target.
My Netgalley tally is 18 on my shelf with 2 of those slipping into the older than 3 months, but with my 88% Feedback Ratio I think I can live with that for the moment, but I do hope to get them read soon!
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Yvonne - Me and My Books 