How to Lose the Lottery By Jay McKenzie

How to Lose the Lottery By Jay McKenzie

One lucky ticket is about to change everything

Edie and Ron have been together for nearly fifty years, keeping each other afloat by the skin of their teeth. They’ve always been ordinary – until something very extraordinary happens.

Winning the lottery is everything they’ve ever wanted – well, almost.

Because for the last twenty years, Edie and Ron have been running from a secret that tore their family apart. And when you can suddenly buy everything you’ve ever wanted, you realise that the only thing you really want is the one thing money can’t buy.

Join Edie as she finally takes control. She’s had enough of playing the hand she’s been dealt – it’s time to risk it all.

My Thoughts:
Edie and Ron are a match made in heaven , going through all kinds of things in their marriage and staying with each other through thick and thin that is how a marriage should be. Their family haven’t wanted to know them since a secret tore their family apart. But now the most amazing thing has happened they have won the lottery. It was interesting to see if the family would come back with their tails between their legs. But Edie wants something else and this time she is going to get it. I felt as though the story was multi layered, it had a kind of depth to it that there was more to it than meets the eye. It was a powerful and thought provoking story. It was a read that it did not blow me away but was readable.

I received an ARC copy of this book for an honest review.

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It’s Not What You Think By Claire Mackintosh

It’s Not What You Think By Claire Mackintosh

He has a secret. She knows he’s lying…

YOU THINK YOU KNOW THE PEOPLE YOU LOVE

Nadeeka is certain Jamie is having an affair. She knows the tell-tale signs.

She’s been here before.

YOU THINK YOU KNOW WHO YOU CAN TRUST

When Jamie claims to be at work late, she knows he’s lying. He’s with another woman, and she’s determined to catch him in the act.

YOU THINK YOU KNOW HOW THE STORY ENDS

But when Nadeeka arrives home to confront him, Jamie can’t explain himself. The house has become a crime scene…

Jamie is dead.

My Thoughts:

Wow this story blew me away. I have never felt so invested in a read that I read it in one sitting. Nadeeka knows her partner Jamie is up to something and she does not want to admit to herself that it is true but every thing points to him cheating. When she returns home one day she is shocked to find Jamie dead. From there on, you could not predict the way the story plays out. It is brimming full of unexpected twists and turns. I had my suspicions but many time was proven wrong. I loved the way the story enveloped me, I felt as though when I had read the last few sentences then I could breathe again. Claire is a fantastic storyteller and puts you right in the heart of the drama. I loved the police side of things I always find Claire gives us good information. This is going to be such a big hit when it goes out into the world. This would make a great TV drama or a theatre production. Top 10 book of the year.

I received an ARC copy of this book for an honest review.

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The Lottery Winner Widows Club By Elly Vine

The Lottery Winner Widows Club By Elly Vine

Paula is having a surreal week. Having just lost her husband, John, in a freak car accident, she’s utterly gobsmacked when, two days later, she wins the lottery – with the ticket he bought.

Just as she thinks things can’t get crazier, Paula is approached by a tight-knit trio of glamorous women – also jackpot winners – with dead husbands, suspiciously large bank accounts. . . and a very specific interest in Paula.

They tell her that they’ve been where she is now. That grief looks good on her. That freedom does, too. There’s just one problem: Paula didn’t kill her husband. She loved him, of course.

But something about their world – lavish, secretive, thrilling – is hard to resist. And when word of Paula’s jackpot win spreads and others come sniffing around for a share, she’s faced with the ultimate choice: hold onto her old life, or accept help from her new friends, whose methods are a little more. . . unconventional.

My Thoughts:

Paula has just lost the love of her life, and is trying to deal with the grief little does she realise she is about to win the lottery with the ticket her husband has bought. But as Paula deals with her grief, she is taken aside by a group of women who like her have won the lottery but with these women nothing is as it seems and they all seemed to have killed their husbands to just get their money, Paula does not want to associate with them until she realises it could probably changer her life for the better. Will she take the plunge and move forward with her life? It was a read where you think what if? I was not sure if the storyline would work but it did, I liked the twists through out they kept me on my toes, where I thought the story was heading was completely the wrong direction and it surprised me how the story turned out. I loved it.

I received an ARC copy of this book for an honest review.

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Obsession By Amanda Robson

Obsession By Amanda Robson

One evening, a wife asks her husband a question: who else would you go for, if you could?

It is a simple question – a little game – that will destroy her life.

Carly and Rob are a perfect couple. They share happy lives with their children and their close friends Craig and Jenny. They’re lucky.
But beneath the surface, no relationship is simple: can another woman’s husband and another man’s wife ever just be good friends?

Little by little, Carly’s question sends her life spiralling out of control, as she begins to doubt everything she thought was true. Who can she trust? The man she has promised to stick by forever, or the best friend she has known for years? And is Carly being entirely honest with either of them?

My Thoughts:

The story is about how obsession can be a lot closer to home than you think. Carly and Rob have a brilliant life together with their perfect kids and their best friends but what happens when obsession starts to creep into the mix? All of a sudden Carly cannot comprehend what is happening to their perfect little family, it is being torn apart and for what? Carly has to decide what to do before it is too late. I liked how the story was layers that you had to unpeel with each chapter. I did find the second half boring though a bit repetitive, but all in all it was a good thriller.

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Little Miss Petty By Sally Kilpatrick

Little Miss Petty By Sally Kilpatrick

When Stella Stark discovers that her boyfriend is cheating, she also discovers that thirty-nine isn’t too old for petty revenge. Can we say…glitter bomb? She’s lost both her job and her home―why not broaden her professional horizons as Little Miss Petty, helping wronged women achieve karmic justice? Frankly, the demand is too great to ignore.

New friends rally around her: Havisham, a bar owner with a soft spot under her gruff exterior, and Salcedo, a college student with marketing savvy. There’s just one hiccup: Getting revenge on the cheating soon-to-be ex-husband of her best-paying client is supposed to be easy. After all, he’s her neighbor. But something isn’t adding up. Malone is not only intriguingly handsome. He’s also a good listener, sympathetic, and adores kittens. He may look like the ex, but he isn’t acting like him. And how can Stella, a woman on the rebound, be even remotely tempted by the pizza-with-benefits relationship he suggests? That would be so bad for business.

There’s so much for Stella to learn―about karma, the charmer across the breezeway she’s falling for, and most importantly, herself. Love, revenge, and second chances―they all come with a little risk. And a twist.

My Thoughts:

Stella is out for revenge, after three bad things happen in a row she knows revenge is a must but how. She finds a job where she can exact revenge on the kind of people who deserve it. But when one of her clients ex is Stella’s neighbour will Stella be able to go ahead with it it doesn’t help that he is hot. Stella is learning as she goes and is their to pick up the pieces as she knows exactly how it feels and how to get these cheating people back. I loved the sound of this story, it felt original and a bit different. Stella is a strong powerful woman but I felt as though the story lost it’s magic halfway through and it felt a long time getting to the end. I didn’t hold out much hope in the end. It was funny and sad all at the same time.

I received an ARC copy of this book for an honest review.

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California Gold By Jodie Chapman

California Gold By Jodie Chapman

Frank and Chrissy meet a few days into ’70. Frank has been travelling around California when someone tells him about a house in the desert where the walls are steel and the glass shimmers. When Chrissy picks him up hitchhiking on the side of the road, all blond hair and oversized sunglasses, it’s love at first sight.

Years later, as their shared dream of recreating a mid-century masterpiece in Britain threatens to overwhelm them, Frank will often think back to the start. What if he had carried on walking? What if she had driven to Palm Springs the next day? Every moment of tomorrow would have changed . . .

My Thoughts:

In this story we follow the O’Hara family over a period of forty years. There are a number of different family members over the years but I did not get confused about who was who as Jodie has written it so well to do that job. It was packed to the rim and I was hooked straight away. I don’t know how but it felt different to the books I normally read, I thought about it when I was not reading it. Every page is unpredictable and I did not get a sense of what was to come. A book that will stay with me for a long time to come. I look forward to what Jodie writes about next.

I received an ARC copy of this book for an honest review.

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Dirty Red By Tarryn Fisher

Dirty Red By Tarryn Fisher

Manipulation. Lies. Backstabbing.

Just your typical obsessively toxic love triangle.

Dear Opportunist,

You thought you could take him from me, but you lost. Now that he’s mine, I’ll do anything to keep him. Do you doubt me? I have everything that was supposed to be yours. In case you were wondering – he doesn’t even think about you anymore.

I won’t let him go…ever.

Dirty Red

Leah Smith finally has everything she’s ever wanted. Except she doesn’t. Her marriage feels more like a loan than a lifelong commitment, and the image she has worked so hard to build is fraying before her eyes. With a new role and a past full of secrets, Leah must decide how far she is willing to go to keep what she has stolen.

My Thoughts:

This is book two in the Love Me With Lies Series and I would definitely recommend reading them in order. I love the way this book unfolds. Leah has the man and she wants everything to be fine now but it really is not. She has done something that she is now regretting just to keep her man but everything starts falling apart very quickly, can she save her marriage before it is too late? I really enjoyed the first book and this one was just as good. It will be interesting to see what the third book will be about. As soon as you start reading this book you will become addicted to it. I did not want to stop reading, it was very captivating and gripped me the whole way through.

I received an ARC copy of this book for an honest review.

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The Family Friend By Claire Douglas

The Family Friend By Claire Douglas

When Imogen is told she’s inherited a country house near Bath, she thinks it must be a mistake. She last saw its owner, reclusive artist Dorothea Roe, sixteen years ago, during a tragic summer which changed her life for ever.

Now, with partner Josh in tow, it’s a chance for a fresh start.

But after discovering an old box with her name on it in Dorothea’s abandoned study, Imogen starts to believe the woman was trying to send her a secret message.

And when rumours begin to swirl that Dorothea was murdered, she starts to suspect that this gift might not be the life-line she thought it was.

Who would want to kill Dorothea?

Could it be tangled up in Imogen’s own dark family history?

And what if Imogen is now the one in danger?

My Thoughts:

I have read all of Claire’s previous books and enjoyed them so much but this one just did not hit the spot. It is all about Imogen who inherits a house from a woman who she has not seen for many many years but why has she given Imogen her house? Imogen moves in with her boyfriend but then everything seems to go wrong. Imogen is on a quest to find out what the old lady wanted her to know but not to tell anyone else. The house is full of secrets but can Imogen get to them before it is too late? It was a very long and drawn out story, I felt as though it did not really go anywhere and kept on going round and round in circles. It did not excite me like Claire’s previous books and I felt as though I had to read to the end, there are a couple of twists but nothing that you can get your teeth into. It is such a shame.

I received an ARC copy of this book for an honest review.

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Home Sweet Home in Brambleton By Fay Keenan

Home Sweet Home in Brambleton By Fay Keenan

Following a less-than-picture-book childhood, Bella West has got used to moving around – putting down roots opens you up for disappointment and heartbreak. But since arriving in the idyllic Somerset village of Lower Brambleton, something has changed.

Bella loves her job at Purrfect Paws cat rescue and the many residents love her back. So, when one particularly grumpy Bengal named Monty proves hard to charm, Bella is determined to find out his story.

When Noah Hathaway’s beloved Grandpa Jack passes away it falls to him to deal with his estate including his charming but run-down cottage in Lower Brambleton, not forgetting Jack’s cantankerous cat Monty. Busy with a life in London, Noah wants to settle things quickly, but countryside life has its own pace and slowly but inexorably the charms of Lower Brambleton begin to work their magic on Noah.

Can one morose moggy, one perfect English village and one endless countryside summer teach Bella and Noah the meaning of home and the joy of taking a chance on love?

My Thoughts:

This is my first book by Fay and I cannot wait to read all of her previous books. I could not get enough of this story and read it in a day. Bella is living in the Village of Lower Brambleton which just sounds so idyllic that I wanted to move there straight away. Bella works at the local pub in the evening and during the day she works at the the cat rescue centre which would be my ideal job as I love cats and have one of my own. The team at Purrfect Paws are looking after a very grumpy cat called Monty after his owner died and the family don’t want him but when things need to be sorted out. Noah is sole beneficiary of the house and Monty but he lives and works elsewhere so he needs to decide what to do. This is book 3 of 4 in the Brambleton series but can be read as a standalone, I am going to make sure Fay is now on my radar as I just loved how well the story flowed, I felt as though I was there looking after the cats with Bella and I felt as though I was her friend. I just wanted to help her in the situations she gets herself into. I loved it, one of my top ten books of this year.

I received an ARC copy of this book for an honest review.

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The Shark By Emma Styles

The Shark By Emma Styles

Every monster has a weakness.

At the height of Australian summer, a serial killer known as The Shark stalks a coastal suburb, hunting young female swimmers.

Afraid and furious at the failure of the police to protect them, two women fight back. Raych is grieving someone she’d have died to save, while Carmen hides her own disturbing connection to the murders.

In desperation, they form an uneasy alliance. And when another girl vanishes, they take matters into their own hands – by kidnapping the prime suspect. But as their interrogation spirals, horrifying truths surface on both sides of the table.

The clock is ticking to save the missing girl. And in their quest for justice, Raych and Carmen must face the darkest question of all: have they caught a monster – or become one?

My Thoughts:

This story is set in Australia and there is a killer on the prowl. The Shark as they are known is after young female swimmers and will do anything to get one. Two women are trying to form an alliance to bring The Shark down as they both have their reasons to. When another girl goes missing they both don’t have much time to rescue her but their lives are in danger too. I found this story creepy, tense and very unpredictable. I liked the way Emma writes with such tension and how powerful the story flowed. There is a huge twist to this book. I do like a good thriller and this certainly was however for me I found it a tad unsettling and even though I wanted to find out if the women would catch the killer it did keep me up at night.

I received an ARC copy of this book for an honest review.

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