So much can change in half a lifetime… 
 
Then
 
At fifteen, George is the foster brother Leah never asked for. As the angry, troubled boy struggles to come to terms with his circumstances, Leah finds herself getting drawn closer to him.
 
Theo’s wealthy family have mysteriously pulled him out of boarding school and he’s now enrolled at the local state school with Leah and George. When their worlds collide that summer, the three teenagers form a bond they believe will be unbreakable. But life doesn’t always go to plan…
 
Now
 
Shocking news brings Leah back to Yorkshire, baby daughter in tow. But Emilie’s father Theo isn’t with them, and George has unexpectedly returned. After half a lifetime, have they healed the scars of their pasts? Will coming back home set their hearts in a different direction?

My Thoughts:

Can I just say how beautiful the colour of this cover is, it gets me so excited for the Summer and this will be a perfect beach read. I love the design too so simple yet effective. I am a big fan of Paige Toon’s books and always get excited when I see a new one out, I devoured this book in one sitting, I know greedy right? but I just couldn’t help myself. Paige’s books are just so addictive and I just didn’t want to stop reading this fabulous story. The story goes from then to now and we see Leah’s family back then when her mum and dad were foster carers and how it was to be brought up with other children in the house. Especially when George comes to stay, he has a lot going on in his head and is very withdrawn but can Leah help him open up? When we go to the now we see Leah with her little family, she has to return to her family home as there has been an unexpected loss, but George is there too and can Leah cope with seeing him after what happened when she last saw him. She has a daughter now to protect but it is not just George that needs someone, it’s Leah too. Can they help heal each other’s wounds? I just loved it and now want to re read this charming and beautiful story.

I received an ARC copy of this book for an honest review. Thank you to Anne Cater for organizing such a fantastic blog tour.

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Strangers living worlds apart.
Strangers with nothing in common.

But it wasn’t always that way…

Kerry Hayes is single mum, living on a tough south London estate. She provides for her son by cleaning houses she could never afford. Taken into care as a child, Kerry cannot forget her past.

Noah Martineau is a successful barrister with a beautiful wife, daughter and home in fashionable Primrose Hill. Adopted as a young child, Noah never looks back.

When Kerry contacts Noah, the sibling she lost on the day they were torn apart as children, she sets in motion a chain of events that will change both of their lives forever.

My Thoughts:

I have not read any of Mike’s books before so was intrigued to see what they were all about. There are two main characters in this book, Kerry who is a single mum living on a council estate, she cleans houses for the richer people that she in a million years could never afford, she had a bad past as a child and was taken into care, having never seen her brother for a very long time, she gets in touch with him, but how has his life changed compared to hers? Noah is successful and has a wife and daughter. They live in a lovely expensive house that Kerry could only dream of. But will the siblings get on or will Kerry be too jealous of the life Noah is now leading? I liked the story but I feel as though I knew what was going to happen so it didn’t really excite me, I liked reading about Kerry’s life but not really about Noah’s. I just wished it would of been better.

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IS ANYONE’S LIFE . . .

Beth shows that women really can have it all.
Ruby lives life by her own rules.
And then there’s Lauren, living the dream.

AS PERFECT AS IT LOOKS?
 
Beth hasn’t had sex in a year.
Ruby feels like she’s failing.
Lauren’s happiness is fake news.

And it just takes one shocking event to make the truth come tumbling out…

My Thoughts:

This is the first book I have read by Dawn and I enjoyed it, there are some very funny parts in it that had me laughing out loud. I like how the book is separated by three main characters Ruby, Beth and Lauren and also that they are going through real life situations that I am sure people will be able to relate too. They are three completely different women but they are all completing their own challenges. Some parts made me cringe with the explicit content in the book, but I liked Dawn’s style of writing it was warm yet refreshing. I would like to read more of her books.

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Seven friends gather at a castle in the Scottish Borders. One last weekend before Georgie’s wedding. Near the castle, through a path in the woods, is a loch. After a few drinks, they head down to the water to take photos. The loch is wild, lonely, and stunningly beautiful. They set their camera to self-timer and take some group shots. Later, looking back at the pictures, they see something impossible.

Behind them, eyes wide, a small, drenched boy emerges from the water.

But none of them saw him, and nobody knows where he went. They’re miles from the nearest town. How did he get there? Where did he go?

As the weekend unravels and terrible secrets come to light, it soon becomes clear that their perfect weekend is turning into a perfect nightmare. They’re desperate to leave – but someone won’t let them.

My Thoughts:

When I read the plot for this book I thought it sounded brilliant. It is mysterious and creepy, when seven friends meet at a castle in Scotland for the weekend, just before one of them get’s married, they go down to the Loch to take pictures, after looking back at the pictures at a later date they realise they were not alone. Elle has described the place so well that I had goosebumps on my arms and I felt a chill in the air. With the story you never really know what will come next, the weekend continues but things start to happen that is beyond any bodies control. Will they be able to cut loose and get away? The story is hauntingly beautiful. I won’t be forgetting this book in a hurry, it still gives me the chills.

I received an ARC copy of this book for an honest review. Thank you to Anne Cater and Wildfire books for sending me a copy.

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When she is given the opportunity to move to a remote tidal island off the Cornish Coast, Marisa Rossi decides some peace and quiet might be just what she needs.

Since the death of her beloved grandfather back in Italy, she’s been struggling to find a way out of her grief. Perhaps this will be the perfect place for her to recuperate.

But Mount Polbearne is a far cry from the sleepy little place she was imagining. Between her noisy piano-teaching Russian neighbour and the hustle and bustle of a busy community, Marisa finds solitude is not so easy to come by. Especially when she finds herself somehow involved with a tiny local bakery desperately in need of some new zest to save it . .

My Thoughts:

This is book four in the Little Beach Street Bakery series and was just as lovely as the other three. It was lovely to return to Polbearne and see all the characters again including Neil who is a puffin. It was nice to meet the two newcomers too and to see how they would integrate into the island’s community. It was interesting to see how different the two neighbours are, they each have personal issues that they need to overcome. I like the way Jenny has used real life situations into this story, so people don’t feel alone. Any of these books will put a smile on your face when you read about a rather portly puffin that is a bit cheeky. I loved it but wonder if we will ever return to Polbearne.

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Lorna’s world is small but safe.

She loves her daughter, and the two of them is all that matters. But after nearly twenty years, she and Ella are suddenly leaving London for the Isle of Kip, the tiny remote Scottish island where Lorna grew up.

Alice’s world is tiny but full.

She loves the community on Kip, her yoga classes drawing women across the tiny island together. Now Lorna’s arrival might help their family finally mend itself – even if forgiveness means returning to the past…

So with two decades, hundreds of miles and a lifetime’s worth of secrets between Lorna and the island, can coming home mean starting again?

My Thoughts:

I thoroughly enjoyed this fun packed adventure about the Isle of Kip which is on a small remote Scottish Island. You can just imagine how close knit the islanders that live there are. Lorna and her daughter Ella are heading that way after nearly twenty years Lorna is returning to the island where she grew up, Her brother wants to know whey she left so suddenly and is not happy with how she left things with him. All Lorna wants to do is reconnect with her brother and his family and leave the past behind but there are secrets to tell and it is only a matter of time before they come pouring out. This is a wonderful captivating read that is very hard to put down, I so want to go to the Isle of Kip and experience it for myself, it sounds wonderful the way Libby describes it.

I received an ARC copy for an honest review.

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Sarah always thought of herself and her husband, Tom, as good people. But that was before their son Freddy came home saying he’d done something terrible. Begging them not to tell the police.

Soon Sarah and Tom must find out just how far they are willing to push themselves, and their marriage, to protect their only child . . .

As the lies build up and Sarah is presented with the perfect opportunity to get Freddy off the hook, she is faced with a terrifying decision . . .

My Thoughts:

I enjoy reading books that leaves the question what would you do in that situation? it means when your not reading the book you are thinking about it. I liked how we find something out early on but then go back in past to see how we have come to being where we are in the present. Sarah and Tom are married and have a son Freddy but when Freddy comes home one night saying he has done a really bad thing, the parents are in two minds of what to do. How far will they be pushed, will it save their marriage or will everything come crumbling down on them all. I liked the idea of this story but for me I found it quite heavy going and I just wanted to know how the story was going to be wrapped up.

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

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How far would you run to escape your past?

Venice Beach, Los Angeles. A paradise on earth.

Tourists flock to the golden coast and the promise of Hollywood.

But for eight strangers at a beach front hostel, there is far more on their mind than an extended vacation.

All of them are running from something. And they all have secrets they’d kill to keep…

My Thoughts:

I’ve read a couple of John’s books now but I certainly need to read all his other books as they are just brilliant. I think this is my favourite by far, it is set in Los Angeles on Venice Beach, John writes well so that you can imagine that you are there being able to hear the waves crashing against the rocks and the sand between your toes, life is idyllic. The story is about the eight people that are staying at one of the hostels, are they really here for the beach and the surf or are they here for something else? There are is a lot packed into this book but I found it easy to follow who is who. They each have their own story to tell and Venice Beach seems like the best place for it. The story flowed well for me, I didn’t want to put the book down after each chapter, a very good twisty thriller.

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

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