Healer of My Heart By Sheila Turner Johnston

22 December , 2020 by Hannah ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Why are we so angry with each other? Because there is nothing else left to be. Intense and riveting, this is the powerful story of two lives that collide on a relentless path from an unforgiving past to a future to be grasped … or lost. Rookie teacher Robyn Daniels drives away everyone who tries to come close to her. Her emotions are locked in impenetrable ice until a flawed, charismatic and headstrong young man attacks the frozen layers of this woman who entrances him. From despair to delight, from trust to betrayal, will he be the healer of her heart? Or will even he walk away before his own is broken? Lyrical, thought-provoking, unforgettable, this remarkable novel will stay with you long after you have closed the last page. What leaves you with the fewest wounds? Making peace with the past? Or making war with it?

My Thoughts:

I love the cover of this book, it feels very poignant. Robyn is a English teacher that is newly qualified. She is independent and won’t let anyone get close to her until David comes along. She has had hurt in the past so you can see what she is the way she is. Can he help her to see that it is not all bad and can he help her heal her broken heart? I felt a connection with her, I felt sorry for how things were for her in her past though. I hoped David would help her and for her to have a happy life. I found the story moving and well written. It explores love and relationships.

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

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Queenie By Candice Carty-Williams

18 December , 2020 by Hannah ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Queenie is a twenty-five-year-old Black woman living in south London, straddling Jamaican and British culture whilst slotting neatly into neither. She works at a national newspaper where she’s constantly forced to compare herself to her white, middle-class peers, and beg to write about Black Lives Matter. After a messy break up from her long-term white boyfriend, Queenie finds herself seeking comfort in all the wrong places.

As Queenie veers from one regrettable decision to another, she finds herself wondering, What are you doing? Why are you doing it? Who do you want to be? – the questions that every woman today must face in a world that keeps trying to provide the answers for them.

My Thoughts:

I am a bit late to the party for this book but it doesn’t matter as I have read it now. I was intrigued to see what all the hype was about regarding this book. The main character is a black woman so it was interesting to get her views and her experiences. There is a lot of sex and lots of details going into it which put me off slightly as it was a bit too much for me, everyone in this book felt familiar as in the way her friends, family and colleagues have been written. I did feel for Queenie on some occasions and seeing what she sees and hears every day was quite sad and hit me hard. I did find some bits funny too. I am glad I have read it and I look forward to reading more by Candice.

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Adventure By Chicken Bus By Janet LoSole

18 December , 202018 December , 2020 by Hannah ♥ 1 Comment

Embarking on a homeschooling field trip to Central America is stressful enough, but add in perilous bridge crossings, trips to the hospital, and a lack of women’s underwear, and you have the makings of an Adventure by Chicken Bus.
Buckling under a mountain of debt, Janet LoSole and her family are at their wits’ end. Determined to make a drastic change, they sell all worldly possessions and hit the road. With only a few items of clothing, a four-person tent, and little else, the family visits a sleepy island backwater in Costa Rica to save endangered sea turtles. In Panama, they bounce around like turnips in the back of a vegetable truck to reach an isolated monkey sanctuary.

In Guatemala, they scale the ancient Mayan temples of Tikal.
In between tales of begging rides from total strangers and sleeping overnight in the jungle with an indigenous family, Janet endorses community-based travel–supporting local businesses and favoring public transportation called chicken buses. She also writes candidly about what it takes to travel long-term with two little girls amid the chaos of border crossings, erratic drivers, and creepy crawlies lurking at the edge of the jungle.

My Thoughts:

Janet and her family are off on a adventure of a lifetime, I loved the way Janet has written this book as I feel as though I am the fifth person on this amazing adventure. I am sure her daughters will remember this for the rest of their lives, they are incredibly lucky to experience some of the things they did when on this trip. It was such an honest account of one family traveling, there are some highs and there are some lows, but you can tell and see that the family is a close knit one. Such an epic adventure, it certainly gave me the need to want to go away. I don’t think I would of had the guts to do the backpacking myself especially with two kids but good on them and I felt as though I could experience it on their behalf. I think this is a book you will come back to time an time again if you ever feel like you need some holiday inspiration.

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

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What I want to achieve next year on my blog?

17 December , 202030 November , 2020 by Hannah ♥ 3 Comments

I have had a really long hard think about what I want to achieve on my blog next year. I want to make my blog better but tweaking certain parts to it, and just making it stand out more. I have been very lucky to have had a couple of my review quotes in author’s books but would love to be in more next year. I need to make my review quotes stand out more. My main goal would be to be in Carole Matthews or Jenny Colgan’s books as they are my two favourite authors and Milly Johnson but I have been lucky enough to be in two of her books now. I would love to get more followers on my blog but also on my social media accounts too.

I have read some great books already for next year on Netgalley, if you are not signed up, then you are really missing out, I have read a fantastic selection of books on there already. I have also been contacted to have my review quote in a book that comes out in January and it is called The Island By C. L. Taylor, so keep your eyes peeled for that. I will have lots of reviews coming next year and they are brilliant.

Aslong as I keep enjoy what I am doing then I will be happy, I will also be working with another publisher which I am incredibly excited and grateful for.

What do you want to achieve next year for your blog?

let me know in the comments.

My Favourite Reads of 2020

16 December , 2020 by Hannah ♥ 9 Comments

I think most of us have found solace in books this year, I certainly have. These are my favourite reads of this year in no particular order. It was hard to whittle them down to just 26. There have just been some brilliant books out this year.

Hunting Abigail By Jeremy Costello

Six idiots witness a murder By Rob Hickman

Mainely Fear By Matt Cost

The Boy Between Us By Amanda Prowse and Josiah Hartley

The Extraordinary Hope of Dawn Brightside By Jessica Ryn

Your Life for Mine By Karen Clarke

Hungry By Grace Dent

Silent Night By Nell Pattison

The Silent House By Nell Pattison

The Chalet By Catherine Cooper

Remember Me? By Shobna Gulati

Too scared to tell By Cathy Glass

One More For Christmas By Sarah Morgan

A patchwork Family By Cathy Bramley

The Lonely Fajita By Abigail Mann

The Minute I saw you By Paige Toon

Meet me at Pebble Beach By Bella Osborne

One family Christmas By Bella Osborne

How to save a life By S. D. Robertson

Where We Belong By Anstey Harris

Finding Love at Hedgehog Hollow By Jessica Redland

Secrets of a serial killer By Rosie Walker

A Terrible Secret By Cathy Glass

Coming Home to Glendale Hall By Victoria Walters

Why Mummy’s Sloshed By Gill Sims

A Surprise Christmas Wedding By Phillipa Ashley

Hope you have enjoyed this post. Post in the comments what your favourite read of this year has been?

The Flatshare By Beth O’ Leary

15 December , 202015 December , 2020 by Hannah ♥ 4 Comments

Tiffy and Leon share a flat
Tiffy and Leon share a bed
Tiffy and Leon have never met…

Tiffy Moore needs a cheap flat, and fast. Leon Twomey works nights and needs cash. Their friends think they’re crazy, but it’s the perfect solution: Leon occupies the one-bed flat while Tiffy’s at work in the day, and she has the run of the place the rest of the time.

But with obsessive ex-boyfriends, demanding clients at work, wrongly imprisoned brothers and, of course, the fact that they still haven’t met yet, they’re about to discover that if you want the perfect home you need to throw the rulebook out the window…

My Thoughts:

I love books were the storyline is quite unique, I have never heard of two people sharing a bed but working different shifts to each other, but it works as a interesting storyline, one that I really enjoyed reading. I felt as though I wanted to be friends with all the characters that make this book so charming, it is hilarious yet a little bit sad. But you will not be disappointed as it really will make you smile. I look forward to Beth’s next book.

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Six Idiots Witness a Robbery – Different Country – Same Idiots By Rob Hickman

14 December , 202014 December , 2020 by Hannah ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

The idiots are back in the sequel to the 5-star reviewed ‘Six Idiots Witness a Murder.’

After unwittingly helping to solve a murder in the hot sun of Atlanta in April, six random transatlantic friends now find themselves in the UK during a cold and wet October. Three of them are dealing with an embarrassing scandal at the company they work for while the others just want to get drunk and have a good time.

A night out puts them in the wrong place at the wrong time and they find themselves in the middle of an audacious robbery in Brighton city centre.

As police suspicion falls upon them, can they help catch the crooks or will their presence just lead to more chaos?!

The second absurd comedy in the ‘Six Idiots’ series flows back and forth across the Atlantic as Dwayne P. Cleverley’s crematorium business begins to struggle and he looks for a way to increase the body count in Atlanta, Detective Schroedinger is left to look after Wendy’s cats and Lloyd hosts another disastrous self-help workshop.

And as for Vinny…just don’t be late if he’s around.

My Thoughts:

I cannot believe this is the Six Idiots sequel, I have genuinely loved them all. If you after some laughs and entertainment then these are the books for you. Here we find them in the UK and three of them find themselves in hot water at work, whilst the other three are just having a good time. Nothing ever goes right for them and they end up being in the wrong place at the wrong time. I was thinking not again What will happen to them? and can they find a way out? This book is a hoot and I could not stop laughing through out. We definitely need more books like this at this time.

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

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Twenty Four Days to Christmas By Fred Arthur

11 December , 202011 December , 2020 by Hannah ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Poppy is in agony – it is the First of December and she has twenty fours days to wait until Christmas and she is convinced that she will not be able to contain her excitement and impatience: How can she possibly wait so long for Santa to arrive? Poppy’s parents put their heads together and come up with a cunning plan that has Poppy completing a different, Christmas themed activity every day, to keep her busy until Christmas (and Santa) finally arrives.

Twenty four days to Christmas is an Advent Calendar of a book, which can be read one day at a time, or as a complete story and centres on Christmas, family and the magic of Christmas season.

My Thoughts:

This is a really good book if you are wanting to teach your child to learn the importance of Christmas and waiting. All of the ideas in this book are perfect for the lead up to Christmas. The illustrations are bright and colourful and on both pages, so children can look for certain objects, which is always fun. It is a fun and festive read and all the activities are easy enough to do and I am sure all children will love doing it.

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

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Angelina’s Children By Alice Ferney

10 December , 2020 by Hannah ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

‘Few gypsies want to be seen as poor, although many are. Such was the case with old Angelina’s sons, who possessed nothing other than their caravan and their gypsy blood. But it was young blood that coursed through their veins, a dark and vital flow that attracted women and fathered numberless children. And, like their mother, who had known the era of horses and caravans, they spat upon the very thought that they might be pitied.’

So begins the story of a tribe exiled to the outskirts of the city, outlawed and ostracized by society. Esther, a young librarian from the town, wants to teach Angelina’s grandchildren to read. She runs into a wall of suspicion but eventually manages to tame the children and gain Angelina’s confidence. Dealing with the widow’s five sons is another matter.

My Thoughts:

Set in France this is the story about a group of Gypsies who have set up their camp on an abandoned wasteland. This story shows they were ostracized by their own people but that they are free spirited and proud of who they are, it shows a family that never can stay in one place for too long, not knowing when they will have to be moved on. Angelina’s families lives are harsh, no job to go to so no money coming in, can Esther a local librarian help to change the children’s lives for the better? I found this book to be a very honest portrayal of a gypsie’s life. Some of the things were hard to hear and sad but in reality it is the truth.

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

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The Boy Between By Amanda Prowse and Josiah Hartley

9 December , 2020 by Hannah ♥ 2 Comments

Bestselling novelist Amanda Prowse knew how to resolve a fictional family crisis. But then her son came to her with a real one…

Josiah was nineteen with the world at his feet when things changed. Without warning, the new university student’s mental health deteriorated to the point that he planned his own death. His mother, bestselling author Amanda Prowse, found herself grappling for ways to help him, with no clear sense of where that could be found. This is the book they wish had been there for them during those dark times.

Josiah’s situation is not unusual: the statistics on student mental health are terrifying. And he was not the only one suffering; his family was also hijacked by his illness, watching him struggle and fearing the day he might succeed in taking his life.

In this book, Josiah and Amanda hope to give a voice to those who suffer, and to show them that help can be found. It is Josiah’s raw, at times bleak, sometimes humorous, but always honest account of what it is like to live with depression. It is Amanda’s heart-rending account of her pain at watching him suffer, speaking from the heart about a mother’s love for her child.

My Thoughts:

I have read many of Amanda’s books but this one was so moving. It is a non fiction story about Amanda and her son’s journey through depression. I think it is a good thing that Amanda and Josh have written this book as I am sure there are a number of people that can relate, I want everyone to read this book especially if you or a family member is struggling as I think this book will help people realise they are not alone. Josh is very brave to write about what he has been through and I really admire him for being strong and helping others that are in a similar situation. I could never imagine what Amanda went through but she has great support from her husband who helped her and Josh, when Josh was in a bad place. I feel admiration that Amanda and Josh are able to share their story, showing that depression can happen in anyone at any age and that you are not alone and there is help available, there are some really good websites at the back of this book too that I think will help people. I liked seeing Josh’s side but also the side of his mum Amanda, it gave the story two different perspectives. I wish Josh all the best in the future.

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

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