Tag: fiction

A Place in the Sun By Jo Thomas

A Place in the Sun By Jo Thomas

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It’s never too late to find where you belong…

Thea knew the holiday house her late husband Marco bought in Tuscany wasn’t pristine. But when she relocates to Italy for the summer with her children, she’s shocked by how much work Casa Luna needs. And she only has six weeks to fix it up ready to sell! Her only option is to ask the tight-knit Italian community for help.

In return, Thea and her children become involved in the community kitchen, working alongside handsome chef Giovanni and three very competitive nonnas. Gradually, Thea begins to open up to the people around her for the first time in a long while. But just as she’s beginning to wonder whether this small Tuscan town could become a new place to call home, a surprise visitor turns everything on its head . . .

My Thoughts:

I love when a Jo Thomas book can whisk you away to another country. It is making me want to go to Italy and experience the life out there. I could feel the sun’s warmth on my face whilst reading this book. Thea has come to Italy to sort out her late husbands holiday home. With her children to think of too, she does not realise how much she will have to do. Also the mayor has given her a time line. Thea starts to meet the locals and they need her just as much as she needs them in her time of need. Such a beautiful setting and the descriptions of food sounded wonderfully sumptuous. I love how the community brought everyone together. A wonderful read to escape with. I love how Jo writes about food it always makes me hungry whilst reading one of her books. I cannot wait to see what Jo writes about next.

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

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When Sleeping Women Wake By Emma PeiYin

When Sleeping Women Wake By Emma PeiYin

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Hong Kong, 1941. Following the Japanese occupation of Shanghai, the wealthy Tang family flee to Hong Kong.

As the First Wife of the family, Mingzhu leads a sheltered – if lonely – existence overseeing her daughter Qiang and managing the household alongside her devoted maid, Biyu.

But when the Japanese army invade, the three women are scattered. Mingzhu is coerced into working for a Japanese captain. Qiang and Biyu escape the island, only to be forced into factory work then separated after an encounter with the East River Column Resistance fighters.

The longer the brutal occupation lasts, the more determined the women are to resist. And as war rages around the world, each is holding onto the hope that the other is alive.

My Thoughts:
This is a different kind of read for me, but I am trying to broaden my horizon with different genres. It is set in the 1940’s Hong Kong. It is all about the Tang Family who go to Honk Kong for a better life, each of them have their reasons, it was interesting to read about this era and how different it was back then especially for the country. It captivated me right from the beginning, it was not a book I thought I would enjoy as I thought it may be heavy going but I felt completely entranced by the story and the women who braved their souls. I also felt as though I learnt a great deal about this era. A fantastic and well thought out story.

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

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The Missing Half By Ashley Flowers

The Missing Half By Ashley Flowers

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Nicole Monroe is in a rut. At twenty-four, she lives alone in a tiny apartment in her hometown in Indiana, she’s just gotten a DWI, and she works the same dead-end job she’s been working since high school. Everyone has felt sorry for her for the last seven years – since the day her older sister, Kasey, vanished without a trace.

On the night Kasey went missing, her car was found over a hundred miles from home. The driver’s door was open and her purse was untouched in the seat next to it. The only real clue in her disappearance was Jules Connor, another young woman from the same area who disappeared in the same way, two weeks earlier. But with so little for the police to go on, both cases eventually went cold.

Nic wants nothing more than to move on from her sister’s disappearance and the state it’s left her in. But then one day, Jules’s sister, Jenna Connor, walks into Nic’s life and offers her something she hasn’t felt in a long time: hope.

My Thoughts:

This is a story of two sisters Nicole and Kasey who will go above and beyond to get what they want and wont let anybody stop them. Nicole is stuck in a rut, she is still young but she has nothing in life to look forward to. Her sister Kasey vanished many years ago and Nicole wants to move on but people just wont stop bringing it up. But when someone from the case turns up unexpectantly Nicole wonders if this is the time to find out what happened to her sister. Hope she can eventually close this door. As soon as I had read the first chapter I knew this book was for me, fast paced and gripping from the start, it wends its way through what happened with both sisters and how one sister remains and the impact on her life. If your after a brilliant thriller, this is the one for you.

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

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One Cornish Summer With You By Phillipa Ashley

One Cornish Summer With You By Phillipa Ashley

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Tammy loved her childhood growing up in the harbour town of Porthmellow. But when her father went bankrupt and her mother abandoned them, she was quick to learn that nothing lasts forever.

Now, Tammy spends her days creating works of art in the golden Cornish sand, and is determined to protect herself from further heartache. But everything changes when she meets Ruan – a gorgeous solicitor who has moved to Cornwall for a fresh start.

Just as Tammy starts to question if Ruan could be the one to break down her walls, she discovers he has a secret – one that unravels everything she thought she knew about her past.

Can Tammy find the courage to trust again? Or will Ruan’s secret push her away forever?

My Thoughts:

When I saw Phillipa had a new book out, I could not wait to start reading it. It is set in Porthmellow in Cornwall. Cornwall is a place I have only been to once but would love to go back there because of the descriptions of Cornwall that Phillipa writes about. This story is about Tammy who is a sand artist which I found incredibly interesting to read about, but life is not plain sailing for Tammy who meets Ruan and then everything seems to unravel and Tammy does not know where her head is at. I loved all the characters that make an appearance and I really felt part of the family there. It was an easy read to get swept away with and I look forward to reading Phillipa’s next book.

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

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Always You and Me By Dani Atkins

Always You and Me By Dani Atkins

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Then…

On the eve of her wedding to Adam, Lily’s best friend Josh unexpectedly walked out of her life, and she hasn’t seen him since.

Lily and Adam are blissfully happy, until he falls ill. As she cares for him in his final hours, Adam asks her to make a mysterious promise: to find Josh—and forgive them both.

This winter…

Tracking Josh down isn’t easy, but fate seems determined to bring them together. Cut off in his remote Scottish cabin by a fierce snowstorm, Lily and Josh explore their tangled feelings for each other, stretching back over the decades. But when she discovers the shocking reason behind Adam’s unexpected last wish, she’ll need to trust her heart completely…

Can Lily and Josh choose love—and find forgiveness and lasting happiness together?

My Thoughts:

Getting married to Adam was the best thing Lily could of done, but back then her best friend Josh walked away from her and never looked back. Unfortunately for Lily, Adam is gravely ill and in his final hours he asks Lily to go and find Josh. But that is the last thing Lily is thinking about right now. After she pulls herself together and decides to honour Adam’s wish, trying to find Josh is harder than she thought, when she eventually tracks him down he is none to pleased to see her, so many things went wrong back then, feelings were not admitted back then and how can they both ever recover? I have not read many of Dani’s books, there are some sensitive subjects touched on in this book, some may be too close to home for people to read about, relatable characters and a warmth reading this book. There are plenty of twists and turns and flitting back to the past and the future but it made for such a good read.

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

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The Expanded Earth By Mikey Please

The Expanded Earth By Mikey Please

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On a remote coastal path, Giles awakes in his new body to discover a world reshaped and magnified into a place of astounding abundance and deadly peril. Desperate to reconnect with his loved ones, he seeks the help of fellow survivors, and together they embark on a quest across the altered landscape. But as their journey unfolds, the more the question persists – are they still truly human, or has their reduction in size marked the beginning of a descent into savagery, an evolution into something other?

Elsewhere, one week earlier, Professor Elizabeth Goodwin makes a monumental discovery – God is alive and physically among us, but not in the form we’ve been taught to expect. As Goodwin prepares to make first contact with the omnipresent ocean-spanning creature, forces conspire in the wings, and the spectre of imminent catastrophe inches closer and closer still . . .

My Thoughts:

This is a bit different to what I would normally read but I thought I would give it a go and I am glad I did. When Giles wakes up not knowing where he is and what has happened to him, he is alone and afraid, seeking reassurance and wanting to find out where his loved ones are he sets out to find anyone around. But this journey is not safe and their lives are in peril danger, can Giles figure out what has happened or is something else at play here? Professor Elizabeth Goodwin has made a massive discovery and it could really affect the world but nothing is what she thought would happen and God has thrown a spanner in its works. It was a powerful and thought provoking read that really did pull me in. I have never read a book that I was so mesmerised with, the writing was dark and detailed. It has really made me do a lot of thinking and this was an adventure and a half.

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

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The 20 By Sam Holland

The 20 By Sam Holland

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A shocking crime scene…
DCI Adam Bishop has never seen anything like it. Five murder victims – all with numbers written above their bodies. And the spray-painted daubs reveal a horrific truth: the killer is counting down…

A case that twists and turns…
When Dr Romilly Cole learns of the murders, they trigger memories of a traumatic past she has tried hard to forget. But getting involved with the case is a bad idea. She and Bishop have history – and working together could never end well.

A race against time to stop a killer…
Adam and Romilly soon realise the truth lies in a decades-old case, and only Romilly holds the key. But they must act quickly, because with every passing day, there are more victims. And as the numbers edge toward zero, the murders get closer to home…

My Thoughts:

This is my first book by Sam and I was intrigued as I have heard plenty of readers loving it. This book is part of a series and this is book two. But can be read as a standalone, DCI Adam Bishop is called into to investigate a case where there are five bodies but they all have something in common and Adam has to work out what that is and who the killer is before more bodies are uncovered. When he brings in Dr Romilly Cole, can they work together as they have history. It was a twisty thriller that set my pulse racing, was fast paced and had me on the edge of my seat. Fear gripped me.

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The Last to Disappear By Jo Spain

The Last to Disappear By Jo Spain

by Hannah ♥ 1 Comment


A luxury resort. Three missing women. One body.

When young London professional Alex Evans is informed that his sister’s body has been pulled from an icy lake in Northern Lapland, he assumes his irresponsible sister accidentally drowned. He travels to the wealthy winter resort where Vicky worked as a tour-guide and meets Agatha Koskinen, the detective in charge. Agatha is a no-nonsense single mother of three who already thinks there’s more to Vicky’s case than meets the eye.

As the two form an unlikely alliance, Alex also begins to suspect the small town where his sister lived and died is harbouring secrets. It’s not long before he learns that three other women have gone missing from the area in the past and that his sister may have left him a message.

On the surface, Koppe, Lapland is a winter wonderland. But in this remote, frozen place, death seems only ever a heartbeat away.

My Thoughts:

Jo is a new author to me, I thought this read sounded good and my kind of thriller. It is about Alex who gets a phone call to say his sisters body has been found in Northern Lapland, and he assumes it is her fault. Alex sets out on the long journey to Lapland to speak with the detective in charge because it is not at all what it seems. His sister’s case is not as simple as it first seemed. What was she involved in, Alex has to find out. It was tense, gripping and pulled me in quite literally from the get go. It made me feel cold reading this but not so much to do with the freezing temperatures in Lapland, it was more to do with how the story was panning out. Full of creepiness and not knowing what is around the corner. I really liked it and am excited to read more by Jo.

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The Last Time I Saw Him By Rachel Abbott

The Last Time I Saw Him By Rachel Abbott

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Celia, Juliette and Nadia are complete strangers with one thing in common: they have all been wronged by Ellis Cobain. A wealthy philanthropist on course for a knighthood, Ellis’ public persona is bulletproof – but lurking beneath this veneer is a sinister side that only the women closest to him have seen.

When they meet at a boutique hotel on the Cornish coast, brought together by the blind arrogance of their tormentor, they realise what connects them and form a pact to free themselves from his grasp.

But when a body is discovered they are left scrambling, desperate to cover their tracks. This was never part of the plan.

Will they keep each other’s secrets, or will they turn on each other, not knowing if one of them could be next?

My Thoughts:

This is the fourth book in the Stephanie King Series and I have not read the previous books in this series. This one is about a wealthy philanthropist who has wronged a few women in his time now they are out for revenge but then he is found dead but was it one of these women? this story is packed with lies, deceit, betrayals and revenge. It was an ok read, easy to follow along with, a bit slow in places and I did not really gel with any of the characters but wanted to know the outcome. I found all of the women suspicious and any of them could of done it but was shocked with the outcome. I feel as though I would not go back in the series to read the previous books though.

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Without a Trace By Mari Hannah

Without a Trace By Mari Hannah

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A FATAL CRASH

A plane on route from London to New York City has disappeared out of the sky. This breaking news dominates every TV channel, every social media platform, and every waking hour of the Metropolitan Police and US Homeland Security.

A PRIVATE TRAGEDY

The love of DCI Kate Daniels’ life was on that aircraft, but she has no authority to investigate. This major disaster is outside of her jurisdiction and she’s ordered to walk away.

A SEARCH FOR THE TRUTH

But Kate can’t let it lie. She has to find out what happened to that plane – even if it means going off book. No one is safe.

And there are some very dangerous people watching her…

My Thoughts:

I feel as though I read this book at the wrong time, I read it after watching a Series that is very similar on Netflix, and they are similar to what they are about. A plane has taken off and has disappeared in the sky, but where is it? DCI Kate’s partner was on the plane and she needs to find out exactly what happened, as it is her partner too on that plane she wants it back sooner rather than later. Kate will find out where that plane is even if she is in danger. It was a slow build up, full of tension and suspense. I did find it slow and was not really for me.

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