My Review for We Were on a Break by Jo Lovett

We Were on a Break made me laugh out loud and smack my forehead in frustration! Honestly, I loved Emma. She was eccentric, quirky and hilarious. On the other hand, Callum was a bit boring and too straitlaced. I loved the synopsis. I really fancy the idea of a road trip across Europe, although maybe not with an ex! That would be quite hard work. 

I liked Jo’s descriptions of the places Emma and Callum visited, and I would have loved to stay in the monastery with the monks, they honestly seemed like such a fun bunch of people, although I’m not sure that was the impression I was supposed to be getting!

If you want a book to immerse yourself into this summer, grab a copy of this and lose yourself on a journey in a camper van called Miranda, across Europe.

Thank you to NetGalley, Boldwood Books and Rachel’s Random Resources for the opportunity to read and review We Were on a Break by Jo Lovett.

About the Book

A summer to remember...

A love to last a lifetime...

Stranded in Rome, with all planes grounded due to volcanic ash, Callum gratefully accepts a lift back to London with a friend-of-a-friend who's on her way home after a European road trip in a campervan.

But when he meets her, his heart plummets - she's Emma, his ex, The ex, and he can't be stuck in a van with her.

When Emma sees Callum again, she's horrified. It's taken so many years to heal her heart - she really doesn't want to spend the next few days in close quarters with him.

As they embark on the drive of a lifetime, it begins to feel as though fate might have had a hand in reuniting them. But understanding what happened in the past and coming to terms with the present isn't easy. Can the gift of time - and forced proximity – bring them back together again?

About Jo

Jo Lovett writes heart-warming, feel-good romcoms. Her latest book, We Were On a Break, published by Boldwood, will be released on 29 July 2024.

Jo lives in London with her family. She started writing romantic comedy when she realised that she was regularly begging her oldest son to let her do his English homework but she wasn't actually that interested in haunted houses or Macbeth. When she can escape her laundry mountain, she enjoys reading, tennis and wine.

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My Review for For the Love of Lily by Olivia Lockhart

I loved, loved, loved this. I loved Lily; I loved Luke, and I almost loved Zack. Too much happened and I don’t want to give any spoilers, but if you love romance, then you absolutely must read this. The story does sort of end on a bit of a cliffhanger, but that’s good. I can’t wait to read the next one and thankfully I won’t have long to wait.

Few books make me cry, but Olivia got me good and proper with this one. OMG, soul-searching and heart-wrenching is an understatement. That email.....! It ripped my heart apart, mangled it all up and shoved it back into my chest! A book that does that to me will always be a winner. Thank you Olivia, for giving us Lily, Luke and Zack!

Thank you to Olivia Lockhart and Rachel’s Random Resources for the opportunity to read and review For the Love of Lily.

About the Book

Lily Forshaw loves her life, her job, and her best friends. Romance? Not on her radar. So, when a blind date with Zack leaves her unexpectedly smitten, she’s completely caught off guard.

But Zack isn’t the only one vying for her affection. As her heart becomes entangled between two very different men, Lily tumbles into an emotional whirlwind.

Lily hasn’t found ‘The One’, she’s found ‘The Two’.

With a troubled past haunting her, friendships hanging in the balance, and two passions pulling her in opposite directions, which future will Lily choose?

Can she truly have it all, or will she be forced to make an impossible decision?

Get ready to fall in love…

About Olivia

Olivia Lockhart (Livvie to her friends) is an English author who can't quite decide if she wants to write contemporary romance or paranormal romance. Either way, it HAS to be romance. 

She loves to write about the underdog, the one who got away, the bits of love stories we can all relate to. 

When not writing she can be found drinking wine, cuddling her beloved pooch or with her head buried in a book.

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My Review for Do Me a Favor by Cathy Yardley read by Elyse Dinh and Teddy Hamilton

I love an audiobook and although this was a slow start; I found myself enjoying it more and more as the book progressed. Hudson was a great character. I liked him from the very beginning, but Willa was a different story. It took me a while to warm to her, and she did irritate me a bit when she was constantly calling on Hudson to come and get her out of a pickle.

Both Elyse and Teddy were great narrators and worked well together as Willa and Hudson. Teddy’s voice made me melt inside. I have no idea what he looks like and don’t want to check in case I am disappointed lol!

Small-town-romance and family-orientated books are always a winner for me and once the scene was set, and I understood the background of both characters, I enjoyed Cathy Yardley’s latest book. 

Thank you to NetGalley, Cathy Yardley and Literary Media Tours for the opportunity to listen to and review Do Me a Favor.

About the Book

Willa Lieu-Endicott moved from California to the Pacific Northwest to start over. Since her husband’s death, she’s been struggling to get back her old career as a cookbook ghostwriter. Unfortunately, her latest project—ghostwriting for a viral cooking sensation known more for his washboard abs than his meals—has her stuck.

Until she meets her new neighbor.

Hudson Daws, the handyman next door, lives on a farm with his parents and two adult children. He’s the opposite of everything she’s ever known. His happily chaotic life includes biker barbecues, an escape artist dog, and adorably menacing goats. He’s also got a sinfully sexy smile and a rumbling bass voice that makes her shiver. He inspires her.

From their first meeting, the two fall into an escalating cycle of favors, paybacks…and attraction, even though Willa’s trying to keep her distance.

They both have their own pasts to deal with. Now, they just have to figure out if they have a future.

About Cathy - by Cathy

When I was in high school, my Vietnamese mother told me I couldn’t read romance because, and I quote, “they rot your brain.”

Needless to say, when I got a job at the library, I promptly went in search of this forbidden fruit. I started by sneaking category romance in the house… a Harlequin here, a Candelight romance there. Slim paperbacks that felt like rebellion, but also were just fun, full of love, angst, and happy endings.

Then I met my best friend in college, and she had an entire closet full of them. I stayed up until 3:00 in the morning reading my first Julie Garwood. From there, I started devouring as many as I could get my hands on… and started noodling my first plots.

Keep in mind: I come from a family of MBAs and engineers. The idea of becoming a writer was amusing to them. Writing, in their estimation, was something that you plinked away at for fun when you retired. It certainly wasn’t something people did for a living.

I tried, I swear. I tried to be other things. But writing just kept tugging at me. I used my Mass Communications degree to promote other authors at my local writing chapter. I wrote in addition to a wide variety of day jobs, saying it was “just for me.” 

So you’ve got to imagine my joyous shock when I sold my first book in 1999, to Harlequin. 

It’s been over 25 years since then, and sometimes, I’m still just as shocked… and just as happy.

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My Review for Life Begins at 50 by Celia Anderson

As a girl (yes, I still think of myself as a girl), who turned 51 a few months ago I was looking forward to reading this, and whilst my life is absolutely nothing like Kate’s, I could relate to bits of her life. I think Kate is brilliant; she has great friends, a job she enjoys and godchildren she adores. I particularly loved Elsie and the names she decided on for her cuddly unicorn and sheep - I won’t spoil that for you, but it made me laugh.

The Saga Louts are Kate’s newfound friends, none of them a day under 80, but they are amazing. They are loving life; they have no filter and they don’t care a jot what they talk about and who they might shock. I hope I’m like that at 80!

There are many, many sad and heartbreaking moments throughout the book too. Celia handles these well, with compassion and understanding and, of course, the book has a happy-ever-after. What else would you expect from a book with such a jolly cover? 

Thank you to NetGalley, Boldwood Books and Rachel’s Random Resources for the opportunity to read and review Life Begins at 50 by Celia Anderson.

About the Book

New friends, new flame, new fun . . . Kate dreamed of a happy marriage, a house full of children and a fulfilling teaching career. But after twenty-five years of married life and about to hit the big 5-0, it’s clear that her dreams haven’t quite come true. Then her husband leaves her for his golf partner, forcing Kate to take stock of what has become of her life.

Luckily, new friendship comes her way in the form of three feisty older women who take Kate under their wings, plus a new flame (could it be more . . .?) sparks with local divorced dad, Milo. As her big birthday approaches, Kate’s zest for life begins to return.

But opening herself up means making herself vulnerable to being hurt all over again . . 

Can it be true that life begins at fifty? And will Kate be brave enough to find happiness, and grab hold of it with both hands?

About Celia

Celia Anderson was delighted to be given the opportunity to join the author team at Boldwood in early 2024, and is now ready to start a whole new chapter of her own. She enjoys writing contemporary fiction featuring older protagonists, although a wide age range of characters can always be found in her books. Previously a teacher and assistant head, Celia writes full time these days but loves to chat to other authors and readers, and often spends far too much time browsing social media. She is an enthusiastic member of the Romantic Novelists Association, having proudly graduated from their New Writers' Scheme in 2013. The RNA is an amazing source of good advice and a place to meet like-minded, supportive people who will happily talk about books for hours on end. What could be better?

Born and bred in the Midlands, Celia has long been tempted by the idea of living near the sea, and her dream at last became a reality in 2023 when she moved to the south coast. This has meant that a whole new range of story-making boosts are available, and she’s currently working flat out to explore them all. A fresh writing space and grandchildren on hand to cuddle, plus a busy promenade and beach just down the road – there’s no shortage of places to people-watch. Alternatively, give her a long train journey and her notebook and pen will also work overtime as she shamelessly eavesdrops and watches the world go by.

Celia loves flowers and flower arranging but tries to avoid any kind of gardening that involves digging up worms. She plays the piano very badly and is a crossword addict. A doting grandma to Ida and Levi, she has tried several times to learn to knit them jumpers without much success (or joy). Some hobbies are probably best left alone. She loves walking, cooking, reading, more reading, having large bubbly baths, eating, and also drinking wine. Over the years, she has found that all of these activities bar the first two may be done simultaneously, although this can be messy.

With Boldwood's innovative and forward-thinking approach to publishing as her inspiration, Celia is looking forward to exploring brand new settings and pastures new. She hopes you will come along for the ride! Why not start with Life Begins at 50? Out on July 18th 2024.

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My Review for Stolen Mothers by Stacy Green

Stolen Mothers is another fast-paced thriller from Stacy Green, throwing you once again into the daily life of FBI Agent Nikki Hunt. This time she needs to find the serial killer who is responsible for killing all these women, but there is a harrowing personal story behind it all too. Did what happened nine years ago to Nikki influence what the killer did next?

I sped through the book as quickly as other things allowed me to, and it was a welcome break from the fantasy worlds I am used to.

Parts of Stolen Mothers are fairly graphic, but if you’re a thriller reader anyway, I’m sure you’ll have no problem devouring this in one sitting. 

The book is the ninth in the Nikki Hunt series, but only the second one I have read. You definitely won’t lose anything if you read it as a standalone, as Stacy explains previous incidents, characters and everything else as she goes along.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read and review Stolen Mothers by Stacy Green.

About the Book

Children run through the streets in their Halloween costumes, giggling happily, not noticing the blood on the house is real. A baby girl is tucked up asleep in her room. Her mother’s body lies motionless in the front yard, pink petals on the ground beside her…

Arriving in the quiet community of Mulberry Creek, Special Agent Nikki Hunt is shocked that amongst the chaos of costumes and fake, silver spider webs, a new mother called Kiania Watson has lost her life. A blooming rare flower placed carefully in her cold, bound hands. Nikki’s legs go weak: it’s the mark of a serial killer she’s met before.

Nine years ago, Nikki fell in pursuit of a masked man who’d killed a young girl at a cabin in rural Minnesota. Seeing her cradling the bump of her pregnant belly, he’d spared her life. She was told he’d died in a shoot-out days later. But the pink flower only grows at that cabin: it’s a message to Nikki.

Nikki’s team are quick to suspect Kiania’s abusive husband. But Nikki finds two further, similar murders in other states. Flowers were left in their palms when they died. Nikki’s heart breaks when she realizes all the victims were mothers to newborn babies.

Digging desperately into old case files, Nikki finds blood on a rock she secured nine years ago, which has never been tested. But not before receiving a desperate call that another woman has just been taken. This twisted killer is playing a deadly game, and Nikki must risk her own life if she has any chance of returning this mother to her child alive…

About Stacy

USA Today Bestselling author Stacy Green grew up watching crime shows with her parents, so her love of suspense and psychological thrillers is no surprise. The baby of a “yours, mine, and ours” family, Stacy grew up in southeastern Iowa where life was always a step slower and everyone knew each other’s name.

A natural introvert, Stacy turned to writing early on, compiling notebooks of stories. She read every mystery she could get her hands on, from Nancy Drew to Trixie Belden to Agatha Christie and more. It wasn’t until she read Anne Rice’s Interview With A Vampire that she realized how deeply she wanted to create her own literary world. A college professor changed her mind, however, and Stacy found herself in the magazine journalism program at Drake University.

After earning her degree in journalism and sociology, Stacy worked in advertising before becoming a stay-at-home mom to her miracle child. She rediscovered her love of writing and wrote several articles for a city magazine before penning her first novel. She shelved the long drama and began working on a suspense book set in Las Vegas, featuring a heroine on the edge of disaster, a tormented villain, and the city’s infamous storm drains that house hundreds of homeless. INTO THE DARK (newly republished as INTO THE DEVIL’S UNDERGROUND) was published by MuseItUp Publishing in 2012 and hailed by New York Times Bestselling Author Diane Capri as “captivating from the first page to the end.”

Her brief dip into the publishing world quickly taught Stacy she was better suited to pursue her dreams of Indie Publishing, and she partnered with a team of high quality designers and editors to produce her bestselling Delta Crossroads Series, followed by The Lucy Kendall Series.

Stacy is blessed to be a full-time writer and follower of her dreams, but when she’s not writing, she spends her time with her precocious daughter, supportive husband, and their three obnoxious but lovable canine children.

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My Review for Blue Skies Over Wildflower Lock by Hannah Lynn

I wish I’d discovered this series before the third one. I loved Blue Skies Over Wildflower Lock so much. I disappeared onto the waterways of England from the moment I read the first page until I finally closed my Kindle. 

Hannah has put so much research into this book and how you can navigate the waterways to get from one side of the country to the other. I honestly wished I was travelling with her and September Rose, enjoying the tranquillity of the canals and the mayhem of the Thames!

This is the first book I have read by Hannah Lynn, but I am definitely going back to read others and will look forward to the next book she writes.

Thank you to NetGalley, Boldwood Books and Rachel’s Random Resources for the opportunity to read and review Blue Skies Over Wildflower Lock.

About the Book

Just when Daisy thought she had canal life understood, Theo, her primary go-to for all of her boating questions has left Wildflower Lock, not to mention the budding romance that has been steadily growing.

Not one to sit and wallow, Daisy takes matters into her own hands. Who said long-distance relationships can’t work?

With the help of trusted friend Yvonne, Daisy takes the September Rose on a round trip to surprise her new boyfriend. The best thing about a home on the water? You can go anywhere!

But perhaps leaving the serenity of Wildflower Lock wasn’t the best idea. Daisy hates keeping secrets from Theo, and she’s not the only one…

About Hannah

Hannah Lynn is a multi award winning novelist. Publishing her first book, Amendments – a dark, dystopian speculative fiction novel, in 2015. Her second book, The Afterlife of Walter Augustus – a contemporary fiction novel with a supernatural twist – went on to win the 2018 Kindle Storyteller Award and the Independent Publishers Gold Medal for Best Adult Ebook.

Born in 1984, Hannah grew up in the Cotswolds, UK. After graduating from university, she spent 15 years as a teacher of physics, first in the UK and then Thailand, Malaysia, Austria and Jordan. It was during this time, inspired by the imaginations of the young people she taught, she began writing short stories for children, and later adult fiction. 

​Now settled back in the UK with her husband, daughter and horde of cats, she spends her days writing romantic comedies and historical fiction. Her first historical fiction novel, Athena's Child, was also a 2020 Gold Medalist at the Independent Publishers Awards.

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My Review for Happy Ever After at Puddleduck Farm by Della Galton

This is the fifth book in the Puddleduck Farm series and another delightful book from Della. As always, I love the characters and I especially love the animals. Spock the parrot is probably my favourite from this book!

In this one, Della deals sensitively with certain subjects, but overall I think you’ll find that this visit to Puddleduck Farm is as warm and cosy as the rest, despite the circumstances. 

From my understanding there is still more to come from this series, so I can’t wait to read about what antics the animals get up to next. This book can be read as a standalone, but if you want to know the background of everyone, then put all of these books on your wishlist!

Thank you to NetGalley, Boldwood Books and Rachel’s Random Resources for the opportunity to read and review Happy Ever After at Puddleduck Farm by Della Galton.

About the Book

When life throws up the unexpected, can Phoebe hold strong?

In the idyllic setting of the New Forest, talented vet Phoebe Dashwood envisions a picturesque life alongside her beloved fiancé. However, the course of true love is fraught with unexpected hurdles.

Career wise, Phoebe encounters a goat who is seemingly experiencing a phantom pregnancy, and a highly-strung talking parrot who pushes her professionalism to the limits.

Things take an unexpected turn for the worse when Phoebe is confronted with a glamorous love rival, and a surprise Valentine's Day ‘date’ to see a financial advisor! Can things get any worse?

When tragedy strikes Phoebe realises that nothing in life should be taken for granted and fears she will lose everything she holds dear.

Whilst her friends find their own happy endings, Phoebe is beset with doubts that she and Sam will ever find theirs. Is love enough to carry them into the future they deserve?

About Della 

Della Galton (aka Della Parker) writes novels set in Dorset, featuring quirky characters and very often a dog or two. She's had more than 2000 short stories published and she's run out of fingers to count her books on | .

She is a popular speaker at writing conventions and the agony aunt for Writers' Forum Magazine.

When she is not writing she enjoys walking her dogs around the beautiful Dorset countryside and beaches.

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My Review for The Butterfly Garden by Rachel Burton

I love gardens and nature and anything even remotely related to that, so to read a book called The Butterfly Garden was an inevitable choice for me, especially as it’s set in Suffolk, England - I live on the Norfolk/Suffolk border, so I was keen to see if I recognised any places. A dual timeline novel split between 1963 and 2018, where our female protagonists are Clara and Meredith, respectively. I was hooked as the story and all the family secrets jumped from one decade to another. Life and love are brought together as we read about Butterfly Cottage and why it was left empty for fifty years.

The Butterfly Garden is beautifully written, with so many gorgeous descriptions of the Suffolk countryside, the winding lanes and village life. I was invested from the very beginning.

Thank you to NetGalley, Boldwood Books and Rachel’s Random Resources for the opportunity to read and review The Butterfly Garden by Rachel Burton.

About the Book

1963: When Clara Samuels buys Butterfly Cottage, she knows the scandal she’ll cause. A single woman buying property is not the ‘done thing’, especially not in a village like Carybrook. But Clara has been in love with Butterfly Cottage, and its garden, since she used to play there before the War. And when she reconnects with her childhood friend James, her decision feels serendipitous. But the true scandal is yet to come, because within six months, Clara will leave England under mysterious circumstances, and Butterfly Cottage will stand empty for more than 50 years.

2018: No one is more surprised than Meredith when she’s bequeathed a cottage by a great aunt she’d never heard of. She hopes, briefly, that the inheritance could be the answer to her financial problems. But when she arrives in Suffolk, she is shocked to discover a man is already living there. A young gardener, who claims he was also bequeathed half of Butterfly Cottage.

As the pair try to unravel their complicated situation, they unearth a decades old mystery involving Clara, the garden, and a stack of letters left unread for over 50 years…

About Rachel

Rachel Burton is the bestselling author of historical timeslip novels and has previously written romantic comedies.

Rachel was born in Cambridge and grew up in a house full of books and records. She has read obsessively since she first realised those black squiggles on the pages that lined her parents’ bookshelves were actually words and it has gone down in family history that any time something interesting happened, she missed it because she had her nose in a book.

After reading for a degree in Classics and another in English Literature she accidentally fell into a career in law but her love of books prevailed as she realised that she wanted to slip into imaginary worlds of her own making. She eventually managed to write her first novel on her lunch breaks.

She is obsessed with old houses and the secrets they keep, with abandoned gardens and locked gates, with family histories and surprising revelations, and with the outcomes of those surprises many generations later.

She lives in Yorkshire with her husband, a variety of cats and far too many books. By writing novels she now has an excuse for her head being forever in the clouds.

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My Review for Courage for the Clarks Factory Girls by May Ellis

I read the first two books in the Clarks Factory Girls series, back to back. This second in the series is a continuation of the lives and stories of the people who live and work in Street, Somerset, in the UK and, once again, they welcome us with open arms. I love the characters (well, most of them) that May has created and the family and friendship they bring. 

This time around, we discover more about the effects the First World War had on the men who fought and the women who stayed at home, as well as the backward beliefs that some characters had, resulting in heartbreaking decisions having to be made, particularly by young women. 

I love the community spirit in this series. Almost everyone looks out for their friends and neighbours and will help them out any way they can if necessary. 

If you love a wartime saga like I do, then pick up these books. Despite the setting of WWI, they are warm and cosy books with great characters who you just want to be friends with. 

Thank you to NetGalley, Boldwood Books and Rachel’s Random Resources for the opportunity to read and review Courage for the Clarks Factory Girls by May Ellis.

About the Book

1915: As war continues to rage across the Channel, the families of the Somerset village of Street can no longer avoid its long shadow.

Workers in the Clarks shoe factory, at the heart of the village, have left for the army in droves, and news from the Front seems to grow darker by the day.

When life-long friends Louisa, Jeannie and Kate receive the news they had been fearing, all hope seems lost. And Louisa’s world will be rocked further when she makes another discovery, one that will see her cast out by her family, changing her life forever.

Kate and Jeannie are determined to be strong for their friend, but each of them has their own problems to bear, and when Jeannie’s beloved brother Lucas enlists, she fears history is about to repeat itself.

Can the Clarks factory girls help each other through the darkest days and keep hope alive?

About May

May Ellis has been a legal executive, registered childminder, professional fund – raiser and a teacher. She has travelled the world, including trekking in mountains, deserts and the Great Wall of China, as well as helping build a house in Thailand. She went to university in her forties and gained a first class degree and an MA while still working full – time. Her first book, a contemporary romance, was published in 2014. Since then she has had five more novels published, including another romance and a YA time travel adventure. The last three are gritty dramas set in the 1960s/70s published by Darkstroke Books. She lives in Somerset, within sight of Glastonbury Tor, volunteering at her local library and for the Alfred Gillett Trust (custodians of the Clark’s archives). Her current series, based on the factory workers at Clark’s Shoes was inspired by her move to the area and her love of social history.

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My Review for The Clarks Factory Girls at War by May Ellis

The Clarks Factory Girls is a new wartime saga series by May Ellis and as I’m on the book tour for the second in the series, I wanted to read the first one, before I started the second. I’m unsure whether our friends across the pond know that Clarks Shoes used to be a massive thing in the UK (although maybe not as much these days). Almost everyone I knew had a pair of Clarks shoes as their first ever pair, and school shoes in particular would, more often than not, have been a pair of Clarks.

Anyway, this series immerses us into the lives of characters who lived and worked in the village of Street in Somerset in the UK, where Clarks had its first factory. Louisa, Jeannie, and Kate have been friends since they were all at school together and now work side by side in the machine shop in the Clarks factory in 1914.

Throughout the book, we learn how the community, factories and individuals coped with the onset of war and the challenges that it brought, whether personal or professional. I enjoyed reading about the Quakers and how their beliefs differed from those of their neighbours. 

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the opportunity to read and review The Clarks Factory Girls at War by May Ellis.

About the Book

Can love blossom in times of trouble?

Life-long friends Louisa, Jeannie and Kate are following in the footsteps of their families, working at the Clarks shoe factory.

But when Britain declares war on Germany, the Somerset village of Street is shaken to its core. The Clarks factory is at the heart of life in the village, but the Clark family are Quakers and pacifists. Before long, there are fierce debates amongst the workers and tensions between those who oppose the war and those who believe the village men should go to fight.

Each of the girls must decide her own position but as brothers and sweethearts leave for France, Louisa is relieved that her beloved Mattie, a Quaker, won’t be signing up. But she’ll soon find that they face fierce opposition at home as well as across the Channel.

Will the girls’ friendship be enough to keep them together, as everything around them falls apart?

About May

May Ellis has been a legal executive, registered childminder, professional fund – raiser and a teacher. She has travelled the world, including trekking in mountains, deserts and the Great Wall of China, as well as helping build a house in Thailand. She went to university in her forties and gained a first class degree and an MA while still working full – time. Her first book, a contemporary romance, was published in 2014. Since then she has had five more novels published, including another romance and a YA time travel adventure. The last three are gritty dramas set in the 1960s/70s published by Darkstroke Books. She lives in Somerset, within sight of Glastonbury Tor, volunteering at her local library and for the Alfred Gillett Trust (custodians of the Clark’s archives). Her current series, based on the factory workers at Clark’s Shoes was inspired by her move to the area and her love of social history.

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