My Review for A Honeybee Heart Has Five Openings by Helen Jukes

⭐⭐⭐⭐ Thank you to NetGalley, Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group and Pantheon Books for the opportunity to read and review an ARC of A Honeybee Heart Has Five Openings by Helen Jukes.

I chose this book to read and review as I am fascinated by all bees, but in particular in learning more about the workings of a honeybee hive. Written as a memoir, Helen Jukes takes us through a year of her life in which she expresses an interest in bees, is gifted a swarm and then learns as much as she can before she collects them for her own hive. This book was extremely educational and informative and I enjoyed learning as much about the history of bees as Helen did, although I’m sure she only scratched the surface in what she shared with her reader.

Although predominantly about the author’s beekeeping, we learn a little of her life, her work and her friends at the same time and occasionally, I forgot I was reading a non-fiction book as I was transported into the bee world. The book is well-written and thoroughly immersive.

I would recommend A Honeybee Heart Has Five Openings to anyone with an interest in wildlife, bees and how they keep the world turning.

Read More

My Review for A Farmhouse in Tuscany by Victoria Springfield

⭐⭐⭐⭐ Thank you to NetGalley and Orion Dash for the opportunity to read and review an ARC of A Farmhouse in Tuscany by Victoria Springfield.

Harriet’s boss demands she take a break from her busy life in the City and suggests a yoga retreat in the Italian region of Tuscany. However, when Harriet arrives, yoga is no longer an option, and so she sets about learning to ride a horse! She meets a wide variety of characters throughout her stay, including Marco, the owner’s son, Alfredo, the stable hand and Jess, a fellow holidaymaker. 

A Farmhouse in Tuscany is a lovely, happy, easy-read and ideal to while away a few hours, whether reading on a beach in the sunshine or by the fire when there’s snow on the ground! The author takes us right into the heart of the Tuscan countryside and you can easily imagine yourself in amongst the trees on horseback or sipping a coffee in the local square with the Italians playing cards by the side of you. 

There were a lot of characters in the story and I enjoyed reading about them all and their adventures. My only thoughts are, is that a lot happened at the very end of the book to every one of them with little build-up throughout. This was the only thing that stopped me from giving this book 5 stars. For me, too much happened at the end and not enough during. That being said, it was pure escapism and if you need to switch off for a few hours, then I would thoroughly recommend A Farmhouse in Tuscany.

Read More

My Review for In My Mother's Footsteps by Mona Hajjar Halaby, Narrated by Lameece Issaq

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Thank you to NetGalley, Thread Books and Bookouture Audio for the opportunity to listen to, and review an ARC of In my Mother's Footsteps, written by Mona Hajjar Halaby and narrated by Lameece Issaq.

Halaby's mother had to leave her home in Palestine in 1948 during the Arab-Israeli war, firstly living in Egypt and then in Geneva, Switzerland.  Halaby herself then met her husband-to-be in Geneva and they moved to California where they made their life.  As their children left home and were leading their own lives, Mona jumped at an opportunity to spend a year in Ramallah, Palestine, teaching Conflict Resolution in a local school.  Throughout her time there, Mona kept a journal of her day-to-day life, her integration with the children and her travels through her mother's homeland, visiting places that her mother was telling her about in her regular letters to her daughter.  As the months go on, Mona's mother and father make the long journey from Geneva to visit her in Ramallah and undertake a journey of their own.

I have no knowledge or understanding of any of the issues in Israel or Palestine and whilst I appreciate this is only one person's story, it has made me keen to discover more.  Many of the stories of Mona's mother's early life was thought-provoking and at times. heart-breaking and does make you wonder what sort of a world we live in.

The author gave us such vivid descriptions of the places she visited throughout her year in Ramallah that it was easy to visualise in your mind as she travelled throughout the country.  Using her mother's letters in the book also brought the stories to life and it did make me feel sadness and despair at the things her mother experienced during her life.

Lameece Issaq as the narrator did the story justice and I forgot at times that it wasn't the author speaking.  She brought feelings and emotion into an already emotive subject.

I would recommend this story to anyone who has an interest in the Middle East and the history involved and although only a singular viewpoint it did tug at the heartstrings.

Read More

My Review for The Bookshop Murder by Merryn Allingham

⭐⭐⭐⭐ Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read and review an ARC of The Bookshop Murder by Merryn Allingham.

Set in the 1950s, The Bookshop Murder is the first in a new series for Allingham, set in a sleepy Sussex, seaside village and featuring Flora Steele, a bookshop owner, along with her sidekick, Jack Carrington, an antisocial crime writer who seemingly only enjoys his own company. Jack discovers a dead body in Flora’s bookshop and, after the police write the death off as natural causes, they investigate the death together. Along the way, there appear to be many suspects, but Flora and Jack, with the natural inquisitiveness needed, set out to discover what really happened.

I found The Bookshop Murder fairly slow, to begin with, but to be honest, I find a lot of cosy mysteries begin this way and gradually become more fast-paced as we move through the story. I guess because of this; I wasn’t as invested quite as quickly as I usually like to be in a book. However, Flora and Jack bounced off each other and they are both great characters finding a way into my heart by the end. It will be interesting to see what happens between the two of them in future stories. 

There are a variety of other characters in the book who play their own part as the story progresses and I particularly wanted to visit Katie’s Nook and relax with coffee and cake! Merryn Allingham is adept at drawing readers into the lives of her characters and I could envisage myself in many of the situations which are described so well.

I would recommend The Bookshop Murder to anyone who enjoys a cosy mystery. If you’re an Agatha Christie fan or enjoy M.C. Beaton and her Agatha Raisin series, you will enjoy this.

Read More

My Review for Welcome to Ferry Lane Market by Nicola May

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for the opportunity to read and review an ARC of Welcome to Ferry Lane Market.

I’ve read one of the Cockleberry Bay series and I know at the time I wanted to read more. However, for whatever reason, I just didn’t get around to it, so when the opportunity arose to read the first in Nicola May’s new series, I jumped at the chance. Ferry Lane Market will be just as successful as Cockleberry Bay and I will definitely, definitely be going back and reading the rest of the Cockleberry Bay books!

Anyway, onto, Welcome to Ferry Lane Market...... Kara is a thirty-three-year-old who has lived all of her life in Hartmouth, Cornwall, Working on a floristry stall in Ferry Lane Market, since leaving school, she is very family-oriented and loves her Dad, her Grandad and her best friend Star. Dumping her cheating boyfriend, Jago, Kara slowly begins a new chapter in her life, starting with renting out her spare room to Airbnb guests. Then, mysteriously, a plane ticket arrives and Kara has to decide whether to embark on the trip of a lifetime.

I love Kara; she enjoys her independence, but she also wants to share her life with those she loves. As she takes her trip, she realises she has a choice. The way she lives her life, the responses to everything that is thrown at her - how she reacts - it’s her choice, and May certainly shares that viewpoint well with her readers. As Kara returns home to Hartmouth, she is a more confident person who knows what she wants from life and how to go about getting it!

Nicola May’s descriptions of Hartmouth and Ferry Lane Market just make me want to visit and to mingle with the residents. I want to visit Frank’s diner and sample his ‘under-the-counter’ gin! I want to take the ferry across the water to Crowsbridge, and I really, really want to visit STAR Crystals & Jewellery!

An exceptional read for these UK hot summer days! Definitely check out Welcome to Ferry Lane Market if you enjoy contemporary romance and a heart-warming feel-good story.

Read More

My Review for Love & Pollination by Mari Jane Law

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Thank you so much to the author, Mari Jane Law, for asking me to review Love & Pollination. I love a rom-com and it was a beautiful story to read in the sunshine, and definitely a 5 star read.

Perdita Riley is experiencing some unfortunate setbacks in her life. At the beginning of the story, Perdita loses her job, but we are then taken back a few months to see her falling into the grasp of a man who only wants one thing, but a man that Perdita has lusted after for years. The story is then a continuation of the events which follow these episodes. Perdita describes events that happen in her life as ‘setbacks’ and ‘most humiliating experiences’, and numbers them all as they occur. As Law describes each one, you just know that whatever it is, Perdita will call it one or the other! 

Perdita Riley reminded me of Eleanor Oliphant and I found similarities between the two characters. In my mind, Eleanor had some autistic traits, and Perdita, particularly with the strange nuances regarding plant comparisons, appeared to be the same. I don’t want to tell you any more about the plant comparisons because it might spoil your enjoyment of the story. They made me smile though, and I must praise Mari Jane Law for how she thought of and achieved all the different words and phrases!

As the book progresses, all the characters become intertwined, appearing in various parts of the book and linking with other characters in ways that you don’t necessarily see coming. Some characters you will love, some not so much. Violet is a hilariously wicked old lady who tries to play Cupid, not always with the outcome she wants at the time! Gavin and Luke are Perdita’s closest friends and are with her every step of the way, throughout her tumultuous journey throughout the book.

I thoroughly enjoyed Love & Pollination and if you fancy an easy read with some love and laughs along the way, then I would highly recommend this. I sincerely hope that Mari Jane Law is writing more because I can’t wait to read them!

Read More

My Review for Dead Man's Grave by Neil Lancaster

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Thank you to NetGalley and HQ Digital for the opportunity to read and review an ARC of Dead Man’s Grave by Neil Lancaster.

Dead Man’s Grave is the first in the series of the DS Max Craigie books and the first Neil Lancaster novel I have had the pleasure to read, and it was a real page-turner. I sort of wanted to get to the end because I needed to know what happened, and I didn’t, as I didn’t want it to end! 

‘This grave can never be opened’. The inscription on the gravestone is just the first mystery we are faced with, and they just keep on coming. Max Craigie and Janie Calder are detectives with Police Scotland, and they discover the first murder victim but are quickly taken off the case as corruption within the force becomes clear. A feud that began in the 1800s has led to the first murder...but will there be more? Craigie and Calder go rogue, as they begin to investigate the goings-on, unofficially.

As a police procedural novel, Lancaster has nailed it (unsurprisingly though, as he used to be a police detective himself)! Details in the book are incredible, and for me, this will always make a story more appealing. I like to know what is happening and why things turn out the way they do! The craggy and beautiful descriptions of Scotland and its surrounding countryside will draw you in. I was watching the dolphins with Auntie Elspeth :-)

The end of the book sets itself up nicely for the next DS Craigie novel and I will be checking out release dates for the next one.

Read More