My Review for American Stonehenge (The Adventures of Jimmy and Andrew #1) by Mike Goldstein

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ This is a pretty awesome book and the first in the Jimmy and Andrew adventure series. Jimmy is a young lad who has always wanted a dog, and so, for his ninth birthday, his Dad takes him to the rescue centre and Jimmy chooses Andrew - or rather Andrew, chooses Jimmy!

Written as a children’s book, this will easily entertain and educate adults, too. I certainly didn’t know about some things Goldstein writes about, in particular, the Egyptian history he explains in great detail, through Andrew (yes, the dog)! As we travel on Jimmy’s adventures, if there are words or situations that he doesn’t understand, these are explained to him and consequently, any kids reading the book will learn lots of new stuff too.

I googled American Stonehenge, and it really exists, although in New Hampshire, not Washington State. Something else that I wasn’t aware of but loved reading about.

Think Enid Blyton’s Famous Five, meets Harry Potter with some aliens thrown in and you’ll have a good idea of what you’ll be getting with American Stonehenge. Immerse yourself in Jimmy and Andrew’s world and enjoy the journey. I’m looking forward to the next adventure for them both.

Thank you to Mike Goldstein for a gifted copy, in exchange for an honest review.

 

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My Review for The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ I can’t believe that I have had this sitting on my shelf for about a year, and I’m only just getting around to reading it. It was so, so good, I think it will become one of my most favourite reads.

Essentially, our protagonist, Nora, is on the brink of death but gets the opportunity to see what her life would have been like if she had made alternative choices about many things. However, no life is perfect, as Nora comes to realise.

The Midnight Library was one of those books that left me with a book hangover. I can’t stop thinking about it and I wake in the middle of the night, just wondering what my life would be like if I had made different decisions along my journey. What if I had said yes to that cinema date with a boy I had a crush on when I was 14? What if I had gone to college? What if I hadn’t said yes to that first date with my husband?! I am beyond happy with my life as it has turned out, but you just never know what might have been.

If you feel yourself in a bit of a rut, then I would recommend you check out this book. If you like a little bit of fantasy in your book world, then give this a go. I can guarantee that it’ll stay with you for a while when you’ve finally turned that last page.

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My Review for Take it Back by Kia Abdullah

⭐⭐⭐⭐ This has been sitting on my shelf for a while, and I finally had a few days free to read it. Kia Abdullah was recommended to me by a friend, and the author is such a great find. Take it Back is my first step into Kia Abdullah’s world, and what a rollercoaster of a world it is. Full of triggers such as rape, racism and discrimination, this book won’t be for everyone, but I was fully immersed from beginning to end. From one page to the next, I was torn as to who was telling the truth and right up until the very end, Take it Back was full of twists, turns and WTF moments that just kept me reading on and on.

If you enjoy a book that is full of darkness and you just aren’t sure what is going to come next, then I would highly recommend this. I’ve mentioned the triggers, so you have been warned. Go in at your own risk. I already have another Abdullah sitting on my shelf and I can’t wait to see what that one brings.

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My Review for The Nursery by Sue Watson

⭐⭐⭐⭐ This was a weird one, sort of mystery and a thriller with some psychological stuff thrown in. I didn’t really like Emily. In fact, I didn’t really like any of the characters, apart from Mrs Peabody, who appears for about a nanosecond at one point.

Emily ran away to Sidmouth in Devon twelve years ago, and she’s been hiding ever since, but what did she run from and why? 

It takes a talented author to write a story where none of the characters are particularly likeable, but this is what Sue Watson has done, and she’s done it brilliantly. There are some dark moments throughout the book and a lot of things happen that I honestly just didn’t see coming and one particular WTF moment towards the end! 

I’d urge you to check The Nursery out if strange psychological novels are your thing. Definitely, one I’d recommend if you don’t know what to read next.

I am lucky enough to be a part of Books on Tour for this book, so thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read and review an ARC of The Nursery by Sue Watson.

Book Description

Then: Morning light shines into the nursery, casting shadows across the pale pink walls and wooden cot in the middle of the room. She opens the door expecting to hear the soft coo of her daughter Sofia stretching herself awake. But the room is silent. The cot is empty. Her little girl has vanished…

Now: Twelve years have passed, but Emily will never forget the night her life changed forever and she’s happy to have her daughter back beside her. A teenager now, Sofia – who was once a star student – is getting into trouble at school and she’s started asking questions about when she was a baby, but Emily can’t tell her what really happened the night she went missing. Nobody would understand why Emily did what she did, and if anyone ever found out, she could lose her daughter forever.

But when Emily catches Sofia messaging a stranger online, her heart pounds in her chest as she reads the last message received.

Your mother isn’t who you think she is.

Days later, Emily returns home to find the house silent. She checks every room but Sofia has vanished, again. She shudders as she remembers that night in the nursery. Has her past finally caught up with her? And is she already too late to save her precious daughter?

A completely gripping, utterly twisted thriller that will leave your jaw on the floor. Perfect for fans of Gone Girl, The Wife Between Us and The Woman in the Window.

Author Bio

Sue Watson was a journalist on national magazines and newspapers before becoming a TV producer with the BBC.

Now a USA Today bestselling author, Sue explores the darker side of life, writing psychological thrillers with big twists.

Originally from Manchester, she now lives with her family in leafy Worcestershire where much of her day is spent writing – and procrastinating. Her hobby is eating cake while watching diet and exercise programmes from the sofa, a skill she’s perfected after many years of practice.

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My Review for The Lost Letters in Ireland by Susanne O'Leary

⭐⭐⭐⭐ The Lost Letters of Ireland is the fifth in the Starlight Cottage series, but only the second one I’ve read, and these can definitely be read as a stand-alone

.

Edwina is nearly forty and has come to a fork in the road that is her life. She’s just resigned from her job in the city and has recently broken up with a flashy boyfriend. So what does she do next?

I loved reading about Edwina’s new project in Sandy Cove and the friends she makes along the way, most of whom you will have met before if you have read any of the other Starlight Cottage books. The project eventually brings her family closer together, but can they all put what happened in the past behind them and move on?

Aside from Edwina's renovation project, there is another story intertwined as she sets herself a mission to find out who wrote the message in a bottle, which she discovers in the sea at the beginning of her stay in Sandy Cove.

I love this book’s cover; it’s so adorable and I want to walk down that path to the cottage and see what’s behind the blue door! Check out Susanne O’Leary’s latest novel if you want something lovely to read as the nights draw in and you settle down with a mug of tea.

I am lucky enough to be a part of Books on Tour for this book, so thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read and review an ARC of The Lost Letters of Ireland by Susanne O’Leary.

Book Description

A totally captivating story about long-lost family secrets and new beginnings, that will whisk you away to the village of Sandy Cove on the gorgeous Irish coast.

Heartbroken and feeling lost after the end of her last relationship, Edwina is looking for a fresh start. And when she hears that a coastguard cottage in the tiny village of Sandy Cove is for sale, she knows it could be her chance. She remembers the village from her childhood with its beautiful sandy white beaches, and wonders if using her life savings to buy the cottage might give her a new beginning in the Irish town beside the sea.

Not long after she arrives, Edwina discovers a message in a bottle during one of her walks along the coast. Written twenty years ago and washed ashore at Wild Rose Bay, it tells the story of a desperate young man, driven to despair after a terrible accident that left him separated from his true love. Touched by his heartbreaking letter, and haunted by its contents, Edwina resolves to find the person who wrote it.

As she begins her search, Edwina meets Shane O’Flaherty, a charming local doctor with green eyes, with whom she feels an instant connection. As the pair walk the cobbled streets of the village together, Edwina’s feelings grow stronger, and she begins to wonder whether Sandy Cove might be the place she can finally call home…

But when she uncovers the identity of the person who wrote the letter all those years ago, everything Edwina thought she knew about Shane changes in an instant. Has she unearthed a secret that should never have come to light? And will it force her to leave the place where she thought she had finally found happiness?

Fans of Sheila O’Flanagan, Mary Alice Monroe and Debbie Macomber will fall in love with this gripping, heart-warming and utterly charming Irish romance.

Author Bio

Susanne O'Leary is the bestselling author of more than twenty novels, mainly in the romantic fiction genre. She has also written three crime novels and two in the historical fiction genre. She has been the wife of a diplomat (still is), a fitness teacher and a translator. She now writes full-time from either of two locations, a ramshackle house in County Tipperary, Ireland or a little cottage overlooking the Atlantic in Dingle, County Kerry. When she is not scaling the mountains of said counties or keeping fit in the local gym, she keeps writing, producing a book every six months.

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My Review for The Woman Outside the Walls by Suzanne Goldring

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Never before have I read anything that will stay with me as much as The Woman Outside the Walls. Never before have I read a book where the protagonist was on the ‘wrong side’ and spent the rest of her life essentially running.

This little old lady who cleans at the church, makes the most amazing cakes and is the ideal neighbour, has a history that she doesn’t want anyone to know about because she feels incredible fear and guilt.  

Written across multiple timelines, Suzanne Goldring’s latest novel will send you on a hugely emotional journey. I was shocked, horrified and disgusted but also sympathetic, understanding, and pleased that Anna’s story was finally being told. 

If you enjoy reading historical fiction and you have an open mind (and stomach) then check out The Woman Outside the Walls. Incredibly educational and a story that will stay with you for a long time.

I am lucky enough to be a part of Books on Tour for this book, so thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read and review an ARC of The Woman Outside the Walls.

Book Description

I always knew it would come out one day. They are finding everyone who has stayed hidden. They would have come to me in the end.

Hamburg, 1942 Seventeen-year-old Anna knows she can never tell her proud parents the truth about where she is going. She must hide the fact that she is pregnant, that the father of her unborn child is dead and that she is on her way to a special maternity home, where her baby will be given to a perfect family. She tells herself that this is the best solution. She doesn’t expect to feel the rush of love for her beautiful baby boy in the white blanket, or the devastation when he is snatched from her, never to be seen again.

Desperate to forget her grief, she sees an advert for a secretary in a prison, far away in the east. Days later, she leaves Hamburg, travelling eastwards by train, feeling as if a whole new life is about to begin. It is the biggest mistake she will ever make.

London, 2016 Ninety-year-old Anna sits on the edge of her bed, hands trembling, eyes brimming with tears, as she looks at the picture of the soldier in the newspaper. Her friends and neighbours know her as a kindly old lady who bakes cakes and always has time to listen to their troubles. They don’t know about the hated green uniform she burned, the memories of the prisoners she tried to help and the bombed and blackened city she once called home. But now the time for a reckoning has come, will revealing the truth free Anna or destroy her?

A gripping read that will break your heart and have you hooked, perfect for fans of The Alice Network, The Nightingale and My Name is Eva. The Woman Outside the Walls will take you on an emotional journey and show you that in war, even when you are on the wrong side, you can still do the right thing…

Author Bio

Following an eventful career as a public relations consultant, specialising in business and travel, Suzanne Goldring turned to writing the kind of novels she likes to read, about the extraordinary lives of ordinary people. Whether she is working in her thatched cottage in Hampshire or her seaside home in North Cornwall, Suzanne finds inspiration in the secrets hidden by everyday life.

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My Review for My Husband's Lover by Jess Ryder

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐  What an awesome, captivating, page-tuner! I was hooked from about chapter 3 and you would find me with my nose between the covers at every opportunity. Full of subterfuge, lies and heart-stopping moments, My Husband’s Lover is my first foray into author Jess Ryder’s world, but it won’t be my last.

Sophie and her Swimmers are off on a wild-water swimming experience in the depths of Scotland and one of them is there for an entirely different reason, but who is it and what is her reason for joining Sophie’s Swimmers?

My Husband’s Lover just goes to show that everyone has their secrets and we can never be too sure what is going on in another person’s life - whether good or bad.

If you fancy a fast-paced, riding by the seat of your pants, psychological thriller, then check out Jess Ryder’s latest novel, out now!

I am lucky enough to be a part of Books on Tour for this book, so thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read and review an ARC of My Husband’s Lover by Jess Ryder.

Book Description

A wife. A mistress. A week away with no escape…

As my girlfriends and I sip wine and share secrets in the flickering candlelight of our remote Scottish hideaway, we all agree we need this break. Every morning we will swim in icy cold lochs and hike to remote beaches and each night we will sip wine and share stories, cosy beside the log burner. It will be a break none of us will ever forget.

But behind my warm smile, there is ice in my heart. One of my friends is my husband’s lover, and it’s only a matter of time before I discover which one. She thinks she has me fooled, but she’s not the only one with secrets.

I don’t let my smile slip, but as I get closer to the truth, it becomes very clear that in these remote Scottish hills, far from help, someone is going to pay for their lies with their life…

A completely gripping and addictive page turner. Fans of The Guest List, K.L. Slater and Jackie Kabler will be utterly hooked on My Husband’s Lover.

Author Bio

Jess Ryder is the pseudonym of Jan Page, author, screenwriter, playwright and award-winning television producer. After many years working in children’s media, she has recently embarked on a life of crime. Writing, that is. So she’s very excited about the publication of her debut thriller Lie to Me. Her other big love is making pots.

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