My Review for Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov Read by Jeremy Irons

Lolita was January’s read for an online Classics Book Club. I began by listening to the audiobook, read by the amazing Jeremy Irons who narrated it brilliantly. I started just after Christmas while working on my Harry Potter diamond art. Talk about diverse! From fantasy witches and wizards to a classic from a Russian/American novelist.

To be completely honest, I rarely read a synopsis of a book before I dive in and I had zero idea what Lolita was about before I put those AirPods in. There were a lot of ‘what the hell am I listening to’ moments until I finally settled into the story. I switched towards the end and read the final third from my beautiful Penguin Clothbound copy. I know that people’s views and reviews of Lolita vary, and are sometimes contentious, but there can be no mistaking the beauty of the imagery which Nabokov portrays. 

Lolita, despite the difficult subject matter, was exquisitely written. There were many,

many words that I didn’t understand, but I was too invested to take the time to look them up and it absolutely didn’t matter and it didn’t detract from my thorough enjoyment of the story.

I can’t say that I actually liked any of the characters. Humbert Humbert is our protagonist who is telling the reader his story from inside a prison cell, although he hasn’t been convicted yet. Lolita/Dolores is Humbert’s nymphet, his twelve-year-old obsession. Did she seduce him, or was it the other way around? I think that depends on the reader and I’ll leave that for you to decide. Regardless, though, what Humbert did in kidnapping and having sex with the underage Lolita was ultimately a crime and I guess explains why the book was banned in several countries for a few years.

I recommend that if you are thinking of reading Lolita, then you check out the trigger warnings first.

Thank you to #classiclitbookclub for choosing Lolita as January’s read. It’s been a great start to 2024.

About the Book

Poet and pervert, Humbert Humbert becomes obsessed by twelve-year-old Lolita and seeks to possess her, first carnally and then artistically, out of love, 'to fix once for all the perilous magic of nymphets'. Is he in love or insane? A tortured soul or a monster? Humbert Humbert's seduction is one of many dimensions in Nabokov's dizzying masterpiece, which is suffused with a savage humour and rich, elaborate verbal textures.

About Vladimir

Vladimir Nabokov (1899-1977), born in St Petersburg, exiled in Cambridge, Berlin, and Paris, became the greatest Russian writer of the first half of the twentieth century. Fleeing to the US with his family in 1940, he then became the greatest writer in English of the second half of the century, and even 'God's own novelist' (William Deresiewicz). He lived in Europe from 1959 onwards, and died in Montreux, Switzerland. All his major works - novels, stories, an autobiography, poems, plays, lectures, essays and reviews - are published in Penguin Modern Classics.

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My Review for An Enchanted Moment on Ever After Street by Jaimie Admans

Jaimie is fast becoming one of my must-read authors and I definitely need to start reading her back catalogue and soon!

An Enchanted Moment on  Ever After Street is just lovely and is set in a bookshop - what more could a book need? Jaimie has me as soon as I open one of her books and when the characters start talking about one of my favourite books from childhood (and still one of my favourites if I’m honest), The Magic Faraway Tree by Enid Blyton then I’ve called under Jaimie’s spell, hook, line and sinker.

Marnie and Darcy are just two wonderful main characters and I adore Marnie’s cat, Mrs Potts. So much of this book is based on Beauty and the Beast. There is nothing not to love.

I didn’t realise that this was part of a series, but no matter, it can absolutely be read as a standalone, but I can promise you that I will be going back and reading the rest.

Thank you to NetGalley, Boldwood Books and Rachel’s Random Resources for the opportunity to read and review An Enchanted Moment on Ever After Street by Jaimie Admans.

About the Book

A brand new and utterly enchanting series by bestselling author Jaimie Admans. A picture-perfect town, a place where dreams come true. Welcome to Ever After Street...

A tale as old as time…

Since her mum’s death, Marnie Platt has shut herself away from everyone who cares about her. Worse, her beloved bookshop on Ever After Street is suffering too. With sales down and the shop’s garden falling into disrepair, Marnie risks losing the very last thing she loves. Until a chance encounter with her surly and reclusive neighbour….

Dark and brooding, Darcy O'Connell likes to keep himself to himself. But when he hears Marnie needs help, he can’t turn his back on her. Soon they are spending most evenings together in her enchanted garden and a friendship starts to bloom…

With the help of old and new friends on Ever After Street, Marnie's bookshop begins to thrive again, and with Darcy's kindness, she starts to get her sparkle back too. She just can't understand why Darcy continues to shut himself away - especially from her. Can she convince him it isn't too late to embrace life, and maybe love, again?

Because every story, even theirs, deserves a happy ending….

About Jaimie

Jaimie is a 36-year-old English-sounding Welsh girl with an awkward-to-spell name. She lives in South Wales and enjoys writing, gardening, watching horror movies, and drinking tea, although she’s seriously considering marrying her coffee machine. She loves autumn and winter, and singing songs from musicals despite the fact she’s got the voice of a dying hyena. She hates spiders, hot weather, and cheese & onion crisps. She spends far too much time on Twitter and owns too many pairs of boots.

She will never have time to read all the books she wants to read.

She is the author of several romantic comedies for HarperCollins – The Chateau of Happily Ever Afters, The Little Wedding Island, It’s a Wonderful Night, The Little Vintage Carousel by the Sea, Snowflakes at the Little Christmas Tree Farm, The Little Bookshop of Love Stories, The Wishing Tree Beside the Shore, The Little Christmas Shop on Nutcracker Lane, and The Post Box at the North Pole.

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My Review for Over the Garden Fence by Karen Louise Hollis

Over the Garden Fence was just such a beautiful story. As well as being utterly hilarious, it was warm and happy, and by the end of it, I guarantee you will feel as though you are best friends with Molly and Janice.

The premise of the story is that these two elderly ladies got together during lockdown, each sitting in their own gardens, social distancing, but enjoying each other’s company at a time when they didn’t really have anyone else to talk to. Now lockdown is over and social distancing is no longer a thing, but Molly and Janice keep up their daily meet-ups. 

I loved that the whole story was like having a conversation with your best mates, just passing the time of day discussing the TV programmes you’ve watched and what’s happening in the news. Everything Molly and Janice talk about is real as well. Everything they discuss are things that have happened, whether it be a news item or who won Strictly Come Dancing. I’ve never experienced anything like this in a book before and I really enjoyed it. 

Thank you to Karen Louise Hollis and Rachel’s Random Resources for the opportunity to read and review Over the Garden Fence.

About the Book

What can two elderly women do, when they want to live their best lives, but don’t know where to start?Next-door neighbours, Molly and Janice, are in their seventies and are both widowed and lonely. In lockdown, they had their garden fence removed so they could have socially-distanced chats outside. Now the pandemic is over, but the conversation continues. In fact, it has become a daily ritual - weather permitting.As their friendship develops, talk turns from news headlines, the Sewing Bee and the Royal family to their own long-lost hopes and dreams. Is it ever too late to contact a former boyfriend? Or to heal family rifts? Or to try new things? Of course not! Because growing older doesn’t mean giving up.

About Karen

Karen Louise Hollis was born in Lincoln in 1969 and is a full-time carer for her mother and a single mother to her son. 

She has had books published and self-published since 2003, including short stories and poetry, and non-fiction books on motherhood, gymnastics and Doctor Who. 

Her book Un-Conventional : 13 Years of Meeting the Stars of Doctor Who was published by Hirst Publishing in 2010 and her biography of actor Anthony Ainley - The Man Behind The Master was published by Fantom Publishing as a hardback in 2015, later as a paperback and audio CD. 

Her first novel Welcome to Whitlock Close was published in 2022 and her second novel Starting Again in Silver Sands Bay in 2023. 

Karen Louise usually writes books based in Lincolnshire and including characters of all ages. She is a member of the Romantic Novelists Association and writes books in various genres including non-fiction, romance, recent historical fiction (1980s) and contemporary women’s fiction. 

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My Review for One Year After You by Shari Low

My first review of 2024, and I’ve started the year on a high! I loved this book, which was written from multiple points of view. We have Odette - a soap star nearing the end of her career, Keli - a nurse on an elderly care ward, Noah - a paediatric doctor, and Tress - a set designer on the soap that Odette stars in. They all live in Glasgow and are all linked in one way or another.

One Year After You is set over 24 hours and boy, a lot happens in those 24 hours. We have birthdays, scandals, break-ups and hook-ups. There are a few tear-jerking moments and a lot of comedy - mainly from Nancy and Val, two of the most delightful characters I’ve read about in a long time. They deserve their own story and if there was one, then I’m sure I’d be laughing out loud!

If you want a good old rom-com to start your year and block out the miserable January weather, then I’d recommend getting yourself a copy of One Year After You by Shari Low. She is fast becoming one of my must-buy authors.

Thank you to NetGalley, Boldwood Books and Rachel’s Random Resources for the opportunity to read and review One Year After You by Shari Low.

About the Book

For forty years the fabulous Odette Devine has been a beloved matriarchal actress on Scotland’s longest-running TV show. Today she is broken, betrayed, and desperate to find out if this is her payback for a lie she told forty years ago.

A year ago today, Tress Walker’s husband was killed in a car accident, on the same day she gave birth to their baby. Reeling from the discovery that he was with his mistress, Tress has to choose whether to protect her fragile heart or open it to love again.

Noah Clark was devastated to discover his wife and his best friend were having an affair. Now the love of his life is asking for another chance to make their marriage work. But can there ever be a way back, once the trust is broken?

Noah’s sister Keli Clark has recently been ghosted by the man she loves. When a shocking message from a complete stranger reveals the reason why, Keli will have to decide whether to forgive, forget, or to make sure he pays.

Twenty-four hours. Four shocking secrets. One tumultuous tale of love, loss and second chances.

About Shari

Ok, so I’ll try to avoid that deluded state where I believe that everyone wants to hear my cute childhood stories, and keep to the important stuff.

I was born in a town near Glasgow, where I spent my teenage years dreaming of the day I’d follow in my beloved Jackie Collins’ footsteps all the way to a life of decadent glamour and a kidney shaped swimming pool in LA.

Alas, the combination of bills and a nocturnal predisposition changed my course, and I opted for a career in nightclub and hotel management in Scotland, Shanghai and Hong Kong.

Sometime in the 90s, I was back in Glasgow, when a guy I hated on sight walked towards me. I changed my mind after thirty seconds. Seven days later, we moved in together and threw an engagement party. We’ve now been married for almost thirty years and thankfully he still hasn’t made a bid for escape.

I still harboured that dream of writing, and I eventually acted on it when I hit 30, had a mid-life crisis, and penned the first three chapters of my book What If?.

To my endless astonishment, more than thirty-five novels later, I’ve sold millions of books around the world, including translations in many countries including Italy, Poland, Indonesia, Estonia, Ukraine and Germany.

I’ve also released a non-fiction title, Because Mummy Said So, a collection of features I’ve written about all our family disasters, laughs and embarrassing moments over the years. I’m hoping my offspring don’t find out.

Oh, and my inner Jackie Collins still adores a bit of decadent glamour, so I also pen gritty, scandalous, Hollywood thrillers with TV presenter Ross King MBE, a pal since I was a teenager and still thought I’d marry George Michael.

So now we’re up to the present day. I still spend my days and nights writing in a very mature, professional manner which roughly translates to ‘type, panic, eat a biscuit, type, panic, eat a biscuit, type, panic…’, repeated for 90 000 words.

I’m beyond thrilled that three of my favourite people in publishing, the brilliant Caroline Ridding, Amanda Ridout and Nia Beynon, have founded Boldwood Books, and given my novels a home there.

As for my homelife, my two teenage sons have now flown the nest, so it’s just me, the husband, the labradoodle, my books and dozens of facetime calls to check my boys have done their washing.

Thanks for taking the time to read all this. I can’t believe I managed to fill a whole page and I haven’t even got around to those cute childhood stories yet…

Love,

Shari xx

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My Review for Bone Lake by Stacy Green

When I first picked up Bone Lake by Stacy Green, I wasn’t aware that it was number eight in a series. I soon discovered that this absolutely doesn’t matter and can totally be read as a standalone novel. Nikki Hunt is an FBI agent and each book in the series covers different cases. Some references are made to what has happened previously, but nothing that means you need to read the others first.

I really enjoyed Bone Lake. It was incredibly fast-paced, and I could hardly keep up with what was happening, let alone who I thought the murderer might be! The author cleverly keeps you guessing, right up until the very end, and there were a few times I thought I’d worked it out, only to have something or someone else thrown into the mix!

If you enjoy a good thriller which will keep you on your toes, then I would definitely recommend Bone Lake. This is the first book I have read by this author, but I’d love to read more.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read and review Bone Lake by Stacy Green.

About the Book

Broken flowers drift on the foggy surface of the water. All is quiet, until the squad of police cruisers race up to the grand house that stands alone on the lakeside. Two girls lie inside, their bodies broken and still forever…

When Special Agent Nikki Hunt is called to a home on Bone Lake, she is devastated to find blood all over the floor and two young women who clearly fought for their lives. But the viciousness of the scene isn’t the only thing that strikes Nikki. The house was the scene of another murder twenty years ago. The killer was never caught. Is this a terrible coincidence, or have they struck again?

Nikki’s team quickly identify the girls from their belongings in the bedrooms upstairs. They had a party the night they were killed, and Nikki realizes that one attendee, their friend Alexia , is missing…

Desperate to find Alexia, Nikki soon discovers that the only survivor of the original massacre, Matt Kline, still owns the house. She is instantly suspicious of him. But he claims he rents it out and hasn’t been there for years, and as Nikki looks into his dark eyes she sees her own terrible past.

With time running out, Nikki and her team dig into Alexia’s life, and find out she was fascinated with the original Bone Lake case. Amongst her things, they find notebook after notebook about serial killers. Then Nikki is shocked to learn that Alexia was having a relationship with Matt. Has Nikki make a terrible mistake trusting a fellow survivor? And can she get the truth out of him, and find Alexia alive, before it’s too late?

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 The Hotel Room Mix-Up by Kathy Jay

I really enjoyed this one, and it was escapism at its finest. It was funny, sad, and full of romance - at each page turn there was new, old, and second-chance romance. If you like your books with a romance overload, then this is for you. The Hotel Room Mix-Up allowed me time to escape into Callum and Ella’s Cornish world for a few days when my life is just busy and my head is a scrambled mess of lists and too many things to do!

The Hotel Room Mix-Up is predominantly told from alternating viewpoints, that of Callum and Ella, both of whom meet in Cornwall whilst attending separate weddings (not their own, I hasten to add)! There are a lot of ‘will they, won’t they’ moments - and I mean a lot! My head was spinning, wondering whether they were going to get their happily ever after!

Grab this book if you enjoy a story containing whirlwind romances, beaches, the ocean, puppies, laughter and lots of fun!

Thank you to NetGalley, One More Chapter and Rachel’s Random Resources for the opportunity to read The Hotel Room Mix-Up by Kathy Jay.

About the Book

When the similarities between Ella Swift and Callum Smith’s last names lead to a hotel room mix-up, they find themselves sharing a cramped cottage in Porthkara rather than the private luxury hotel suites they expected. Each in town for a different wedding – and carrying more baggage than just the suitcases in their hands – the reluctant roommates are forced to share a shelter from the storm surge that sweeps in off the Atlantic. But as the rain crashes down there’s a shift in more than just the atmosphere, and by the time the sun rises on a new day, Ella and Callum’s futures have already been forever changed.

About Kathy

I live in Cambridgeshire with my family which includes a large dog and a cute cat. I love the changing seasons. I like pyjama days and cosy log fires in winter. In summer, my top things are strawberries and walking on beautiful beaches in North Wales. I started writing my first romance on a vintage typewriter. Writing got put on hold while I studied for a degree in Drama and French. I've been an office temp and a bilingual PA in London. Now I'm a member of the Romantic Novelists' Association, and thrilled to write fun, flirty romance for One More Chapter.

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My Review for Five Gold Rings by Kristen Bailey

Think ‘Love Actually’, ‘Four Weddings and a Funeral’ or ‘Notting Hill’, which sum up this fantastic Christmas book from the amazing Kristen Bailey. It’s hilarious, romantic, a bit mad and just that little bit sad. Don’t worry though, you won’t be crying, well not tears of sadness anyway. I laughed out loud a lot at this book.

Joe and Eve need to rectify a ring delivery which went to the wrong place. Five rings, five destinations and just a couple of days in which to ensure happy outcomes.

Our two protagonists tell their story in alternating chapters, and I promise you’ll be rooting for this couple until the very end, which comes all too quickly. I could have carried on reading about their adventures throughout London for a lot longer.

This would be amazing as a movie, and I honestly hope that someone picks this up for the big screen with some big-time actors. It would be good to see this out in time for Christmas 2024! I wonder if Richard Curtis is busy at the moment!

Thank you to NetGalley and Kristen Bailey for the opportunity to read and review Five Gold Rings.

About the Book

What does Christmas look like to you? A tree rammed with homemade decorations, a mantelpiece weighed down with cards, Mum telling Dad not to put the chocolate wrappers back in the tin, a festive film on television...

It should definitely not look like a naked woman on her knees noshing off your boyfriend of three years in the shower.

It’s Christmas Eve eve, and the holidays are not off to a good start for, er, Eve.

After the surprise and shock of catching her boyfriend cheating, Eve – totally devastated – reacts by throwing the gifts she’s selflessly bought and wrapped for HIS family out of the window. But while doing so she discovers her own present from Chris under the Christmas tree: an engagement ring, bought at the jeweller’s where she works. What the jingle bells is going on? And what was he thinking?

Confused and with her Christmas plans in tatters, Eve rocks up at the jeweller's for some tea and sympathy with her lovely employers, Mr and Mrs Caspar, who quietly put in a distress call to her colleague, Joe. Eve doesn’t know that Joe is secretly in love with her, but her bosses do, and they know he’s just the person Eve needs to comfort her in a crisis.

Joe gets the call while moonlighting as a buff butler at a Christmas-themed hen do and races across town to help console Eve. But as he learns about her heartbreak, the Caspars realise a crucial delivery has gone astray: five gold rings destined for Christmas proposals and weddings have been sent to the wrong address.

Can Eve and Joe retrieve the rings and get them to their rightful owners in time?

As they set off in Joe’s ancient mini – Joe still dressed as a sexy elf and Eve just a liiiittle bit tipsy – their adventure begins. With three proposals and two weddings to get to, it’s up to Eve and Joe to save Christmas.

An utterly hilarious novel for anyone looking for festive romance with all the feels. If you have a hot date with Love Actually every Christmas you will adore this gloriously funny and unmissable festive read.

About Kristen

Mother-of-four, gin-drinker, binge-watcher, receipt hoarder, enthusiastic but terrible cook. Kristen also writes. She has had short fiction published in several publications including Mslexia & Riptide. Her first two novels, Souper Mum and Second Helpings were published in 2016. In 2019, she was long-listed in the Comedy Women in Print Prize and has since joined the Bookouture family. She writes women's fiction and she hopes her novels have fresh and funny things to say about modern life, love and family.

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