Sam's Fireside - Cosy Book Reviews & Recommendations

I'm a bit late to the Dream Harbor party, but thanks to my lovely friends in my Instagram UK book chat, I've now joined a Laurie Gilmore chat, and I'm up-to-date! Reviews for the next two are coming soon! The Pumpkin Spice Café I listened to as an audiobook, whilst pottering around in the garden a few months ago. Dream Harbor definitely gives off Stars Hollow vibes (if you know, you know), and although I live in a small village, I'd quite like a local coffee shop I could walk to every morning for my pumpkin spice latte or my peppermint mocha, with an owner who is chatty and kind like Jeanie and inevitably ends up making friends with almost everyone that walks in.  I love a small town series, and in Dream Harbor, everyone knows everyone else and there aren't are secrets - no matter how hard you try to keep them! If you fancy trying a new series, give The Pumpkin Spice Café a try. There's lots of romance, tons of coffee and just a little bit of spice.  Thank you ...

As soon as I see that Patricia has written another book, I'm champing at the bit to read it and, in particular, this series about the East End Library Girls. Cordelia, Mavis and Jane are an inspiration to the community they live in, opening the library doors to young and old alike, as well as helping their fellow EastEnders in the best way they can.  It was fun to see the American GIs appear in the East End of London, helping out with repairs in the areas that have been affected by the bombing before they were deployed to fight, and of course all the local girls are flirting at every opportunity they get! Some of the old characters make an appearance too, and I loved how Edith's future looks to be panning out, and it'll be interesting how the absent men are brought back into future books as they return from war. Thank you to NetGalley, Boldwood Books and Rachel's Random Resources for the opportunity to read and review A Better Tomorrow for the East End Library Girls by ...

Another belter from Kristen and once again I was laughing out loud, right from the very beginning! We Three Kings was hugely funny, with a fair amount of cuteness and a spritz of romance. I fell in love with the geeky Jasper, Frank, Leo and Maggie, along with all their families. The food made me so hungry, all of the time and in particular the Singaporean wedding food, including the lobster noodles and satay with peanut dipping sauce - yum yum! I loved the IT aspect, how the four make up the IT Department with the company they work for and the banter they share about the rest of the building’s IT mishaps! They also reminded me so much of the amazing IT team that I had the pleasure of knowing when I worked for twenty-plus years in a hospital in the UK. The lads in the book each reminded me of different team members I knew!  We Three Kings is a book full of cosiness, hugs, kindness and families and I loved it. Kristen has made her way to be one of my must-read authors and I can’t wai...

Goodreads is really confusing with this series, and which book is which number in the series, so I’m ignoring all that and just going in to say that I really enjoyed The Foyles Bookshop Girls’ Promise. This one sees Rosie as our protagonist, and along with her friends, family and colleagues, she deals with the trials and tribulations of London during WWI. Rosie is working at Foyles Bookshop, but she’s also lending a hand in the hospital. That’s all before she begins to help the children in the local school with their reading! Elaine writes with such warmth about all of her characters, and it’s extremely easy to lose a few hours while you’re immersed in one of her stories. The book is well-researched, and although it is fiction, I enjoy reading about the way life would have been during the war. Regardless of what number this is in the series, I loved it and at some point, I’ll investigate what I’m missing and what’s going on with the other books. Thank you to NetGalley, Boldwood Books ...

Congratulations to Sue Moorcroft for the publication of her 25th novel - what an incredible achievment. You can find all the details of her other books on the graphic. So back we go to the Isle of Skye, and this time we travel along with Essie, one of the Wynter sisters. We met Thea in book 1, but not to worry if you haven’t read this yet. A Skye Full of Stars can absolutely be read as a standalone.  I loved Essie’s story, and, as with Thea’s, things unfold which, hopefully, will enrich her life, but perhaps with just a little bit of uncertainty along the way.  I learnt a little about Swedish Christmas traditions and it’s interesting to discover how different countries celebrate different holidays. Most have one thing in common - food - lots and lots of delicious food! The kids are cute, Daisy is adorable - as always - and the Skye landscape, especially in the snow, is incredible. I’ve never ventured that far north, but hopefully, someday, I’ll get the opportunity to visit Sky...

Christmas, Cornwall, Polkerran Point, a cute but grumpy man and lots of baked goodies - happiness in a book! I had an early November visit to Polkerran Point and was quickly reacquainted with all the characters I’ve grown to love, along with their quirks and oh-so-funny peculiarities. Gemma brings along her own little oddity - she talks to inanimate objects - but do they answer back?! Matt is an oddity in himself, grumpy, introspective and full of self-importance - at least to begin with, and Gemma is the one who needs to deal with him! I loved the adapted Christmas song lyrics at the beginning of each chapter, each one written to tie in with the coming chapter. Such a clever idea, I enjoyed those a lot! I can’t wait to read Cass’s next trip to Polkerran Point. I have a sneaky feeling that Dev might be our main character, but we will all need to wait and see! Thank you to Cass Grafton and Rachel’s Random Resources for the opportunity to read and review Christmas at Polkerran Point. Abo...

Lena and Gavin....at the beginning I just wanted to bang their heads together - a typical case of miscommunication, or rather a lack of communication! For heaven’s sake, just talk to each other!  Samantha Brentmoor and Patrick Zeller were great narrators as Lena and Gavin, both of them throwing themselves into the characters, especially during the spicy scenes - you have been warned! Of course, it was pretty obvious how the story was going to pan out, but the excitement and the build-up to Christmas and beyond was so much fun. I loved that Gavin was having to eat a gluten-free diet. This resonated slightly with me as my husband has recently been diagnosed with coeliac, so that’s the route we’re going down right now! Lena’s family is just a cuteness overload. From the smallest baby to the eldest Grandma, I was invested in them all as soon as I plugged my AirPods in. The bonus episodes were awesome, I don’t know whether these are included in the physical book, but I loved hearing wh...