Book Review - Finding Love at the Christmas Market by Jo Thomas - Blog Tour - #HolidayReading Malta

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Title: Finding Love at the Christmas Market

Author: Jo Thomas

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Netgalley

Publisher: Transworld Digital

Publication Date: 24th September 

Rating: 5 Stars

Cosy up with the new Christmas book from best-selling author Jo Thomas

Residential-home caterer Connie has had one online-dating disaster too many. Hurt in the past and with her son to consider, now she's feeling hesitant. Then one of Connie's residents sets her up on a date at a beautiful German Christmas market - with the promise she'll take a mini-bus full of pensioners with her...

Amongst the twinkling lights and smell of warm gingerbread in the old market square, Connie heads off on her date with a check-list of potential partner must-haves. Baker Henrich ticks all the boxes, but when Connie meets Henrich's rival William, she starts to wonder if ticking boxes is the answer.

Will Connie's wish for love this Christmas come true, and if so - with who?

Now that is what I call a Christmas book. I've just devoured this wonderful festive story, in 33 degree heat in Malta, and now want to go around wishing everyone a merry Christmas.

This is a book that just oozes festive feeling,  and I love how it's also allowed a group of pensioners to rediscover their love of Christmas too.

Between two German Christmas markets, two very different German men, a deaf dog, Christmas jumpers, a donkey, gingerbread, singing, dancing and a big bake off between the two towns you have all the ingredients and more for a fabulous festive book. 

I had such a great sense of place from this story,  and I adored all the characters. This has all the heart and love I've come to expect from a Jo Thomas novel, and so much more besides.

This will easily be one of my favourite Christmas books of the year. I could have kept reading it for so much longer had i not run out of pages.

Read in one sitting over about 3 hours this transported me to the German Christmas markets, made me remember my own visit to them, and generally had me grinning like a loon throughout.

If you read one book this Christmas then make it this one!

Thank you to Transworld and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily. 

Please follow along with the other bloggers on this blog tour too. 

Book Review - I Am Dust by Louise Beech - Blog Tour

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Amazon UK

Title: I Am Dust

Author: Louise Beech

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Random Things Blog Tours

Publisher: Orenda Books

Publication Date: 16th February 2020

Rating: 5 Stars

A haunted theatre
A murdered actress
Three cursed teenagers
A secret that devastates them all…

The Dean Wilson Theatre is believed to be haunted by a long-dead actress, singing her last song, waiting for her final cue, looking for her killer…

Now Dust, the iconic musical, is returning after twenty years. But who will be brave enough to take on the role of ghostly goddess Esme Black, last played by Morgan Miller, who was murdered in her dressing room?

Theatre usher Chloe Dee is caught up in the spectacle. As the new actors arrive, including an unexpected face from her past, everything changes. Are the eerie sounds and sightings backstage real or just her imagination? Is someone playing games?

Is the role of Esme Black cursed? Could witchcraft be at the heart of the tragedy? And are dark deeds from Chloe’s past about to catch up with her?
Not all the drama takes place onstage. Sometimes murder, magic, obsession and the biggest of betrayals are real life. When you’re in the theatre shadows, you see everything.

And Chloe has been watching…

Incredibly creepy, bewitching, and oddly compulsive to read. 

Typically I'm very sceptical when it comes to supernatural beings, and the occult, and also being a scaredy cat, I will do my best to avoid it. But yet the way Louise Beech described everything I could have almost turned into a believer. 

At least it all made sense, and I was determined to know just who killed Morgan Miller all those years ago.  Everything to do with young Chloe, Jess and Ryan and the dangerous "game" they were playing when they were 16.   And then there is the present day story line with Chloe at the heart of it, and she is key to just about everything that happens. 

I was drawn to this book due to the mention of musical theatre which is a passion of mine, but perhaps reading this on the day when the West End went dark due to the dreaded real world virus, may not have been my smartest mood, as I was continually aware while reading that this may be the last time I see any sort of musical for a long while. Which is rather scary in itself but I am grateful for the various song lyrics that were included, and the mentions to other shows. 

In fact some of the other shows that were in the theatre that Chloe is an usher in, sounded downright bizarre, but in the current climate if they were real I'd be first in line to get my theatre fix. 

This is only the second book I've read from the author, and it is another incredibly accomplished story. and while I was reading, I was completely transported to the settings being described. It is very easy to follow the various time lines, and I did in time start to feel the creepier elements were rather normal.

This is a story that kept me guessing throughout,  I had absolutely no idea how it would all resolve itself and I feel the ending was rather fitting.  

I have no idea why I have left it so long since I last read a book from this author, and it is something I need to fix eventually.   I Am Dust has bewitched me, affected my ability to sleep, and really got under my skin.  Always to my mind signs of a very impressive book. 

Thank you to Anne Cater from Random Things Blog Tours for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily. 

Book Review - After The Accident by Kerry Wilkinson - Blog Tour

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Amazon UK

Title: After the Accident

Author: Kerry Wilkinson

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Netgalley

Publisher: Bookouture

Publication Date: 31st March 2020

Rating: 5 Stars

Under a cloudless Mediterranean sky, two families wheel their suitcases past swaying palm trees towards their hotel to grab a spot by the pool. But behind the smiles, someone is hiding a terrible secret…

I never wanted to come on this trip. I thought the accident had torn us apart forever, but then my mother called out of the blue, wanting to make amends. So here we are, two families on a beautiful island, sipping sangria like nothing ever happened.

My parents’ oldest friend, Daniel, was invited too – I’ve never trusted him, and now he brings up my past mistake every chance he gets. And why does his son, Victor, keep disappearing off on his own?

Even my brother’s here, with his twins. It’s amazing to see my nieces playing happily in the pool. After what happened at home, it still hurts me to be around the girls, but more so that my brother doesn’t trust me alone with them.

Despite everything, it’s going surprisingly well – everyone forcing a smile at the dinner table, laughing at the twins’ antics – until the night my father is attacked on the beach, left for dead on the sand.

As always, all fingers point to me, but this time I know for certain that I’m innocent. And if I’m not guilty, someone else on this holiday is…

A unique and totally gripping psychological thriller that will have fans of T.M. Logan and The Girl on the Train racing through the pages late into the night.

I honestly can't tell you if I have just read a true crime novel,  a set of transcripts from a documentary, or if everything is completely fictional from the mind of a mastermind author.

However you wish to describe this book it is a wonderful experience, had me second guessing every word, had me googling to find out if the Greek island featured was even real.

Everything was incredibly convincing, so I'm still not sure whose accounts were the truth.

I know which character I want to believe,  and its the one I really got inside the head of.  But whether she is delusional or not I'm not completely sure.

It is though that got under my skin from the start and I found myself thinking about when I wasn't reading. 

It was largely in style and content unlike anything I've read before, and I do love originality in a story. 

I would dearly love to know the truth of what happened during those seven days in July but somehow I'm not even sure the author knows. 

It's the first book I've read by Kerry Wilkinson for a long while and now I'm wondering why that is.  Definitely need to read more in future and not just when the cover piques my interest.

100% worth reading this,  its fabulous. 

Thank you to Bookouture and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily. 

Book Review - The Unbroken by Alex Caan - Blog Tour

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Amazon UK

Title: The Unbroken

Author: Alex Caan

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Netgalley

Publisher: Hera Books

Publication Date: 18th March 2020

Rating: 5 Stars

Millie didn’t get time to think. The car door was pulled open and she was dragged out, her screams loud and raw, as she kicked and fought. She called out for Oscar, again and again, screaming for help.

But he never came.

It was the wedding of the year. Millie Beaumont marrying billionaire playboy Oscar Hayat, the eyes of the world watching.

But the dream turns into a nightmare when Millie and Oscar are brutally abducted while on honeymoon. Millie is killed, her body dumped in London. Oscar is still
missing…

Enter DS Moomy Khan and DI Sarah Heaton - not your typical police officers. Moomy is running from her own troubled past, while Sarah is having to live with the hard choices she has made. Yet they will stop at nothing to find Millie’s murderers and track down Oscar. Only a family as high profile as the Hayats have enemies lurking in every corner - have they taken the ultimate revenge, or is someone else behind the death and kidnapping?

And
can Moomy and Sarah find Oscar - before time runs out and he suffers the same fate as his wife?

The first book in the gripping, fast-paced new Khan and Heaton crime series, The Unbroken will thrill fans of A.A. Dhand, Angela Marsons and Robert Bryndza.

What a gritty start to a new series with a pair of kick-ass detectives for good measure. 

Ok, it took a while to get to grips with DS Moomy Khan and DI Sarah Heaton, they are not what you would call typical officers, and their personal lives are rather troubling, but yet it is clear they are great at their jobs. 

This is a story that is incredibly diverse, and I loved getting to know the police team and their backgrounds, in addition to learning all about the family that is at the heart of this story.  

For the Hayat's are uber rich, and think nothing can touch them, but whether they actually care for each other is another matter, even when their oldest son, Oscar and heir apparent is kidnapped and his new wife turns up dead. 

I had no idea how the plot was going to unravel and I was gripped as a result of it. I was eager to learn everything I could about this case,  and in it meet some very misguided people. 

Yet at the same time, it's what has been happening in Moomy and Sarah's recent pasts, that  I feel is going to shape the series, to the extent that I'm already dying to read book 2, based on the way this one finished.  I feel there is far more to them both than has already been revealed and I am so looking forward to seeing how they develop over a series. 

Fast paced and addictive, this is yet another fabulous thriller from Alex Caan, which asks the question of just whether you have to obey the law if you are a billionaire.  

Thank you to Hera and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily. 

Please take a look at all the other fabulous book bloggers on this tour

Book Review - Dead Wrong by Noelle Holten - Blog Tour

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Amazon UK

Title: Dead Wrong

Author: Noelle Holten

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Netgalley

Publisher: One More Chapter

Publication Date: 14th March 2020

Rating: 5 Stars

The serial killer is behind bars. But the murders are just beginning…

DC Maggie Jamieson's past comes back to haunt her in this dark and gripping serial killer thriller.

Three missing women running out of time…

They were abducted years ago. Notorious serial killer Bill Raven admitted to killing them and was sentenced to life.

The case was closed – at least DC Maggie Jamieson thought it was…

But now one of them has been found, dismembered and dumped in a bin bag in town.

Forensics reveal that she died just two days ago, when Raven was behind bars, so Maggie has a second killer to find.

Because even if the other missing women are still alive, one thing’s for certain: they don’t have long left to live…

What a dark and twisted mind Noelle Holten must have, in order to have come up with a villain such as Bill Raven.  He messes with people's minds and the way he had the public and police stumped was sheer evil genius.  

After all it's not often you get someone in prison convicted of murder, only for the bodies to show up two years later, and looking freshly killed.   Which is enough to stump most! 

I would love to know how an author even remotely thinks up such dastardly plot lines, let alone how they weave them together such as in this case, that keep you gripped from page to page, eager to know more about everything. 

I had absolutely no clue how it would all come together, let alone how on earth DC Maggie Jamieson and her team were ever going to be able to solve it. 

I found Maggie's growing friendship with Kate Moloney, a profiler who has terrific insights into any case she is working on, to be a lovely touch.   I loved getting to know Kate and found her fascinating. 

This is the second book in the Maggie Jamieson series, and can easily be read as a standalone.  However having read the first book, I enjoyed getting to know some of the recurring characters a little bit deeper, something I'm sure that will continue as the series progresses. 

As someone who can find the specific live action killings of victims in these sorts of books at times incredibly gruesome, I was very happy to be spared that... and just had the descriptions of  dismembered body parts appearing.. ok that still made me fill slightly ill, but in a different way. 

A truly remarkable police procedural that had me scratching my head in disbelief, eager to read each and every short chapter as fast as I could and that I actually couldn't put down for the last third!  I can't believe this is only the author's second book.  She clearly is a criminal mastermind... (well fictional crimes only I hope!). 

Thank you to One More Chapter and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily. 

Please do follow along with the rest of this blog tour

Book Review - One Moment by Linda Green - #HolidayReading Mexico - Blog Tour

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Amazon UK

Title:  One Moment

Author: Linda Green

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Netgalley

Publisher: Quercus

Publication Date: 1st December 2019

Rating: 5 Stars

Finn and Kaz are about to meet for the first time...

Ten-year-old Finn, a quirky, sensitive boy who talks a lot and only eats at cafes with a 5-star hygiene rating, is having a tough time at school and home.

Outspoken Kaz, 59, who has an acerbic sense of humour and a heart of gold, is working at the café when Finn and his mum come in.

They don't know it yet, but the second time they meet will be a moment which changes both of their lives forever . . .

A story about how one moment in time, can change the course of many people's lives forever. 

There are two main characters and voices to this book, and it alternates not only between them, but both in the before and after..

After what you may ask... well I had many theories none of them correct, but I was unable to put the book down until I discovered just what lead to the moment, and what exactly it was. 

We have Finn, a 10 year old boy who thinks he is weird, we meet him as his parents are trying to sort out a divorce,, and he is being bullied at school. 

He doesn't have the same interests as a "typical" young boy, and as such feels like an outcast, and his parents don't exactly seem to know what to do with him. 

And then there is Kaz, who is sole carer to her younger brother Terry, who has mental health issues. They also have financial issues, and struggle to make ends meet. 

It's a story that takes in themes such as bullying, unconventional parenting styles, mental health problems and how on earth you are treated as a non individual at the job centre and benefits office, more as a box to tick, rather than seeing the humanity in a situation. 

They are worlds apart, an unlikely pairing and yet their interactions just felt right.  

I couldn't read this book fast enough, I found the pages seemed to keep on turning, as I was drawn further and further into this story. 

Another cracking read from Linda Green, who keeps on writing fabulous books that I can't get enough of.

Thank you to Quercus on Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily. 

Book Review - Poison by Jacqui Rose - #HolidayReading Mexico - Blog Tour

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Amazon UK

Title: Poison

Author: Jacqui Rose

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Netgalley

Publisher: Avon

Publication Date: 20th February 2020

Rating: 5 Stars

THERE ARE SOME PEOPLE YOU SHOULD NEVER CROSS

In a life of crime, loyalty means everything – even if you don’t always see eye to eye. But when Vaughn Sadler speaks up to get Franny Doyle sent down, he’s broken every rule in the book to win checkmate.

AND OTHERS YOU SHOULDN’T UNDERESTIMATE…

Holed up in prison, Franny has more than one score to settle – but she’s starting with Vaughn. Because you don’t grass on your own, no matter what. And though she may be behind bars, she will get revenge – whatever the cost.

Before, there was just bad blood running through her veins. But now, there is poison…

Once again I was drawn straight back into the lives of Franny, Vaughn and Alfie, and I just couldn't get enough of them.  I'm already keen to read the next book!

Completely addictive I could barely put the book down, as I tried to second guess what may happen or not. 

With new equally despicable characters introduced there is a lot to take in,  but once you have the basics sorted in your mind,  it's a real fast paced page turner. 

Set in London's seedy underbelly, there is plenty touched on that would make your stomach curl.  At times disgusting, at others graphic I can't seem to get enough of these characters and of Jacqui Rose's writing.

I'm never entirely positive that I enjoy the content of these books but there is just something about them which means they can't be unread on my kindle for long.  I'm definitely hooked on these rather criminal and dodgy people,  even if I can't really understand why.

Although this could be read as a standalone, you potentially would gain more from reading some of the authors previous books as they all appear to be connected.

What a fabulous book to have whiled away the first couple of hours of a long haul flight with.

Thank you to Avon on Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily. 

Please do follow along with the other blogs on the tour for this great book

Book Review - A Million Dreams by Dani Atkins - Blog Tour

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Amazon UK | Amazon US

Title: A Million Dreams

Author: Dani Atkins

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Netgalley

Publisher: Head of Zeus (UK) / Bookouture (US)

Publication Date: 14th November 2019 (UK) / 19th February 2020 (US)

Rating: 5 Stars

Beth Brandon always dreamed of owning a florist, but today the bouquets of peonies and bright spring flowers are failing to calm her nerves. Because today, Beth has a life-changing decision to share with her husband.

Izzy Vaughan thought she and her husband would stay together forever, but sometime last year, their love began to fade. They both find such joy in their young son Noah – but is he enough to keep them together?

Eight years ago, something happened to these two women. Something that is about to bring them together in a way no-one thought possible...

Thought-provoking, emotional and uplifting, this is a gripping love story for fans of Jojo Moyes and Amanda Prowse.

I've spent the past 24 hours extremely resentful of real life separating my from reading at times,  regretful that I didn't read this while I was on holiday and would have been able to read it in one sitting,  and regularly on the verge of tears, due to the sheer emotion and power behind the words of this book. 

It has really got to me, and is easily one of the best books of the year so far for me.   

A lot of the power and emotion I feel has come because I had no idea what to expect. The blurb gives very little away, and even the first thing to be revealed, not too far into the story, I think I appreciated all the more because I had no idea it was coming.  (OK, I had an inkling perhaps a chapter before but wasn't convinced, and I had the same realisations at couple of times in the book, but never more than a chapter before it happened).  And even if I did think i knew what was about to happen, nothing could have prepared me for the way it was written and the impact it had on me. 

I was completely immersed in this powerful story, and its one that will hopefully stay with me for a long time.  It covers something that would be completely and utter worst nightmare scenarios for the two families involved,  and really does take you on a roller coaster of emotions. 

I suspect I would have been crying for most of the book if I had my own children, instead I just had a massive feeling of empathy regardless and really did love all the main characters. 

For this is an epic love story - but not romantic love, but of a mother's love for their child.   It is written from two perspectives and  from that you great insight into how both Beth and Izzy cope with a situation that I've never read about before anywhere. 

A uniquely wonderful story from an author who always writes powerful stories that grab your heart and don't let go.  

Or in short, it left me speechless, I have no idea how anything else I read for a few days will compare to this and just wow!!!  If you are a fan of anything with an emotional kick to it, you need to read this book. 

Thank you to Head of Zeus and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily. 

Please do take a look at the rest of the stops on this blog tour. 

Book Review - Has Anyone Seen My Sex Life? by Kristen Bailey - Blog Tour

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Amazon UK

Title: Has Anyone Seen My Sex Life?

Author: Kristen Bailey

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Netgalley

Publisher: Bookouture

Publication Date: 14th February 2020

Rating: 4 Stars

It’s normal for your washing machine to get more action than you, right?

I wake up, bleary-eyed. It’s been two years, six months and three hours since I last shaved my legs, and the llama-patterned knickers I’m wearing have seen better days.

We have seven minutes before the kids wake up, and my husband shuffles closer. ‘Ouch,’ he says, a piece of Lego sticking into his back.

Then, a light comes on in the landing. Small footsteps creep down the stairs. A little voice screams, ‘IS SOMEONE COMING TO MAKE BREAKFAST?!’

All hope of having some ‘alone time’ is replaced with wondering if we’ve run out of Cheerios, thinking about the overflowing laundry, and remembering that I forgot to take out the recycling. Again.

Just a typical Monday morning for the Morton family…

Except today, when I go downstairs in my dressing gown, I find something. Something belonging to my husband. Something that definitely wasn’t in the wedding vows. And it’s either going to make us… or break us.

Original, funny and full of incredibly realistic characters.  

Oh and the big secret, which is triggered by well not your regular contents of a parcel when you are a married couple with three children, which catapults Meg into wondering just what her husband is up to. 

Well she jumps to the most logical conclusion and I'm delighted to say she was incredibly wrong and the truth of it, and what is at the heart of a large part of this book is fabulous. 

But because I don't want to reveal just what it is Danny is hiding, even though its revealed quite early in the book,  as I think it is far more fun to come across it naturally in the book - the resulting story is rather unique and quite unlike anything else I've read for a while. 

I would say though that if you are on the prudish side, or not that open minded when it comes to more intimate matters, that this possibly isn't the book for you. 

Thankfully I love all of that sort of thing in books, and thoroughly enjoyed the story. 

So many of the authors observations  were spot on, and the whole arrange of characters were just really realistic.  I loved Meg's children, Danny's brother Stu.  Then there is an incident with the school headmaster that is rather eye opening and hilarious.  Oh and the scene leading up to some police presence was great,  and that moment at Meg's work where various parts of her life may have been about to collide had me gasping and reaching eagerly for the next chapter! 

There is also a lot about the great North / South divide in the UK,  like Meg, I'm a Londoner, and as such a lot of the northern slang being bandied about, well I probably should have googled to check my understanding was right!   While at the same time I was nodding, knowing just how true it all was, and it just added another level of authenticity to the book. 

Kristen Bailey is clearly a shining light in rom com writing and I know I'm looking forward to seeing what she writes next.    A truly enjoyable and memorable reading experience, oh and this is definitely an author that can write a good sex scene. 

Thank you to Bookouture and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily. 

Please do take a look at all the other wonderful bloggers on this tour. 

Book Review - It Started With A Secret by Jill Mansell - #HolidayReading Mexico - Blog Tour

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Amazon UK

Title: It Started With a Secret

Author: Jill Mansell

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Random Things Blog Tours

Publisher: Headline

Publication Date: 23rd January 2020

Rating: 5 Stars

The trouble with secrets is that you can't guess what the consequences will be . . .

Lainey has lost everything. Luckily one little fib (OK, quite a big fib) helps nail her dream job. Soon she's living in a stunning house by the sea, fending off obsessed fans for a retired - if far-from-retiring - actor and organising his charming but chaotic family. It's definitely worth the challenge of keeping her secret.

At least Lainey isn't looking for love. It's time for a break from all that. And yet . . . Seth, the actor's grandson, really is rather attractive. There's growing chemistry and a definite connection between them. But how would he react if he knew she hadn't been honest with him?

Lainey's not the only one with a secret, though. Seth has one of his own. And everything's about to start unravelling . . .

It is always a pleasure to sit down and read a brand new Jill Mansell book, and this was no exception. 

I was drawn into the story immediately, and couldn't help bu keep turning the pages to see what would happen next. 

The book returns to a familiar sounding area of Cornwall for Jill Mansell fans, St. Carys, which is made up of some bays that I definitely recall seeing as settings before. However if you have never read a book from the author don't fear it truly is 100% a standalone, I've never met any of these characters before. 

Lainey and Kit are good friends but pose as a couple to get a new job looking after a large family which includes a famous older relative, a single mother,  teenage twin girls, an 11 year old son and a gorgeous adult step brother - who need organisation, odd jobs and generally managing. 

I loved all the members of this family, some of which get far more of of a story than others, but I loved Richard and how he doesn't or does treat his fans!  And I loved Kit and Lainey for various reasons and actually well all of the characters . 

All had their upsides to them, well apart from some of the people Majella tries dating!

I loved every moment of this, including the couple of family secrets, the way Lainey is with everyone especially when helping Seth out on a couple of key occasions. 

A truly enjoyable story that only upset me because I reached the end and would have happily kept on reading for a lot longer. Means I'll probably ave to wait another year for the next book from one of my all time favourite authors, which is just far too long, but great stories do take time to write, so I'm happy to try to be patient!!

Thank you to Anne Cater for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily. 

Please follow along with the rest of the blog tour to hear more about this fabulous book