Book Review - From Thailand With Love by Camilla Isley

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Amazon UK

Title: From Thailand With Love

Author: Camilla Isley

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Author supplied copy

Publisher: Pink Bloom Press

Publication Date: 25th February 2020

Rating: 5 Stars

All Logan has to do is to get the gold and get the girl. Easy, right?

Travel photographer Winter Knowles and archeology professor Logan Spencer dislike each other at first sight. Stuck together into the wild, these two unwilling teammates will bicker and banter their way through a laugh-packed treasure hunt.

After years of searching, a new mapping technology has given Logan a clue to the location of the legendary Lost City of Gold. A discovery that could make his career. So the last thing he needs on this life-changing expedition is for his team to get distracted by a pair of long legs.

When Winter accepted the assignment on a tropical island she didn’t sign up for a brooding team leader who’d clearly prefer to run a boys-only club. Never one to back down from a challenge, Winter is ready to show him she’s no damsel in distress.

But when a treasure like no other is uncovered and ruthless enemies will want to keep it for themselves, it’ll be up to the two of them to save the day. Left alone to fight in the jungle, they will soon discover their lives might not be the only thing at stake—their hearts could be too.

Get ready for the adventure of a lifetime.

A hilarious enemies to lovers romance packed with danger, action, and comedy.

Action and adventure wrapped up in a fabulous rom-com.  Complete with an initial "meeting" that involves a naked bum, and a monkey!  What on earth more could you ask for from a book. 

This latest book was everything I could have wanted from a Camilla Isley story based on the title and a whole lot more besides. 

It's a fabulous setting,  twists I didn't see coming and it actually had my adrenaline pumping at points as I wondered how they would escape the situation they found themselves in. 

I loved how Winter and Logan hated each other initially,  while at the same time feeling the undercurrents of something more. 

The writing pulled me right into the middle of the action,  and I was so hooked I didn't dare read the last bit on a tube as I feared where I would end up myself!!

And I'm delighted to hear that my favourite secondary character from this book,  will be given his own story next.  I can't wait. 

I love all these interconnected stand alone books, from an author who never stays unread on my kindle for long!!

Thank you to the author for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily. 

Book Review - To The Stars and Back by Camilla Isley

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Amazon UK

Title: To The Stars and Back

Author: Camilla Isley

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Author Supplied Copy

Publisher: Pink Bloom Press

Publication Date: 14th June 2019

Rating: 5 Stars

When Hollywood’s sexiest bachelor meets the girl next door their relationship doesn’t follow the script…

On-screen, Christian Slade is America’s favorite heartthrob. Off-screen, letting romance into his life isn’t as easy. The women he dates all seem to want a piece of his glamorous life rather than his heart, and trust doesn’t come easy for him.

Then along comes Lana. A beautiful rocket scientist who’s also sweet, smart, sexy, and has absolutely no idea who he is. But what will happen when she finds out?

Will their worlds prove too far apart or could love really be like in the movies?

I have devoured this book in a couple of very short hours, and loved every single second of it.  I also love the details being shared in the note by the author at the end, of what books 5 and 6 in the series will be bringing especially book 5 and no this is going to be a very long wait potentially for me to get my hands on it!! 

But back to what really is a standalone book four in Camilla Isley's excellent First Comes Love series, it does feature short cameos from the main characters else where in the series, but the main focus is on Lana, and Christian Slater. 

Ok Christian has been mentioned and featured in some of the previous book, but equally we have never got this up close and personal with him before and the majority of the book is from this incredibly sexy mega film starts perspective. 

We really do get to know him incredibly well and I would have happily kicked Lana out of the way to have a shot at him myself.  I completely fell for Christian in this book and its been ages since I last felt like this about a book boyfriend. 

I'm gutted that I ran out of pages and have finished reading his story now.  Ah and Lana who is completely different from Christian is really cool too, and I really enjoyed getting to know her. 

I absolutely loved every up and down in this book, the incredibly wonderful romantic gestures, the differences in their lifestyles, all the dialogue, even their initial meet cute - I mean who wouldn't be intrigued to keep reading a book where the main characters meet hiding out in the same closet of a hotel! 

And more importantly just why on earth is a mega star reduced to hiding in a closet? I knew I had to find out.  i loved Christian's assistant Penny and would love to get to know her better in a future book and same with chef Jeff.  Just generally I loved everything. 

Fun, quick and easy to read, I was hooked and feel sorry for whatever book I read next as I suspect I may have  a Christian Slater hangover from this one!! 

Thank you to the author for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily. 

Book Review - A Christmas Date by Camilla Isley

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Amazon UK

Title: A Christmas Date

Author: Camilla Isley

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Author supplied review copy

Publisher: Self Published

Publication Date: 25th October 2018

Rating: 4 Stars

No one wants to be single at the holidays.

Even Little Miss Grinch, Nikki, a successful and independent woman, must face her bachelorette status at the most horrible time of the year.

December is her personal version of holly-jolly hell: a merry torture made of couples kissing at every corner, forced vacation days, and an inescapable family reunion.

And when her baby sister announces she’s engaged—to Paul, the man Nikki is secretly in love with—and that he’s spending the holidays with them, Christmas starts looking bluer than ever.

Nikki can’t possibly survive an entire week trapped home as the family’s spinster. But she has no time to meet men or to try the newest dating app, she’s too busy working as a video producer for an advertising agency. 

So what’s a girl to do? 

Nikki has the perfect solution: to hire a fake boyfriend.

Luckily, her job gives her access to an endless catalog of gorgeous actors to choose from.

But Nikki will soon discover that keeping business and pleasure from mixing isn’t so easy, and that she might not be immune to a little mistletoe magic. Especially not when she picked out the perfect man as her Christmas date...

I had been a bit worried going into reading this that I had read something in theory similar sounding only a few months ago, and was worried I wouldn't find this particularly original as a result. 

Well I was completely wrong - ok the hiring of a fake date for whatever reason has been done before and the book even makes a point of referencing some films where that is the case in it - so although you are going into this with a fairly good idea of how it may all end up - the journey is still incredibly enjoyable. 

I absolutely loved this book and found myself whizzing through it.  The first thing that amused me about this book is the main character's name - Nikki Moore - as I have read some wonderful books by a real life Nikki Moore. No idea if it was sheer fluke, but I kept thinking of the other one every time the name was written in full! 

I loved the motivation for Nikki to hire her fake date, and the reasons she had for the criteria of what sort of man she was looking for.  I also fell for the man rather fast, he was gorgeous and had a really great vibe to him. 

The connection between Nikki and Diego was evident the whole time, and there are so many amusing moments in the book . 

This really is an enjoyable read, and another lovely book from an author that I enjoy more and more each time I read her.     

Thank you to Camilla Isley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily. 

Book Review - I Have Never by Camilla Isley

Amazon UK

Title: I Have Never

Author: Camilla Isley

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Author supplied copy

Publisher: Pink Bloom Press

Publication Date: 13th July 2017

Rating: 5 Stars

Twenty-nine-year-old Blair Walker is a girl with a plan, or more a girl with a list. A list of dos and don'ts to live the perfect life, land a dream career, and marry Mr. Right.

When Blair loses her job and gets dumped by her boyfriend all in one day, she starts to wonder if she's had it all wrong. And what better way to find out than experience everything the list forbade?
Never Lie
Never Pick a Fight
Never Make a Scene
Never Make the First Move
Never Make Impulse Decisions
Never Mix Business and Pleasure...

With hilarious consequences, Blair will discover some items are trickier to tick off than she'd thought...

My smile didn't leave my face for the entirety of I Have Never, which is essentially Blair Walker attempting to do the opposite of all the rules she has lived behind for her life. However after one disastrous day where Blair loses both boyfriend and job, she starts to think she may need to change her life philosophies. 

What follows is hilarious, especially the scene when she wakes up the next morning after her awful day.  Every chapter is subtitles with a different item from Blair's list which is the item being illustrated or directly opposed in that chapter. 

In amongst the book you will encounter an incredibly intelligent dog, that seems to understand human english far too well. There is an epic break up scene, a scene full of sexual tension, a plot line that shows how savvy Blair can be when she puts her mind to it,  plus a whole lot more. 

This may be the second book in the First Comes Love series, but it can easily be read as a standalone. I can safely say this as I didn't even realise how this was connected to the first book (which I read around its release), to this one, until I read the note from the author at the end of the book! 

This is a sparkling, fun, quick and easy to read story that I enjoyed every moment of. 

Thank you so much to Camilla Isley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

Book Review - Love Connection by Camilla Isley

Amazon UK

Title: Love Connection

Author: Camilla Isley

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Author supplied review copy

Publisher: Pink Bloom Press

Publication Date: 8th October 2016

Rating: 4.5 Stars

Have you ever wondered what might have been?
Gemma's at the airport, staring at two plane tickets to two different cities. Two different weddings. Two different futures. She's at a crossroads.
Be maid of honor at her best friend's wedding or crash her ex's?
Gemma's decision, unknown to her, hinges on a delayed flight and a chance meeting. Now her life is about to go down two parallel tracks--will Gemma fly toward a life with her first love or a future with a man she's not even met yet?

In concurrent storylines, Gemma lives out the consequences of each journey. Different stories unravel with unpredictable outcomes for Gemma and her loved ones. As the alternative realities run their course, humor and romance intertwine raising questions about fate and chance. Will these parallel universes converge? Is true love meant to be? Is everyone destined to have a soul mate? Or are one's cards just a choice away from reshuffling?

Do you believe in fate, and that everything happens for a reason? I am generally quite skeptical towards those sorts of thoughts, but in the case of Love Connection, I could be persuaded fate exists, at least for romance. 

Love Connection is a Sliding Doors-esque sort of a book, with us seeing how Gemma's life will work out, with each of the initial choices she could make. She has the option of attending to weddings, one is her best friends in which she is due to be made of honour. The other on the same day is of her ex-boyfriend, who she hasn't spoken to in 3 years, but Gemma has realised that she loves. She isn't invited to the other wedding, but is seriously contemplating crashing it and trying to get him back. 

The chapters alternate between what happens when Gemma goes to her best friend, and what happens in the circumstance where she goes to her ex. What striked me quite early into the book were the unnerving parallels in both of the stories, without being overly repetitive. 

Normally I would expect two versions of the same story in alternating chapters to be confusing but I had no problem at all in following the action in this, and I loved getting to know the characters, and also seeing just how Amelia (Gemma's best friend) fits into both stories and her own romantic life too. 

Love Connection has been cleverly engineered, and I just loved how the stories weaved around each other. It is a easy to read and follow book, where the time line moves forward in quite large chunks, between some sections, but it is always noted, and all you are really missing out on is minute details of their lives, whereas the focus in this book is on the bigger picture things, and just what sorts of consequences your actions can have. 


This is quite a sweet romance, that is a pleasure to read, and although I found myself willing the characters to a particular ending, there was no guarantee that I would get my wish, and I enjoyed the journey to that point. 

Thank you so much to Camilla for this copy of the book which I reviewed honestly and voluntarily. 

Funday Friday - Truth or Lie? - Camilla Isley - Month 4 Week 4

Welcome to the latest edition of Truth of Lie. My name is Rachel and I will be your host, for this exciting new game show. Each Friday, I will have one contestant, and they will be answering at least 14 questions. There is of course one small twist...

For three of the answers, they have to lie. It is your task as the viewer to guess which three answers are lies. You are allowed 3 guesses and I want them posted into the comments field. 

Every 4 weeks, I will close the guessing, count up how many correct answers each of you has, and create a leaderboard. Anyone who is top of the leaderboard, will go into a draw for a paperback of the winners choice (open internationally). 

Please do include a way for me to contact you (email or twitter or similar), so that I can let you know if you have won. 

The weekend after a 4 week period closes, not only will I produce a leaderboard, and announce a winner, I will also let you know into the true answers, and which were the lies.  

Closing date for the fourth month is 11pm on 1st September 2016. 

So without further ado, let's meet today's contestant. 

Good morning contestant, please can you tell me your name and a little bit about yourself?

Hi, I’m Camilla and I’m a Bookaholic. My passion for writing came directly from my passion for reading. I love to write books that are sweet and romantic, and that will leave readers with a dreamy smile (sometimes also some LOL moments) on their faces. 

Please to meet you Camilla, I hope you will have fun today! 

Now onto the show, and remember everyone, Camilla hasn't been entirely truthful with three of these answers, so it is up to you to guess which ones they are (only 3 guesses per person though). 

1) Who is your favourite author?

J.K. Rowling. She created a magical world, made us speak a new language (muggles, squib, Azkaban, animagi, snitch, Quidditch …) they even had to put a 9 and ¾ platform at King Cross station. Harry Potter is my favourite series.

2) What book do you wish you had written?

Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë. This is one of my favourite classics. I love everything about it, the story, the struggle, the characters. Heathcliff had me fascinated since I was a teenager. I re-read this book at least once a year.

3) What was your most memorable holiday ever?

The island of Santorini in Greece. The island is beautiful, the Mediterranean Sea special, and everything just aligned to perfection during this vacation. Perfect hotel, perfect weather, and great food.

4) Please name a cocktail that would describe you perfectly, and what’s in it?

Lemon drop martini. It has Vodka, Triple Sec, lemon juice and sugar. I like to think of it as sweet (sugar rim) and sour (lemon twist). Just like everyone else I suppose, I have sweets moments and bitchy ones.

5) If you could only read one author for the rest of your life (and I’m aware that’s a very scary world), who would you choose and why?

I’m going to have to go back to answer number one and say J.K. Rowling. I never tire to re-read a Harry Potter book, and they’re definitely the most re-read in my library. Whenever I’m in a reading slump I go back to Harry Potter. I just re-started the whole series with the excuse that The Cursed Child is coming out this summer. I mean, I have to re-read the other seven books first, right?

6) If you could only look at one view for the rest of eternity, what or where would you like to be to see this view?

I would like it to be a view of Central Park from my condo huge terrace. (Even if I suppose I would have to win the lottery first to achieve that)

But if I really had to be stuck in one place for the rest of my life I’d like it to be New York. It’s such a vibrant, lively city. I’d love to be there for eternity.

7) Besides reading, which I am guessing is a given, what other hobbies do you have?

My biggest passion besides reading and writing is running, I’m currently training for my first half-marathon. My dream is to one day run (and finish) the New York marathon.

8) Who is your ideal Disney character?

Belle, because she’s a book junkie.

9) If you could be an animal what would you be and why?

I would like to be my cat. My biggest problems would be I’m over-cuddled and meowing for more food.

10) Can you describe for me what your perfect day would involve?

Get up at 11.

Head to Starbucks for a croissant and a Caramel Macchiato.

Kneading a pizza dough for later in the day.

Write 5000 words.

Prepare the Pizza.

Have a homemade pizza dinner with the hubby.

11) If you won the lottery, how would you spend the money?

I’d buy a house, go on a cruise around the world, give huge presents to my family and friends, give to charity, and I would open a cat shelter…

12) What superpower would you love to have?

Magic tiding finger snap. Imagine snapping your fingers and the House cleaning and tiding itself.

13) What is your guilty pleasure when it comes to music?

Listening to Pitch Perfect 1 and 2 soundtracks.

14) What is your best childhood memory?

When my cat gave birth to four kittens. I had a whole cat family. Dad, mom, and kittens. Those were three glorious months, two cats and four kittens all for me… it was a dream

Thanks so much for agreeing to take part Camilla, I also love Belle from Beauty and the Beast, and I'm so envious you got to go to Santorini, it looks so pretty in the pictures. 

I hope you have enjoyed this edition of Truth or Lie? I will be back next week with another episode, and in the mean time...

Don't forget to guess the lies, to be in with a chance of a prize! 

What if the man you've always loved isn't the right one for you?

Rose Atwood has been in love with her best friend since she was twelve years old. The only problem is, he's the biggest player to have ever landed on Earth. Rose has waited forever for Tyler to grow up, all the while keeping her feelings under wraps for fear of getting hurt. But after watching Tyler go through girl after girl, Rose has lost hope he'll ever change.

Being Tyler's best friend is becoming more difficult with every passing year and every new woman in his life--especially when the girlfriend du jour is Georgiana, a snotty, beautiful girl who's in Law School with them and who never leaves Tyler's side.

When Rose, dumped by her long-term boyfriend, moves temporarily into Tyler's apartment, tension spikes. Georgiana wants Rose out of the house. Rose wants Georgiana out of Tyler's life. And Tyler ... well, he doesn't really know what he wants.

As an unexpected argument brings Rose and Tyler closer than they've ever been, they must decide if there's more to their relationship than being just friends. And they must do it quickly, as Georgiana is determined to do everything in her power to keep Tyler and Rose apart. After all, all is fair in love and war.

Will Rose make a leap of faith and trust Tyler with her heart?

Will Tyler make the right choice, or will he be too late?

Let's Be Just Friends is a fast paced, captivating college romance that will keep you glued to the pages with humor, heartbreak, and romance. It's a story about friendship, love, and the choices we make.

Tyler and Rose are two best friends, who end up tangled in a college love triangle when they become friends with benefits. Enjoy this light new adult read.

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About Camilla Isley

Hi! I’m a writer of romantic comedy, cat’s lover, coffee addict, and shoes hoarder.

Besides writing, I love reading (surprise, surprise), cooking—and eating—especially pasta, going to the movies and obviously ordering a gigantic bowl of popcorn, and watching too much bad TV.

I understand that mosquitoes play a role in the ecosystem as a part of other animals’ diet, and I don’t want to starve all those frog princes out there, but I could really live without them!

Social media Links

www.camillaisley.com

Twitter: @camillaisley

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Book Review - A Sudden Crush by Camilla Isley

Amazon UK

Title: A Sudden Crush

Author: Camilla Isley

Format reviewed: E-book

Source: Author supplied review copy

Publisher: Pink Bloom Press

Publication Date: 4th February 2016

Rating: 4.5 Stars

Joanna Price is a city girl with the perfect life. She loves her job as a book editor, she just married Liam, high profile bestselling author and the man of her dreams, and she’s headed to the Caribbean to enjoy two weeks of paradise for her luxurious honeymoon. 

Connor Duffield is a gruff, grumpy rancher from the Midwest. He is a country boy who has a no-nonsense approach to life, more scars than he’d like to admit, and he hates city girls. 

So it’s just a misfortune they have to sit next to each other for a six hour plane ride. Even more so when their flight is caught in the perfect storm and Joanna wakes up stranded on a desert island with Connor, the very man she hoped she would never have to see again. 

Why are they alone on this forsaken island? What happened to Joanna’s husband? 

When her dream honeymoon turns into a hilarious tropical nightmare, Joanna’s first thought is survival. However, she and Connor will quickly discover just how boring paradise can be. As the days turn to weeks, and then months, this mismatched pair will have to learn how to coexist and how to resist the sparkles of an attraction they weren’t prepared to feel. 

When they are finally rescued will Joanna’s marriage be saved as well, or will the life she knew and loved be in ruins?

Going to have to start with a warning for this book. Do not read the first two or three chapters, while on a plane, especially if you are a nervous flier. The level of description of the plane ride,, which leaves Joanna and Connor stranded on a deserted tropical island, is scarily real, and provides a fabulous introduction to this fabulous story. 

Joanna and Connor couldn't be more different. Connor is like a caveman, seems to mainly communicate in grunts, and is not overly chatty. Joanna, was on the flight to the Caribbean for her honeymoon with Liam, but when she ends up on the island,  she shows she is more than just a city slicker. Joanna is also a book editor, and I loved all of her feeling about books, and they mirror quite a lot of my own thoughts. 

Time passes very fast in A Sudden Crussh, so keep your eyes on the chapter headings, so you can see how much further on you are. This adds to the pace of the book, and keeps you on your toes, as you see all the key moments that occur. 

My only slight criticism about the book is that although I loved the characters, they sometimes felt a bit one dimensional. I didn't really get a well rounded feel for them, nor did I have a good sense of their back stories.  However it didn't spoil my enjoyment as I think the idea for the book was to be more of a light weight, fast paced, enjoyable romantic comedy, and on those grounds it succeeds. 

From tropical islands, to a monkey named Manny, to various survival scores, with a fair bit of romantic tension too, A Sudden Crush has it all. It is very easy to read, and only took me a few hours to complete, as I was so absorbed in the story, especially while they were on the island. 

Thank you so much to Camilla Isley for this review copy. This was my honest opinion. 

Promo Post - I Wish For You by Camilla Isley

Happy Publication day to Camilla Isley. I Wish For You is out now, in ebook, and I wish you all the best with your debut novel. 

If all your wishes could suddenly come true, what would you do?

A year ago when the love of her life dumped her for no apparent reason, Ally thought she had hit rock bottom. But now that she has seen him with another woman, and one she knows only too well, her life seems to have reached a whole new level of low.

Yet, when she stumbles across an ancient object infused with magical powers and a stranger with a dark past appears out of nowhere promising to grant all her wishes, she finds herself hoping again.

Suddenly Ally’s life is turned upside down; she has a mystery to solve, a rival to beat, a millenarian curse to break, and well, she wants to have some fun playing with her new “gifts”…

But can she wish her way to happily ever after?

If the blurb has interested you, then click on the banner below for a PDF excerpt of the first 3 chapters of the book, absolutely free!

Amazon UK  | Amazon US | Ibooks UK | Ibooks US | Kobo | Barnes & Noble USA | Nook

Author self-presentation:

Hi! I’m a writer of romantic comedy, cat’s lover, coffee addict, and shoes hoarder.

Besides writing, I love reading (surprise, surprise), cooking—and eating—especially pasta, going to the movies and obviously ordering a gigantic bowl of popcorn, and watching too much TV.

I understand that mosquitoes play a role in the ecosystem as a part of other animals’ diet, and I don’t want to starve all those frog princes out there, but I could really live without them.

Author bio:

Camilla was born in 1984. She’s an engineer that has always had a vivid imagination and a more creative approach to life. After working in a corporate job for some years, she left everything to follow her husband around the world in a new adventure. Upon finding herself with loads of free time for the first time in a long while, she decided to begin pouring some of her fantasies into words…

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