Book Review - The Betrayal by Laura Elliot

 

The Betrayal by Laura Elliot

Published:  14th August 2015

Publisher: Bookouture

Pages: 376

Available on Kindle and in Paperback

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Blurb

A perfect divorce. A new flame. And a deadly obsession.

Nadine and Jake Saunders were married as teens. Tied to one another by a night of passion that resulted in a pregnancy neither could turn away from.

Now, years later, their children have all flown the nest and the pact they made as teenagers – to give one another the freedom to pursue their own dreams – has resurfaced.

But freedom comes at a price …

While Nadine and Jake begin to untangle their lives from one another, Jake embarks on a passionate affair with a beautiful woman, Karin Moylan. What he doesn’t know is the dark history Karin shares with Nadine.

As lust spirals into dangerous obsession, Jake must break free from Karin. But he must also ask himself how well he ever really knew Nadine. What secret is she hiding? The truth, when it is revealed, could destroy them all.

 

Review

The Betrayal is the second book by Laura Elliot that I have read, Fragile Lies was brilliant so I was really looking forward to reading her next book. The Betrayal is a book which fills you with intrigue from the very first paragraph when Nadine catches a glimpse of Karin Moylan and this sets off a chain of events which are just scary.

Jake and Nadine have been married since they were seventeen, a marriage based more on the circumstance of an unplanned pregnancy rather than love, four children and twenty years later they are still together but both feel slightly tied down and long for the missed freedom of their youth. At Nadine’s request they agree to a “perfect divorce” where they will remain friends and united for their children. However a chance meeting brings Karin Moylan back into their lives, Nadine’s childhood best friend who she would rather never set eyes on again. As Jake begins a passionate affair with the tempting seductress he doesn’t realise just how much he is putting his family at risk as this woman will do anything to keep her man.

I loved that this was written from the dual aspects of Jake and Nadine in alternating chapters as I felt it really added to build up the tension and suspense in this book as each begins to realise just how dangerous Karin can be and how scared they are for each other.

The whole basis of this novel was why did Nadine and Karin fall out all those years ago? Eventually we learn the truth through Nadine’s memories but it was totally not what I expected at all! I think I changed my mind a few times as to what the reason was but was wrong…so wrong which is exactly what I want to be when reading a psychological thriller.

The character of Karin was really quite scary in the way she was able to manipulate events and family members to get exactly what she wanted, I would not like to be in her firing line! I think it will take me quite a while to look at kingfisher blue, Karin’s signature colour and not feel a little uneasy.

Jake and Nadine were both very likable characters and all the way through I was so hoping that they would forget this silly “perfect divorce” thing and stay married as they seemed so right for each other. I was so angry with Jake that he could hurt Nadine the way he did, although I don’t really think he stood a chance against Karin. I loved that they both had a really strong sense of family and would go rushing to various members whenever they needed help.

The Betrayal is a novel based full on intrigue, suspense, lust and tragedy and most of all obsession. It was a little bit of a roller-coaster for me as at some points I was a little bored, mostly with the Alaska trip and Eleanor’s party politics but then at other points like the historical memories and the crash I was hooked. I did enjoy this book  and will definitely reading this author’s other works, but please think of some better names next time, Sam and Samantha for twins and Daryl and Carol Farrell, sorry but I didn’t like them!

Thank you to Bookouture and Netgalley for my review copy, overall I really enjoyed this book and look forward to her next one, I’d give this book a rating of 4 out of 5.

Book Review - The Daughter's Secret by Eva Holland

 

The Daughter's Secret by Eva Holland

Published: 13th August 2015

Publisher: Orion

Pages: 320

Available on Kindle and in Paperback

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Blurb

My daughter is a liar. A liar, liar, liar. And I'm starting to see where she gets it from.

When Rosalind's fifteen-year-old daughter, Stephanie, ran away with her teacher, this ordinary family became something it had never asked to be. Their lives held up to scrutiny in the centre of a major police investigation, the Simms were headline news while Stephanie was missing with a man who was risking everything.

Now, six years on, Ros takes a call that will change their lives all over again. He's going to be released from prison. Years too early. In eleven days' time.

As Temperley's release creeps ever closer, Ros is forced to confront the events that led them here, back to a place she thought she'd left behind, to questions she didn't want to answer. Why did she do it? Where does the blame lie? What happens next?

 

Review

 

The Daughter’s Secret tells the story of Stephanie Simm, of her abduction when she was fifteen by her geography teacher Nathan Temperley and how her and her family coped in the aftermath on her return to her family. Now six years later all their emotions and secrets are brought back as Nathan Temperley is set to be released, in just eleven days’ time. I found Eva Holland’s debut novel to be well written, gripping and very thought provoking

The story is told through the eyes of Rosalind, Stephanie’s somewhat neurotic mother, a woman who has led a very comfortable life and up until Stephanie’s disappearance had no reason to be so paranoid about life, except that she was about everything. Ros was not a character I could totally warm too, I really wanted to as I myself have bouts of anxiety but she just seemed fixated on bad things happening all around her, like suitcases falling from the sky and buses not being safe enough to travel on, so much so it’s kind of no wonder Stephanie ran away. When she learns of Nathan Temperley’s release she goes into overdrive wanting to protect Stephane but I felt it was also an excuse to let her paranoia run wild causing even more friction within her family.

Dan, the husband, I found more interesting as he seems to be disconnected to his family with his own secrets. He’s happy just placing them in the perfect house and then going off to work without considering if they are actually happy. I felt he had some kind perfectly planned out life and he can never quite forgive Stephanie for ruining it and showing the world their imperfections. Dan wants his problems to go away and that means Stephanie and her problems must be sent away either to boarding school or to rehab, so she can’t ruin the perfect picture of the stable happy family which he wants the outside world to see.

Stephanie herself seemed a girl who is longing for approval and acceptance and goes along with Temperley because he is giving her what she is craving from her home life but isn’t getting from her distant parents.  I felt sad for her that she is still heavy with guilt and isn’t able to completely let Temperley out of her life once her ordeal I is over and so longed for her to find peace.

I enjoyed reading this debut novel very much and I loved the structure with the chapters being split into the days leading up to Temperley’s release. Each day getting slightly longer in length as the tension this news is causing builds up between the members of the Simm family until finally it explodes. I thought this was brilliant and really added to the way the story gripped me, with a slow start and then getting more intense until I couldn’t put this book down.

Although I really enjoyed this novel and found the ending to be satisfactory I still felt there were a lot of unanswered questions as to what happened next for the family and I think personally I would have liked an epilogue to answer some of the questions. This has meant though that I have kept thinking about this book after I had finished reading it, which makes it an ideal book club choice as there is plenty to discuss. I would give this book 4 out of 5 and would like to thank Orion the publishers for sending me a copy to review.

 

Book Review - Wedding Night by Sophie Kinsella

 

Wedding Night by Sophie Kinsella

Published: 27th February 2014

Publisher: Black Swan

Pages: 460

Available in Paperback and on Kindle

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Blurb

What do you do when you think your sister's about to marry the wrong man?

 

It's all gone wrong with the man Lottie thought was Mr Right. Then out of the blue she gets a call from her first love. She decides it must be Fate, and rushes off to marry him and rekindle their sizzling Greek island romance.

Lottie's older sister can't believe she's doing something so crazy. No more Ms Nice Sister, she's stopping this marriage. Right away! And she'll go to any lengths to do so...

 

 

Review

 

Wedding Night by Sophie Kinsella is a book which has sat on my shelf for just over a year, I find her books hugely enjoyable and so was saving this one for something special, I chose to read this post honeymoon to extend that loved up glow I’ve got inside but sadly this book let me down a little. It is a good story with some very funny moments but I didn’t feel to truly engage with either of the two main characters Fliss and Lottie which left me struggling with this book at times.

Fliss and Lottie Graveney are sisters who couldn’t be in more different places on the romantic front. Lottie is loved up with Richard and is convinced he’s on the verge of proposing. While sister Fliss is very bitter from her impending divorce with husband Daniel. When Lottie’s dream proposal goes horribly wrong, she ends up splitting from Richard as he embarks on a three month job in San Francisco, leaving Lottie on the edge of a meltdown. Having being here before Fliss readies herself for her sisters next big “Unfortunate Choice”, however this time even she is unprepared for Lottie’s actions…she’s only got an married her teenage sweetheart Ben and is planning sizzling honeymoon back where they met on the Greek isle of Ikonos. Can Fliss save Lottie from herself and how far will she actually go to do so?

Wedding Night is told from a dual perspective of both sisters, this I did enjoy as it gave more insight into the events which were happening and we also saw both sisters’ weaknesses through the eyes of the other. However I just couldn’t seem to connect with either sister. I found Lottie to be impulsive and living in some kind of dream world where being married  and having amazing sex is the only thing that counts and to be honest a just wanted to slap her. Fliss I liked slightly better as its obvious Daniel has wrecked her heart and she doesn’t want her younger sister to feel the same pain. However I felt the measures she went to keep Ben and Lottie apart were extreme and bordering on lunacy. I wanted her to get a grip and just let Lottie get on with making her own mess.

This book does have some funny moments which I enjoyed, mostly centred on Fliss’s son Noah and his misunderstanding of the adult conversations. My favourite part is when Fliss has to produce a model balloon for Noah’s school out of the contents of her handbag and end up using condoms as the balloon! Loved it!

Despite finding the plotline of this novel a bit ridiculous and far-fetched I did enjoy it, however I wasn’t as hooked as I normally am with a Sophie Kinsella novel as usually I’m hooked from the first page, with this one it was about half way through when I began to enjoy it.  If you looking for a light-hearted fun read then this could be for you, if you’re a Kinsella fan you may feel a little disappointed as I feels it lacks the Kinsella magic in many of her other books.

I’d give this book a rating of 3/5.



Book Review - Meet Me at the Honeymoon Suite by Charlotte Phillips

 

Meet Me at the Honeymoon Suite by Charlotte Phillips

Published: 16th July 2015

Publisher: Harper Impulse

Pages: 112

Available in Paperback and on Kindle

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Blurb

Happy ever after…?
Fascinated by weddings since her mother was jilted at the altar when she was seven years old, Amy Woods is a brilliantly efficient wedding organizer, thanks to her ability to see past all the emotion and magic of ‘the big day’. Now, after years of being the assistant, she’s landed her dream job as Wedding and Events Manager at exclusive boutique hotel The Lavington. All she needs to do is pull off her first wedding weekend without a hitch…
Unfortunately the groom turns out to be her own marriage-phobic ex-boyfriend, proving yet again that Amy is good enough to be the warm up act but never the real deal. Then she breaks all her own rules and sleeps with the delicious but definitely off limits best man! To pull off the perfect weekend now, she will need to be her most clear-headed and emotionless. But as she gets to know best man Owen outside the bedroom, keeping herself focussed on the task isn’t so easy anymore.

Review

Newly appointed Events Manager Amy doesn’t believe is love. She’s watched her mum being jilted and had previous boyfriends break her heart. Instead she pours her heart and soul in to creating perfect weddings for other people and her first big wedding in charge just happens to be for ex-boyfriend Luke. Determined not to let the past interfere with her future Amy tries to bury herself in her work, but the very handsome best man and fellow work addict Owen begins to get under her skin.

Spread over the course of the wedding weekend this novella has the perfect pace as Amy battles with herself whether to let Owen into her life and her bed…if she’s caught she loses her job. The chemistry between them is brilliantly written and I think any woman would find it hard to resist Owen’s charms. I loved all the little dramas that Amy has to overcome with her job, which for me gave the story more depth. The build-up in this book is done really well and although it’s short we are given a lot of insight into how these two main characters tick.

This is my first encounter with Charlotte Phillips writing and I really enjoyed the style and pace of writing and would I’d definitely like to read something else from her, perhaps something slightly longer. This is a great summer read perfect for a day at the beach. I’d rate it 5/5.

I’d like to thank Harper Impulse and Netgalley for my review copy.

Book Review - The Girls Guide to Getting Hitched by Sophie Hart

 

The Girls Guide to Getting Hitched by Sophie Hart

Published: 17th July 2015

Publisher: Bookouture

Pages: 312

Available in Paperback and on Kindle

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Blurb

Rule number one: Keep calm and marry on…

When new mum and events planner Julia Crawford is given the opportunity to plan three weddings, she jumps at the chance. What could possibly go wrong? …

Forget bridezilla, Aimee’s future mother-in-law is the stuff of nightmares – hell bent on taking over the wedding entirely. Worse still, her fiancé, Jon, seems oblivious. Aimee’s starting to wonder if she and her groom-to-be are right for each other after all…

Body shy Debbie is on a mission. She’s determined to shed a lot of pounds before the big day. As the wedding inches closer, will the new Debbie lose sight of what’s really important?

Gill loves Mike and their blended family of five kids to bits, but with a house full of teenage hormones and her eldest, Kelly, struggling with so much change, Gill is feeling the pressure...

As the women bond over cake and a cuppa, can they each resolve their wedding woes before the big day?

Review

 

Having read and loved Sophie’s previous novel The Girls Guide to Falling in Love I was really excited to hear about her new novel The Girls Guide to Getting Hitched, what made this even better for me was the release date was a week before my own wedding so I was in wedding heaven reading this.

The Girls Guide to Getting Hitched follows the story of Julia Crawford an event’s organiser as she helps three very different brides to plan their big day, Aimee, Debbie and Gill. For those of you who have read Sophie’s previous book you will instantly recognise Julia Crawford and her husband Nick. I personally love it when authors bring back characters from previous novels as I love to see how they’ve changed, quite a bit for Julia and Nick. Don’t worry if you haven’t read her previous book (although you really should!) this book will make perfect sense on its own, which I liked from a new readers perspective.

Julia is a new mum who has just begun to think about going back to work when she lands a huge wedding planning contract with the prestigious Valerie for her son Jon’s wedding to the very sweet Aimee. With such a huge budget Julia just can’t say no and reluctantly enrols her son Jack into nursery for a few hours. Here she meets two more brides-to-be, Debbie and Gill and finds herself with a full on work schedule.

All three brides are struggling with the own pre-wedding issues. Sweet natured Aimee is being controlled completely by fiancé Jon and his overbearing mother Valerie. As Aimee struggles with letting go of her dream wedding she begins to feel out of control and eventually it dawns on her exactly what she needs to do.

Debbie is dreaming of walking down the aisle in the perfect size 10 dress (don’t we all!), with a huge amount of willpower and determination she begins to lose the pounds and becomes more confident, but will this new confidence land her in trouble?

Gill is about to walk down the aisle for the second time with her new partner Mike and their five children from previous marriages, but Gill is struggling to keep everyone happy and plan her perfect day. It’s made even harder when her daughter Kelly begins to feel pushed out by her mother, will this family find their happy ever after?

I really loved all the characters in this book, except Jon and Valerie whom I hope grow old and miserable together. I think Debbie was my favourite as I can identify with an obsession with losing weight, sadly I don’t possess that woman’s determination so walked down the aisle in a slightly bigger dress! I also loved the references to characters in the previous book as it was good to check in and see how they were,

I adored this book just as much as I have Sophie’s previous work, it’s the perfect mix of heartfelt emotion, humour and the trials of everyday life. The words just flowed so well making this an absolute joy to read, the only downside to it was I finished it far too quickly!

I’d recommend this book to anyone who wants a light-hearted summer reads, it’s just brilliant and Sophie please, please write another book soon!

I’d like to thank Bookouture and Netgalley for a copy of this to review and give this book 5/5.

 

 

Book Review - A Year of Marvellous Ways by Sarah Winman

 

A Year of Marvellous Ways by Sarah Winman

Published: 18th June 2015

Publisher: Tinder Press

Pages: 310

Available in Hardback and on Kindle

Order a copy now from Amazon

 

Blurb

Cornwall, 1947. Marvellous Ways is a ninety-year-old woman who's lived alone in a remote creek for nearly all her life. Recently she's taken to spending her days sitting on the steps of her caravan with a pair of binoculars. She's waiting for something - she's not sure what, but she'll know it when she sees it. Freddy Drake is a young soldier left reeling by the war. He's agreed to fulfil a dying friend's last wish and hand-deliver a letter to the boy's father in Cornwall. But Freddy's journey doesn't go to plan, and sees him literally wash up in Marvellous' creek, broken in body and spirit. When Marvellous comes to his aid, an unlikely friendship grows between the two. Can Freddy give Marvellous what she needs to say goodbye to the world, and can she give him what he needs to go on? 

 

Review

“A Year of Marvellous Ways” has been a book which seems to have received a lot of praise in the blogging world so I was eager to see for myself what this book was all about.  This book has been portrayed as “Magical Realism” and is not something I would normally read but I found it an utterly beautiful and emotional read.

The book is told from two perspectives, 89 year old Marvellous Ways an old lady whom the book is named after who spends her days alone in a remote Cornish creek until she meets Drake a young man set on a journey to complete a dying man’s wish. When the two meet their lives slowly become more and more entwined.

Firstly, if you read this book please don’t rush through it, the writing has a truly magical quality which I feel is best savoured over a longer period. The chapters are fairly short, some just a couple of pages so it is perfect to spread out which I did over a fortnight, which is a long time for me to spend on one book. I found the writing style descriptive, very poetic and utterly beautiful.

The two main characters got to me straight away, the sense of grief and loss which these two have experienced in their lives jumps of the page and pulls at your heart strings. They are both searching for that special something to help anchor them and give them hope.

This a very special book which I feel can help us all see the good in the little things and I know is a book that will sit treasured on my shelf for many years. I am definitely going to read Sarah’s other novel “When God was a Rabbit” very soon in the hope that it has the same magical quality as “A year of Marvellous Ways”

Thank you to bookbridgr for sending me a copy to review, I would rate this book 4/5.

 

Book Review - Summer by the Sea by Jenny Hale

 

Summer by the Sea by Jenny Hale

Published: 12th June 2015

Publisher: Bookouture

Available in Paperback and Kindle

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Blurb

They say there’s always one summer that changes you.

For Faith the one summer she can’t forget is when she fell in love as a teenager – only for her sister, Casey, to steal her man. Now, at the request of her beloved ninety-year-old Grandmother, Faith has agreed to a family holiday – at their childhood beach house, where it all began.

Faith hasn’t seen her sister in years but is finally ready to forgive and forget, enjoy the sunshine and relive happy memories. What she’s not ready for is meeting Jake Buchanan – the owner of the beach house – or the long-forgotten feelings he ignites in her.

Can Faith overcome the hurt of the past, rekindle the close bond she had with Casey and make this summer THE ONE to remember?  

 

Review

My first encounter with a Jenny Hale novel was last year when I read A Christmas to Remember, which I adored and is probably one of my favourite Christmas books ever. So I was super excited when given the chance to review her new book Summer by the Sea.

Summer by the Sea is told from the point of view of the main character Faith. She’s agreed to spend two weeks in the Outer Banks in North Carolina with her family, including estranged sister Casey, to celebrate her Nan’s 90^th birthday. Faith is somewhat reluctant about the trip as she has not spent much time with her sister since Casey stole her man away and married him. As the trip wears on and nostalgic memories of previous summers spent having fun with her sister enter Faiths mind she realises it’s time to let go of the past and begin to move on with her life. Something which handsome stranger Jack Buchanan might just be able to help her with.

Like Jenny’s previous novel this is full of emotions, romance and families coming together and mending their rifts. I found this book very heart-felt as Faith has to do a lot of soul-searching in order to forgive her sister. After seeing her sister’s troubles with her husband Scott, Faith begins to realise he was never really hers to lose. The bond between sisters and their mother and Nan was very deep and was obviously far too strong to let any man come between them, which I found just lovely.

The way Jenny has described the Outer Banks makes me long to go there, its sounds like the perfect American hideaway and I can understand why it made Faith so emotional and sentimental.  The descriptive language really made me feel that at times I was with Faith leaning over the balcony looking out at the ocean too, you just can’t beat a sea view can you.

Can we just mention Jake, what a hottie, the perfect guy to help you forget all your problems with, handsome, caring, good with his hands and also just a little bit loaded, it’s no wonder Faith developed a pretty huge crush on him!

This is a lovely summer read and I really enjoyed the escapism and romance which it brought me, it would make the perfect holiday read. I’d like to thank Bookouture for giving me the opportunity to review this book and can’t wait to read Jenny’s next book. I’d rate this book 4/5.