Wednesday, 30 May 2018

Blog Tour Review: Escape to the Country by Alison Sherlock


Escape to the Country by Alison Sherlock
Published: 1st May 2018
Publisher: Aria
Pages: 461
Available in Paperback and on Kindle
Order now from Amazon
Rating: 5/5

Blurb
Everyone is running away from something - but will an escape to the countryside suit everyone? Full of warmth, laughter tears and heartache. Perfect for the fans Jill Mansell and Carole Matthews.

Journalist Eleanor McCartney leads a glamorous life in London exposing the sordid secrets of famous celebrities for Hot Gossip! magazine. But her perfect life is a sham. So when her world collapses, she has to reluctantly head home to her mum and friends in the quiet country village of Cranley.

Willow Tree Hall is still in the midst of extensive renovations under the careful eye of Eleanor’s best friend Annie and her fiancé, record producer and future Earl of Cranley, Sam Harris.

With a recording studio now in the grounds of the estate, it should be the perfect place for global singing sensation Tom Kingsley to hang out. But Tom is burnt out after a gruelling worldwide tour and is escaping the paparazzi after yet another scandal.
Eleanor cannot believe her luck. A story on the world’s biggest superstar would be the ticket that gets her job and glamorous life back in London.

But soon both Eleanor and Tom begin to fall under the spell of Willow Tree Hall. Eleanor begins to wonder whether she can really betray his trust. And does she really want her old life back or is home really where the heart lies?

As a heatwave soars, friendships are made, truths are told and, with the help of a stray dog, perhaps love can be found as hearts are healed.
By escaping to the country, maybe Eleanor and Tom have found their new beginning.

Review


Escape to the Country is Alison Sherlock’s second book in the Willow Tree Hall series but it can easily be read as a standalone novel which is what I did. I’m now desperate to read the first book though as think I might just love it even more than this one.


Eleanor McCartney’s main concern is projecting the perfect image, even if this is a lie. As far as her friends and family are concerned she’s a successful financial journalist, the reality is she’s just being sacked from being a celebrity gossip journalist and replaced with a younger model. With her London life in bits she heads home to the village of Cranley to help her mother while she recovers from a broken wrist. Once back home Eleanor learns that pop megastar “Tommy King” is staying with her best friend’s fiancé at Willow Tree Hall, can Eleanor get her career back on track by scooping the story of the summer? Or will being back in the country make Eleanor evaluate her lifestyle and make some changes?


Tom Kinglsey is finding the rockstar life hard and after the passing of his beloved grandma very lonely. After a drunken night out drowning his sorrows lands him with a sprained ankle he goes to stay with friend and manager Sam Harris. Once at Willow Tree Hall Tom finds himself surrounded by the family he’s longed for all his life and when he meets Eleanor he can’t help but be drawn to her despite the fact all they seem to do is bicker.


Eleanor wasn’t a character I initially didn’t care for, she was very selfish and spent far too much time on her appearance and trying to further her career by any means, even if that meant not seeing her mother or friends for months on end. I did warm to her as the story progressed but, in a book, where everyone is lovely she was never going to be my favourite. One of my favourites was Tom, who despite being a megastar remained grounded and sincere and all her really wanted was someone to love him. My other favourite character was Rose with her eccentric dress, the bionic bra scene at the beginning of the charity walk had me laughing out loud.


Escape to the County is just that a perfect escape, its full of heart-warming characters and some funny plots twists and a lovely touch of romance. For me the star of the show was rescued dog Dylan. I’m hoping there is another book coming soon as I’m hoping to find out what happens at the big wedding.


Thank you Aria and Netgalley for sending me this copy to review and inviting me to be part of the blog tour.




About the Author



Alison Sherlock enjoyed reading and writing stories from an early age and gave up office life to follow her dream. Alison lives in Surrey with her husband and a daft golden retriever.



Links to buy
Amazon: mybook.to/EscapeCountry
Google Play: http://bit.ly/2qv7qyp

Follow Alison Sherlock
Twitter: @AlisonSherlock

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Facebook: @ariafiction
Twitter: @aria_fiction
Instagram: @ariafiction
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Sunday, 27 May 2018

Blog Tour Review: Secrets and Tea at Rosie Lee's by Jane Lacey-Crane


Secrets and Tea at Rosie Lee's by Jane Lacey-Crane
Published: May 1st 2018
Publisher: Aria
Pages: 484
Available in Paperback and on Kindle
Rating: 5/5

Blurb
 Welcome to Rosie Lee's cafe in the heart of the East End - where there's not an avocado, slice of sour dough or double-shot no-foam soy milk caramel latte on the menu!

Rosie-Lee's owner Abby is a woman without a plan....and her beloved little cafe is a business with a serious lack of customers. The Rosie Lee's fry-up is legendary, but cooked breakfasts alone - however perfectly sizzled the bacon - aren't going to pay the bills.

Fast approaching forty and fighting a serious case of empty nest syndrome, Abby realises it's not just her menu that needs a makeover. And when Jack Chance, her The One That Got Away, saunters through the cafe doors and back into her life things definitely look set to change...

Abby has always believed a cup of strong builders tea makes everything better, but Jack's reappearance is a complication even the trusty sausage sarnie can't resolve....

If you enjoy Debbie Johnson, Jill Mansell and Jane Fallon, you'll love Secrets & Tea at Rosie Lee's, a frank, funny, feel-good look at grown-up life and love - as it really happens!

Review
As a debut novel Jane Lacey-Crane has done a great job with Secrets and Tea at Rosie Lee’s it’s so much more than your average chick-lit café-based novel. It’s a book which is filled with family secrets, romantic twists and the criminal world of east end London.
Single mum Abby is struggling to keep her café business in the east end of London afloat as she competes with the trendier establishments opening up in the neighbourhood.  She’s happy on her own until one-night Abby runs into Jack Chance her childhood sweetheart (and the one-that-got-away) and life as she knows it slowly begins to unravel. As Abby confronts the demons of her past maybe she will get a second chance at love?
I loved that this book totally shattered my expectations, quaint and cosy it is not. Abby’s life has been hard and throughout the book she’s dealt even more trouble which made for excellent reading as it felt more realistic.  I thought she was a good character but did get a little frustrated with her behaviour towards Jack, it felt very immature the way she was throwing herself at him one minute and then shutting him out completely the next. Although perhaps with all she was going through she didn’t have a clue what she really wanted.
This is a fast-paced book which I raced through as I was desperate to uncover all the secrets, which just kept coming. I’m very excited to see what the author comes up with next as I thought this was a brilliant debut with realistic characters who worked well together throughout the emotional journey Abby and her family face.
Thank you to Aria for sending me a copy to review and inviting me to be part of the blog tour.


About the Author


Born in London, Jane's writing career began in cable TV, writing true crime documentaries. More recently, Jane has contributed to an anthology of short stories and written two weekly crime serials. When she's not writing, Jane loves to read good books, binge watch TV boxsets and drink tea. And wine.
Links to buy
 Amazon: mybook.to/SecretsandTea 
Google Play: http://bit.ly/2Hns5iI

Follow Jane Lacey-Crane
 Twitter: @JaneLaceyCrane
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jane.crane.33

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Facebook: @ariafiction
Twitter: @aria_fiction
Instagram: @ariafiction
Sign up to the Aria newsletter: http://bit.ly/2jQxVtV


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Thursday, 24 May 2018

Blog Tour Extract: A Last Goodbye by Dee Yates


A Last Goodbye by Dee Yates
Published: 1st May 2018
Publisher: Aria
Pages:294
Available on Kindle
Order now from Amazon

Blurb
A heart-breaking saga set against the backdrop of World War 1, perfect for all fans of Katie Flynn.
In a remote hill farm in beautiful Scotland, Ellen and her father Duncan are enjoying a peaceful life away from the belching mills and hustle and bustle of the growing towns. In time they’re joined by rugged farmhand Tom, come to lend some muscle to Ellen’s aging father, who has begun to find sheep farming hard to manage alone. Almost inevitably romance grows between Ellen and the new arrival but once married however, Ellen discovers that Tom has a brutish side to his character. As war in Europe spreads, she begins to dream of him leaving for the trenches as a way for her to escape.

 Even with Tom fighting abroad however, the family cannot hide from the realities of war as a group of POWs are brought to their valley to build a reservoir. And amongst the men, sworn enemies and shunned by all the locals, Ellen finds a gentler heart that she is difficult to resist…

Extract
He glanced at Duncan, but the man was staring into the distance as though lost in thought and Tom didn’t like to disturb him with questions of what awaited him at the farm. He knew what these shepherds were like… lone, silent men, though whether it was their chosen career that made them like this or their self-contained nature that led them into such a solitary occupation, it was impossible to say. He was himself a man of few words. He was sure he’d rub along well with this shepherd and his family.
Making their way down a steep road, they crossed a long narrow bridge that spanned the river. Their way wound on into the hills that had appeared grey in the distance but now turned green as they neared. They were speckled white with sheep, as far as the eye could see. The wagon followed the track along one side of the broad base of a valley. When Duncan turned down a smaller track, just a cart’s width, that crossed the valley floor, Tom could see the farm up ahead. A copse of trees surrounded the farmhouse so only the roof was visible. Over a wooden bridge and up a slight incline, two white cottages stared out across the valley, standing sentinel as though ready to warn the occupants of the approach of inclement weather.
Duncan turned to Tom. ‘This is your cottage, next to ours.’ He nodded to the first of the two low dwellings. ‘You’ll come for your tea first. Ellen will put the kettle on, won’t you, hen?’ He looked round, but Ellen had already jumped down and was disappearing into the cottage. He turned back to Tom. ‘Tomorrow we’ll see about you getting in some supplies so you can look after yourself. I gather you’ll no' be bringing a wife with you?’
‘No, not yet.’
‘Och! That will come soon enough. Well now, Kenneth Douglas is still at market. He’ll be back soon and then I’ll take you down the hill and introduce you.’ Duncan swung his legs round slowly and stepped down from the wagon. ‘Go on in and find Ellen. I’ll join you when I’ve put Archie away.’
Ellen had laid the table with a clean cloth and set out crockery and cutlery. As he entered, she was cutting slices from a loaf of bread. A blackened kettle hung over a low fire. He stood at the door watching her, uncertain what to do.
Glancing up, she smiled a welcome.
‘Come away in and sit down.’ She indicated a chair by the fire.
‘Is there owt I can do to help? After all, I’ve been sitting all day and I think I’d rather be standing.’ He also had no wish to be too near the fire, which was pumping out yet more heat into an already stiflingly hot room.
‘Aye, you can reach down three mugs from the shelf there and you'll find a jug of milk in the pantry. Oh, and there’s a fruit cake in the tin… the one with the flowers on. Bring that out, will you?’
When Tom had done her bidding, his eyes took in the neat room… the floor swept clean, the row of boots inside the door, the absence of any dirty dishes cluttering up the draining board. He pondered the whereabouts of Ellen’s mother, who must have made the cottage so pristine prior to his arrival.
‘Is your mother not joining us?’ he said, to fill the long silence that accompanied their preparations.
‘I don’t have a mother. Well, of course I had a mother, but she died giving birth to me… so I never knew her.’
Tom, taken aback, immediately wished he hadn’t spoken. ‘I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked,’ he stammered.
‘Why not? It’s only natural to ask. I’m sorry too… sorry that she wasnae here to look after me. But it’s all right. I’ve always had my father. Him and me get along just fine.’ She wrinkled her nose. ‘Father says I’m just like her, so I suppose that’s nice for him. My mother was called Janet.’
At the frankness of her information, Tom was lost for words. He pondered her as she went about her jobs, trying to imagine, and failing, what it must be like to be brought up without the comfort and care of a mother. He had always been very close to his and that closeness had remained, even when his sister had been born several years later.
‘Did you stay with your parents before you came up here?’ Ellen asked.
He smiled at this indication of how their thoughts had proceeded along the same lines. ‘Aye, I did.’
‘It will be hard for you with no one to look after you. I’ll come and help you sometimes if you like.’
‘Oh, happen I shall manage well enough,’ he said and then, because the words sounded overly blunt, added, ‘But thank you for the offer.’
‘That’s all right. Anyway, I shall bake you a cake next time I do one for us.’
She stopped in her preparations and looked at him frankly.
‘Don’t you have a sweetheart in England?’
Tom felt himself blushing. This young lass was far too straightforward for comfort.
‘No… no,’ he said hurriedly. ‘Leastways… no, not really.’
‘That’s a shame. It would be nice to have a lady living nearby. There’s Mrs. Douglas… that’s the farmer’s wife. But she’s a bit above the likes of us! And there’s Margaret Murdie… but she’s along the valley a mile or two. Do you have brothers and sisters?’
‘Aye, I have one sister… Annie. She’s much younger than me. I shall miss her though. We were reet close.’
Ellen filled the teapot and placed it in the middle of the table. ‘I shall have to pretend to be your sister then. I sometimes think I’d have liked a brother or a sister. But then I’d have to share my dad with someone else, instead of having him all to myself.’
The object of her affections could now be heard taking off his boots in the porch and a moment later he appeared in the doorway.
Ellen ran over to him and kissed him.
‘Come along, Feyther. Tea’s ready. Sit yourself down.’
He responded by enveloping her in a bearlike hug. He regarded the newcomer over his daughter’s head. ‘She’s a good girl, this one… looked after me since she was old enough to stand, she has.’
Ellen laughed, pulling away from her father’s embrace and crossing to the table, where she started to pour the tea. ‘I think you were looking after me for a good while first.’
‘Aye well, you were my little ray of sunshine in a dark sky in those days.’ His eyes misted over and then, himself again, he went on, ‘Now, how about offering our visitor some of that delicious cake you made specially. He must be thinking you’ve only put it there for decoration!’

About the Author


Born and brought up in the south of England, the eldest girl of nine children, Dee moved north to Yorkshire to study medicine. She remained there, working in well woman medicine and general practice and bringing up her three daughters. She retired slightly early at the end of 2003, in order to start writing, and wrote two books in the next three years. In 2007 she moved further north, to the beautiful Southern Uplands of Scotland. Here she fills her time with her three grandsons, helping in the local museum, the church and the school library, walking, gardening and reading. She writes historical fiction, poetry and more recently non-fiction. Occasionally she gets to compare notes with her youngest sister Sarah Flint who writes crime with blood-curdling descriptions which make Dee want to hide behind the settee.
Links to buy
 Amazon: mybook.to/ALastGoodbye
Google Play: http://bit.ly/2JIkGbL

Follow Dee Yates

Follow Aria
Facebook: @ariafiction
Twitter: @aria_fiction
Instagram: @ariafiction
Sign up to the Aria newsletter: http://bit.ly/2jQxVtV



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Saturday, 19 May 2018

Blog Tour Dead and Gone by D.L. Michaels, Guest Post: The Write Stuff by D. L. Michaels


Dead and Gone by D. L. Michaels
Published: 1st May 2018
Publisher: Aria
Pages: 648
Available in Paperback and on Kindle

Blurb
In a world bulit on lies, who can you ever trust? A nail-biting thriller introducing DI Annie Parker. For fans of Angela Marsons and Tess Gerritson, Dead and Gone delivers twists at every deliciously unredictable turn.

Paula Smith could have had it all. Hugely successful in her fashion business, she lives the kind of life she could never have imagined. Her world should have been an idyllic one if it weren’t for her husband Danny who is resentful of her success and increasingly prone to alcoholic rages. Paula knows she should leave him but she if she did, he would pick up the phone to the police and her life would come crashing down around her.

Sarah has found the kind of happiness with Martin she never thought possible. He is everything she could have wished for in an man. Caring, sensitive and loving, yet he has a secret that could threaten everything they share. But he is not the only one with a secret….

 DI Annie Parker, mother, grandmother and widow, has plenty of baggage of her own, but she’s still determined to be the best police officer she can be. When she and her sergeant Nisha Patel hear about a 20-year-old murder that nobody knew about, nothing will stop them from tracking down the killer, even if it brings them up against one of the most dangerous crime families in the country.

The Write Stuff by D.L. Michaels

How do you go about penning a novel of around 100,000 words if you’ve never done it before?
There are dozens, maybe hundreds of pieces of advice (and books) online about how to emerge from the chrysalis of being a voracious reader into a book-writing butterfly. For what it’s worth, here’s a snapshot of rules I followed (and sometimes broke).
Tip 1. If you only write 300 words a day (about a page of a published novel), you’ll write 2,100 words a week, 8,400 a month, and will hit 100,800 over a year.  Do 600 a day and you have your novel in six months.  It’s that easy.  No, really, it is that easy!
Most writers write because they have the urge to.  Like runners, they just have to get out there and do it. So, I suppose a book is a writer’s marathon.  It’s a big haul. But anyone can do it. There’s no magic to it. No singular style. No right or wrong way. It’s simply about putting one word down after the other, just like one foot after the other. Your style is your style. You might be a literary pronator or supinator. You might roll this way or that. Doesn’t mean it’s wrong – it just means it’s you!
Tip 2. You can write any time you feel like it, and you DO have the time.
I used to convince myself that I didn’t have time to write. There was so much going on in my life – full-time job, family spread across the country, friends to see, plus an effort to stay reasonably fit. Then I realized how much travelling I did on trains, planes and in the passenger seats of cars or back of taxis. So, I wrote while in transit.  Instead of reading or watching movies, I flipped open the laptop and did my words. Next, I cut down on some of the awful TV I simply vegged out in front of.  Then, I found that when I woke in the middle of the night and couldn’t sleep, I could get up and write for an hour (or so) and afterward feel satisfied that I’d actually done something with that ‘dead’ time when I just lay there trying to get back to sleep. The hours are there. You just have to hunt them down.
Tip 3. You don’t need to know all your characters and all your plot before you start writing.
One international best-selling author told me that she only ever knows her lead character and ‘the  main twist’ when she starts writing.  The twist could be something as simple as say a first time (serial) killer confessing a murder to his brother who is a Catholic priest. The priest will be excommunicated if he breaks the sanctity of the Confessional – but he fears more lives will be lost if he doesn’t. The brother fears the priest may go to the cops and thinks about killing him.  There you have two characters and a plot (a dose of jeopardy always helps). That would be enough for my writer friend to start her thriller.  But not for me. I’m a major planner (it’s probably due to my years of making TV programmes). I need the comfort of knowing my beginning, middle and end – plus at least four characters and their roles in the action, before I even start! I make a grid (on a whiteboard and on paper) and I split my 100,000 words into blocks – 20 x 5,000.  Again, to use the running analogy, I do this because I know I can ‘run’ 5k easily enough, but I’m not confident of how I’d perform over 50k without lots of supporting notes. That said, I sometimes stray up to 10k, and new characters simply spring out of the writing and introduce themselves (one of the most exciting parts of storytelling). By the way, there’s a lot of software packages out there that can help with plotting and character profiles, etc.
Tip 4. Don’t start copy editing until you’ve finished the entire story.
Let’s say you write 300 words a day. On day 2, you’ll most likely re-read your first page. You’ll spot spelling/grammar mistakes and possibly some phrasing you want to improve. I suggest you don’t. Ignore them. Just plough on. Otherwise, you’ll be stuck in a cycle of rewriting that will destroy your determination to finish. Imagine running the 20th mile of your marathon (what runners call The Wall) and then feeling so unhappy with your mile time, that you go back and do that mile again.  You’ll never finish your marathon. Resist major revision until you reach the end of your story. And even then, give yourself a break of a few days (a week or two, if possible) then when you’ve seen everything in context, and only then, start your re-write and corrections.
Tip 5. Get yourself an agent.
Aside from expert advice, impartial criticism (you won’t get it and shouldn’t seek it from family), agents understand the industry. They know where to take your book and who is most likely to publish it.  Search the Writers and Artists Yearbook for the right agent for your genre and be absolutely sure you’ve written the very best draft before you submit it to them.
Oh, and if you get this far, remember that everyone, even the JK Rowlings of this world get rejected by publishers. Publication doesn’t matter. You’ve run your own literary marathon in your own style and in your own time. That makes you a champion!

About the Author


D.L. Michaels is a former award-winning TV executive, who married in Tuscany, has one teenage son and lives on an old converted farm in the Peak District. Favourite writers include Harlan Coben, Patricia Cornwell and Nicci French.
Links to buy
Amazon: mybook.to/DeadandGoneMichaels
Google Play: http://bit.ly/2JHQy0l

Follow Aria
Facebook: @ariafiction
Twitter: @aria_fiction
Instagram: @ariafiction
Sign up to the Aria newsletter: http://bit.ly/2jQxVtV
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Friday, 11 May 2018

Blog Tour Review: What Did I Do? by Jessica Jarlvi


What Did I Do? by Jessica Jarlvi
Published: 1st May 2018
Publisher: Aria
Pages: 420
Available in Paperback and on Kindle
Order now from Amazon
Rating: 5/5

Blurb

“Kristin is on the run. From her life. From herself.”

 When two murders happen in Chicago, a witch-hunt ensues, and Kristin quickly finds herself at the centre.

The problem is she isn't sure of what she did or didn't do. Armed with a life insurance payout, she runs away to Sweden to start her life over.

But it's not that easy to escape the past. And whatever she's done, someone is on her tail, wanting her to pay...

The question is: could she be a killer and not even remember?

Review
Dark, intense and plot twists galore Jessica Jarlvi’s new novel What Did I Do? is not one to be missed.  Utterly gripping throughout this was a book I adored.

Split between three narratives it did take a while to settle into this book, but once I was I was desperate to know how these three very different tales were linked. Firstly, with have Kirsten whose husband has died from poisoning in mysterious circumstances, she knows she’s a suspect, but nobody can prove anything, or can they? With her husband’s life insurance money, she heads off to Sweden to start a new life. Then we have Frank, married to Birgitta in a seemingly happy marriage until their son Anders is found dead, was it and accident or was it murder? The third narrative comes from an unknown female who has got herself in a difficult situation.

As the story unfolds these three very different stories begin to connect as the author gives us subtle clues linking them all. I absolutely loved these and trying to work everything out, when it all blows up at the end and is explained I was shocked, it was utterly brilliant.

This is a fantastic novel full of secre3ts, lies and coincidences which build up to an amazing ending. It’s a book quite unlike anything I’ve read before and for that I cannot wait for Jessica Jarlvi to write more as this new to me author definitely hit the spot.  

Thank you so much to Aria for sending me a copy to review and for inviting me on the blog tour.

About the Author




Born in Sweden, Jessica moved to London at the age of 18 to obtain a BSc Hons degree in Publishing and Business. She worked in publishing in the UK for a number of years before heading to Chicago where she edited a magazine for expats. Back in Sweden, she completed a Masters in Creative Writing. Since 2010, Jessica has taught journalism and media at a local university, and has spent the last five years as the marketing and PR manager for a British firm. Last year, she was one of the winners in the Montegrappa Prize for First Fiction at the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature. Jessica is married with three spirited children, and although she’s known for her positivity, her writing tends to be rather dark!


Links to buy



Amazon: mybook.to/WhatDidIDo 


Google Play: http://bit.ly/2IRxvPO




Follow Jessica Jarlvi



Twitter: @JessicaJarlvi




Follow Aria


Facebook: @ariafiction

Twitter: @aria_fiction

Instagram: @ariafiction


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Thursday, 10 May 2018

A Clean Sweep by Audrey Davis


A Clean Sweep by Audrey Davis
Published: June 2017
Pages: 314
Available in Paperback and on Kindle
Order now from Amazon
Rating: 5/5 


Blurb
A CLEAN SWEEP is a laugh-out-loud tale of love, lies and second chances.
Love comes around when you least expect it. Fifty-something widow Emily isn't expecting romance. Nor is she expecting a hunky twenty-something chimney sweep on her doorstep.
Daughter Tabitha knows something isn't quite right with her relationship, while her boss – Abba-loving Meryl – thinks she's found the real deal. Are they both right, or pursuing Mr Wrong?
Emily's sister, Celeste, has the perfect marriage … or does she? Can a fitness tracker lead her down the path to happiness or heartbreak?
Susan is single, overweight and resigned to a life of loneliness. There was the one who got away but you don't get another try, do you?
Prepare for a rollercoaster ride of emotions in a book that will grab your heart, make you smile and wish you had a chimney to sweep.

Review
A Clean Sweep is a heart warming tale centred around the relationships of five women. Emily the main character is a fifty-something widow who on the outside appears to be fine on her own after the death of husband Jim, but deep down she’s looks for something to put the sparkle back in her life. Along comes Joe a thirty-something hunk who comes to sweep her chimney (yes really) and the pair just seem it to hit off. But can they actually have a relationship?

Emily’s daughter Tabitha is staring to find fault with her long-term relationship with boyfriend Tom, can they put the magic back in their relationship or is it time to call it done. Tabitha’s boss Meryl is still searching for her hero, but has she finally found someone who’s perfect for her in tall dark and handsome Miroslaw? Susan is an over weight and lonely woman who is approaching 50, she still dreams about the love she once had with Jonathon. When theirs paths cross again is it second time lucky for this pair? Emily’s sister Celeste believes she has the perfect marriage to Michael, but when a fitness tracker leads her to a hasty conclusion can she fight to get her perfect marriage back on track.

All of these women are very ordinary and experience highs and lows in their lives which many of us can relate to. This along with Audrey Davis’ fabulous comedy writing this made for an addictive and very enjoyable read. I laughed all the way through this book and can highly recommend it if your looking for something which will leave you with a smile on your face.

Everything ties up well at the end, which was good but left me a little sad as I’d love a sequel with these characters as they’d begun to feel like friends.

Thank you so much to the author for sending me a copy to review honestly, which is what I have done.


About the Author

Audrey Davis survived secondary school on the West coast of Scotland. Rubbish at science but not too bad at English, she originally wanted to be an actress but was persuaded that journalism was a safer option. Probably wise. She studied at Napier College in Edinburgh, the only place in Scotland at that time to offer a journalism course.
Her first foray into the hard-nosed newspaper world was as a junior reporter in Dumfriesshire. Duties included interviewing farmers about the prize-winning heifers to reporting on family tragedies. She persuaded her editor to let her launch an entertainment column which meant meeting the odd celebrity – or just the downright odd. From there, she moved to the loftier rank of senior reporter back in her home patch. Slightly more money, less farm animals but a higher crime rate. As Taggart would say: 'There's been a murrrrder!'

After a stint in London on a video magazine – yes, she is that old – Audrey moved to Singapore with her fiancé. She tried valiantly to embrace the stinking heat, humidity and lack of jobs, although she did work briefly on a magazine which was banned by the government for 'artistic' use of naked men's bottoms.

Next on her adventures was a land Down Under where her main focus was raising Cost Centre One (aka firstborn) and coming to terms with the imminent arrival of Number Two. Still, she loved the Aussie way of life – BBQs, beaches and bring your own booze to restaurants – so it came as a blow when OH announced a move back to the UK. Not a job between them, the climate a possible deal breaker and an Exorcist-style vomiting infant on the flight home didn't bode well …

Always a survivor, Audrey sought out similar-minded friends (i.e. slightly bonkers), got the children into a good school and thought about taking up writing again. Sadly, thinking about it was as far as she got, unless you count shopping lists. Then, hubby drops another bombshell. Switzerland. As in – it's packing time again. Off to the land of cheese, chocolate, scarily efficient trains and a couple of teeny, tiny issues. Like driving on the 'wrong' side of the road and speaking a foreign language (French). The former was conquered fairly quickly (we'll skip over the wall demolition in week two), the latter remains an ongoing battle of the hopeful against the hopeless. At least she provides amusement for the local workforce.

It wasn't until 2016 that Audrey rediscovered her writing mojo with an online Writing Fiction course. From there, her first novel – A Clean Sweep – was born, although it took a bit longer than nine months from conception. A short, darker prequel – A Clean Break – followed, and in November 2017 she published the first in a novella trilogy, The Haunting of Hattie Hastings Part One. Part Two is published on 21 March 2018, with the conclusion following in May/June. After which she might have a wee lie down …


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