I know, I know! I’m not taking on new blog tours, but…

Lovely Kim Nash, author of Amazing Grace, is a friend and I couldn’t resist taking part with another friend Rachel, of Rachel’s Random Resources, organising the blog tour!

Published by Hera on 10th April 2019, Amazing Grace is available for purchase on Kobo, Apple, Amazon UK and Amazon US.

Amazing Grace

She’s taking her life back, one step at a time…

Grace thought she had it all. Living in the beautiful village of Little Ollington, along with head teacher husband Mark and gorgeous son, Archie, she devoted herself to being the perfect mum and the perfect wife, her little family giving her everything she ever wanted.

Until that fateful day when she walked in on Mark kissing his secretary – and her perfect life fell apart.

Now she’s a single mum to Archie, trying to find her way in life and keep things together for his sake. Saturday nights consist of a Chinese takeaway eaten in front of the TV clad in greying pyjamas, and she can’t remember the last time she had a kiss from anyone aside from her dog, Becks…

Grace’s life needs a shake up – fast. So when gorgeous gardener Vinnie turns up on her doorstep, his twinkling eyes suggesting that he might be interested in more than just her conifers, she might just have found the answer to her prayers. But as Grace falls deeper for Vinnie, ten-year-old Archie fears that his mum finding love means she’ll never reconcile with the dad he loves.

So when ex-husband Mark begs her for another chance, telling her he’s changed from the man that broke her heart, Grace finds herself with an impossible dilemma. Should she take back Mark and reunite the family that Archie loves? Or risk it all for a new chance of happiness?

A funny, feel good romance about finding your own path and changing your life for the better – readers of Cathy Bramley, Jill Mansell and Josie Silver will love this uplifting read.

My Review of Amazing Grace

Grace balances single motherhood and her job in an estate agents with her personal hopes and dreams.

Oh what a lovely, romantic and uplifting story. I so enjoyed Amazing Grace because Kim Nash writes from the heart and understands exactly the anxieties, self-doubts and challenges all women can relate to. Grace is a universal Everywoman and it was a delight to meet her. I genuinely feel that reading Grace’s story has given me more self confidence and appreciation of my own life and I find it hard to think of any woman I know unable to find an aspect of themselves in Grace’s personality. Kim Nash manages to say exactly what every woman has thought at some point in their lives and she does it with enormous warmth, humanity and sensitivity.

I loved the way in which Kim Nash shows through Vinnie that not all men are lying, manipulative, charlatans. Mark, on the other hand, I could quite cheerfully have hit very hard with a blunt object. He made my blood boil and I thought his casual treatment of Archie was unforgivable. As for Monica – we all need a Monica in our lives! All the characters felt like real people whom any one of us might have in our lives so that reading Amazing Grace made me feel as if I belong.

There’s a smashing plot to Amazing Grace too. It made such a refreshing change to leave aside twisting psychopathic killers or high octane thrillers and read a story about an ordinary woman with an everyday lifestyle written with honesty, emotion and a considerable amount of humour! I sniggered along when Grace made a fool of herself, rejoiced when Grace stood up for herself and shed a quiet tear several times when she thought about her Mum.

Although Amazing Grace is what might be termed chicklit or a light read, there are several meaningful themes explored throughout. For example, several characters are experiencing grief, Archie is on the cusp of adolescence and isn’t always able to deal with life, Grace needs to realise she alone is responsible for her own happiness, and aspects of love, family, ambition and friendship are all presented sympathetically and authentically in a way that touches the reader’s heart.

I’m really hoping Amazing Grace isn’t the last we hear about Grace. I’d like to know what happens to her after the end of the book and I certainly don’t believe Monica has finished dishing out advice just yet! Amazing Grace is a smashing story and I really recommend it. I thought it was warm, funny and uplifting. I’m glad I’ve had it in my life.

About Kim Nash

Kim Nash lives in Staffordshire with son Ollie and English Setter Roni, is PR & Social Media Manager for Bookouture and is a book blogger at Kim The Bookworm.

Kim won the Romantic Novelists Association’s Media Star of the Year in 2016, which she still can’t quite believe. She is now quite delighted to be a member of the RNA.

When she’s not working or writing, Kim can be found walking her dog, reading, standing on the sidelines of a football pitch cheering on Ollie and binge watching box sets on the TV. She’s also quite partial to a spa day and a gin and tonic (not at the same time!) Kim also runs a book club in Cannock, Staffs.

You can find out more by finding Kim on Facebook, Instagram and following her on Twitter @KimTheBookworm.

There’s more with these other bloggers too:

My enormous thanks to the lovely folk at Harper Collins for a surprise copy of The Trouble With Rose by Amita Murray in return for an honest review.

The Trouble With Rose is available in e-book and for paperback pre-order through the publisher links here.

The Trouble With Rose

A missing sister. A broken heart.
A whole lot of trouble…

Rilla is getting married. Except she isn’t. She’s running away – from her confused fiancé Simon, her big mad family, and the memories nipping at her heels.

Her sister Rose would know what to do in such times of crisis.

But the trouble is, Rose is the crisis. She disappeared years ago, and Rilla’s heart went missing too.

Where is Rose? And who is Rilla without Rose?

If she’s to rescue some happiness out of all this chaos, she needs to find out.

My Review of The Trouble With Rose

Rilla is about to marry Simon, but events may not go according to plan.

I have a confession. I wasn’t especially interested in reading The Trouble With Rose and the only reason I did read it was because it was quite physically light and I needed to reduce the weight of books in my suitcase on a recent holiday! This ridiculous attitude just goes to show how wrong a person can be. I absolutely loved Amita Murray’s funny, touching narrative with a family mystery at its centre.

The Trouble With Rose is plotted perfectly so that whilst Rose’s absence is at the heart of the action, her presence is felt through every facet of Rilla’s life and personality. I was as desperate to know what happened to Rose as was Rilla.

Amita Murray writes in a style that is effortless to read. This isn’t to say it is lightweight or superficial but rather that at times her descriptions are beautifully wrought and her ability to convey Rilla’s feelings and emotions through the first person narrative is faultless. It felt as if Rilla was my friend and was speaking directly to me. There is also a sparkling wit, especially in the passages relating to Rilla’s extended family that made me laugh aloud with recognition at times.

I thought Rilla was a triumph. With Rose gone her feelings of stasis and guilt render her unable to fulfil her potential. As the totally apt cover suggests, Rilla is unbalanced and without Rose feels incomplete. At times she is her own worse enemy which makes her even more realistic and endearing.

Whilst The Trouble With Rose can be enjoyed as a highly entertaining light read, Amita Murray has woven in wonderful themes of identity, ethnicity, family, relationships, guilt and love so that there is real depth for those wanting it too. I thought it was a perfect read.

Having begun relatively disinterested in reading The Trouble With Rose, I have finished the book feeling thoroughly entertained, emotionally engaged and desperate to know what happens next in Rilla’s life. This is a totally smashing book from Amita Murray that I really recommend. I loved it.

About Amita Murray

Amita Murray has worked as a dancer, arts writer, fashion editor, seller of Christmas flowers, PR assistant for supercomputers, counsellor for a jobs website and hen party host. She was working as an academic when she did what you’re never supposed to do – she left her day job to try to become a novelist.

Even when she tries to write serious stuff, it tends to come out a bit funny, so she tries not to write about serial killers. She loves chocolate, dysfunctional families, and world peace. She blogs for the Huffington Post. Her short stories have been published in Brand, Inkspill, Front View, and other platforms.

You can follow Amita on Twitter @AmitaMurray and visit her blog for further information.

I so enjoyed Gill Sims’ Why Mummy Drinks, reviewed here, that I was delighted to be given the chance to read Why Mummy Swears and would like to thank the publishers for the opportunity.

Published by Harper Collins, Why Mummy Swears is available for purchase in all formats through these links.

Why Mummy Swears

Monday, 25 July
The first day of the holidays. I suppose it could’ve been worse. I brightly announced that perhaps it might be a lovely idea to go to a stately home and learn about some history. As soon as we got there I remembered why I don’t use the flipping National Trust membership – because National Trust properties are full of very precious and breakable items, and very precious and breakable items don’t really mix with children, especially not small boys. 
Where I had envisaged childish faces glowing with wonder as they took in the treasures of our nation’s illustrious past, we instead had me shouting ‘Don’t touch, DON’T TOUCH, FFS DON’T TOUCH!” while stoutly shod pensioners tutted disapprovingly and drafted angry letters to the Daily Mail in their heads.
How many more days of the holiday are there?

Welcome to Mummy’s world…

The Boy Child Peter is connected to his iPad by an umbilical cord, The Girl Child Jane is desperate to make her fortune as an Instagram lifestyle influencer, while Daddy is constantly off on exotic business trips…

Mummy’s marriage is feeling the strain, her kids are running wild and the house is steadily developing a forest of mould. Only Judgy, the Proud and Noble Terrier, remains loyal as always.

Mummy has also found herself a new challenge, working for a hot new tech start-up. But not only is she worrying if, at forty-two, she could actually get up off a bean bag with dignity, she’s also somehow (accidentally) rebranded herself as a single party girl who works hard, plays hard and doesn’t have to run out when the nanny calls in sick.

Can Mummy keep up the facade while keeping her family afloat? Can she really get away with wearing ‘comfy trousers’ to work? And, more importantly, can she find the time to pour herself a large G+T?

Probably effing not.

My Review of Why Mummy Swears

Ellen Russell’s moppets, Peter and Jane, are growing up, but life hasn’t changed much!

Oh dear. I really shouldn’t read Gill Sims in public places as I am in danger of getting myself arrested or sectioned. People tend to look askance when you’re literally crying with laughter and, just like Why Mummy Drinks, Why Mummy Swears reduced me to a giggling, snorting heap so that I couldn’t read on because of the tears of laughter in my eyes. Once again my own long suffering version of Simon had to wait patiently whilst I pulled myself together enough to read him the passage that had just had me sniggering like a lunatic. It doesn’t matter at all if a reader hasn’t previously encountered Ellen’s life in Why Mummy Drinks before reading Why Mummy Swears because the references to the first book are seamlessly woven into this story.

Gill Sims understands family, marriage and parenting dynamics completely and through Ellen’s comments is able to present what all of us might have felt or experienced at some point. The first person narrative made me wish I could meet Ellen and talk through some of her ideas, thoughts and opinions with her. At times I felt she had looked inside my mind and then articulated my thoughts far more eloquently than I could ever have managed. Although I don’t have children, I found Ellen’s honest descriptions of Peter and Jane and her relationship with them truly entertaining.

Why Mummy Swears has a sparkling wit and a fast pace through the different dated entries as a complete year in Ellen’s life passes. Very frequently Ellen uses dreadful language (the clue is in the title) but not once does it feel inappropriate because it is the basis of so much humour as well as the result of her frustration which makes her so very human and believable.

Whilst Why Mummy Swears can be enjoyed (and my goodness I enjoyed it) as a very funny and entertaining read, Gill Sim’s consideration of the role of women in the home and work place is clever and thought provoking. She skilfully reveals the way sexist attitudes from both men and women perpetuate and I’d love to see both genders reading this book and pondering how they might respond in the different scenarios.

I loved Why Mummy Swears. Making me laugh aloud is no easy task and Gill Sims did it splendidly.

About Gill Simms

Gill Sims is the author and illustrator of the hugely successful parenting blog and Facebook site ‘Peter and Jane’. She lives in Scotland with her husband, two children and a recalcitrant rescue Border Terrier, who rules the house. Gill’s interests include drinking wine, wasting time on social media, trying and failing to recapture her lost youth and looking for the dog when he decides to go on one of his regular jaunts.

You’ll find Gill on Twitter @whymummydrinks, and can visit Gill’s Peter and Jane Facebook page or read her blog.

When I began blogging in 2015, Dinah Jefferies’ The Tea Planter’s Wife was one of my books of the year and you can read my review (and see just how much the blog has evolved!) here.

Since then I have been privileged to interview Dinah here about Before The Rains and to review The Silk Merchant’s Daughter here and The Sapphire Widow here. I’ve loved every word so when I saw Dinah’s latest book, The Missing Sister, was available on Netgalley I broke my own self-imposed ban and requested it. My grateful thanks to the folk at Penguin for approving me to read it!

The Missing Sister was published by Penguin on 21st March and is available for purchase through these links.

The Missing Sister

Belle Hatton has embarked upon an exciting new life far from home: a glamorous job as a nightclub singer in 1930s Burma, with a host of sophisticated new friends and admirers. But Belle is haunted by a mystery from the past – a 25 year old newspaper clipping found in her parents’ belongings after their death, saying that the Hattons were leaving Rangoon after the disappearance of their baby daughter, Elvira.

Belle is desperate to find out what happened to the sister she never knew she had – but when she starts asking questions, she is confronted with unsettling rumours, malicious gossip, and outright threats. Oliver, an attractive, easy-going American journalist, promises to help her, but an anonymous note tells her not to trust those closest to her. . .

Belle survives riots, intruders, and bomb attacks – but nothing will stop her in her mission to uncover the truth. Can she trust her growing feelings for Oliver? Is her sister really dead? And could there be a chance Belle might find her?

My Review of The Missing Sister

Belle’s new job in Burma will change her life forever.

Settling down to read one of Dinah Jefferies books is always a real pleasure and The Missing Sister was no exception.

As always, I was completely transported to the setting. I can think of very few other writers who convey a sense of place more beautifully or accurately through their descriptions. The scents and sounds of Rangoon, the noise of the markets and so on are all so perfectly created. I love that area of the world and every time I read a Dinah Jefferies book it feels as if I’m actually there.

However, what I found fascinating this time was that in The Missing Sister there is a darker and more menacing feel than in the previous Dinah Jefferies books I have read and I thoroughly enjoyed this slight change. There’s an underlying threat and a real sense of mystery throughout as Bell has no real idea who she can trust as she tries to find her missing sister. Some of the events that take place have a sharper and more political edge than I’m used to with Dinah Jefferies’ writing and I thought they were enthralling. The plot twists and turns whilst exploring themes that are relevant to today’s word as well as the 1920-30s of the narrative.

Themes of corruption, racism, social hierarchy, religion, superstition and mental health meld seamlessly with romance, history and geography so that I felt The Missing Sister was a brilliantly rounded novel full of suspense and interest that held me in its thrall.

I loved the characterisation too. Although the exciting narrative revolves around Belle who is vivid and feisty, it was Diana who gained my sympathy most. I simply couldn’t forgive Douglas for his behaviour towards her, regardless of his motives. I thought the way Dinah Jefferies balanced Dinah’s story with Belle’s was poised to perfection and the manner in which the men underpin the action, but never overly dominate it, made the book feel well balanced and hugely satisfying to read.

The Missing Sister is another triumph from Dinah Jefferies. It’s emotive, transporting and engaging. Above all else, it’s a hugely entertaining story too. I recommend curling up with it and reading it in one go. You won’t regret it!

About Dinah Jefferies

Dinah Jefferies was born in Malaysia and moved to England at the age of nine. Her idyllic childhood always held a special place in her imagination, and when she began writing novels in her 60s, she was able to return there – first in her fiction and then on annual research trips for each new novel.

Dinah Jefferies is the author of the novels, The Separation, The Tea Planter’s Wife – a Number One Sunday Times bestseller, The Silk Merchant’s Daughter and Before the Rains. She lives in Gloucestershire

You can follow Dinah Jefferies on Twitter @DinahJefferies and visit her web site. You’ll also find Dinah on Facebook.

I was privileged to meet Emily Gunnis, author of The Girl in the Letter, along with several other authors at a RoofTopBookClub event earlier this year. You can read about that evening here. I was lucky enough to receive a copy of The Girl in the Letter at that event and then the lovely folk at TeamBookends sent me another in return for an honest review and I am delighted that I finally got round to reading it on my recent holiday.

The Girl in the Letter was published by Headline Review in paperback on 4th April and is available for purchase in all formats through the links here.

The Girl in the Letter

A heartbreaking letter. A girl locked away. A mystery to be solved.

1956. When Ivy Jenkins falls pregnant she is sent in disgrace to St Margaret’s, a dark, brooding house for unmarried mothers. Her baby is adopted against her will. Ivy will never leave.

Present day. Samantha Harper is a journalist desperate for a break. When she stumbles on a letter from the past, the contents shock and move her. The letter is from a young mother, begging to be rescued from St Margaret’s. Before it is too late.

Sam is pulled into the tragic story and discovers a spate of unexplained deaths surrounding the woman and her child. With St Margaret’s set for demolition, Sam has only hours to piece together a sixty-year-old mystery before the truth, which lies disturbingly close to home, is lost for ever…

Read her letter. Remember her story…

My Review of The Girl in the Letter

A letter leads to a mystery for Sam.

I was fortunate to read The Girl in the Letter in one sitting on a long haul flight because it’s such an interesting and compelling narrative that it deserves concentrated and complete attention.

The Girl in the Letter is a magnificent story, filled with pain, genuine cruelty and a scarily plausible setting of St Margaret’s home for unmarried mothers. So well researched, many of the events are terrifyingly shocking and I felt unnerved and angry as I read.

The Girl in the Letter was not quite what I was expecting. I had anticipated a light, albeit emotional and touching story, but I hadn’t reckoned on quite such a roller coaster read of exciting plot, enmeshed narrative strands and fast paced story telling. I was completely captivated from start to finish.

The setting of St Margaret’s, and indeed, the competitive and pressured newsroom in which Sam works, both have a wonderful level of authenticity so that it easy to picture the scenes in my mind.

I loved the skilful characterisation. Emily Gunnis understands the complexity of personality and identity and how humans crave love and recognition. She writes so effectively that she has the ability to draw in the reader so that they are no longer merely reading a narrative, but they are finding out about real people who matter to them.

What I found so fascinating about the characterisation in The Girl in the Letter was that although Sam is the conduit through whom all the action is brought together, I didn’t find her as fascinating as the other characters. I think this is because even the most secondary people in the story are plausible and sadly familiar from scandals in recent history. I can imagine The Girl in the Letter might make uncomfortable reading for some!

I loved The Girl in the Letter. Emily Gunnis transported me to another time and place so utterly brilliantly that I felt part of the action. My emotions were not my own as I read. I thoroughly recommend The Girl in the Letter. It’s a cracking read.

About Emily Gunnis

Emily Gunnis previously worked in TV drama and lives in Brighton with her young family. She is one of the four daughters of Sunday Times bestselling author Penny Vincenzi.

You can follow Emily on Twitter @EmilyGunnis, Instagram and Facebook.

My enormously grateful thanks to lovely friend and publicist Katherine Sunderland at No Exit Press for a surprise copy The Conviction of Cora Burns by Carolyn Kirby in return for an honest review.

The Conviction of Cora Burns was published by No Exit on 21st March 2019 and is available for purchase through these links.

The Conviction of Cora Burns

To believe in her future, she must uncover her past…

Birmingham, 1885.

Born in a gaol and raised in a workhouse, Cora Burns has always struggled to control the violence inside her.

Haunted by memories of a terrible crime, she seeks a new life working as a servant in the house of scientist Thomas Jerwood. Here, Cora befriends a young girl, Violet, who seems to be the subject of a living experiment. But is Jerwood also secretly studying Cora…?

My Review of The Conviction of Cora Burns

A prison photograph will lead to all manner of new elements in Cora’s life.

Wow! I absolutely adored The Conviction of Cora Burns. It is historical fiction at its most perfect. Carolyn Kirby transports the reader back to the Birmingham area of the 1880s without missing a beat or putting a foot wrong. I cannot begin to imagine the hours and hours if research that must have gone in to creating such a clear and accurate historical, scientific and sociological narrative. The tone is absolutely fitting for this twisting, absorbing and brilliant story.

The debate between nature and nurture and the gradual unfolding of Cora’s personality and identity held me spellbound. Her search for Alice Salt, her passionate nature and her ability to deal with the kind of adversity that was all too prevalent in the era make Cora one of the most intriguing and enthralling characters I’ve encountered in fiction. She is flawed, clever, spiteful, manipulative, honest and scheming so that I was fascinated by her. I loved the multiple meanings relating to her as a person in the title. She is convicted of a crime, she has the conviction that she will discover Alice, she has the conviction of her own decisions and the conviction that she can affect her future. Now I’ve finished reading The Conviction of Cora Burns I don’t want to leave her behind. I want to meet her in real life and speak with her further about her life and what happened beyond the book, so vivid and real a person she became to me.

The plot is a stunner! There are so many wonderfully wrought layers that I simply want to turn back to the beginning and read the book again. Being married to a scientist and photographer I found those aspects of the plot mesmerising, but even better were the philosophical and sociological threads of this superb historical novel. Carolyn Burns deserves all the plaudits and all the awards possible for a debut writer. The Conviction of Cora Burns is an absolute triumph and is a fascinating story I won’t forget for a very long time.

Put simply, this book has resonated with my reader soul completely. Carolyn Kirby has created a world I don’t want to leave. I think The Conviction of Cora Burns is an absolute triumph and I hope it is the huge success it deserves to be.

About Carolyn Kirby

Carolyn Kirby’s debut novel The Conviction of Cora Burns was begun on a writing course at Faber Academy and went on to win the Bluepencilagency Award for unpublished novels. Published in March 2019 by No Exit Press in the UK and Dzanc Books in North America, the novel has been getting praise from reviewers and journalists. The Sunday Mirror called it; ‘A great historical novel with bite,’ and it was chosen by The Times as an historical fiction book of the month.

Before being a full-time writer, Carolyn worked in social housing and as a teacher. She has two grown-up daughters and lives with her husband in Oxfordshire.

You can follow Carolyn on Twitter @novelcarolyn and Facebook.

I so enjoyed Widdershins by Helen Steadman, reviewed here, that when a copy of the sequel Sunwise arrived from the lovely folk at Impress Books in return for an honest review, I was genuinely delighted.

Sunwise was published by Impress on 1st April 2019 and is available for purchase here.

Sunwise

The sequel to Helen Steadman’s Widdershins, when Jane’s lover, Tom, returns from the navy to find her unhappily married to his betrayer, Jane is caught in an impossible situation.

Still reeling from the loss of her mother at the hands of the witch-finder John Sharpe, Jane has no choice but to continue her dangerous work as a healer while keeping her young daughter safe.

But, as Tom searches for a way for him and Jane to be together, the witch-finder is still at large.

Filled with vengeance, John will stop at nothing in his quest to rid England of the scourge of witchcraft. Inspired by true events, Sunwise tells the story of one woman s struggle for survival in a hostile and superstitious world.

My Review of Sunwise

Witch finder John Sharpe is back to rid the world of his perceived evil.

Having so enjoyed the fabulous Widdershins by Helen Steadman, I knew I was in for a treat with Sunwise and I wasn’t disappointed. There’s a glorious and frequently harrowing intensity to Helen Steadman’s narrative style, coupled with a vibrant historical accuracy that hypnotises the reader and transports them to a world of superstition, tradition, religion and persecution. I cannot begin to express just how authentically accurate Sunwise is, or to comprehend the level of diligence and research that must have gone in to its creation. This is a marvelous example of historical fiction.

I thought the plotting of the novel, with alternate chapters given to John Sharpe and Jane Driver exemplified perfectly the balance of good and evil, religion and superstition, women and men. Sunwise presents a seventeenth century world as vividly as if the reader is experiencing it first hand and yet with themes that are as fresh and relevant to today’s century – from abuse to corruption, greed to love. It’s impossible not to be drawn into the events because of the fabulous quality of Helen Steadman’s writing.

The fervour of John’s obsessive religious viciousness is thoroughly terrifying, and he’s a character I could hardly bear to read whilst simultaneously being unable to avert my eyes. He brought out the very worst in my personality and I wished him personal pain and suffering with a passion that made me feel quite uncomfortable.

Conversely, Jane enhanced all that is good and positive in the face of adversity. I desperately wanted her to have a happy ending and you’ll have to read the book yourself to find out if my wishes were fulfilled!

If you love historical fiction that is authentic, fascinating and compelling with characters that thrum with life then look no further than Sunwise. Helen Steadman has established herself as a brilliant writer with the power to be as spellbinding as any of the witches John Sharpe is hunting. I thought Sunwise was brilliant and connot recommend it highly enough.

About Helen Steadman

Helen Steadman lives in the foothills of the North Pennines, and she particularly enjoys researching and writing about the history of the north east of England. Following her MA in creative writing at Manchester Met, Helen is now completing a PhD in English at the University of Aberdeen. When she’s not studying or writing, Helen critiques, edits and proofreads other writers’ work, and she is a professional member of the Society for Editors and Proofreaders.

You can follow Helen on Twitter @hsteadman1650 and visit her website. You’ll also find her on Facebook.

My enormous thanks to Hayley Barnes at Penguin Random House for sending me a surprise copy of Lauren North’s The Perfect Betrayal in return for an honest review.

Published by Penguin imprint Corgi, The Perfect Betrayal is already available in e-book and for pre-order in paperback through the publisher links.

The Perfect Betrayal

After the sudden death of her husband, Tess is drowning in grief. All she has left is her son, Jamie, and she’ll do anything to protect him – but she’s struggling to cope.

When grief counsellor Shelley knocks on their door, everything changes. Shelley is beautiful, confident and takes control when Tess can’t bear to face the outside world.

But when questions arise over her husband’s death and strange things start to happen, Tess begins to suspect that Shelley may have an ulterior motive. Tess knows she must do everything she can to keep Jamie safe – but who can she trust?

My Review of The Perfect Betrayal

Tess’s grief is all consuming following the death of her husband.

It’s always an anxious moment when you begin reading a new book by an author you know personally, like enormously and count as a friend. I’ve so enjoyed Lauren North’s women’s fiction as writer Laurie Ellingham that I wondered whether a new name and genre would work. Let me tell you, it most certainly does.

I thought The Perfect Betrayal was excellent. I had all the plot completely worked out, knew exactly what was happening to Tess and who was to blame – except, of course, I didn’t! I was brilliantly wrong footed by the deft plotting and clever writing, so that I was genuinely surprised and moved by Lauren North’s writing. I loved the time frame building from Mark’s death to Jamie’s birthday, juxtaposed against other elements that I won’t say too much about for fear of spoiling the story. I found The Perfect Betrayal both intelligently written and fascinating to read.

Aside from the fast paced and captivating plot, so many aspects of The Perfect Betrayal give depth to the story and enormous satisfaction to the reader. Tess’s grief, her relationships with those around her, and her terror as events escalate, weave an enthralling narrative. I think it is the attention to detail, frequently through Lauren North’s skilful appeal to the senses, that really brings the story alive. Coupled with a claustrophobic and condensed cast of characters, there’s a palpable tension here that gets the pulse racing and heart beat elevated.

I thought Tess was a brilliant creation. The balance between her grief and frailty and her strength and determination made her only too real a person, so that I experienced her emotions with her in quite a profound manner. I found both Ian and Shelley very disturbing individuals and trusted neither but you’ll have to read the book to find out whether I was right about them.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Perfect Betrayal. I genuinely believe Lauren North has shown that she can turn her hand to any genre with cracking success. This is a super book because the reader is manipulated by the story telling until they are as unsure what to believe as is Tess. The Perfect Betrayal is intriguing, entertaining and oh so satisfying to read. I really recommend it!

About Lauren North

Lauren North writes psychological suspense novels that delve into the darker side of relationships and families. She has a lifelong passion for writing, reading, and all things books. Lauren’s love of psychological suspense has grown since childhood and from her dark imagination of always wondering what’s the worst thing that could happen in every situation. Lauren studied psychology before moving to London where she lived and worked for many years. She now lives with her family in the Suffolk countryside.

You can follow Lauren on Twitter @Lauren_C_North and find her on Facebook.

My enormous thanks to the Choc Lit and Ruby Fiction team for sending me a copy of Spring at Taigh Fallon by Kirsty Ferry in return for an honest review. I’ve previously had the pleasure of ‘staying in’ with Kirsty Ferry here on Linda’s Book Bag when we chatted all about The Girl in the Photograph in a post you can read here. Today I’m delighted to be reviewing one of Kirsty’s books.

Spring at Taigh Fallon was published by Choc Lit on 19th February and is available for purchase through the links here.

Spring at Taigh Fallon

When Angel Tempest finds out that her best friend Zac has inherited a Scottish mansion, Taigh Fallon, from his great aunt, she immediately offers to go and visit it with him. It will mean closing up her jet jewellery shop in Whitby for a few days but the prospect of a spring trip to the Scottish Highlands is too tempting.

Then Kyle, Zac’s estranged and slightly grumpy Canadian cousin, unexpectedly turns up at Taigh Fallon, and events take a strange turn as the long-kept secrets of the old house begin to reveal themselves …

My Review of Spring at Taigh Fallon

Angel and Zac have been friends for years.

Now, I’ve heard such good things about Kirsty Ferry from other bloggers so I was looking forward to reading Spring at Taigh Fallon and it certainly lived up to my expectations.

I thought Kirsty Ferry had done a magnificent job in blending the two time frames for her story with the house, Taigh Fallon, at the centre. The two eras melded together so well with echoes of the past reverberating in the present. There’s just enough supernatural ghostliness to be credible and provide a frisson of excitement without straying into the realms of the ridiculous so that, although this isn’t my usual choice of genre, Kirsty Ferry held my attention completely and entertained me royally.

Similarly, the romantic relationships in the narrative felt totally real and believable. I was captivated by both Zac and Kyle and would rather have liked a romantic interlude with either of them. Angel Tempest, however, steals the show. She’s stubborn, flawed and impetuous – just as any romantic heroine should be. I loved the fact that she’s a strong Whitby Goth rather than a simpering blond haired fragile female in need of a man to take care of her. I’m not usually overly fond of children but Grace worked well for me here and afforded Kyle the right opportunity to reveal his true nature so that the characters in Spring at Taigh Fallon felt human and warm to me.

I also thoroughly appreciated the iterative image of The Lady of Shalott that runs through the story with the tower, mirror and superstitions of the setting. It added a smashing layer of satisfaction to the read.

I thought Spring at Taigh Fallon was a perfect grown up romantic fairy tale for adults and can’t wait to read about the other Tempest sisters. I found it romantic without being slushy, well plotted and enormously entertaining. I’m only sorry it has taken me so long to discover Kirsty Ferry’s lovely writing first hand.

About Kirsty Ferry

Kirsty Ferry is from the North East of England and lives there with her husband and son. She won the English Heritage/Belsay Hall National Creative Writing competition in 2009 and has had articles and short stories published in Peoples Friend, The Weekly News, It’s Fate, Vintage Script, Ghost Voices and First Edition. Her work also appears in several anthologies, incorporating such diverse themes as vampires, crime, angels and more.

Kirsty loves writing ghostly mysteries and interweaving fact and fiction. The research is almost as much fun as writing the book itself, and if she can add a wonderful setting and a dollop of history, that’s even better.

Her day job involves sharing a building with an eclectic collection of ghosts, which can often prove rather interesting.

You can follow Kirsty on Twitter @Kirsty_Ferry You’ll also find Kirsty on Facebook. Kirsty has a super site here too.

It seems ages since I last saw wonderful writer Amanda Jennings at the #HQCrimeStories evening. I wrote about that event here.  Today I’m thrilled to be sharing my review of Amanda’s The Cliff House which I read recently on holiday. My enormous thanks to the team at HQ for sending me a surprise copy in return for an honest review.

Published by Harper Collins’ HQ imprint, The Cliff House is available for purchase through these links.

The Cliff House

Some friendships are made to be broken

Cornwall, summer of 1986.

The Davenports, with their fast cars and glamorous clothes, living the dream in a breathtaking house overlooking the sea.

If only… thinks sixteen-year-old Tamsyn, her binoculars trained on the perfect family in their perfect home.

If only her life was as perfect as theirs.

If only Edie Davenport would be her friend.

If only she lived at The Cliff House…

My Review of The Cliff House

Tamsyn is obsessed with the cliff house, but all may not be as perfect there as it first appears.

Oh my goodness, I loved this book. There’s a languid beauty to the writing in The Cliff House. It is atmospheric, claustrophobic and with an underlying tension and menace. There’s such a perfect Gatsbyesque feel that I’m sure F.Scott Fitzgerald would be jealous that he didn’t also write The Cliff House. Amanda Jennings has created a vivid and haunting portrait of passion in all its forms and the devastating outcomes when passion consumes or fades.

The plot is poised, balanced and measured alongside the silky quality of the writing so that it hypnotises and mesmerises the reader. There are exciting events that occur, which I don’t want to say too much about because I don’t want to spoil the story for others, but for me the success of The Cliff House is the exploration of love, menace, deception and perception. Amanda Jennings understands human nature perfectly and illustrates that none of us is as we might superficially or initially appear, so that there’s a complexity to what people do in The Cliff House and why they do it, that I found utterly irresistible.

I adored the restricted palette of characters because Amanda Jennings creates a depth to every one, including the cliff house itself, that is astounding. The capacity for self-deception she exemplifies in them all is sublime. Whilst Tamsyn is the conduit for the narrative, she is complemented by all the others too. Each is guilty, each loves with a manic and destructive intensity and each of the characters is vivid, vibrant and terrifyingly real. Even now I can decide if I loathe or pity Eleanor, if I blame Rob for being the catalyst for the action or if I feel Tamsyn is a bruised innocent or an obsessed lunatic. I loved all the characters, but especially Cornwall with her capricious nature, her fickle seas and her superstitions that permeate the story.

Indeed, in The Cliff House, the setting is fantastic. Amanda Jennings creates a feeling of Cornwall’s isolation and the glass cage that is the cliff house to perfection. I was completely transported to Cornwall’s coastline when reading this book.

This is a book of dark secrets, desperate longings, beautiful settings and wonderful storytelling. I cannot recommend The Cliff House highly enough. I loved it.

About Amanda Jennings

Amanda Jennings writes psychological suspense and is the author of Sworn Secret, The Judas Scar, In Her Wake, and, most recently, The Cliff House. Her books have been published in translation. Like In Her Wake, The Cliff House is set in Cornwall, where her mother’s side of the family is from, and where she spent many long and very happy childhood summers.

Amanda is a regular guest on BBC Berkshire’s weekly Book Club and enjoys meeting readers at libraries, book clubs and literary festivals. Amanda lives just outside Henley-on-Thames with her husband, three daughters and an unruly menagerie of pets, and is currently writing her fifth book which will be published in 2019.

You can find Amanda on Twitter @MandaJJennings, Facebook and Instagram. There’s more information on her website too.