A Way Back Home - Alison Sherlock

Date of Reading: 11/10/2018

Author: Alison Sherlock

Publisher: Aria

Year: 2018

Source: NetGalley

Rating: 4/5

About the book:

What happens when two lost souls find themselves? Perfect for the fans Jill Mansell and Carole Matthews.

After recent heartbreak, Skye Jackson finds herself homeless and on the road with only a classic Airstream trailer to her name. A surprise inheritance of a rundown little lodge in the grounds of beautiful Willow Tree Hall forces her to change her plans. However, there is a problem...

The lodge is co-owned by care-free, playboy Will Harris, who finds himself unemployed after a recent tabloid scandal.

Syke desperately wants a home to call her own and needs to move on as quickly as possible. Will doesn't want to stay at his family home either to face the ghosts of his past. So they decide to put aside their differences and renovate the cottage together.

But when a storm hits, Skye and Will are forced to stay on to ensure that an important wedding goes ahead. Can Skye finally find a home of her own? Can Will stop running from his past and help out his family when they need him the most?

The magic of winter at Willow Tree Hall is about to change everything...

My Review:

       This is the third instalment in the Willow Tree Hall series and the first one I am reading. Well, the other characters from previous books play a major role but that cannot be considered as a hurdle to consider this as a pretty well-written stand-alone story. Skye and Will make an ideal pair and I completely loved the ending. The Willow Tree Hall is going to be decked for some enchanting weddings here.

      Skye, with her fiercely independent spirit and amazing upcycling abilities, will capture any reader's heart. Being the eldest daughter, she takes the role to educate her younger sister as her irresponsible and reckless mother wanders around. A disturbingly selfless soul with impressive artistic talents, one could not but love her. 

     In spite of his playboy nature which effectively hides his wounded heart Will has a noble heart which is slowly unwrapped during his stay in the Hall. He is reluctant to call this his home now but Skye's rejuvenating presence triggers the healing process and there begins the journey for a happily ever after life.

     An amazing story of healing, finding love and finally being back home. An energising read with the festive spirit, wedding bells and a heartwarming end, this will surely be a good pick for winter nights.

Meet 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.

Snowflakes over Holly Cove - Lucy Coleman (Blog Tour & Giveaway)

Date of Reading: 23/10/2018

Author: Lucy Coleman

Publisher: Aria

Year: 2018

Rating: 4/5

(This review is part of the blog tour organised by Rachel's Random Resources)

About the book:

As the snowflakes start to fall, the village of Holly Cove welcomes a new tenant to the beautiful old cottage on the beach...

For lifestyle magazine journalist Tia Armstrong, relationships, as well as Christmas, have lost all their magic. Yet Tia is up against a Christmas deadline for her latest article 'Love is, actually, all around'...

So Tia heads to Holly Cove where the restorative sea air, and rugged stranger Nic, slowly but surely start mending her broken heart.

Tia didn't expect a white Christmas, and she certainly never dared dream that all her Christmas wishes might just come true...

Set in Caswell Bay on the stunningly rugged Gower Coast, the cottage nestles amid the limestone cliffs and the woodlands; the emotions run as turbulently as the wind-swept sea.

As cosy as a marshmallow-topped cup of cocoa, fall in love with a heart-warming festive story from the bestselling author of The French Adventure.

My Review:

       This book had been an unexpected pleasure. Instead of the Christmas story I have imagined, this turned out to be salty sun filled tale looking toward the warmth of Christmas and of new beginnings. Not a light-hearted romance but a poignant story of loss, heartbreak and slow mending of broken family bonds. Every word leaps out of the page and we are slowly lured into the tale until we are glued to the kindle till we reach the end. 

        For me, it had been a rather slow read as every page demanded to be savoured with due diligence and I enjoyed each moment of reading. It was soothing and comforting at best and Tia's life felt so alive. Her punctual and meticulous life made me ashamed of my exercise schedule and I have already made a decision to order my life a bit starting with taking some fitness measures. 

       The mystery surrounding Nic and Max kept the book alive throughout and the thriving community especially the presence of Olwen in the house was a welcome addition. Altogether a delightful tale of love, family and friendship that is a perfect addition to the Christmas shelf.

Meet the author:

From interior designer to an author, Linn B. Halton - who also writes under the pen name of Lucy Coleman - says ‘it’s been a fantastic journey!’

Linn is the bestselling author of more than a dozen novels and is excited to be writing for both Aria Fiction (Head of Zeus) and Harper Impulse (Harper Collins); she’s represented by Sara Keane of the Keane Kataria Literary Agency. When she’s not writing or spending time with the family, she’s either upcycling furniture or working in the garden.

Linn won the 2013 UK Festival of Romance: Innovation in Romantic Fiction award; her novels have been short-listed in the UK's Festival of Romance and the eFestival of Words Book Awards.

Living in Coed Duon in the Welsh Valleys with her ‘rock’, Lawrence, and gorgeous Bengal cat Ziggy, she freely admits she’s an eternal romantic.

Linn is a member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association and writes feel-good, uplifting novels about life, love and relationships.

Social Media Links :

https://www.facebook.com/LinnBHaltonAuthor/

https://twitter.com/LucyColemanAuthhttps://twitter.com/LinnBHalton

Giveaway - . Win a signed paperback of A Cottage in the Country and a rustic wooden heart decoration (Open Internationally)

*Terms and Conditions 

Worldwide entries welcome.  Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below.  The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then I reserve the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.  Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will be passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for the fulfilment of the prize, after which time I will delete the data.  I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.

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No One Cancels Christmas - Zara Stoneley (Blog Tour)

Date of Reading: 30/09/2018

Author: Zara Stoneley

Publisher: Harper Impulse

Publication Day: October 19,2018

Source: NetGalley

Rating: 4/5

(This review is part of the blog tour organised by Rachel's Random Resources)

About the book:

It’s the most magical time of the year, and for travel agent Sarah it’s also the busiest! But this year one man threatens to ruin Christmas for Sarah’s customers – Mr Grinch, Will Armstrong.

The Shooting Star Mountain resort is a magical place, and Sarah has fond memories of Christmas here as a little girl – visits to Father Christmas, husky rides in the snow and hot chocolate by a roaring fire. But as the resorts new owner, Will refuses to play snowball or to deck the halls with anything remotely resembling tinsel!

With customers complaining their Christmas is ruined, Sarah decides it’s up to her to convince Scroogey Will just how magical Christmas can be….

But getting Will into the Christmas spirit is hopeless – he is Bah Humbug personified! But as Sarah gets to know him better, she realises that underneath all the gloom is a man struggling with a pain of his own.

With the big day approaching, Sarah realises that the magic and sparkle can wait. This year, she’s going to spend Christmas day with someone special her very own Mr Scrooge… 

My Review:

       Considering the stir this author creates in the blogosphere whenever her books come out, I was eager to read this new festive installement. Since it is my first, there is no comparing to her other works. Some of the characters of her previous novel 'The Wedding Date' are also featured here but the book can very well be read as a standalone.

      Let me start with the cover. It is cute and simple and embraces the Christmas spirit in an easy elegance. The season of happiness, love and forgiveness is just around the corner and here we meet travel agent Sarah trying to regain the magical nature of The Shooting Star Mountain Resort. Hunky Will Armstrong proves to be a major hurdle but the place contains her last memories with her parents and Sarah can't let it go under.

      The instant chemistry between Sarah and Will can be easily perceived but one would have never guessed the secret Will harbours underneath that Mr. Grinch persona. The author's witty narrative style captures you from the first line and it is revealed to be quite a merry ride till the very end. If you need a short light romance for Christmas, this is just your pick.

Meet the author:

Born in a small village in Staffordshire, I wanted to be a female James Herriot, a spy, or an author when I grew up. After many years, and many different jobs, my dream of writing a bestseller came true.

I write about friendship, dreams, love, and happy ever afters, and hope that my tales make you cry a little, laugh a lot, and occasionally say 'ahhh'.

I now live in a Cheshire village with my family, a lively cockapoo called Harry, and a very bossy (and slightly evil) cat called Saffron.

Where you can find her,
Website: http://www.zarastoneley.com
Twitter: @ZaraStoneley
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ZaraStoneley

Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/zarastoneley/

 

Designer You - Sarahlyn Bruck (Blog Tour)

Date of Reading: 16/10/2018

Author: Sarahlyn Bruck

Publisher: Crooked Cat Books

Year: 2018

Rating: 3/5

(This review is part of the blog tour organised by Rachel's Random Resources)

About the book:

Pam and Nate were a couple who just couldn’t get away from each other, sharing not only their bed, but also a successful lifestyle empire as DIY home renovators, bloggers, podcasters, and co-authors.

When Nate dies in a freak accident, Pam becomes a 44-year-old widow, at once too young and too old—too young to be thrust into widowhood and too old to rejoin the dating pool.

Now the single mother of a headstrong and grief-stricken teenager, Pam’s life becomes a juggling act between dealing with her loss and learning how to parent by herself. On top of all that she also must reinvent herself or lose the empire that she and Nate had built so carefully.

It is time for Pam to seize the opportunity to step up as a mother, come out from behind Nate’s shadow, and rise as the sole face of the Designer You brand, and maybe, possibly, hopefully, find love again.  

My Review:

       Reading this book was a new and exciting experience and I was totally gripped by the first half. The story begins with the death of Nat who fell off accidentally from the building crushing the future prospectives of Designer You and the stability of their little family. Burdened with finishing her husband's dream jobs, Pam is more often taken away from her teenage daughter whose grief is getting her into troubles at school.

    The novel traces Pam's journey to self-discovery when she is forced to come out of the shadow of her much popular late husband. You really need to have some spare tissues ready at hand while reading as the unfortunate plight and struggles of Pam will melt any human heart.   

      But the second part was a bit disappointing for me probably because it didn't go the way I expected or wanted. And that makes it better and unique. I won't be questioning Pam's decisions. She might be a fictional character, but she doesn't have to make a choice that will appeal to the readers. A truly emotional read which will have  you thinking of your own life. 

Meet the author: 

Sarahlyn Bruck writes contemporary women's fiction and lives in Philadelphia with her husband and daughter. She is the author of DESIGNER YOU, published by Crooked Cat Books on August 31, 2018. Sarahlyn teaches writing and literature at a local community college and also coaches writers for Author Accelerator.

DESIGNER YOU is Sarahlyn's debut, and she is hard at work on her next book. Want the latest updates? Follow along for news, events, and announcements at sarahlynbruck.com. You can sign up for her monthly newsletter there, too.

Social Media Links 

Website: www.sarahlynbruck.com   

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sarahlynbruck/   

Twitter: https://twitter.com/@sarahbruck/  

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/slbruck/  

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/5803427-sarahlyn-bruck   

 

Pictures in the Sky - Amanda Paull (Promo)

About the book:

She gave up on romance years ago. He’s going through the motions. Their lives change forever when he makes contact out of the blue. 

With her daughter leaving the nest, Michelle Cameron would rather spend her time with good friends, a glass of fizzy and a box set, than with another idiot bloke chipping away at her self-esteem. But when childhood friend Daniel Helmsley gets back in touch, the years roll away on a tide of laughter and friendship, which soon gives way to another roller coaster of love, excitement and panic. Can Michelle let herself trust again? What if Dan is just another idiot bloke, disillusioned with the present and nostalgic for the past?

If you like cosy romance that makes you laugh as well as cry, then you’ll love this feel-good tale of past disappointment, renewed friendship and finding true love. 

Download Amanda Paull’s Pictures in the Sky today to discover if Michelle dares to love again.

Meet the author:

Amanda Paull is a writer of humorous romantic fiction. She lives in the North East of England with her husband and works in the public sector. The inspiration for her stories comes from real life, which she tries to show the funnier side of by embellishing to the hilt.

Amanda's Website: http://www.amandapaull.co.uk

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/Apaullfiction/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Apaullfiction

Saying Yes to the Mess - M. Kate Quinn

Date of Reading: 07/10/2018

Author: M. Kate Quinn

Publisher: Wild Rose Press

Year: 2018

Source: NetGalley 

Rating: 4.5/5

About the book:

On Rylee McDermott’s 30th birthday, she doesn’t have much to show for her life. Dumped by her sometimes boyfriend, she’s living back home with her mom and stepfather number three. But when she inherits her grandmother’s bridal shop, she is determined to make it work.

Darius Wirth, the host of TV’s business-rescue program, Wirth More, needs just the right fit for the show’s season one finale, one that will both wow their main sponsor enough to garner a second season and keep him from letting his father down again.
Rosie’s Bridals fits the criteria, and before long Darius and Rylee begin work on the episode. Sparks fly, despite the no-fraternizing clause in their contract. So it’s hands off.

But what’s a girl to do when all she wants is her hands on the guy? Can these two wounded hearts find both success and their way to love?  

My Review:

        The only complaint that I had with this book was that it got over too soon. Well, that is not exactly a negative thing. Everything has been put together nicely in the creation of a charming sweet little romance. It will tug at your heartstrings, will make you shed some happy tears and what is more, it has a perfect ending. I was curious how Darius and Rylee come around their respective hurdles and I was delighted at the way the author made it happen. I was in a state of zooming throughout. So could you blame my fragile heart for demanding more of the cute couple?

     Altogether a beautiful tale of love, parental care and acts of courage that you could finish in one sitting. Happy reading everyone!

Meet the author:

Award-winning author, M. Kate Quinn draws on her quirky sense of humour, hopelessly romantic nature, highly developed sense of family and friendship, and her love for a good story while writing her novels. Her Perennials Series began with Summer Iris (Wild Rose Press, July 2010) a Golden Quill Award finalist for Best First Book. The second, Moonlight and Violet (Wild Rose Press, June 2011) won the coveted Golden Leaf Award for Best Contemporary Novel 2011. The last in the series, Brookside Daisy (Wild Rose Press, February 2012) was a Gold Leaf Award finalist. 

Her next project, The Ronan’s Harbor Series, is a trilogy of romances set in a quaint shore town, the first instalment, Letters and Lace, released June 26, 2013. The second book in the series, Restless Spirit, is due to release summer 2014.
 

M. Kate Quinn, a life-long native of New Jersey, makes her home in Central Jersey with her husband and their magnificent Beta fish, Indigo.  

Second Chances at the Log Fire Cabin - Catherine Ferguson

Date of Reading: 06/10/2018

Author: Catherine Ferguson

Publisher: Avon

Expected Publication: November 1, 2018

Source: NetGalley 

Rating: 4.5/5

 

About the book:

 

When Roxy proposes to her boyfriend Jackson in a moment of madness on live TV, she’s mortified when he rejects her. To escape the embarrassment, she takes a job working as cookery assistant at a Christmas house party at the idyllic Log Fire Cabin. Roxy hopes the new job will take her mind off Mac, because to her eternal annoyance, she hasn’t been able to stop thinking about him…

But when Jackson turns up at the cabin in unexpected circumstances, things begin to go awry. Can Roxy heal her own heart this Christmas? Or is someone waiting in the wings to help her…?

My Review:

        How shall I put this? After a shocking start which had me thinking that the heroine is completely demented, I ended up giving it a 4.5 stars rating. It must be just October, but I am completely in a Christmas swing inside my mind and the cover was irresistible, to begin with. Then there is the title which gives out the very spirit of Christmas, the season to forgive and for second chances. And I was instantly hooked.
        As mentioned above, I was a bit judgemental on Roxy. Who in their right mind will propose a boyfriend (with whom she is not that comfortable) in live TV? Aaagh! I don't even want to imagine the humiliation of that rejection. Not a very good first impression. But as the plot thickens, we do start loving Roxy, her baking spree and caring nature earning her a lot of friends during the short span of the story. Once the skeleton in the closet is revealed to the readers, there is no turning back.
          This novel is part of a series, but I would never have realised it while reading. Poppy, who plays a major role in here is part of the first book too. And the other guests in the Log Fire Cabin makes this story amazing and complete. It is not only about Roxy but also about Poppy and Jed, Clammy and Ryan and Ruby, Gloria and Alex. Among these Ruby is my favourite; she is one grown-up lady in the body of a naughty but perceptive seventeen-year-old. On the whole, this is a wonderful festive romance that will have you eagerly waiting for the magic of December.

Meet the author:

Catherine Ferguson burst onto the writing scene at the age of nine, anonymously penning a weekly magazine for her five-year-old brother (mysteriously titled the 'Willy' comic) and fooling him completely by posting it through the letterbox every Thursday.

Catherine's continuing love of writing saw her study English at Dundee University and spend her twenties writing for various teenage magazines including Jackie and Blue Jeans and meeting pop stars. Then she got serious and worked as a sub-editor at the Dundee Courier and the Aberdeen Press & Journal before moving to Surrey and setting up her own business, Surrey Organics, delivering fresh organic produce to people's homes.

Catherine's first novel HUMBUG AND HEARTSTRINGS is very loosely based on Dickens' A CHRISTMAS CAROL and is a clever, modern tale about the price of friendship, the cost of enmity, and the value of love. Published in October 2014, it was one of the launch titles for Avon's new imprint, Maze.

She lives with her son in Northumberland.