🌞 Summer Reading ~ The Hollywood Runaway by Alexandra Weston

Boldwood
30 August 2025

Thanks to the publisher for my copy of this novella to review

Liverpool, September 1932.

Miner's daughter Olivia Swift believed her future was clear-cut: a steady husband, a home, and a family of her own one day. But when a shocking secret shatters her wedding plans, Olivia makes a desperate, irreversible choice. With a one-way ticket to America, she abandons everything familiar for a terrifying unknown.

Far from England and her family, Olivia is adrift in a strange new world, the promise of excitement overshadowed by a growing dread. Can this runaway forge a new life from the ashes of her old one, or will her American dream remain just out of reach?

A reckless journey of escape...or a chance to start living again?

🌞My Review..

Having a narrow escape from an ill fated marriage night club singer, Olivia Swift makes a hasty decision to leave Liverpool on a one way ticket to America. Gradually over the 5 day voyage we learn more about Olivia, the fiancé she left behind and her growing friendship with two of her fellow passengers.

This is an ideal summery sort of read and coming in at just 131 pages, it’s great escapism for a sunny afternoon by the pool or in the garden. The author captures the excitement of a long sea voyage and introduces us to the unpredictable world of the night club singer in 1930s.  Olivia, and her friends, are all off to make a fresh start in a new world and this heady excitement is captured really well. 

Small, but perfectly formed, The Hollywood Runaway compliments the other books in this enjoyable golden age of Hollywood series by this talented writer of historical fiction.

About the Author

Alexandra Weston writes historical fiction. She has a MA in Creative Writing from York St John University. She has a lifelong passion for history and loves visiting stately homes, museums and old churches. She also writes fantasy as Alys West. She lives with her partner and a ginger cat called Wilf in East Yorkshire. She sings with her local community choir and loves live music, hanging out in bookshops and eating cake.

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📖 Book Review ~ Into the Fire by G D Wright

Avon
5 June 2025

Thanks the publisher for my copy of this book to review

HE RUNS INTO THE FLAMES A HERO.

Steve thought he had left his troubled past behind. Living a quiet life with his wife and children, everything changes the night he rescues a baby from a burning house, becoming an unexpected national hero.

HE EMERGES FROM THE ASHES A SUSPECT.

But as the spotlight shines brighter, so does the scrutiny, and a shocking accusation is made – that Steve is the man responsible for an unsolved murder in Beachbrook years prior.

BUT WHICH ONE IS HE REALLY?

As his world unravels, public opinion is firmly divided. Steve pleads his innocence, but DS Sue Willmott is determined to get to the bottom of what really happened all those years ago.

After all, even heroes hide secrets of their own.

📖My Review..

Most of us would never even consider running into a burning house but that’s exactly what Steve Minchin does without any consideration for his own safety, his only objective to save lives.  Hailed a local hero for saving the life of a baby Steve is the object of much media interest however the glare of publicity pays it price and soon events start to spiral and hidden secrets from Steve’s past start to surface, with public opinion once again intruding into his and his family’s life.

I thought this was a really well thought out story and Steve is such an interesting character so that when his life starts to unravel I felt immense sympathy for him, however, his past is such that once his secrets are exposed there is really no turning back for him and a roller coaster of events starts a downward spiral. The author writes these human interest stories with fine attention to detail, drawing on his police background to get the nitty-gritty of the procedure parts of the story spot on. I raced through the book and at over 400 pages that takes some commitment but such is the strength of the story that I found that I wanted to find out just what secrets Steve had carried within him for twenty years and what the outcome would be. There’s a shocking twist I didn’t see coming which made me stop and consider the whole business of nature over nurture and a couple of characters who I really got to dislike but all credit to the author for making the whole thing seem incredibly relatable.

Into the Fire is another well written and gripping story from an author who really knows how to grab the reader’s attention. I’m looking forward to reading more from this talented writer.

About the Author

Gary Wright joined Kent Police at the age of 18 and worked in a variety of uniformed roles. At the age of 29 and completely out of the blue, he suffered two cardiac arrests that led to the diagnosis of a life limiting and incurable disease of the heart. He was unable to continue policing and retired at the age of thirty. He bought a coffee shop in Ramsgate Harbour, and spent years looking out over the sea and dreaming up stories. He now writes full time, committing those very stories to paper.

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📖 Book Review ~ The Lucky Winners by K L Slater

Michael Joseph
14 August 2025

Thanks to the publisher for the opportunity to review this book

 

When Merri and Dev buy a ticket on the last day of a national draw to win the house of their dreams, they never, in a million years, expect to win.

Less than a week later, they’re receiving the keys to their new Lake District mansion.

For Dev, it’s a dream come true – no more stressful rent negotiations, or waiting for the landlord to finally fix the damp. Of course he’s delighted to be interviewed about their good luck.

But Merri feels a little uneasy. Dev doesn’t realise there’s a reason she’s never wanted to put down roots, always trying to run away from the memories of what happened the day her little sister died.

At first it’s easy to think she’s imagining the shadowy figures in the lakefront garden. It’s silly to think that someone is watching her through the gorgeous floor-to-ceiling glass windows.

And then a body is found in the lake. And Merri’s new perfect life is about to come crashing down..

📖 My Review..

We’ve seen the adverts on television enticing us to purchase a ticket for the chance to win a dream house in an idyllic landscape. When Dev purchases such a ticket as an anniversary gift for his wife he does so with no thought of actually winning but fate has a fickle way of interfering in lives and to their surprise Dev and Merri do win the dream house in the Lake District however, as they discover, to their cost, that all is not as it seems in this dream paradise.

The author has done a great job of exploring the pitfalls of moving into a property which doesn’t feel remotely like home and with a local community who are both resentful and suspicious of Ben and Merri’s good fortune. All credit to Dev and Merri they really do try to settle in but with secrets from Merri’s past threatening to spill into her new life there is a deep sense of unease which gains momentum as this complex story moves forward. The author has done a great job of building up the tension and introducing characters who are intent on their own agenda. I enjoyed the sections which explained Merri’s backstory which added a different dynamic to what is an effective psychological thriller.

About the Author

Kim is the number one bestselling author of sixteen psychological crime thrillers. She has sold over two million copies of her books worldwide. She has also written four Carnegie-nominated Young Adult novels as Kim Slater for Macmillan Children’s Books. Kim has an MA in Creative Writing and lives with her husband in a small Nottinghamshire village.

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📖 Book Review ~ Our Last Wild Days by Anna Bailey

Penguin Random House/ Transworld
25 April 2025

My thanks to the publisher for my copy if this book to review

 

The Labasques aren’t like other families. Living in a shack out in the swamps, they scrape a living hunting down alligators and other animals just to get by. To the good people of Jacknife, Louisiana, they are trouble-makers, outcasts, the kind of people you wouldn’t want living on your doorstep. So when Cutter Labasque is found face down in the muddy swamp, no one seems to care, not even her two rough-cut brothers. The only person who questions the official verdict of suicide is Cutter’s childhood friend, Loyal May, who has just returned home to care for her ageing mother. Loyal left town at the age of 18, having betrayed Cutter. Now there may be no way to find forgiveness, but there may be restitution…

📖 My Review…

The Labasque siblings eke out a meagre living hunting alligators in the muddy swamps of Jacknife, Louisiana. Outcasts from the townsfolk, Dewall, Beau and Cutter live a lonely life, plagued by their own peculiar demons and always just on the edge of the law. When Cutter’s body is found in the swamp there is no-one to mourn her passing except her friend, Loyal May, who has recently returned to Jacknife to look after her aging mother and also to work on the local newspaper. 

This is a bleak and rather sad story which places small town America in the spotlight, revealing old hurts, misguided superstitions and downright hostility from those who should be trying to solve the mystery of Cutter’s untimely death. There’s an edgy creepiness to the story which I found quite unsettling and yet I couldn’t put the book down even though I jumped at shadows when reading long into the night. The author describes the town well, its place within the southern states and the townsfolk who would rather not admit that they should also take their share of blame. With clues sparse and no-one really trying too hard to discover what happened to Cutter, Loyal, using her journalistic skills, turns detective to piece together the last few days of Cutter’s sad and complicated life.

Rich in atmosphere, Our Last Wild Days is a slow and beautifully layered story which creeps under the surface of the skin, with characters who linger in the shadows of the swamps which surround Jacknife like a dirty blanket. It is a place which gives up its secrets ever so slowly but which is ultimately compelling, it is a story which is already firmly placed on my book of the year list for 2025.

About the Author

Anna Bailey is a Sunday Times bestselling author from Gloucestershire. Their debut novel, Tall Bones, inspired by their experiences living in the Colorado Rocky Mountains, was nominated for the Theakstons Crime Novel of the Year and Goldsboro Glass Bell awards, as well as the Prix Nouvelles Voix du Polar. Their short stories, based on their travels through rural America, have been dramatised for BBC Radio 4, including ‘Long Way to Come For a Sip of Water’, which was shortlisted for the BBC National Short Story Award. They live in Bordeaux with their wife.

📖 Book Review ~ The Eights by Joanna Miller

Penguin
April 2025

My thanks to the publisher for my review copy of this book

They knew they were changing history. They didn’t know they would change each other. 

Oxford, 1920. For the first time in its 1000-year history, the world’s most famous university has admitted female students. Giddy with dreams of equality, education and emancipation, four young women move into neighbouring rooms on Corridor Eight. They have come here from all walks of life, and they are thrown into an unlikely, life-affirming friendship.

Dora was never meant to go to university, but, after losing both her brother and her fiancé on the battlefield, has arrived in their place. Beatrice, politically-minded daughter of a famous suffragette, sees Oxford as a chance to make her own way – and her own friends – for the first time. Socialite Otto fills her room with extravagant luxuries but fears they won’t be enough to distract her from her memories of the war years. And quiet, clever, Marianne, the daughter of a village vicar, arrives bearing a secret she must hide from everyone – even The Eights – if she is to succeed.

But Oxford’s dreaming spires cast a dark shadow: in 1920, misogyny is still rife, influenza is still a threat, and the ghosts of the Great War are still very real indeed. And as the group navigate this tumultuous moment in time, their friendship will become more important than ever.

📖 My Review..

It’s 1920 and after years of suffrage women finally get the vote whilst at the same time a group of stoical young women are able to matriculate, for the first time, at Oxford University, starting an adventure which will see them ridiculed, and ignored, not just by some of their male counterparts but also by the dons who are there to instruct them in their chosen subjects. On Corridor Eight four brave young women meet and become firm friends. Their social backgrounds couldn’t be more different and yet through shared fun and difficult adversity they find a common bond, supporting each other when life throws them unexpected curve balls.

Carefully weaving fact and fiction, this lovely story takes us right into the heart of this great institution, however, as the women discover to their cost the hallowed halls are filled with misogyny, distrust and downright bigotry and yet they cling to the belief that education will give them opportunities never before seen. However, the country is still reeling, and grieving, from the effects of the Great War, and some young men returning to Oxford to complete their education still carry the scars of the horrors they witnessed in the trenches of northern France.

Beautifully written, filled with wonderful characters who guide you by the hand throughout, and who stay with you long after their individual stories are finished. The Eights was a real pleasure to read from start to finish, I shall miss Beatrice, Otto, Dora and Marianne and wish them well on their onward journeys.

About the Author

Joanna was born and raised in Cambridge, UK. She studied English at Oxford and later returned to the University to train as a teacher. After ten years in education, she set up an award-winning poetry gift business. During this time, she wrote thousands of poems to order and her rhyming verse was filmed by the BBC. Unable to resist the lure of the classroom, Joanna recently returned to Oxford University to study creative writing. She will be a writer in residence at Gladstone's Library in 2025.

When Joanna isn’t writing she is either walking her dog, providing a taxi service for her teenagers, or working in the local bookshop. She lives with her family near the Grand Union Canal in Hertfordshire, UK. The Eights is her first novel.

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🌞 Summer Read ~ Same Time Next Week by Milly Johnson

Simon and Schuster 

27 February 2025

My thanks to the publisher for my copy of this book

Welcome to Spring Hill, home to a square of independent shops and cafes, a thriving local community and nearby the newest venture, Ray’s Diner. Here a group of women meet once a week over a cup of something warming.

Amanda is primary carer to her elderly mother and one of the only women in a male-dominated company. Used to being second-best all her life, is this her time to finally break ranks and shine?

Sky works at the repair shop, patching up old teddy bears, and their owners’ hearts. But her heart beats for the one man who is strictly off-limits.

Mel has been a loyal and loving wife to Steve for thirty years. Then when he goes to his old school reunion, life as she knows it will never be the same again.

Erin is trying to get over a traumatic loss where her guilt weighs more than her grief. Can she find the first step to healing lies in sharing an hour with strangers once a week? 

Astrid is feeling in need of a change and a challenge. But when a fantastic opportunity presents itself, who is around to convince her she is worthy enough to take the risk?

Can these women find the answers to their worries, acceptance, courage, support here? Join them at the same time next week to find out…

🌞My Review..

For the past couple of afternoons I have spent time with a group of women who could so easily have been my best friends and thanks to this lovely story they remain with me long after I closed the book with a satisfied sigh. There is something really special about this author’s stories and it’s not just the amount of heart and soul she pours into them, or about the snorts of laughter which erupt as I’m reading them, it’s that she just gets inside characters, and brings to the page their hopes and fears, their faults and flaws, their small joys and their whopping big insecurities. They’re all there on the page, relatable people who steal their way into your heart, well the good guys do, the seriously bad ones tend to get their comeuppance in the most perfect of ways.

Same Time Next Week focuses on the lives of five women who each have their share of life’s problems. Finding friendship and support at a weekly meeting, pouring their hearts out to each other over copious amounts of coffee and plates of delicious cookies. They learn how to be strong, how to take a long hard look at their lives and be brave enough to take that second chance when it’s offered especially when they realise that they should never settle for anything less, especially when they deserve so much more. 

Beautifully written, with great dollops of northern humour and laugh out loud funny bits, but also with some really poignant moments which made me shed a little tear. Same Time Next Week is a perfect read for anytime of year but even more so when the sun is shining, we’re in the middle of a heatwave and I have a long cold drink close to hand.

About the Author

Milly Johnson was born raised and still lives in Barnsley, South Yorkshire. A Sunday Times bestseller, she is one of the top 10 Female Fiction authors in the UK, and with millions of copies of her books sold across the world, Milly’s star continues to rise. Milly writes from the heart about what she knows and highlights the importance of community spirit. Her books champion women, their strength and resilience and celebrate love, friendship, and the possibility of second chances. She is an exceptional writer who puts her heart and soul into every book she  writes and every character she creates.

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📖 Publication Day Review ~ The Quiet Wife by Felicity York

Harper North
14 August 2025

Thanks to the publisher for the opportunity to review this book

 

All he wants is a quiet wife. But she wants something more . . . 1867, Liverpool. 

Wife to an errant husband, the art patron Frederick Leyland, Frances is losing her sense of self. So when Frederick announces they are moving into the crumbling Speke Hall, she throws herself into the all-consuming task of renovating their once-magnificent new home.But when one of Frederick’s protegés – the handsome, brooding American artist James Whistler – offers to help Frances decorate, she and the painter form an instant connection. And under the painter’s gaze, Frances begins to see that like the house, there is neglected splendour within her, too. Inspired by the possibilities the artist arouses in her, she begins to wonder if love might still be in the picture for her, after all…

Based on a true story, this is the heady, slow-burn tale of a woman reinventing herself, while embarking on a daring, forbidden love affair with James Whistler.

📖 My Review…

Although I have visited the beautiful Speke Hall in Merseyside I was unfamiliar with the story of Frederick Leyland and of the momentous events during his ten year lease of the hall between 1867 - 1877. Frances Leyland, his wife, is a lady of quiet fortitude, her quiet grace and ethereal beauty are in direct contrast to Frederick’s cold ambition.

During the Leyland’s tenure of Speke Hall American artist James McNeill Whistler is commissioned to paint individual portraits of both Frederick and Frances, and it is this relationship which is explored in this fascinating reimagining of the alleged romantic affair between Whistler and Frances. The magical connection between Whistler and Frances is explored in tender detail which is in direct contrast to the fractured relationship between Frances and her husband.

Beautifully written, and gloriously imagined, I was enthralled by the way the author brings this world to life. I was so engrossed I started researching Whistler and found, online, his stunning portrait of Frances Leyland and thanks to the author’s detailed description of life at Speke Hall and also at the Leyland residence in London, I could well imagine the places and the people. I raced through the story reluctant to leave it without knowing more about the relationship between Frances and Whistler, delighting in the way their fascinating story played out amidst the wider context of the story.

The Quiet Wife is the second book in the Stately Scandal’s series which began with The Runaway Bride. The third book, The Secret Sister will be released in 2026. All are standalone stories.

About the Author

Felicity York loves in Derbyshire in the High Peak and is the author of the Stately Scandals series and eighteen Regency romance novels under the pen name of Ruby Moone. She is a member if the Romantic Novelists’ Association and is a life long lover of romance stories if all kinds.

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Summer Reading ~ Ten Poems from the Peak District from Candlestick Press

 

Candlestick Press 
July 2025

Myhthanks to the publisher for my copy of this poetry pamphlet 

This mini anthology belongs to Candlestick’s popular series of UK regional titles, and features poems that capture the vivid landscapes and atmospheres of the Dark and White Peaks.

There’s a celebration of the very particular Derbyshire tradition of well dressing, alongside poems that take us up onto the high moors and down into the tunnels under Ladybower Reservoir.

At an iconic Dark Peak landmark, we encounter a raw landscape that tricks the mind into altered perceptions:

“It is endless, a stranded reef
which seeps and surges indefinitely.
Paths slip under streams; pools hover;
stones become sheep become stones.”

from ‘Kinder Downfall, 24 April 1932’ by Rob Hindle

The selection is proof (if needed) that the Peak District is equal to the Lake District in its power to fire the imaginations of poets who live in it – or who simply love it for its wild beauty.

Katharine Towers is a poet who lives in the White Peak.

Poems by Rob Hindle, Helen Mort, Alistair Noon, Mark Pajak, Peter Riley, Anna Seward, Katharine Towers, Tony Williams, River Wolton and Warda Yassin.

Cover illustration by Ian Parkinson 

 My Review..

The Peak District covers some 550 square miles and as the crow flies is about 36 miles from my house and yet it is a place I have visited infrequently but after reading this lovely anthology of poems I feel it is something I should rectify before too long. 

There are verses for all tastes in this group of ten poems, all of which conjure the many moods of this National Park and the importance of our connection to these wild spaces. 

 

Eid at Ladybower by Warda Yassin

We’d traverse along the Ladybower wall, me saying

it’s a giant Y-shaped bath. Abo laughing and teaching me about 

the plug holes at the bottom, and how water is carried…”

The simple pleasure of searching for wild flora in:

Looking for leek-coloured hawkweed at Moss Rake by Katharine Towers

“ Before long we were in our hands and knees in the white grit,

Poking our fingers into clumps of wild thyme and eyebright

And sandwort (or leadwort ) which may have been a form of saxifrage,

Although none of these were what we had come to find..”

I have really enjoyed exploring the Peak District in the company of these ten fine poets. Each bring something special and have captured the beauty of the place in such a way that I have now a yearning to see some of the places for myself. With it’s evocative cover and fascinating end papers Ten Poems from the Peak District is a perfect gift instead of a card for anyone who calls this beautiful place home or for those who love open spaces, big skies and hidden crags.

About the Publisher 

Candlestick Press is a small, independent press publishing sumptuously produced poetry pamphlets that serve as a wonderful alternative to a greetings card, with matching envelopes and bookmarks left blank for your message. Their subjects include Mountains, Clouds, Walking, Birds, Wine and Happiness. Candlestick Press pamphlets are stocked by chain and independent bookshops, galleries and garden centres nationwide and available to order online.

Twitter/X @poetrycandle

Blue Sky @candlestickpress.bsky.social

Website 

📖 Publication Day review ~ Slander by Rhiannon Barnsley

One More Chapter
8 August 2025

Thanks to the publis for the opportunity to review this book

When Hollywood actor Ethan Simmons sues his wife Tori for allegedly lying about his infidelity, the world is captivated. Once the darlings of the social scene, the case will tear apart their perfect exteriors.

For Riley Grey, a true crime influencer, the case might hold the key to the disappearance of her sister, Alice, after an anonymous source tips her off.

As the high-profile trial begins, it soon becomes clear that both parties are willing to air their dirty laundry in public. And when Tori hints at an even darker secret, Ethan’s reputation could be destroyed once and for all.

And as the media frenzy intensifies, and the courtroom holds their breath, who will win the defamation case of the century?

📖 My Review..

At the centre of the controversy are a celebrity couple who are determined to air all their grievances in a very public, and live-streamed trial, in which one is attempting to sue the other for slander. This story captures the imagination of Riley Grey who is a true crime influencer, with a growing following onTikTok and with her own agenda very much forefront she is determined to discover more about the disappearance of her twin sister, Alice. How this is blended into the plot forms the basis of this engrossing story of who did what, to whom, and why.

Cleverly blending the trial itself, which is only a small part of the overall story, with the nitty gritty of why celebrity couple Ethan Simmons and his wife Tori have so publicly fallen out of love with each other makes for interesting reading. I enjoyed the alternate chapters from Tori and Ethan’s point of view and the social media posting from Riley Grey adds an altogether different dimension to the story and makes it feel really current.

The story kept my attention, there were surprisingly clever twists which I didn’t see coming and an ending which left me with a wry smile on my face. Great escapism, and a good book to get lost in, hence my reading it over the space of a couple of rainy afternoons.

About the Author

Originally from the West Midlands, Rhiannon currently lives in London with her fiancé and her cat Salem. She's a corporate lawyer by day and writes after work and during weekends.

She is a Faber Academy Writing a Novel graduate and loves to write dark and twisty thrillers with a particular focus on women. When she's not writing, she can often be found reading or training with her cheerleading team.

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X @RhiBarnsley 

🌞Summer Reads ~ Ten Poems from the Lake District

Candlestick Press
July 2025

My thanks to the publisher for my copy of this poetry pamphlet 

This addition to Candlestick’s series of UK regional titles brings the drama and beauty of the Lake District landscape into glorious focus. We encounter dry-stone walls, sublime heights, lakes (of course) and experience an evening dip in the cooling waters of a tarn.

The selection wouldn’t be complete without a poem by Wordsworth who captures the tranquillity of a quiet valley in a moment of typically blissful contemplation:

“A soft eye-music of slow-waving boughs,

Powerful almost as vocal harmony

stay the wanderer’s steps and soothe his thoughts.”

from ‘Aira Force Valley’ by William Wordsworth

The double-edged sword of tourism is also present in a sonnet which imagines what this most famous of Lakes Poets would make of the world of postcards and car parks. The poem’s conclusion is a reminder that the sublime will outlive any human interference.

Polly Atkin is a poet who lives and works in the Lake District.

Poems by Polly Atkin, Rachael Bates. Paul Farley, Katie Hale, Matthew Hollis, Eileen Pun, Tom Rawling, Reshma Ruia, William Wordsworth and David Wright.

🌞  My Review..

The brooding nature of the Lake District is never in doubt and as you view the hills and crags an overwhelming sense of majesty abounds. Dark shadows race across the skyline altering the colours from pinks to dark purples, and from green to grey,  as wind and rain sweep across the horizon. It is a place of fickle shadows which can change in the blink of an eye. It is part of my northern landscape, its beauty undimmed by time.

This fine anthology of ten poems capture the magical spirit of the Lake District, bringing its natural beauty to life by the power of expression:

“ Who treads above the mountain-top should die 

Of that pure exultation; he is shriven

By the immaculate wind, the cleansing sky.

From Above Hawkshead by Rachael Bates

The criss cross nature of meandering stone walls are captured in this lovely poem: 

“ See here by the holly tree

Above the highest meadow,

This Eksdale dry stone wall

A warted lichen covered caterpillar

That clasps and humps the how,

Shuffles across the scree’s frost litter

Creeps around the shoulder of the fell,

A line of beauty

Not made to please the eye.”

From Eskdale Dry-Stone Wall by Tom Rawling 

Beautifully written, with a gloriously Illustrated cover, and emotionally evocative of a place caught in time, Ten poems from the Lake District would be a wonderful gift instead of a card for anyone who loves this part of the country or is a perfect introduction to a very special place.

About the Publisher 

Candlestick Press is a small, independent press publishing sumptuously produced poetry pamphlets that serve as a wonderful alternative to a greetings card, with matching envelopes and bookmarks left blank for your message. Their subjects include Mountains, Clouds, Walking, Birds, Wine and Happiness. Candlestick Press pamphlets are stocked by chain and independent bookshops, galleries and garden centres nationwide and available to order online.

Twitter/X @poetrycandle

Blue Sky @candlestickpress.bsky.social

Website 

🌞 Summer Reading ~ Love at First Sight by Laura Jane Williams

Penguin
June 2025

My thanks to the publisher for my copy of this book to review

 

She’s found the one. He’s just not the one for her. 

Jessie doesn’t believe in love at first sight. Until one sunny Saturday in London, a fire alarm in Whole Foods throws her into a stranger's arms. Cal is charming and funny: their chemistry is instant.

Quick-fire flirting turns into the most romantic day of Jessie’s life. But that evening they're forced apart before swapping numbers. Jessie is devastated – has she just lost the one?

After weeks of searching, Cal turns up on her doorstop holding two dozen red roses. It feels like fate.

The only thing is, they’re not for her…

🌞My Review..

Jessie really doesn’t believe in love at first sight but then she meets Cal, the man of her dreams, in the most unexpected of circumstances only to discover that he is someone else’s boyfriend.  This is so disappointing for Jessie as she really thought Cal was the one for her and she struggles to get him out of her head.

What then follows is a will they, won’t they romance which covers a whole a range of emotions with characters who leave you feeling frustrated one minute, to seeing hearts and flowers the next. Jessie has so much going on her life and the author covers this well but what stood out for me was the interaction between Jessie and Henry, she’s his nanny, and this is a really sweet relationship, as for most of the story Henry is the most important man in Jessie’s life.

I read Love at First Sight in one sitting, it’s great escapism for a summer afternoon and it would be a good relaxing holiday read either by the pool or in the garden.

About the Author

Laura Jane Williams (she/her) is known as the queen of the meet-cute. She is the author of six rom-coms, as well as the forthcoming Lovestruck (June 2023). She is also the author of three works of non-fiction.

The rights to Laura's international bestseller Our Stop have been sold for television, and her books have been translated into languages all over the world. She loves romance, being a parent, and lifting very heavy weights.

X @PenguinUKBooks #LoveAtFirstSight

📖 Book Review ~ Believe by S M Govett

Michael Joseph
19 June 2025

Thanks to the publisher for the opportunity to review this book

Natalie has spent ten years trying to get over the twin set of events which changed her life forever.

The first: the moment her boss assaulted her. The second: the moment the jury declared him innocent - and her, a liar.

The memories continue to haunt Natalie, and in her attempts to block out the past, she often wakes up with no recollection of where she’s been – or what she’s done,.

So when her husband, Ryan, gets accused of the same crime, Natalie comes perilously close to the edge.

Natalie wants to believe him. But when the body of the young woman who made the accusation is found in the woods near their house, Ryan becomes a prime suspect, and Natalie realises she can't trust anyone - herself included...

📖 My Review..

Natalie and her husband Ryan live a quiet sort of life, Natalie works from home whilst Ryan works for a marketing company. On the surface they have a lovely life but Natalie struggles with PTSD following an assault some ten years previously when the perpetrator walked free and Natalie was branded a liar. When, out of the blue, Ryan is now accused of a similar crime, Natalie struggles to rationalise this information however, with the discovery of a body, the police are relentless in their search for justice and are determined to make this case stick.

This is a cleverly put together crime novel which is told from Natalie’s perspective alongside that of DI Helen Stratton who is in charge of the investigation. Both women are compelling however, it is Natalie’s unreliability which really makes this such an interesting story. Stratton has her own demons which surface from time to time and although it took me a while to warm to her character I couldn’t help but be impressed with her tenacity. There’s some interesting dynamics between the rest of the detectives, all of which could be explored more if this becomes a crime series. The plot is filled with surprises as you’re never quite sure who to believe, hence the title of the book. I found myself trying to fit the crime to a completely different person only to have my theory completely shattered with the final denouement, which I honestly didn’t see coming.

Believe is a fast paced crime drama which kept my attention from start to finish. I really hope we get to see more of DI Helen Stratton in future crime stories, I have a feeling this one could run and run.

About the Author

S.M. Govett read Law at Trinity College, Oxford, before qualifying as a solicitor in the City. After realising that didn't suit her, she started tutoring before turning her hand to writing, which she discovered was her true calling. She has since authored several bestselling YA novels, including The Territory trilogy and We Go On Forever. She also co-wrote the screenplay for the feature film, T.I.M., which was the no. 1 film on Netflix upon release. Believe is her debut adult thriller.

She currently lives in London with her husband and three children.

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📖 Publication Day Book Review ~ The Foreshore by Samantha York

Salt Publishing
4 August 2025

Thanks to the publisher for the invitation to review this book

In the wake of a deadly storm, past sins return to haunt the living…

Eilean Eòin is a tiny scrap of land which is stranded amidst miles of fierce ocean, where the scant population barely cling to a centuries’ old way of life. It is here that Flora McKinnon, an aging islander, is brought news of her youngest child’s death, whilst tensions are riled by the arrival of a new reverend, Thomas Murray. Murray has a mission: to weed out religious dissent and purge the island in the name of progress.

When a strange young woman is found washed up on the foreshore, illness and famine start to blight the island, stirring whispers of witchcraft. Despite their differences, Flora and Murray unite in an uneasy attempt to solve the mystery of the girl’s identity, which soon becomes an all-consuming obsession. With their own deep-buried skeletons, will the island's dark secrets make or break them both?

📖My Review..

When Reverend Thomas Murray arrives on the tiny Scottish island of Eilean Eòin he is confronted by a group of mistrustful group of islanders who don’t take kindly to religious strangers nor do they like any interference in how they should run their lives. With a bad harvest and food in short supply the  men of the island must do whatever they can in order to provide for their families. However illness and hunger are never far away so when a young woman is found washed up on the foreshore, there starts the whispers of her being a witch and the cause of all their misery and misfortune.

Bleak and beautiful in equal measure, The Foreshore is a darkly claustrophobic story of a tiny place which is deeply troubled. The islanders are a wary lot, suspicious of each other and yet they are bound together by their history and shared secrets. Parts of the story are slow and considered, whilst others are viscerally affecting, especially the outpouring of blame which is caught up with feelings of guilt and isolation. Quite stunning in its description of island life, about how gut wrenchingly hard were their lives as they eked out a meagre existence, survival dependent on what foods they could forage from cliff edges.

 The Foreshore is a powerful story, beautifully told, and one that will stay with me for a long time.

About the Author

amantha York is a writer and advocate for young people with additional support needs. She grew up by the sea in Northumberland before moving to Scotland to complete her master's degree in literature and history. She now lives in Glasgow.

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