📖 Blog Tour ~ Journey to Paradise by Paula Greenlees

 

📖 Delighted to be hosting a stop on this blog tour 📖

Arrow
EBook Release 1 May 2021

My thanks to the publishers for my copy of this book
and the invitation to the Blog Tour

Singapore:1948

When Miranda steps onto the pier with her husband Gerry at Singapore she hopes that this will be a fresh start; a chance to run from her darkest secret, and heal the scars from her past.

Gerry's new role at the British foreign office affords a certain kind of lifestyle; a beautiful house, servants, and invites the best parties in town. But life in Singapore feels worlds apart from Miranda's beloved home in England. True friends are hard to find in ex-pat society, and with Gerry spending all his time at work or drinking at the club, she loses hope that Singapore would save their marriage. So when Miranda meets kind-hearted Nick Wythenshaw, when volunteering at the local hospital, she begins to realise the depth of her own unhappiness, and dares to hope for more...

Meanwhile, riots are erupting across the region, and Singapore is becoming an increasingly dangerous place to be British. As the danger draws ever closer to home, Miranda must make the toughest decision she has ever had to face - to choose between duty and happiness, and risk ruin.

📖 My Thoughts..

Post war Singapore in 1948 is a place of contrasts especially for the last of the colonials who travel from England to take up positions of authority in local government. Miranda Lewis, and her husband Gerry, are hoping that their move to Singapore will help to chase away some of the sadness in their marriage but rather than bringing them closer it would seem that the move only accentuates their opposing viewpoints.

Nick Wythenshawe is a young doctor who is currently involved in working at a Catholic mission, in Singapore, for orphan children. When he and Miranda first meet they find that they have much in common especially when Miranda decides to help out at the mission. Their compassionate natures draw them to each other but they must choose their way forward very carefully.

Singapore is beautifully recreated and the sights, sounds and rather volatile atmosphere comes alive in the author's skilful recreation of this beautiful place. This is a dangerous time to be English in Singapore, resentments run deep especially in the juxtaposition between the decadent lifestyles of the colonials against the poverty and insecurity of the local people. The author brings this sense of danger into the story and whilst the English party through the night at their clubs and private dinner parties, there is more going on politically and socially than they could ever have imagined.

Journey to Paradise is a lovely story with an authentic historical background and a wonderful sense of time and place which all help to bring this exotic paradise to life in a meaningful and thoughtful way.

About the Author

Paula Greenlees has an undergraduate degree in English and European Thought and Literature, and a Masters Degree in Creative Writing. She spent three years living in Singapore surrounded by the history and culture that provided the inspiration for her first novel, Journey to Paradise.

Twitter @PGreenlees #JourneytoParadise

Indsagram @paulagreenlees

@arrowpublishing

📖 Blog Tour ~ The Railway Girls in Love by Maisie Thomas

 

📖 Thrilled to be part of this Blog Tour 📖

Arrow
15 April 20201

Railway Girls #3

My thanks to the publishers for my copy of this book
and the invitation to the blog tour

Love is in the air, and together the railway girls can overcome even the hardest of times.

Mabel has finally put the past behind her, and her relationship with the dashing Harry is stronger than ever. That is, until an old flame shows up, leaving Mabel questioning her future.

Meanwhile Joan has made amends with Bob - if only she could do the same with Gran. And there's still that family mystery she wants answer to, isn't there?

As a mother and grandmother, Dot Green has always put her family first. Her job as a parcels porter has brought new purpose to her life, so is it finally time to start following her heart . . .

Life as a railway girl is busy but as war rages on and air raids disrupt daily life, the women realise they need each other more than ever, especially when there might be wedding bells on the horizon.

📖 My thoughts...

This is the third book in The Railway Girls series of historical novels and it continues to focus on the lives of Mabel, Joan and Dot as they go about their lives working on the railways during WW2. In this latest novel, the girls are working just as hard, helping to keep the railway network running, but with the effects of war biting ever harder, the women need to pull together even more. The support that each of the women give to each other is what makes this series so special.

There's a lovely familiar feel to the story, and returning to Manchester, in 1941, is like coming home, especially as we have grown to love and admire both the stoicism and northern good humour of this group. Meeting again with Mabel, Joan and Dot is just such a delight, especially, as in this novel, we look more at their personal relationships, and with a hint of love and marriage on the horizon for one of the characters, it shows off the wonderfully warm camaraderie which has developed between these lovely women. Simple survival on the home front is very much in evidence and the author writes with a lovely light touch, showing what life was like during the early years of the war when our towns and cities were a target for German bombers. 

There's a great deal of research needed to maintain a successful historical series and the author does a great job at bringing wartime Manchester to life. Like all towns, Manchester had its share of war time tragedy and I think this stoicism in making do and mending is what comes across so beautifully in The Railway Girls in Love, as even on a bad day when things are going wrong for them, they simply get up, and with strength and humour, they carry on with their lives.

Whilst it is perfectly possible to read The Railway Girls in Love as a standalone saga, as with all series, it is better if you start at the beginning in order to appreciate this author's skillful ability to bring place and people alive, and enjoy getting to know, and love, The Railway Girls.

About the Author

Maisie Thomas was born and brought up in Manchester, which provides the location for her Railway Girls novels. She loves writing stories with strong female characters, set in times when women needed determination and vision to make their mark. The Railway Girls series is inspired by her great aunt Jessie, who worked as a railway clerk during the First World War. Maisie now lives on the beautiful North Wales coast with her railway enthusiast husband, Kevin, and their two rescue cats. They often enjoy holidays chugging up and down the UK’s heritage steam railways.

Twitter @MaisieThomas99 #RailwayGirlsinLove

@arrowpublishing

Review ~ Courage of the Shipyard Girls by Nancy Revell

On Hist Fic Saturday

Let's go back to ...1942

Arrow
21 February 2019

My thanks to the publishers for my copy of this book

Sunderland, 1942: Polly's heart and her future are hanging in the balance…

Polly’s sweetheart Tommy has been declared missing while serving overseas, and although there is no certainty that he is dead, there is no guarantee that he will return home. Now Polly needs her friends more than ever, and the other women welders are ready to rally around her while she waits for news.

The only one not showing support is shipyard manager, Helen. But looks can be deceiving, and beneath her cold exterior, Helen is wrestling with demons of her own, including one life-changing decision that could lead to potential ruin.

As the war continues, the shipyard girls must support one another as they bravely soldier on.

My thoughts..

This sixth book in the Shipyard Girls series starts us off in 1942 with some bad news which will test the fortitude and resilience of one of the girls, and will ensure that the others come together to look after one of their own. The Shipyard Girls are very good at looking out for each other, and even though the effects of the war are now starting to bite really hard, there are always snippets of good humour and camaraderie to be found amongst the sadness and hardship.

What I love about this series, and this book certainly continues the theme, is the way that the author brings the North East to life, both in terms of the vernacular which rolls of the tongue with ease, or, and perhaps more importantly, in the way the warmth and kindness of the people comes across, so that the reader feels enveloped, not just in a wonderful story, but also in the sense of being part of a community.

The story spans several months of 1942 and sees the girls involved in some quite difficult and emotional story lines. As always, each of the women have an individual story to share and each of them worry what the future will bring, however, throughout their troubles the girls, as did all women during wartime, pulled together, keeping, in this case, Thompson's shipyard functioning at top speed.

Whilst it is always possible to read these stories as standalone, I do feel that it makes more sense to start at the beginning, that way you get to know and really care for these characters, who by this sixth novel, are as familiar as old friends.

Courage, friendship and love come together in another wonderful continuation of The Shipyard Girls.

  

 

About the Author

Nancy Revell is the pen name of writer and journalist Amanda Revell Walton, who has worked for the national press for the past 25 years, providing them with hard-hitting news stories and in-depth features. She has also worked for just about every woman’s magazine, writing amazing and inspirational true life stories.

Twitter @arevellwalton #TheShipyardGirls

@arrowbooks


@PenguinRHUK


Amazon UK

Review ~ Victory for the Shipyard Girls by Nancy Revell

Arrow
6 September 2018

My thanks to the publishers for my copy of this book

What's it all about...

The war rages on, but their friendship is stronger than ever.

Sunderland, 1942

With the war showing no sign of abating, Helen is thriving in her role as shipyard manager. But at home the return of her father brings a shocking discovery that tears her family apart. Gloria is shouldering the burden of a terrible secret. If the truth comes out there could be dire consequences, and it will take all her resolve to resist the pressure around her.

Meanwhile Rosie is throwing herself into her work, taking on as many shifts as she can. Anything to keep her mind off the fact that she hasn’t heard from her sweetheart in months…

With life in the shipyards tougher than ever, will the strength of their friendship see them through to victory?

My thoughts about it...

This series of novels about the female shipyard workers during WW2 continues to exude its usual warmth and charm, and the women we have followed since the beginning have now become as familiar as friends. As each book ends it's always an eager wait until the next book is published as the author is very good at leaving the ending of her stories with a real cliffhanger...

In Victory for the Shipyard Girls we are again thrust into the lives of Helen, Rosie, Gloria and the other women who make up his close knit group. Each of them are facing their own particular challenges, but as ever the trials and complications of their lives draw the women ever closer, and as they share their hopes and fears, so their bonds of friendship get deeper and deeper.

With each successive story, this series seems to grow in confidence and, as a reader, the emotional investment in each character pays dividends as none of the women seem to outshine each other. I am equally interested in Rosie's story, as I am in observing just how Gloria is coping with  managing both her job in the shipyard whilst caring for her baby daughter. I'm afraid that Helen has never been my favourite character but I did worry about how she was coping with all the troubles that seems to come her way.

If you've followed this series from the start, and this is now book number five, then you will be delighted with this continuation of the shipyard girls story, and delighted to know that there is indeed another cliffhanger of an ending...

For those who like books about strong women coping during the tumultuous years of WW2 then this series would work for you, and, although the stories can be read as stand alone, my advice is to start at the beginning of this excellent series and enjoy from the very beginning.

The sixth book in the series, Courage of the Shipyard Girls publishes 7th March 2019 and is available to pre order now.

About the Author

Nancy Revell is the pen name of writer and journalist Amanda Revell Walton, who has worked for the national press for the past 25 years, providing them with hard-hitting news stories and in-depth features. She has also worked for just about every woman’s magazine, writing amazing and inspirational true life stories.

Twitter @arevellwalton #TheShipyardGirls

@arrowbooks


@PenguinRHUK

Review ~ When I was Invisible by Dorothy Koomson

**Out 23rd March in Paperback**

Arrow
23 March 2017

What's it all about..

In 1988, two eight-year-old girls with almost identical names and the same love of ballet meet for the first time. They seem destined to be best friends forever and to become professional dancers. Years later, however, they have both been dealt so many cruel blows that they walk away from each other into very different futures – one enters a convent, the other becomes a minor celebrity. Will these new, ‘invisible’ lives be the ones they were meant to live, or will they only find that kind of salvation when they are reunited twenty years later?

What did I think about it..

Two girls both called Veronica/Veronika find that their lives are irrevocably bound together in story which flits forwards and backwards in time, and which reveals the very sad circumstances of two lives shattered by life experiences.

Written with all the trademark flair of this talented contemporary author When I was Invisible sheds light on the invisible bonds of friendship which, although bind people together, can also tear people apart. The girls renamed as Nika and Roni find that their live in adulthood have veered off in very different directions, one as a minor celebrity, and the other as a nun and yet, their combined secrets threaten both of their sanity and well-being.

The author writes very well and weaves a story that takes in different time frames and circumstances and does so with assurance and confidence, and, even though the story evolves quite slowly, there is always something to capture the reader's attention and which makes you sit up and take notice.

I've now read several books by this author and I have never been disappointed either by her stories, or of her clever storytelling ability. I think that When I was Invisible is one of her strongest and saddest books to date.

Best Read with...A noodle stir fry and several glugs of white wine..

About the Author

Dorothy Koomson is the author of eleven novels and has been making up stories since she was thirteen. For more information about Dorothy and her writing visit her website  or follow her on Twitter @DorothyKoomson

My thanks to the publishers and also to Darran at edpr for my review copy of this book.

**When I was Invisible is out in paperback today and published by Arrow**
#WhenIWasInvisible

Arrow

23 March 2017

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