📖 Featured Book of the Month ~ A Little Trickerie by Rosanna Pike

Fig Tree
Penguin
1 August 2024

My thanks to the publisher for my copy of this book

Listen. My one-time friend Maria did tell me once: "Make your own paradise, Tibb, since this world is no sweet place for people like us."

Born a vagabond, Tibb Ingleby has never had a roof of her own. But her mother has taught her that if you're not too bound by the Big Man's rules, there are many ways a woman can find shelter in this world. Now her ma is dead in a trick gone wrong and young Tibb is orphaned and alone.

As she wends her way across the fields and forests of medieval England, Tibb will discover there are people who will care for her, as well as those who mean her harm. And there are a great many others who are prepared to believe just about anything.

And so, when the opportunity presents itself to escape the shackles society has placed on them, Tibb and her new friends conjure an audacious plan: her greatest trickerie yet. But before they know it, their hoax takes on a life of its own, drawing crowds - and vengeful enemies - to their door...

A Little Trickerie is blazingly original, disarmingly funny and deeply moving. Portraying a side of Tudor England rarely seen, it's a tale of belief and superstition, kinship and courage, with a ragtag cast of characters and an unforgettable and distinctly unangelic heroine.

📖My Review..

Tibb Ingleby is definitely a heroine who leaps from the page with as much bravado as she can muster, surviving all kinds of trouble which she does with sharp wit and an eye for opportunity. A devastating event at the beginning of the story helps to get A Little Trickerie off to a dramatic start and alongside Tibb we get to know, Ivo, her rescuer who is the calm to Tibb's storm and the light at the end of a dark tunnel. However, as the story travels through the vagaries of fifteenth century England we learn what it means to be a vagrant and to live under the shadow of being different. Being poor was not an option for Tibb but her stoic deliverance sees her survive in places where lesser people would have failed, and, undoubtedly, it is her strength of character which gives the book its humour and also its soul.

From the very start of the story I was transported to Tudor England which was depicted as a place of thieves and vagabonds, of ruses and trickery, of religious fervour and superstitious bigotry. It doesn't sugar coat life but brings to the core the power of friendship, the strength in togetherness and the ability to get back up when life knocks you down. Beautifully written, with a lyricism which I absolutely loved and an authentic style all of its own, this series of imaginative vignettes introduces us to Tibb's world. We feel her sorrow, hurt when she hurts, laugh out loud at some of her more colourful phrases and ultimately are completely charmed by this unangelic heroine who pulls off, with the help of her friends, the most audacious scam and does so with a joyful naivety, which is as refreshing, as it it cunning.

A Little Trickerie gives us a strong heroine in Tibb Ingleby. She is feisty and funny, quirky and as soft hearted as mallow and yet her core of steel makes her into a character I won't easily forget. I have no hesitation in making A Little Trickerie  my Featured Book of the Month for August.

About the Author

Rosanna Pike studied English literature at Exeter University. She is a graduate of Curtis Brown Creative and the Faber Academy. She lives in south-west London with her family.

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📖 Blog Tour ~ The Wicked Lady by Elena Collins

Boldwood Books
31 July 2024

My thanks for the copy of the book
and the invitation to the tour

1648 - Hertfordshire

Thirteen-year-old Katherine Ferrers is in despair at being betrothed to arch-Royalist Thomas Fanshawe whose family are hellbent on plundering her family’s fortune to champion the exiled Charles. As her unhappy marriage stretches before her, her only comfort is her beloved childhood home The Cell. But as the years pass and Kate grows restless, a new passion, a new love and a dangerous calling threaten to upend everything she’s ever known.

Present Day - Hertfordshire

Charlie Wolfe jumps at the chance to help his uncle renovate a tumbledown cottage overlooking Nomansland Common. Number One Constable’s Cottages was once the home of the man charged with ridding the common of the highwaymen who terrorised travellers. But it’s the story of The Wicked Lady, the notorious female highway robber, that captures Charlie’s imagination, and some long winters’ nights he’s sure he can the hoof beats of her horse echoing across time.

What drove this mystery woman to risk everything for a life of crime, and why is she still restless, wandering the common in grief? It seems only Charlie can finally uncover the secret Katherine Ferrers has kept for hundreds of years; a secret of a terrible betrayal and a tragic love that was never meant to end this way…

 📖 My review..

Married at fourteen Katherine Ferrers knows that there will never be any love lost between herself and her profligate young husband who is determined to spend her considerable fortune supporting the anti-royalist movement in the years following the English Civil War. With her inheritance dwindling Katherine embarks on a dangerous venture which will see her life, and that of her friends, placed in great danger.

In the present day, Charlie Wolfe is renovating an old cottage in Hertfordshire when he senses the ghostly presence of a woman on horseback and with the help of a friend, Charlie is determined to discover more about the mysterious wicked lady who once roamed the countryside  and whose troubled spirit still remains.

Based on the true story of Katherine Ferrers, an English gentlewoman, who became a highwayman, this beautifully written time-slip novel is an atmospheric and evocative story which blends past and present, myth and legend together, capturing the imagination right from the start. I enjoyed piecing together all the pieces of the puzzle, whilst at the same time wanting to know more about this fearless young woman who was involved in such a dangerous activity. The modern day element is done well, and there's enough jumping at shadows to appreciate the eeriness of the story whilst also enjoying Charlie's transition from being somewhat lost and lonely to finding out so much about himself and the enigmatic wicked lady in the process.

About the Author

Elena Collins is the pen name of Judy Leigh. Judy Leigh is the bestselling author of Five French Hens, A Grand Old Time and The Age of Misadventure and the doyenne of the ‘it’s never too late’ genre of women’s fiction. She has lived all over the UK from Liverpool to Cornwall, but currently resides in Somerset.

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📖 Book Review ~ The Secret Life of a Lady by Darcy McGuire

Boldwood Books
June 2024

The Queen's Deadly Damsels #1

Thanks to the publisher for my copy of this book

Never Underestimate a wallflower!

Lady Hannah Simmons is a quintessential wallflower, unassuming, dowdy yet ignored by most. But underneath her plain exterior, Hannah is hiding a thrilling secret! Unbeknownst to the rest of the ton, she is Queen Victoria’s leading femme fatale, slipping unnoticed through the streets of London and listening to scandalous whispers from lords and ladies. But with daggers in her stockings and pistols in her pockets, Hannah's mission is to apprehend a deadly killer.

Private Investigator to the Prime Minister, damaged, yet devastatingly handsome ex-war hero Duke Robert Killian always puts duty first. However, when he finds himself competing with the intriguing Lady Hannah on the same daring task, his blood boils with frustration - and desire! Is it possible to seduce this vexing woman whose not afraid to put herself in danger and achieve the upper hand?

Hannah enjoys Killian's attempts to distract and tempt her, but she has never faced an adversary she couldn’t overthrow. And Killian has never met a challenge he couldn’t conquer...until now. The gauntlet has been thrown, can they finish their jobs and resist the temptation?

 My Review..

Feisty and fierce, Lady Hannah Simmons is more than a match for any man. She can wield a knife like a warrior and yet underneath her stern exterior there beats the heart of a passionate woman. Hannah's unexpected meeting with the devilishly handsome Robert Killian unlocks something and pretty soon sparks fly between them and even though both are caught up in a clandestine investigation this doesn't stop their attraction and desire for each other. 

Bringing the Victorian world alive, we flit from dark and dirty back alleyways, to the sumptuousness of a country house weekend and throughout it all this cat and mouse relationship kept me entertained in a story filled with passion, intrigue and danger. The story reads well, it moves quickly and the mystery at the centre of the plot keeps the momentum ticking over nicely however, it is the relationship between Hannah and the Killian where the passion really heats up and the story gets a bit spicy. There's quite a bit of explicit sexual content so perhaps that's not for everyone but putting that aside, I enjoyed the espionage and mystery. I would hope to be able to read the next book in the series in the near future as there are a couple of characters I would really like to know more about in further adventures.

About the Author

Darcy McGuire is a high school counsellor who grew up in the wilds of New Zealand but happily settled in the Pacific Northwest. Darcy loves writing about fierce female protagonists who may dodge daggers and bullets but never seem to escape Cupid's arrow.

 

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📖 Book Review ~Ten Poems about Cows from Candlestick Press

Candlestick Press

Summer 2024

My thanks to the publisher for my copy of this pamphlet

Black and white, brown, smooth-coated or shaggy (with horns), cows are so familiar in our rural landscapes that we often forget to notice them. These poems redress that, paying close and loving attention to the lives of cows – their private joys and public duties – while celebrating the fact of their undeniable cow-ness.

We find cows grazing, being born, being milked, being drawn by a child – not to mention the eminently recitable cow poem that many of us will remember from school days:

“The friendly cow, all red and white,

I love with all my heart:

She gives me cream with all her might,

To eat with apple-tart.”

from ‘The Cow’ by Robert Louis Stevenson

Even if most of us wouldn’t want to become a cow in the way that Selima Hill does, we can all enjoy being taken by poetry into their contented, munching world.

The selection is edited by poet Hilary Menos who used to run a herd of 40 pedigree Red Ruby Devon cattle.

Poems by Hayden Carruth, Jim Carruth, Gillian Clarke, Edmund Vance Cooke, Ruth Dallas, Tjawangwa Dema, Selima Hill, Hilary Menos, Evan Gill Smith and Robert Louis Stevenson.

Cover illustration by Deirdre Dunne.

Donation to Compassion in World Farming

My Review..

There's something gently reassuring about a field of cows, we should consider more the slow pace of their lives and the consistency of their presence in our fields. Dotted around our countryside we take these gentle creatures for granted, but we are always grateful for their milk on our cereals in the morning! When my children were small we spent summer holidays on a Wiltshire farm which ran a herd of Charolais, they were a little daunting close up so we always respected their space and observed them from a distance. We loved seeing them, especially the calves, which my children called the baby white ones.

The Cow Speaks to the Child by Evan Gill Smith

'There's no me without you

says the cow in the sunlight

being looked at, being drawn,

by the child with crayons..'

The spiritual connection of cows is expressed in this poem:

 Wena, kgomo / You, Cow by Tjawangwa Dema 

-Setswana Riddle

' wet-nosed god

you

whose absence thieves all sleep

first currency

first ruminant

cloven-hoofed thing..'

This interesting collection reminds us of our connection to these gentle creatures who we rely on for milk, meat and manure. Quietly contemplating the ever changing world around them our countryside would look so empty without fields of cows, in shades of browns and russet, dappled in black and white, quietly ruminating, they consider us with their quiet eyes. 

Milking Before Dawn by Ruth Dallas

In the drifting rain the cows in the yard are as black

And wet and shiny as rocks in an ebbing tide..'

Ten poems about Cows is a gentle appreciation of everything bovine and would be perfect, instead of a card, for anyone who loves cows, the countryside, or the natural world.

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

Website

🎧 Audio Book Review ~ Tansy Bloom : Monster Hunter by L. J. Weller

Audible Original
27 June 2024

My thanks to Audible and Midas for my audio copy of this book

 

Audible, a leading provider of spoken word entertainment, has announced Sex Education star Tanya Reynolds will narrate a new and exciting Audible Original title from debut novelist L.J. Weller.

Three months ago, twenty-eight-year-old Tansy Bloom quit monster hunting. Since then, she’s been trying to live a normal life (whatever that means), but ending up single, unemployed, and living on a boat outside her godfather’s pub definitely wasn’t part of the plan. So, when Tansy’s ex-husband – fellow monster hunter Rex Barclay – turns up like a bad penny and asks for her help with his latest investigation, Tansy reluctantly agrees.

At first, the job appears to be a straightforward monster hunt – following a spate of large creature sightings, Rex believes a werewolf is on the loose in Norfolk, and he intends to capture it. But Tansy’s not convinced. For one thing, the mysterious black dog Rex is hunting is able to vanish into thin air. For another, everyone who’s encountered the black dog is dying in a series of freak accidents.

Bad news for Tansy, who’s just come face-to-face with the creature herself.

🎧 My Review..

Tansy Bloom is a monster hunter who has been told to take a break from hunting but when she goes to stay on a houseboat near to the pub where her godfather is landlord, she soon discovers that there is some mysterious stuff going on around Norfolk. With her interest well and truly piqued, Tansy is determined discover the significance of the mysterious black dog who seems to be appearing  as a warning. There's more to the novel than just creepy monster hunting and as we get drawn deeper into the story so we begin to learn more about Tansy and of the events which have brought her to Norfolk.

This is a really fun listen and the ten hours of the story whizzed by in a flash. Tansy comes alive in this quirky story of monsters and mayhem which is all beautifully brought to life by an expert narrator. Tanya Reynolds does an excellent job of keeping the pace of the story relevant and interesting.

Tansy Bloom : Monster Hunter kept my attention from beginning to end and is another great production from Audible Originals.

About the Author

L.J. Weller, author of Tansy Bloom, Monster Hunter, said: “I’m thrilled to be working with Audible to bring my debut novel to life. From day one, Audible has championed this book with enthusiasm and excitement, and collaborating with the team has been a wonderful experience. I hope everyone enjoys listening to Tansy Bloom, Monster Hunter as much as I enjoyed writing it!”

About the Narrator

Tanya Reynolds, narrator and actor, said: “Recording audiobooks can be quite challenging, but when you can totally lose yourself in the world that you're reading, it is such a joy, and this was indeed a joy. All the characters were so vibrant on the page and so fun to read, and the story itself is a joyful journey into mythical folklore with a wicked sense of humour. I had so much fun recording this.”

Tanya Reynolds landed her first major role as a series regular on the Sky 1 comedy-drama Delicious. She is also well known for playing Lily Iglehart in the Netflix comedy-drama Sex Education where she was a part of the main cast in the first three seasons. Other credits include Outlander, Death in Paradise, Emma, Dodger, The Baby, I Hate You and The Decameron.

Tansy Bloom, Monster Hunter will be available exclusively on Audible from 27th June and out now from Audible at http://www.audible.co.uk.

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📖 Blog Tour ~ A Found Family at the Cornish Country Hospital by Jo Bartlett

Boldwood Books

22 July 2024

Thanks to the publisher and Rachel's Random Resources for a copy of this book
and the invitation to the blog tour.

A tragic loss...

Since the death of her beloved father, Isla Marlowe has felt the need to do something to honour his memory; something meaningful that will bring joy to others and repay the kindness of a stranger who changed their lives. She’s got the perfect solution, but she’s worried not everyone will understand.

A precious gift...

Aidan Kennedy and his husband, Jase, are desperate to start a family of their own, but finding the right woman to help them is difficult and some people don’t think they should even try. So when Isla offers them the chance to fulfil their dream, they can’t believe their wish is about to come true.

📖 My Review..

Isla Marlowe wants to remember her late father's memory in a meaningful way and can think of no better people to help than her friends, Aidan and Jase, who are desperate to start a family. When Isla offers to help them achieve their dream it opens up a whole set of circumstances which Isla could never have imagined.

This is now the third book in the Cornish Country Hospital series and each story delivers a perfectly balanced plot combining both happy and serious moments alongside a story-line which also tugs away at the heartstrings. Never afraid to consider some difficult topics the story covers the emotional journey of IVF treatment alongside that of some serious health problems which require specialist treatment. All are covered with an authenticity for medical detail, along with the author's skilful knack of bringing place and people to life. 

I like how the story flowed so beautifully, the author really does have such skill in making all her characters feel like friends so that even though this story focuses mainly on Isla and her journey with Aidan and Jase, it's also lovely to meet up with all those characters, at the hospital, who we have grown to love over the course of this lovely series. Beautifully, and emotionally written, A Found Family at the Cornish Country Hospital reminds us, quite forcibly, that sometimes the concept of family is not always the one we are born into and that sometimes friends are the family we choose to gather around ourselves.  

About the author

Jo Bartlett is the bestselling author of over nineteen women’s fiction titles. She fits her writing in between her two day jobs as an educational consultant and university lecturer and lives with her family and three dogs on the Kent coast.

Twitter /  X  @J_B_Writer #AFoundFamilyAtTheCornishCountryHospital

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📖 Blog Tour ~ Love at First Sight by Jessica Gilmore

 

Orion
4 July 2024

My thanks to the publisher and Rachel's Random Resources for my copy of the book
and the invitation to the blog tour

She's in love. Just with the wrong man...

Nora is done with dating, but still dreams of finding the one. So when a handsome stranger comes to her rescue one night and vanishes leaving only a business card, it's like a scene out of a movie...

It doesn't take long for the two to 'bump' into each other again, and Nora falls for the perfect-on-paper Gabe. Only a few weeks later, he invites her to Sicily, and she cannot believe her luck!

Until Gabe is forced away for work, leaving her alone with his big and warm family in gorgeous Sicily who welcome her with open arms. Everyone but Luca, his older and distrustful brother, who is always around.

Soon Nora finds herself on a dreamy, romantic getaway-just with the wrong brother..

📖 My Review..

Nora is unlucky in love but never loses sight of finding the perfect partner, so when a handsome stranger comes to her rescue she feels an immediate connection and is determined to give fate a bit of a helping hand.  Gabe is everything Nora wants in a boyfriend and when he whisks her away to Sicily to meet his family she feels like her life is going in the right direction. However, Nora soon discovers that there are flaws in her relationship and has some difficult decisions to make before she can truly be happy. 

I enjoyed the way the story developed, particularly the snippets from a series of letters written by Nora's mother when she too was young and in love for the first time. It's the perfect summer escapism as not only do we get an unashamedly romantic story but we also get to spend time on the beautiful island of Sicily, meeting and making friends with Gabe's wonderful family and spending time in the hot Sicilian sunshine in a gorgeous wine-growing region. Love at First Sight is about finding what is important in life, of learning how to take a chance on what is being offered and of opening your heart to love when the right person comes along. It's a perfect read on the beach sort of story, rich in detail, high on romance,  and a heartwarming ending, what's not to like? 

About the Author

A charity-working, dog-walking, child-wrangling, dust-ignoring bookworm, Jessica lives in the beautiful and historic city of York with one patient husband, one daughter, one very fluffy dog, two dog-loathing cats and a goldfish called Bob.

As day dreaming is her very favourite hobby and she loves a good happy-ever-after Jessica can't believe she's lucky enough to write romance for a living. 

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