Review - The Summer Season by Julia Williams

Absolutely loved this wonderfully enchanting, delightful book.

Heartsease House belongs to widower Joel, who is trying hard to come to terms with the loss of his wife Claire and struggling to bring up their son singlehandedly.  Lauren, also a single parent, to twin girls and Claire’s best friend, helps him with child care but he takes her very much for granted, and is often late.  Both miss Claire terribly in their own special ways. 

Joel had always planned to restore the house, but no longer had the energy or enthusiasm to do so, until one night he discovers guerrilla gardener Kezzie in his garden.   Kezzie had run away from ex boyfriend and her life in London, to stay at her aunt’s house in the village.  She thought that the house and garden were both unlived in as they needed so much work and she eventually inspires Joel to look into the history of the house and the garden while the restoration takes place and the fascinating story of his ancestors unravels. 

While plans to hold a village fayre progress, so do the interesting lives of Joel, Kezzie, Lauren and her ex Troy. 

This is a delightful, gentle, romantic, funny story which tugged at my heartstrings many times.  It was really two stories; that of today with the characters I mention above, but also the story of Edward and Lily and their family history spinning the tale of the house and gardens.  It was fabulous, unravelling throughout the book.   

I spent the last few chapters reading through my tears, always a sign to me of a great writer, when they can move you to tears through their words.   I felt as if I’d been transported to the village of Heartsease and could picture all of it.  I loved the village spirit and enthusiasm of all the community pulling together with one purpose and aim. 

I wanted to shout at Joel a few times as he couldn’t see what was right in front of him.  I could see the story heading one way, when I wanted it to head another.  Yet the end was perfect, such a pleasure for me, exactly what I wanted to happen.  Don’t you just love a happy ending?

Julia’s writing is beautiful, descriptive, colourful and so enjoyable.  Another unputdownable book, and I enjoyed every single page.  A truly wonderful and charming novel. 

Julia Williams lives in Surrey with her dentist husband David and her four children.  After studying English at Liverpool University, she entered the world of publishing, firstly working with academic books, then switching to children’s books which she adored.  After the birth of her second child, she decided to start a freelance career and decided that it was a good time to start her writing.  She has written 5 Novels and also children's books.

Julia is also a member of the Romantic Novelists Association. 

Links

www.juliawilliamsauthor.com/

www.twitter.com/JCCWilliams

www.facebook.com/Julia-Williams

You can buy The Summer Season via Amazon by clicking here

Review - A Slot Machine Ate My Midlife Crisis by Irene Woodbury

WOW!  I’ve never physically been to Las Vegas, always been on my “Places To Go” List, but I really do feel like I’ve lived the high life there, after reading this great fun book by Irene Woodbury.

Newly wed Wendy, was already feeling a little stale in her relationship after moving from her home town to Houston to where husband Roger had a thriving career and worked all hours to build a name for himself.  She had recently been made redundant and after trying to work her way through that bombshell, the fact that she hardly saw her husband, and the fact that they slept in separate bedrooms due to a “pest” problem in the house, when man mad friend Paula invited her to a girls long weekend in Vegas, Paula thought “hell – why not!”

Much to Roger’s disgust, after what was an interesting weekend, in a five star hotel in Vegas, when Wendy rediscovered the fact that Paula had no rules and no morals, she realised that she hadn’t really got anything to go back for, so at the last minute, before boarding the plane, she turned right round and decided to stay for a little longer.  She had no idea how long for, but took a temporary let on a downtown apartment in a complex full of colourful characters to say the least.  She had a number of “phone fights” with Roger, which was understandable as she couldn’t’ tell him just how long she was planning to remain.  Should she stay, at this place where she found  fun and friendship? Or should she return to her boring life back in Houston?  What does she do? Come on – you know I’m not going to tell you!

This novel was fun filled, action packed and funny from start to finish.  You find yourself relating to the characters easily and Irene wrote about Vegas in a way that painted it so colourfully and it certainly came to life for me.  I found myself understanding Wendy’s point of view and Roger’s too, and actually thought she was torn between two completely different lives.

Just after I finished reading this book, I watched the hilarious movie The Hangover which was also filmed in Vegas and I felt like I’d already been there!  

Irene writes in a way that flows really well and keeps your interest at all times.  I did wonder if she was working for the Last Vegas Tourist Board at one stage, the way she describes Vegas certainly made me want to hop on a plane immediately and go there!

A highly enjoyable, entertaining read, which made me forget about everything but the book. 

Irene Woodbury lives in Denver with her husband Richard.  This book was inspired by Irene’s love of travel writing.  Between 2000 and 2006, she had many stories published in many newspapers, including the Washington Post, London Daily Telegraph, Los Angeles Times, Miami Herald, Toronto Star, and Nevada and The Affluent Traveler magazines. 

As one of her favorite destinations was Las Vegas; she always believed Sin City would be the perfect setting for a novel.  In 2006, she came up with the idea for Slot, and, four-and-a-half years, and many visits later, it was finished.  

Links

http://www.irenewoodbury.com

www.facebook.com/irene.woodbury

www.twitter.com/irenewoodbury

Buy this book on Amazon by clicking here

Review - While I'm Still Myself by Jeremy Mark Lane

While I’m Still Myself is a delightful collection of short stories where Jeremy Lane writes about how life can turn on a sixpence, when you are least expecting it. 

It shows how a totally unexpected brief encounter can turn your life around and have a huge impact on it which can never be changed. 

It shows that love and life doesn't have to span a lifetime.  That a sudden meeting can spark a deep and meaningful, life changing, all consuming, memorable love that can disappear as quickly as it came into your life, yet will never be forgotten.   

Some of the stores are about :

• A passionate December love affair.
• The meeting of an unexpected traveler.
• The consequences of protecting a young new acquaintance.
• A journey into an unknown past.

The collection is well written, interesting and descriptive, immediately drawing you into each individual story.  The stories are deep, moving and emotional.  The characters are well developed and the places described so you can easily imagine how they look. 

Probably my only critisism, was that just as I was getting into the story, it suddenly ended and left me wanting each one to develop into more, wondering what would happen to the characters and how the story would pan out. 

I also love Jeremy's dedication at the start of the book to his wife and children.  Simple but beautiful.

Jeremy Lane lives in North Texas with his wife and three children.  His first collection of short stories, entitled “Here and Gone”, was published in 2010 by Ether Books, a digital publisher located in the UK.
“While I’m Still Myself” is published in paperback by Tate Publishing early in 2012.

His work has also been featured in many literary sites and journals, including MUSCADINE LINES: A SOUTHERN JOURNAL.

 

You can like Jeremy on Facebook by clicking here

You can follow Jeremy on Twitter by clicking here

You can check out Jeremy's website here

You can buy While I'm Still Myself via Amazon here



Review - The Bridge Club by Patricia Sands

A delightful tale of friendship and love between an amazing group of women.

The Bridge Club is the story of eight women all with completely different outlooks, lifestyles and personalities, who meet to initially play Bridge on a monthly basis, despite what is going on in their lives.  Each of the women has their own difficulties to admit to both themselves and to the group, and together they go through lifes ups and downs with strong friendship binding them together. 

The story covers 4 decades and starts where the group get together at a time where they are all roughly 60, and they are all asked about when the club has helped them to get through a particular time in their life.  Each chapter is about one of the characters in the book. 

The final chapter, was one which covers a subject that I think most people dread - dementia - and it is covered with empathy and understanding.

As I was reading this book, I kept thinking about how much my Mom would have loved it.  It reminded me of the friendship that my Mom and her best friend (my Godmother) had shared for over 57 years, before my Mom lost her battle with cancer. 

It made me realise that whatever happens in your life, good and true friends are so important to help you get through the rollercoaster issues that life can throw at you.  Through the good times and the bad, true friends will be there for you through thick and thin, without judging you, whether they think you are right or wrong, they are just there for you, loyal to the end.  

I hope that I am lucky enough that the good and true friends I've made in my lifetime, will turn out to be as good as the friendships that I read about in this delightful book by Patricia.  I'm know I have a few that I can say definitely will.

This was a book which was emotional, at which I laughed and I cried.  It's a book that women of all ages I would think, would relate to.  The characters were well formed, and likeable.  The subjects that are covered are understandable and some controversial which make you question your own thoughts and beliefs but you can relate to each and every one of them entirely.

I found this to be a thoroughly enjoyable read, although I did feel a little exhausted as I'd lived through all the issues by the end!

Patricia Sands lives in Toronto, Canada and has degrees from both the University of Waterloo and York University. With a happily blended family of seven adult children and, at last count, six grandchildren, life is full and time is short. Patricia has told stories all of her life through photography. She began to write a few years ago and she is currently working on her second novel. 

Patricia is an author with www.loveahappyending.com 
You can following Patricia on twitter www.twitter.com/@patricia_sands
Her website  is www.patriciasandsauthor.com
You can buy The Bridge Club via Amazon http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bridge-Club-Patricia-Sands/dp/1450241352/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1325795696&sr=1-1

Review - Breakfast At Darcy's

What a delightfully charming and romantic story!

London beauty and fashion journalist Darcy McCall is flabbergasted to find out that she is the sole beneficiary of her Aunt Molly’s will as she regretfully hadn’t seen her Aunty for a number of years.  What she actually inherits is Tara Island, on the west coast of Ireland, which hasn’t been inhabited for years, but there are conditions!  She must stay there for at least twelve months, and she must build a community to live and to earn a living there.  

Darcy makes the choice to leave her life in London and all that being a beauty and fashion journalist entails, and hang up her Jimmy Choos to rough it on Tara Island and take on her Aunt’s challenge.  Will she rise to the challenge, or will she give up at the first sign of trouble?  Will the people that she has chosen to go with her, help her to build this new life and will it be a success or will she fail?

Breakfast At Darcy’s was a delightfully, gentle and romantic story, with some fabulous characters to meet along the way, and I really didn’t want it to end.  I started reading this on New Year’s Day and read, and read and read!    At page 354, I had to give up because I couldn’t see anymore and I’d probably been a bit antisocial (for a change), but I loved every second of it.   I then picked it up again yesterday to finish it as I was out all day on Monday, but was SO looking forward to finding out what was going to happen on this idyllic island. 

It was such an enjoyable book to read with colours so bright and so vivid, making the island very easy to imagine and the characters came to life easily through Ali’s descriptions and I loved each and every one of them in their own way (well, maybe except for one!).  I could have hopped on a boat and headed off to Tara Island myself, it was painted in such an appealing way that I just wanted to be there and experience the peace and tranquility that they were lucky enough to enjoy!   I wanted to walk on the glorious sandy beaches, have barbeques under a sky full of bright stars, and build new and genuine friendships with the fabulous people who lived there. 

It was a book which was full of fun, and romance with plenty of laughs along the way, and it left me feeling all warm and fuzzy when I’d finished it!   A charming and deliciously delightful book that I think everyone should experience!

Ali McNamara lives in Cambridgeshire with her husband and two children and Jake her golden lab.   When she isn’t writing, she enjoys reality TV, eating chocolate and loves the beach and the sea. She loves to have get glammed up and go out partying, which is a real change from sitting at a desk writing.  Her writing started, when she wrote for fun on Ronan Keating’s website and the stories were eventually sold for his fundraising charity.  She realised that not only did she enjoy writing, but that people thoroughly enjoyed reading her work and decided to write a novel.  Her first novel From Notting Hill with Love…actually was published in late 2010. 

http://www.alimcnamara.co.uk

www.twitter.com/AliMcNamara

http://www.facebook.com/ali.mcnamara.author

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Breakfast-At-Darcys-Ali-McNamara/dp/0751547409/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1321963324&sr=8-1