Beneath the Orange Blossom

by

Emma Cowell

 Lost love. A devastating secret. And a summer that could change everything…

Two years on from her husband’s death, dressmaker Ellen is learning how to live again and put memories of a difficult marriage behind her.

However, never far from her mind is another memory: Alexandros, her first love from the summer she turned eighteen.

The moment she'd arrived in his hometown of Kardamyli in Greece, Ellen had been intoxicated by the scent of orange blossom in the air, the days of endless sunshine and sparkling azure waters – but most of all by Alexandros himself. They were meant to be, until a devastating secret forced Ellen to leave and never look back…

But now, when her best friend suggests they recreate their teenage summer in Greece, Ellen knows it’s time to confront her past. Will Greece give her the freedom – and happiness – she desperately craves? And there, amidst the lush olive groves, could she rediscover the love she thought she’d lost forever?

REVIEW

When Ellen loses her husband suddenly, everyone thinks she is the grieving widow, but little do they know that she is glad to finally be free of him. After decades of living with her abusive husband (who was a highly respected Police Inspector) and finally having enough of being her grandchildren's babysitter, she jets off to Greece to the place where she met the only man she ever truly loved. Alexandros. 

Ellen arrives in the little town of Kardamyli in Greece with her friend Penny to try to relive a little bit of their youth, but will Alexandros still be there and if so, how will she explain to him how and why she left, not to return for decades.

The two women are only in the town for a matter of days when Ellen (who is a seamstress) is pulled in to help the local dressmaker make the costumes for a festival that is happening in only a few days time and her friend Penny (who can be a piece of work at times!) is not happy at being left to her own devices, but Ellen is in her element and works all the hours she can to help the local dressmaker who is indisposed.

It's only when Ellen is at the festival amongst all the crowds that she sees a familiar face and all the memories from long ago come flooding back...

This holiday to Greece was supposed to be a trip down memory lane, but a whole can of worms open up instead. 

A real page turner with great characters and such attention to detail that really puts you in the holiday mood and I can't wait to read more from this author. 

 Somewhere Only We Know

by

Cathy Bramley

When Magnolia Jones finds her daughter's travel journal, she can think of no better way to honour her life than setting off on the gap year trip that twenty-three-year-old Brontë had dreamed of taking.

It was meant to be Brontë's adventure, but perhaps following her daughter's footsteps around the world is exactly what Magnolia needs to piece her broken heart back together and begin to heal.

As her travels take her further away from home, memories of a long-ago summer come flooding back. Magnolia barely recognises that girl she used to be - the dreams she had, the freedom ahead, the midnight kisses on the beach with curly-haired, brown eyed Jackson.

Maybe, just maybe, in this magical place that is somewhere only they know, Magnolia is about to discover that her journey isn't over - it's just about to begin...

REVIEW

Maggie (Magnolia) lives with her daughter Brontë and things are going along nicely when Brontë says she wants to go on a gap year after just landing a fantastic job. Maggie does not take it well, but when tragedy strikes and Brontë is killed by hit and run driver, Maggie finds Brontë's gap year book and once opening it, she decides that the only way she can honour her daughter's memory is to go to all the places that Brontë wanted to visit, including Bali where Brontë was conceived to try to find her father.

Once Maggie starts her travels she has memories of when she went travelling herself to Bali and met the love of her life Jackson. Little did she know that when she got back to the UK she would be pregnant, but that would be the last she saw of him for a very long time. 

Although the trip is difficult for Maggie, the people she meets along the way will influence her life forever and the little signs she gets, she knows that Brontë is with her on her journey.

This is such a lovely, heart felt and sometimes heartbreaking read. I loved the characters and really felt the grief that Maggie had, but her strong will to also move on with her own life was there throughout the book, she just had to push herself to find it. 

I loved this book and would thoroughly recommend it.

 Still Life

by

Sarah Winman

1944, Italy. As bombs fall around them, two strangers meet in the ruined wine cellar of a Tuscan villa and share an extraordinary evening.

Ulysses Temper is a young British soldier, Evelyn Skinner a 64-year-old art historian living life on her own terms. She has come to salvage paintings from the wreckage of war and relive memories of her youth when her heart was stolen by an Italian maid in a particular room with a view. Ulysses’ chance encounter with Evelyn will transform his life – and all those who love him back home in London – forever.

REVIEW

This was my book club pick and I already had it on my shelf so dived in straight away. Good job as it's a chunky read and for me a bit bizarre with no punctuation and no chapters (not a fan), but I soon got into the story of Ulysses who came back from Italy to London after the Second World War to pick up the pieces of his life with his wife Peg and friends Cress, Col, Pete and parrot Claude!

Ulysses often thinks about when he was stationed in Florence and meets Evelyn who is an art historian trying to locate priceless paintings. He never forgot their friendship and when he is left a property in Florence he decides to start a new life with his step daughter Alys and a few friends along the way, but Evelyn is always in his thoughts. Will he manage to catch up with her again before it's too late? Little does he know that his step daughter Alys is one step ahead and has already met Evelyn!

This is quite an emotional book with love, loss and basically everything in between! It's just the lack of punctuation and chapters I found hard to deal with, but I'm glad I persevered. There were even times in the book that I had to laugh out loud with the antics of Claude the parrot! but he saved the day on more than one occasion!

I enjoyed the story and it made very good conversation and opinions at my recent book club!

 Catherine 

(A retelling of Wuthering Heights)

by

Essie Fox

With a nature as wild as the moors she loves to roam, Catherine Earnshaw grows up alongside Heathcliff, a foundling her father rescued from the streets of Liverpool. Their fierce, untamed bond deepens as they grow – until Mr Earnshaw’s death leaves Hindley,

Catherine’s brutal brother, in control and Heathcliff reduced to servitude.

Desperate to protect him, Catherine turns to Edgar Linton, the handsome heir to Thrushcross Grange. She believes his wealth might free Heathcliff from cruelty – but her choice is fatally misunderstood, and their lives spiral into a storm of passion, jealousy and revenge.

Now, eighteen years later, Catherine rises from her grave to tell her story – and seek redemption.

REVIEW

I have never read Wuthering Heights or seen any films about it, so when I saw this edition I knew it was time to find out the story of Cathy and Heathcliff.

Cathy and Heathcliff become close friends when her father brings him home to live with them when he was a boy, but Cathy's brother Hindley never warms to him and swears that when he inherits Wuthering Heights, he will cast him out.

When Cathy's father dies and Hindley does take control of Wuthering Heights, Heathcliff is nothing more than a mere servant and is often beaten by Hindley. Cathy and Heathcliff become more than close, but their relationship would never be allowed by Hindley and so Cathy decides to marry Edgar Linton, the owner of a large house and land nearby, hoping that his standing and money would help Heathcliff to make something of himself, but her plan backfires and it changes everyone's lives forever.

This retelling of Wuthering Heights shows how deep love doesn't always give you the happy ending you want.

I'm still thinking about this story over a week on from finishing it. Love can be beautiful if you have the right mix of personalities, but sometimes love can be so intense it turns toxic and I think that's what I felt with Cathy and Heathcliff. Also, the fact that they weren't really nice people and very egotistical!

Such a great story retold and I would thoroughly recommend this version. Also came as a beautiful hardback with sprayed edges and one I will keep on my bookshelf for years to come. 

 The Black Feathers

by

Rebecca Netley

When Annie marries widower Edward Stonehouse and arrives at Guardbridge, his estate on the Yorkshire moors, she thinks she has finally put darkness behind her.

She is mistaken . . .

Edward's sister, Iris, still lives in the family home. A taxidermist and medium, she urges Annie to watch out for black feathers - claiming that they mark the spot where a spirt has visited.

At first, Annie dismisses her warnings. But, before long, an eerie almost haunting feeling takes over her.

What exactly happened to Edward's first wife? Why is Iris so disturbed?

And should Annie be watching for signs from the dead - or rather is she the one being watched?

REVIEW

Annie meets widower Edward Stonehouse and they marry soon after. She arrives at Guardbridge, his estate on the Yorkshire moors, with their young son and hopes that she can be happy there. 

She meets Edward's sister Iris,  who although can seem quite odd as she reports she is a Medium (and is also a Taxidermist), she does befriend her and they get quite close. 

When Annie is invited by Iris to attend a seance one evening, she is full of apprehension and intrigue, but when  Annie starts seeing and feeling strange things and thinks someone is watching her, she wonders if what Iris says is true. 

It is when Annie starts seeing black feathers around her that Iris tells her that it is a sign that someone is trying to contact her from the dead...

I loved this book. I read it in only a few days and am only sorry I didn't get to it sooner as I have had it on my TBR pile for ages! If you love gothic historical fiction, then this is for you - and there is a twist at the end!

 Broken Country

by

Clare Leslie Hall

Beth was seventeen when she first met Gabriel. Over that heady, intense summer, he made her think and feel and see differently. She thought it was the start of her great love story. When Gabriel left to become the person his mother expected him to be, she was broken.

It was Frank who picked up the pieces and together they built a home very different from the one she'd imagined with Gabriel. Watching her husband and son, she remembered feeling so sure that, after everything, this was the life she was supposed to be leading.

But when Gabriel comes back, all Beth's certainty about who she is and what she wants crumbles. Even after ten years, their connection is instant. She knows it's wrong and she knows people could get hurt. But how can she resist a second chance at first love?

REVIEW

Gabriel comes from a very wealthy family and Beth sometimes helps out at the house when they have social functions. They were friends for many years, but when Beth was seventeen, it turned to love and they spent every possible minute together until Gabriel left for university and Beth was warned by Gabriel's mother that he should be allowed to follow his path and she should go her own way.

Frank always had a thing for Beth, but stayed away whilst she was with Gabriel. They started dating and eventually married and had a son, but when Gabriel returned to his family home with his own son having lost his wife, Beth feels all sorts of emotions that she soon struggles with. 

I really don't want to give too much away with my review, because I think everyone should read this and make up their own minds as to what they think. I really enjoyed this book and read it very quickly. This was chosen as my new book club read last month and what a corker it was! and made for a lot of discussion! 

What I did love about the author's writing is how deep you felt for the characters, whether you loved them or hated them, you just won't be able to stop reading to find out what happens!

 The Scent of Oranges

by

Kathy George

Nancy has spent her whole life on the vibrant and gritty streets of Victorian London, first as one of Fagin's child pickpockets and now on the arm of violent and mercurial Bill Sikes. Nancy does what she must to get by. She's attuned to the harsh realities of life, but also knows how to find moments of beauty amid the grime, even if it is only the scent and taste of an orange - its miraculous colour and form.

When she embarks on a relationship with enigmatic gentleman Mr Rufus, it awakens emotions she's never felt before, and makes a better life feel possible for the first time. But when she takes cherubic orphan Oliver Twist under her wing, something even more elusive and appealing seems to be within reach: redemption.

This captivating tale of love, sacrifice, and the battle between good and evil showcases the power of compassion in a world tainted by darkness.

REVIEW

We all know the story of Nancy in Oliver Twist, but this story is her own, in her "own words". 

Nancy has been brought up on the streets and for many years under the guidance of Fagin and since meeting Bill Sikes, she has to be wary of what she does and who she sees because one wrong word could cause trouble for Nancy, usually by Bills' hand or belt.

When Nancy is working the streets, she is introduced to a gentleman by the name of Mr Rufus. He is kind to her and treats her well, something she is not used to, so she is on her guard at all times, but she has feelings for him that she has never had for anyone else before.

When Oliver Twist is brought in to Fagin's den, Nancy feels nothing but warmth and love for the boy, but when he escapes Fagin's and Bill's clutches, she feels she has to try to keep him safe, even if it means putting her own life in danger. 

I truly loved this book. It is written so well, a bit like a memoir by Nancy herself and her life in Victorian London. We all know the story of Oliver Twist and how the story ends, but it's the bits in between where we get to know the real Nancy and what a lovely, kind, warm character she is. 

I really didn't want this book to end.